The Sun.
London, England, 1842-09-24 00:00:00

FRENCH AFRICA.

The Governor-General of Algeria has just pub-
lished a pamphlet on the means of preserving and ren-
dering useful the conquest of Algeria.
General Bugeaud's pamphlet is divided under seve-
ral heads. The first is, "On the necessity of do-
minion over the country for the purpose of colonisa-
tion." On this point, he says—" France has resolved
that her flag shall be the only one in Algeria, and
that a grand colony shall be formed there. The
first question to be resolved for the success of this
vast enterprise was the subjection of the Arabs.
With such a population there is no such thing as
insinuating oneself into power. They must be
conquered in order to obtain possession of, and cold •
nice, a portion of their territory. France, then, has
acted wisely, having once resolved on establishing
herself in Algeria, in being also resolved to conquer
it entirely. The work is certainly one of difficulty;
but it would be still more difficult to preserve upon
the defensive system any portion of the coast, for in
that case the enemy would be left in full enjoyment
of the country, viz., the resources of taxation and re-
cruitment, and would be able to keep us in a continual
state of blockade, and to attack us whenever he should
become strong, or we should have embarrassments to
contend with in Europe. Not only is the system of
conquest less difficult than this shameful system of
defence ; it presents immense advantages for coloni-
zation. It has been frequently and truly observed,
that no colonization is possible without cheap labour,
or, what is the same thing, cheap provisions. There
are a number of objects, such as cattle, horses, mules,
asses, forage, vegetables, poultry, wood, charcoal, &c.,
with which colonists could only be supplied by sea at
enormous prices. Cheap labour supposes, therefore, the
freedom of internal communication, which can only
exist by means of a peace always precarious with the
Arabs, or by the military possession of the whole, or
nearly the whole, of the country. In the rude war
which we have made upon the tribes, they have lost
in the razzia two-thirds of their cattle, and, never-
theless, butcher's meat, which was a few months ago
2f. 50c. the kilogramme (2 lb. French) at Algiers, is
now sold at only 50c. The reason of this is the sup-
ply of our markets from the interior. Here is one of
the first benefits of conquest. Many others will mani-
fest themselves with time, and when we shall have set
seriously about colonisation."

General Bugeaud then proceeds to consider the
means of effecting and securing the conquest which
he recommends. He says, "I do not hesitate to as-
sert that the same, or nearly the same, amount of
force as will have effected the conquest will be indis-
pensable for its maintenance. The Arabs are proud
and warlike. The war of tribe against tribe is their
normal state ; from their infancy all the males, with-
out exception, are trained to the use of arms and
the management of horses, and they are incessantly
engaged in hazardous enterprises. We cannot think
of dismissing our force in presence of such a popu-
lation. We should soon suffer from such an act of
imprudence. The history of the Arabs shows us how
prompt they are to revolt, and their antipathy for us
and for our religion will last for ages. Let us then
remain strong in the midst of them, if we do not wish
to lose in a few days the fruit of all our exertions.
This course is imposed upon us the more by the consi-
deration, that it is the only way to prevent our occu-
pation from becoming an onerous one to ourselves.
In a word, a powerful army would have dominion
over Algeria, would exist in it and be paid by it ;
whereas a weak army would be almost constantly a
burden to the French treasury." After proceeding at
some length with the same line of argument, the
author gives his opinion of the amount of permanent
force necessary in Algeria, and the mode of distribut-
ing it. "We ought," says he, "to have two lines of
occupation ; one in the interior and parallel with the
sea, the other on the coast. The stations for the first
appear to me to be clearly pointed out; they are
Tlemcen, Mascara, Milianah, Medeah, Setif, Constan-
tine, and Guelma ; on the coast Oran, Mostaganem,
Tenes, Cherchell, Algiers, Philippeville, and Bona.
We will begin with the West. The division of
Tlemcem should, in my opinion, be composed of
3,000 infantry, and 1,000 of other arms, of whom 500
simuld be cavalry d'elite, making 4,000 ; the division
of Mascara should also consist of 4,000 ; Milianah,
2:06000 ;
o
0; Merdaena,h,7,3ooo,6oo;
Mostaganem, 4,000 ; Tenes, ; Setif, 3,600; Constantine,
6
3,200 ; Cherchell, 2,150 ; Algiers, 10,000 ; Bugia,
1,000 ; Gigelly, 850 ; Philippeville, 4,000 ; Bona,
4,000; Guelma, 2,600 ; making altogether !a force of
63,200 ; to which we should add, at least, 12,000, to
allow for sickness and other casualties, giving thus a
grand total of 75,200 ; and if we would do these
things securely and speedily we must really have
' 80 000 "
, .
The following chapter is on colonization. The
General is a strong partisan for military colonisa-
tion. On this point he observes—" Military colonies
would he powerful auxiliaries to the army, and would
gradually enable us to reduce the amount of it, for
they would furnish soldiers for a campaign, and oc-
cupy a
re
certainpoints where we are now compelled to
hgarrisons. In my opinion we ought to have
carried on the establishmeut of military colonies at
the same time with the war, for then we could have
fixed them in favourable localities without having had
to pay anything to the Arabs, whereas, now that we
are at peace with the tribes who have made their sub-
mission, we cannot take possession of their territory
without offering an indemnity."
The system of Government recommended by
General Bugeaud is military. His argument is as fol
lows :—" If there were in Africa a European popula-
tion of 400,000 or 500,000 persons, then I could un-
derstand to a certain extent the idea of a civil govern-
ment; but, in the present state of things, I confess I
cannot conceive how the idea can exist in the minds
of certain statesmen and public writers."
Under the head of the " Resources of the Country,"
General Bugeaud says :—" In the short visits that I
paid to Algeria in 1836 and 1837, I conceived but a
poor idea of the fertility of the soil, so much vaunted
by the ancients. Having passed over only the worst
portion of the province of Oran I thought the Roman
historians had dealt in hyperbole when they called
Africa the granary of Rome. But since I have pene-
trated into the country in almost every direction, my
convictions have changed, and I have ascertained that Al-
geria produces already a great deal of corn, and an im-
mense quantity of cattle, and that it is capable of
producing much more, and also of adding several
other sources of wealth, such as silk and oil." In an-
other part of this chapter, the General says :—" There
are vast surfaces cultivated by the Arabs, without
having received any kind of manure, and yet they
produce an average per hectare (2 acres English) of
from 25 to 30 hectolitres (from 70 to 85 bushels
English) in wheat, and from 40 to 50 in barley."
On the sources of taxation, we read—" The ordi•
nary and religious tax is the tenth of the grain and
the twentieth of the cattle. If this were regularly
collected, as it would be with a good Government,
backed by a strong force, it would, I have no doubt,
produce sufficient to feed the army, and provide in a
great measure for its general support."

