Early Bills of Mortality Author(s): Cornelius Walford Source: Transactions of the Royal Historical Society, Vol. 7 (1878), pp. 212-248 Published by: Cambridge University Press on behalf of the Royal Historical Society Stable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/3677889 Accessed: 26-06-2016 20:14 UTC Your use of the JSTOR archive indicates your acceptance of the Terms & Conditions of Use, available at http://about.jstor.org/terms JSTOR is a not-for-profit service that helps scholars, researchers, and students discover, use, and build upon a wide range of content in a trusted digital archive. We use information technology and tools to increase productivity and facilitate new forms of scholarship. For more information about JSTOR, please contact [email protected]. Cambridge University Press, Royal Historical Society are collaborating with JSTOR to digitize, preserve and extend access to Transactions of the Royal Historical Society This content downloaded from 128.163.2.206 on Sun, 26 Jun 2016 20:14:19 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 212 EARLY BILLS OF MORTALITY. BY CORNELIUS WALFORD, F.I.A., F.S.S., BARRISTER-AT-LAW, Fellow of the Royal Historical Society. I AM not sure that I can say much respecting the Early Bills of Mortality, issued in this and other countries, which may be regarded as entirely new. I shall endeavour that what I do say shall be entirely true; or where any doubt exists, I will endeavour to make the fact of its existence plain. I may at once say that my present purpose is not so much to place before you the results of an exhaustive inquiry, as to furnish the outlines of one which I believe to be by no means exhausted, but which is capable of yielding to future students much that will repay their labours. My hope is to interest others in the pursuit, and in a certain degree to point out the way, and indicate the nature of the results to be gleaned. To commence with a definition, Bills of Mortality are abstracts from Parish Registers, either printed or written, showing, as their name imports, the numbers that have died in any parish or place during certain periods of time, as in each week, month, or year, and accordingly are frequently designated weekly, monthly, or yearly bills. Also recording (sometimes) the causes of (but very rarely the ages at) death; while some of them, more generally of a later date, include the number of baptisms during a like period; and yet later the number of marriages in the same population. By these means important factors in relation to the vital statistics of This content downloaded from 128.163.2.206 on Sun, 26 Jun 2016 20:14:19 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms EARLY BILLS OF MORTALITY. 213 nations are obtained, capable of being made to yield very valuable scientific results, as we shall hereafter see. I do not know to what period of the world's history we must go back for the origin of Bills of Mortality. That ancient Rome had its bills in the shape of Rationes Libitine, which were kept in the Temple of Libitina, the goddess of funerals, has been made abundantly clear. Her officers were the Libitinarii, our undertakers. Her temple- in which all the business connected with the last rites was transacted-served the purpose of a registration office. At this temple was kept an account (ratio ephemeris) of those who died; and a small sum was paid for the registration of their names.* ARRANGEMENT OF SUBJECT. It will be convenient at this point to determine the arrange- ment of my facts. The order which seems most suited to the subject appears to be the following:- I. Bills of Mortality of the city of London, and the circum- stances which gave rise to them. 2. Bills issued in provincial cities, including the capitals of Scotland and Ireland. Concerning these we may fairly direct attention to York and to Oxford, each of which was an early though temporary seat of the imperial Government : but to neither of which can I trace any early Bill of Mortality. 3. Bills of Mortality of the citiesof continental Europe- for herein it may be possible to trace a continuation of the practice of ancient Rome; but this at present I have failed to accomplish. 4. General conclusions. I shall treat the subject chronologically, and must avail myself more or less copiously of materials which I drew together a few years since for an article on Bills of Mortality generally in the Insurance Cyclopedia. * V'ide Smith's Dictionary of Greek and Roman Antiquities, where further particulars will be found. 15* This content downloaded from 128.163.2.206 on Sun, 26 Jun 2016 20:14:19 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 214 TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY. I give the literature of the subject as far as I am acquainted with it. This I think to be of the first importance. LONDON BILLS OF MORTALITY. 1562.-It is generally stated by writers upon the subject that the first bill for the city of London was published at the close of I592; but we now know that there was one at least thirty years earlier, or at the date of this paragraph. Our authority is Maitland, the painstaking author of the History of London, wherein he says :- "As neither the parish clerks' account nor that pub. by Mr. Graunt take any notice of the first B. of mort. pub. in this city for the year 1562, nor of those for the years 1593 and 1603, I shall supply these defects from the great and valuable library of Sir Hans Sloane, Bart., which, by the vast number of its books and generosity of its owner, is rendered as useful as any of the publick libraries within the city or suburbs of Lond. In the year 1562 a grievous pestilence raged in this city; therefore, in order to know the increase and de- crease of the same, 'twas judg'd necessary to rake an account of the number of burials, which being the first of the kind that was ever taken in Lond., it commenced on the IstJan., 1562,and ended the last of Dec., whereby it appears that the total number buried within the city and suburbs in that year amounted to 23,630, whereof of the plague, 20,136. '* Here is an extract from the bill so referred to, as given in Stow's Survey :- Buried in London, and the places near adjoining, from ) the Ist of Jan. 1562, to the ist of Jan. 1563, in the 23 630 whole number .. ... .. ... Whereof of the plague ... ... ... ... 20,o36 The true number of all that were buried within the Citie and Liberties ... ... ... .... 20,414 The true number of all that were buried in places near 3,2 6 adjoining to the Citie and without the Liberties .. 3 6 Then follows the numbers who died in each parish, making up the above totals. * I have used certain abbreviations in this paper, in view of saving space. I think they are such as will be readily understood. This content downloaded from 128.163.2.206 on Sun, 26 Jun 2016 20:14:19 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms EARLY BILLS OF MORTALITY. 215 I582.-There is now in good preservation in the hall of the parish clerks, in Wood Street, City, the bill for this year as follows: "The number of those that hath dyed in the Citie of London, and the liberties of the same, from the 28 of December, I58i vnto the 27th of December 1582, with the Christenings; and also the number of all those have dyed of the plague of euery parish particularly.-Reuela. I4 chap. Blessed are the deade that die in the Lorde, even so sayth the Spirite, for they rest from their labours. There is deade this yeere, that is to say, fro. the 28 of December 158I unto the 27 of December I582 within the vi. MD. cccc. xxx citie and the liberties of the same . .... Of the plague .... ........ iii. M.lxxv. Christened . .. ........ iii. MDiii Parishes clear of the plague .. ..... v. Out-parishes . ........ ccccxxx. Of the plague . ... ........ ccxxxix Here followeth the parishes with their numbers, that hath been buried of the plague. [Making up the above totals.] " I592.-It has been frequently asserted that the London bills of mortality owe their origin to the periodical visitations of the plague. I think this may be regarded as true; but whether in doing this we simply followed any Continental city I cannot yet determine. There was plague in London-not so severe as in some other parts of Europe-in 1582. But at the date we have now reached (I1592) we have the direct testi- mony of the Parish Clerk's Register to the effect that the plague again appearing in London, the "Fraternity of St. Nicholas "-formerly a City .guild,* and which afterwards assumed the designation of the "Company of Parish Clerks" (see I611,) instituted and provided a weekly account of the burials, which at the end of the year-December 21, I592, to December 21, 1593-were announced as amounting to 17,844; "whereof died of the plague 10,662; christened this year 4,021 ; parishes clear of the plague none." * Incorporated as early as 1253 by Charter 17 Hen. III. This content downloaded from 128.163.2.206 on Sun, 26 Jun 2016 20:14:19 UTC All use subject to http://about.jstor.org/terms 216 TRANSACTIONS OF THE ROYAL HISTORICAL SOCIETY.