population and a less crowded rural population, I selected the county of
Rutland, because it had been selected as an average agricultural
district for a comparison as to its general condition by the members of
the Statistical Society of Manchester, and they deputed their agent,
_Mr. J. R. Wood_, to make inquiries on an examination from house to
house. The following are portions of his examination:—
“Amidst what population have you inquired from house to house?—Amidst
a portion of the population of Manchester, viz. Pendleton, having a
population of about 10,000; I visited every house. In like manner I
went through Branstoun, Engleton, and Hambleton, in Rutlandshire,
being a rural population of upwards of 1,000, and Hull, having a
population of nearly 40,000, exclusive of Sculcoates, Ashton, and
Dukinfield. I also went over for the purpose of checking an inquiry
into the state of the population of those towns, which had been
previously made by another party. In Liverpool I did not go from house
to house; I went into a considerable number of the houses amidst the
poorer districts. In certain districts of Manchester, though not for
the Statistical Society, I did the same. In Birmingham I made many
memoranda, and, as far as my limited time would permit, I visited a
portion of the population. In York, containing a population of 26,000,
I went into every street and court, visiting occasionally, to obtain a
general idea of the condition of the inhabitants. York included 23
parishes of small extent, all which I visited.
“What did you find to be the condition of the tenements in the rural
districts as compared with the towns you examined?—In Branstoun,
Egleton, and Hambleton, being in a rural district, the houses are low,
never exceeding two stories; many of them are thatched, and nearly all
are built of stone. To each a garden is attached, which is generally
of sufficient dimensions to supply the family with vegetables. As
there are no cellars, most of the houses have a small dairy or
store-room attached, which, however, has not been counted in reckoning
the number of rooms in each house. Forty-one per cent. of the
dwellings in Branstoun, and 51 per cent. in Egleton and Hambleton I
found to be “_well furnished_.” In Manchester and Salford 52 per
cent., and in the Dukinfield district 61 per cent., had that
character. The proportion reported to be _comfortable_ in each
district were:—
“In Branstoun 50 per cent.
Egleton and Hambleton 65 per cent.
Manchester, &c. 72 per cent.
Dukinfield 95 per cent.
“The word ‘_comfortable_’ must always be a vague and varying epithet,
nor is it possible to attach any precise definition to it. In filling
up this column I was guided by observing the condition of the
dwelling, apart from any consideration of order, cleanliness, and
furniture. If I considered it capable of being made comfortable for
the tenant, I set it down accordingly; if it were damp, the flooring
bad, and the walls ill-conditioned, I reported it uncomfortable. The
general appearance of the interior of the houses (in Rutlandshire)
indicated thrifty poverty, and instances of the squalid misery so
frequent in large towns were here extremely rare. In comparing the
physical condition of the people in the three parishes, Egleton and
Hambleton appeared to have some slight advantage over Branstoun, while
31 per cent. of the houses in the former parishes contained four rooms
only; 17 per cent. in the latter had this advantage. In its amount of
sleeping accommodation, also Branstoun is inferior to the neighbouring
parishes.
“From a comparison of the tables with those in a former Report, it
appeared that in Egleton, &c., 14 per cent. of the families have more
than three persons to a bed; Branstoun, 19 ditto; Dukinfield, 33
ditto; and Bury, 35 ditto.
“The rents of the houses in Rutlandshire would appear to be very low
compared with those in large manufacturing towns. Not only is the
average cost of the former less than half of the latter, but for that
diminished cost the dimensions of the houses are double those in large
towns, with comforts and conveniences which the latter never can
possess.
£. _s._ _d._
“Egleton, &c., average yearly rent 2 17 3
Branstoun 3 0 0
Dukinfield, &c. 6 14 0
Manchester, &c. 7 11 8”
But moral causes, inducing habits of sobriety, appear from the report of
the Manchester Society to contribute to the general result of the
superior condition of the Rutland population, in which the duration of
life amongst the lowest classes appears to be nearly as high as amongst
the highest classes in Manchester. Wages in Lancashire, it must be
premised, were then (in 1837), and, as I am well informed from the
payers of several thousand labourers, are now at least double what they
are in Rutlandshire. The Society state in their report that it appears—
“That the people do nearly as much for themselves in Rutlandshire as
they do in Manchester, notwithstanding the more extensive endowment of
their schools.
