Divorce causes more male suicide than female.
Among men, allowing for extant numbers of each class, we find these resultant proportions for 1882:─
| Countries. | Married. | Single. | Widowed. |
|---|---|---|---|
| France | 100 | 104 | 160 |
| Italy | 100 | 114 | 198 |
| Wurtemburg | 100 | 147 | 162 |
Taking France as an example, the following proportions are found among the suicides, after excluding males under fifteen years of age, and females under eighteen:─
| The Sexes. | Celibate. | Married. | Widowed. |
|---|---|---|---|
| Men | 422·14 | 271·71 | 737·0 |
| Women | 80·00 | 80·87 | 121·0 |
That is, unmarried men fewer than widowers. Unmarried women a trifle fewer than married women.
In Prussia, curiously enough, these states are altered; married men kill themselves the most often, and married women kill themselves the least often.
Italy, again, resembles France.
In New York, for 1883, of 124 men and 27 women who killed themselves, 78 were married, 43 single, and 24 widowed or divorced.
Another curious remark has been made, whenever and wherever the marriage rate is falling, the suicide rate is increasing, and the reverse. The first case is shown, of late years, by France, Germany, England, Austria; in Italy and Switzerland, from 1875, and in Belgium, from 1873 to 1876.