164 
A glance at these numbers shows that the greater mor- 
tality in unfavourable years arises from an undue increase in 
the number of deaths from zymotic diseases, or those which 
are commonly regarded as preventible. 
An impression prevails very generally that when the rate 
of mortality is above the average the excess is due to a dis- 
proportional increase of deaths among infants and young 
children ; but if the increased mortality is due to meteoro- 
logical causes we should expect that the increase would be 
relatively less among the very young and the very old, who 
are least exposed to the vicissitudes of the weather, than . 
among the more actively employed and exposed classes of 
the community. To test this point, however, I have col- 
lected in the two following tables the number of deaths at 
different ages which occurred in Lancashire during the years 
1855-67. The first table shows the number of deaths of 
males and the second that of females : — 
Deaths at different Ages.— Males.— Lancashire. 
Year. 
Total 
Deaths. 
Under 5 
Years. 
i 
5 to 15. 
i 
15 to 25. 
i 
25 to 35. 
i 
35 to 45. 
1 
45 to 55. 
55 to 65. 
65 to 75. 
i 
75 to 85. 
85 to 95. 
TO 
.^3 
a £ 
lO g* 
Oi 2 
1855.. . 
1856.. . 
1857.. . 
1858.. . 
1859.. . 
1860.. . 
1861... 
1862... 
1863.. . 
1864.. . 
1865.. . 
1866.. . 
1867... 
30,525 
28.693 
30,770 
32,447 
29,686 
29,639 
32,789 
32,933 
34,295 
36,099 
38,275 
41,530 
37,786 
15,049 
14,496 
15,684 
16,437 
14,522 
13,773 
16,345 
16,364 
17,161 
16,614 
18,032 
19,216 
18,067 
2,072 
1,935 
2,015 
2,628 
1,799 
1,544 
1,761 
2,159 
2,497 
2,540 
2,451 
2,809 
2,390 
1,892 
1,857 
1,895 
1,949 
1,724 
1,753 
1,923 
1,940 
1.852 
2 083 
2,189 
2,553 
2,091 
1,836 
1,727 
1,815 
1,833 
1,755 
1,875 
1,929 
1,895 
1,931 
2,241 
2,506 
2,785 
2,363 
1,999 
1,887 
1,942 
2,039 
2,005 
2,207 
2,239 
2,168 
2,355 
2,782 
2,782 
3,114 
2,642 
2,089 
1,971 
2,091 
2,169 
2,241 
2,334 
2,342 
2,371 
2,415 
2.839 
3,072 
3,336 
2,808 
2,103 
1,868 
2,035 
2,115 
2,285 
2,401 
2,441 
2,407 
2,479 
3,002 
3,114 
3,326 
3,012 
2,012 
1.690 
1,827 
1 ,871 
1,959 
2,167 
2,174 
2,106 
2,132 
2,371 
2,467 
2,651 
2,697 
1,212 
1,064 
1,223 
1,171 
1,177 
1,357 
1,387 
1,292 
1,219 
1,359 
1,383 
1,435 
1,449 
247 
189 
233 
222 
210 
218 
239 
221 
241 
258 
271 
289 
258 
14 
9 
10 
13 
9 
10 
9 
10 
13 
10 
8 
16 
9 