“In a separate examination of three parishes in Rutlandshire, carried
on from house to house, the larger attendance of children at school in
that county was confirmed, and it also appeared that the average time
of their remaining at day schools was greater than in Lancashire. In
Pendleton, near Manchester, one third only of the children appeared to
remain at school above five years, and one third remained less than
three years; while, in the three parishes of Rutlandshire which were
visited, it was found that, of the children who had left school, one
half had remained there above five years.
“The teachers generally bear irreproachable characters, which has
doubtless much influence on the character and deportment of the
population, whose manners appeared exceedingly orderly and respectful.
“In the dame schools it was very gratifying to observe the marked
difference in general appearance and order, as compared with schools
of a similar class in large towns. The mistresses are almost
invariably persons of good moral character, of quiet orderly habits,
cleanly in their habitations, decent in their personal appearance, and
of respectful deportment. The scholars, too, except in one or two
instances, were found clean and tidy, however mean their attire, and
generally remained orderly and quiet during the visit. The rod or cane
is much less in use than in the towns formerly examined, though it
usually forms part of the furniture of the school. The girls were
generally found sewing or knitting, and in many schools the boys learn
to knit.
“A society for the promotion of industry, supported by subscriptions,
exist in the county; and prizes are given to those children, who,
according to their age, have performed the most work during the year.
This excites a great competition as to which village shall produce the
queen of the knitters, or the queen of the sewers, and many ladies in
the county consider the Society to have great influence in inducing
habits of diligence and order. The moral effect is no doubt good, and
a greater interest in the lower class of schools is also thereby
created amongst the gentry.
“In conclusion, we may observe that the visitation of the houses of
the labouring poor in Rutlandshire, and the observation of their
language, manners, and habits, leave a favourable impression with
regard to their moral condition. Swearing and drunkenness are far from
common, and the general conduct of the people is marked by sobriety,
frugality, and industry.”
Mr. Wood was asked—
“You have seen the following returns of the average ages of death
amongst the different classes of people in Manchester and
Rutlandshire:—
Average Age of Death.
In Manchester. In Rutlandshire.
Years. Years.
“Professional persons and gentry, and
their families 38 52
Tradesmen and their families, (in
Rutlandshire, farmers and graziers
are included with shopkeepers) 20 41
Mechanics, labourers, and their
families 17 38
Bearing in mind the fact that wages are nearly double in Manchester to
the average of wages in Rutlandshire, though rents are higher in
Manchester: are the different chances of life amongst each class of
the population to the extent they are indicated by the returns,
conformable to what you would have anticipated from your personal
examinations of the houses and observation of the condition of the
inhabitants?—They are decidedly conformable to my anticipation in the
general results. I apprehend, however, that some allowance must
perhaps be made for the very high average age in Rutlandshire, from
the circumstance that many of the children or young people migrate
from thence to manufacturing neighbourhoods for employment. These
would certainly have passed the age at which the greatest mortality
takes place amongst children; but we may expect that their migration,
as it is a constant migration, might to some extent increase the
average age of death or apparent duration of life in Rutlandshire,
though not very materially. On the other hand, there is, perhaps, a
larger proportion of children in Manchester. The results certainly
correspond with my own impressions as to the relative condition of the
different classes in the different neighbourhoods.”
In the union comprehending the adjacent manufacturing district of
Bolton, the proportions of deaths in the several classes as returned by
the superintendent-registrar were as follows in the year 1839:—
No. of BOLTON UNION. Average
Deaths. Age of
Deceased.
103 Gentlemen and persons engaged in professions, and
their families 34 years.
381 Tradesmen and their families 23
2,232 Mechanics, servants, labourers, and their families 18
It is proper to observe, that so far as I was informed upon the evidence
received in the Factory Inquiry, and more recently on the cases of
children of migrant families, that opinion is erroneous which ascribes
greater sickness and mortality to the children employed in factories
than amongst the children who remain in such homes as these towns afford
to the labouring classes. However defective the ventilation of many of
the factories may yet be, they are all of them drier and more equably
warm than the residence of the parent; and we had proof that weakly
children have been put into the better-managed factories as healthier
places for them than their own homes. It is an appalling fact that, of
all who are born of the labouring classes in Manchester, more than 57
per cent. die before they attain five years of age; that is, before they
can be engaged in factory labour, or in any other labour whatsoever.
