Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1899 American Edition.djvu/926

 570 FRANCE: — AUSTRALASIA AND OCEANIA

primary and secondary education with 42 pupils, a higher class school for girls with 76 pupils, and an ' ouvroir,' or workroom for training girls, with 40 pupils. Primary instruction is free. There are 3 communal schools foi boys, and 3 for girls with (in all) 23 teachers and 720 pupils. There are, besides, infant schools, 'salles d'asile,' frequented by 342 children.

The islands, being mostly barren rock, are unsuited for agriculture. The chief industry is cod- fishing, mainly in vessels from France. The total exports (mostly colonial produce) amounted, in 1895, to 11,188,087 francs ; total imports, 8,165,792 francs. In 1897 the trade of France with the islands amounted to 26,954,415 francs (including the catch of cod, &c.), for imports, and 7,527,491 francs for exports. In 1895 there entered at St. Pierre, in the foreign trade, 1,544 vessels of 47,868 tons. In addition, the French and local vessels entered numbered 1,986 of 116,774 tons. Local budget for 1898, 500,710 francs; expenditure of France (budget 1899), 290,791 francs.

Books Concerning French America.

Annuaire de la Guadeloupe et Dependences. Easse-Terre. Annuaire de la Martinique. Fort-de-France. Annuaire des lies St. Pierre at Miqaelou. St, Pieri'e.

Coudremi (H. A.), Dix ans de Guyane. Paris, 1892.— Chez no.s Tndiens : Quati'e ans dans la Guyane fran^aise. Paiis. 1S93.

Garaud (L.), Trois ans a la Martinique. Paris, 1892. GuH (M. J.), Origines de la Martinique (1625-1720). Vaunes, 1893. Mimande (^P.), Foreats ct Proserits. [In Guiana.] Paris, 1897. Mismer (C.), Souvenirs de la Martinique. Paris, 1890. Stoddard (C. A.), Cruising among the Caribbees. London, 1896.

AUSTRALASIA AND OCEANIA.

NEW CALEDONIA AND DEPENDENCIES.

New Caledonia is a French penal colony, the government is in the hands of the Governor, with a Council-General and municipal councils or com- missions. Area, 6,000 square miles. Population (January 1, 1896), European : civilian, 8,384 ; military, 1,506 ; penal, 10,757 ; Asiatics, &c., 3,041 ; natives, 27,345 ; total, 51,033. Capital, Noumea, 6,679 inhabitants. The expenditure of the mother country in the budget of 1899 amounted to 7,392,361 francs, of which 4,425,323 francs was for the ]ienal establishment. The local budget for 1898 was 2,807,955 francs. Coal and other minerals are worked, rough ore, nickel, chrome, and cobalt being largely exported to Europe an(l Australia, About 1,900 square miles are appropriated to ratives and colonists ; 600 square miles of land suited for agriculture or pasturage remain uncultivated ; the rest is mostly forest or mountain. Wheat, maize, and other cereals are cultivated, as also pine-apples, colFce, sugar, coco-nuts, cotton, manioc, vanilla, vines, and other sub-tropical cultures. There are 120,000 huad of cattle. The chief imports are haberdashery, wines ami spirits, flour, dried vegetables, alimentary goods. Chief exports : — nickel, preserved meat, chrome ore, silver lead ore ; the ores and minerals exported in 1897 amounted to 3,900,000 francs. According to French statistics the trade of France with New Caledonia in 1897 amounted to 11,993,728 francs for imports, and 10,416,844 francs for exports. In 1897, 127 vessels of 134,656 tons entered, and 157 of 183,091 tons cleared at the port of Noumea.

Dependencies of New Caledonia arc : — The Isle of Pines, area 58 square miles, 44 to the miles .south-east ; the Loyalty Archipelago, three principal and many smaller islands, total area 756 square miles, 100 miles to the east ; the Huon Islands, 150 miles to the north-east, and the Chesterfield