UNITED STATES (STATISTICS). 



737 



with those of the old continent, but which differ 

 from them in their characteristics. Some of the 

 most remarkable wild animals are the bison (im- 

 properly called buffalo}, the black bear, the grisly 

 bear, the cougar or puma (incorrectly called pan- 

 ther), the wild-cat, the wolf, the lynx, &c., the 

 Rocky mountain sheep, the moose, elk and other 

 species of deer (q. v.), the antelope, &c. ; among 

 the smaller animals, the beaver, skunk, glutton, 

 raccoon, marten, badger, opossum, squirrel, fox, 

 otter, porcupine, &c. (See the articles.) The 

 birds are numerous. Among them are the wild 

 turkey, wild pigeon, swan, wild goose and wild 

 duck, quail, &c. ; the eagle, mocking-bird, humming- 

 bird, &c. (see the articles), some of which are re- 

 markable for the beauty of their plumage, the rich- 

 ness and variety of their song, or the excellence of 

 their flesh. Among the reptiles, the alligator, tor- 

 toise, serpents, frogs, &c. are separately described. 

 (The works of Michaux, Wilson, Audubon, Bona- 

 parte, Nuttall, Godman, treat fully of the forest 

 trees, the birds and the quadrupeds of the United 

 States.) The mineral kingdom is equally rich in 

 its productions. Iron, coal, lime and salt, articles 

 of primary importance, exist in great abundance. 

 Lead is found in inexhaustible quantities in Missouri. 

 Salt, which is obtained from the sea on the eastern 

 side of the Alleghanies, is procured on the western 

 side from salt springs, which are numerous and 

 copious in their produce, all over the Western 

 States. The supply of coal is equally abundant : 

 on the west of the mountains, immense beds of 

 bituminous coal stretch for hundreds of miles through 

 the valley of the Mississippi ; and on the east an- 

 thracite coal is found in various positions. Gold 

 has recently been found, in considerable quantities, 

 in some of the Southern States. 



2. Political Divisions and Population. The 

 United States are divided politically into twenty- 

 four states, three territories, and the district of 

 Columbia; all of which, with the exception of 

 Louisiana and Missouri states and Arkansas terri- 

 tory, lie on the east of the Mississippi. The states 

 are Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachu- 

 setts, Rhode Island, Connecticut (familiarly known 

 as the Eastern or New England States*), New 

 York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware (Middle 

 States), Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, South 

 Carolina, Georgia, Alabama, Mississippi, Louisiana 

 (Southern States), Tennessee, Kentucky, Ohio, 

 Indiana, Illinois and Missouri (Western States). 

 The territories are Florida, Michigan and Arkansas. 

 The regions to the west of Missouri and lake 

 Michigan have few inhabitants, and have no sepa- 

 rate governments. The whole inhabited part of 

 the country within the limits described in the be- 

 ginning of this article, is about 800,000 square 

 miles in extent ; and the total population, accord- 

 ing to the official census of 1830, is 12,858,670, of 

 which 10,530,044 are whites, 319,576 free coloured 

 persons, and 2,009,050 slaves. The government 

 of the United States is entitled to the honour, 

 we believe, of having at its first institution, 

 set the example of establishing a system of an 

 official census of the inhabitants, at regular pe- 

 riods. The following table exhibits the area in 

 square miles, and the population, according to five 

 official enumerations, of the several states and ter- 

 ritories: 



" Foreigners often confound these geographical with political 

 divisions, and speak of the "state 6f New England," &c. 

 VI. 



It was provided by the constitution, that the first 

 census of the United States should be made within 

 three years after the first meeting of congress, and 

 within every subsequent term of ten years, in such 

 manner as they shall by law direct. The first census 

 was accordingly taken in 1790, and the sixth in 

 1840. These several enumerations furnish satis- 

 factory views of the rapid progress of population ; 

 but it is much to be regretted that a more uniform 

 and philosophical system of classification of the in- 

 habitants, with respect to age, has not been adopted. 

 In this respect there is a great diversity among the 

 several censuses, yet there has been a gradual im- 

 provement, and the division adopted in the last is 

 far the best, and, with respect to the white inha- 

 bitants, very satisfactory. But, in this census, 

 there is a want of uniformity in the division of ages 

 between the white and the coloured population a 

 circumstance which renders it very defective as a 

 basis for comparative views relating to these two 

 classes. 



THE FIRST CENSUS 1790. 

 In the first census, the whole population of the 

 United States was divided into only five classes, in 

 which the total amount of the several classes was 

 as follows : 



3 A 



