Book 4: Numbers

So it came to be, in the Middle Centuries on Acarnia, each woman could bear only one child and that 4 out of 5 children everywhere would be born female. Four girls to the one boy was the way it became everywhere. They grew to adulthood, and so it was four women to the one man. This brought strife and reckonings, until in the Modern Times it was answered, and male and female now live in harmony with the Numbers.

People did the reckoning, and saw that the days of their tribe, city or nation would be numbered. They saw that they would meet oblivion, in a small tribe something thus:

Population ... female 40 ... male 10... (50 total)

Generation 1 ... female 30 ... male 8... (38 total, as 2 women fail to bear).

Generation 2 ... female 24 ... male 6... (30 total)

Generation 3 ... female 19 ... male 4(5)... (23 total, for a death of a male).

Generation 4 ... female 15 ... male 4... (19 total)

Generation 5 ... female 11 ... male 3... (14 total, as 1 woman refuses).

Generation 6 ... female 8(9) ... male 2... (11 total)

Generation 7 ... female 6 ... male 2... (8 total, as a female dies pre-teen).

Generation 8 ... female 4 ... male 1... (5 total)

Generation 9 ... female 3 ... male 1... (4 total)

Generation 10 ... female 3 ... male 0... (3 total, all female)

Thus it was seen: in 10 generations numbering 500 years total, the tribe meets oblivion; a tribe of 50 meets oblivion, in 500 years thereabout. Such was the fate of the Halling Tribe of Norderland and the Malay Tribe of Sun Isle, and many others.

For a small city-state, it was reckoned something approximate thus:

Population ... female 40,000 ... male 10,000... (50,000 total)

1)... 32,000... 8,000... (40,000)

2)... 25,600... 6,400... (32,000)

3)... 20,480... 5,120... (25,600)

4)... 16,384... 4,096... (20,480)

5)... 13,107... 3,277... (16,384) ... Such exact figures do not allow for

6)... 10,486... 2,621... (13,107) ... deaths, barren or difficult women.

7)... 8,384... 2,102... (10,486)

8)... 6,710... 1,674... (8,384)

9)... 5,372... 1,338... (6,710)

10)... 4,292... 1,080... (5,372)

The city-state has now reduced to a small town, after some 500 years.

11)... 3,435... 857... (4,282)

12)... 2,748... 687... (3,435)

13)... 2,199... 549... (2,748)

14)... 1,759... 439... (2,199)

15)... 1,407... 352... (1,759)

16)... 1,126... 281... (1,407)

17)... 901... 225... (1,126)

18)... 720... 181... (901)

19)... 576... 144... (720)

A city-state we had, but a middling tribe or village we now have.

20)... 461... 115... (576)

21)... 368... 93... (461)

22)... 295... 73... (368)

23)... 236... 59... (295)

24)... 188... 48... (236) ... Numbers now account for deaths,

25)... 149... 32... (181) ... barrenness or difficult women.

26)... 116... 28... (144)

27)... 89... 22... (111)

28)... 68... 17... (85)

29)... 52... 13... (65)

30)... 40... 10... (50)

In 30 generations, thus, the city has become but a small tribe; in 1,500 years this has happened. They then have 10 generations, say 500 years more, till oblivion. In 40 generations total, or 2,000 years, the city-state has come to nought.

Such was the fate of the city-state of Harkopily, but the cities of Menga and Harran combined and delayed the same by some 10 generations, numbering 500 years. In total, then, their states taken as one had endured 50 generations, which be 2,500 years. Some combined again, or again and again, and thus ebbed up to 4,000 years, but always the end be the same. Indeed, the end everywhere be the same, if something was not done. The glory of science rescued us.

It was seen that if woman could birth two in her life, then the generations would flourish. In the Modern Times, by the clever ones of the bio-science it was found out how, and a city-state could flourish thus: