112 CHILE - MISCELLANEOUS 



(i) Persons occupied in agriculture, peasants and 



agricultural labourers 220,000 



(2) Persons occupied in manufacturing and dom- 



estic industries : 

 (a) On wages or engaged on piece work . . . 300,000 j 



{b) Milliners and dressmakers 1.50,000 > 450,000 



(c) Tradesmen, contractors, employees .... 20,000 ) 



(3) Persons occupied in mining industries . . . 40,000 



(4) Persons occupied in commerce (proprietors, 



employees) 140,000 



(5) Members of liberal professions 30,000 



(6) Public officials: 



(a) Civil servants 10,000 | 



{b) Army, navy, police 30,000 ) ^ ' 



(7) Domestic servants 90,000 



(8) Labourers without fixed occupation 240,000 



Total . . . 1,250,000 



The movement of the population of late years has been as follows : 



Fxcess 

 Year Births Marriages DeaUis of Births 



1906 . 



1907 . 



1908 . 



1909 . 



1910 . 

 I9I2 . 



117,032 18,507 104,890 12,142 



126,104 21,286 96,534 29,570 



120,733 21,483 104,226 25,507 



129,333 19-637 104,707 24,626 



129,999 19.352 109,399 20,600 



135,255 21,298 107,887 27,368 



Thus we see the birth-rate has risen. The death rate is kept up through 

 infant mortality, which is highest among the working classes, owing to 

 unsanitary conditions and the want of proper treatment. 



§ 2. The bases of tile nation.al economy. 



The bases of the national economy are the extractive industries, agricul- 

 ture and manufactures. The predominance of the first and the monopoly 

 which the country enjo3''s in the production of nitrates give Chilian economy 

 its special characteristics, which will be examined in the present article. 



I. Extractive industries. — - The profits of the extractive industries were 

 valued in 1911 at 330.000.000 gold pesos (i). Nitrates figure for 269,000,000 



(i) It must be observed that the monetary system in Chile is on a paper basis, with 

 compulsory circulation ; the value of the paper peso is subject to great fluctuations. 

 The standard goll coin is the gold peso worth 18 pence (= 1.89 fr.) with an agio of 

 about 80 % in paper. During the last few years the paper peso, of the same nominal 

 value as the gold peso, has been quoted on an average at 1,05 fr. 



In this article, peso, means the paper peso, except when the gold peso is specified. 



