and reserved a strip of 25 kilometres along the west bank of the river within which Siam must not station any military force, while the French are allowed to erect stations there. In January, 1896, the French and British governments made an arrangement guaranteeing the integrity and neutrality of the diminished Kingdom of Siam, embracing the basin of the Menam river and the Meklong, Pechaburi, and Bangpakong basins, with the coast from Muong Bang Tapan to Muong Pase, and including also the territory north of the Menam basin, between the Burmese frontier, as delimited in 1891, the Mekong river, and the eastern watershed of the Me Ing. The present area of Siam is about 245,000 square miles, with a population estimated at 10,000,000, not half of whom are Siamese, the rest being Laotians, Malays, Chinese, and immigrants from Cambodia, Burmah, and India. The immigration of Chinese coolies in 1896 was 37,475. Bangkok, the capital, has about 200,000 inhabitants, nearly half of whom are Chinese. The official and prevailing religion is Buddhism. Siamese is legally established as the official language. The King's revenue is approximately estimated at $9,650,000, of which $1,800,000 is collected from customs duties, $3,450,000 from property and monopolies, $600,000 from land taxes, and $3,800,000 from various duties. All the taxes are farmed except the customs duties. There is no public debt. The imports in 1896 were valued at $14,747,000, against $19,384,000 in 1895, and the exports at $27,505,000, against $25,280,000. The exports of rice in 1896 were valued at $21,209,000; cattle, $463,000; fish, $427,000; pepper, $278,000. There were 468 vessels, of which 333 were British, entered at the port of Bangkok in 1896, and 475 cleared, of which 336 were British. Over 85 per cent. of the tonnage was British, compared with 71 per cent. in 1886, 50 per cent. in 1876, and 25 per cent. in 1866. Not more than 5 per cent. of the fertile soil in the Menam valley has yet been brought under cultivation. Recently irrigation canals have been dug to extend the area of rice cultivation. Nearly all the skilled and the unskilled labor in the populous valleys is performed by Chinese, and most of the trade is in their hands. In the teak forests of the north Khamus, who are French subjects, and Burmese and Karens, who are British subjects, are the only workers.

The length of railroads in operation in 1897 was 179 miles, including the new line from Bangkok to Korat, which was opened on March 27. Concessions for other railroads have been granted. The telegraphs had a total length of 1,780 miles. There are numerous schools, in some of which English is taught. Progress has been made in judicial as well as in administrative reform. Domestic slavery is being gradually abolished. In the course of 30 years both the import and the export trade of Siam has nearly trebled. The export of teak has increased twentyfold.

The military forces have recently been augmented, and now consist of about 10,000 men, half of whom are in Bangkok. They are being armed with Mannlicher rifles. Ordnance has also been purchased recently. There is a corps of 800 elephants protected by bullet-proof armor. The army is commanded by Italian, Danish, and other European officers.

After the war of 1893 the French retained the city of Chentabun as a pledge for the fulfillment of the engagements entered into under the treaty of peace. Constant friction has ensued between the two governments. The French, instead of gaining in influence by their victory over Siam, have been systematically excluded from the Government posts and the profitable commercial concessions that have

been conferred on Europeans. The influence of the English over the King became, on the other hand, more pronounced than ever, and the French in Indo-China attributed to this the continued unfriendliness of the Siamese Government. One of the stipulations of the treaty was that the old inhabitants of the left bank of the Mekong should be permitted by the Siamese authorities to return to their former homes. It was also provided that all French subjects detained on any pretext whatever should be delivered over to the French authorities. When the Siamese Government gave no effect to these engagements, the French colonial officials, acting on the theory that all Annamites, Cambodians, and Laotians in Siam were French subjects, even though their families had been domiciled in Siam for centuries, granted certificates of consular protection to any person belonging to these races and to Chinamen who applied for them, declaring that they had come from the other side of the Mekong. Persons provided with such certificates were exempt from forced labor and from the jurisdiction of the Siamese courts. The wholesale adoption as French subjects of the people of Siam consequently caused much annoyance to the Siamese Government, which was irritated also by the continued French occupation of Chentabun.

