FRANCE. 



325 



gallons ; from other countries, 17,191,725 gal- 

 lons; total imports, 224,511,068 gallons. Alge- 

 rian production has been encouraged for the 

 purpose of supplying the place of Italian wines. 

 Notwithstanding the partial failure of the native 

 crop, the imports in 1889 were 36,000,000 gallons 

 less than in 1888, and at the same time the pro- 

 duction of artificial wine from raisins fell from 

 103,246,000 to 72,710,000 gallons. Cider produc- 

 tion diminished in a greater ratio than wine, and 

 the deficiency in the quantity of these customary 

 drinks was made up by a larger consumption of 

 beer and brandy. The supply of genuine wine 

 for the year, taking imports and home produc- 

 tion together, was 735,661.887 gallons, while the 

 total exports were only 47,116,533 gallons, or little 

 more than 6 per cent. The bulk of the exports 

 consists of Medoc or Bordeaux claret, of which 

 the Argentine Republic received 8,488,156 gal- 

 lons in 1889 ; Germany, 4,168,178 gallons ; Eng- 

 land, 4,151,755 gallons ; United States, 1,761,328 

 gallons; Netherlands, 1,555,693 gallons; Bel- 

 gium, 1,437,319 gallons ; other countries, 4,403,- 

 100 gallons ; total, 25,966,529 gallons. The pro- 

 duct of the Medoc district was 47,288,837 gal- 

 lons in 1889 and 58,690,435 gallons in 1888. As 

 prepared for the market and for export in Bor- 

 deaux the Medoc contains a large proportion, 

 probably two thirds of its bulk, of Spanish wine. 

 The best qualities of Medoc go to the United 

 States, and this country is the largest consumer 

 of burgundy, champagne, and other fine French 

 wines. The shipments of other sorts besides 

 Bordeaux to the United States in 1889 were 

 5,127,428, and in 1888 were 5,468,767 gallons, 

 which is 2,000,000 gallons more than goes to any 

 other country. 



Great numbers of the French people are di- 

 rectly interested in the chief financial institu- 

 tions as well as in the Government funds, and 

 after the collapse of the Panama Canal Company 

 and the implication of the Comptoir d'Escompte 

 in the speculations of the copper syndicate public 

 confidence in their management is easily shaken. 

 Therefore much anxiety was felt when M. Le- 

 veque, a Deputy, resigned from the Directory of 

 the Credit Foncier, the largest credit institution 

 in France after the Bank of France and the 

 Credit Lyonnais, accusing M. Albert Christophle, 

 who has been its manager for thirteen years, 

 of making imprudent and unauthorized ad- 

 vances, and of wasting large sums in subsidiz- 

 ing newspapers and other unnecessary expenses 

 connected with the issue of loans. The new 

 financial scandal came shortly after the condem- 

 nation of M. Secretan, manager of the Societe 

 des Metaux and of the Comptoir d'Escompte, 

 for issuing fictitious dividends. M. Christophle 

 answered with figures that proved the finan- , 

 cial soundness of his institution to be beyond 

 question. With a capital of 875.000,000 francs, 

 it raises money on bonds to be loaned to land 

 owners on first-mortgage bonds or to communes 

 and departments, the amount of its loans being 

 3,100,000,000 francs. The Government decided 

 to investigate the affairs of the concern, the re- 

 sults of which showed that the statutory limita- 

 tions had not been observed and that some 

 money had been lost in risky and illegitimate 

 ventures. M. Christophle was therefore, in June. 

 1890, dismissed from the governorship, although 



under his management the business of the Cre- 

 dit Foncier has increased threefold and the divi- 

 dends have quintupled. He was succeeded by 

 M. Tirard, the ex-Premier. 



Navigation. The total number of vessels 

 entered at French ports in 1888 was 98,131, the 

 total tonnage 19,128,599. Of these, 22,385, of 

 8,712,736 tons, were foreign vessels and 75,746, of 

 10,415,863 tons, were French ; and of the latter 

 8,696, of 4,770,858 tons, were engaged in ocean 

 commerce and 67,050, of 5,645,005 tons, in the 

 coasting trade. Of the foreign vessels, 20,186, of 

 8,291,909 tons, arrived with cargoes and 2,199, of 

 420,827 tons, in ballast, and of the French ves- 

 sels in the foreign trade, 8,147, of 4,674,209 tons, 

 brought cargoes and 549, of 96,649 tons, were in 

 ballast. In 1888 there were entered altogether 

 99,938 vessels, of 20,133,838 tons, of which 83.- 

 859, of 18,663,866 tons, were with cargoes and 

 16,079, of 1,469,972 tons, were in ballast. The 

 French vessels in the foreign trade numbered 

 8,786, of 4,880,495 tons, of which 8,302, of 4,788,- 

 039 tons, came with cargoes and 484, of 92,456 

 tons, without. The French coasting vessels num- 

 bered 69,152, having an aggregate tonnage of 

 6,101,271. The number of vessels under foreign 

 flags was 22,000, of 7,152,072 tons, of which 19,- 

 874, of 8,749,695 tons, were laden and 2,126, of 

 402,377 tons, were empty. The total number of 

 vessels cleared in 1888 was 101,061, of 20,560,369 

 tons, as compared with 99,954, of 19,924,968 tons 

 in 1887. The French vessels in the foreign trade 

 numbered 9,935, of 5,281,024 tons in 1887, and 

 9,434, of 5,156,165 tons, in 1888. Of the latter 

 7,578, of 4,495,223 tons, sailed with cargoes. The 

 French vessels in the coasting trade were 67,050 

 in number, their tonnage 5,645,005, in 1887 and 

 69,152, the tonnage 6,101,271, in 1888. Of the 

 foreign vessels cleared in 1888. numbering 22,- 

 475, of 9,302,933 tons, the number carrying car- 

 goes was 13,741, of 4,859,002 tons, and the num- 

 ber sailing in ballast was 8,734, of 4,443,931 tons. 

 In 1887 the number of foreign ships cleared was 

 22,969, of 8,998,939 tons, of which 14,713, of 

 4,919,745 tons, were cleared with cargoes and 

 8,256, of 4,079,194 tons, in ballast. 



The merchant marine of France in the begin- 

 ning" of 1889 numbered 14,263 sailing vessels, of 

 451,272 tons, with 70,318 sailors in their crews, 

 and 1,015 steamers, of 509,801 tons employing 

 13,181 men. Of the total number of vessels' 12,- 

 803 were under 50 tons. The number of sailing 

 vessels engaged in European commerce was 328, 

 of 39,891 tons ; the number of steamers was 232, 

 of 166,699 tons. There were employed in ocean 

 commerce 428 sailing vessels, of 158,280 tons, 

 and 189 steamers, of 309,123 tons. Of 3,629,000,- 

 000 francs of imports brought by sea in 1888, 

 French vessels carried 1,396,000,000 francs and 

 foreign vessels 2,233,000,000 francs; of 2,955,- 

 000,000 francs of exports. 1,636,000,000 francs 

 were carried in French and 1,319,000,000 francs 

 in foreign ships. The increase in the number 

 of steamers from 599, of 255,959 tons, in 1879 

 is attributed in a large measure to the law giv- 

 ing bounties for the construction and navigation 

 of vessels amounting to about 10,000,000 francs 

 a year. Ship owners have hitherto bought many 

 vessels in Great Britain, where they are built 

 more cheaply and with greater rapidity than in 

 French yards, although by doing so they lost 



