Ch. ix. in England (continued). 425 



than to increase. But instead of any such dimi- 

 nution, it appears that as far as 1810 it had been 

 considerably accelerated. 



In 1810, according to the returns from each 

 parish, with the additions of -^ for the soldiers, 

 sailors, &c, the population of England and Wales 

 was estimated at 10,488,000,* which, compared 

 with 9,168,000, the population of 1800, estimated 

 in a similar manner, shews an increase in the ten 

 years of 1,320,000. 



The registered baptisms during ten years were 

 2,878,906, and the registered burials 1,950,189. 

 The excess of the births is therefore 928,717, 

 which falls very considerably short of the increase 

 shewn by the two enumerations. This deficiency 

 could only be occasioned either by the enumera- 

 tion in 1800 being below the truth, or by the 

 inaccuracy of the registers of births and burials, 

 or by the operation of these two causes com- 

 bined ; as it is obvious that, if the population in 

 1800 were estimated correctly, and the registers 

 contained all the births and burials, the difference 

 must exceed rather than fall short of the real 

 addition to the population ; that is, it would ex- 

 ceed it exactly by the number of persons dying 

 abroad in the army, navy, &c. 



There is reason to believe that both causes had 

 a share in producing the effect observed, though 

 the latter, that is, the inaccuracy of the registers, 

 in much the greatest degree. 



* See the Population Abstracts published in 1811, and the va- 

 luable Preliminary Observations by Mr. Hickman. 