Of 4,629 deaths of persons of the labouring classes who died in the year
1840 in Manchester, the numbers who died were at the several periods as
follows:—
Under 5 years of age 2,649 or 1 in 1‑7/10
Above 5 and under 10 215 or 1 in 22
Above 10 and under 15 107 or 1 in 43
Above 15 and under 20 135 or 1 in 34
At seven, eight, or nine years of age the children of the working
classes begin to enter into employment in the cotton and other
factories. It appears that, at the period between 5 and 10 years of age
the proportions of deaths which occur amongst the labouring classes, as
indicated by these returns, are not so great as the proportions of
deaths which occur amongst the children of the middle classes who are
not so engaged. Allowing for the circumstance that some of the weakest
of the labourers’ children will have been swept away in the first stage,
the effect of employment is not shown to be injurious in any increase of
the proportion who die in the second stage.
In a return obtained from a district differently situated (Bethnal
Green, where the manufactory is chiefly domestic) it appears that of
1,268 deaths amongst the labouring classes in the year 1839, no less
than 782, or 1 in 1‑4/7, died at their own residences under 5 years of
age. One in 15 of the deaths occurred between 5 and 10, the age when
employment commences. The proportion of deaths which occurred between 10
and 15, the period at which full employment usually takes place, is 1 in
60 only.
In that district the average age of deaths in the year 1839 was as
follows, in the several classes, from a population of 62,018:—
No. of BETHNAL GREEN. Average
Deaths. Age of
Deceased.
101 Gentlemen and persons engaged in professions, and
their families 45 years.
273 Tradesmen and their families 26
1,258 Mechanics, servants, and labourers, and their
families 16
The mean chances of life amongst the several classes in Leeds appear
from the returns to the Registrar-general generally to correspond with
the anticipations raised by the descriptions given of the condition of
the labouring population.
No. of LEEDS BOROUGH. Average
Deaths. Age of
Deceased.
79 Gentlemen and persons engaged in professions, and
their families 44 years.
824 Tradesmen, farmers, and their families 27
3,395 Operatives, labourers, and their families 19
But in Liverpool (which is a commercial and not a manufacturing town)
where, however, the condition of the dwellings are reported to be the
worst, where, according to the report of Dr. Duncan, 40,000 of the
population live in cellars, where 1 in 25 of the population are annually
attacked with fever,—there the mean chances of life appear from the
returns to the Registrar-general to be still lower than in Manchester,
Leeds, or amongst the silk weavers in Bethnal Green. During the year
1840, the deaths, distinguishable in classes, were as follows:—
No. of LIVERPOOL, 1840. Average
Deaths. Age of
Deceased.
137 Gentry and professional persons, &c. 35 years.
1,738 Tradesmen and their families 22
5,597 Labourers, mechanics, and servants, &c. 15
Of the deaths which occurred amongst the labouring classes, it appears
that no less than 62 per cent. of the total number were deaths under
five years of age. Even amongst those entered as shopkeepers and
tradesmen, no less than 50 per cent. died before they attained that
period. The proportion of mortality for Birmingham, where there are many
insalubrious manufactories, but where the drainage of the town and the
general condition of the inhabitants is comparatively good, was, in
1838, 1 in 40; whilst in Liverpool it was 1 in 31.
I have appended the copy of a map of Bethnal Green, made with the view
of showing the proportions in which the mortality from epidemic diseases
and diseases affected by localities, fell on different classes of
tenements during the same year. The localities in which the marks of
death (×) are most crowded are the poorest and the worst of the
district; where the marks are few and widely spread, the houses and
streets, and the whole condition of the population, is better. By the
inspection of a map of Leeds, which Mr. Baker has prepared at my
request, to show the localities of epidemic diseases, it will be
perceived that they similarly fall on the uncleansed and close streets
and wards occupied by the labouring classes; and that the track of the
cholera is nearly identical with the tract of fever. It will also be
observed that in the badly cleansed and badly drained wards to the right
of the map, the proportional mortality is nearly double that which
prevails in the better conditioned districts to the left.
To obtain the means of judging of the references to the localities in
the sanitary returns from Aberdeen, the reporters were requested to mark
on a map the places where the disease fell, and to distinguish with a
deeper tint those places on which it fell with the greatest intensity.
