Rensselaer Republican, Volume 17, Number 38, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 28 May 1885 — Population of China. [ARTICLE]

Population of China.

.The vexed question of the extent of the population of China seems to have been pretty definitly settled by Sir Richard Temple, the eminent English geographer and scholar, in a lecture recently delivered by him before the Statistical Society of London, The number last published by the Governmeht was about 350,000,000, but the inaccuracy di its census is shown by the constant variance in its reports, its previous census being no less than 463,000,000. In determining his results Sir Richard Temple applies the census methods used in India, which have been very,accurate, and which he justifies because the area of the tw-o countries is just about the same, India and China proper having each about 1,500,000 square miles, while both countries are under similar physical, technical, climatic, and geographical conditions, and there is the same tendency to multiply in each.’ The entire Chinese Empire conta ns nearly 4 500,000 square miles, of which China proper (that is, excluding tho central plateau, which is comparatively barrel^ and very sparsely populated) has one-third, supporting an immense population. The average of ] opulation in India is 184 to the square mile, the area bging 1,3J77,450 square miles and the population 253,941,309. Applying this average to China proper, the population would be 282,191,600. The most densely populated of the eighteen provinces is that of the Pechili, which contains the two great cities of Pekin and Tien-Tsin, and which has 18,200,000 souls. Estimating the population of the central plateau at 15,000,000, and adding it to the 282,000,000 of China proper, the lecturer set down the entire population at 297.000,000. In round numbers, therefore, the Celestials probably number about 300,000,000, or 50,000,000 less than the Chinese officials claim.. A specially interesting feature of tlieee statistics is their correction of certain impressions which have always been held regarding the vastness of the Chine-e Empire. has always been accepted without question that China was the largest empire

__ ——— —.-———, r — - In the world far as population is concerned, whOrfeas, if these estimates are in any way cbrrect, the population of that empire very, little exceeds that of the British Emmre, though far greater than that of Franc* and her colonies; while the equally prevalent impression that the Buddhists far outnumber the Christian populat on of the world is equally incorrect, the disparity .being very considerably reduced. As a matter;of interest in this ccfhnection, it may be stated that thq British Empire numbers roundly about 250,000,000, of which 214,050,577 belong to her colonies, while France, with her colonies, can muster only 43,562,493, of which 5,890,445 belong to her colonies. How miuch she will add to this fiumber after she gets through with her present war with the 300,000,000 Celestials remains to be seen.