THE SYDNEY HERALD ON NEW ZEALAND.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XVIII, Issue 5995, 3 February 1881, Page 6

THE SYDNEY HERALD ON NEW ZEALAND.

The Sydney Morning Herald ,has,an article, on the New Zealand statistics, f from which, we quote the following passages :—" In ; spite. of the commercial depression /through W,hich New Zealand,has'for sometime beenpassing, the latest statistics' of • that; colony prove that: she -is still making progress' in some of the chief elements of national greatness: '-In. ISs4;herpopulation, exclusive' of' Maoris ;, who cer-' ; tainlyhave contributed little'to her advance-. ] ■nient, : was estimated at. '32,554-,. against 251,315 for New So.uth At thesame "date ; Victoria had 312,307 ' inhabitants; South Australia '92;545, v and Queensland, , ' ■\f hicli : 'was therf , ' part - 'of ; Jfew, .South r Wales', had only abbiit a couple of ±housan.d| white residents' throughout the '.whole of her vast ; territorj'. ; In : point -of nninbersj' Viptbria still Holds the first pla'ce, but of late j years; Nesr'South-Wales has been y fast over-' taking her, and New Zealand faster still. 1 • Ai' the present moment Australasia must contain not-very'far'short of three million people of the British stock. The signs of the times: are that ia another' decade Victoria. will ! be surpassed by the" Mother colony, and r m'ay even be run close for second place Zealand. Butwhy should any ; one of these vigorous young colonies grudge ■ prosperity to the ; rest? ; The . faster any , r orie ;I gro>vs the better it will be for the others ;; and when this great continent 'arid [! its adjacent islands have a population of ten millions" instead of three, as they soon will have, the magnitude: of their mutual interests ."wall .enable them to overcome all tariff difficulties,' and whatever else may stand Jn. the'way of a, imited Australasian dominion. :;i The rate of increase in New Zealand foi; 1579 is given at' 7 - 2 per cent, upon the number of : the previous year,'and that is larger by-nearly one-fourth than for' New South Wiles.■';-. But- these estimated rates are subject ■ to • corrections on- both sides, and while our. Registrar ; expects , an increase" for overland arrivals, the Registrar' of : the island colony expects a decrease • for unr,e-' "corded ■ departures seaward. The gain by eSceess of births , over deaths-wits 16,733 in the larger colony,'ahdl2,4S7 in the smaller,'. and, therefore, the. latter has the advantage under -thisi head,-due to a soriiewhaij.higher birth rate. The marriage rate is about the samein both colonies—l4i for every thausarid : persons Living—'and that -is comnibrily accepted as proof of the easy circumstances of the people. But it is curious to notice the different proportions of the marriages celebrated by the different, religious denominations in'" the. '' two ' coloriiea In ; ' New South Wales' 45 per cent: of all the marriages celebrated during the, year were by zhe Church of [.'England, IS per cent, by the Roman Catholic Church, and the remaining 47 per , cent, by other denominations, and •at -. registrars' offices.' New' Zealand' 22 per cent, were Church of Enirland ; 124 per'cent. Rcni'an Catholic, aiid'6ss per cent, of other denominations— nearly orie-hal.f the latter being Presbyterian. The marriages by registrars instead of by ministers were -6 percent, of the whole in New South Wales, and 17:" per cent, in New Zealand."- '' /