These ecclesiastical computations were founded to some extent on parish records of baptisms and burials, but this basis became more and more precarious as the population increased. Probably the records most nearly accurate are the baptismal records of the Church, for almost every Dominican is baptized at some time in his life. The death records are the least complete on account of the obstacles presented during the civil disorders and the distance at which many country people live from the place of registry. A law of civil registry, requiring the inscription of all births, marriages and deaths has been only indifferently carried out and during times of insurrection entirely suspended. A government census was begun in 1908 but not concluded. Any accurate computation is thus out of the question. Unofficial estimates of the population to-day range all the way from 400,000 to 920,000. In 1908 an official estimate based on birth statistics, placed it at 605,000. An unofficial estimate in 1917, made on the assumption that there are 1000 inhabitants for every 37 births reported, calculated the total population at 795,432, thus distributed among the several provinces: Santo Domingo ... 127,976 Santiago ........ 123,972 La Vega.......... 105,000 Pacificador...... 90,569 Seibo............ 68,135 Espaillat........ 64,108 Azua ............ 59,783 Puerto Plata ... 55,864 Monte Cristi ... 41,459 Macoris.......... 28,000 Barahona ........ 17,891 Samana .......... 12,675 The estimate of 37 births per 1000 inhabitants is probably too large as the birth-rate in Jamaica is but 34.6, in the Leeward Islands 33, and in the birth-registration area of the United States only 24.9. A reduction of ten per cent in the above figures would probably make them more nearly correct. That would give a total population of about 715,000. Accepting the number of inhabitants as 715,000 the population per square mile is about 39.6. A comparison with the surrounding West Indian countries reveals considerable disproportion. The Dominican Republic is not quite one-half the size of Cuba but has only one-fourth the number of inhabitants; it is almost double the size of the Republic of Haiti but has less than one-half the inhabitants; it is five times the size of Porto Rico and has but one-half the population; it is one hundred and seven times as large as Barbados but has only four times the population. If the Dominican Republic were as densely populated as the neighboring Republic of Haiti, it would have 3,000,000 inhabitants; if the population were as dense as that of Porto Rico, it would be 7,000,000; if the Republic were as densely inhabited as Barbados it would have over 21,000,000 people. Though the climatic and topographical conditions of the country would not permit it to become as thickly populated as Barbados, there is no reason why it should not support a population proportional to that of Porto Rico.