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reports I have made several calculations of the population
upon other data, with the object of testing the accuracy of
my calculations made in the orthodox way. One of these
methods was to assume that a uniform death-rate had
prevailed throughout the South of London, and to calculate
our population from our deaths, in accordance with this
assumed rate. Another method was to calculate the population
from the birth-rate on the same principle. And a third
was to calculate the population on the assessments, assuming
that the proportion of persons to houses remained the same
as it was in 1881. I may add that each one of these
methods led to results which differed largely from those
derived from the experience of the last two Censuses, and
tended to show that the population of the Parish thus
derived was very much over-estimated. But it is clear that
none of these test methods can be relied upon as factors in
the determination of the birth-rate and death-rate. For,
as regards the first two, if we assume a birth-rate and a
death-rate from which to deduce the number of living
persons among whom these rates occurred, it is obvious that,
if we then proceed to deduce the birth-rate and death-rate
from the populations thus estimated, we simply come back
to the figures from which we started. In other words, we
simply assume the birth-rate or death-rate as the case may
be. The determination of the population from the assessments
is not attended with this latter objection ; but houses
differ so much in size in different places, and differ so much
from time to time in respect of the numbers of their inmates,
that though it might have some value in relation to large
areæ as that of all London, where such differences tend to
neutralise one another so as to ensure some reasonable
uniformity of result, it becomes of necessity untrustworthy