in the last ten years was 9'9 per cent; in England it was 12'1, in Wales 13'3, and in Scotland 111, while in Ireland the population decreased at the rate of 5'3 per cent. In England, Wales, and Scotland the population increased at a faster rate than in the preceding ten years, while in Ireland the rate of decrease was much lower.

Thus far the unrevised figures issued from the Census Office enable us to go. We learn from the Preliminary Report that it is proposed to publish the final Report in County parts, or in parts for groups of Counties, each of which will be complete in itself; the first of the series relating to London. Each of these parts will contain, besides the bare figures for all the principal subdivisions of the country, elaborate details respecting the ages, condition as to marriage, occupations, birth-places, infirmities, &c.; nevertheless, it is hoped that the London part will be issued before the end of 1901, the other parts following at short intervals.

the neighbourhood round Berlin was en fête. The winner was received with more enthusiasm than Englishmen would have bestowed on him if he had made the journey on his own feet.

CYCLE RACING IN FRANCE.-After motor racing had been stopped by law in France, cycle racing on roads was also prohibited. A decree to this effect came into force just before the date which had been fixed for the great cycle ride from Paris to Brest and back. Nevertheless, the race came off, with the full concurrence of the police, and there was an immense number of entries, divided into two classes--professionals and tourists. The distance was 744 miles, and the winner, who hardly dismounted from his machine, was Garin, an ex-chimney sweep; his time was fifty-two hours. Rivierre was second, in fifty-four hours. Lesna, who was looked upon as the probable winner, was leading until somewhere near the end. He and Garin were riding a steep hill abreast, when Lesna could go no further and fell off his machine, only to be put on again by his attendants, who urged him to proceed. But he again fell off, and could go no further. The artificiality of such races was well shown in the case of the third and fourth arrivals. Frédéric, who seemed to have the third place at his mercy, was so exhausted and sleepy that he could only be kept awake by the persistent attentions of his friends. When almost at the winning post he became so slow that he was passed by Aucouturier. The results were as follows:

The first in the tourist section to arrive was Rosiere (France), who completed the journey in 62 hrs. 26 mins. 40 sec.; he received a prize of £80.

AUSTRALIAN FEDERATION.-The history of Australian Federation is briefly as follows: -At the instance of Sir H. Parkes, a conference of the Australian colonies was called in 1883 which led to the establishment of a Federal Council, which, however, was only an advisory body with no legislative or executive functions. New South Wales refused to join the body, and South Australia soon withdrew from it. In 1890 another conference, summoned in consequence of the uneasiness felt at the attitude of Russia, met at Melbourne. This was followed by a Convention held at Sydney in 1891, which drafted a bill to secure Federal Union, A Federation League was started by Mr. Barton; its stimulus led to an agreement on the part of the Colonial Premiers to bring forward enabling bills empowering the Convention Delegates to frame a Constitution. The subject, after being referred to the several Parliaments sitting in committee, was submitted to a general referendum, 219,000 votes being registered in favour of, and 108,000 against, the bill, but as the New South Wales majority did not reach the necessary minimum of 80,000 votes, the bill was not passed. New South Wales then proposed further amendments, and a second referendum took place in five colonies. 377,600 votes were now recorded for, and 141,580 against, the bill. Western Australia did not join in the decision,

