Czechoslovakia, Remy Vadalà. Denmark, E. W. Gollcher. Estonia, R. G. Vadalà (Vice-Consul). Greece, E. P. Jatroudakis. Hayti, Remy Vadalà. Hungary, E. G. Arrigo. Italy, R. Casertano. Japan, R. Howard. Latvia, Rinaldo Vadalà (Vice-Consul). Mexico, Josè Queralt Mir (with seat at Genoa). Netherlands, F. K. Gollcher. Norway, Capt. A. Zammit Cutajar. Panama, R. Ellis. Peru, A. Cassar Torregiani, O.B.E. Poland, Harold Parnis (England). Roumania, E. Moore. Siam, Major A. W. M. Eynaud. Sweden, E. W. Gollcher. Switzerland, C. E. Lowell (Consular Agent). United States of America, F. A. Henry. MAURITIUS. Situation and Area. Mauritius is an island in the Indian Ocean, between 57° 18′ and 57° 48′ E. long., and 19° 50' and 20° 31′ S. lat., distant 115 miles from Réunion, 934 miles from Seychelles, 1,300 miles from Natal, 2,000 miles from Cape Comorin, 11,000 miles from England, 2,300 from the Cape of Good Hope, and 500 from Madagascar. It comprises an area of about 720 square miles (nearly equal to Surrey), having an extreme length of 39 miles from north to south, and an extreme breadth of 29 miles from east to west. The island is chiefly of volcanic formation but is almost entirely surrounded by coral reefs. There are several small chains of mountains but none of great height. The principal peaks are the Piton de la Rivière Noire (2,711 ft.), Pieter Both (2,690 ft.), and the Pouce (2,661 ft.). There are numerous rivers and streams; they flow generally through deep ravines and their course is broken by many small waterfalls and rapids. None of them are navigable beyond a short distance from the sea. The land rises gradually from the coasts, and the centre of the island is composed chiefly of a fertile and picturesque plateau varying in altitude from 1,000 to 1,800 feet. On this high and healthy tableland the temperature and climate are excellent. History. The Mascarene Archipelago was probably known to Arab navigators at an early date. A Dutch map copied from Arab sources shows the islands now known as Mauritius, Rodrigues and Reunion under the names of Dinarobin, Dinanora and Margabin, and it is possible that certain islands marked on Idrisi's map (1153) are intended to indicate them also. There can be little doubt too that the island was visited by the Malays who colonised Madagascar in the 15th-16th century. But Mauritius history really begins with its discovery by the Portuguese in the beginning of the sixteenth century-probably between 1507 and 1512, but not later than 1527, when the island is shown on an official map under the name of Santa Appollonia, borne in common with the other islands known later as the Mascarenes (Reunion and Rodrigues) after the great navigator Dom Pedro Mascarenhas. The Portuguese named the island Ilha da Cirnos, or Swan Island, from the big birds resembling swans found on shore. They merely used the island as a port of call, without making any settlement. The first settlers were the Dutch. In 1598 a Dutch fleet landed in the South-Eastern harbour of the island, to which its commander, Admiral Wybrandt Van Warwyk, gave the name of Mauritius, in honour of the Statholder, Prince Maurice of Nassau. For many years no attempt was made at colonisation, but from 1638 downwards petty settlements were established at various points, the seat of government being at the place known as Old Grand Port. The colony did not prosper, and was finally abandoned by the Dutch in 1710. In 1715 the Island was formally taken possession of by the French, but was not actually occupied till 1721, when a small party of colonists were sent out on behalf of the French East India Company. The island was then named Isle de France. This name was retained until the landing of the English in 1810, when the former name of Mauritius was restored. Of all the Governors of the island, the most celebrated was Mahé de Labourdonnais (17351746), "a man of eminent talents" (in the words of Lord Macaulay), who encouraged the cultivation of sugar-cane and introduced many other valuable plants. He was the real founder of the prosperity of the Isle de France. In 1767, the French East India Company, having gone into liquidation, handed over the island to the Crown, Jean Daniel Dumas being appointed Governor General for the King, and Pierre Poivre, Intendant. Poivre was a man of great ability; he introduced into the colony cloves and nutmegs secretly obtained from the Dutch Sunda Archipelago. Having purchased the ancient residence of the Company's Governors, at Monplaisir, he converted the grounds into a nursery where many useful plants introduced by him were cultivated. On his departure this property was sold to Government, the garden being entrusted to Poivre's friend, Nicolas Céré, under whose able management it became famous under the name of King's Gardens. It is now the Royal Botanical Gardens, Pamplemousses. In 1771 an epidemic of small pox caused many deaths among the slave