The Sun.
London, England, 1867-04-20 00:00:00

BRITISH LYDIA.

A blue-book of 72 pages has just boon issued, wine
may probably be regarded as the first of an annual series—
a statistical abstract relating to British India. It describes
British India as having an area of 955,238 square miles,
and a population estimated at 144,674,615; the native
States an area of 596,790 square miles, and a population
of 47,909,199; States under French Government 188
squaie miles, and 203,887 inhabitants; States under the
Portuguese Government, 1,066 square miles, and 313,262
inhabitants—making s grand total of 1,553,282 square miles,
with a population of 193,100,963. The population of
Calcutta, according to the census of January, 1866,
was 377,924 ; of the town of Bombay, according to the
census of February, 1864, 816,562; of the town of Madras,
according to the administrative report for 1863, 427,771
The commercial progress of British India of late years has
been astonishing. In the financial year 1840-41 the mer-
chandise imported by sea from foreign countries was of
the value of .Z 8,415,940 ; in 1860-61 it had risen to
£23,493,716; in 1864-65 it was £28,150,923, in addition
to £21,863,352 of treasure. In the year 1848-49 cotton
goods of the value of £2,222,089 were imported into
British India ; in the year 1864-65 of the value
of £11,035,885. The exports of merchandise from
British India increased from £13,455,584 in the year 1840-41
to £32,970,605 in 1860-61, and to £68,027,016 in 1861-65.
This last increase was, of course, due chiefly to the effect
of the American civil war; in the year 1859-60 the export
of raw cotton from British India amounted in value to
£5,637,624, in 1864-65 to £37,573,637. The other chief ex-
ports in 1864-65 were opium £9,911,804, rice .£5,573,537,
seeds £1,912,433, indigo £1,860,141, jute £1,307,844. The
United Kingdom took £7,054,388 worth of the exports in
1840-41, and £46,873,208 in 1864-65. Exports of the value
of £10,874,652 in this last year went to China and Japan,
and £2,902,596 to France. The entrances and clearances of
British vessels in that year at ports of British India
amounted together to 10,911 vessels, of 5,417,521 tons
of European and other foreign vessels 1,755 of 920,532
tons ; of native craft, 40,227 of 1,582,864 tons. In
the year 1864-5, 2,747 miles of railway wore opened in
India, and convoyed 12,826,518 passengers. There were
1,421 post-offices, and 55,986,646 covers were transmitted
through the post, besides books and parcels. 17,117 schools
and colleges were maintained or aided by the Government;
the average attendance of pupils in them was 435,898,
and the Government expenditure upon them £391,277.
£4,473,263 was expended in the year upon public works.
11,736 miles of Government telegraph lines were open.
The gross public revenue of British India increased from
to
2h2e84,5p0u16b1521:ic8n9d7a bithent
£20,124,038 in the financial year 183941)
advanced from .£34,484,997 in 183a9-4Bor,ittiosh£9lBn,d4i7a7
former year
e aarntdo h2e6,
4e expenditure i
in
rteh
e fromlatter.
i5n55 thein
natives ;
former year
T The
re troops3s,
60,1 al
Europeansoyed i
and
199,839
in 1864-65 71,880 Europeans and 118,315 natives.

Rumours were again freely circulating that a
Fenian attack would be made on the chief frontier towns
on the opening of navigation, and every preparation was
accordingly being made to meet any emergency. Large
quantities of cannon and small arm service ammunition,
from Quebec are
ei
garrison undernformet's‘overeti ilYbeiug forwarded westward
guards, for the supply of the
out-lying military posts along the exposed portions of the
frontier. The provincial gunboats—Alfred, Rescue, Her -
cules—are to bo manned exclusively by crews belonging
to
service.the R Royal
all,N Navy
and commanded by officers of the same
there will be, with the three Imperial
gunboats, six vessels of war on the lakes at the opening
of the navigation.

LARGE SILVER MINING DIVIDENDS.—Five silver
mining companies working on the Cohsteck lode, Nevada,
declared dividends for the month of January, amounting
to £56,800, and for February amountiug*to £51,200. These
large dividends were made for the last favourable two
months in the year. The " Yellow Jacket," with a capital
of £6,000, paid £12,000 in dividends for January ; this is
at the rate of 240 per cont. per annum. " The Savage,"
with a capital of £21,000, paid dividends January and
February, each month amounting to £16,000, at the rate
of 814 per cent. per annum, and the " Imperial," with a
capital of £9,300, declared dividends for January of
£6,400, or at the rate of 783 per annum, and for February
£9,800, or at the rate of 1,175 per cent. per annum.