324 



But to pursue the enquiry a little further, let 

 us examine the question in greater detail. The 

 number of souls per square mile in Belgium is 413, 

 in Holland 271, in Great Britain 237 in France 

 177 in Prussia 159 in Austria 144. We are 

 very badly off in India for statistics of nny kind. 

 A very great portion of the Country has never 

 been surveyed. Without any great fear, however, 

 of being over the mark, we may estimate the area 

 of British India, at not less than 1,000,000 square 

 miles, and taking the population at 135,000,000 

 it will give only 135 souls per square mile.* Now 

 the produce of the soil of any Country, only reaches 

 its maximum, when the pressure of population 

 forces cultivation up to the highest possible point ; 

 and as it is an axiom that each increase in pro- 

 ductive power, is gained at a higher proportional 

 increase of labor and outlay, the tendency of popula- 

 tion is to increase beyond the power of the soil 

 to support it, or in other words, the ratio of the 

 increase is always in favor of consumption, and 

 against production. The Maximum attained, should 

 population still increase, in a self-supporting Coun- 

 try, one of two courses only remains population 

 must be checked, or emigration carry off the 

 surplus. It is impossible to compare a country 

 of such vast extent as India, as a whole, with 



* The total area of India, including- native states, the parliamen- 

 tary return gives us 1,476,316 square miles. 



