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INTRODUCTION.

exports being stuffs, and felts, and drinks; and the principal countries exported to being England, the United States, and Switzerland.*

The imports in the same year amounted to 652,872,341 frs. The principal articles imported being skins, other animal matter, and farinaceous aliments; the principal countries imported from, being the United States, Sardinia, and Belgium.

The commercial shipping entering and leaving the ports of France, for the year 1832 :—

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The duties levied were-export duty, 1,421,477 frs.; import duty, 133,174,809 frs.

The manufacture most natural to France, and for which the French are the most suited, is perhaps the manufacture of silk. We find from the Archives Statistiques of the Department of the Rhône, the average of raw material employed in the silk manufactures of Lyons amounts to 55,000,000 francs; of which 30,000,000 francs are imported, and 25,000,000 francs are home grown. The following have been the vicissitudes in this manufacture during the space of forty years. In 1786, there were in Lyons and the neighbourhood; 15,000 looms; in 1789, there were 7,000; in 1800, there were 3,500; from 1801 to 1802 there were 10,720; in 1827, there were 30,000.

This manufacture, then, seems to have been reduced by the Revolution more than one-fourth; and augmented during the Restoration by two-thirds.+

There has been an exposition this year of the industry of France, the details of which are in every way interesting to those who trace the character of a people even in their manufactures. But this is not the place where I can enter at any length into a consideration of the facts connected with this subject. Neither have I space here to add many of the interesting details relative to French commerce, which are to be found in Dr. Bowring's reports..

The expenses of the country (according to the budget of 1832)$ amounted to about 1,106,618,270 frs.; of which ordinary expenses 962,971,270-extraordinary 143,647,000; out of this there are the

* See Dr. Bowring's reports for a great variety of information respecting the commerce of France, and more especially its commerce with this country. In 1831, when the sale in this manufacture decreased one-half, i.e. from 45,835,257 frs. to 26,981,303 frs., its export sale remained the same.

S 1834-1,058,080,547 frs. I have taken 1832, since I happen to have all the details by me for that year, and there is no very great difference in the

amount.

public debt, amounting to 344,554,303,* and the expenses of collecting, &c. 114,759,433.

The public departments cost 586,786,672 frs.; that is,

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The expenses of religion, as apart from the minister of public instruction, are 33,507,600 frs., i. e. 65,000 frs. to the Jews, 750,000 frs. to the Protestants, the rest to the Catholics. The Catholic religion alone cost before the revolution of 1789, 135,000,000 frs.; 100,000,000 frs. more than all the religions cost at the present day.†

The direct taxes of France amount to 353,136,909. These taxes are, on the land, which alone amounts to 244,873,409 frs., on the person and on furniture, on houses and windows, aud on patents for the exercise of trade,

The indirect taxes are estimated at.
Re istry, stamps, &c. at.
Customs.

171,000,000

198,225,000

160,910,000

The post brings in a revenue of 34,290,000 frs.: the lottery 8,000,000. The total amount from different resources 1,116,323,058. According to a calculation given in the Journal Statistique,, the proportion which certain of these taxes bear to the population of France, taking her population at 33 millions, and the superficies of her territory at 53,000,000 hectares, i. c. nearly 27,000 square leagues (French), would be;

* There are charged upon the debt pensions to the amount of 56,038,500 f. The Journal Statistique de Paris gives the following calculation for 1833:

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The analysis of the French budget, and its comparison with our own, is a subject too interesting for me not to intend to return to it, while I am glad to find this occasion of saying, that some very able articles which appeared in the Spectator, and also a very interesting book, lately published by Mr. Wells, afford much greater facility for doing so than formerly existed.

It was, in 1833, about 32,600,000-as I have said.

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Average per department, 7,383,310 frs., and 1,222 inhabitants to 22 square leagues.

As all the subjects I have thus hastily touched upon are subjects to which I shall subsequently return, I only add here one or two words on the state of education.

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There are in France 45,119 schools of primary instruction, and the government now pays for instruction 8,000,000 frs. Whereas, it paid before the revolution of July only 800,000 frs.

The following are the principal provisions of the celebrated law of 28th June, 1833.

COMMUNES.

Every commune, by itself, or by uniting itself with others, must have one school of primary instruction.

All communes which have more than 6,000 inhabitants must support a higher school for superior instruction, as well as a school of primary instruction.*

All the poor incapable of paying for their education, shall be educated at schools of primary instruction, gratis; and a certain number selected after an examination shall be educated gratis at the schools of superior instruction.

Primary, or elementary instruction, consists in reading, writing, arithmetic, and the system as established by law of weights and

measures.

Superior instruction comprises, in addition to these acquirements, the elements of geometry and its application; the elements of chemistry and natural history, as applied to the ordinary habits and pursuits of life; the elements of history and geography, and more especially the History and geography of France.

The communal schools are governed by a committee, consisting of

*There are also private schools, of course, but of these I say nothing. No man, however, can be a schoolmaster without a "brevet" of capacity obtained after an examination conducted according to the kind of school over which he is to preside.

the mayor, the "curé," and the chief inhabitants of each commune as appointed by the committee of arrondissement.

ARRONDISSEMENT.

In each arrondissement there is a committee appointed especially to watch over primary instruction.

The mayor of the "chef-lieu," the "juge de paix," the "curé," a minister of each religion recognized by law within the boundaries of the arrondissement, a schoolmaster or professor named by the minister of instruction, three inhabitants of the council of arrondissement, any members of the council general of the department who reside within the arrondissement, shall form this committee.

The préfet presides at all the committees of the department.

Part of the duty of the committees of arrondissement is to report annually to the minister of instruction the state of the different schools of their arrondissement, and to suggest any improvement.

DEPARTMENT.

Every department must have "one normal school" (school for the instruction of schoolmasters), either by itself, or by uniting with another department.

SALARIES OF SCHOOLMASTERS.

A residence, and 400 frs. yearly, for masters to a superior primary school.

A residence, and 200 frs. yearly, for masters to a primary school,

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In 1823, out of the number of communes, viz. 38,149, there were

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The adjoining table gives pretty accurately the state of education in

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