population. In 1790, at the outbreak of the French Revolution, a Colonial Assembly was elected, which for 13 years governed the island de facto. In 1792 another very able Governor was sent out from France, Comte de Malartic, who during this troubled period managed to gain the affection of the whole community. In 1803, the Isle de France was taken charge of by General Decaen, appointed Captain General by Napoleon Bonaparte, then First Consul, with instructions to suspend the Colonial Assembly and the Isle de France's constitution for a period of ten years. During the long war between England and France, the Isle de France was a source of great mischief to our merchant vessels, owing to the facility with which sorties were made from its harbour by French men-of-war and privateers; and in 1809 the British Government determined on its capture. The neighbouring islands of Rodrigues and Reunion were taken possession of and several naval engagements were fought to the credit of both navies. The most famous of these was the battle of the Isle de la Passe, fought in the bay of Grand Port on the 23rd and 24th August, 1810, between four English frigates and two French frigates, a corvette and a captured East Indiaman. The English lost the day, two of their ships having gone on shoals early in the engagement, but the great gallantry shown by both sides has rendered the fight memorable in the annals of the two navies. A strong expeditionary force was then sent out from the three presidencies of India and the Cape. Twelve thousand troops under General Abercromby were landed, and the island finally surrendered to Great Britain on December 3rd, 1810, the laws, religion, and customs of the inhabitants being guaranteed in the instrument of capitulation. The possession of the island was confirmed to England by the Treaty of Paris, 1814. The first English Governor, Mr. (later Sir) R. T. Farquhar (1810-1823) gained a well-deserved popularity. During his tenure of office, on 25th September, 1816, the fourth part of the town of Port Louis was destroyed by a conflagration. On 28th February, 1818, the island was laid waste by a terrific cyclone, causing immense destruction to property. In the year 1832, the Council of Government which was established on the 19th August, 1825, was abolished, and a Legislative Council, with half the members official, created. The oaths of office were taken by the new members on the 23rd January, 1832. On the 1st April, 1835, the emancipation of slaves took place without disorder; but as this new class of free men refused employment as labourers the planters were obliged to resort to this introduction of labour from India which was finally authorised in 1842, under the supervision of an agent residing in India, and which continued, with temporary interruptions, until 1910. In 1849, the Legislative Council voted the law constituting a municipal corporation for the town of Port Louis. During the years 1854, 1856, 1861-62, epidemics of cholera prevailed, of which that of 1854 was the most severe, causing 7,650 deaths. The year 1864 saw the opening of the North Railway Line from Port Louis to Pamplemousses, the Midland Line being inaugurated two years after. In December, 1866, malaria broke out with great severity. During the year 1867, 31,758 persons died from fever, including 18,308 in Port Louis. In 1868 and 1874, Mauritius was visited by severe cyclones. During the former two spans of the Grand River Railway Viaduct were brought down by the force of the wind. On the 29th April, 1892, one of the most violent cyclones ever recorded ruined a considerable portion of Port Louis, besides causing infinite havoc to buildings and crops. The death roll amounted to 1,232. In order to assist the planters and other owners of immovable property affected by the calamity, A loan of £600,000 was guaranteed by the Imperial Government. On the 23rd of July, 1893, part of Port Louis was again destroyed by fire. At the end of the same year ocean telegraphic communication was opened. In 1902, an outbreak of Surra caused great loss of draught animals, and mechanical means of transport had to be resorted to for the sugar plantations. A number of locomotives and traction engines were introduced, and a loan was raised to enable the planters to lay down tramways, and take other steps to provide for transport. In 1909, a Royal Commission visited the Island to enquire into the administration and finances of the Colony. During the Great War Mauritius suffered in no way by direct action on the part of the enemy. A number of volunteers proceeded to Europe for military service and a Labour Battalion supplied for Mesopotamia. was The enormous rise in the price of sugar brought great prosperity to the Colony, and the gross value of the crop of 1920-1921 is estimated to have been approximately Rs. 250,000,000. In 1921 investigations of the sanitary and health conditions were made by