Page:Journal of the Straits Branch of the Royal Asiatic Society (IA journalof606319111912roya).pdf/417

 Population of the Straits Settlements and Malay Peninsula during the last Century

By H. MARRIOTT.

I have collected in the annexed tables statistics of the popula- tion according to race and sex for the Colony, and according to sex for the Malay States.

So far as the Colony is concerned the figures are probably ac- curate from 1871 onwards. Before that date the censuses were taken by the police at somewhat irregular intervals and are not very reliable.

Between 1822 and 1836 the figures have been derived from Mr. Newbold's "British Settlements in the Straits of Malacca." From 1836 to 1860 I have been unable to get many figures, and from that date they are taken from the Census Reports. With regard to the Federated Malay States, no reliable data are to be procured previous to 1891, and for the other Protected States the Census Returns for 1911 are the first of any practical importance.

It may however be of interest to add here the following esti- mate of the population of the States of the Peninsula in the years 1835-1836 given by Mr. Newbold in the work quoted above.