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PUBLISHED BY R. & W. A. BARTOW & Co., AND BY
W. A. BARTOW & Co. RICHMOND, (VIR.)
Gray & Bunce, Printers.

1822.

LPH

THE NEW YORK PUBLIC LIBRARY 170391

ASTOR, LENOX AND TILDEN FOUNDATIONS. 1900.

ESSAYS AND LETTERS,

ON

COMMERCIAL AND POLITICAL SUBJECTS.

OBSERVATIONS CONCERNING THE INCREASE OF MANKIND, PEOPLING OF COUNTRIES, &c.

Written in Pennsylvania, 1751.

1. TABLES of the proportion of marriages to births, of deaths to births, of marriages to the number of inhabitants, &c. formed on observations made upon the bills of mortality, christenings, &c. of populous cities, will not suit countries; nor will tables, formed on observations maɖe pa’full settled,old countries, as Europe, suit new countries, e America,

2. For people increase in proportion to the num ber of marriages, and that is greater, in proportion to the ease and convenience of supporting a family. When families can be easily supported, more, persons' marry, and earlier in life.

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3. In cities, where all trades, occupations, and offices are full, many delay marrying till they can see how to bear the charges of a family; which charges are greater in cities, as luxury is more common many live single during life, and continue servants to families, journeymen to trades, &c.

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Hence cities do not, by natural generation, supply themselves with inhabitants; the deaths are more than the births.

4. In countries full settled, the case must be nearly the same, all lands being occupied and improved to the height; those who cannot get land, must labour for others that have it; when labourers are plenty, their wages will be low; by low wages a family is supported with difficulty; this difficulty deters many from marriage, who therefore long continue servants and single. Only, as the cities take supplies of people from the country, and thereby make a little more room in the country, marriage is a little more encouraged there, and the births exceed the deaths.

5. Great part of Europe is fully settled with husbandmen, manufacturers, &c. and therefore cannot now much increase in people. America is chiefly occupied by Indians, who subsist mostly by hunting. But as the hunters of all men, requires the greatest quantity of land from whence to draw his subsistence, (the husbandman subsisting ou much less, the gardener or still less, and the manufacturer requiring least of all) the Europeans found America as fully settled as it, well: could be by hunters; yet these, having large tracts, were easily prevailed on part with portions of territory to the new comers, who did not much interfere with the natives in hunting, and furnished them with many things they wanted.

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6. Land being thus plenty in America, and so

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