OUR MAORI POPULATION.

Auckland Star, Volume XLVIII, Issue 208, 31 August 1917, Page 3

OUR MAORI POPULATION.

WHAT THE C'EXSUS STATES, iSpecial to "Star."i WELLINGTON', this day. Tlie total Maori population of the Dominion at the end of last year wn*. according to tlie census returns. 4!».T7H. which is a decrease of 68 on the census Hjjures, of mil. In the preceding, liveyen rlv period the native population increased by -Jllo. and had it not been for the war a similar increase would have beeTi shown in ]n.--t year.- census, as iihout -211(10 of our 'Maori citizens have left for the front, n large proportion ot which sire still absent, fighting for the Empire. Again, enumerators in some oi the North Island districts, particularly Tarauaki and Wnikato, report that some. diHiculty ivas experienced in oi>taining information owing to the fear ot the natives that the titntiotie* were being secured for the 'purpose of recruiting, which may also have affected tlie figure, to some extent. Of the total Maori population 411.247 ale stated as full-blooded Maoris and :!.">2!» as hallcastes., while ni the Maoris "24.010 are males and —.iJiiS females. It i« interesting to note that there has been a nteaily increase in the Maori population Rinct ISIMS. when it numbered 3!>.8.*i4. to -which number it had declined from 45.470 at the time ot the lirst census in 1574.