Page:Transactions of the Provincial Medical and Surgical Association, volume 2.djvu/151

 by name Zenobia Baragwannith, who had not long before, appeared at her landlord's court, to deliver up a farm which she had held on the usual lease of 99 years, all of which had expired during her own possession Miss B. expressed herself anxious to have her audience over, giving, as a reason, that "she was riding a young beast," i.e. a colt not thoroughly broke in, and, therefore, probably not a very patient waiter at the great man's gate. Several other instances are recorded of ages above 100; and in the parish of Buryan, (where there are no mines, and of which the population, in 1800, was 1161,) he mentions that there were living, in the year 1785, three persons (men) upwards of 90 years old, and thirteen men upwards of 80, besides old women, "who," adds the reporter, "never die."

I shall now proceed to put the truth of these partial statements and general opinions to the test, by exhibiting, in documents, the authenticity of which cannot be questioned, the actual ages at which the inhabitants die. The only question that can be raised concerning any of these documents is, whether they comprehend data sufficiently extensive whereon to found general conclusions, as to the true law of mortality of the district. This I must leave to the determination of the reader. I can only vouch for their authenticity.

The data on which the following tables are founded, are the parish registers and the parliamentary returns. Abstracts of all the registers in the Hundred were made by myself, with the utmost attention to accuracy, and it is believed that the tables constructed from these, also by myself, contain no material errors.