During 1897 King Chulalongkorn visited all the European capitals to study improvements that he might introduce into his country. While in Paris he discussed the differences between the two countries with French statesmen, and these conferences paved the way to a better understanding. M. Hanotaux consented to the abrogation of the clause in the treaty of 1893 by which the Siamese Government undertook to hand over all French Annamite and Laos subjects of the left bank of the Mekong as well as the Cambodians detained on any pretext. In January, 1897, the German minister was arrested by the police because his horse injured a Chinaman. For the violation of diplomatic immunity the Siamese Government made a suitable apology. About the same time Vice-Consul-General E. V. Kellett, while investigating a claim of an American citizen in the teak forests of northern Siam, was arrested because he was assaulted by soldiers when he demanded the release of his servant from police custody. At the request of the minister, J. Barrett, the American gunboat "Machias" was sent to Bangkok. The claim that Mr. Kellett was inquiring into was that of the estate of Dr. Cheek, to whom the Siamese Government had made a concession, and had loaned him implements and elephants for the purpose of getting teak wood out of the forests. Believing that he had violated his contract, the Siamese authorities seized the wood, and also the elephants, and abrogated the concession. For this a claim of $200,000 was made through the American minister. The Siamese Government agreed to the arbitration of this claim, and to the investigation by a mixed commission of the case of Mr. Kellett. This investigation showed that the American consular officer was right in his assertion of extraterritorial jurisdiction, and consequently the Siamese Government apologized for the act of its officers and soldiers, and subjected them to punishment. The Cheek claim, together with the counterclaim of the Siamese Government against the estate, was referred to the decision of Sir N. J. Hannen, the British chief judge in China.

SIGNALS, NIGHT. Night signals have been used in a very crude form for hundreds of years; but no system for international use, for communication on land or sea, ever has been established, though several nations have adopted and used night-signal codes arranged to a given chart. The merchant

marine of the world has no established code. Night signals are used for many purposes-for communication between vessels at sea, between vessels and the shore, on railways as danger and headway signals, and by the army and navy. Each nation has its own secret plan and chart, the code book of which is protected in every way possible, and a piece of lead is attached to the cover, so that,

METHOD OF IGNITING THE CARTRIDGE.

when in use on a war vessel it can be thrown overboard to prevent its falling into the hands of an enemy. In the army other means are provided for its destruction.

A simple, comprehensive night-signal code, as an auxiliary to the international commercial day-signal code, is still wanted. This would add much to the protection of life and property. Innumerable attempts have been made to establish a simple night-signal system. The latest was when President Cleveland made this the first subject to be acted upon by the International Maritime Conference of 1889. Signaling by day is easy, because there are many established means by which it may be done. Most of the day systems are operative only at short distances, depending on flags, disks, and semaphores. Flash signals by means of mirrors form the only day system now in use for signaling at a great distance.

It was not until after the loss of the White Star steamship "Atlantic," in 1873, that distinguishing signals were brought into use, and a special distress signal and signal to call a pilot for use on United States lake and sea coasts were adopted. On that occasion rockets and blue lights were displayed, and were mistaken for a salutation to a passing steamer, instead of distress signals, for which they were intended. The need of a distinguishing night-signal system was never fully realized until this disaster occurred. Now most of the steamship lines have adopted distinguishing night signals. These are registered in the Government bureau, and the list is published in several nautical almanacs. Some lines use a simultaneous display of pyrotechnic fires as a distinguishing signal-three lights, one forward, one amidships, and one aft. This is objectionable for these reasons: If a vessel is abreast, these lights at a long distance merge, and they are still more liable to be thus seen when approached head on. Should any one or two of these signals fail to ignite, the display would not be perfect, and if on a second trial the display were complete, it would not be understood by the party signaled, as they would not know that the first display was imperfect. Successive displays are the most desirable and are more readily understood. Signals of one or more colors in the

same cartridge burning in succession do away with any chance of failure or misunderstanding.

