The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1871-07-20

LII "a
Channel Isles $50. 40. 223 $3.50 9O.56s
Isle OF Man. ..... 25,691 2S,l76 5ASG7
15.342053 l6,26,,s37 3i.dO9,9l0
Army. Navy and
Merchant Ma
rine abroad. -. 2O1, 1913 2OT, 1893
The United Kingdom Observation-Disclosures 81, SIT, 1913
Thus it will be seen that the population of
the British islands proper in 1871 is not much
IN excess of the population Of the United
States in 1860 and is about eight millions
behind our population of 1870. Our increase,
then, in our last decade, in spite of ''the war,
has been about eight millions, while that of
the British islands has been only some two
millions or thereabouts immigration, TO
great extent, will explain our gains, and emf
grafton the comparative losses of Great Britain.
From those two prolific little islands in the
North Atlantic, mere specks upon the map Of
world, the streams of emigration which, for
two hundred and fifty years, have been going out
and peopling and building up the waste places
OF the earth, have, during the last decade,
rather increased than diminished in all direc-
tons, to the United States, the New Dominion,
Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the
West Indies, the East Indies, &C., &c. Mainly
from emigration, and chiefly to the United
States during the last fifty years, the popula-
ton OF Ireland, which was eight millions, has
been reduced to less than five millions and
half. The whole of the total increase of the
population of the British islands for the last
decade from this census of 1871 we find is in
England, and one-half of it belongs to the city
of London. The population of London, the
the greatest on the globe, in 1861 was in
round numbers, two millions eight hundred
thousand; in 1871, within the poll ce circle, it
is three millions eight hundred and eighty
thousand
The general increase of the population of
England is due to her commercial and manu-
featuring centres. Her great cities have
mostly grown and are growing rapidly, while
her agricultural population is comparatively
declining Her rich landholders are becoming
richer, and her poor landworkers are becom-
ing poorer, while paupersm in her great
cities is increasing with their population to
fearful extent, and especially in London, with
all its wonderful prosperity. A New York
city Directory or Corporation Manual, without
going further, will explain what has become
of the natural Increase for several decades of
the population of Ireland. The causes Of this
transportation we need not here reproduce.
But the most remarkable feature in the CEN
Sis returns above given is the excess of
females over males in all the British islands,
from Great Britain to the little Isle of Man.
Emigration will explain this excess of females,
although we had supposed that the emigration
Of females, from Ireland at least, had for many
years been equal or nearly equal to that of
the males. The excess of males in the thirty
one millions of population Of the United States
in 1860 was 730, 600, while in the twenty nine
millions of population of the United Kingdom
in 1861 the excess of females over males was
S77,OO0-an excess which is but little dimin-
ished in 1871. The figures upon which we
are speaking indicate condition of things in
the British islands calling earnestly for some
system of emigration which will give the
women concerned something like an equal
chance in the matter of that greatest and most
important of all the rights of woman, her right
to husband. The general subject of this
British census is, in other respects. very inter-
! esting, and we shall refer to il again.