BRITISH INDIA. [Arca, British India, 903,908; native States, 655,695; total, 1,559,603 square miles. Population, British India, 222,025,357; States, 65,097,993; total, 287,123,350.] British India comprises that part of the Indian peninsula directly or indirectly under British rule, and includes, in the general term, certain countries beyond that area which are under the control or protection of the governor-general. In the more limited sense of the term, British India applies to the districts under direct British administration, excluding native States, and in the statements which follow the term includes only the districts under direct British control and administration. The executive authority is vested in a governor-general, commonly termed viceroy, who is appointed by the Crown and acts under the orders of the secretary of state for India, who is a member of the home (British) Government and conducts Indian business in England. The secretary of state for India is assisted by a council of not less than ten members, the major part of whom must have served or resided ten years in India and not have left India more than ten years previous to the date of their appointment. The governor-general, termed viceroy, who is appointed by the Crown or secretary of state, is assisted in his administration in India by an executive council of seven members, governors of provinces and lieutenant-governors becoming ex-officio members of the council when it meets within their provinces. All acts of the supreme government in India run in the name of "The governor-general in council," but the governor-general has the power of overruling the opinions of the majority of his council. The council when it meets for purposes of legislation consists of the above members and "additional members for making laws and regulations," and there are similar legislative councils in the chief provinces. In addition to the viceroy, or governor-general, the governors of Madras, Bombay, and the commander in chief, the ordinary members of councils of the governor-general, and the governors of Madras and Bombay, and the governors of the presidency high courts are appointed by the Crown or home secretary of state. The appointment of lieutenant-governor is made by the governor-general, subject to the approval of the secretary of state. The business of the government of India is divided into departments of finance and commerce, home affairs, revenue, agriculture, military administration, legislation, public works, and foreign affairs. Each department is under the charge of a secretary, and is also the special care of a member of the supreme council. Separate high courts have been established for the various provinces. British India is now divided into thirteen local governments and administrations, which enjoy a large measure of financial and administrative independence. The unit of administration throughout British India is the district, at the head of which is an executive officer called collector magistrate, or deputy commissioner, as the case may be. He has entire control, and is responsible to the governor of the province. The total number of these districts is at present 247. The chief justices of the courts of the provinces are former residents of England, but many of the judges and members of the lawmaking councils are natives. Appellate and original jurisdiction is exercised in the supreme courts by 72 judges of chief courts, with jurisdiction over the whole province; 124 judges, with jurisdiction beyond one district; 492 judges of chief courts in a district; 1,208 subordinate district judges, and 7,565 judges of lesser courts. Revenues are collected principally from lands, salt, opium, excise, customs, stamps, and provincial rates, the importance being in the order named. The most important source of income is the land revenue, which is levied according to an assessment on estates or holdings fixed periodically at intervals of from twelve to thirty years. In permanently settled tracts the land revenue falls at a rate of about one-third of a rupee per acre of cultivated land, and represents, on an average, about one-fifth of the rental, or one-twenty-fourth of the gross value of the produce. The total length of railways open in India March 31, 1901, was 25,035 miles. Nearly one-half of this mileage was State lines worked by companies, and one-fourth State lines worked by the State, about one-tenth being lines owned by native States and worked by companies or State railway agency. The total capital expended on the State railways in India to the end of 1899 was 1,808,431,230 rupees; on State lines leased to companies, 443,002,150 rupees; on guaranteed railways, 523,116,640; total, including other lines, 3,111,685,620 rupees. The total miles of roads maintained by public authority is 152,073. The irrigation canals are over 1,000 miles in length, with nearly 10,000 miles of distributaries. The following table shows the items of revenue and expenditure for 1896-97 (revised estimate) and 1900-1901 (budget estimate), stated in rupees:1 [In the above statements the native feudatory states are not included. They may, however, be properly considered as within the British "sphere of influence," The Statesman's Year-Book, published in London, including them in its table of area and population of the British Empire, while Whitaker's Almanack, also published in London, reporting them as "subject to the control of the supreme (British) government, which is exercised in varying degree, being, generally speaking, governed by native princes, ministers, or councils, with the help and under the advice of a political officer of the supreme government." The British Statistical Abstract for the Colonial and Other Possessions of the United Kingdom gives their area at 595,167 square miles, with a population of 66,050,479, according to the census of 1891.] STRAITS SETTLEMENTS. [Arca, 1,542 square miles; population, 1899, 604,916.] A British possession on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula, the name being derived from the Straits of Malacca, on which the settlements are situated. The settlements include Singapore, Penang, or Prince of Wales Island, the province of Wellesley, and Malacca. The bulk of the population consists of Chinese and Malays. The government consists of a governor, appointed by the Crown, assisted by an executive council of 8 