XVIII ADDBBSS. 



♦ 



the earth. Beginning then with the flood, there were 

 eight human beings on the earth forty-four centuries ago. 

 Double this number twenty-six times and you have 

 more than the earth's present population. This would 

 be doubling once in about 170 years, and would allow 

 less than eight centuries for the earth to arrive at that 

 extreme density of population which we have assumed 

 as the limit of its capacity to furnish food for man. 

 Are these idle speculations, based upon uncertain or 

 extravagant data ? If any think so, let them remember 

 the rapid growth of our own country. In less than 

 ninety years, we have increased from 3,000j000 to more 

 than 30,000,000. This is more than equivalent to 

 doubling once in every thirty years. If we make an 

 ample allowance for immigration from foreign countries, 

 the natural increase of our people, if it continue 

 according to the past ratio, would double our popula- 

 tion at least as often as every fifty years. This rate of 

 increase, extended all over the world, would bring the 

 population of the globe up to the enormous aggregate 

 of 30,000,000,000 in less than 150 years. But it will 

 probably be long before most countries of the earth 

 attain to that measure of liberty, good government, and 

 prosperity which has given us such an unprecedented 

 increase. 



Still, these estimates show what the present system 

 of things is capable of, according to the laws which 

 have regulated the increase of population in times 

 past ; and they give rise to grave thoughts in regard 

 to the future destiny of this world. According to what 

 seems to be but a sober and moderate estimate, in less 

 that one thousand years at the farthest, in about one- 



