THE BRITISH EMPIRE.

New Zealand Herald, Volume XLVIII, Issue 14691, 27 May 1911, Page 5 (Supplement)

THE BRITISH EMPIRE.

POPULATION NEAR.Y 400,000,000.

The land surface of the earth is estimated to extend over about 52,500,000 square miles. Of this area the British Empire occupies nearly one-quarter, extending over an area of about 12,000,000 square miles. By far tlio greater portion lies within the temperate zones, and is suitable for white settlement. The notable exceptions are the southern half of India and Burma East, West, and Central Africa; the West Indian Colonies; the northern portion of Australia; New Guinea, British Borneo, and that portion of North America which extends, into Arctic regions.

The area of the territory of the Empire is divided almost equally between the southern and the northern hemispheres, the great divisions of Australasia and South Africa covering .between them in the southern hemisphere 5,308,506 square miles, while the United Kingdom, Canada, and' India, including the native States, cover between. them in the northern hemisphere 5,271,375 square miles. The alternation of the seasons is thus complete, one-half of the Empire enjoying summer while one"half is in winter.' The eastern portions of Australasia border so nearly upon the western hemisphere that the distribution of day and night throughout the Empire is, like the alternations of the,seasons, almost complete, one half enjoying daylight while the other half is in darkness. These alternations ol time and of seasons, combined with the .variety of soils and climates, are calculated to have an increasingly important effect upon, the material and industrial, as well as upon the social and political developments .of . the Empire. This will become evident in considering the industrial productions of the different divisions, and the harvest seasons which permit the summer produce of one portion of the Empire to supply the winter requirements of its other markets, and conversely. The Empire contains or is bounded by some of the highest mountains, the greatest lakes, and the most important rivers of the world. Its climates may be said to include all the known climates of the -world; its soils are no less various. The effect of climate throughout the Empire in modifying the type of the Anglo-Saxon race has as yet received only partial attention, and conclusions regarding it are of a somewhat empiric nature. / The general tenedency in Canada is held to be towards somewhat smaller size, and a hardy, active habitin Australia to a tall, slight, pale development, locally known as "corn stalkers," characterised •by considerable nervous and intellectual activity. In Now Zealand the type preserves almost exactly the characteristics of the British Isles. The South African, both Dutch and British, is readily recognised by an apparently sun-dried, lank, and hard habit of body. In the tropical possessions of the Empire, where white settlement does not take place to any considerable extent, the individual alone is affected. The type undergoes no modification. The white population of the Empire reached in 1901 a total of over 53,000,000," or something over one-eighth of its entire population, which, native races, is estimated at about 400,000,000. Summary, Native Populations: ' India ... ... .... ... 294,191,370 Ceylon end Eastern Colonies... 5,144,954 West Indies ... 1,912,655 South Africa ... ... ... 5,211,329 British Central Africa ... 2,000,0(7) East Africa ... ... ... 7,425,000 West Africa 18,863,000 ; Australasia and Islands ... 824 000 Canada ... ... ... 100,000

™'~ - . , 355.672,317 • White Populations ... 53,040,468

Total ... ... ... 338,712,785

This is without taking into account the population of the lesser Crown Colonies or allowing for the increase' likely to be shown by later censuses. Throughout the Empire, and ' notably in the United Kingdom,' there is among the white races a considerable sprinkling of Jewish blood. The latest calculation of the entire population of the world, including a liberal estimate •of 650,000,000 for peoples not brought, under any census, gives a total of something over 1,500,000,000. The population of the Empire may, therefore, bo calculated as amounting' to something more than one-fourtlt of the population of the world.— the Encylopajdia Britannica." .