AFRICA, SOUTHERN, COLONIES IN. 



elected for five years. The franchise is possessed 

 l.y all adult males able to register their names, 

 addresses, and occupations, and further qualified 

 by the occupation of house property of the value 

 of 75 or the receipt of a salary of 50 or more 

 per annum. 



The Governor is Sir Alfred Milner, appointed in 

 1898. The Cabinet at the beginning of 1900 was 

 composed of the following members: Prime Min- 

 ister and Colonial Secretary, W. P. Schreiner; 

 Treasurer, J. X. Merriam; Attorney-General, R. 

 Solomon: Commissioner of Public Works, J. W. 

 Sauer; Secretary for Agriculture, A. J. Herholdt; 

 without portfolio, Dr. Te Water. 



Area and Population. The area of the col- 

 ony, including Griqualand West, East Griqualand, 

 Tembuland, Transkei, and Walfisch Bay, is 221,311 

 square miles, with a population at the census of 

 1891 of 1,527,224. The white population was 

 376,987; colored, 1,150,237. Pondoland, with an 

 area of 4,040 square miles, had in 1894 a popula- 

 tion of 188,000; British Bechuanaland, with an 

 area of 51,424 square miles, had in 1891 a popu- 

 lation of 72.736, of whom 5,211 were whites. Cape 

 Town had 51,251 inhabitants; including suburbs, 

 83,718. The number of marriages in Cape Colony 

 in 1898 was 8,709: of births, 15,340 Europeans 

 and 37,864 colored ; of deaths, 6,936 Europeans and 

 34,031 others; excess of births, 8,404 Europeans 

 and 3,833 others. . The number of arrivals from 

 over sea in 1898 was 28,513; departures, 20,638. 



Finances. The revenue of the colony for the 

 year ending June 30, 1898, was 7,212,225 from 

 all sources. Of the total 2,318,190 came from 

 taxation, 3,695,199 from services, 336,953 from 

 the colonial estate, 186,133 from fines, stores is- 

 sued, etc., and 675,750 from loans. The total 

 expenditure was 8,431,398, of which 1,248,700 

 went for interest and sinking fund of the public 

 debt, 2,058,587 for railroads. 435,338 for de- 

 fense, 534,896 for police and jails, 176,210 for 

 the civil establishment, and 1,349,143 under loan 

 acts. The expenditure for the vear ending June 

 30, 1900, was estimated at 6,664,044. 



The budget statement of Sir Gordon Sprigg 

 showed a deficit of only 69,000 in the accounts 

 for the year ending June 30, 1900, the late Gov- 

 ernment having reduced expenditure on having 

 its proposed income tax rejected. For the next 

 year the revenue was estimated at 7,252,000, 

 and expenditure at 7,225,000, not including 

 2,582,000 of permanent expenditure on harbor 

 works, rolling stock, irrigation, and local loans 

 to be raised by borrowing. 



The public 'debt on Jan. 1, 1899, amounted to 

 28,383,922, including 3,106,477 of guaranteed 

 loans for harbor boards and other corporate bodies. 



Commerce and Production. The crop of 

 wheat in 1H98 was 1,950,831 bushels; of oats, 

 1,447,353 bushels; of tobacco, 3,934,277 pounds; 

 of mealies, 2,060,742 bushels; the production of 

 wine, 4,861,056 gallons; of brandy, 1,387,392 gal- 

 lons; of raisins, 2,577,909 pounds. The number 

 of fruit trees in the colony, including pe.ach, apri- 

 cot, apple, pear, plum, fig, lemon, orange, and 

 naartje, was 4,195,624. The number of cattle was 

 1,201.522; of horses, 382,610; of mules and don- 

 keys, 85,060; of sheep, 12,616,883: of goats, 5,316.- 

 TiiT: of hogs, 239,451; of ostriches, 267,693. The 

 wool product was 8,115,370 pounds; the product 

 of mohair, 8,115,370 pounds; of ostrich feathers. 

