In Europe the objeft is to make the moft of their land, labour being abundant: here it is to make the mod of our labour, land being abundant.
It will be proper to explain how the num- bers for the year 1782 have been obtained;
as it was not from a perfed: cenfus of the inhabitants. It will at the fame time deve- lope the proportion between the free inha- bitants and {laves. The following return of taxable articles for that year was given in:
53,289 free males above '21 years of age.
211,698 flaves of all ages and fexes.
23,766 not diftinguifhed in the returns, but faid to be tytheable flaves.
195,439 horfes.
609,734 cattle, 5,126 wheels of riding-carriages.
191 taverns.
There were no returns from the 8 coun- tries of Lincoln, Jeiferfon, Fayette, Mo- nongahelia, Yohogania, Ohio, Northamp- ton, and York. To find the number of flaves which fhould have been returned in- ftead of the 23,766 tytheables, we muft mention that fome obfervations on a former cenfus had given reafon to believe that the numbers above and below 1 6 years of age were equal. The double of this number, therefore to wit, 47,532 muft be added to 21 1,698, which will give us 259,230 flaves of all ages and fexes. To find the number of free inhabitants, we must repeat the ob- fervation, that thofe above and below 16 are nearly equal. But asthenumber53,289 Z omits the males below i6 and 21 we muft fupply them from conjedure. On a former experiment it had appeared that about one-third of our militia, that is, of the males