The Universalist. [volume] (Chicago [Ill.]) 1884-1897, 1897-11-20

SaRAOuA DOiIeo
THE UNITED STATES.
At my birth there were but nine
teen states in the Union, the nine
teenth, Indiana, having been ad-
mitted but two days before. The
number was increased by August,
1921, to twenty-four, at which it re-
manned for fifteen years. The pres
ent number, forty five, indicates the
phenomenal growth OF the country
both in territory and population.
The measure OF national possessions
had expanded in 1916 to 100000
square miles. They now extend to
three and one-half millions, an in
crease at a ratio of fifty-eight per
cent, while the population has grown
from nine to seventy millions, an in
crease of seven hundred per cent.
CALIFORNIA AND AUSTRALIA
Do we remember that less than
fifty years ago San Francisco was a
mere trading post, months away from
our own cities? 1t was described as
"a small village composed of a few
adobe houses and a few hundred in
habitants," and foreign city within
the limits and under the control OF
Mexico. The whole population of
California in 1850, the year subse-
quent to the rise of the gold fever, at
which time it had been largely in
creased, was about 10000; but it
grew in two years to nearly three
times that number, and now boasts a
population of million and a half.
San Francisco is rated at 100000, the
seventh city of the Union, Brooklyn
being absorbed in New York; and it
is the fifty fifth city of the world.
Among TIE antipodes similar marvels
are apparent. Melbourne, in Austria
liza, was founded in 1887, the year Of
the Queens accession: its population
is now half million, equal to that of
Boston, city four and one half
times its age. The Australian Con-
tinent now shows, with neighboring
islands, great and prosperous English
colonies, with free governments, a
large portion of which have agreed
upon a federation like that of the
Dominion of Canada. The whole
continent of Africa has been explored
within fourscore years, and immense
regions have been opened for coloni-
cation by European nations.
OCEAN STEAMERS.
The rapid changes of settlement to
which allusion has been made, with
many others, have resulted, not alone
from the natural increase of popula-
ton and the former rate of travel
The wonderful improvement of trans
portation produced by the practical
inventive genius of the age, enlight-
ened by the revelations of science,
has led to their possibility. While
steam had been successfully applied
to manufactured 1855, it was twenty
two years later before the steamboat
became practically successful for use
on our rivers, and not until 1888,
when l had become of full age, did
the Sirius from Liverpool, in less than
seventeen days, and the Great West
ern in less than thirteen, from Bristol,
reach New York, and demonstrate
the practicabilitY and proftableness
OF oceanic transportation by steam.
These were the precursors of the
great fleet of steamers which have
reduced the transit from the British
Isle from an average of forty days to
little more than one-eighth of that
time. This has been accomplished
by improvement of form and machin-
cry and change of the mode of pro-
pulsion from side wheels to screws.
The diminution of the trip time and
its regularity, have resulted in great
diminution of cost; and the total
number of immigrants to this country
since 1888 appears to be seventeen
millions, but little short of the pres
ent population of Brazil, or Spain
one and a half times that of Mexico
twice that of Scotland and Ireland
combined-equal to that of the Uni
ted States in 1910, when / gave my
first presidential vote-equal to the
combined population of the States of
New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and
Michigan in 1890
RAILROADS.
But akin to the improvement of
ocean transportation has been the
wonderful change in the land car
riage. 1t is matter of history that
General Washington died at Mount
Vernon on the 18th OF December; but
the first intelligencereac Congress
in session on the 18th in Philadel-
phia: five days, one hundred and