Report to Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State For the Home Department, from the Poor Law Commissioners, on an Inquiry Into the Sanitary Condition of the Labouring Population of Great Britain; With AppendicesChadwick, Edwin
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Report to Her Majesty's Principal Secretary of State For the Home Department, from the Poor Law Commissioners, on an Inquiry Into the Sanitary Condition of the Labouring Population of Great Britain; With Appendices
Chadwick, Edwin
Housing -- Great Britain; Public health -- Great Britain
We here find that in the 14 counties where proportionate mortality has
been the least, the 184 deaths in 10,000 persons are made up by the 297
births; hence 113, or more than 1 per cent., is added by new births to
the existing population. In the 14 intermediate counties where the
deaths on every 10,000 persons increase to 208, there the deaths are
again made up by 302 births, and 94, or close upon 1 per cent., are
again added to the population. In the 14 counties where the increase of
the population is the greatest, the deaths in every 10,000 persons are
increased to 259, but here also we find that the births are again
sufficient to make up for the deaths; they are 348, and increase the
population by 89, or less than 1 per cent.
Hence, if the number of births in each 10,000 persons of the 14 counties
where the mortality has been the greatest had taken place amongst every
10,000 persons of the counties where the mortality has been the least,
then the increase of population in these latter by births, instead of
being 113, would have been 164.[27]
I must again observe that the registration of births in the most
populous town districts, where the mortality is greatest, is the least
perfect. The excess of births over deaths may really be taken to be
greater than shown in the returns from the districts where the mortality
is the greatest.
The estimated increase of population in England in the year 1840, as
compared with 1839, is 190,460. In the same period it appears that the
births exceeded the deaths by 143,178. The difference between these two
amounts, or 47,282, may be considered as the extent of emigration to
England, together with the cases of births not registered. To whatever
extent emigration takes place from England, there must of course have
been a proportionate immigration from other places to make up the
increase of population beyond the apparent increase from births.
It is observed in some of the worst conditioned of the town districts
that the positive numbers of the natives of the aboriginal stock
continually diminishes, and that the vacancy as well as the increase is
made up by immigration from the healthier district. In a late
enumeration of the settled inhabitants of the labouring classes in the
lower parts of Westminster, it appeared that not more than one-third of
them were natives of London. If inquiry had been made as to whether
their parents were natives, it would probably have been found that still
fewer had inhabited the district for more than one generation.
Simple enumerations of the numbers of a population are of themselves but
imperfect means for judging of its progression in strength. That is best
shown in the increased proportions of the adults, who are of the age and
strength and skill for productive industry, in the extended period
during which each adult labourer occupies his post.
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