Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1899 American Edition.djvu/1405

Rh quick-firing guns, steamed 12 knots at her trials. The gunboat Ægir (400 tons), is armed with one 82 in. gun, one 27 in. Q.F., two l.9 in. Q.F., and two smaller Q.F.

The navy numbers 96 officers on active service and 65 in the reserve and abont 700 petty officers and seamen on permanent engagement. All seafaring men between the ages of twenty-two and thirty-five are enrolled on the lists of the active fleet, and are liable to the maritime conscription. By a law passed in 1892, they all go through a first training of at least 70 days.

Production and Industry.

I..

Of the total area, 75 per cent. is unproductive, 22 per cent. forest, and 3 per cent. under cultivation. At the end of 1890 there were 146,355 real estates separately registered (not including Finmarken), and the number of farms was 236,286. The 146,355 real estates were classified as follows according to the official valuation in cadaster-marks (each representing an average purchase value of about £100 sterling):—

As to the classification of the estates according to their area, no returns have been collected since 1865. (See Statesman's Year Book for 1896, p. 987.)

The latest agricultural statistics are for 1890, when the area under cereals was 185,605 hectares, potatoes 39,122 hectares. The estimated yield of cereals was 5,962,353 hectolitres, of potatoes 8,441,403 hectolitres. The total value of the produce was for cereals 38,262,761 kroner, for potatoes 24,807,136 kroner. The average annual produce in hectolitres per 10 acres for 1886-90 was: wheat, 2.12; rye, 2.43; barley, 2.87; mixed corn, 3.57; oats, 3.53; peas, 2.18; potatoes, 21.56 hectolitres.

On January 1, 1891, there were:—Horses, 150,898; cattle, 1,006,499; sheep, 1,417,524; goats, 272,458; swine, 121,057; reindeer, 170,134.

The value of cereals imported (including flour) was 37,792,700 kroner in 1897; the principal article being rye, 17,029,600 kroner. The import of butter amounted to 1,132,000 kroner, and of bacon and meat to 5,477,900 kroner. The export of agricultural produce is insignificant.

II. .

The total area covered with forests is estimated at 26,320 square miles, of which 73 per cent. is under pine trees. The State forests occupy 3,870 square miles, administered by a forest staff under the supervision of the Ministry of the Interior. The value of unwrought or partly wrought timber exported from Norway in 1897 was 42,212,400 kroner, and of wrought timber 19,461,900 kroner.

III. .

The mining and metal industry of Norway is unimportant. The total value of mineral products in 1896 was 2,887,600 kroner (4,013,300 in 1890); of furnace products, 1,264,000 (1,315,400 in 1890)