79.30 NETHERLANDS. The following table shows the values of the imports and exports of the great classes of products, in thousands of guilders: -Imports- Exports 1895. 1896. Food products... 414,636 392,239 460,107 346,042 374,992 405,627 Raw materials 299,355 305,855 355,073 201,180 212,185 246,457 Manufactured products.. 205,912 175,055 195,317 220,531 185,627 189,036 Miscellaneous.. 329,831 318,788 356,959 200,091 214,908 279,183 The leading articles of import and export are shown as follows, in thousands of guilders: The imports for home consumption, and exports from and to the leading countries, are shown The principal exports into the United States for the year ending June 30, 1896, were: Chemicals, drugs, dyes, $232,592; coffee, $660,478; fish, preserved, $659,568; flax, hemp, etc., unmanufactured $251,091; jewelry and precious stones, $1,516,114; oils, $286,199; spices, unground, $298,169; sugar above No. 16 D. S. $1,023,223; tin, in blocks, bars, etc., $1,253,553; tobacco, leaf, $4,710,024. Imports from the United States were: Breadstuffs, $6,907,797; casings for sausages, $427,701; copper, ingots, bar and old, $5,335,736: cotton, unmanufactured, $556,471; fruits, including nuts, $643,960: fertilizers, $380,470; leather, $301,818; naval stores, $787,935; oil cake and oil-cake meal, $827,114; oil, mineral, refined, $6,884,733; oil, cottonseed, $1,311,540; provisions, $8,681,417, of which lard was $2,287,634; oleomargarine oil, $5,056,488; tobacco, unmanufactured, $1,152,136; wood and manufactures, $3,386,767. Year. IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF GOLD AND SILVER COIN AND BULLION. 1893.. Gold Imports. Exports. Year. $7,044,546 $943,333 1893.. 3,258,790 263,713 1894. 1,885,000 305,124 1895. 1,956,695 84,098 1896. --Silver Imports. Exports. $951,392 2,466,758 1,128,354 $318,143 630,403 22.310 639,381 247,981 Shipping, Railroads, Post-Office, and Telegraphs. (See Index.) Money and Circulation. The standard coin is the 10-florin piece, weighing 6.720 grammes .900 fine, and thus containing 6.048 grammes of fine gold. The unit of the silver coinage is the florin, weighing 10 grammes .945 fine, and containing 9.45 grammes of fine silver. Gold is legal tender, and the silver coins issued before 1875. For gold and silver coins, see Index. The total circulation was valued as follows, in thousands of guilders: The Bank of the Netherlands, a private institution, is the only bank authorized to issue banknotes. Its condition is shown as follows, in thousands of guilders: A more detailed statement of its affairs on December 30, 1897, follows: The bank keeps the State treasury and the cash of the State Postal Savings-Bank. It receives 5 per cent. of the clear gains; the remainder is divided between the State and the bank. There are 282 savings-banks, all private, having 19,186,000 guilders of deposits. Besides these, there is a State postal savings-bank, established in 1881, with 23,220,000 guilders of deposits. SWITZERLAND. SWITZERLAND. In 1894, the population of Switzerland was 2,986,848, and in 1888, 2,917,754. The area of the Republic is 15,976 square miles. The chief occupations of the population in 1888, with the numbers employed, their families and domestic servants, were: Men and Members Domestic Total. Agriculture.. 388,467 92,566 481,033 609,040 16,357 1,106,430 Mining, sylviculture, etc.. 10,682 28 10,710 16,482 243 27,435 Food manufacture.. 37,363 6,752 44,115 52,531 4,703 101,349 Dress, etc... 40,666 67,534 108,200 76,456 2,041 186,697 Building and furniture.. 105,747 1,620 107,367 162,353 3,763 273,483 Textiles... 61,087 106,435 167.522 99,723 2,901 270,146 Machinery. 66,897 15,075 81,972 113,256 3,274 198,502 Chemicals, bookbinding, etc... 15,873 2,743 18,616 24,449 1,347 44,412 Trade... 54,037 38,256 92,293 103,484 17,730 213,507 Transport.. 45,689 2,307 47,996 77,825 2,175 127,996 Public officials, sciences, etc.. 35,817 14,836 50,653 64,084 12,689 127,426 Not determinable 6,608 8,261 14,869 12,416 1,254 28,539 No relation to occupation.. 12,679 36,022 48,701 151,304 11,827 211,832 Total.. Fiscal Affairs. The chief source of revenue is from customs duties, the confederate Government having no power to levy direct taxes. The following table gives the total revenue and expenditure of the Confederation: The cantons have their own local administrations and their own budgets of revenue and expenditure. In 1890, their combined revenue was 79,152,000 francs, and expenditure 80,178,000 francs. The cantonal revenues are derived partly from direct taxes on income and property, and partly from Several cantons have only indirect taxation; and over the whole about indirect duties, stamps, etc. 58 per cent. of the revenue is raised in this form. 3 The public debt of the Confederation amounted on January 1, 1897, to 80,870,763 francs, mostly at per cent. At the same date the "Federal Fortune," or State property, was. Real property, 38,476,500 francs; stock, etc., 42,849,550 