The Lake County star. [volume] (Chase, Mich.) 1873-current, 1873-05-15
PODulational Meters.
Nebraska Increment IN Ts0O Years,
6s,s35! Total. an 1872,
19l, 92S.


Hume speaks of a Roman EN-
peror, who, wishing to learn some
thing about tho popula'irn of lii
metropolis, issued an cdict reqnir
ing every body to bring to his
place ali the cobwebs they could
and. There were enough I,
prove Rome a very large city,
When Arthur Yonng wished to
compare the different French
departments. he could devise nc
better method than to cut them
out ono by Que from a map, and
then ascertain their comparative
weights in n scale.
One of the earliest modern
examples Of accurate enumeration
throughout Il wide country, was
the United States census Of 1901.
Each new decade some new speciti
cations have LceL added to those
before made.
The prosperity Of State ia now
measured, by all political eco'-
onIists, 10y its population growth.
Hence all States are prone to over
estimate the rapidly OF their in
crease, and SO at every census arc
mortified that their numbers are
proved SO few. So chasrincd were
several cities in 1870, that they
paid for taking second census
IN hope to show that their inhab-
itants had not been all 10 clu-
ded in the government returns.
The biennial census which was
long taken by the State OF Iowa,
furnished to every Iowa editor an
cxhaustless treasury of items -
never out Of tho way.
In the absence Of an oft rerea-
ted census, there is an intinity OF
unchecked guessing and gassing,
especially in new States where
growth is most wondered at, being
. transition from nothing to some.
thing.
Accordingly, on the Atlantic
slope, there is great dis!rust OF all
reports concerning western pro.
gress till they are confirmed by
an official census. The Ne
braska Superintendent of l'nmigra.
ti"n has estimated the influx into
that State:at 4O, 900 persons IL year.
His estimate has been much
ridiculed "a a wild cxaggcratioD,
Of a piece with Yankee DoodIe's
reckoning OF the continental host
when his father and he went down
to camp.
"And there was Captain Washington
Upon strapping stallion,
A giving orders to his men,
Iguess there ras a million"
But it can he p,oved mathema.
tically, that Mr.. Noteware's
estimate is very nearly correct.
Thus, in 1870, the school children
number 32,7G2, and the popn-
lation 122,993. But, in 1872
the school children had increas-
ed to 51,123, Therefore, as all
those scholars who have reached
the Rule oiThree can demonstrate,
the Nebraska population in 1872
amounted to 1928, showing a
gain of GS,S35 within two years.
The lists Of school children, be
side showing the growth of the
State at large, are a meter Ut
local progress.
Look, for instance, along the
main line of tho Burlington IL
Missouri River Railroad. 1t
runs through eight counties,
Adams, Cass, Gay, Fillmore,
Kearney, Lancaster Saline and
Saunders. Their school children
in 1860, were 5,6l2, aud their
population 23,24S. In 1872 their
school children had multiplied to
1910, therefore their population
then cannot have been less than
44,O7s.
Nebraska, at large, has been
exceptionally prosperous, for lie
populational increment in two
years has been So Oh per cent.
But even this per centage falls
lar below That Of the eight coun-
tics traversed Nv the b, Il Nj.
railroad line. Their popnlatioDal
advance between 1870 and 1872
has been at the rate OF SO 6
per cent.
In the next two years their
growth will DO still greater than
in the last two for half Of them
had no school children two years
ago, and locomotives not yet hav.
ing traversed them all for more
than four months, have bat just
begun to put forth their magical
influences in making solitudes
populous.
Yet tho railroad above men.
toned within thIty.tbres months
after putting its land in market,
had sold 47S,0SS acres to 1925
purchasers on ten years coredit
and six per cent. interest, and on
sales since 1872 nothing Of ten
principal is payable tell tho end
Of four years.
From the Big Rapds Pioneer,