534 



NETHEKLANDS. 



The foreign population of the Dutch East 

 Indies comprised 36,465 European civilians, 

 14,600 European soldiers, 255,959 Chinese (of 

 whom 172,280 were in Java and Madura), and 

 28,176 Hindoos not horn in the colonies. In 

 Surinam there lived about 1,000 Indians, and 

 7,500 runaway negroes, not included in the 

 above figures. 



The budget for 1870 fixes the expenditures 

 at 95,864,781 guilders, and the revenue at 

 88,526,832 guilders, showing a deficit of 7,337,- 

 949 guilders, to meet which a law was passed 

 authorizing the emission of treasury notes to 

 an amount not exceeding 8,000,000 guilders. 

 The public debt, in 1870, amounted to 967,122,- 

 413 guilders, and the interest payable on the 

 same to 28,203,144 guilders. 



The budget for the colonies, in 1870, fixes 

 receipts and expenditures as follows : 



Guilders. 



EAST INDIES. Estimated revenue In India ____ 64,134,200 

 Estimated revenue in Holland 

 (principally from sales of co- 

 lonial produce) .............. 51,704,200 



Total .............................. 115,838,400 



Expenditures. Guiiden. 



For the colonial administration in India ....... 86,257,200 



For the home administration of the East Indies, 

 including 9,800,000 guilders payable as in- 

 terest on the colonial debt ................. 19,473,500 



Total .............................. 105,730,700 



Estimated excess of revenue .............. 10,107,700 



The Army of the Netherlands, in 1870, num- 

 bered 62,932 men, of whom 1,942 were offi- 

 cers. The infantry consists of one regiment of 

 grenadiers and chasseurs, and of regiments of 

 the line total, 1,041 officers, and 43,703 

 men ; the cavalry comprises four regiments of 

 hussars, consisting of 182 officers and 5,316 

 men ; the artillery consists of one regiment of 

 field-artillery, numbering 91 officers and 2,852 

 men ; the regiment is made up of fourteen batter- 

 ies, each of six guns, one depot company, and two 

 army-train companies. Besides, there are three 

 regiments of artillery for service in fortresses, 

 each of fourteen companies, consisting of 218 

 officers, and 6,753 men ; and one regiment of 

 horse-artillery, with four field-batteries, of six 

 guns each, one depot company, one army-train 

 company, and two companies of pontoniers, 

 total, 46 officers and 1,042 men. To these 

 must be added two divisions of the corps de 

 mar6chauss6e, with 10 officers and 362 men. 

 The staff" of the army consists of 210 officers. 

 The colonial army, on December 31, 1869, num- 

 bered 28,786 men, including 1,258 officers. The 

 marine was composed (July 1, 1870) of 70 

 steamers, with 664 guns, and of 52 sailing-ves- 

 sels, with 581 guns. 



The imports, in 1868, were valued at 469,- 



930,000 guilders, and came from the following 

 countries: Great Britain, 146,590,000; Prussia, 

 98,690,000; Belgium, 55,890,000; France, 11,- 

 360,000; North America, 6,940,000; other 

 countries, 150,460,000. The exports, in 1868, 

 summed up 368,910,000 guilders, namely : to 

 Great Britain, 94,130,000; to Prussia, 136,- 

 050,000; to Belgium, 53,290,000; to France, 

 7,740,000; to North America, 4,780,000; to 

 other countries, 72,920,000. The movement 

 of shipping, in 1868, was as follows: 



The merchant marine, on December 31, 1868, 

 consisted of 2,117 vessels, together of 505,757 

 tons. On January 1, 1870, there were 908 

 miles of railroad in operation, of which 507 

 miles were state roads, and 401 miles private 

 roads, owned by companies. Besides, there 

 were 98 miles in course of construction. The 

 capital invested in the state roads, up to Sep- 

 tember 1, 1870, amounted to 107,664,000 

 guilders. The postal service, during 1869, 

 showed an excess of revenue over expenditure 

 of 1,297,896 guilders. The aggregate length 

 of telegraph-lines, on January 1, 1870, was 

 1,766 miles. 



The colonial debt, in 1870, amounted to 

 228,500,000 guilders, and the interest due on 

 it to 9,800,000 guilders. The principal articles 

 of export from Java and Sumatra to Europe, 

 in 1869, were: coffee, 110,250 pounds; sugar, 

 329,875; rice, 38,750; tobacco, 16,000; pepper, 

 1,375; tin, 15,625; indigo, 577,163 ; nutmegs, 

 779,250 ; hides, 309,190 pieces. The exports 

 to America consisted of 14,000,000 pounds of 

 coffee, and of 17,125,000 pounds of sugar. 



On March 2d the First Chamber of the 

 States-General unanimouslyopposed the modi- 

 fied railroad budget. The Second Chamber 

 passed the poor-law proposed by the ministry, 

 and approved the increased budget of marine 

 without a dissenting voice. An increase of 

 449,445 guilders in the budget of war for 1870, 

 for the purchase of fire-arms, was also granted, 

 and the agrarian law for the East India colo- 

 nies passed by the First Chamber, as proposed 

 by the ministry. 



During the second legislative session, on May 

 21st, the Second Chamber passed the bill abol- 

 ishing the death-penalty. 



The annual visit of the King to the city of 

 Amsterdam, in May, 1870, was marked by an 

 important ceremony, as, accompanied by sev- 

 eral of the ministers, as well as the municipal 

 and provincial authorities, he laid the first 

 stone of the new dikes at the entrance of that 

 arm of the sea termed the Y, forming the har- 

 bor of Amsterdam, which are to prepare afresh 

 navigable channel from the Zuyder-Zee to the 

 Wyk-da-Zee. 



