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DEATHS FROM VIOLENCE.
The total number of deaths from violence which occurred
during 1937 was 118, of which 79 were of males and 39 of
females. Suicide accounted for 27 of these deaths—20 males and
7 females—and the remainder, which were due to accidents and
other forms of violence, were made up of 59 males and 32 females.
The death rate from all forms of violence was 0.45 per 1,000 living.
The death rate from accidents, etc., was 0.35 per 1,000 living, and
the rate from suicide was 0.10.
Suicide. Ten of the deaths (6 males and 4 females) were
due to coal-gas poisoning. All the female deaths due to this
cause occurred over the age of 55 years. The next most common
mode of committing suicide was by hanging, which accounted for
the deaths of 6 males and one female. The remainder of the male
deaths were made up as follows: cut-throat, 2; poisoning by
lysol, 2 ; poisoning by aspirin, 1 ; drowning, 1; death through falling
under a train, 1; death by fall from window, 1. One of the
two remaining female deaths was due to a fall under a train, and
the other to the severance of an artery.
Accidents, etc. Of the 91 deaths, the most frequent cause
was accidental death at work, which accounted for 18 deaths of
males and 4 of females. Home accidents and falls caused the
deaths of 5 males and 9 females; 12 of these persons were over 75
years of age. Five males—ages ranging from 15 upwards—were
found drowned, and in the case of the other 2 males and 1 female
the verdict at the inquest was accidental drowning. One death
was attributed to war wounds.
Mechanically propelled vehicles caused the deaths of 25
persons. Particulars of these accidents are given in Table
XXXIII.
Trend of deaths from violence. Particulars of the deaths
from and the death rates from violence are given in Table XXXIV.
This table shows that in the last 46 years there has been a decline
in the death rate from all forms of violence—a decline which
really appeared suddenly in the period 1921-1925. The reduction
in West Ham has been considerable, and is much greater than
the corresponding reduction for the country as a whole. For all
forms, the death rate for males has been approximately three
times that for females—a ratio which is somewhat greater than
that for the country as a whole.
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