 294,733 pounds; of butter, 2,623,329 pounds; of 

 cheese, 36,729 pounds. The total value of imports 

 in 1SJKS was Ki.(iS2,43H. of which . 1. ->.:!<; 1 .'.) t! 

 represent merchandise and 1,420,489 specie. The 

 exports of colonial produce were 24,112,483; the 

 total exports 25,318,701 in value. The chief 



exports of colonial produce were gold of the value 

 of 15,394,442; diamonds, 4,566,897; wool, 

 1,766,740; ostrich feathers, 748,565; mohair, 

 647,548; hides and skins, 548,478; copper ore, 

 262,830; cereals, 18,602; wine, 15,043. The 

 largest classes of imports were textiles and apparel 

 for 4,367,027 and food and drinks for 3,791,849. 

 Of the total imports 11,443,178 came from Great 

 Britain, 1,048,126 from British possessions, and 

 4,130,050 from foreign countries. Of the total 

 exports 23,969,425 went to Great Britain, 113,- 

 080 to British possessions, and 340,908 to foreign 

 countries. 



The beginning of the war in South Africa was 

 followed by a serious interruption to the normal 

 movement of commerce in the British colonies as 

 well as in the Boer republics, of which Cape 

 Colony is the principal outlet. The Boers and 

 their sons had to go on commando, leaving a great 

 part of the abundant crops to perish in the ground. 

 In Cape Colony the call for volunteers and the 

 disorganization caused by invasion or by the fear 

 of invasion led to the same results, although in 

 a less degree. By the end of 1899 there was a 

 heavy fall in the principal exports and general 

 depression was felt in trade. Later the war began 

 to create an immense trade of its own, and exports 

 of most products were stimulated, including mo- 

 hair, ostrich feathers, copper ore, and sheepskins, 

 the amount of increase over 1898 being 834,000. 

 The export of diamonds, however, was much 

 diminished, showing a loss of 1,579,000, and 

 there was a reduction in the wool export, so that 

 the total value of exports for the year showed a 

 decrease of 1,176,000. The provisioning of the 

 British troops more than supplied the loss on the 

 side of imports caused by the stoppage of the 

 trade in timber and mining machinery from the 

 United States and the other requirements of ordi- 

 nary times, which is destined to grow in a rapid 

 ratio after the return of normal conditions. Aus- 

 tralia and New Zealand furnished a large propor- 

 tion of the frozen meat and butter required to 

 feed the British forces. Australia sent 3.000 tons 

 of corn beef before January, 1900, and, the supply 

 becoming exhausted, 1,000 tons were ordered in 

 the United States. The supply of cattle on the 

 hoof in South Africa proving insufficient, cargoes 

 were brought from the Argentine Republic, which 

 also sent cavalry horses. Horses were bought in 

 the United States also and in Hungary, the Eng- 

 lish horses having been found too heavy and not 

 sufficiently hardy. Mules for transport were 

 bought in the United States. The oats of the 

 British Islands were too tender and unfit to stand 

 the climate, and preference was given to Russian 

 oats, and after them to American oats and what 

 could be got from New Zealand. Canada supplied 

 compressed vegetables and 3,000 tons of hay, and 

 thousands of tons of oat hay came from Australia 

 and alfalfa from the Argentine Republic. Canned 

 meats could not be supplied in sufficient quan- 

 tities by American packers, but 2.000 tons that 

 were shipped from England were American cans 

 rebranded. 



Navigation. The number of vessels entered at 

 all ports during IS'.IS was 1,045, of 2,812,906 tons, 

 of which 726, of 2,445,572 tons, were British: the 

 number cleared was 1,065, of 2,789,989 tons, of 

 which 720, of 2.401,772 tons, were British. Tn the 

 coasting trade 1,288, of 3,897,088 tons, were en- 

 tered and 1,293, of 3,927,311 tons, were cleared. 

 The shipping belonging to the colony on Jan. 1, 

 1899, comprised 28 steamers, of 4,023* tons, and 7 

 sailing vessels, of 4,513 tons. 



Railroads, Posts, and Telegraphs. The rail- 

 roads belonging to the Government had on Jan. 1, 