pressing for some further amendment, which the Premiers considered it was too late to consider, and it was not until July, 1900, that the colony decided to enter the Federation. The delegates which the Premiers decided, on Jan. 25, 19co, to send from each colony to explain the Commonwealth Bill to the Imperial Government, were received by Queen Victoria at Windsor on March 27. At the end of the year the Earl of Hopetoun went out as first Governor-General of the Commonwealth of Australia, which was formally proclaimed at Sydney on Jan. 1, 1901. The Commonwealth at present consists of six "original States "-viz.: New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania. Under the Act constituting the Commonwealth the several State Parliaments retain their respective legislative authority in all matters not transferred to the Federal Parliament, to which extensive legislative powers are granted. This legislative power is vested in the Crown (represented by a Governor-General) conjointly with the Federal Parliament, which consists of a Senate and House of Representatives. On May 9, 1901, the first Federal Parliament was opened amidst great pomp by H.R.H. The Duke of Cornwall and York. The Executive is vested in the Crown, exercised through the GovernorGeneral, who is assisted by a Council of seven Ministers. Provision has been made for the transfer of State property and debts to the Commonwealth, for the collection and expenditure of duties, for an inter-state Commission on trade and commerce, a Federal Judicature, and for the future alteration of the Constitution.

THE CENSUS OF 1901.-This was the eleventh Census taken of Great Britain, and affords remarkable evidence of the continued growth of our population. Elsewhere our readers will find an interesting article on some of the leading features of the present Census, whilst under the heading of "Events of the Past Cen. tury are given the figures for previous years.

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THE CHINESE TROUBLE.-The conflicting nature of the news received from China during the past twelve months has made it difficult to sift the wheat from the chaff. painfully prominent feature of the situation has been the absence of agreement, even upon what seem minor matters to the uninitiated, between the so-called concert of European nations. The negotiations which were set on foot in the autumn of 1900 dragged their weary way into the autumn of 1901. Germany's policy of vengeance for the murder of her Minister met with little support from America and Russia, who objected both to the policy of making the execution of Ministers a condition precedent to the re-establishment of peace and to the levying of a large indemnity. It was not until near the close of December that the Ministers of the Powers agreed upon a preliminary note to be presented to Li Hung Chang and Prince Ching, the Chinese Commissioners. This note contained twelve "irrevocable" conditions as reparation for the crimes committed, which the Emperor of China promptly accepted. Amongst these conditions were:-The erection of expiatory monuments; the maintenance of increased legation guards at Pekin and the fortification of the diplomatic quarter; the destruction of the Taku Forts and the military occupation of points necessary to secure communication between Pekin and the sea; and the prohibition of the importation and manufacture of arms or warlike material. Meanwhile, expeditions were, from time to time,

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despatched in various directions, and Count von Waldersee submitted to the various Governments a plan for the evacuation of China, though in February he announced his intention of beginning a fresh campaign. This drew forth a protest from the United States, who gained the consent of the Powers to the principle that no Chinese territory should be acquired by any Power without international assent. On Feb. 27, 1901, Chi Hsin and Hsu Ching Yu were executed at Pekin. March, the disagreement which existed between the Powers was conspicuous in various directions; friction arose between England and Russia at Tientsin over a small piece of land which Russia declared to be her concession; a difference of opinion was shown on the question of inflicting further death penalties; and General Chaffee was instructed to prepare for the immediate departure of the American troops. In April, a further divergence of opinion was shown in the dissent of Russia and America from the suggested plan for Occupying points between Pekin and Shan-HaiKwan. China won a signal diplomatic victory over Russia, rejecting the Manchurian convention which would have handed Manchuria over entirely to the Colossus of the North. The indemnity question now occupied the attention of the Powers. America took exception to the proposed amount, £64,000,000, and suggested that the matter should be referred to the Hague arbitration tribunal, agreeing with Great Britain's objection to a joint guarantee. Though the principle of an indemnity was accepted by China, and the amount was agreed upon, a deadlock ensued upon the question of the mode of payment. The divergencies of views which existed between the Powers were accentuated by an affray at Tientsin on June 2 between some Welsh Fusiliers, who were acting as police, and a party of French soldiers who attacked them, which delayed Count Waldersee's departure, and by a fracas shortly afterwards between some Indian soldiers and a party of French who insulted them. Great Britain refused to pledge her credit for the purpose of securing debts to other Powers whose interest in China were almost infinitesimal; but by the middle of August the Foreign Ministers agreed to omit from the protocol the clause providing for the proposed international commission to deal with the commercial questions, and the protocol was signed. Negotiations had so far progressed satisfactorily that between the spring and the middle of July the 114,000 troops, of which 18,000 were British, were reduced to 63,000, of whom 10,500 were British; further reductions were in progress which will reduce the number of British troops in China by more than half,

