2 



AFRICA. 



Commerce, on returning from a visit to North 

 Africa, presented an interesting report on the 

 commerce of Algeria. Mr. Rathbone is of 

 opinion that Algeria might rapidly be developed 

 into a ' ; paving " colony if rnled by France on 

 more sound economic principles, and if the col- 

 onists were not, as at present, subordinate to 

 the army, and the colony to Marseilles. Mr. 

 Rathbone also advocates the opening of the 

 ports and the establishment of regular steam 

 communication with Great Britain. The Arabs 

 he denounces as dishonest and lazy, and en- 

 couraged by the laxity of the Bureau Arabe to 

 cheat Europeans, particularly in the sale of wool. 

 The Kabyles, he says, are both industrious and 

 honest. With more business freedom, zllgeria, 

 he thinks, would easily produce immense quan- 

 tities of good wool, cotton, wine, oil, and corn, 

 as well as useful grass, called crin vegetal, 

 much used by upholsterers in place of horse- 

 hair. 



In Morocco, a fresh insurrection broke out 

 in the neighborhood of Rabat, in May, but it 

 was soon quelled. In July, the Emperor of 

 Morocco issued an important edict commanding 

 that no person, poor or rich, should be punished 

 contrary to law, and prohibiting the exaction 

 of any fines except as prescribed by law. It 

 also forbids people to present money or other 

 gifts to any governor or employ^ ; and if any 

 governor imposes fines contrary to imperial de- 

 crees, the people have the liberty of appeal to 

 his Majesty, who promises complete satisfac- 

 tion. The Emperor also appointed a day in 

 each week for receiving and determining the 

 complaints of his poor subjects. 



The Suez Canal has made sufficient progress 

 to enable light boats to pass from the Medi- 

 terranean to the Red Sea. The completion of 

 the work, and its opening for navigation, the 

 company expects to take place by the 1st of 

 July, 1868. (See SUEZ, CANAL OF.) 



The English Government had not, at the 

 close of the year, obtained from the Emperor 

 of Abyssinia the release of Consul Cameron 

 and other British subjects who have been kept 

 in prison nearly two years. A parliamentary 

 paper issued by the Government on June 20th, 

 contains full and interesting information re- 

 specting the relations of the Emperor Theodore 

 of Abyssinia with England and France. 



The Island of Madagascar continued to be 

 agitated by internal convulsions. In October, 

 the French Government received despatches 

 stating that Haharia, governor of Tarnatava, 

 persisted in his refusal to pay to the commander 

 of the French squadron on the station the sum 

 due to the French Government as an indem- 

 nity. His refusal was approved by the Queen, 

 anl a reinforcement of 1,000 men was sent to 

 him to guard the house where the money was 

 deposited, thus raising the force stationed there 

 to 8,000 men. The Government of the Hovas 

 moreover resolved to burn the treaties in the 

 public square of Tamatava between King Ra- 

 dama and the agent of the French Government. 



AGRICULTURE. 



The accounts given by the Rev. Mr. Ellis, the 

 pioneer missionary, were more favorable. He 

 stated in a public address delivered in England, 

 that the Government of Madagascar upheld re- 

 ligious toleration, that Christianity was spread- 

 ing very rapidly, not only in the capital, but in 

 the most remote parts of the country, and that 

 there was reason to hope that the next genera- 

 tion would be predominantly Christian, and 

 witness the extinction of Paganism. 



South Africa was throughout the year the 

 scene of hostilities between the Orange Free 

 State and the Basutos, which sometimes threat- 

 ened the peace of the frontier of the English 

 Colony of Natal. In reply to representations 

 from the Governor of the Cape Colony, Mos- 

 hesh, the chief of the Basutos, stated that he had 

 met the demand of the Natal Government for 

 invading their frontier. He also urged the 

 governor to take possession of his country and 

 people, alleging that they were desirous of be- 

 coming British subjects. The governor declined 

 to take steps at the present juncture, and doubt- 

 ed the sincerity of Moshesh, but lamented the 

 war, which, he said, if continued much longer, 

 would cause much misery and destitution among 

 the Basutos, and largely increase their cattle 

 thieving. 



The Government of the Cape Colony proposed 

 to the Colonial Parliament the annexation of 

 British Kaffraria to the colony, and carried the 

 measure, although considerable opposition was 

 made to it. 



AGRICULTURE. The year 1865 was, on 

 the whole, a favorable one for agricultural prod- 

 ucts, though the extreme moisture of May and 

 June in some sections affected the earlier grain 

 crops, and the extraordinary drought of the 

 autumn in New England and portions of New 

 York, affected the late crops, and especially the 

 fruits, unfavorably. So vast is the extent of the 

 country, however, and so varied its climate, 

 that with our abundant and constantly mul- 

 tiplying means of communication, a deficiency 

 of a particular crop in one section is readily 

 made up by its excess, or at least abundance, in 

 another. 



Of the cereal grains, the wheat crop is smaller 

 both in the number of bushels and the weight 

 of the grain than in any year since 1860. The 

 following are the crops of this grain, according 

 to the estimates of the Agricultural Depart- 

 ment during six years past, omitting the crop 

 of 1861. 



190... 132,984,782 bushels. 



1862 131,188.089 " 



1863 179,404,036 u 



1864 160,695,828 " 



1S65 148,522,829 " 



By this table it appears that there has been 

 a decrease in the amount of the wheat crop 

 each year since 1862, when it attained its max- 

 imum, and that this decrease in 1865, as com- 

 pared with the crop of 1862, was nearly 33 

 millions of bushels, being a little more than 12 

 millions of bushels less than the crop of 1864. 



