150 
THE ARMS TRADE OF BELGIUM. 
large factories. By another rare privilege, it is proof against political 
convulsions, thriving in war as well as in peace. Every successive 
innovation brings a rich harvest to Liege — such as, for instance, the 
percussion-lock, the breech-loader, and the rifled musket. 
Forty years ago the average production of Belgium was only 132,292 
barrels. It now amounts to six times that number, 859,498 being the 
number of barrels approved in 1864. This is a greater number than ever 
before passed through the proof-house in a single year. The great bulk 
of these barrels were newly manufactured ; a small fraction only were 
old barrels, obliged to be proved on being repaired or percussioned. 
Of the barrels proved, 3 per cent, on an average burst, and are not 
included in the above figure of 859,498 ; neither does it include the 
arms manufactured by the government. The production of 1864 is 
large when compared with that of 1863 ; enormous if compared with 
the decennial period from 1841 to 1850. The greatest increase has been 
in single guns and pocket-pistols. Double guns and holster-pistols have 
somewhat increased. The production of muskets of both kinds, 
whether " bords " or military arms, fell in 1864 below that of any year 
since 1859. 
Statement of the Value (in Francs) of the Arms exported from Belgium 
during the Following Years* 
Years. Total. 
1850 ..... 5,253,123 
1851 . . . . . 6,313,595 
1852 7,201,085 
1853 8,815,841 
1854 9,812,249 
1855 ..... 10,311,394* 
1856 ..... 13,858,315 
1857 11,245,906 
1858 10,194,750 
1859 10,158,560 
1860 . '. . . . 12,106,172 
1861 18,264,181 
1862 23,457,566 
1863 19,412,979 
1864 (small and side-arms) . 16,358,803 
The statistical data concerning this trade are few, and some- 
what conflicting. With reference to this table, the first remark to 
be made is, that the value of the exports is generally understated, 
the only authority on which they are based being the merchants' decla- 
rations. On the other hand, it is also to be remarked that the exports 
of recent years must include large amounts of foreign arms imported 
into Belgium free of duty to be repaired or altered. Formerly these 
The above table does not include powder, shot, or percussion. caps. 