Dr. Andrew Balfour, C.B., C.M. G., M.D. Many of the works recommended have been carried out. In 1923 the Indian Government consented to the resumption of immigration of labourers from India consequent on the repeal of the penal clauses of the Labour Law of 1878 affecting labour. Immigration was accordingly resumed for a period of 12 months ending on 31st May, 1924, but with disappointing results, most of the immigrants having returned to India by the end of the The City of Port Louis is the capital and seat of Government, and contained, with its suburbs, an estimated population of 54,290 on 31st December, 1931. The harbour is one of the best in the East, and vessels. It possesses three graving docks. is sufficiently spacious to receive a large number of Works for the reconditioning of the Harbour and improvements thereto have been carried out. The Harbour is defended by Fort Adelaide (the citadel) and by Fort George. There are large barracks and military stores. The trade of the island passes almost entirely through Port Louis. The city has an elected municipal corporation, and raised in 1934 a revenue of Rs. 640,688-42, against an expenditure of Rs. 645,296.49. Its debt amounts to 22,300l. and Rs. 523,500 at 31st December, 1934. The principal public edifices of Port Louis are the Government House, the Institute, the Roman Catholic and Anglican Cathedrals, the Civil Hospital, the Town Hall, the theatre, and the public offices. There is a racecourse most beautifully situated in the Champ de Mars. The constitution of Mauritius was altered in 1884-85 and in 1933. It now consists of a Governor, with an Executive Council of four ex-officio and two unofficial members, and a Legislative Council of twenty-seven members, eight being ex-officio, nine nominated by the Governor, and ten elected-two for the town of Port Louis, and one for each of the eight rural districts. At least two-thirds of the nominated members must be persons not holding any public office. Under the revised Constitution of 1933 the Governor is empowered to override a majority vote of the Council for the enforcement of any measure which he considers necessary in the interest of public order, public faith or other essentials of good government. Members are not paid; they may speak either in French or English. The number of registered electors on 31st December, 1934, was 10,099; the franchise qualification is ownership of immovables of annual value of Rs. 300, or movables worth Rs. 3,000, or payment of rent of Rs. 25 monthly, or of license duty of Rs. 200 annually, or receipt of salary of Rs. 50 monthly. The session usually lasts from April to December. The law is based on the Code Napoléon, and other French laws modified by Colonial Ordinances. Climate and Rainfall. From December to April is the hottest season in Mauritius, but it is comparatively cool during the remainder of the year. The mean temperature of Port Louis is 25'1° C., the mean annual rainfall 40 inches and the mean relative humidity 67 per cent. The mean temperature of Curepipe, at about 1,800 feet above sea level, is 19.3° C., the mean annual rainfall 123 inches, and the mean relative humidity 87 per cent. The official cyclone The Indian section comprises those members of the population following the customs and religions of India. season extends from November to the middle of May, but cyclones have occurred in the South Indian Ocean in every month of the year except August. During cyclones over 30 inches of rain have occasionally been registered in 24 hours. Water Supply. With the exception of a few villages which still derive their supplies from private wells or from open streams, the rest of the island derives its water supply from pipe-borne supplies which are derived from various sources and are under the control of the Public Works Department. The two main supplies are those of the Town of Port Louis and of the District of Plaines Wilhems. The supply of the Town of Port Louis is derived from the Grand River North West, a distance of about 4 miles from the Town and at an elevation of 250 feet. The quantity delivered is about 5 million gallons per day. derived from the Mare-aux-Vacoas, which is a The supply of the District of Plaines Wilhems is altitude of 1,825 feet. The principal towns dependent storage reservoir of 1,641 million gallons at an on the latter source of supply are Curepipe (to which the water is pumped), Vacoa, Phoenix, Quatre Borns, Rose Hill, and Beau Bassin in the District of Plaines Wilhems and Reduit, Moka and Saint Pierre in the District of Moka. The supply has been extended to Port Louis, where the quantity available for supply is 1,000,000 gallons per day and to part of Black River District. The quantity delivered is about 4 million gallons per day. Both the Grand River North West water and the Mare-aux-Vacoas water are filtered and chlorinated before distribution. Frequent analyses are made by