178 RELATION OF ORIGINS AND NATIVITY TO CRIME It is seen that the rate for the British immigrants is larger by half than that for the Canadian born, and the proportion convicted among those of foreign birth is two and a half times greater. The problem is to determine how much of these differences is due to sex and age distribution especially favourable to crime. In an appendix to this Chapter, the method of making corrections for age and sex distribution in the different nativity groups and the actual calculations are given in detail, and those who may be interested in the mathematics of the problem are referred thereto. The rate was computed for each nativity group on the basis of the rates for Canada as a whole as given in Table 108; allowances were made for the extent to which the age and sex distribution of the three nativity groups differed from that of the total population of the Dominion in 1921. In other words, a uniform crime rate was assumed in all classes of the population, and rates were computed for the Canadian, ‘ Other British’ and Foreign born, which take into account merely differences in age and sex distribution. The rates so computed were expressed as percentages of the rate for those of Canadian birth, and the differences appearing are due entirely to age and sex. The results appear below, together with the crude rates quoted below: — TABLE 109. —ACTUAL NUMBER OF CONVICTIONS FOR INDICTABLE OFFENCES IN CANADA IN 1921 BY BROAD NATIVITY GROUPS AND THE RATES PER 100,000 POPULATION OF EACH GROUP. Birthplace CaNAdA. Lotter e rere aaas Other British countries.............o 4 veveie anne. A Foreign COUNtrien. ..ovveerverreieriirinnreeneerernnnnns « way wp oes NOL ZEVOI. te treirrnerennsrenrnsnesosen er oon Number of onvictions 10, 638 ~,50¢ 4,624 . 625 Rate per 100,000 of each group 156 236 408 Rate with Canadian-born taken as 100 100 151 2682 TABLE 110—COMPARATIVE RATES OF CRIMINALITY AMONG THE CANADIAN-BORN, BRITISH-BORN AND FOREIGN-BORN POPULATIONS OF CANADA, WITH THE BIAS DUE TO DIP. FERING AGE AND SEX DISTRIBUTIONS OF THESE POPULATIONS REMOVED. Nore.—Rates among the Canadian-born population = 100 in each case. Birthplace CANAUB. .,.-eeeeern serene eeeen eee eee Bhar BRIG. vvinsenis + inness anestis in iin memsmmmmmmoon un BOT DOIN. a iee ieee seit tere reese rennin \iJ Expected rates of convictions on the basis of uniform criminality in each group, and of the existing age and sex distribution of each groun. 100 1556 172 (2) Actual rates convictions in 1921 100 151 262 oo. 8) Ratio of actual convictions to expected convictions, indicating real difference in criminality apart from age and sex distribution of population. (Col. 2 + Col. 1). 100 98 152 On the basis of the number of indictable convictions per 100,000 of each age and sex group as shown in Table 108 above, the ‘ Other British’ born would have shown a rate 55 p.c. greater than the Canadian born and the Foreign born a rate 72 p-c. greater, merely because of larger proportions of young men in the prime of life and smaller percentages of women and children. The proportion by which the actual rate for the ‘Other British’ exceeded that for the Canadian born was 51 p.c., which indicates that the whole difference between the crude rates for the Canadian and ‘ Other British’ born may be accounted for on the basis of age and sex distribution. The same does not hold for the foreign born. The actual rate exceeded that for the Canadian born by 162 p.c., and only 72 p.c. of that excess is attributable to an age and sex distribution more favourable to crime. The conclusion obviously is that, in so far as convictions for indictable offences are an index of criminality, lisregard for the law among the foreign born is some 152 pe. (i.e 282) of what it is among the Canadian born, and that after due allowances are made for differences of age and sex distribution. It is shown in the appendix that the difference is probably greater than the index sugeests.