Daily Ohio statesman. [volume] (Columbus, Ohio) 1855-1870, 1861-02-19
From the London Times, Jan. %. ..
The Growth and Prosperity Of the American
Republic.

II the threatened dissolution of the United
States should be actually consuhmated,its citi.
zens wih enjoy asingular opportunity of con-
templating, at the very crisis of their destines,
the magnitude and splendor Of the political fa-
brio which they have just destroyed. The year
of the secession was also the year Of the census.
At the moment the federal government was re.
ceiving the envoys Of independent Carolina, u
was receiving also the returns of the popula.
tion and progress from the several States of
the Union. For the eighth time only since the
origin Of the confederacy, and yet for the last
time, perhaps, in its history, the great republic
has taken stock Of Its people. IL has number
ed and classified Its citizens, counted its gains,
and put it's growth upon record, and now il
seems as If it we're resolved on terminating
Its existence. If It does so il will die in a
blaze. Its progress has 0utstripped even the
speculations of its own rulers. Ten years ago,
at the taking of the seventh census, come
Americans sat down to calculate the probable
numbers of the population In 1860; just as thrift.
ty trader on balancing his accounts will indulge
himself In computing the prospective accumu.
lations Of such surplus as he has just discover
ed. They made out that the United States
would contain at the period which has now ar
rived an aggregate population Of 81, ,095, ,535.
The reckoning has actually been verified, and
with little to spare. The numbers are 81 =
374, 1856.
Nothing like such growth has ever been wit.
messed In the old States of Europe. The in
crease during the decade has been upwards of
S,0O0,0O0; the per centage thirty.fve. Our
own country has made great strides, considering
the numbers who emigrate, but we can only
show such per centage Of Increase in very
rare instances, upon insignificant areas, and un.
der special condition. OF all the counties of
England and Wales, two only, during the pres
ent century, have grown at this rate, and those
are the contiguous ehires of Monmouth and
Glamorgan. In the year 1901 they contained
115,O0O people. They now contain some 4000,-
goo, and Merthyr Tydvel can account probably
for good deal Of the result. The gross in
near like thirty.fve per cent. in decade; In
fact, 1t was never half as much. At the last
census it was between twelve and thirteen per
cent. for the whole of Great Britain. In O few
months'time we shall again be able to survey
our progress, but 1t will certainly not approach
the American rate, however satisfactory IL may
prove.
The statistics of the provincial returns are in
some cases perfectly astounding. Not only sin.
gle cities, but whole States, have actually
doubled their numbers, and Chicago has all
but quadrupled its population. In 1850 it con-
tanned less than 80 900 inhabitants; IL now con-
tains nearly ITO 900. The State of New York
has increased by about 800, 900, Pennsylvania by
GOO, 600, Massachusetts, by 400, 900, and Illinois
by little short of O million. In the Northwest
the progress has been extraordinary. The |
three States Of Michigan, Wisconsin, and Iowa
hardly contained between them more inhabi- |
tants in 1850 than Wisconsin alone contains at
the present time. Iowa, in particular, had a
population of 1924 in 1850, whereas it now
numbers its 676, ,435 souls. The Americans car.
ry into these reckonings spirit of rivalry
which is quite amusing. They poll their pop-I
ulatiops as they do their electors, and look for
the returns of the enumerators as we do for deo-
larations of the Mayor on the day after tre-
mendous contest between whig and tory. The
recent census happened to place Cincinnati g.
ll9 below st. Louis on the great national poll.
It's citizens protested against the return, deman.
ded scrutiny, and instituted private census
of their own to test the official figures. Their
proceedings resulted In decisive victory
They discovered that they had been underrated
by II, ,233 inhabitants, and pulled down accord
ingly the majority Of st. Louis with good
s,O09to spare