LAWS OF THE FERTILITY OF WOMEN. 



291 



the average production of each mother. In other words, excluding the large class 

 of wives sterile in 1855, we have 3 7 as the average number of children (surviving 

 or not surviving) in each family that increased in 1855. 



To compare with the above result, we may observe 16,414 women delivered in 

 the Dublin Lying-in Hospital during Dr Collins' mastership, who had borne 

 53,458 children, whose families, on an average, numbered 3 25 ; also 6634 women 

 delivered in the same hospital during the period reported on by Drs M'Cltntock 

 and Hardy, who had born 20,680 children ; whose families, on an average, num- 

 bered 3 12. 



As there can be no doubt that these 16,301 families are a fair sample of all 

 the growing families in Edinburgh and Glasgow, it appears that the average size 

 of growing families existing at a particular time in our population is between 3 

 and 4 ; and, if it be true that, on an average, children are born with an interval 

 not exceeding twenty months, then all mothers child-bearing at any particular 

 time have been on average less than seven years fertile. It is to be remarked, 

 that this statement concerns only the families of wives mothers child-bearing at 

 a particular time (i.e. in 1855), and is not to be compared with the corollary to 

 Chapter I., which includes all families, and especially the mass of completed 

 families. 



The accompanying Table (I.) shows the data upon which these statements are 

 founded. It, in addition, gives the percentage of children (surviving or not) in 

 families of different numbers, that increased in 1855. 



TABLE I. — Showing the Number and Percentage of Mothers Bearing respec- 

 tively 1st, 2d, and 3d Children, and so on ; also Percentage of Children in 

 Still-Growing Families of Different Numbers. 



Number 



Number of 



Percentage 



Percentage 



Number 



Number of 



Percentage 



Percentage 



of 



Wives 



of Wives 



of 



of 



Wives 



of Wives 



of 



Child. 



Mothers. 



Mothers. 



Children. 



Child. 



Mothers. 



Mothers. 



Children. 



1 



3,722 



22-83 



6-16 



11 



152 



•93 



2-77 



2 



2,893 



17-74 



9-58 



12 



61 



•37 



1 21 



3 



2,534 



15-54 



12-59 



13 



34 



•20 



•732 



4 



1,982 



12-16 



13-13 



14 



11 



•06 



•255 



5 



1,543 



9-46 



12-77 



15 



6 



•03 



•149 



6 



1,221 



7-49 



1213 



16 



2 



•01 



•053 



7 



848 



5-20 



9-83 



17 



2 



01 



•056 



8 



641 



393 



8-49 



18 



1 



•006 



•029 



9 



425 



2-60 



6-33 



19 



1 



•006 



031 



10 



222 



1-36 



367 











VOL. XXIV. PART II. 



4 K 



