BY E. M. JOHNSTON, F.L.S. 193 



That Mr. Henry George altogether failed to grasp the 

 various elements of this problem is at once apparent by the 

 manner in which in his otherwise very attractive work, 

 " Progress and Poverty," he has attempted to refute the 

 conclusions of Malthus. 



As he has fallen into the most simple errors in his adverse 

 comments upon Malthus, it may be as well to state with 

 greater precision the factors of the problem, thus : — 

 P. — Actual population. 

 I. — Natural tendency to increase. 



(a) At its maximum in an ideal state of perfect 



health, virtue, peace and prosperity. 

 (&) At its minimum when the opposite of this 

 state obtains. 

 T. — Natural limit of life ; death at extreme old age. 

 C. — Checks, cutting off life before the healthy limit 

 of life has been reached, among which are pro- 

 minent : — 



(a) Competition of other forms of animal life — 

 zymotic diseases, parasites, attacks by 

 beasts of prey, etc. 

 (&) Insufficiency of food or famine, whether 

 from seasonable influence, poor soil, 

 climate, ignorance, wilful waste, or 

 improvidence. 



(c) Violence, wars, murders, accidents, physical 



causes, such as earthquakes or volcanic 

 outbursts, cannibalism, infant and senile 

 murder, massacre. 



(d) Diseases, whether due to ignorance, vice, 



human neglect of hygiene, climate, 

 cosmical influences, etc. 



(e) Diseases due to the tendency of civilised 



communities to aggregate in dense num- 

 bers, as in cities and towns. 

 (/) Misei-y the close attendant of these evils. 



M. — Moral restraint operating upon I. 



E. — Means of subsistence, varjing with season, but 

 increased absolutely by numbers and increasing 

 knowledge of natural resources ; the ratio per 

 individual, however, gradually lessening as the 

 poorer lands and waters are invaded by swelling 

 numbers. 



F. — The absolute limit when a greater density for each 

 square mile of the earth's surface is reached by 

 removal or the minimising of allrepressive checks. 

 About 2"83 acres in cultivation is now necessary 

 for the support of each person living. 



