Musical Composers and Men of Letters
Are Shown to Be the Most Likely
to Reach a Sound Old Age.
The Psalmist's "threescore years and ten" are not the average man's life,
but are named as the average limit of those who arrived at a normal old
age. The average life of men in various occupations appears in the
appended table:
Years.
Rural laborers 45.32
Carpenters 45.28
Domestics 42.03
Bakers 41.92
Weavers 41.92
Shoemakers 40.8
Tailors 39.40
Hatters 38.91
Stonemasons 38.19
Plumbers 38.18
Mill operatives 38.09
Blacksmiths 37.96
Bricklayers 37.70
Printers 36.66
Clerks 34.99
Av. population 39.88
The figures just given cover most classes of non-professional work.
Musical composers, however, are said to live longer than persons engaged
in other occupations, in proof of which this eminent list has been
prepared:
Auber 89
Monsigny 87
Verdi 87
Cherubini 81
Rameau 81
Haydn 77
Spontini 76
Rossini 76
Gounod 75
Paisiello 75
Salieri 74
Handel 74
Lesueur 74
Gluck 73
Gade 73
Piccinni 72
Gretry 72
Meyerbeer 72
Saint-Saens (living) 71