would therefore be abolished.
Fig. 38.—The heavy line shows the distribution of families of prominent Methodists (mostly clergymen) who married only once. Eleven percent had no surviving children and nearly half of the families consisted of two children or less. The dotted line shows the families of those who were twice married. It would naturally be expected that two women would bear considerably more children than one woman, but as an average fact it appears that a second wife means the addition of only half a child to the minister's family. It is impossible to avoid the conclusion that the birth-rate in these families is determined more by the desire of the parents (based on economic grounds) than on the natural fecundity of the women. In other words, the number of children is limited to the number whom the minister can afford to bring up on his inadequate salary.
Against