POPULATION OF AUSTRALIA.

Press, Volume LXIII, Issue 18898, 13 January 1927, Page 14

POPULATION OF AUSTRALIA.

TOTAL NOW 6,076,432. YEAR'S INCREASE OF 118,312. ikeoi: orr. ow.v cokresposdestj SYDNEY, January 7. On September 30th last, the population of Australia was estimated by the Commonwealth Statistician (Mr C. H. Wickens) to be 0,070,-132 persons, of whom 3,10*1,821 wero males, and 2,971,011 females. This represents an increase of 118,512 persons, made tip of 62.023 males and 50,489 females for the twelve months. The increase was mado up of an excess of births over deaths of 77,958 persons, and an increase due to migration of 40,524, Tho population in the various States were: New South Wales, 2,333.579; Victoria, 1,703,177; Queensland. 882,310; South Australia, 562,164; Western Australia, 376,947; Tasmania, 208,827; Northern Territory, 3819; Federal Capital Territory, 5531. The returns indicate that since tho census returns on April 4th, 1921, the population of the Commonwealth increased by 640,698. Of this increase, 445,493. or 70 per cent., was mado up of the natural increase, the balance being clue to migration. It is estimated that at tho present rate of increase, the population will top the 7,000,0uj mark in seven years' time. x N.S.W. Outpacing Victoria. A striking feature of the analysis of the increase of population, according to the States, is that the population <.f Victoria is increasing far less rapidly than that of New South Wales. It/is but a few decades ago that the Victorian population outnumbered that of this State. New South Wales' increase represents practically half of the whole of the Commonwealth's, and that of Victoria about one-quarter. To-day, New South Wales has 630,000 more people than Victoria. Striking comparisons can be made from the figures. The population of Greater Sydney to-day is well over 1,000.000. or more than the number of people in the vast territories of South Australia. Western Australia, and the Northern Territory, or two-thirds of the whole of the continent. Greater Svdney contains nearly half the population of New South Wales. This State has nearly as many people as Victoria and Queensland together. There is always intense public interest in population figures in this country, mainly because it is realised that the vast areas still unsettled arc the vulnerable parts of tho whole country. We realise that our country will never be fully developed until there is at least 50,000,0") in it, and every thousand that the population creeps nearer that mark is watched with breathless interest, as if it were a slowly-mounting cricket score. But the saner-minrled, proud as they are of the size of Sydney, would be more pleased if some of the inhabitants of this City, containing more than onesixth of tho people of the whole continent, were distributed in tho lessdensely populated centres.