CHAPTER X. 

 POPULATION— RATE OF INCREASE. 



CENSUS OF 1891. 



The earliest e.^timato of the resident population of the island 

 -was made in 1654, %\heu it was ascertained that about 350 fami- 

 lies were scattered in the different harbours. Allowing an ave- 

 rage of five persons to each family, the total population was, at 

 that date, 1,750. In 1680, the commanders of the convoy friga- 

 tes, on duty in connection witli the fisheries, collected statistics 

 of the population which gave 2,280 as the number of residents. 

 "The West Country merchants, who cai'ried on the fisheries from 

 England, had in the same year nearly 4,000 men employed in 

 ihe various fishing ^Jorts of the island, who all returned to Eng- 

 land at the close of the season. They had 97 ships of the burden 

 of 9,305 tons ; 793 boats ; 133 stages. Besides they had 99 ships 

 .of 8,123 tons, navigated by 1,157 seamen and employed in carry- 

 ing the produce of the fisheries to Europe, the West Indies and 

 South America. Their annual take was 133,910 quintals of dried 

 .codfish, and 1,053 hog.sheads of train-oil. In 1698, the resident 

 j^opulation reached 2,640, who that year caught 101,152 quintals 

 of fish. 



Tlie following table .shows the resident pojjulation in the years 

 named : — 



~^'ear. Poimlation. 



