

AUSTRALIA AND POLYNESIA. 



optical discovery than the projected observa- 

 tory on Mount Hamilton, California. The site 

 of the observatory was originally suggested by 

 Professor Edward S. Holden in 1874, and the 

 recommendation was subsequently concurred 

 in by Professor Newcomb. In order to test 

 the fitness of the location, the trustees of the 

 "James Lick Trust" authorized Mr. S. W. 

 Burnham, of Chicago, an experienced and skill- 

 ful observer, to fit up a temporary observatory 

 on Mount Hamilton, to be used as long as might 

 be necessary for the purpose. The results of 

 the experiment are embodied in Mr. Burnham's 

 report, presented to the Board of Trustees in 

 the summer of 1880. 



The latitude of the Observatory Peak is 37 

 21' 3" north; longitude, 121 36' 40" west. 

 By the highway it is twenty-six miles (nearly 

 east) from San Jos6 ; by an air-line, only thir- 

 teen. The elevation is" 4,250 feet above the 

 level of the sea. " The sides of the mountain, 

 in most directions, are very steep, and form an 

 acute angle at the summit. The view from the 

 peaks is unobstructed in every direction, there 

 being no higher ground within a radius of one 

 hundred miles." 



Mr. Burnham remained on Mount Hamilton 

 from August 17th to October 16th, inclusive. 

 The atmospheric and other conditions of the 

 place were found eminently suited for the 

 permanent location of the Lick Observatory. 

 The trustees have accordingly announced 

 that " the preliminary work on Mount Ham- 

 ilton has already been commenced, and will 

 be prosecuted as rapidly as possible under 

 the circumstances. The smaller equatorial, 

 of twelve inches' aperture, has been order- 

 ed of Alvan Clark and Sons, and will be 

 placed in position early in 1881 ; and the 

 great equatorial, meridian circle, and other 

 instruments, will be contracted for at an early 

 day." 



AUSTRALIA AND POLYNESIA. I. GEN- 

 ERAL STATISTICS. The area and population of 

 the principal divisions of Australia and Polyne- 

 sia are given as follows in the new volume of 

 the "Bevolkerung der Erde " (sixth volume, 

 Gotha, 1880) : 



From careful estimates the area of New 

 Guinea is set down by Behm and Wagner as 

 785,362 square kilometres (1 square kilometre 

 =0*386 English square mile) or, with the 

 neighboring islands, 807,956 square kilometres, 

 and the population at 500,000. 



The four groups into which the Oceanic 

 islands are divided have, according to the 

 same authority, the following area and popula- 

 tion : 



II. BRITISH POSSESSIONS. The following ta- 

 ble exhibits the population of the Australasian 

 colonies of Great Britain according to the cen- 

 suses taken in 1871 or 1870, and according to 

 an official estimate in December, 1878 : 



On June 30, 1879, an official calculation es- 

 timated the population (exclusive of natives) 

 in New South Wales at 712,019; in Victoria, 

 at 887,434; in South Australia, at 255,148. 



The new census of New Zealand reveals the 

 fact that the Maories are rapidly decreasing. 

 In 1861 they were still estimated to number 

 55,336 ; now they have dwindled down to 43,- 

 595. The Registrar-General of New Zealand 

 is not sanguine as to their recovery from their 

 downward career, for, apart from their de- 

 ficiency in moral qualities necessary to arrest 

 the progress of decay, the history of aborigines 

 invariably shows, in his opinion, an inability 

 to graft the habits of civilization on native 

 habits and customs. At the time when the 

 colonists first landed it is believed their num- 

 ber was not less than 120,000. About fifty- 

 seven schools are now in existence under Gov- 

 ernment auspices, at which there is an attend- 

 ance of 1,799 children, in which the rudiments 

 of knowledge are taught, and the girls are in- 

 structed in domestic duties. The number of 

 natives in New South Wales was (in 1871) 983 ; 

 in Victoria (1877), 1,067; in South Australia 

 (1876), 3,953 ; in the other colonies no enu- 

 meration has taken place. 



Some interesting information on Chinese im- 

 migration in the Australian colonies may be 

 obtained from a report of the Colonial Gov- 

 ernment of Victoria. It appears from this re- 

 port that in 1859 there were 46,000 Chinese 

 residing in Victoria ; but the number has great- 

 ly diminished during the last twenty years, and 

 does not now exceed 13,000. As far as can be 

 ascertained, the number of Chinese in Queens- 

 land is 14,524; in Victoria, about 13,000; in 

 New South Wales, 9,500 ; New Zealand, 4,433 ; 

 South Australia and Port Darwin, 2,000 ; Tas- 



