VITAL STATISTICS. By this term is meant the statistical record of facts which per tain to life and death in any given community. The term is sufficiently comprehensive to in clude the records of the smallest kind of a village, or those of a nation, or even of all the nations of the world. Vital statistics may even be said to constitute a science, 'and such a science, indeed, as requires very considerable knowledge in mathematics and mnemonics to master it. It is N.N ell defined in the statement that it °comprises analysis and synthesis of facts concerning the life-history of popula tions.° Its practical utility in the history of communities is very great, and is increasing every year. Any community which' pretends to keep a record of its doings must have vital statistics, hence all civilized nations must have them. It not only enables a nation to know where it stands, but where it stands with refer ence to other nations. It informs those who seek such information as to the prevalence of disease and death, it suggests sanitary meas ures for the relief of unsanitary conditions, it encoarages habits of careful observation and thoughtfulness on the part of those by whom statistics are provided and it is the foundation for the census, a regular system for which was first established in the United States. The early censuses were taken for political purposes, but in the seventh census of 1850 many new data were introduced, particularly mortality records. In 1910 the attempt to enumerate deaths vrai discarded, reliance being placed upon the re sults of a.ctual registration in the registration area. This area for deaths, up to 1915, included 25 States, or 4.13 per cent of the area of the cotintry, and 66 per cent of the population. Among the Southern States it includes only Kentucicy and Virginia and part of North Caro lina. While the birth registration is more de fective than that of deaths it is fairly well known that more than 2,500,000 of babies are born in the United States every year though less than half of them are recorded. A registration area for births has not yet been organized; many States have good laws on this subject which, however, are not enforced. A model law was passed in Pennsylvania in 1905, one provision of it being that pnmary schedules for vital statistics must be unifortn. A stand ard death certificate is now u.sed in nearly all of the United States. Now the census includes not merely a count of the people every 5 or 10 years, in a city, State or nation, as any body knows who has ever examined the bulky volumes of the census of the United States, but many other matters of great importance.
The registration of vital statistics in the United States belongs to one of the bnreaus of the Census Department. It collects statistics of death obtained from State registration and is supple mented by municipal returns from cities in States which as yet have no efficient registration laws.
'Vital statistics when well prepared and ac curate give valuable information, not only in regard to disease and death, but as to the number of the people and as to birth, age, sex, color, race, occupation and conjugal relations. They are also the basis of data for life insur ance calculations and they are concerned with the estimation of ratios in regard to births, marriages and deaths and with the manipula tion of figures for making a great many im portant deductions. It is essential that these fundamental statements should be accurate but unfortunately this is not always the case. There is, therefore, an element of possible error in vital statistics which must ahnost always be con sidered. They, however, usually permit con clusions which are approximately true, and by the aid of corrections they can be brought still nearer to the truth.
The vital statistics of the United States are by no means complete for the entire country. Bulletin 109 published by the Census Bureau 1 Oct. 1911, and which gives the mortality rec ord to 1 Jan. 1911, declares that in only 21 of the States are the mortality statistics complete (at date), while in 16 or States they. are given only for one or more Of the large cities. This constitutes the so-called registration area of the United States. Other tables of vital statistics are equally incomplete and for some of the States they are wanting altogether. Much remains to be done, therefore, to place these data upon a basis which is as scientific and as accurate as the best records of the nations of Europe. The United States is practically the only civilized nation which lacks an effective system of vital statistic& It is a subject which might well be taught in the medical schools, under the supervision of the government It is to be hoped that this end will be attained in the CCJISUS of 1920. The subject will be considered in this article under the divisions of population, birth, marriage, death, disease and life tables.