M 16
Deaths.
The total number of deaths registered during the year was 10,558 (7,921 in 1915 and 9,585 in 1914): the general death rate was 24.0 per 1,000 as against 18.59 in 1915 and 23.24 in 1914.
The number of deaths amongst the Chinese was 10,357, which gives a death rate of 24.6 per 1,000 as against 19.0 in 1915 and 23.88 in 1914.
The deaths registered in the non-Chinese civil community numbered 201 giving a death rate of 15.08 per 1,000 (13.84 in 1915 and 17.85 in 1914). The nationalities were as follows: - British 52, Portuguese 47, Indian 45, Japanese 23, Malay 12, American 7, Filipino 3, French, Italian, Dutch, and West Indian 2 each, Swiss, Jew, Eurasian, Brazilian, and German one each.
The death rate for Europeans and those of European origin is 13.04 (6.2 in 1915); 11.03 for Indians (8.5 in 1915); and 20.05 for races classed as mixed or coloured (22.8 in 1915).
The exclusion of the Army and Navy from these statistics increases both the birth and death rates for Europeans and Indians.
AGE DISTRIBUTION OF DEATHS.
The total number of deaths of infants under one year of age was 3,389 being 31.8 per cent. of the total number of deaths as compared with 31.6 in 1915. The number of deaths of children between one and five years of age was 2,158.
There were 25 infant deaths among the non-Chinese, being 11.8 per cent. of the total number of deaths (11.1 in 1915).
Among the Chinese population the deaths of infants numbered 3,334 (2,466 in 1915) while only 2,361 Chinese births were registered, or taking the corrected number of births among the Chinese to be 3,305 as explained above, it is still found that there were more deaths than births. It is obvious, therefore, that many infants must be brought in from China.
DISEASES.
Respiratory Diseases.
The total number of deaths from diseases of this nature was 2,112 (1,484 in 1915) of which 30 were among the non-Chinese community. Of these 924 occurred in infants under one year of age. Pneumonia caused 1,577 deaths of which 1,558 occurred in Chinese and 759 of these deaths happened to infants under one year of age. The death rate among the Chinese from diseases of this system was 5.5 per 1,000 as compared with 3.8 last year.
Tuberculosis.
The number of deaths from tuberculous disease among the Chinese was 1,517 of which 963 were due to pulmonary tuberculosis. The percentage of deaths due to tuberculosis was 14.8 (14.4 last year). The average number of deaths from tuberculosis in the last 8 years has been 1,126.