Gilpin observer., 1911-09-21
MEMBER COLORADO EDITORIAL ASSOCIATION
INCREASING POPULATION.

Apropos to part Of the speech of
President Taft at Syracuse, N. Y, re-
garding his prophesy as to the den
sity of population in this country
In the next hundred years, it is we'll
to look back and see what our fore
fathers predicted.
In the first school history compil-
ed of the United States, the author
has the following to say:
when the census was first taken
in 1890, the number Of inhabitants
was 3,95O,OOO. In 1900, 5,3O5, 1866. In
1910, 7,230,514. At this computation
of increase, the number of souls
double in less than twenty-five
years; at which rate. the following
table will show the result for $50
years:
No. of Inhabitants 1870, ,230. .514
No. OF Inhabitants 1886 IL, ,461 OPS
No. Of Inhabitants 1860 2s,922, ,O56
No. of Inhabitants 1856 57,844,112
No. of Inhabitants 191O-115, ,6Ss, ,224
No. of Inhabitants 1935-231 1916, ,44S
No. of Inhabitants 196O-462, ,752, 1896
ALLOWING that in the United
States, including Louisiana. there are
two millions of square miles, or
twelve hundred and eighty millions of
acres; in one hundred and fifty years
there would be about 230 persons to
a square mile, not three acres to
40 nf
the Union may increase in popula-
ton, in the above proportion, for a
century, is not, at once, to be con-
sidered improbable; though many
causes may conspire against it.
"What may be the effects of divi-
sions and consequent wars, of the
increase Of luxury and intemperance,
OF famine, of pestilence, or a de-
crease of migrations from Europe, it
is impossible to foresee. 1t is, how
ever, delightful to anticipate the con-
tinuance Of the Union for centuries;
and to contemplate three or four
hundred millions Of our fellow crea-
lures, enjoying climates profuse in
every variety of good, basking in the
sunshine Of temperate liberty, and
bound by the beneficial laws of one
government and one constitution;
extending. not over the present do
minions of the United States only
but stretching their limits to the
ern Pacific"
President Taft's remarks follow
and an interesting comparison may
be drawn:
1--WE have today in this country.
in continental United States, about
1900, 900, 900 cares of land; OF this
S73.000.000 are included in the acre
age OF farms. In the last ten years
that acreage did not increase more
than $4,000 900, or a little over 4 per
cent. In that same time our popu-
lction increased 20 per cent. or the
S73,000,000 acres, 477,0O0,O0O are i'm
proved farm land. The S73 200, 900 in
cludes woodland and unimproved
land. The improved land in farms
has increased about 63 900 900 in ten
years. or some 10 per cent, but this,
1t will be seen, is not equal to the
increase in population.
Now, II our population increases
as rapidly as 1t has heretofore, we
shall in fifty years have upwards OF
200.000,00 people In this country to
support on this S73,000,0O acres,
much of which is probably not cap
able OF producing great deal.There
are some fifty million acres of swamp
land that can be drained. and there
are twenty-five million acres OF land
that can be irrigated; but. with all
these. it is perfectly palpable that
within the l.fe Of many who are born
now We shall be pressing the Init
Of our seif-suppoit.ng SOIL uni iss