Declining Birth-Rate

Maoriland Worker, Volume 3, Issue 91, 13 December 1912, Page 4

Declining BirthRate

Birthrate statistics for New Zealand, as given in advance sheets of the official "Year Book," are beginning to excite comment. New Zealand had in 1880 the highest birthrate in Australasia, (40.78), but in 1900 the position was reversed and in 1911 it was lower than those of all the Australian States except Victoria.

However it may be deplored by advocates of the Roosveltian advice to "keep your cradles full," fertility among women in New Zealand has decreased. Taking the number of married women at what tnay be considered the childbearing nges—from 15 to 45 years— and tiio number of legitimate births registered, the birthrate per 1000 married women is shown to be steadily declining. In 1878 tho rate was 337 per 1000, in 1896 it had fallen to 252, in 1901 to 244, in 1906 to 228, and in 1911 to 209. In other words, in 1878 one in every throe of tho married women between the ages specified gave birth to a child, while in 1911 the rate was only one in nearly five. The average number of children to a marriage is shown to have declined steadily from 4.54 in 1892 to 3.07 in 1911.

To those who see in the declining birthrate the sum of all the evils, these statistics cannot be aright but disquieting, but it is only one of the many signs of the awakening of the workers. Under capitalism, intelligent workers are slowly but surely beginning to limit their families. They know only too woll that the larger the family the bigger the struggle for existence under the present wage system, and they act accordingly. The women, t<lo, have realised that their sole function in life is not to fulfil the part of mere breeding machines for the purpose of providing a servile and superabundant supply of labor to be exploited by the masters.

At no time in the world's history was there so much wealth production, and yet at no time in the world's history were the contrasts between rich and poor so pronounced as at present. When the people were only familiar with agricultural, pastoral and domestic pursuits, although they might be poor in money and luxury, yet the necessaries of life wefe. within reach of every individual. But when modern industry came alone; and the machinery of production was allowed to become the possession of a privileged class the great mass of the people became the veritable slaves of their economic masters.

But the moneyed classes lost the key of thoir position when Democracy opened the school doors to the children of the people. The workers are becoming better finrl more enlightened ; and though the modern wage-earner is probably more wrotohed than, the slave of ancient times, because, knowing more, he feels morn the injustice of his loii in life, when his only rlioice lies between subjection to a master or the liberty of dying of starvation, the day is rapidly dawning when his education will be complete, bis intelligence fully developed, and he will rorae into his birthright. He is thinking along these lines now, and becatisp Vie thinks, so be limits population. When he comes into his own, the falling birthrate may or may riot still continue to agitate the minds of some relics of a bygone age of cheap labor and plenty of it, but we can certainly rest assured that we will have quality if not quantity. And which is to be preferred? We leave the answer to you.