THE HUMAN FAMILY.

Ashburton Guardian, Volume V, Issue 1493, 26 February 1887, Page 3

THE HUMAN FAMILY.

The human family living to-day on the earth consists of about 1,450,000,000 of individuals ; not logb, probably more. These are distributed over the earth's scrfaoe, bo that now there is no considerable part where man is not found. In Asia, where he was first planted, there are now approximately about 8C0,C00,000, densely crowded; on an average, 120 1 ) tbe Bquare mile; »n parts not. bo crowded, but everywhere dense, and at points overpopulated. In Africa there are 210,000,000. In America North and South, there are 110,000,000, relatively thinly scattered and recent. In the falands, large and small probably 10000,000.

The extremes of the white and black are na five to three ; the remaining 700,000,000 Intermediate brown and tawny. Of the racp, 500,000,000 are well-clothed — that is, wear garments of eomo kind to oover Iheir nakedness ; 700,000,000 are somiclothed, covering Inferior pirts of the body ; 250,000,000 aro practically naked. Of the race. 500,000,0C0 live m houses, partly furnished with the appointments of civi'Uation ; 700,000,000in huts or caves with no furnishings ; 250,000,000 have nothing that can be called a home, nre barbarous and savage. The range is from the topncojt round— lha Anglo-Saxon clvilleation, which Is the highest known— down to naked savagery. The portion of the race lying below the line of human conditions is at the very least three-fifths of the whole, or 900,000,000.

As to religion, the 1,450,000,000 are divided m the order of nura9iical strength aa follows : — 800,000,000 are pagans, comprising 600,000,000 of BrahmoBuddhieta, or Brahmans or Buddhißts : 160,000,000 of unclassified pagans; 150,000,000 Parsecs, Confucianists, Shintoists, Jains, and other smaller pagan Beets ; 410,000,000 are Christians, composed of 225,000,000 Roman Catholics, 75,000,000 of the Greek Church, and 110,000,000 Protestants ; 180,000,000 Mabommedane ; 8,000,000 Jews. Tho 860,000,000 of pagans are found chiefly m Asia and Africa, and comprise 99-lOOtha of the population, with scattered millions m the American islands of the sea.

The 410,000.000 Christian* constitute the body of Earope, and 9-lOths of the Americans, frith a few millions m Aila, Africa, and the islands. The Mahommodana are found ohielly m Asia and Africa. The Jews are scattered In all lands, without a home or country. This is approximately a correct oast of the religious status of the world to-day. It shows two thirds of the whole to be pagan, or, including the Mahommedans and Jews as an ti- Christian components of the pagan fraction, three- quarters of the whole— not : lens than 1,050,000,000. Of the remaining fraction of "410,000,000, a little more than one-half ia Roman Oatholio, one-quarter, nearly, Greek, and » trifle over a quarter Protestant— N.Y. Independent.