Ma. H. Pnimars.—A correspondent informs us
that this gentleman has not yet thrown up his en-
gagement, hut that he sings at Drury Lane on the
opening night in two glees in As you like it, which
our correspondent waggishly remarks, with reference
to Mr. Phillips, is not as he likes it. Musical _Review.
AN ILLUSTRATION OF PROTECTION.—Port wine
can be had for 40s. a dozen from Oporto, through the
intervention it may be of a trade in Sheffield cutlery
to Portugal. Up stands a man and says he will be
bound to make good wine that shall pass for port, in
hot-houses at home, for the small charge of 80s. a
dozen ; and he shall conceive himself an ill-used gen-
tleman if the Legislature will not encourage domestic
industry, and the Members for Sheffield vote for the
same. And the instrument he shall propose shall be
a duty to be laid on the Oporto port, to raise the price
to 80s., or it may be to 85s. Suppose, then, he is in
the full enjoyment of the scheme. Wine-drinkers are
drinking the home-made port at 80s. ; and all this, it
is boastingly affirmed, is laid out on British industry.
But was not 80s. laid out on British industry before ?
to wit, 40s. on the industry of Sheffield, and 40s. more
on that other place, wherever it, was, where the con-
sumer chose to indulge himself with something for
his money ? If so, what is the national gain, but a
clear loss of 40s. to the consumers of vinous comforts?
—Col. Thompson's Collected Essays.
Persons should be careful not to send their Income-
tax papers through the post, even if they live a
couple of miles from the officer appointed to receive
them; or if they do they must
pre-pay the postage.
A correspondent, who states that he is.a poor man,
writes word that, after paying
a lawyer s clerk ss. to
fill in his Income-tax paper, he sent it through the post
to the assessor, and found out several days afterwards,
that the assessor had refused to take it in because the
postage was not pre-paid. He has applied to the local
post-office, and finds that his Income-tax paper has
been sent to the dead-letter office in London.
The Academy
of the department of the Gard has
announced its intention of bestowing, in the month of
August next, a gold medal, value 300 fr., upon the
author of the best essay on the influence of Christi-
anity in social life, and a gold medal, value 500 fr., for
the best means of destroying art ,insect, the altisa
oleracea, which has for some years past caused ex-
tensive ravages in the vineyards of the Gard and
Herault.