members and a legislative council of 9 official and 7 unofficial members, also appointed by the Crown. Two additional unofficial members are appointed by the chamber of commerce at Singapore and Penang. The resident councilors of Penang and Malacca have seats in both councils. The law of the colony is the common and statute law of England, qualified by Indian acts and local ordinances. The supreme court consists of the chief justice and 3 associate justices, a court of appeal, and a vice-admiralty court in Singapore and Penang; also magistrates' courts in each settlement. Revenues are collected from licenses, port and harbor dues, land revenues, and stamps. The ports are wholly free from duties on imports and exports. The garrison consists of 1 battalion of infantry, 2 batteries of European artillery, half a company of fortress engineers, and a company of Malay submarine miners; also an armed police force of 38 officers and 1,888 men, and a battery of volunteer artillery of 105 men. The commerce centered at Singapore is largely a transit trade, passing thence to eastern Asia and Oceania. The Malay Federated States of Perak, Selangor, Negri Sembilan, and Pahang, with an area of 26,500 square miles and a population in 1891 of 418,527, are also under the general charge of the governor-general of the Straits Settlements. NOTE.-The Mexican silver dollar is the standard coin. The British standard dollar and the Hongkong dollar are also legal tender. AFRICA. BASUTOLAND. [Area, 10,293 square miles; population, 250,000.] Basutoland lies upon the northeast of Cape Colony, South Africa. It is governed by a resident commissioner, under the direction of the high commissioner for South Africa, the latter possessing legislative authority, which is exercised by proclamation. This colony is divided into 7 districts for fiscal and governmental purposes, each district being subdivided into wards, presided over by hereditary chiefs. The currency is exclusively British, but exchange is largely conducted by barter. The revenue is produced by the sale of licenses and by a native hut tax (20 shillings per annum), the post-offices, and an annual contribution of £18,000 from the Cape Colony government. A protectorate, adjacent to the Transvaal, Cape Colony, and Rhodesia. The government is administered by the British high commissioner of Cape Colony, who has the power of making laws by proclamation for the protectorate, where he is represented by a resident commissioner and two assistant commissioners. The population is almost entirely native, belonging to three principal tribes, whose chiefs rule their own people as formerly, but under the protection of the Crown, represented by a resident commissioner with assistants acting under the high commissioner of the Cape Colony. The revenue is collected from a hut tax by the chiefs, and customs duties on imports. Railroads and telegraph lines are in operation and being extended. Revenue 1899. -pounds sterling.. 47, 511 CAPE COLONY. [Area, 227,151 square miles; population, 2,265,500.] A colony of South Africa, belonging to the class known as the responsible-government colonies, having a constitution and a legislative council which enacts the laws. The governor is named by the Crown, and by virtue of his office is commander in chief of the forces within the colony. His council consists of a prime minister, a treasurer, colonial secretary, attorney-general, commissioner of public works, and secretary of agriculture. The colony is divided into 77 divisions, and its dependencies into 30 districts, with a civil commissioner in each division, who is also a resident magistrate. There is in each of these divisions, except three, a council, composed of 6 elected members, who have charge of roads, boundaries, beacons, and other matters of this character. The 97 municipalities are governed by mayors, or chairmen and councilors. The legislature consists of a legislative council of 23 members, elected for seven years, and a house of assembly of 95 members, elected for five years. These are elected by voters who must have a house property of the value of £75 or a salary of £50, and be able to sign their names and state in writing their occupations and addresses. Justice is administered by a supreme court, consisting of a chief justice and 8 associate justices, who hold sessions at Cape Town, and circuit courts in various districts. The Roman-Dutch law, modified by colonial statutes, forms the great bulk of the laws of the colony. Revenues are chiefly from customs, excise, and land taxes. The colony has a public debt of £31,409,755; about two-thirds of this sum is expended on railways, the remainder on harbors, public roads, etc. There are over 8,000 miles of roads in the colony proper, 1,990 miles of government railway completed, 500 miles under construction, and 6,619 miles of telegraph line. A territory in Central Africa, lying on the southern and western shores of Lake Nyassa and extending toward the Zambezi; proclaimed a British protectorate in 1891. The protectorate comprises the eastern portion of British Central Africa, and is administered directly through the foreign office of the Imperial Government by a resident commissioner and consul-general. The protectorate is divided into 12 administrative stations, in which regulations are enforced by officers appointed by the representatives of the Imperial Government. The army necessary to maintain order amounts to 1,285 men, mostly native troops, commanded by English officers. Area of the protectorate....... Population Revenue. Imports, 1899. Exports, 1899. Post-offices No. 4 -36 900, 650 .square miles.. 42, 217 -pounds sterling.. 