BIRTHS AND DEATHS.

Auckland Star, Volume LVIII, Issue 107, 9 May 1927, Page 10

BIRTHS AND DEATHS.

tiAST YEAR SHOWS A FALL.

TWIN'S MORE COMMON

Deaths in New Zealand in 1926 were slightly higher in proportion than lor ly-jo or but lower than for tne seven years prior to tnose two years, l'ne race last year was 5.74 per luuO oi the population: lor 1024 and 1925 it was o.'M-, in ly&i it was 0.03, and in it was 8.77. The actual nuinoer of deaths was 11,810 compared witn li,o:2t> in 10z5.

There was another fall in the deathrate ol inlants under one year ot aye, the figures being <jo.9b loi 1J25, and 30.70 lor last year. Under the neading Principal Causes of Death, the "Monthly Abstract oi {statistics" gives the largest totai to heart disease ZOo'J, cancer 1341, apoplexy 704, accident 708, tuberculosis ou_, iuights disease 434, premature birth 340.

In spite ot an increase of nearly 250,000 in population there were less births in New Zealand last year than in IiHO. the rate is the lowest ever recorded in the Dominion, being 0.12 per 1000 lower than in 1025, whicn represented the lowest previous level.

A peculiarity ui the statistics for 1026 is the number of multiple births, one mother in every 78 giving birth to twins or triplets, which the "Abstract" describes as a phenomenal increase in the proportion over the previous year, the ligure for 1925 being one in every 92. Of the 28,473 births registered in l»2ti 14,019 were males and 13,824 females. According to the "Abstract" the masculinity to the birth-rate showed a tendency to increase as the birth-late fell, a state of affairs. probably due to the higher proportoin of first births to total births, masculinity usually being higher in first births than in the case of subsequent issue.