Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1920-01-31
Frederic Haskin's Letter
THE QUESTION OF POPULATION
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4.-Soon children,

OF POPULATION
children.
Roosevelt was, Of course. the
great race suicide alarmist In this
country. He was especially fond
Of pointing to South America, bid
ding us note how much faster the
South Americans were breeding
than were we, and asking how We
to maintain our FREEDOM
nance in the western hemisphere II
We allowed the people to the south
to outbreed Us 90 rapidly.
What the colonel overlooked,
among. other things, was the fact
that the South Americans have con-
stantly increasing food supply, and
a great wilderness to populate.
We, too, increased rapidly in our
pioneer days when an empty wilder
ness of wealth lay to the west Of
US. Our rate of increase, at least
by birth Of native citizens, showed
a tendency to drop of as that will
derness filled up. And there is ev-
cry reason to believe that the same
things will happen in South Amer
lea.
This is an illustration Of what
Nautilus really said. He said that
population will increase faster than
the food supply, unless Il is check
ed by some great and obvious cause.
As a result Of this tendency Of pop
ulation to press upon the food sup
ply, there is a fringe Of misery and
want. This fringe of misery and
want will tend to disappear when
ever the pressure of population on
the food supply is relieved by any
cause. Thus, If pestilence or war
destroys a great many people, there
usually follows after little while
a period of prosperity in which ev-
eryone gets enough to eat II a
people occupies a new continent,
everyone will get enough to eat for
a while. This is now the case in
South America, and was the case IN
North America century ago. Like
wise, if people deliberately
chooses to have fewer children, this
too will tend to lessen the amount
Of starvation.
BY modern scientists who have
returned to the Malthusian theory
more or less, France before the
war is pointed out as an example
of this latter thing. Instead Of be-
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cited by them as an example OF a
nation which has secured good liv-
ing conditions for its people by
voluntarily relieving the pressure
of population on food supply.
The facts about France are that
for 40 years before the war, its
population was practically station
ary. During all that time both the
production of food and the impor-
tation of food increased. In other
words. there was more and more
for everybody to eat. Authorities
say that this was reflected in the
prosperous condition Of the peas
ants and workmen. They say that
in the period before the war, French
peasants and workmen were better
off than those of any other country
in Europe At the same time,
France was known as the most civ
ilized country in the world. 1t was
famous for it's educational system.
Having relatively few children to
care for, it cared for those remark
ably we'll. 1t was famed for its
achievements in the fine arts. All
the world went to Paris to study.
1t was also a leader in science.
Not having to give SO much time
to the problems created by rapid
ly growing population. France had
more energy to give to the creative
work Of civilization. Then came
the war which upset all calculations
but which at least enabled the
French to demonstrate that they
were not too decadent to fight.
Thus the question of population
remains a somewhat confusing one.
Should a nation increase its popu-
lation as fast as possible by every
means, trusting to science to supply
food and shelter? Or should civ
ilized state follow the example of
France before the war, and strive
to reach a permanent balance be-
tween population and food supply.
SO that it can devote its surplus
energies to science and art, includ-
ing the art of living?
Without pretending to pass judg-
ment, it may be said that a great
deal of authority can be found in
favor of the latter attitude toward
the question. Thus Prof. Taussig,
the famous American economist,
points out that a high birth rate,
a high death rate and low wages
seem always to go together. The
contrary also seems to be true-that
low birth rate, a low death rate and
relatively high wages 60 together.
In other words, If a people increases
rapidly, its average health is poor,
and there are more workers than
jobs, so that earnings are low. If
it increases slowly, the level of
health is higher, people live longer,
and there is more work for each
one to do, hence more for each one
to earn.
II this attitude is the sound one,
the correct policy in the United
States would be to encourage mod
erate-sized families rather than a
large one, to put reasonable checks
upon immigration, and to devote as
much energy as possible to the edu-
cation of both children and aliens.