ALTHOUGH it is a well-known fact that the increase of population of the United Kingdom is practically an addition to the urban population, it may be well to preface consideration of the land question in its relation to the national wealth and income by reminding the reader of the precise facts of the case.
If we have regard only to the technical "Urban" and "Rural" Districts, we get the following figures:
ENGLAND AND WALES: POPULATION OF URBAN
AND RURAL DISTRICTS RESPECTIVELY
| Census of | Urban Districts. | Rural Districts. |
| 1891 | 21,745,286 | 7,257,239 |
| 1901 | 25,058,355 | 7,469,448 |
Thus the urban population increased by 15.2 per cent., while the rural population increased by 2.9 per cent.
Many of the so-called "Urban" Districts, however, are quite rural in character, being often small towns dependent as business centres upon the agricultural areas in which they are situated. In 1901 there were 215 Urban Districts with populations below 3,000; 211 with populations between 3,000 and 5,000; and 260 with populations between 5,000 and 10,000.[52]
Having regard to these considerations the following figures are arrived at:
(1) Classing with the Rural Districts all those Urban Districts which had in 1901 populations below 10,000 we get:
| Urban Population. | Rural Population. | |
| 1891 | 18,964,882 | 10,037,643 |
| 1901 | 21,959,998 | 10,567,845 |
This gives an urban increase of 15.8 per cent. and a rural increase of 5.3 per cent.
(2) Classing with the Rural Districts those Urban Districts which had in 1901 populations below 5,000 we get:
| Urban Population. | Rural Population. | |
| 1891 | 20,576,448 | 8,426,077 |
| 1901 | 23,803,714 | 8,724,129 |
This gives an urban increase of 15.7 per cent. and a rural increase of 3.5 per cent.
Combining the three tests, we see that the truth broadly stated is that the rural population is almost stationary while the urban population is rapidly increasing. The rural population is thus a diminishing proportion of the whole.
In 23 rural counties in England and Wales actual depopulation occurred between 1891 and 1901, ranging from a decrease of 7.5 per cent. in Montgomeryshire to a decrease of 1.9 per cent. in Cornwall.
The Census Commissioners make an interesting test of depopulation of rural areas by taking the 112 Registration Districts which are entirely rural, and which had in 1901 an aggregate population of 1,330,319. Their population at each census back to 1801 has been approximately as follows: