Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 04.djvu/881

* CITY. 775 CITY MADAM. the rural population had actually decreased. The rcccin i;routh of the German cities is almost un- cxaiupled. Forty-seven per cent, of the pop- ulation now live under urban conditions. The tendency toward city life is especially marked in Prussia and Saxony. Statistics for other Conti- nental countries are equally interest in;;x. In the I'nited States a ditl'usion ol the ])opiilation would have seemed natural ; but urban tendencies are becomiiifr stronger, as will ajipear from the fol- lowing; table: YEAB Total Population Urban popa- latiou— Cities ot 8000 + No. of places Percent. of urban total 1790 3.929.21i 23.191.876 38,558,371 50.155,783 62,622,250 75,-t68.039 131,472 2.897.586 8.071.875 11.318..=i07 18.272.503 21,992,199 6 85 226 286 417 515 3.4 1850 12 5 1870 20.9 1880... . 22 6 1890 29.2 1900 33.1 Noticeable phenomena are the growth in the number of cities in agricultural States, such as Kansas and Nebraska, and along the Pacific Coast, and the remarkal)le increase from 18S0 to 1890. The census of 1900 shows that an increase has taken place in the South-Central and Western States; that the Xorth-Atlantie and North-Cen- tral States still contain four-fifths of the urban elements — a few States having over two-thirds of their population in cities: and that, since 1890, the percentage of urban increase has been 16 per cent, greater than that of the total population. Throughout the world the remarkable growth of gieat cities is of special significance, and also the manner of growth. There is great difficulty in comparing statistics because of the failure to distinguish the economic from the iiolitical unit. It is the territory- economically dependent upon the large centre which continues to grow rapidly. The important point to be noted is, that the in- creased size of these cities is due to suburban extensions. The older portions of the city have the population displaced b.v business and im- jjrovemcnts; rapid-transit facilities remove the residential portions to outlying districts, where better conditions are possible, and the congested wards do not grow exeejit where a low class of immigrants ap))ear. However, the incomers to the slums are largely balanced by the outgoers. Certain forms of industry are also moving to the suburbs. A principal cause of urban growth was the industrial revolution which stinuilated the in- crease of population and concentrated it in large towns. It is noticeable that the tendency to citj' life in the different countries is coincident with the growth of manufacturing industries. An ad- vantageous commercial situation is still a cause of growth for individual cities, as instanced by Liverpool, Montevideo, or Denver. More recent reasons for the depopulation of the country dis- tricts have been the low price of farm products; the im]>rovemcnts in agricultural machinery, which have reduced the demand for labor: the de- creased demand for rural craftsmen, due to the factory products and improved transportation: and the varied opportunities for advancement af- forded by the city. A few of the effects of this agglomeration of population may be enumerated. (11 Economic. Great extremes of wealth are found in the cities, but the possibilities of greater production raise the average of prosperity and the standard of living. Increased ta.xatiou and nuuiicipal indebt- edness make heavy demands U|)ou the social purse. The cost of living is higli, especially in rents, resulting in the horrors of overcrowding. Stajjles. however, arc lower, and consumption can be greatly varied. The existence of an unem- liioyed class is probably due to the immigration of a low class. Association is an aid to labor, in that it favors organization. (2) Political. Urban growth has meant national greatness. National stability was considered to depend upon the con- servatism accompanying land-tenure. As urban life increases, tenancy becomes more general ; but the new forms of wealth have simply expanded property interests. Municipal govcrimient (q.v.) presents ditliciilt i)roblcms. The population con- tains lioating, non-taxpaying, an<l foreign ele- ments; the opportunities for corruption are many,- and the needs of adiniuisiration require an ex- pansion in governmental functions. (3) Social. Among the evils of city life are those of disease, infection, dirt, high death-rate, infant mortality, overcrowding, lack of light and air, poor water, the fostering of daring criminals, the nervous tension of the life and the lack of provision for education and recreation, as well as the dangers of class antagonism. Industrial competition has weakened the tendency of cities to be the cen- tres of radicalism, but association unconsciously strengthens social solidarity. A humanitarian movement is apparent, as instanced in philan- thropic associations, while common interests have developed municipal activities broadly social in their nature. The cities are necessarily the cen- tres of thousht, cidture. and progress; they make o])inions. fashions, and ideas. Urban life must be accepted as a prominent factor of civiliz;ition, whose evils are temporary and remedial. Science can provide a solution for every problem. The old cities are in process of remaking; the solu- tion of the problem is not a return to rural life, but a l)etter adjustment to the urban environ- ment. Sec Municipal tiovERNiiEXT. Bii!LiO(U!APiiv. Consult: The Law Commenta- ries of Blackstone. Kent, and Stephen ; also Jhe- ring. Evolution of the Ar/jan (Eng. trans. New York, 1897); Fustel de Coulanges. La cite an- tique (1,5th ed. Paris. 1895: Eng. trans. Lon- don, 1874) ; Weber, "The Growth of Cities in the Nineteenth Century," in Columhia University Studies in History, Economics, and Public Law, vol. xi. (New York. 1901), where there is an ex- tensive treatment of the subject, with biblio- graphical notes: Shaw. Munieii>o-l (lovcrnnient in Great ISritain (New York. 189.5 ) : .Tames, "The Growlh of Grejvt Cities iu Area and Population," in Annals of American Academy of Political iind Social Science, vol. xiii. (Philadelphia, 1899) : r>ibliography of ilunicipal Administra- tion and City Conditions, issued by Municipal Affairs, vol. i. (New York. 1897, United States Census Reports). CITY HEIRESS, The. A comedy by Mrs. Aphra liclin MiiSJ). based upon Aliddleton's A Mad ]V(irhl. My Masters. The prologue was written bv Otwav. CITY MADAM, Tnr. A comedy by Philip Mns«iinger. licensed ^lay 2.5. 10.'i2. and printed in lfl.58. It was revivccl at Drury Lane. April 29. 178.3. The doubt which has been raised as to its entire authenticity is unfounded.