31,314 .do.... 99, 290 .do.... 35, 263 20 The following table shows the items of revenue and expenditure for 1896-97 (revised estimate) and 1900-1901 (budget estimate), stated in rupees:1 [In the above statements the native feudatory states are not included. They may, however, be properly considered as within the British "sphere of influence," The Statesman's Year-Book, published in London, including them in its table of area and population of the British Empire, while Whitaker's Almanack, also published in London, reporting them as "subject to the control of the supreme (British) government, which is exercised in varying degree, being, generally speaking, governed by native princes, ministers, or councils, with the help and under the advice of a political officer of the supreme government." The British Statistical Abstract for the Colonial and Other Possessions of the United Kingdom gives their area at 595,167 square miles, with a population of 66,050,479, according to the census of 1891.] STRAITS SETTLEMENTS. [Arca, 1,542 square miles; population, 1899, 604,916.] A British possession on the west coast of the Malay Peninsula, the name being derived from the Straits of Malacca, on which the settlements are situated. The settlements include Singapore, Penang, or Prince of Wales Island, the province of Wellesley, and Malacca. The bulk of the population consists of Chinese and Malays. The government consists of a governor, appointed by the Crown, assisted by an executive council of 8 members and a legislative council of 9 official and 7 unofficial members, also appointed by the Crown. Two additional unofficial members are appointed by the chamber of commerce at Singapore and Penang. The resident councilors of Penang and Malacca have seats in both councils. The law of the colony is the common and statute law of England, qualified by Indian acts and local ordinances. The supreme court consists of the chief justice and 3 associate justices, a court of appeal, and a vice-admiralty court in Singapore and Penang; also magistrates' courts in each settlement. Revenues are collected from licenses, port and harbor dues, land revenues, and stamps. The ports are wholly free from duties on imports and exports. The garrison consists of 1 battalion of infantry, 2 batteries of European artillery, half a company of fortress engineers, and a company of Malay submarine miners; also an armed police force of 38 officers and 1,888 men, and a battery of volunteer artillery of 105 men. The commerce centered at Singapore is largely a transit trade, passing thence to eastern Asia and Oceania. The Malay Federated States of Perak, Selangor, Negri Sembilan, and Pahang, with an area of 26,500 square miles and a population in 1891 of 418,527, are also under the general charge of the governor-general of the Straits Settlements. NOTE. The Mexican silver dollar is the standard coin. The British standard dollar and the Hongkong dollar are also legal tender. AFRICA. BASUTOLAND. [Area, 10,293 square miles; population, 250,000.] Basutoland lies upon the northeast of Cape Colony, South Africa. It is governed by a resident commissioner, under the direction of the high commissioner for South Africa, the latter possessing legislative authority, which is exercised by proclamation. This colony is divided into 7 districts for fiscal and governmental purposes, each district being subdivided into wards, presided over by hereditary chiefs. The currency is exclusively British, but exchange is largely conducted by barter. The revenue is produced by the sale of licenses and by a native hut tax (20 shillings per annum), the post-offices, and an annual contribution of £18,000 from the Cape Colony government. A protectorate, adjacent to the Transvaal, Cape Colony, and Rhodesia. The government is administered by the British high commissioner of Cape Colony, who has the power of making laws by proclamation for the protectorate, where he is represented by a resident commissioner and two assistant commissioners. The population is almost entirely native, belonging to three principal tribes, whose chiefs rule their own people as formerly, but under the protection of the Crown, represented by a resident commissioner with assistants acting under the high commissioner of the Cape Colony. The revenue is collected from a hut tax by the chiefs, and customs duties on imports. Railroads and telegraph lines are in operation and being extended. Revenue. 1899. -pounds sterling.. 47,511 CAPE COLONY. [Area, 227,151 square miles; population, 2,265,500.] A colony of South Africa, belonging to the class known as the responsible-government colonies, having a constitution and a legislative council which enacts the laws. The governor is named by the Crown, and by virtue of his office is commander in chief of the forces within the colony. His council consists of a prime minister, a treasurer, colonial secretary, attorney-general, commissioner of public works, and secretary of agriculture. The colony is divided into 77 divisions, and its dependencies into 30 districts, with a civil commissioner in each division, who is also a resident magistrate. There is in each of these divisions, except three, a council, composed of 6 elected members, who have charge of roads, boundaries, beacons, and other matters of this character. The 97 municipalities are governed by mayors, or chairmen and councilors. The legislature consists of a legislative council of 23 members, elected for seven years, and a house of assembly of 95 members, elected for five years. These are elected by voters who must have a house property of the value of £75 or a salary of £50, and be able to sign their names and state in writing their occupations and addresses. Justice is administered by a supreme court, consisting of a chief justice and 8 associate justices, who hold sessions at Cape Town, and circuit courts in various districts. The Roman-Dutch law, modified by colonial statutes, forms the great bulk of the laws of the colony. Revenues are chiefly from customs, excise, and land taxes. The colony has a public debt of £31,409,755; about two-thirds of this sum is expended on railways, the remainder on harbors, public roads, etc. There are over 8,000 miles of roads in the colony proper, 1,990 miles of government railway completed, 500 miles under construction, and 6,619 miles of telegraph line. A territory in Central Africa, lying on the southern and western shores of Lake Nyassa and extending toward the Zambezi; proclaimed a British protectorate in 1891. The protectorate comprises the eastern portion of British Central Africa, and is administered directly through the foreign office of the Imperial Government by a resident commissioner and consul-general. The protectorate is divided into 12 administrative stations, in which regulations are enforced by officers appointed by the representatives of the Imperial Government. The army necessary to maintain order amounts to 1,285 men, mostly native troops, commanded by English officers. Area of the protectorate.. square miles.. 42,217 900, 650 -pounds sterling.. 31,314 .do.... 99, 290 .do.... 35, 263 20 |