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56
As is well known, there was, prior to 1901, no clear indication
that the average rate of infantile mortality had declined.
The following table gives the chief facts for England and Wales
as a whole and for London separately :—
Annual mortality of infants under 1 year of age per 1,000
births :—
188l-60 1861-70 1871-80 1881-90 1891-190U 1901-10 1911 1912 1913
England & Wales 154 154 149 143 153 127 130 95 109
London 155 162 158 152 159 126 129 90 105
We are not in a position to give exactly the infantile mortality
of Acton before 1905. It has been explained that prior to 1905
the outside deaths were not included, and the reductions since
1905 are really greater than appears from the tables.
Average annual mortality under 1 year per 1,000 births :—
1878-1880. 1881-189O. 189I-I9OO. I9OI-I9IO. I9II. 1912. I9I3
158.1 159.3 175.5 125.8 138 70 83
Throughout the kingdom the steady improvement from 1901
onwards is one of the most striking features of the vital statistics;
and the figures for Acton show a greater improvement than those
for the rest of the kingdom.
Prior to the decade 1901-1910 the infantile mortality of
Acton was persistently higher than that of the whole of the
kingdom and of London, but since 1902 the average rate has been
lower. Even the high infantile mortality during 1911, the climatic
conditions of which year favoured a high infantile mortality,
showed a great improvement on the experience of former years
of a similar character.
The course of events since 1878 is more clearly shown in the
following diagram :—