194 
THE MASCARENES 
diminution being further substantially increased by the 
opening of the Suez Canal. The harbour of Port Louis 
is, notwithstanding, visited at present by over 500 ships 
a year, whose burden for 1896 was put down at 641,000 
tons. In the same year the whole amount of trade in 
Mauritius was 520 lacs (52,000,000) of Indian rupees, of 
which 210 lacs were for imports, 310 lacs for exports; 
these numbers prove that the trade has diminished by 
about a third in the last twelve years. 
The intellectual life of the island has preserved its 
French character. Not only the language of intercourse, 
but also that of the periodical press is pre-eminently 
PTench. About 16,000 pupils, white and coloured, receive 
instruction in the 114 existing schools. Among scientific 
institutions we must give prominence to the Natural 
History Museum as well as to the admirably conducted 
station for meteoroloeical observations. 
The people of Mauritius are almost exclusively Catho¬ 
lics ; they are distributed among thirteen parishes. 
The system of laws is a mixture of French and English 
jurisprudence, a circumstance which has given rise to 
many complications. 
At the head of the colony is a Governor, named by 
the Crown, with whom there is a Governing Council of 
5 members, also named by the Queen. There is, besides, 
a Legislative Council of 27 members, partly named by 
the Governor, to which one member is chosen by each 
of the nine electoral districts, except Port Louis, which 
has the right to choose two representatives. The colonial 
budget of 1886 showed an expenditure of T 840,000 
against a revenue of T 750,000. The military establishment 
numbers 450 soldiers. 
Let us, in conclusion, throw a glance on the earliest 
settlement and the gradual development of the colony 
of Mauritius. 
After the discovery Portuguese navigators came occasion- 