The night signals in use prior to 1860 were torches, rockets, Roman candles, and red, white, and blue lights, besides lanterns with colored glass. In 1840 Benjamin Franklin Coston, an American, at

the age of nineteen, invented what are now known as the "Coston night signals," but he did not complete this invention. It was patented in 1859, several years after his death, by his widow, Martha J. Coston. This idea was first given to him by his conversations with Commodore Stockton and Commodore Stewart of the United States navy, on signals used in the maritime world. Marryat's numeral code of flags was then in use for day signaling, and Mr. Coston arranged a system of night signals applicable to this code, which is represented on the colored chart accompanying this article. The first complete signals made by Benjamin F. Coston were made in the Washington Navy Yard, where he was stationed as a master in 1845, one year before he retired from the navy and two years before his death. The ordnance square of the navy yard is named for him on account of this invention, and it is the only square in the yard named for a master, all others being named for officers of high rank. The Coston night signals were adopted by the United States navy, and the colors chosen were green, red, and white. All the distinguishing signals are given in "Bliss's Nautical Almanac." Since these signals were first constructed many improvements have been made. In 1840 the composition fires were put up in waterproof boxes, When one was to be used the cover was removed and the box placed upon a board; port fire was then used to ignite it. The display was made from the surface or deck. The colors used were red, white, and blue in combination. Under the 1859 patent, as used by the United States navy during the civil war, compounds for producing red, white, and green were put up in cartridge cases made of tinfoil and Manilla paper, and a quick match attached, the color green being substituted for blue, because it was not possible at that stage of the arts to produce a distinct, durable, and safe blue-light composition. The visibility of the colors should be the same at all distances. William F. Coston has overcome this, after trials covering several years. The so-called blue light made by the general fireworks manufacturers, and in use by the maritime world, is not a blue-it is a poor white light. The cartridge was so constructed as to be placed on a wooden handle, by which it was held while the display was made. In 1863 the cartridge was so constructed as to be placed in the socket of a peculiarly made pistol and to ignite by a percussion cap. This was the apparatus supplied to the United States army. In 1877 the United States navy adopted the Coston aërial night signal, invented by H. H. Coston, late captain in the United States Marine Corps. It now also uses search lights and the Adoise system, which is operated by a keyboard turning on and off incandescent red and white lights. The Coston aërial system was invented by H. H. Coston in 1863. Mrs. Martha J. Coston took out the first patent for friction-ignit ing signals in 1871. William F. Coston, the second son of Benjamin F. Coston, further improved the

IMPROVED HOLDER.

Coston signals by igniting them by means of a percussion cap, and made a signal combining aerial and surface display, thereby enlarging the scope of its utility. The patent was granted in 1881.

The signals were adopted by the governments of the United States, France, Italy, Denmark, Hol

land, and Brazil. The first saving of life by the use of these signals was in 1863, when the "Monitor" foundered off Cape Hatteras, but the entire crew, numbering 26, were saved. The Coston signals were put into use in the United States LifeSaving Service when it was organized in 1873, and they have been in use in that service ever since. Many hundred vessels have been warned, and thousands of lives and millions of property saved, by their use in the hands of the patrolmen of this service. The highest awards, medals, and diplomas have been granted them at all the international exhibitions-in Vienna (1873), Chili (1875), United States Centennial (1876), Liverpool, England (1886), and the World's Columbian Exposition (1893). The value and use of signals in time of war can best be understood when it is known that 1,200,000 signal cartridges were furnished during the civil war. Hon. Gideon Welles, Secretary of the Navy, in his report to Congress, declared that the signals were of incalculable value to the navy throughout the war. Most of the blockade runners that were captured were detected by their use. The New York Yacht Club, the Brooklyn Yacht Club, and the Eastern Yacht Club jointly were the first to adopt a night-signal system, using a letter chart applicable to the international commercial day-signal code, and also a distinguishing signal. Other yacht clubs have since adopted the Coston signal as their distinguishing night signal.

