The English are mentioned in the Bible: Blessed
are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.
—Pudd’nhead
Wilson’s New Calendar.
When we consider the immensity of the British Empire
in territory, population, and trade, it requires a
stern exercise of faith to believe in the figures
which represent Australasia’s contribution to
the Empire’s commercial grandeur. As compared
with the landed estate of the British Empire, the
landed estate dominated by any other Power except one
—Russia—is not very impressive
for size. My authorities make the British Empire
not much short of a fourth larger than the Russian
Empire. Roughly proportioned, if you will allow
your entire hand to represent the British Empire,
you may then cut off the fingers a trifle above the
middle joint of the middle finger, and what is left
of the hand will represent Russia. The populations
ruled by Great Britain and China are about the same—400,000,000
each. No other Power approaches these figures.
Even Russia is left far behind.
The population of Australasia—4,000,000—sinks
into nothingness, and is lost from sight in that British
ocean of 400,000,000. Yet the statistics indicate
that it rises again and shows up very conspicuously
when its share of the Empire’s commerce is the
matter under consideration. The value of England’s
annual exports and imports is stated at three billions
of dollars,—[New South Wales Blue Book.]—and
it is claimed that more than one-tenth of this great
aggregate is represented by Australasia’s exports
to England and imports from England. In addition
to this, Australasia does a trade with countries other
than England, amounting to a hundred million dollars
a year, and a domestic intercolonial trade amounting
to a hundred and fifty millions.
In round numbers the 4,000,000 buy and sell about
$600,000,000 worth of goods a year. It is claimed
that about half of this represents commodities of
Australasian production. The products exported
annually by India are worth a trifle over $500,000,000.
Now, here are some faith-straining figures:
Indian production (300,000,000 population), $500,000,000.
Australasian production (4,000,000 population), $300,000,000.
That is to say, the product of the individual Indian,
annually (for export some whither), is worth $1.15;
that of the individual Australasian (for export some
whither), $75! Or, to put it in another way,
the Indian family of man and wife and three children
sends away an annual result worth $8.75, while the
Australasian family sends away $375 worth.
There are trustworthy statistics furnished by Sir
Richard Temple and others, which show that the individual
Indian’s whole annual product, both for export
and home use, is worth in gold only $7.50; or, $37.50
for the family-aggregate. Ciphered out on a like
ratio of multiplication, the Australasian family’s
aggregate production would be nearly $1,600.
Truly, nothing is so astonishing as figures, if they
once get started.
