THE NEED FOR POPULATION.

Auckland Star, Volume L, Issue 170, 18 July 1919, Page 4

THE NEED FOR POPULATION.

Any statement by a member of the Government that offsets that deplorable discouragement of immigration recently put out by the Lands Department is welcome, so we arc glad to give publicity to some emphatic remarks in favour of immigration made a few days ago in Christ church hy the Hon. G. W. Bussell. "We cannot carry on this country unless we get a large increase in population," says Mr. Russell. Mr. Bussell cited figures from the 1911 census to show the proportion of actual producers of wealth to the total population. Out of a population of 1,008,000 there were more than 554,000 dependents, who produced nothing. In the professional classes there wero 32,716; domestic, 44,267; commercial, 65,762: transport, 3(5,433; and industrial 133,555. In -the primary producing classes the figures were: —Agriculture, 54,738, and pastoral 53,287. Mineral producers totalled 14,775 and other producers 5,781. Mr. Russell says that the position has- not materially altered since 1911. As a matter of fact the occupation figures for the 1016 census havo just been issued. The professional class has increased from 32,716 to 42,107, but the domestic has declined from sj4 ) 2G7 to 41,015; figures that throw some light on the servant problem. The commercial class has increased slightly, and transport has risen from 36.433 to 42,522. There has ■been a heavy fall in the industrial section, from 133,555 to 116,010, for which sonic explanation seems to be necessary The 1916 returns lump farm and station workers, miners, and '"other primary producers" together, giving them a total of 132,499, whereas the corresponding total in 1911 was 124.500. Xo one can deny that for a. rich country like New Zealand the proportion of actual primary producers to the whole population is much too low. Taken in conjunction with the fact that the population of the towns is growing more rapidly than that of the country districts, an aspect of our development to which Mr. Russell referred in his address, these figures emphasise the need for a vigorous immigration policy. This country wants as many producers as it. can get. It also wants a Government that will encourage them io come here, and not shelter behind the excuse that our soldiers must be served first. No one questions the prior right of our soldiers to land, but it is pitiable that ait this time of day the country is without a policy -that will do justice both to them and to their comrades of the Old Country who may wish to emigrate.