Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1921.djvu/1158

 1106

NETHERLANDS

The yield of the more important products for 3 years was as follows : —

Crop

Produce

Crop

Produce

1916

1917

1919

1016

1917

1919

Wheat. Barley. Oats Bye

Quarters Quarters

421,643 957,000

209,555 485,687

1,579,178 4,201,437

1,025,941 1 3,212,687

1

Quarters

774,918

311,833

2,388,823

1,296,293

Sugar beet. Flax.

Tons 1,716,838

Cwts.

9,908

Tons 1,458,000

Cwts. 3,617

Tons

1,494,108

Cwts. 6,272

According to the live-stock census of March 5, 1919, Holland possessed 362,011 horses, 1,968,609 cattle, 437,075 sheep, and 449,829 pigs.

II. Mining and Manufactures.

A few coal mines are found in the province of Limburg; most of them belong to the State. The quantity of coal extracted in 1919 was 3,401,346 metric tons, valued at 70,909,000 guilders. In 1919 the private mines produced 1,925,249 tons, and the State mines, 1,476,297 tons; total for 1919, 3,401,346 tons. There is one salt mine at Boekelo.

There are no official returns of all the manufacturing industries. According to the last reports there were, in 1919 : 354 distilleries, 10 sugar refineries, 20 beet-sugar refineries, 28 salt works, and 271 breweries.

III. Fisheries.

In 1919, 6,239 vessels of all kinds were engaged in the fisheries, with crews numbering about 22,450. The produce of the herring fishery in the North Sea was valued at 36,675,168 guilders in 1919. The quantity of oysters produced in 1919 amounted to 3,916,248 kilos.

Commerce.

The Netherlands is a free-trading country. A few duties are levied, but they have only a fiscal or statistical, not a protectionist, character.

Treaties of commerce aud navigation between the Netherlands and Great Britain were signed in 1837, 1851 and 1S89, and (having special reference to.the colonies) in 1815, 1827, arm 1871, providing, amongst other things, for the ' most favoured nation ' treatment. Tht> treaties of 1837, 1851, and 1889, are terminable on a year's notice, with exception of that of 1851, which is terminable on six weeks' notice, when the privileges granted by the Netherland law of 1850 may be withdrawn. For the treaties of 1815, 182. and 1S71 no time of notice has been stipulated.

The following are the returns of the imports for home consumption and the export of home produce for six years (in thousands of guilders) : —

Year

imports Exports

Year

Imports

Exports

1915 1916 1917

2,111,000 1,749,000

1,888,000 1,387,090

964,730 H'.i,250

1!>18 IM9 1920

608,360 2,825,741) 3,367,472

381,210 1,411,310 1,748,613

The values of the leading articles of import and export in the last two years were (in thousands of guilders, 12 guilders m 11.) : —