They were also requested to distinguish by different colours the streets
inhabited by the higher, middle, and lower classes of society. They
returned a map so marked as to disease, but stated that it had been
thought unnecessary to distinguish the streets inhabited by the
different orders of society, as that was done with sufficient accuracy
by the different tints representing the degrees of intensity of the
prevalence of fever.
In the Whitechapel union, in which the special investigation which led
to the inquiry into the sanitary condition of the metropolis was first
directed, the numbers were as follows in the year 1838:—
No. of WHITECHAPEL UNION. Average
Deaths. Age of
Deceased.
37 Gentlemen and persons engaged in professions, and
their families 45 years.
387 Tradesmen and their families 27
1,762 Mechanics, servants, and labourers, and their
families 22
To judge of the comparative mortality amongst the average of a town
population, I obtained the following returns; the one from the clerk of
the Strand union, the other from the clerk of the Kensington union:—
No. of STRAND UNION. Average
Deaths. Age of
Deceased.
86 Gentry and persons engaged in professions and their
families 43 years.
221 Tradesmen and their families 33
674 Mechanics, labourers, servants, and their families 24
[Illustration: SANITARY MAP of the Town OF LEEDS.]
[Illustration: _Sanitary Report P.L.C._ Map of BETHNAL GREEN PARISH,
_Shewing the Mortality from four classes of Disease in certain
localities during the year, ended 31st. Dec’r., 1838, distinguishing the
Houses occupied by Weavers & Labourers & Tradesmen_.]
No. of KENSINGTON UNION. Average
Deaths. Age of
Deceased.
331 Gentlemen and persons engaged in professions, and
families 44 years.
348 Tradesmen and their families 29
1,258 Labourers, artisans, and others similarly
circumstanced, and their families 26
The remarkable result obtained from the examination of the mortuary
registries of the county of Rutland induced me to have them examined for
different periods. They have accordingly been examined for three
complete years, 1838, 1839, and 1840, and it is found that the same
general law of mortality obtains with little variation for each period.
As the climate or soil of that county might possess some peculiarities,
I caused an examination to be made of the average periods of death
amongst the agricultural population of all the unions in the county of
Wilts during 1840. In this examination the registries of deaths in the
towns were excluded, and only those of persons included who were
described as agricultural labourers, or as farmers and graziers, or as
gentry and professional persons resident in the rural districts. The
results of this examination are as follow:—
No. of UNIONS IN THE COUNTY OF WILTS. Average
Deaths. Age of
Deceased.
119 Gentlemen and persons engaged in professions, and
their families 50 years.
218 Farmers and their families 48
2,061 Agricultural labourers and their families 33
The following table exhibits the mortality prevalent amongst the
different classes, partly mining and manufacturing, and partly
agricultural, returned by the clerk of the Kendal union:—
No. of KENDAL UNION. Average
Deaths. Age of
Deceased.
52 Gentlemen and persons engaged in professions, and
their families 45 years.
138 Tradesmen and their families 39
413 Operatives, labourers, servants, and their families 34
The following tables exhibit the results of such returns of mortality as
have been made for quinquennial and decennial periods, from an
examination of upwards of 25,000 cases for this inquiry. They show in
the mean ratios for large numbers of the like class the steady influence
of the different circumstances under which each class is placed. The
labouring classes, it is generally known, become old the soonest, and
the effects of the unfavourable influences in the adolescent and adult
stages is shown in the smaller proportions who attain extreme old age,
and also in the periods of the deaths of heads of families of this
class, by which widowhood is produced. These last will be shown in
subsequent tables.
