Kowloon Farm Road Registry, due no doubt to the swing of popula- tion to east New Kowloon in consequence of the construction of many large resettlement estates there.
107. In the New Territories the most significant changes were increases of 930 and 490 at Sheung Shui and Shap Pat Heung respec- tively.
108. Of the 111,905 births registered in 1962 only 30 were registered as illegitimate. The births registered also included 122 foundlings.
Deaths registered
109. During the year 20,324 deaths were registered comprising 20,069 Chinese (11,009 male, 9,057 female, and 3 unknown sex) and 255 non-Chinese (186 male and 69 female). Table XXIV gives the numbers of deaths registered in, and the crude death rates and infant mortality rates for the years 1953 to 1962, and Table XXV gives the numbers of deaths registered by age groups during the five years 1958 to 1962. Table XXIV shows that the 1962 total was the highest annual figure since 1958, but that the crude death rate has remained the same as last year, namely 5.9 per thousand. The infant mortality rate of 36.9 per thousand of live birth represents a continuation of the downward trend in this rate since 1950. Table XXV shows that as compared with 1961 the increase of 1,586 registered deaths represented increases in deaths in every age group from 5-9 upwards. This Table also discloses striking difference in the numbers of male and female deaths in the various age groups, but owing to lack of information as to the age and sex groups of the immigrants into the Colony since the 1961 Census no accurate comparisons may be made. It is however noteworthy that in age groups 20-24, 40-44, 45-49 and 50-54 the numbers of female deaths were less than half or (in the 45-49 group) about half of the male deaths. The gap rapidly narrows in the three succeeding age groups, and from the 70-74 group onwards the numbers of female deaths ex- ceeded those of male deaths, which is as one would expect considering women on the whole live longer than men.
110. In relation to the statistics in Table XXV it is perhaps advis- able to repeat the warning given in previous Reports. The vast majority of the ages of the deceased are given to the District Registrars by relatives according to the Chinese reckoning, under which, for instance, if a child is born the day before Chinese New Year, it is regarded as being two years old on the following day. These Chinese ages are con- verted by the District Registrars to ages according to the European
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