Though the United States is often pointed to as increasing in population more rapidly than any other country, the language is only relatively cor rect. For the Australasian popula tion has grown over a period of thirty years much more quickly than that of the American Republic. No doubt since 1870 the number of inhabitants in the United States has increased by about 37,000,000, but that, after all, was only an increase of 96 per cent.; whereas the addition of 2,584,000 to the number of people in Australasia is equal to an increase of 136 per cent, in twenty-nine years. All who regard the growth of popu lation as in the general interests have their desires more largely fulfilled here than in the United States. Even if we come down to the last decade, with almost its practical suspension of immigration so far as Australasia is concerned, the comparison does not show to our disadvantage. In the United States the recently cabled increase of 13,000,000, bringing the total population to 75,500,000, re presents an increase of 20*7 per cent, over the decade, while the growth in nine years of 697,000 inhabitants in Australasia equals 18*5 per cent. The progress is practically identical in the two countries. Having regard to the almost total cessation of immi gration into Australasia consequent on the depression resulting from the crisis of 1891-3, it cannot be said that the spread of population in Australa sia makes an unfavorable comparison with what we see in even the United States. The increase of 697,000 within nine years is about the equiva lent of 13,000,000 in the United States.
