He, in his turn, expressed his sincere thanks for their kindness to him, and was highly elated at the good fortune attending his new life. "By the records," continued Mr. Fowler, "you are thirty-three years of age, for you entered the cataleptic state at that age; and it has been decided that the period of your inanimation shall not in any manner be counted against you. A Lieutenant-Colonel at thirty-three, the youngest in the army, you will one day command the army of the United States." And he smiled kindly, while the President looked admiringly upon his protégé. Then, for an hour, the Secretary gave Colonel Cobb a brief history of the army during the hundred and odd years which had passed. "We have, to-day," said he, "a population of over 500,000,000 of people, occupying sixty-eight States and nine Territories, covering the whole of North America from the Isthmus of Panama to the Arctic, and from the Pacific to the Atlantic Ocean." "This is a vast and wonderful increase since the census of 1880," exclaimed Cobb. "Why, I remember, in 1887, that the most sanguine statistician estimated only 67,000,000 for the next census, that of 1890." "True," returned the Secretary. "That was above the exact figure; if I remember correctly, it was only 64,987,504. But even that population was a trifle more than twenty-five per cent. increase upon the census of 1880. The ratio of increase since we were a nation of only 3,000,000, averaged about thirty per cent. until the year 1900. In 1910 it fell to twenty-two per cent., but the next census, that of 1920, showed an increase of thirty-four per cent. The reason for this great increase is found in the fact that in 1915 the United States acquired Mexico and all Central America, with its population of over 20,000,000 souls, and in 1917, after the conquest, the whole of British America, with 10,000,000 more. Our population was, by the census of 1920--counting in 30,000,000 people acquired--137,000,000. The increase since 1890 has averaged only 18.5 per cent, every ten years, or less than two per cent. a year." "And is not the country somewhat crowded by this great mass of people?" inquired Cobb. "By no means; there is room for double the number--yes, treble as many. The great States of Slave, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Assiniboia, and west of the isothermal line of thirty-eight degrees are teeming with people engaged in agriculture." "What is the strength of the army required to protect the country from internal violence, and for a cadre of a full army?" asked Cobb.