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New Zealand Times, Volume XXIX, Issue 4196, 1 September 1874, Page 2

Every publication which can throw light on the question of liow to get and provide for immigrants, has naturally great Unterest for us in New Zealand, where the question jis perhaps more actively discussed and studied than in any other part of the world. There are other countries which are, engaged replenishing and recruiting their population, by means of importing into it the strong and able, but surplus elements of labor ; and the various systems adopted to facilitate the settlement and welfare, as well as the future prospects of the new comers, though all founded on the basis of their ultimate profit, and consequent!}' that of the. State, vary in many important particulars. The country in which the progress and conduct of immigration present themselves to us in the most interesting aspect, and the most deserving of attention, is naturally the United States 'of America, the flow of population towards which is now attracting the ;notice of political economists, and those interested in the condition and prospects of the working classes in various countries. It is astonishing what a change, the present age sees in the social relations of class to class ; but none of these changes is more remarkable than that which is evidenced by the agitation now going on, not only in England but elsewhere, with respect to the laboring classes. Emigration from over crowded countries, once looked upon as a mere necessity of such a condition, is now becoming almost a science ; new countries which received the surplus population, launched upon their shores almost without being awake to the fact, are now devoting as much time and study to that branch ©f their policy, as to others which.formerly engaged a greater share of attention, and the result of this revival is of course greatly to improve the conditions under which emigrants are received and encouraged. The wide distribution of pamphlets, books, and other descriptive illustrations of anew • country do a great deal towards attracting popular attention, and. inducing immigration, especially if' these publications bear an official stamp, instead of being, as often, merely records .by individuals of their personal impres!siohs of the places they write about, impressions which are,, apt to be .formed far too much by special surrounding circumstances. The "Handbook of New Zealand," lately published under the editorship of an able hand, is one of those familiar and practical statements of the resources and inducements of a country, which, while not haying the dryness of official documents or statistics, has yet the stamp of authority on its very readable exposition of the present state of the country, its people, works,, products, and capabilities, and what wo may expect these to come to in the future. The :'' Handbook " has been now well ventilated through the Press ; most people iwho have had an opportunity of perusing it have formed pretty definite opinions upon it; and tho plans and principles upon'which'it is based are fixed and known. It is always well to benefit by comparison, and wo have before us a pamphlet similar in design and aim to our own,'giving ah official statement of the progress and conduct of immigration •in the United States, where,* as we have .already mentioned, the subject attracts a large amount of attention. The pamphlet ; is called a " Special Report on Immigration," and is edited by Dr. Young, Chief of the Bureau- of Statistics, and is altogether a specimen of great merit as an interesting compilation upon an interesting subject.. It gives the fullest possible information, as wo' shall show, and we are not sure but that its model might have been more closely followed in our own "Handbook." , The introduction gives a general sketch of the statistics arid value of immigration, showing the number and nativities of alien immigrants : who arrived in the States J since their forimation; tho occupations they havo undertaken, and the advantages offered to them. From this wo seb'that'more than one-half of tho total number, which from the formation of Government in the States amounted to 7,803,805, were'Eng-lish-speaking people, who " woro soon assimilated with and absorbed into the ( body politic." Then como. the Gorman and Scandinavian elements, making up almost all the rest. As we have had not a few shipments of Germans and Scandinavians, it is encouraging to see that they ; are evidently looked. upon as , by far the most desirable kind of immigrants. The shipments of Scandinavians to Wel'lington and. tho Hamburgei-s who came ont to Dunedin in tho ship Talmerston have already proved themselves industrious and economical) and wo may look for the same good results from their labor and settlement as havo accrued in America. Dr. Young ostimat'os . the full averago capital valuo of each immigrant at 800dols. or about £IBO ;* taking this as

the average, the immigrants landed; in 1870 virtually added. 285;600;000dolsV to I the national wealtV Now;-:these are facts, and show; forciblyyhow really bene : ficial immigrationiiis to a new' country. .'All fears about I.too large "■ immigration loans and expenses vanish before the practical statements of the American bureau, which have reassured the people there that the hibney which ; seems to be leaving them is really being repaid fourfold. Where is our Bureau of Statistics, and our Registrar-General, that, we do not have tables of this kind worked out ? No one-can doubt-that* if a competent statistician were to sit down and carefully collate the figures and papers relating to immigration, we - should have a large balance to pur_ credit- oil immigration expenses.' Why do we have all this crying out againstthe.enormous expenses of free immigration 1 It is because we see and can see this money going fromus, but are blind to. that which is coming: in in the shape .of strong and healthy colonists, each-., of; whom represents so much money ■to the national wealth. , The: Government know liov? to put these facts before the p üblic in America, because they know the ..' immensely reassuring" effect such statistics produce not only upoii the money market, but, also upon "general confidence; people in New Zealand would not be so afraid of new comers if they knew that they were worth far more than they cost. • The main part of the pamphlet to which we have alluded is composed of the answers forwarded by all-the States and Unions in reply to thirteen leading questions addressed to them by Dr. Young. These replies'give. the very, fullest information : for . every State of the prices and rentals of lands, the stapleproducts, facilities of access to market, cost of farm stock, and kind of labor in demand, by which an immigrant can ! in his own home decide in which part of that-vast country he would wish to settle, and, having decided, can gather the minutest details of everything he is likely to meet with. With this book in his hand an intending immigrant in London can compute his. expenses within a few cents, estimate the cost of building his house, purchase,his stock, and devise his whole life for'the first year without stirring from his fireside. Is not- that the sort of view of things we wish to present to those of the working classes at Home who would come in shoals if they only knew what they were to come ! to 1 But our American friends go into even further details. Appended are tables showing the average weekly wages paid in the several States and! sections folfactory, mechanical, and farm labor, and the cost of provisions, groceries, dry goods, and house 'rent' in the various

manufacturing-districts-of^-the-country,■ with much other, information.; „ Here the intending immigrant has full information on every possible matter he can wish,:and for every part of the country. The circulation of this pamphlet has done wonders in the way of attracting' the attention of the working classes to the States. They may have other countries to which th«y would prefer to go, but'they naturally choose a country of which. they know something definite, the circumstances they will be in, and the conditions of things which will surround them. We may confidently expect the " New Zealand Handbook," though it has not so wide a basis to work upon, to have a proportionate result, and when circulated widely, as it will be in England, to attract a very great amouut of interest in our, young Colony, and very materially to aid in increasing our population, and under our circumstances, Our national prosperity and the development of our resources.