2. NON-OFFICIAL PUBLICATIONS. Broadley (A. M.), Tunis, Past and Present. London, 1882. Dilhan (Ch.), Histoire abrégée de la Régence de Tunis. 8. Paris, 1867. 1882. Michel (Léon), Tunis. 2nd edition. 1856. Paris, 1883. of Algeria and Tunis. London, 1878. Mediterranean. 2 vols. 8. London. ZANZIBAR. Government, Revenue, and Population. Sultan, or more correctly, Seyyid, Bargash ben Saïd, G.C.M.G., son of the Imam of Muscat, succeeded his elder brother, Saïd-Mejid, who died October 7, 1870. The island of Zanzibar was conquered in 1784 by the Imam of Muscat from the Arab princes who held sway over it, but the Sultan is now independent. It has an area of 625 square miles, but the Sultan's authority extends along the coasts of the mainland, from the equator to 10° S. lat., and to some extent in the interior. The population of the island is variously estimated at from 150,000 to 300,000. There is a considerable foreign population, mostly engaged in trading. Of British born subjects in 1879 there were 79, and the total British protected subjects numbered 5,466, including 954 Hindus. There were besides 240 Goanese, 39 French, 13 German, and 8 American. The town of Zanzibar has a population estimated at from 60,000 to 98,000, and Bagamayo, on the opposite mainland, 10,000. The revenue of the Sultan is mainly derived from Customis' dues, and amounts to about 100,0001. Mahometanism is the religion of the country; there are Christian Missions (Church of England and Roman Catholic) on the island and mainland. There is an army of about 1,400 men. Commerce. The value of the imports in 1880 is stated in a consular report to have been 709,9001., and exports, 870,3501. The chief imports are cloths, of various kinds, mostly cotton, with rice and cereals, guns, and kerosene oil; the exports are ivory (16,0007.), cloves (17,0007.), india-rubber (201,000l.) gum in 1879. The largest trade is with India, Arabia, and Persia; and next with Germany, United States, and Great Britain. In 1882 85 vessels of 89,733 tons, entered the port, of which 41, of 57,540 were British; in 1881 the number entered was 114, of 116,665 tons, including 30 war vessels. There is no special coinage. Indian, English, French, and American coins are current; but the principal coin is the Maria Theresa dollar (about 4s. 2d.), which is the standard of value; the Mexican Pillar dollar is also used. British Consul-General.-Sir John Kirk, K.C M.G. Books of Reference. 1. OFFICIAL. Correspondence respecting Sir Bartle Frere's Mission to the East Coast of Africa, 1872-3. London, 1873. Report by Consul General Kirk on the trade and commerce of Zanzibar for 1881 in Reports of H.M.'s Consuls.' Part XIII. London, 1882. 2. UNOFFICIAL. Burton (Capt. R. F.), The Lake Regions of Central Africa. London, 1860. Decken (Baron C. C. Von der), Reisen in Ost-Afrika. Leipzig, 1869-70. Deutsches Handels-Archiv, March 1883. Berlin. Johnston (Keith), Africa. London, 1878. Krapf (J. L.), Travels during an Eighteen Years' Residence in East Africa. London, 1860. Stanley (II. M.), Through the Dark Continent. 2 vols. London, 1878. Thomson (Joseph), To the Central African Lakes and Back. 2 vols. London, 1881. Wilson (Rev. C. T.), and Felkin (R. W.), Uganda and the Egyptian London. 2 vols. London, 1882. III. ASIA. BURMA. Reigning King and Government. Theebaw, born 1858, succeeded to the throne in October 1878, on the death of his father Mengdung Meng, who had himself usurped the throne of his brother Pugân Meng in 1853. The succession goes by nomination among the blood-royal, and therefore Theebaw attempted to assassinate all his brothers on his accession. Two, however, escaped, the Nyoungyan and Nyoungoke princes both living at Calcutta ; the former the more capable. There are other two claimants living in India, the Mingoon prince and the Mingoon Mintha prince. Theebaw has several daughters, but is reported to have no sons living. The founder of the present Burmese dynasty was Alompra, who died in 1760, and united the previous separate and hostile kingdoms of Ava and Pegu. Under Bodau Phra (1779-1819) Arakan, Martaban, and Tenasserim were added to the kingdom. As a result of the war with Great Britain, 1824-5, a considerable part of the Burmese territory was annexed by that power, and still more after the war of 1852, so that Independent Burma is now quite shut off from the seaboard, with which, however, there is excellent communication by the Irrawaddy. The Government of Burma is a despotism, dependent entirely on the will of the sovereign. There are, however, a Public and a Privy Council. The former, the Hlot-dau, consists of four ministers, or Woongyes, with the king or crown-prince as president. This body forms a legislative assembly, executive council, and court of justice and appeal. There are, also, four under-ministers, and a host of secretaries and minor officials, who conduct the administration at the capital in the name of the king but under the orders of the Hlot-dau. The Privy Council, or Byadeit, consists of four Atwen-Woons, and is supposed to advise the king privately and personally, and discuss all questions before submitting them to the Hlot-dau. The members of these two bodies are composed of officials appointed by the king, and dependent for their existence, on his favour. The country is divided into provinces, townships, districts, and villages, each of which has its special governor; corruption, extortion, and oppression prevailing everywhere. There is no hereditary aristocracy. some Buddhism is the prevailing religion, and there are Mahometans. Education, so far as reading and writing are concerned, is very general; it is entirely in the hands of the priests. Revenue, Population, and Trade. The revenue of the sovereign is raised by a multitude of taxes, mostly obtained by extortion; while there are besides frequent extraordinary extortions. There is a house and family tax, said to be assessed by a Doomsday Book compiled in 1783; there are also taxes on agriculture, on fruit trees, sugar palm, tobacco land, teak forests, salt, fisheries, &c. The king's revenue is stated to amount to 800,000l., besides what he receives in labour. Burma has a length of 540 miles, a breadth of 420, and an area of 190,500 square miles. The population probably does not exceed three millions, though if the half-independent Shans on the eastern borders be included it will probably amount to four millions. In the northern districts are also numerous half-wild tribes, so that Burma Proper does not exceed 50,000 square miles in area with a population of 1,500,000. The Burmese proper are of the Mongolic stock, and use a language of the Tibeto-Chinese type. The free labouring population consists of the small proprietors and common labourers; there is a large class of slaves and outcasts; and all are practically the slaves of the king. The present capital is Mandalay, with a population estimated at about 70,000. Bhamo is an important town near the Chinese frontier. Manufactures are on a small scale and mostly for home consumption; they are chiefly of cotton, silk, and iron. Though not so fertile as British Burma, the forests produce a great variety of valuable timber-trees; while rice, maize, wheat, pulse, indigo, cotton, and tobacco are grown to some extent, and a great variety of fruit trees. Iron is found in considerable quantities, and coal in small quantities; while tin, copper, plumbago, gold, silver, nitre, bismuth, jade, and other minerals exist, but these resources worked to a very slight extent. Petroleum is, however, worked considerably, though the wells are a strict monopoly. are It As Burma has no coast its foreign trade is very limited. imports rice, cotton and woollen goods, silk, salt, metals, pickled and dried fish, and foreign commodities from British Burma, Bengal, the Asiatic Archipelago, and Europe. Its chief exports are petroleum, nitre, lacquer-ware, hides, cutch, sessamum seed and oil, cotton, raw sugar, grain, jade, and tamarinds. Formerly there was a large trade with China, but recently this has greatly fallen off. The |