the Medical and Health Department. Both these waters are of a high standard of purity after filtration and chlorination. Irrigation. Of the two irrigation schemes undertaken by Government for the irrigation of the coastal regions below the 60-inch rainfall line in the North and North-West of the Island, only one has been completed, viz., that of "La Ferme," which irrigates 3,700 acres from a storage reservoir situated at an elevation of 450 feet above sea level and of a capacity of 2,500 million gallons. The other scheme which was originally intended to irrigate 15,000 acres has been completed only in respect of the construction of a low level reservoir at La Nicoliere of a capacity of 1,270 million gallons and of the connection thereof to the high rainfall region of Midlands by a canal 17 miles long. The uncompleted scheme as it now stands irrigates 300 acres. Railways. There are seven lines of railway, all owned and worked by Government, viz: (1) The North line, from Port Louis to the sea coast village of Grand River South-east. Its length is 33 miles, and its line of the island. (2) The Montagne Longue branch, course is approximately parallel to the northern coast from Terre Rouge station on the North Line to the village of Montagne Longue; its length is 34 miles. (3) The Midland line, beginning at Port Louis and running across the island to the sea coast town of Mahebourg on the other side; its length is 35 miles, with a summit level of 1,822 feet at Curepipe; the gradient in many places is 1 in 26. Four and a quarter miles of this line have been doubled and opened for traffic. (4) The Moka-Flacq line from the Rose Hill station on the Midland line to Montagne Blanche, length 143 miles. (5) Savanne branch from Rosebelle station on the Midland line to the sea coast town of Souillac at the southern extremity of the island; its length is 11 miles. (6) Black River branch, from Richelieu on the Midland line to Tamarin, distance 12 miles. (7) Rivière du Poste to Mexico and Richebois, length 13 miles. All the above are of standard gauge, 4' 8", except the 7th which is 75 centimetres (2′ 6′′). The total number of miles of railway now open is 110 of standard gauge and 13 of 2'6" gauge, the total cost up to date being about £2,080,099. The receipts in 1936-37 were Rs. 1,958,713 and Working Expenditure Rs. 1,803,631. Religion. The Christian Churches are assisted by State grants. According to the census of 1931, the Roman Catholics numbered 126,153, and the Protestants about 4,466, including Dependencies and Military. The Roman Catholics receive an annual grant from Government amounting to Rs. 149,216, the Protestants Rs.48,973 and the Church of Scotland Rs. 8,558. Education. The system of education had been remodelled by Ordinance No. 33 of 1899, which repealed all former enactments. This Ordinance was repealed by Ordinance No. 19 of 1919 which was subsequently repealed by Ordinance 42 of 1934. Under the Education Ordinance of 1899, a Depart. ment of Public Instruction was created under a "Director of Public Instruction." Chairman, the Rector, the Superintendent of Schools, (1) Primary Education is carried on through a (2) Secondary Education is provided by means of a system of Grant-in-aid schools for boys and girls. (3) As regards Technical and Industrial Education, provision is made for the training of students in Mechanical Engineering. A consultative committee styled the "Schools Committee," similar to that of the Royal College, is annually appointed by the Governor. It consists of 12 members: the Colonial Secretary, the Superintendent of Schools, the Rector, Royal College, five members nominated by the Primary and Secondary Grant-in-aid Schools and four chosen by the Governor, with the Colonial Secretary as Chairman. Secondary and Higher Secondary Education. Primary Education. This system remained in force until it was superseded by the Education Consolidation Ordinance of There were in 1937– 1919, under which the Department of Public Instruction was replaced by a Royal College Department and a School Department, the post of Director of Public Instruction being abolished. The Rector is the Head of the Royal College Department: and the Superintendent of Schools of the Schools, Department. The Royal College Department comprises two Day-Schools for boys: The Royal College proper, situated in Curepipe, 1,800 feet above sea level, and the Royal College School, in Port Louis. The Royal College, Curepipe, is attended by about 320 pupils, aged from ten to twenty, and has a teaching staff of ten Europeans and thirteen Mauritians; at the School there are 180 pupils on the roll, and thirteen Mauritian teachers. The medium of teaching is English. Twenty Scholarships and Exhibitions tenable at the Royal College are competed for annually by Primary School pupils; fourteen Scholarships and Exhibitions open to Royal College and other Secondary School pupils are also