CHAPTER II. DEPENDENCIES IN EUROPE. GIBRALTAR: its Population, Trade, and Shipping. MALTA: its Importance as a Military and Naval Station-Its Area, Population, Trade, Revenues, and Grain Monopoly-Restriction against Printing-Abolition of those Monopolies Agricultural ProduceShipping. IONIAN ISLANDS: their Constitution, Area, Population, Trade, Shipping, Exports, Manufactures, and Productions-Education. HELIGOLAND: Advantages of its Position-Former Importance as a Trading Depôt during the War. THE dependencies of England in Europe, none of which can properly be considered colonies, are Gibraltar; Malta, and its dependency, Gozo ; Corfu, Cephalonia, Zante, Santa Maura, Ithaca, Cerigo, The first of these is chiefly valuable as a military station, in which respect its geographical position at the entrance of the Mediterranean gives it very great importance. In point of territory it is wholly insignificant, comprising an area of only 13 square miles, or 1120 acres. Its population, in 1834, was as follows:-- There were among these persons 1031 employed in commerce, chiefly a smuggling trade, fostered by the anti-commercial system pursued in Spain, and which would doubtless cease with the relaxation of that system. The shipments of British manufactures from the United Kingdom to this station, in each of the years from 1827 to 1849, were of the following value: The great bulk of the shipments consist of cotton, linen and woollen goods; the value of these goods in the last ten years of the series A large quantity of tobacco is likewise shipped to this depôt, nearly all of which is fraudulently introduced into Spain. Gibraltar was taken by us in 1704, and has since remained subject to the British Crown. The shipping employed in the trade between the United Kingdom and Gibraltar, in each year from 1832 to 1849, was as under : Malta also is chiefly valuable as a military possession, and is the head-quarters of the British naval force stationed in the Mediterranean. The island was taken by us from the French in September, 1800, and by the tenth article of the Treaty of Amiens was to be delivered up to the Knights of the order of St. John of Jerusalem; but war again breaking out before the cession had been completed, this article of the treaty was left unfulfilled, and Malta has since continued in the possession of the British. The area of Malta is ninety-five square miles, and of Gozo twentyseven square miles. The population, in 1839, was— The exports of British manufactures to these islands, in each of the years from 1827 to 1849, were of the following value: The revenue of the government of Malta, derived from various sources, was as follows in 1837, stated in round numbers:-- Small internal taxes-chiefly licenses for exercising trades- £. 23,000 2,400 eceipts 5,200 65,000 £95,600 Of the 65,0007. Customs' duties, 35,000l. arose from the import of grain. Under the government of the Knights of St. John, the former rulers of Malta, the inhabitants were furnished with grain and other articles of food by a corporate body, or università, which had the monopoly of the commodities in which it dealt, and fixed the prices on them in the island. This system was continued by the British Government, so far as respects the price of grain, until 1822, the management of the purchases and sales having been transferred in 1818 from the università to a body called Commissioners of the Board of Supply. This body was suppressed in 1822, when the commerce in grain was thrown open upon the payment of a fixed duty, and a new department of government was created, called the Grain Department, charged with buying and keeping a stock of grain, in order to guard against scarcity and high prices. In 1824 a graduated scale of duties, varying monthly with the prices, was substituted for the fixed duty of 1822. In the beginning of 1837 the system of keeping a stock of grain was abandoned by the Government, and the supply of the island was opened entirely to private enterprise. The quantity required every year for the supply of the island is about 73,000 salms, or quarters, so that the duty is equal to nearly 10s. per quarter. The "sliding scale" of duties on wheat, established in December, 1832, and continued till October, 1837, was as under : Duty. When the average price of foreign wheat per salm (or quarter) was- s. d. 12 O The average rate of duty received under this scale, during four years, 1833 to 1836, was 10s. 31d.; and the yearly average quantity taken for consumption was 57,981 salms, or quarters. The duty since October, 1837, has been fixed at 10s. per quarter. Among the sources of Government revenue may be noticed "receipts of Government printing-office." This calls for some explanation. Up to the beginning of 1838, no person was allowed to exercise the trade of a printer, or to use a printing-press, without the license of the Government, which would grant no such license except to the Government Commissariat Department, to be used for the public service of that department, and to the Church Missionary Society, the society binding itself to submit everything printed by it for the approval of the Government, before publication. Two presses set up without the license, one in 1810, the other in 1827, were taken possession of by the Government. The carefulness of the Government as regards printing thus went far beyond the strictest censorship, and amounted to an absolute monopoly. This system of Vandalism was abolished through the urgent recommendation of British Commissioners, who were sent in 1836 to inquire into various matters connected with the government of Malta. Such a system was clearly indefensible upon every ground. As a matter of profit it was an absolute failure, the press having never earned its expenses, although the rate of charges made to the public was exorbitant. As an act of tyranny it was far less justifiable, and exposed the Government to much odium, while it gave a colour to surmises and imputations for which no real grounds existed. It hindered effectually the diffusion of knowledge, and tended to perpetuate the ignorance, and with it many mischievous prejudices, among the native population. The relaxation of this odious restriction has not hitherto been accompanied by any of the evils predicted by those who advocated its continuance. The fixed civil and judicial establishments in Malta consisted, in 1838, of The agricultural produce of the islands of Malta and Gozo, in 1839, and the area from which each description was raised, were as follows: Quantity produced. The number and tonnage of shipping employed in the trade between the United Kingdom and Malta, in each of the eighteen years ending with 1849, were as follows: |