that the human family, taken as a whole, is constantly improving;—that every generation is wiser and better than that which preceded it;—that the savage and least improvable races will continue to be supplanted or absorbed by those of a higher intelligence;—that the semi-civilized will only be perpetuated by contact with a greater civilization, which will raise them in the scale of humanity. A middle race, such as China contributes in the shape of emigrating millions, is wonderfully advancing the work of civilization. The process is everywhere visible in the remoter Eastern world. The mestizo descendants of Chinese fathers and Indian mothers form incomparably the most promising portion of the Philippine population. In Siam, Burmah, Cochin China, profitable employments are mainly absorbed by Chinese settlers. In Netherlands India they are almost invariably prosperous. To them Sumatra, Borneo, and the other islands, must look, and not to the indigenous peoples, for any considerable development of their resources. In our Straits Archipelago they have superseded the Klings in all the most beneficial fields of labour, as the Klings had previously superseded the less industrious Malays. The progress of the higher capabilities, and the depression of the lower, may be traced in the extinction of so many rude languages and the spread of those which represent civilization in its most advanced stages. It may be foretold, I think, without presumption, that in some future time the number of tongues spoken on the face of the globe will be reduced to a very small amount. In the course of a century many a local idiom utterly perishes, and is invariably replaced by one of more extensive range and greater utility. When it is remembered that the written language of China is understood by one-third of the human race; that probably more than one-tenth of mankind have an acquaintance with spoken English—the language which has far more widely planted roots, and more extensive ramifications, than any other; when the daily decay of the provincial dialects of France, Germany, Spain, and Italy is watched, good ground will be discovered for the anticipation that many of the existing instruments for oral communication will be extinguished, the number of dead languages will be much augmented, and of living proportionally decreased.

I know not on what authority M. Mallat estimated, in 1846, the population of the Philippines at 7,000,000,—an augmentation, he says, of more than 50 per cent from 1816, when he states the population to have been 4,600,000. He says that it quadrupled itself from 1774 to 1816. He attributes the enormous increase from the later period to the introduction of vaccination and the general tranquillity of the country; but the correctness of the data may well be doubted.

The Christian population of the Philippines is stated by Father Juan Fernandez to be—

——Pueblos.Souls.
Under the Archbishopric of Manila185135,000
Under
,,
the
,,
Bishopric of New Segovia		132745,000
Under
,,
the
,,
Bishopric of New Caceres		104480,000
Under
,,
the
,,
Bishopric of Zebu		3061,200,000
In all7273,560,000

The population of the Philippines is generally supposed to be about four millions; but, as the Indians who dwell in the interior of several of the islands—those especially who occupy the unexplored forest and mountainous districts—cannot be included in any official census, any calculations can only be deemed approximative. The returns furnished by the government to the Guia de Foresteros for the year 1858 give the following results:—

Provinces.Natives paying tribute.Mestizos and Chinese Tributaries.Total Population.Births.Deaths.Marriages.
Manila86,25025,418276,05911,3469,2511,956
Bulacan91,55112,119214,2618,7895,1721,542
Pampanga79,9129,631170,8499,1014,4072,237
Nueva Ecija40,949...74,6985,9632,5471,176
Bataan17,4733,17642,3321,9411,171347
Cavite41,4716,94356,8328,8672,619868
Batangas115,3593,063247,67611,1336,2701,956
Moron20,2881,96443,0101,9001,508553
La Laguna65,1771,866132,2645,9354,2951,553
Zambales28,02314931,1162,3201,191635
Mindoro7,335...15,135734645191
Pangasinan97,7861,551272,4279,1726,3682,756
La Union39,04411745,6573,8941,5261,165
Ilocos Sur77,9742,293179,4077,3053,6471,801
Ilocos Norte70,30516140,2266,1893,6951,536
Cagayan27,7847154,4572,4431,489638
Abra8,00920036,737782354407
Nueva Biscaya6,116...19,754452387131
La Isabela14,112...26,3721,040757265
Camarines78,012125209,6966,2733,4561,770
Albay103,928990204,8407,4586,7221,099
Tayabas44,940154102,2103,0492,124949
Burias470...52517121
Masbate of Ticao5,4212710,99224910355
Zebu81,4574,267267,54012,6533,7402,374
Negros24,522394113,3794,4992,688804
Calamianes4,003...17,964730279172
Bohol64,760692175,6865,9242,4761,452
Samar61,586437117,8666,1613,4371,863
Leite66,371790134,4935,5822,1681,387
Antique25,5674277,6394,8101,708664
Iloilo174,8841,442527,97017,6759,2313,697
Capiz66,6148143,7139,8104,1991,187
Surigao13,80114818,848944525181
Misamis23,72926646,5172,155845396
Zamboanga3,8711610,19142995655
Basilan16744474371
Bislig4,6862112,718394143112
Davao304...80021918
Romblon3,517...17,068892375149
Totals1,787,52878,4004,290,371184,074102,46640,093

Proportion of natives to mixed races96.00 per cent.
Proportion
,,
of
,,
,,
natives (paying tribute) to population		29.00
per
,,
cent.
,,
Proportion
,,
of
,,
,,
mixed races to population		1.75
per
,,
cent.
,,
Proportion
,,
of
,,
,,
births to population		4.00
per
,,
cent.
,,
Proportion
,,
of
,,
,,
deaths to population		2.33
per
,,
cent.
,,
Proportion
,,
of
,,
,,
marriages to population		.90
per
,,
cent.
,,
Proportion
,,
of
,,
,,
births to deaths		64.00 to 36.00
per
,,
cent.
,,
Proportion
,,
of
,,
,,
births to marriages		2.70
per
,,
cent.
,,

Imperfect returns are given from Corregidor and Pulo Caballo, 370 inhabitants in all: From Benguet, 6,803, of whom 4,639 are pagans, and 15 Christian tributaries: From Cayan, 17,035, the whole population, of which 10,861 tributaries.

The number of European Spaniards settled in the Philippines bears a very small proportion to that of the mixed races. There are 670 males and 119 females in the capital (Manila and Binondo). Of these there are 114 friars, all living in Manila, eight ecclesiastics, forty-six merchants, fourteen medical practitioners, and the majority of the others military and civil functionaries. But in none of the islands does the proportion of Spaniards approach that which is found in the capital. Probably the whole number of European Spaniards in the islands does not amount to two thousand.