great genius for invention, as may be seen by the following table (amounts in the second [pg 148] column are given in millions).141 The steady increase of the valuation of our wealth goes on faster than the increase of population, so that it manifests itself in a larger average wealth to each inhabitant.
| Decades. | Valuation. | Per cent of increase. | Population. | Per cent of increase. | Per capital valuation. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1800 | $1,742 | .. | 5,308,483 | .. | $328 |
| 1810 | 2,382 | 37 | 7,239,881 | 36 | 329 |
| 1820 | 3,734 | 57 | 9,633,882 | 33 | 386 |
| 1830 | 4,328 | 16 | 12,866,020 | 34 | 336 |
| 1840 | 6,124 | 41 | 17,069,453 | 33 | 359 |
| 1850 | 8,800 | 44 | 23,191,876 | 36 | 379 |
| 1860 | 16,160 | 84 | 31,443,321 | 35 | 514 |
| 1870 | 30,068 | 86 | 38,558,371 | 23 | 780 |
| 1880 | 40,000 | 33 | 50,155,783 | 30 | 798 |
If the productive powers of the country increase as rapidly as advancing numbers call for an augmentation of produce, it is not necessary to obtain that augmentation by the cultivation of soils more sterile than the worst already under culture, or by applying additional labor to the old soils at a diminished advantage; or at all events this loss of power is compensated by the increased efficiency with which, in the progress of improvement, labor is employed in manufactures. In one way or the other, the increased population is