The Globe. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1876.

Globe, Volume VII, Issue 741, 3 November 1876, Page 2

The Globe. FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 1876.

The statistics which the various Colonial Governments issue from time to time are far more interesting aud instructive than figures usually are. Our social and economical progress is there written, and from the returns it is possible to extract some very interesting facts relative to the material growth of the various colonies. Unfortunately for the purposes of comparison, these publications are too much delayed; and so it was only a short time ago that the returns from all the colonies for 1875 could be compared together. The Sydney Morning Her aid of October 7th publishes in a tabulated form the returns from all the colonies for the year 1875, from which we are able to collect the following interesting particulars: — The estimated population of the Australian group, including New Zealand, was 2,278,614, less than half the population of the City of London. Victoria heads the list with a population of 815,034; next comes New South Wales with 594,465; then follows New Zealand, her estimated population on that date being 358,858, Fourth on the list is South Australia, whose population only amounted to 206,476; then we have Queensland with 172,402, Tasmania with 103,920, Western Australia closing the list with 26,459. The revenue returns bring out some rather striking facts. At first sight it would appear as if Victoria and New South Wales at any rate were in a far more prosperous condition than New Zealand ; the revenue of the two first named colonies being respectively £4,236,423 and £4,121,996; while that of New Zealand is set down at £1,677,636. This sum however does not include the provincial revenue, and which but for provincialism would have been shown as part of the colonial income. If it were so included the revenue of Zealand would have amounted to £2,813,928. The large and prosperous balance sheet which Victoria and New South Wales are able to show, is to a large extent dependent upon the land revenue, for when we turn to the column showing what amount is raised by taxation, we find that the three leading colonies are about on a par in thisrespect, Victoriaraising £1,724,822; New Zealand, £1,350,295 ; New South Wales, £1,138,901. There is no difficulty in arriving at which is the most heavily taxed colony in the Australian groupe, New Zealand of course coming first, the rate per head in her case being £3 15s 3d ; Queensland following with a rate of £3 5s 2d; Western Australia next, her taxation being £3 Os lid per head. Next comes Victoria, the rate per head in her case being £2 2s 9d; New South Wales, £1 18s 3d, the least taxed of all the Australian colonies being South Australia, where the taxation per head is only £1 12s lOd. According to population New South Wales is the largest importer, the value per head of the population being £22 13s Id ; New Zealand comes next where the proportion is £22 7s sd; Victoria has to be content witli third place, her imports being at the rate of £2O 9s sd; South Australia follows close upon Victoria, the other colonies succeeding in a rapidly declining scale. Judging from the returns before us South Australia was, j r , 1875, the most prosperous colony in the Australian group. She exported at the rate of £23 5s 5d per head of the population ; importing £2O 7s 2d. New South Wales follows with £22 19s 2d per head ; Queensland is third, with £22 7s 6d, against £l9 6s per head imports. The exports of Victoria were only £lB 2s 4d per head, as against £2O 9s 5d of imports; while the return from New Zealand is still less favourable, her exports being £l6 4s lOd per head, against £22 7s 5d of imports.