Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 22.djvu/656

 630 SUICIDE years. Table II. (A, B, C) refers to three separate years and shows the number of cases of suicide relatively to all the deaths and to the population for certain countries. The totals for the countries in question are also given. Table I. is obtained from Morselli (Table I.) with the addi- tion of figures that have been published since his work appeared. 1 Table III. gives the figures relating to three States of the American Union which have published statis- tics on the subject. II. B. 1876. Countries. Estimated Population in the Middle of the Year. Deaths. Number of Deaths per 1,000,000 Inhabitants. Suicide. 3 3 6 Total. Suicide. Other Causes. Total. 21,319,544 1,507,1792 5,022,390 5,336,185 1,893,100 36,905,788 27,6-25,825 25,921,687 2,800,0003 4,429,713 24,370,267 5,277,544 3,552,183 2438 269 522 439 506 5804 1024 3917 9S1 409 1770 111 131 631,925 40,054 153,674 116,348 86^58 828,270 785,396 656,469 77,140 85,025 508,545 92,213 73,998 634,303 40,323 154, 196 116,787 37,305 834,074 796,420 660,386 78,121 86,334 510,315 82,324 74,129 114 178 104 82 267 157 37 151 350 92 73 20 37 29,080 20,582 30,696 21,818 19,433 22,443 28,763 25,349 27,550 19,508 20,827 17,27'.' 20,803 29,800 20,700 30,700 21,900 19,700 22,000 28,800 25,500 27,900 19,000 20,900 17,300 20,900 liaileii Belgium Denmark France Italy Prussia Saxony Sweden United Kingdom England and Wales Ireland Scotland 165,901,405 18,321 4,096,8104,115,137 110 24,690 24,800 II. C. 1882. Countries. Estimated Population in the Middle of the Year. Deaths. Number of Deaths per 1,000,000 Inhabitants, Suicide. '" ' Total. o 2 '5 DO 158 177 134 105 255 191 49 191 371 105 74 21 44 184 Other Onuses. Tutal. Austria 22,316,567 1,590,206 5,389,732 5,655,197 2,008,100 37,769,000 28,596,512 27,790,18'.! 3,010,000 4,579,115 26,413,861 5,097,853 3,785,400 3530 283 724 595 513 7213 1389 5312 1128 482 1905 105 167 683,421 38,654 152,428 113,703 38,225 831,826 785,837 094.979 85,106 78,924 514,689 88,395 72,822 686,951 88,937 153,152 114,298 38,738 838,539 787,326 700,291 80,234 79,40(5 516,654 88,500 72,989 30,642 24,223 28,270 20,09fS 19,045 22,009 27,461 25,000 27,898 17,295 10,526 17,379 19,256 30,800 24,400 28,410 20,200 19,300 2-2,200 27,500 25, -200 28,870 17,400 19,600 17,400 19,300 Baden . Bavaria Belgium Denmark . . France Italy Prussia . . . Saxony Sweden United Kingdom England and Wales Ireland Scotland 174,043,732 23,406 4,178,609 4,202,015 21,986^24,120 III. Statement of the Number of DeatJis by Suicide in the under- mentioned States of the American Union in the Years named, with their Proportion to the Population. Massachusetts. Rhode Island. Connecticut. Years. Total. Per 1,000,000 Inhabit- Total. Per 1.000,000 Inliabit- Total. Per 1,000,000 Inhabit- ants.-* ants.4 ants. 4 1870 n 62 27 124 1871 122 S'2 19 84 1872 117 76 18 77 1873 117 74 8 33 1874, 115 71 18 72 1875 159 96 26 101 1876 119 72 18 69 49 83 1877 163 98 22 83 52 84 1878 126 76 21 78 55 83 1879 161 94 13 48 58 95 1880 133 75 10 36 48 77 1881 165 88 23 82 69 109 1882 162 88 31 109 65 101 1883 167 89 25 1884 184 96 85 1 The figures for Austria up to 1871, although collected by the official re- gistrar, are far from trustworthy. Since 187:! more reliable data have been obtained by the sanitary service. The registrar's figures for 1871 and 1872 have been corrected by Or Xeumann-Spallart ; those for the succeeding years are the figures of the sanitary service. A comparison of the returns from the two official sources shows that the figures of the latter authority are (except in two cases) 30 per cent, greater than the corresponding figures furnished by the former. lat December 1876. 3 2,760,580 in 1875. The first feature which appears prominently in connexion with these tables is, as already observed, the small absolute amount of suicide officially reported. There is, however, a general consensus of opinion among those who have made a special study of this branch of vital statistics, to the effect that the number of suicides which actually occur is rather greater than is shown by the official returns. This opinion is based on the known natural repugnance on the part of those concerned to make a declaration that any person found dead committed suicide if his death can be accounted for in any other way. Continental statisticians think that this tendency to " give the benefit of the doubt " in cases of apparent suicide in the manner least likely to give pain to the relatives and friends of the deceased is more strongly operative in England than in other countries, an opinion which may be fairly considered doubtful when we bear in mind the remarkable difference between the two sets of official figures for Austria. It is not, however, main- tained that the number of suicides is much understated, even in England, at any rate of late years. It may be observed that the information on the subject in any country cannot be much relied upon for years previous to 1850, at the earliest, and previous to 1860 for the United Kingdom. Perhaps an exception may be made in favour of the figures for Norway and Sweden. Differences in the mode of de- termining cases of supposed suicide in different countries make it necessary to be very careful in preparing " inter- national " statistics of suicide. The remarks made by Dr Ogle in the paper already referred to are worth careful attention. He says: " I have been tempted to compare the English figures with those of foreign countries. I have, however, rigidly abstained from doing so. Those who have read the laborious treatise of Morselli on suicide, and have noted how heterogeneous in form and how unequal in numerical efficiency were the materials from different coun- tries with which he was forced to be content, will, I think, agree with me that it is at present more essential that statisticians should look to the accuracy and sufficiency of the returns of their own several countries than that they should indulge in premature comparison." The tables given above are not conceived in a spirit contrary to these judicious observations, but are merely intended to supply indications of the general nature of the phenomenon as met with in different countries. Those who wish to inquire more fully into the matter will find all the available infor- mation in the works of Morselli and Legoyt. It is quite admissible, subject to the above reservations, to point out briefly, and if possible to explain, the leading features brought into relief by the tables. It will be seen that from 1868 to 1876 suicide increased in all countries for which returns were available in both years, not merely in number, but relatively (except Denmark, Prussia, and Scotland) to the population, and the figures for the years subsequent to 1876 do not show any improvement in this respect. It will also be observed that the figures for the United Kingdom and Italy are low, those for Austria, Bavaria, Belgium, and Sweden moderate, -those for Prussia, Baden, and France high, and those for Saxony and Den- mark very high. Attempts have been made to account for these differences by considerations derived from (1) race, (2) climate, (3) density of population, and other circum- stances ; but it cannot be said that any satisfactory result has been obtained from these investigations, owing no doubt to the fact that the phenomenon is too minute to furnish numbers large enough for the proper application of the statistical method. Investigations into certain other points have been more successful, such as the relative pro- portions of the two sexes as regards number of suicides, the relation of the number of suicides to the age scale (see POPULATION) of the population, and also the distribution
 * Population calculated from average annual increase since 18SO.