New South Wales has selected January 26th as the day
for her centenary, because on that day 1788 Captain Phillip took possession of the Colony, and, indeed, of the whole island- continent, in the name of King George. Thursday, there- fore, was the centenary of Australia, and not of New South Wales alone. We have said enough on the subject elsewhere, but may here give some official figures received on Wednesday from Melbourne. The total area of Australia, including New Zealand, is 3,075,238 square miles, almost precisely the area of the United States, and thirty times that of the United Kingdom. The white population at the end of 1866 was 3,367,436, and in- creased by the surplus of births over deaths at the rate of 67,994 in one year. The number of immigrants from all countries was 252,631; but the emigration is also great, and the excess of those remaining was only 64,947. Australia, therefore, would only increase by about a million in every eight years ; but the tide of population is setting at last in its direction. The total revenue is £23,506,000, or nearly a head, almost three times the British average ; but the total expenditure is higher still, and the total Debt rises to the enormous sum of £153,209,000. That will be a danger here-
after; but as yet, Australia possesses an unassigned estate of eighteen hundred and fifty-six million acres, and has raised in gold since the first discoveries, £317,663,000, or more than double her Debt. Much of the Australian State estate suffers from want of water, but it is noticed that as immigrants push in, the 4'
desert" recedes, and in all but the worst districts irrigation is possible. The belt round the coast, known to be fertile, would support fifty millions with ease.
Previous page
