Productive Energies and Spirit of Massachusetts [pp. 459-474]

POPULATION.
longed, and that the time of our death may, in some sense, be post poned. Numerous illustrations of this truth present themselves within
the circle of our own knowledge. The late Rev. Dr. Ripley of Con cord, when settled, in 1778, had a feeble constitution; and one man
voted against him because he thought it useless to settle a man whose
probabilities of living were so small. He, however, by great care
and attention to his health, acquired a pretty good constitution, and
survived his 90th year. He probably added 50 years to a life, which
another man, under similar circumstances, would not have enjoyed.
" The tendency of our people is to become a manufacturing peo ple; and manufactures have been so far investigated, that the cost of
every article-material, transportation, labor, wages, board, &c.-is
?clearly known. But what amount of life is sacrificed thereby we
know not. We do not know, though we ought to know, whether
there exists, or whether there is any tendency to such a condition
in any of our cities and towns, as would justify the remark of Mr.
Cha 1.vick, before quoted, making them' characteristic of those
crowded, filthy, badly-ad(ministered districts in England, where the
averagcre duration of life is short, the proportion of the young very
great, and the adult generation transient.'
"The average age at death, as has been already said, is not to be
taken as an exact index of comparison for the health of a place, un less we have the number, age, and condition of the living. It is,
however, an interesting fact to be known, and we present, in the sub joined table, several calculations made from such data as are in our
possession.
Period of Obser- Numer of Place and Circumstances. Number of Average ago
vation. years. deaths. at death.
1779 to 1842......63.. Concord........................ 1,600...38.08
s11l to 1845......33.... Plympton...................... 494.... 41.00
1805 to 1836......32......Amherst, N. H.................. 815...... 32.00
1817 to 1843 o7......27 Dorchester, Mass................ 1,767...... 32.20
1842...................Massachusetts Returns.......... 6,986......34.77
1843............. 1......"..........7,798...... 33.8
1S44........ 1......" ".......... 7,689......3.74
1845............. 1......" ".......... 8,388......30.26
1811 to 1820......10......City of Boston.... 8,020......27.25
1821 to 1830............................ 10,731....... 25.88
j831 to 1840............................ 16,314......22.72
1841............. 1......England........................335,106...... 29.46
1841...... Ireland...................................28.00
1841 1........ London................................27.00
1841...................Liverpool.................................'20.00
1814 to 1833......20......Geneva, Switzerland, males...... 5,219......38.44
1814 to 1833........... " females..... 5,688.....42.68
S181I to 1833......20......" " both........ 10,907......40.67
"This statement affords another striking illustration of the influ ence of locality on longevity. Estimating, by the above average age
at death, the value of life to be 100 per cent. enjoyed by the people
e)f Plympton, then the people of Boston would, according to the age
1$31-1840, enjoy but 55.41 per cent.; or, in another view, the peo i)le of Boston, on the average, live a less number of years by 44.59
per cent. than do the people of Plympton!
" But while we have all these surveys and maps, pointing out the
boundaries of our counties and towns, the localities of our mineral
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