CHAPTER VI

POPULATION AS AFFECTED BY VARIOUS CONDITIONS

THE history of the very remarkable nineteenth century
 has compelled us to recognise what important
factors scientific and technical knowledge and systematic
 organisation are in enlarging the world’s population-carrying
 capacity. The better correlation of all
Man’s efforts in connection with his exploitation of
Nature’s resources generally, and the more efficient
use of the earth’s surface, are problems already commanding
 attention. In this connection we may appropriately
 refer to Man’s dependence on cereals.
Cereals play such a rdle in the world’s life, that some
idea of its population limits may be had by considering
 what are the possibilities in respect of their production.
 To enable the relative values to be computed
with great rigour, their food-values are of course really
required. It happens, however, that the effect of
this element is practically negligible, a fact that later
will be fairly obvious.
The latest available returns indicate that, omitting
China, Siam, and some other countries, for which
there are no statistics, the world-production recently
was as follows: —
Product. Wheat. Rye. Barley. Oats. Maize. Rice.
a elories) 1560 1611 1525 1553 1710 1640
Million arres cult 2387 92:8 647 1245 1683 1230
Million tons yield . 89-20 33-15 2843 53:54 106-98 79°14
Tons per acre . ©0374 ©0357 ©0439 0430 0637 0-643
It may be noted that the yield of wheat and rye
could be taken as about 0365 tons, of barley and oats as
a5