The Coston signal can be used in any kind of weather and displayed from any place. They can be distinctly seen at a distance of fifteen to twenty miles.

The Coston pilot-call signal, as established for use on the United States coast, shows the colors white, red, white in succession, the whole being one signal. The Coston distress signal, as adopted and in use in United States waters, displays the colors red, white, red in succession.

The cipher and signal code used by the army and navy during the war of the rebellion was a numeral system. The page of the book was just signaled, and then the number of message on the page.

The Coston signal is now employed by the Government in the following branches: The navy uses the aerial signal, patent of 1877. The LifeSaving Service, Lighthouse Service, Revenue-Cutter Service, Weather Bureau, and Army Signal Corps use the 1881 patent. The National Guard of the State of New York also uses the 1881 patent, and have arranged a signal code and chart of four elements. The requirements to be taken into consideration with regard to effective and reliable signals of this nature are many. The colors must be pure and brilliant, and must burn evenly, with very little smoke. The compounds must not be liable to deterioration from long storage or dampness or to spontaneous combustion. Simplicity in arrangement of chart and code is also to be taken into consideration, and compactness of apparatus is desirable.

The last patent taken out on Coston signals was in November, 1896, by William F. Coston.

SOUTH CAROLINA, a Southern State, one of the original thirteen, ratified the Constitution May 23, 1788; area, 3,750 square miles. The population, according to each decennial census, was 249,073 in 1790; 345,591 in 1800; 415,115 in 1810; 502,741 in 1820; 581,185 in 1830; 594,398 in 1840; 668,507 in 1850; 703,708 in 1860; 705,606 in 1870; 995,577 in 1880; and 1,151,149 in 1890. Capital, Columbia. Government.-The following were the State officers during the year: Governor, W. H. Ellerbe; Lieutenant Governor, M. B. McSweeney; Secretary of State, D. H. Tompkins; Treasurer, W. H. Timmerman; Comptroller, James Norton, who was

W. H. ELLERBE, GOVERNOR OF SOUTH CAROLINA.

field; Chief Justice of the Supreme Court. Henry McIver; Associate Justices, Eugene B. Gary, Ira B. Jones, and Y. J. Pope; Clerk, U. R. Brooks. All are Democrats.

Finances.-The state of the finances at the close of 1897 is described in the Governor's message to the Legislature of 1898 as follows:

"During the session of the General Assembly for 1896 a levy of 4 mills was laid to meet the current expenses of the fiscal year ending Dec. 31, 1897. The sum raised by this levy proved insufficient, and we have a deficit of $100,000. By using every dollar from every available source and by overdrawing small amounts upon banks in which large sums of the State's funds have been deposited, we have met all current obligations without borrowing. The books were opened for the collection of taxes Oct. 15, and since that time we have used money thus collected to pay current expenses."

The taxable property amounted to $173.724,382. By the report of the Sinking Fund Commission it appears that since the commission was established in 1878 it has brought into the treasury about $292,765, which otherwise would have been lost to the State. The commission has charge of land-commission lands, abandoned lands, and unpaid taxes. It has sold the past year 783 acres of land-commission land.

Abandoned land under South Carolina law is land that has been for ten immediately preceding years upon neither the forfeited land list nor tax duplicates. Ten years' absence from all tax books, therefore, and not actual abandonment, is the legal definition of "abandoned land."

At a meeting of the Sinking Fund Commission of Jan. 17, 1896, it was found that of the hundreds of thousands of acres of abandoned lands up to that time placed upon the tax books and offered for sale, there remained unsold only about 13,000 acres, which were bid in for the Sinking Fund Commission for want of bidders at the tax sale.