The daily morning journal and courier. [volume] (New Haven, Conn.) 1894-1907, 1900-02-02
FRENCH COLONIAL METHODS.
More officials Than Englanr, aYearl.

More officials Than Englanr, aYearly
Defcl, and No Monopoly of Com
meTce-Reforms Proposed.
| An elaborate report by Mr.. Austin
Lee Of the British embassy in Paris on
| the economic condition of the French
colonies has just been published by the
4, foreign office. Mr.. Lee states that the
expansion of the French colonial empire
is one of the most notable features in
the recent history of the country Be
fore the Franco German war, though a
nominal suzerainty existed over some of
| the colonies of to-day, those actually
under French rule were the French
West Indies French Guiana, st. Pierre
and Miquelon, Senegal and certain fac
tories and towns together with some
what ill-defined spheres of influence
and the port of Obock in Africa, the
French possessions in India and Cambo-
dia in ASIA and New Caledonia, with a
few scattered islands in Oceania. AL
geria is excluded as practically form
ing an integral part of France.
The French colonies are divided, po-
litically and Enthusiastically, into three
groups-O Those under the senatus
consultum of 1885, viz, Martinique
Guadeloupe and Reunion, all of which
are early colonies, and each of which
is represented at home by a senator and
two deputies. (2) Those under the re-
gime of DEGREES, which are Senegal,
Guiana, possessions in India, st. Pierre
and Miquelon, Cochin-Chin New Gale
donna and Tahiti OF these some are
represented in the senate and chamber
~ md he ind in, q
superior council of the colonies, which
includes colonial delegates and num-
Der of official and other notabilities con-
nected with the colonies administra-
lively or otherwise. 90 Protectorates
and colonies under suzerainty, includ-
ing various territories in Africa, NADIA
gascar, Tonquin and Cambodia. Some
of these are also represented on the CO.
lonial council, but the others are under
military rule. Actual autonomy exists
in no French colony; but most of them
have a certain amount of local self
government under the restrictive influ-
ence of the government and the minis
ter for the colonies The central ad-
miristration at home has changed again
and again in the last forty years, but in
1894 it was organized as a distinct min
istry. The policy Of GENERALIZATION has
been carried to high pitch as regards
the colonies. In 1897 an official report
gave the number of officials at the min
istry in Paris as two hundred and thif-
ty-one, against seventynine in the CO.
lonial office in London.
Naturally the expenditure in acquir-
ing the vast territories which France
now possesses has been very considera-
BILE. The colonial budgets do not show
all this, for much of it is In the war and
budgets; but the expenditure of
the last ten years, as shown by the
budgets, has been nearly thirty-three
millions sterling, the average being
about three and one-fourth millions a
year. During the same ten years the
credit side Of the account showed only
about two and one-half millions ster-
ling. This is composed chiefly of con-
tributions by individual colonies to the
military and other expenditures of the
mother country. While the home ex-
penditure forms heavy charge, the
local administrative expenses seem, in
many cases, proportionately heavier. A
committee which was appointed to con-
slider the colonial expenditure, and in |
particular to deal with the cost of adj |
apart from the military |
reported lately and sug |
gested greater local autonomy. 1T
shows that while the total revenue of