Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 10.djvu/529

* ILLEGITIMACY. 459 ILLEGITIMACY. For the student of morals and social reformer the causes and efTects of illegitimacy form the leading points of obsen-ation. That the number of illegitimates justifies consideration, the pre- ceding statistics on the general situation may give sufficient evidence.* Of all subjects for statistical investigation, illegitimacy presents perhaps the most didieul- tics, owing to the lack of agreement among dif- ferent legal authorities as to what constitutes illegitimacy, and to the fact that it is a phe- nomenon naturally subject to concealment. Com- plete figures up to date cannot be secured ; it appears, however, that in civilized lands children born out of wedlock vary from 3 per cent, to 12 per cent, of all births. In most cases figures on illegitimacy exclude still-births. Of the latter the number equals about one-third of the ille- gitimates. Attempts have been made to demonstrate sta- tistically the causes of illegitimacy, but with little success. The study, for instance, of the fecundity of women throws very little light upon it. In Russia, in 1806, the number of births to 10 marriages was 65, while the number of illegitimates was only 31 to 1000 births. During the same period in France there were only 27 births to 10 marriages, with 88 illegitimate births por 1000. In Austria there were 44 births to 10 marriages, and 145 illegitimates per 1000 births, and England showed about 30 births to 10 marriages and 42 illegitimates to 1000. It seems evident that the apparent strong tendency to child-bearing cannot explain the phenomenon. Equally uncertain is evidence gathered to show that climatic conditions have any large part to play. The following table (for 1890) presents some figures bearing upon the geographic distri- bution of illegitimacy. The division of cities is rnnglily made, those in the first column being north of latitude 52° N. and those in the second column south of latitude 49°: Illegitimates Per 1000 Births NORTHERN SOnTHEHN 70 138 154 276 279 39G 86 Venice Milan 189 Berlin 204 Saint Peteraburff... Paris 268 194 449 As is seen by the table, the difference is scarcely worth considering. It certainly does not cor- roborate the view that the southern cities are less moral than the northern. Tliat the degree of illiteracy must exert some infiucnce on the rate of illegitimate births can, perhaps, not be wholly denied. That its influ- ence has been much overestimated ^ems equally certain. Along with any such general cause must bo placed many other factors which complicate the problem. The table in the next column will illustrate this point. It has long been believed that the moral condi- tions of the cities are lower than those of rural districts. Increased knowledge of rural condi- tions has tended to qualify this view. In general, it may be said that the rate of illegitimacy is higher in cities than in the country. This is • As the rnlteii .Statt-s keeps no offloial record of births, uo authentic statistics for that country can be given. Vol. X— 30. due to a variety of causes. There is in the city less social restraint, less danger of detection of paternity, and a greater degree of abandonment on the part of the females. In some instances, however, as in Bavaria and in some other Con- tinental countries, the greater freedom of mar- riage laws and better industrial opportunities in the city render family life more convenient and irregular relations less common than in country districts, where the conditions of holdings hinder marriages. The high degree of illegitimacy is often an indication of certain laws which affect the situation, as, for example, was the ease in Bavaria. In former times the laws were ex- tremely unfavorable to marriage, and a high rate of illegitimacy resulted. The rate of illegiti- macy was as follows: 1865-69. 20.59 per cent.; 1871-80, 12.86 per cent.; 1887-91, 14.01 per cent. With tile pa.ssing of more liberal marriage laws and the use of greater industrial freedom the number of marriages rapidly rose, and a corre- sponding fall im the number of illegitimates took place. The number of marriages increased in the period from 1840-70 from 65 per 10,000 jHjpula- tion to 81 per 10,000 population; at the same time the rate of illegitimacy fell from 20.59 per 100 births to 12.86 per 100. Laws instituting an inquiry as to parentage have so far had little effect in checking illegiti- macy. The following table will serve to illustrate this feature of the case: Kate Per 1000 Children Borx, Period 1878-82. STiLL-BiRTas Excluded Countries where inquiry as to paternity is refused Rate per 1000 births Countries where inquiry is allowed Rate per lOOO births Belgium 77 74 73 30 28 Austria. . 144 127 Italy 132 Holland Sweden Denmark Scotland. ... 101 lOl 84 England and Wales 48 .Switzerland 47 Ireland 25 The presence in society of illegitimate chil- dren might be expected to involve serious eco- nomic and moral evils, since they are frequently deserted by their natural protectors, and since by heredity and environment they would natu rally tend toward pauperism and crime. The greater death-rate among this class of children diminishes these social and economic effects. The following table shows the death-rate among infants under one year in each class, in the coun- tries named: