316 



GERMANY. 



The imports of horses were valued at 62,778,000 

 marks; of swine, 98,023,000 marks; of wheat, 

 199,221,000 marks ; of rye, 88,864,000 marks ; of 

 barley, 72,926,000 marks; of coffee, 196,471,000 

 marks ; of petroleum, 60,738,000 marks ; of hides, 

 92,691,000 marks; of raw cotton, 195,763,000 

 marks ; of raw wool, 251,516,000 marks ; of 

 woolen yarns, 94,077.000 marks; of raw silk, 

 94,145,000 marks. The exports of sugar were 

 179,807,000 marks in value ; of woolen fabrics, 

 148,078,000 marks ; of coal and coke, 129,078,000 

 marks ; of mixed silk and cotton fabrics, 109,- 

 947,000 marks ; of hosiery, 93,432,000 marks ; of 

 haberdashery, 88,245,000 marks ; of leather goods, 

 85,928,000 marks ; of paper, 58,149,000 marks ; of 

 aniline colors, 52,553,000 marks ; of wood manu- 

 factures, 43,461,000 marks; of hops, 30,137,000 

 marks. The commerce of Germany in 1892 with 

 the principal foreign countries is shown in the 

 table below, values being given in marks : 



Navigation. During 1893 there were entered 

 at German ports 65,927 vessels, of 14,187,407 tons, 

 of which 56,263, of 13,101,500 tons, were with 

 cargoes, and 9,664, of 1,085,907 tons, in ballast ; 

 there were cleared 65,581, of 14,108,950 tons, of 

 which 47,756, of 9,549,567 tons, were with cargoes, 

 and 17,825, of 4,559,383 tons, in ballast. Of the 

 vessels entered that carried cargoes, 40,954, of 

 6,812,325 tons, were German, and 15,309, of 6,289,- 

 175 tons, were foreign, British shipping being in 

 the lead, with 4,868 vessels, of 3,945,963 tons, and 

 then Danish, Swedish, Dutch, Norwegian, and 

 Russian. 



The German merchant navy in 1893 numbered 

 2,742 sailing vessels, of 725,182 tons, and 986 

 steamers, of 786,397 tons, a total of 3,728 vessels, 

 of 1,511.579 tons. Of these, 2,132, of 362,114 tons, 

 belonged to Prussian ports on the North Sea or 

 the Baltic. The number of seamen in 1893 was 

 41,635. The total fleet in the Baltic was 760 

 sailing vessels, of 160.950 tons, and 392 steamers, 

 of 156,658 tons; together, 1,152 vessels, of 317,- 

 608 tons. The North Sea fleet consisted of 1,982 

 sailing vessels, of 564,232 tons, and 986 steamers, 

 of 786,397 tons ; together, 3,728 vessels, of 1,511,- 

 579 tons. 



Railroads. The length of railroads open to 

 traffic in 1893 was 27,100 miles. The capital in- 

 vested was 10,726,246,000 marks on a total length 

 in 1892 of 26.971 miles. The receipts for the year 



were 1,348,864,000 marks, and expenses 876,054,. 

 000 marks. There were transported 228,977,000 

 metric tons of goods, from which the receipts 

 were 883,604,000 marks, and the number of pas- 

 sengers 464,013,000, paying 356,333,000 marks. 



Posts and Telegraphs. The imperial post 

 office and the separate services of Bavaria and 

 Wiirtemberg employ altogether 154,117 persons 

 in 27,644 post offices and 18,739 telegraph offices. 

 The imperial post office in 1892 handled 1,056,- 

 011,260 letters, 363.746,248 postal cards, 438,402,- 

 965 circulars, etc., 28.674,306 samples, and 757,- 

 253,683 journals in 1892. Including the separate 

 services, there were 1,208,322,120 letters, 400.464,- 

 750 postal cards, 489,035,360 circulars, 31,912,230 

 samples, and 904,780,838 journals forwarded, and 

 21,444,464,679 marks of money remittances. The 

 receipts of the imperial post office were 246,586,- 

 442, and expenses 229,026,740 marks; receipts in 

 Bavaria were 21,791,867, and expenses 19,601,220 

 marks ; receipts in Wiirtemberg were 10,916,!M)(>, 

 and expenses 9,578,087 marks. 



The imperial telegraphs in 1892 had a length 

 of 63,415 miles, with 231,121 miles of wire, over 

 which 19,536,954 internal and 8,342,786 interna- 

 tional telegrams were sent. Including the Ba- 

 varian and Wiirtemberg lines, the total length 

 was 73,198 miles, with 259,628 miles of wire, and 

 the traffic during the year was 22,209,144 inter- 

 nal and 8,965,956 international messages. 



The Commercial Treaty with Russia. 

 Most of Germany's commercial treaties expired 

 in the year 1891. and since then the Government 

 has made new commercial treaties with a large 

 number of nations. The treaties with Austria 

 and Italy, concluded in 1892, were intended to 

 cement firmer than ever the triple alliance. 

 Great as was the opposition, especially of the 

 Agrarians, who maintained that the reduction 

 of the duties on cereals would ruin them, the 

 treaties were nevertheless adopted by the Reichs- 

 tag by a handsome majority. As a result of 

 the treaties a movement was set on foot by those 

 interested in agriculture to form a league for 

 the purpose of opposing further legislation detri- 

 mental to agriculture. For years the German 

 Government had been negotiating with Russia 

 for a commercial treaty, but without success. 

 In 1873 Prince Bismarck said that the fifty-one 

 years of negotiation with Russia had not been 

 entirely fruitless. Count von Caprivi continued 

 the negotiations, but in the summer of 1893 

 they ceased entirely, and a tariff war was entered 

 into by both countries. At the same time nego- 

 tiations were resumed, and finally, on Feb. 10, 

 1894, the treaty was completed and signed by 

 the delegates of Germany and Russia, and was 

 submitted to the Reichstag for ratification on 

 Feb. 25. 



The opposition and the interest shown by the 

 people were something unknown in the German 

 Empire. The vast majority of the opponents 

 belonged to the Agrarian League, in which the 

 aristocratic Junkers of East Prussia worked side 

 by side with the farmers of Bavaria. Meetings 

 were held all over the country, and petitions 

 poured into the Chancellor's office, praying him 

 to maintain the high duties on cereals and pre- 

 dicting the ruin of agriculture if the protective 

 tariff were abolished. The only way in which a 

 treaty could be concluded with Russia was pri- 



