THE 
“MONTHLY MAGAZINE. 
Hew Series, 
Vou. I.  . OCTOBER, 1826. | [No. 10. 
EMIGRATION-REPORT.* . 
Benotp another blue-covered folio of four hundred pages, manufae- 
tured by one of those indefatigable Select Committees of the House of 
Commons, which inflict their thousands upon the public annually. 
What Select Committee is this? One appointed to inquire into the ex- 
pediency of encouraging emigration. Well, and what is the result of 
the inquiry? What has the Committee done? Established, it seems, 
by evidence, three main facts, with multitudes of subordinate and deri- 
vative ones—a redundancy of population at home—the existence of 
large tracts of unoccupied land abroad, in colonies expanding under the 
four winds of heaven,—and an actual want of people for the cultivation 
and defence of those colonies—for all which evils emigration is the 
grand specific ; and emigration is recommended accordingly. 
But before we advert more particularly to the labours of the Com- 
mittee, let us look to these ‘main facts’ of theirs, or rather, let us con- 
fine our view for the present to the first position—the redundancy of 
population. This is the basis of the whole question ;—if there prove to 
be no redundancy, or if such redundancy can and ought to be provided 
for at home, what have we to do with peopling the wildernesses of 
another hemisphere ? ino 
_ Now, as to the fact, what do the Committee mean by this re- 
dundancy ? “In what respect is it; that there exists a surplus of peoplé ? 
- Is it that there are more mouths than the produce of the country will 
support? Oh no, there is produce enough, because none, or at least 
but few have been actually starved, or are now actually starving ; and 
with money in their hands, their mouths might still be readily filled. Itis 
that there are more mouths than can supply themselves. It is that there 
are more hands to labour than can find labour, Oh, it is redundancy 
with respect to /abour then, and not with respect to produce? But 
“how has this redundancy come about? Have the Committee extended 
their inquiries into the causes? No; but those causes may be of a 
_* Report from the Select Committee on Emigration from the United Kingdom. 
ea x, 
M.M. New Series —Vov. II. No.10, 2Z 
