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preceding years: it was, however, 0.5 below the mean rate in
the ten years 1873.82. The marriage rate declined steadily
from 17.6 in 1873 to 14.4 in 1879, which was lower than any
previous year on record: since 1879 the recovery has been
slow, but continuous, the rate in 1882 being 15.4. The
marriage rate in London, in 1882, was 18.2, which is very far
below the average, although slightly higher than in any of the
immediately preceeding years.
BIRTHS AND BIRTH RATE.
The births of 4,327 children were registered in 1882 ; males,
2,240; females, 2,087; 3,489 in the Town sub.district, and 838
in Brompton, the total being 73 below the number in 1881, and
655 below the decennial average corrected for increase of population.
The birth rate was only 26.1 per 1,000 (28.4 in the
Town sub.district, and 19.4 in Brompton), being 8.2 per 1,000
below that of the Metropolis generally (34.3), and 7.6 per 1,000
below that of all England and Wales.
We have to go back to 1873 for so small a number of births
as in 1882, when the population was some 33,000 larger than in
1873. There was one birth to every 38.2 persons living, and
107.3 male births to 100 of females. The illegitimate births
were 208; males 116, females 92, and of these 186 took place
in the Town sub.district, which includes the parish workhouse,
at which institution, out of a total of 120 births—males 71, and
females 49—99 were illegitimate. The illegitimate births in the
parish formed 4.8 per cent. of total births.