ABSTRACT
This chapter considers the size and composition of the Freetown's population and describes some aspects of its social geography and its economic organization. Regrettably little in the way of population statistics is available for Freetown, though a census has been promised for some years. Since 1947 the population of Freetown has apparently been increasing steadily: more concrete houses are being built and persons in the higher income categories are moving out to the west. A comparison of the two sets of figures does not suggest that under-registration was appreciable, for in 1947 males over the age of 18 accounted for 35% of the population, and in the sample survey males over the age of 16 for 36%. The belief that the tribal population is unstable is sustained by the frequency with which tribal people move from one house to another and by the close ties some of them maintain with kinsmen in the Protectorate.
