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21
[1896

So far only the crude death-rate has been compared with the crude
death-rates of other places. It has been pointed out in previous
reports that this is not an absolutely fair criterion of the health of a
district, especially when comparisons are made with other places,
because the distribution of the ages as well as the sexes is different in
every district.
Thus for instance, in one district there may be 136 persons in
every 1,000 of the population under five years, while in another there
may be 150 in every 1,000. Similar differences are to be found at
every age, and, in fact, to put it shortly, no two places have their
populations cast in an identical manner. Consequently, before an
exact comparison can be made the crude death-rate must be corrected.
This has been done in the two following Tables.
In the Table XIII. showing the death-rate in the London districts
it is seen that when the crude death-rates are compared, Islington
stands in the fifteenth place, but when the corrected death-rates are
contrasted it stands in the twelfth place.
Similarly in Table XIV. showing the mortality rates in the 33
Great Towns the position of Islington in the list is changed from twelfth
to ninth place.