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25
A THIRTY YEARS RETROSPECT
The accompanying graphs show the fairly steady
fall in the birth rate and in the death rates which
have taken place in the last 30 years in the Borough.
The reduction in the general and infant death rates
is particularly striking, both having been halved in
the period. It is not possible to attribute this result
entirely to any one factor, but undoubtedly a great
part has been played by the systematic improvement
of the housing and sanitary conditions in the Borough.
More recently, the adoption of specific schemes for
maternity and child welfare has accelerated the
saving of the children. Apart from the disturbance
of the Great War, the birth rate has shown an
extraordinarily steady decline during the whole period.
Whether the slight acceleration of this decline during
the past three years be due to an increasing adoption
of birth control methods, cannot be said. Having
regard to the economic and housing conditions of the
people in Bethnal Green, a reduction in the birth
rate can only be regarded as a fortunate circumstance.