francs works producing interest, 19,616,215 francs; stores not producing interest, 19,765,709 francs; various debts, 533,673 francs; inventory, 30,855,665 francs; alcohol administration, 232,130 francs; cash, 1,760,820 francs; total, 144,800,184 francs, the net Fortune being thus 60,910,745 francs. Industries. Out of a population of about 2,000,000 engaged in agriculture, there are about 300,000 peasant proprietors. Of the total area 28.4 per cent. is unproductive; of the productive area 35.8 per cent, is under grass and meadows, 29 per cent. under forest, 18.7 per cent. under fruit, 16.4 per cent. under crops and gardens. Rye, oats, and potatoes are the chief crops, but the bulk of food crops consumed The chief agricultural industries are the manufacture of cheese and in the country is imported. condensed milk. The export of cheese (1896) amounts to 239,591 quintals, and of condensed milk to 186,365 quintals. In 1896, there were 108,529 horses, 1,211,613 cattle, 341,632 sheep, 415,619 goats, 394,451 swine, of the total value of £17,936,880. In 1896, the provisional census returns show: Cattle, 1,304,788; sheep, 271,432; pigs, 565,781; horses, 108,529; mules, 3,116; asses, 1,735; goats, 414,968. The Federal alcohol régie in the year 1894-95 sold 58,268 metric quintals of spirits (36 degrees), and In Switzerland there are about 1,400 hotels, employing 34,869 metric quintals of medicated spirits. about 16,000 persons, the receipts of the hotels amounting annually to about £3,500,000. FACTORY STATISTICS. By the census taken on June 5, 1895, of the factories subject to the Federal factory law, the statistics thereof are shown as follows: Of the 200,199 operatives, there were 174,697 Swiss, 14,872 Germans, 5,124 Italians, 3,354 French, 1,896 Austrians, and 256 from different other countries. The 152,718 horse-power was produced as follows: 87,885 by water, 53,410 by steam, 4,086 by gas and petroleum, and 7,357 by electricity. Foreign Commerce. For the years 1890 to 1896, inclusive, the imports for home consumption and the exports of domestic produce, and also of the precious metals, were as follows: The following statement shows the value of principal articles of special commerce: * Only the total shows the exact number of establishments. The addition of the figures would result in a higher number, because establishments engaged in several industries are counted in each group. Includes iron, imports in 1895 beinz 43,819,935 francs, exports 4,952,170 francs. In 1897, the principal classes of articles imported were, in francs: Silks, 139,583,060; machines and vehicles, 33,259,641; mineral materials, 71,852,891; leather and shoes, 26,189,247; objects of literature, science, and art, 18,809,806; wood, 32,769,205; straw, 4,153,816; edibles, spirits, and tobacco, 271,876,629; wools, 52,537,208; iron, 58,735,553. The principal articles exported in 1897 were, in francs: Silks, 203,941,306; machines and vehicles, 34,337,939; clock-works, 103,765,315; coloring matters, 17,314,395; objects of literature, science, and art, 8,773,191; edibles, 81,177,331; cottons, 124,979,907; precious metals, not coin, 10,319,536; woolens, 16,710,547; linen, 1,748,172. The following table shows the geographical distribution of the "special" trade of Switzerland (including bullion but not coin) : Exports to United States..... $13,196,469 $16,010,728 $11,450,270 $14,988,954 $14,080,033 $13,849,782 $11,380,835 Imports from United States.. 10,397 7,391 17,124 17,578 32,954 70,610 263,970 The principal articles of import from the United States for the year ending June 30, 1896, were Iron and steel and manufactures of, $12,202. Exports to the United States were: Chemicals, drugs, dyes, etc., $579,474; clocks and watches and parts, $904,697; cotton, manufactures of, $6,455,480 (including laces, edgings, etc., $5,753,885); hat trimmings, $386,671; cheese, $651,841; silk, manufactures of, $3,610,853. IMPORTS AND EXPORTS OF GOLD AND SILVER COIN AND BULLION. Switzerland being a member of the Latin Union, its monetary system conforms to that organization. The franc is the equivalent of 10 batzen and 100 rappen or centimes. The 20-franc piece is .900 fine, the 5-franc silver piece is .900 fine, the silver 2-franc, franc, and half-franc are .835 fine. At the close of 1895, there was outstanding 190,000,000 francs of bank-notes, against which a reserve was held consisting of 83,400,000 gold and 11,600,000 silver. The estimated amount of money in circulation is placed as follows in 1896: Bank-notes. 175,000,000 francs; gold on hand and in circulation, 117,000,000; silver on hand and in circulation, 54,000,000; and nickel and copper, 5,000,000; total, 351,000,000 francs. On December 31, 1896, there were 31 banks, with a paid-up capital of 150,525,000 francs, and a note issue of 202,400,000 francs. Their average monthly condition for 1893 is shown below: For other banking information, consult previous volumes of the "Commercial Year Book." |