The Litchfield County post., 1827-11-01

ing elictited, as we had hoped il would, an
answer from some ADLER pen than ours, we
will present few considerations, which we
hone will satisfy the mind Of the queFist that
no argument against the truth Of the Revela-
Z ton can be drawn from the source mentioned
but rather an argument in its favour. That
the subject may be clearly apprehended, We
will state again the difficulty Of our cOrrespOn-
dent, in his own words;
The whole surface of the earth does not
amount to much more than 2OO,OOO,OO0 of
square miles. If we deduct one-half for seas
which is probably less than the truth, then
we have 100 millions left to be inhabited.
Many persons appear to think that during
the Millennium, wars and famines and pesti-
lence will in a great measure cease. And
some suppose from the intimatiOns of Isaiah,
65th chapter, where it is said that the child
shall die an hundred years old &c. that men
will live much longer and increase more rap
idly during the Millennium, than at the present
day.
Now, if we suppose that at the commence
ment of the Millennium the inhabitants of the
earth will amount to only ten hundred mil
lion. little more than exist at present, and
double only once in fifty years, (which is
much less than the present increase of our
own country,) then at the end of / 200 years,
we shall have more than ten millions of
people.for every square mile of land on the
earth.
But if they should double once in hun
dEed years, (which is probably less than any
civilized nation has done) then at the end of
thousand years we shall have more than
ten thousand inhabitants for every square
mile.
Query. Where are all the inhabitants to
dwell at the end of DR.. Motifs 3G5, 900 years
if they only increase as fast as they do at pre-
sent in our own country 7"
As the opinion that the duration of the
Millennium will be $4,000 years, is not. so
far as we know, very prevalent among Theo-
Iogians, its defence may be properly relin-
pushed to those who embrace it. To US it
appears inconsistent with the many passages
in Scripture which speak of the Judgment day
as near at hand, and also which represent the
general course of the world as evil and wick
ed: to say nothing of the difficulties it involves
in respect to population. Those who defend
it lay much stress on the fact, that in prophet
ic language, generally each day is to be inter-
preted as year; and since 1000 years in
clude 365, 900 days, they infer that the Mil
lennium will continue $685. 900 years on
which supposition the world is yet in its very
infancy. But adopting, as we said, the other
and common opinion, viz. that the Thousand
years. spoken of in Scripture, is to be taken
literally, we shall endeavor to show, that un-
ill the termination of this period, the earth
win not be oyerstOCked with inhabitants.
And in order to do this several prelimnaries
are required to be established.
1. The Extent Of the Habitabls Earth. In
stead of lOO,OOO,OOO square miles, which our
correspondent mentions, we should estimate
the number at 4O,O00,O0O. The whole ex-
tent of land on the globe, in distinction from
water is stated by Hassel at 5O,554,9 $50 square
miles by Graberg, at 1885, 27; by La
voisne, at Al, 648,651. The two former may
benearest to the truth; yet it should be re-
mclnbered that large tracts are uninhabitable
On account of the severity of climate, and o.
Their large tracts are irreclaimable deserts.
2. Present population Of the Workd. 1t is
very common to hear the population of the
world stated at the round number of 8OO,-
100000. But while the difficulty of forming
a correct estimate is acknowledged, we con-
slider it certain that this number is too large
Matte Brun, one of the latest and best of ge-
ographers, calculates it at CSC, OOO, 900: which
is probably not far from the truth. The for
mer estimate is based on the superstition that
the population of China is S3S, 900, 900 !:
thing improbable in ITSELF and rendered still
more so by recent discoveries, through the
medium of DR. Morrison and Others. 1t is now
generally stated at 15O,OOO,OOO.
$. The Ratio Of increase. Calculation will
show that the population of the world has by
no means doubled so often as once in a cen
fury, Had it increased at this rate, on an av-
arage, since the time of the food, and had
there at that time been only two periods in
existence it would now amount in round num-
bers, to 1900, 900, 100000. But to determine
what has been the average ratio of increase
is not SO easy. The difficulty arises from the
impossibility of ascertaining with accuracy
the population of the world in any given peri
cd of any given period ofantiquity. We will
however fix on the 5OOth year before the
Christian era. The life of man was now re-
duced to its "three score years and ten."
The countries around the eastern shores of
the Mediterranean, whatever might be
true of others, were populous. 1t had been
found by actual enumeration, some 500 years
previous, that the children Of Israel and Judah
numbered 100000 lighting men; indi-
eating population of 100000. There is
no reason tosuppose it yet had essentially d.
minished. Persia, under the guidance of
Cyrus and others had reached the zenith of
its glory. In twenty Eve years after the date
We have chosen, Xerxes invaded Greece with
mixed population, according to Lempriere,
of 5,98S, 220 souls from which it is safe to in
fer, that the whole population amounted to at
N 4