The population of the Chinese provinces, as quoted by Dr. Morison, from an official census taken in 1825, was 352,866,012, and we may fairly conclude that during the last twenty-eight years this population has extensively increased.  If we assume the annual consumption of tea at four lb. per head on the above population; and this is no unreasonable assumption in a country, where, to quote from Murray’s valuable work on China, tea “is the national drink, which is presented on every occasion, served up at every feast, and even sold on the public roads;” we shall have a tolerably accurate result as to the total consumption in the empire.  Indeed this computation falls short of the actual relative consumption in the island of Jersey, where, as we have seen, nearly five lbs. is the annual allowance of each individual.

If we multiply the population of China by four, we have—­

         &nb
sp;                                                     lbs. 
  Total consumption of tea in China 1,411,464,048
  Export of Great Britain and Ireland, for the year ending
    June 30, 1851. 64,020,000
  Export to the United States, same period 28,760,800
  Export to Holland, returned at 2,000,000 in Davis’s
    “China” 3,000,000

Inland trade to Russia 15,000,000
Export to Hamburg, Bremen, Denmark, Sweden, &c.,
seven cargoes, about 3,000,000
Export to Sydney, and Australasian Colonies, at least 6,000,000
Export to Spain and France, four cargoes 2,000,000
---------
Total lbs. 1,533,244,848

The above is exclusive of the heavy exportation in Chinese vessels to all parts of the east where Chinese emigrants are settled, such as Tonquin, Cochin China, Cambodia, Siam, the Philippines, Borneo, and the various settlements within the Straits of Malacca.  In comparison with such an enormous quantity, the 54 million lbs. consumed in the United Kingdom sink into insignificance.

L
The cost of tea to America, at the ship’s side in China,
say 29,000,000 lbs., at an average of 1s. per lb.,
would be 1,450,000
The cost to England, 64,000,000, at the same price 3,200,000
The cost to other places, say 25,000,000 1,250,000
Russia, 15,000,000 750,000
----------
Total L6,650,000

It is therefore clear, that were the demand to be doubled from Great Britain, it would make very little difference in the Chinese market; since it would be only a question of letting us have six per cent, of their growth of the article, instead of three.