Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1921.djvu/749

 INTERNAL COMMUNICATIONS — MONEY AND CREDIT 697,

The navigation at Belgian porta in 1919 was as follows :— Number of vessels entered, 4,442 ; tonnage, 4,657,174 ; number of vessels cleared, 4,329 ; tonnage, 4,420,442.

The vessels entered and cleared in 1919 were as follows :—

Entered

Cleared

Nationality

564

2,200

57

Tonnage

704,814

1,674,013

M.7M

No. Tonnage

Belgian ....

British

German ...

546 685,203

2,160 1,765,180

18 15,974

Internal Communications.

The total length of the roads in Belgium (1919) was as follows:— State roads, 5,187 miles ; provincial roads, 964 miles ; conceded roads, 26 miles ; total, 6,177 miles. The majority of the roads are paved with stone.

The total length of navigable waterways (rivers and canals) in 1919 was 1,231 miles.

The length of railways (1919) :— State lines, 2,759 miles ; private lines, 184 miles; light railways, 1,706 miles; total, 4,649 miles. It is proposed to electrify the railway system of the country.

In 1919 the Post Office in Belgium handled 257,087,253 private letters, 50,056,650 official letters, 117,079,755 post-cards, 130,836,628 printed matter, and 168,867,933 newspapers.

On December 31, 1919, there were 1,766 post offices in Belgium. The gross revenue of the Post Office in the year 1919 amounted to 35,259,264 francs, and the expenditure to 39,091,906 francs.

The telegraphs in Belgium carried 18,455,300 * despatches, private and official, in the year 1919. In 1919 the total length of public telegraph lines was- 3, 579 miles, and the length of wires 15,160 miles, exclusive of rail- ways and canal telegTaphs. There were in 1919, 2,295 telegraph offices. Receipts in 1919 (telegraphs and telephones), 17,804,000 francs, expenses (telegraphs and telephones), 49,617,175 francs.

In 1919 there were 279 urban telephone systems with 18,465 miles of wire ; total number of conversations, 25,493,000 in 1919.

Money and Credit.

No gold has been minted since 1882 (save only 5,000,000 francs struck in 1914), and no silver 5-franc pieces since 1876. The Germans (1915-18) ordered the striking of zinc 5, 10, 25, and 50 centime pieces.

The one bank of emission in Belgium is the National Bank, instituted 1850. By law of March 26, 1900, its constitution was modified, and its duration ex- tended to January 1, 1929. Its capital and reserve amounted in 1912 to 90,693,280 francs. It is the cashier of the State, and is authorised to carry on the usual banking operations. Its situation on April 7, 1921, was (in thousands of francs): —

Gold. SUrer. Foreign bills Belgian bills

206,566 36,657 30,392

659,978

Loans to State Notes in circulation Treasury bills PriTate bills

5,500,000 6,088,708

679,566

i Including 10,661,200 telegrams sent in the administrations of the railway system.