VOL. XLVIII.] PHILOSOPHICAL TRANSACTIONS. 53/ 



SO that it is much greater now, than it was some years ago ; which appears 

 plainly to arise from two causes; the number of Dissenters of various denomina- 

 tions, and the multitude of people that live unmarried. But he thinks it is rather 

 owing to the last : for, in London and Westminster, the one-half of the people 

 at least live single, that are above 2 1 years of age : which must prevent almost 

 as many more births, that might be reasonably expected. And this is not mere 

 conjecture; for he had some proof from a particular detail of one parish within 

 the city ; where the greater part of those that are above that age are single. In 

 the natural state of mankind, it seems plain that the number of births should be 

 greater than the burials, and he believes that in many parishes in the country 

 they are nearly double. He found it so in the Isle of Wight, where he lived 

 some time, and had an opportunity to see their registers ; for there the births 

 were generally nearly double. And even in London, b,efore the great fire in 

 1666, it appears, from some parish registers, that the baptisms were nearly 

 about equal to the burials, but never afterwards : the reason of which he does 

 not understand, unless it be that more people were then married, and that from 

 that time there was a greater confluence of strangers : for there certainly were 

 more dissenters at that time than ever after. 



It is further to be observed, that in the bills from the year 1704 to the year 

 1728, without the city, both the numbers of christenings and burials continually 

 increased; and that from that time to 1743, they continued nearly the same; 

 but that after 1743 they gradually decreased till this time ; which plainly shows, 

 that the inhabitants were increasing till about the year 1728 ; and that from 

 thence to 1743, they remained in the same state nearly ; but that afterwards, 

 during the last 10 years, till 1753, they were constantly diminishing. For it is 

 evident, that the number of inhabitants must always be in proportion, to the 

 number of births, and burials considered together. And hence it appears, that 

 the cities of London and Westminster were in the most flourishing state, with 

 regard to numbers, from 1728 to 1743, and that they are now past their height, 

 and in the same state they were in the year 17OS: and the first decrease seems 

 to have been at the beginning of the last French war, which was in ] 744. 

 Within the city walls the number of the inhabitants do not seem to fluctuate, in 

 the same periods of time, as without ; for the most numerous state of the city, 

 appears to have been from the year J 7 18, to the year 1728, and then after that 

 they have been continually decreasing : so that when they were most numerous 

 within the walls, they were not then arrived at the height without ; and when 

 they were in the highest state without, they were diminishing in the city. Per- 

 haps the vast number of new buildings, within the liberties of Westminster, may 

 have in part caused this diminution. And as from the year 17 18, within the 

 city, the christenings have been so remarkably decreasing, that they are now 



VOL. X. 3 Z 



