In addition to these grave warnings, fears have been continually expressed concerning the danger of Australia from the Japanese or Chinese. We are told also that from the industrial point of view Australia is calling out for population; and a law giving a bonus of £5 for each child was passed a twelve-month ago. It would appear, therefore, that the birth-rate question is a very serious one in Australasia, especially when we are aware that determined attempts at checking the resources of family limitation have signally failed. Let us now examine the actual figures for the variation of the birth-rate, etc., and compare them with the above statements. These are given in Figs. 4 and 5. In both countries the birth-rate fifty years ago was remarkably high (well over 40 per thousand), and it has since fallen very rapidly to 26 or 27 per thousand. But in both of them the death-rate has fallen somewhat, and they now have the lowest death-rates in the world, that of New Zealand having been about 9.5 per thousand for many years past. So, instead of increasing slowly, _their rate of natural increase by excess of births over deaths is actually the highest in the world (with the possible exception of Bulgaria)_. The natural increase of New Zealand during the last five years has been more than 50 per cent. greater than in Great Britain, instead of being less, as stated by Mr. Roosevelt; and instead of the birth-rate going on falling, it has, on the contrary, risen lately. The natural increase of Australia is 16 per thousand, which would cause the population to double in forty-four years, or to become five times as large in a century. The Australian birth-rate has been well maintained during the past seven years, and the death-rate has slightly declined; so the natural increase has slightly accelerated. The foregoing statements are, of course, quite independent of immigration, and the following are the actual census figures for the increase of population. 1860 1870 1880 1890 1900 1910 Australia, 1,145,585 1,647,766 2,231,531 3,151,355 3,765,339 4,425,083 population Per cent. increase 43.8 35.5 41.2 19.5 17.5 in decade New Zealand, 625,508 768,278 1,002,679 population Per cent. increase 22.6 30.5 in decade It is worthy of note that in Australia, which is supposed to be needing population so much, the actual increase in the last two decades has been only slightly in excess of the natural increase. This means that the net immigration must have been very small, or that nearly as many people must have left Australia as entered it—a curious commentary on the alleged need for them.[8] New Zealand, on the other hand, shows a phenomenally large increase by the combination of natural increase and immigration. Footnote 8: