ASIA 547
111 the budget for 1899 tlio oxpondituie lor the Colonial Service, exclusive of Algeria was estimated at 85,957,600 francs, while, for the same year, the amount to be paid into the Frennli Treasury on account of various colonial services was estimated at 4,842,830 francs. In addition, the Marine Jjudget and that of the Ministry of War have to bear certain colonial expenses, while each colony has a large budget of its own, insullicient to meet the colonial expenditure.
Tiie only possessions of commercial importance, besides Algeria, Tunis and tiie West African Colonies, are Cochin-China, the islands of Reunion and Madagascar, and Martinique and Guadeloupe in the West Indies. The exports from and imports to French colonies are seen from the table on page 504 ; where more recent statistics are availa])le they are given under separate heads.
The total imports from French colonies and dependencies (exclusive of Algeria and Tunis) into Great Britain amounted in 1897 to 700,649Z., and the exports of British produce from Great Britain to these possessions to 602,393?.
The following are more detailed notices of the colonies, deiiendencics, and spheres of influence, arranged under Asia, AFRifA, America, and Airs- TRALASXA and Oceania.
Pondichery
. 49,052
Nedounkadou
24,256
Karical .
. 19,172
- Sliandernagar
24,059
Oulgaret
. 57,724
Bahour .
31,818
Yillenour
. 49,932
ASIA.
FRENCH INDIA.
The French possessions in India, as established by the treaties of 1814 and 1815, consist of five separate towns, which cover an aggregate of 50,803 hectares (about 200 square miles), and had on Decem1)er 31," 1895, the follow- ing estimated populations : —
La Grande Aldee 16,948
- Malie . . 8,911
- Yanaon . . 5,011
Total, 286,913.
Of this total less than 1,000 are Europeans. The colonies are divided into five depcndanccs, the chief towns of which are marked with an asterisk in the above table, and ten communes, having municipal institutions. The Governor of the colony resides at Pondichery. The colony is represented by one senator and one deputy. Local revenue and expenditure (budget of 1897) 1,209,876 rupees ; expenditure of France (budget of 1899), 296,619 francs; debt (annuity) 128,000 francs. The chief exports from Pondichery are oil seeds. Im[»orts from French India into France, 1897: — General, 2,997,415 francs; special, 78,616 francs. Exports from France to French India :^General, 983,030 francs ; special, 946,543 francs. At the ports of Pondichery and Karikal in 1897 the imports amounted to 3,560,816 francs, and the exports to 11,965,508 francs. At these two ports in 1897, 459 vessels of 622,328 tons entered and 439 of 494,769 tons cleared.
FRENCH INDOCHINA.
Under this designation the French dependencies of Cochin-China, Ton- king, Annam, and Cambodia have, to a certain extent, been incorporated. There is a Superior Council of Indo-China, which fixes the budget of Cochin- China, and advises as to the budgets of Annam, Tonking, and Cambodia. For the common expenditure of Indo-China the amount fixed in the local budget of 1898 was 230,761 piastres; the expenditure of France (budget of 1899) was 20,360,000 francs.
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