DOMINION’S POPULATION.

Manawatu Herald, Volume XXXI, Issue 450, 6 February 1909, Page 2

DOMINION’S POPULATION.

Official figures have just been compiled by.the Registrar General (Mr E. J. Von Dadelzen), showing that the Dominion’s population on December 31 was estimated as follows: — Europeans, 960,642; Maoris, 47,731 ; Cook Islands population, 12,340 ; total, 1,020,713. The European population has gone up in twelve months by 31,158, or at the rate of 3'36 per cent. Immigration in excess of departures accounted for 14,261, while the natural increase caused a gain of 16,879. Both these features are in excess of previous years, and it is particularly satisfactory to note how the country gains by the excess of births over deaths. In this regard New Zealand compares very favourably with any, other country. Inlant mortality is kept down wonderfully compared with that of other countries. In fact, the death rate generally in 1908 was satisfactorily low—it wqr£|d put at 9'57 as compared with io‘9s in 1907, when it was abnormally

high. The birth rate for 1908 stood at 27‘45 as against 27*30 in the previous year, when there were about 900 fewer births. Last year’s record, both in births and excess of arrivals over departures, was the. high water mark, as the following table giving the gain in population for the last ten years will indicate:—lß99,11,155 births, 1887 immigration ; 1900, 12,346 and 1831; 1901, 12,857 and 6522 ; 1902, 12,280 and 7992 ; 1903, 43,301 and 11,275; 1904, 14,679 and 10,355; 1905, 15,621 and 9302; 1906, 15,913 and 12.848 ; 1907, 15,028 and 5,730 ; 1908, 16,879 and 14,261.