Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1871.djvu/448

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SPAIN.

The commercial navy has been declining in recent years, both in number of vessels and tonnage. At the commencement of 1860, there were 6,715 sailing vessels, of 449,436 tons burthen, so that there was a decrease in the next eight years of 1,976 vessels, of an aggregate burthen of 102,400 tons. But the steamers, in 1860, only numbered 68, of 13,369 tons burthen, so that, as regards them, there •was an increase of 33 vessels, and 7,385 tonnage.

Colonies.

The colonial possessions of Spain, formerly embracing nearly the ■whole of America, are reduced at present to Cuba, Porto Rico, and the Philippine Islands, with scattered settlements in the Atlantic and Indian archipelago, and a small strip of territory in Northern Africa. The total area of these possessions is estimated at 110,000 English square miles, containing a population of about 5,000,000 souls, or 45 to the square mile.

The most important of the colonial possessions of Spain is the island of Cuba, with an area of 48,489 English square miles, and a population, in 1862, of 1,359,238 souk, of whom 764,750 whites, 225,938 free negToes, and 368,550 slaves. The subjoined table shows the numbers, and division of sexes, of the white population, at the end of each of the years 1860, 1861, and 1862 : —

Tears

Males

Females

Total

1860 1861 1862

343,953 468,087 437,869

288,844 325,397 326,881

632.7;>7 793,484 764,750

The numbers of the coloured population, both free and slaves, were as follows, at the same period : —

Years

Free

Slaves

Males

Females

Total

Males

Females

Total

1860 1861

1862

91,942 113,806 111,268

97,906 118,687 114,670

189,848 232, 193

225,938

224,076

218,722 220,305

152,708 151,831 1 18,245

376,784 370,553 368,550

The area of Porto Rico is 3,969 English square miles, with a total population, in 1864, of 615,57 1 souls, of whom 311,034 males, and 304,540 females. The division of population, in 1864, was as follows : —