Taranaki Herald. SATURDAY, JUNE 29, 1907. BRITISH EMIGRANTS.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LIV, Issue 13462, 29 June 1907, Page 4

Taranaki Herald. SATURDAY, JUNE 29, 1907. BRITISH EMIGRANTS.

While writing a dky or two ago on the subject of Great Britain's immigration problem we mentioned that the country, while annually receiving great numbers of pauper aliens ,- ie at the same time Idsing aonie of the best of her blood and sinew, much oi it going to foreign countries. A Board of Trade return shcrws that for the twenty-seven'yiears ended 1903 the average annual outflow of people from Great Britain was 114,600, sixty-five per cent., of whom! went to foreign countries and thirty-five per cent, tp outlying portions of the Empire. Put in another way, and;pe?happ a more striking one, in tke;period named 3,094,200 persons left the Motherland, 2,014,300 of them^fetting to foreign countries, and JLJDf&,BOO to tHe colonies of dependencies of the Empire. In the last three ~ysars there was a marked increase iji Ihe emigration to British! possessions and a corresponding diminution of that to foreign countries 1 For the former the percentage rose from 35 to 48.6 per cent., while for the latter it droppecfijfom 65 to 51.4 per cent. The activity of Canada; in attracting population was responsible for the change. . In 1897 Canada received only j.1,383 immigrants from Great Britain. Six years later the number rose to 41,000. In 1906 tWe were 86,000, and this year it is believed that the figures will reach' 150,000. What 6 pity that New* Zealand, is not receiving some of -those thousands. In many respects this colony possesses attractions and advantages superior td tl^ose of Canada, which does not succeed in retaining all the people her vigorous advertising secures. In ,fact, a memorandum* prepared by the Federal Statist of Australia shows fairly conclusively that a great number of the immigrants into Canada have left, the country again. The incompleteness of the records of vital, and migration statistics renders it impossible to ascertain how far the,, growth of population is due Ito immigration and how far to ! natural increase, but Mr. Knibbs estimates that between 1891 and 1901 the departures ir6m the Dominion . exceeded the arrivals therein by. no less than 219,612 persons, and his estimate is borne out by the United States Census. These figures show that the United States, during the decennial period, gained largely at Canada's exIpense. We are aware, of course, that during the last year or two 'great numbers of people have left the United States for Canada, but it remains to be seen whether they become permanent residents of the. Dominion. The great advertising campaign of the Canadian authorities was no doubt responsible for their going in the first place, but advertising will not keep them there. Should the experience of the years 1891 to 1901 be repeated, and the tide turn presently, the position we deplore will be accentuated. Great Britain is steadily losing 'by her exchange of people

with foreign countries. She is receiving" a much lower* standard of 'mmanity than she is parting with, md she is not relieving the condi-r tion of things at Home..