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HOUSING OF THE WORKING CLASSES. -This pressing and intricate problem has now been a sufficient time before the public to show that no one heroic remedy will solve it. many years much more has been done by individual effort than by public bodies, notably by Lord Rowton, who in 1893 erected the "Rowton House at Vauxhall for 475 lodgers, and has since erected seven others under the Guinness Trust, the most recent being a building in the Fulham Palace Road containing 767 rooms. An impetus had been given to private housing schemes by Mr. Peabody's gift of £150,000 in 1862, and the Peabody Trustees have provided nearly 12,000 rooms in over 5,000 dwellings for artisans and poor at an average rental of 4s. 9d. per week per tenement. Under the will of the late Mr. W. R. Sutton a somewhat similar trust has been created for the erection of dwel

lings in London and other large centres, the sum of £2,000,000 being provided. The Metropolitan Industrial Dwellings Co. have also erected several dwellings at a cost to the occupiers of 35. 9d. per week for tenements of two rooms. The various Acts dealing with the problem have to a great extent been allowed to remain dead letters, and public bodies have been slow to move. Out of 46 town councils and 41 urban district councils which have adopted Part 3 of the Act of 1890 in nineteen and twenty cases respectively no proceedings have been taken, though several years have elapsed since the adoption of the Act. Since the opening of their first block of dwellings in 1894 the London County Council have displaced, or made provision for displacing, 16,278 people from insanitary areas, and have built 3,348 tenements (the majority being of three and two rooms), providing for 21,526 persons. Plans are in course of preparation for 9,879 tenements providing for 58,600 persons, so that shortly they will have re-housed over 80,000 people. The estimated cost of the land and buildings for this purpose is £3,847,416. The scheme for erecting cottages on a large scale at Tottenham has not yet been fully organised. The cost of land has made it so far impossible to build houses at the required rentals of 35. to 3s. 6d. per week for the poorest classes. The vested interests of slum property have been too carefully nursed, and a step would be gained even if the powers conferred by various Acts for coercing and punishing owners of insanitary dwellings were enforced. The value of these dwellings would then be duly reduced. The dearness of land and ground rents has proved a serious obstacle, as also the law relating to assessment of compensation for unhealthy dwellings. At Glasgow and elsewhere it was found that the Corporation had to face the speculator who quietly bought up sites in slums, re-selling them at a large profit. This question of cost has led ratepayers to look with scant sympathy upon the efforts of local authorities to cope with the problem, forgetting that what may at first be lost in meeting the housing needs of the poorest class would be amply recouped from the diminishing sum to be paid for maintenance of workhouses and asylums. By neglect of their duties, and by the permission of overcrowding, many borough councils have contributed to the increase of rents in poor districts. Whatever views may be held as to the economical aspect of the question, it is clear that quick and cheap means of access to and fro must go pari passu with the erection of houses and cottages in rural districts. Each colony of cottages should have a recreation ground attached to it, and in all new areas the sale of intoxicating liquors should be under some form of municipal control. extension of the period now required for the repayment of Government loans is highly needed if cottages are ever to be built at rents within the means of the poorest, and the growth of a loftier social spirit amongst our local bodies will be no small aid towards the solution of a most urgent social problem, one of great complexity, which comprises the question of intemperance, with its accompanying physical and moral degradation, which is so rapidly sapping the vitality of the nation.

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RAPID LOCOMOTION.-This subject was dealt with in an interesting manner at the meeting of the British Association in 1901. From Col. Crompton's speech we make the following short extract: "On railways with the present system of construction more than from 64 to 70 miles an hour cannot be obtained, but by the use of