Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1883-11-03

In other words. the population of the United
States has multiplied itself by 16 in the course
OF the century; this being the result OF its
doubling itself every twenty-five wears for
that period In another twenty-five years at
the same rate of increase. the population
would be 1O0. 600 coo. in fifty years 200 600 OOO
In seventy-tive years 00,o00, 900, and at the
end of a century 500. coo 0UOl Such is the first
aspect of the broad fact presented to our con-
s!deTatioH ~ the, fhtrease Of population in the
United States. The rate is such as to be fairly
bewiiderifg in IT'S probable consequences. The
phenomenon is also wthouta precedent in his
Tory There has beeEi no sllc,l increase of popu-
lation anywhere on a similar scale. and. above
all. no suc!I increase Of a liEaly civilized and
richly-fed population. Yhe increase il not only
unprecedented in mere numbers. but it is an
increase OF the most extensively living pOpula-
ton that has ever been in the world. For the
Idea OF such an increase We are indebted eX-
cus:vely to statistics. The United States,
among the other new ideas of old civilizations
they have had the benefit of, have had the idea
OF periodical census, which is even made u
part OF their Constitutions; and as the result we
have before ns-not only in a general way but
with some precision. so that discussion NAV
have an assured baSis-this phenOmenO of an
unprecedented increase of population, which is.
perhaps. the greatest political and economic
fact of the age.
The tact has altered. in the first place. the
whole idea of the balance of power of the
European nations. "A century ago the Euro
pean nations, in their political relations,
thought little but of each other. Now the idea
OF new Europe on the other side OF the At
lantic affects every speculation. however much
the new people keep themselves aoOf from
European politics. The horizon has been en-
larged. as it were; and the mere fact of the
United States dwarfs. and think restraints the
rivairies at home. European governments can
no longer have the notion that they are playing
the first part on the stage OF the worlds pOliti-
cal history. And this sense of being dwarfed
Will probably increase in time. In this country.
at any rate. we cannot but feel greatly at
tracted by the United States. Because of the
magnitude of that country, the European con-
tinent is less to us. Our relations are else
where.
1t is connection. however, with our own home
problems of population that the increase Of the
United States is most interesting to u.s. The
increase is partly at our expense, and at that of
the other European nations. Ii the United
States. or some other new country had not re-
ceived our emigrants it is quite clear that our
whole history would have been different from
what it is. We should either have had in our
midst the people who emigrated, and their de-
scendants. stranng the resources of our soil.
and mines and capital. or the pressure upon
these resources would have checked, in various
ways, the growth of the population itself, SO
that probably, at this moment. but for the new
countries. more people would now be liv-
Ing in the United Kingdom than there
are. and larger numbers of the population
would be paupers or on the verge of pauperism.
The actual numbers we have lost altogether.
ana specially to the United States. have been