Page:American Journal of Sociology Volume 3.djvu/236

 THE AMERICAN JOURNAL OF SOCIOLOGY

males engaged in the specified occupations (13.84 per 1000) are not comparable, as the former is based upon deaths occurring at all ages, and includes a large proportion of children not found in the latter. Above the age of 15 years it will be seen that the death rates of males in the designated occupations are uniformly

er.

In order to obtain an adequate basis for comparing the death rates of persons engaged in different occupations which will show the relative healthfulness of such occupations, it is necessary to eliminate the disproportions in numbers and the inequalities in the age distribution, and get results which will represent an equal number of persons in each occupation, dis- tributed equally as to ages.

This has been done in the reports of the registrar-general of KiiLrland for males between 25 and 65 years of age, by using the average death rate of all males between 25 and 65 years to determine the number of males necessary to produce 1000 deaths at a given rate, and the number so found is divided into the age groups 25 to 45, and 45 to 65 years upon the same pro- portion as that existing in the number furnishing the original rate.

Pursuing this plan for the registration states we find that there were 2,711,129 males in this area between 25 and 65 years of age, 1,788,854 being between 25 and 45, and 922,275 between 45 and 65 years. At the average death rate of all males between these ages there were 1000 deaths to each 64,558 males between 25 and 65 years of age. Subdividing this number in the pro- portions indicated for the population stated above gives 42,597 between 25 and 45, and 21,961 between 45 and 65. These num- bers correspond very closely with those in the English report, namely, 64,641 between 25 and 65 years, with 41,920 under, and 22,721 over 45 years.

The 1000 deaths among the 64,558 males of the stated ages is used as the standard, and the comparative number is found for each occupation by multiplying 42,597 by the death rate in that occupation at 25 to 45 years, and 21,961 by the correspond-