_Tabular Views of the Ages at which Deaths have occurred in Different
Classes of Society._[18]
┌───────────────────────────┬──────┬───────────────────────┬──────────┐
│ CLASSES. │Total │ │ │
│ │No. of│ │ │
│ │Deaths│ │Proportion│
│ │under │ │of Deaths │
│ │ 20 │ Proportion of Deaths │ under 20 │
│ │Years │ which occurred at the │ Years to │
│ │ of │under-mentioned periods│ Total │
│ │ Age. │ of Age. │ Deaths. │
├───────────────────────────┼──────┼───────┬───────┬───────┼──────────┤
│ │ │Between│Between│Between│ │
│ │ │ 0–5 │ 5–10 │ 10–20 │ │
├───────────────────────────┼──────┼───────┼───────┼───────┼──────────┤
│ _Gentry and Professional │ │ │ │ │ │
│ Persons, Children of._ │ │ │ │ │ │
│Manchester │ 21│1 in 3│1 in 24│1 in 54│ 1 in 3 │
│Leeds │ 20│1 in 5│1 in 26│1 in 40│ 1 in 4 │
│Liverpool │ 61│1 in 3│1 in 11│1 in 23│ 1 in 2½ │
│Bath │ 32│1 in 11│1 in 12│1 in 31│ 1 in 4½ │
│Bethnal Green │ 33│1 in 5│1 in 20│1 in 13│ 1 in 3 │
│Strand Union │ 21│1 in 6│1 in 29│1 in 29│ 1 in 4 │
│Kendal Union │ 15│1 in 7│1 in 26│1 in 9│ 1 in 3 │
│County of Wilts (Unions of)│ 25│1 in 9│1 in 40│1 in 13│ 1 in 5 │
│County of Rutland (Unions │ │ │ │ │ │
│ of) │ 4│1 in 4│ │ │ 1 in 7 │
├───────────────────────────┼──────┼───────┼───────┼───────┼──────────┤
│ Total │ 232│1 in 5│1 in 19│1 in 19│ 1 in 3½ │
├───────────────────────────┼──────┼───────┼───────┼───────┼──────────┤
│ _Farmers, Tradesmen, and │ │ │ │ │ │
│ Persons similarly │ │ │ │ │ │
│ circumstanced, Children │ │ │ │ │ │
│ of._ │ │ │ │ │ │
│Manchester │ 444│1 in 2│1 in 18│1 in 27│ 1 in 2 │
│Leeds │ 425│1 in 2│1 in 18│1 in 18│ 1 in 2 │
│Liverpool │ 1,033│1 in 2│1 in 19│1 in 33│ 1 in 1¾ │
│Bath │ 78│1 in 4│1 in 24│1 in 30│ 1 in 3 │
│Bethnal Green │ 142│1 in 2│1 in 20│1 in 28│ 1 in 2 │
│Strand Union │ 99│1 in 3│1 in 20│1 in 25│ 1 in 2 │
│Kendal Union │ 47│1 in 4│1 in 35│1 in 14│ 1 in 3 │
│County of Wilts (Unions of)│ 54│1 in 7│1 in 27│1 in 15│ 1 in 4 │
│County of Rutland (Unions │ │ │ │ │ │
│ of) │ 174│1 in 3│1 in 30│1 in 17│ 1 in 3 │
├───────────────────────────┼──────┼───────┼───────┼───────┼──────────┤
│ Total │ 2,496│1 in 2¼│1 in 20│1 in 23│ 1 in 2 │
├───────────────────────────┼──────┼───────┼───────┼───────┼──────────┤
│ _Agricultural and other │ │ │ │ │ │
│ Labourers, Artisans, and │ │ │ │ │ │
│ Servants, Children of._ │ │ │ │ │ │
│Manchester │ 3,106│1 in 2 │1 in 22│1 in 19│ 1 in 1½ │
│Leeds │ 2,245│1 in 2 │1 in 14│1 in 14│ 1 in 1½ │
│Liverpool │ 4,004│1 in 1½│1 in 15│1 in 33│ 1 in 1¼ │
│Bath │ 508│1 in 2 │1 in 19│1 in 18│ 1 in 1¾ │
│Bethnal Green │ 908│1 in 2 │1 in 15│1 in 30│ 1 in 1½ │
│Strand Union │ 367│1 in 2 │1 in 14│1 in 23│ 1 in 2 │
│Kendal Union │ 186│1 in 3 │1 in 19│1 in 11│ 1 in 2 │
│County of Wilts (Unions of)│ 954│1 in 3 │1 in 21│1 in 14│ 1 in 2 │
│County of Rutland (Unions │ │ │ │ │ │
│ of) │ 293│1 in 3 │1 in 18│1 in 18│ 1 in 2¼ │
├───────────────────────────┼──────┼───────┼───────┼───────┼──────────┤
│ Total │12,571│1 in 2 │1 in 17│1 in 20│ 1 in 1½ │
└───────────────────────────┴──────┴───────┴───────┴───────┴──────────┘