awarded annually and two Scholarships, known as the English Scholarships, tenable at a British University, of a total value of about £1,100, which are open to College pupils only. There is a Classical and a Modern Side, and at the School there is also a Commercial Side. Saturday extension classes are held at the College for special studies in Science. About 100 pupils annually sit for the Cambridge School Certificate and a few for the London Chamber of Commerce examinations. The English Scholarship examination is about the standard of the Cambridge Higher Certificate, but candidates are required to offer many more subjects. There is no technical training. Classes in Physical Culture and Gymnastics are held by a qualified instructor, who also supervises Field Sports. The pupils are drawn from all classes in the Colony. A Committee styled "The Royal College Committee" is annually appointed by the Governor to advise in the framing of Regulations and to act as a consultative body. It consists of the Colonial Secretary as Government schools 14,393 Total The total expenditure on education in 1936-37 amounted to Rs. 1,075,158, in which is included a sum of Rs. 46,231 spent on Aided Secondary Educa tion. There are more than 1,000 masters, mistresses, assistants, and monitors and monitresses employed in Government and Grant Schools. Of the pupils in the Government and aided schools 47.2 per cent. are Roman Catholics, 1-4 per cent. belong to the Church of England, and 0.7 per cent. to other Christian denominations. Four Hindoo and two Moslem schools are also assisted. The number of pupils on roll in Aided Secondary Schools in 1936-37 was 1,632. Agricultural Education. To facilitate higher agricultural education, a small Agricultural College has been established. Lectures on Agricultural Science are occasionally made to Primary School Teachers by the Department of Agriculture. Communications. Postal communication with Europe is chiefly maintained via Suez by the Indian Ocean Line of the Messageries Maritimes, which provides a regular fortnightly service. Mails are otherwise sent or received through South Africa. The only regular service by this route is being provided by the Koninklijke Paketvaart Maatschappij (K.P.M.) Java-Mauritius-Africa line. Other opportunities through South Africa are irregular, though not infrequent, and are provided by tramp steamers and occasionally by a Union Castle or a Clan line vessel. Communication with India and Ceylon is maintained regularly by the Messageries Maritimes packets, via Mombassa and Aden and by the K.P.M. steamers via Batavia. The British India Steam Navigation Co. also runs an occasional steamer between Ceylon and Mauritius and vice versa. The K.P.M. steamers provide regular monthly communication via Batavia with Australia, Hong Kong, China and Japan. With the neighbouring islands of Reunion and Madagascar communication is frequent by local trading vessels, apart from regular Messageries Maritimes packets or K.P.M. Steamers. Communication with Rodrigues is provided every two months by K.P.M. steamers and irregularly by Colonial vessels. Mails for Seychelles are sent per M.M. packets every fortnight via Mombassa, and by the K.P.M. steamers once every month. Air mail letters for Europe and almost every other part of the world are sent to Durban by sea for inclusion at Johannesburg in the South Africa air mail, and to Mombassa by sea for inclusion at Nairobi in the Kenya air mail. Other opportunities for Europe are via Tananarive fortnightly, and, Batavia, monthly. Air mail letters to Moçambique, French East Africa, Belgian Congo, French West Africa, Morocco, etc., may also be sent via Tananarive and those for the Dutch East Indies, India, Mesopotamia, Egypt, etc., via Batavia. Wireless communication is maintained with ships at sea within a range of 500 miles by day and 1,000 miles by night and with the Réunion land station. Cable communication with every part of the world is provided by the local station of the Eastern and South African Telegraph Company. Government land telegraphs and telephones (including Railway Block Telegraph and Railway Traffic Control Telephone) extend to 577 miles of telegraph and 418 miles of telephone. Private telephone communication is provided by the Government in the capital, Port Louis, and in the rural districts. There are in Mauritius the General Post Office in the city of Port Louis, and 59 branch post offices in the rural districts, 59 money order offices, 45 telegraph and 8 telephone offices. In the island of Rodrigues there is one post office at Port Mathurin and also a station of the Eastern and South African Telegraph Co. There is no post office in any other of the Dependencies. Commerce. The island produces barely one-tenth of the food required for its inhabitants and almost all agricultural enterprise is devoted to the production of exports. The chief exports are sugar, copra, aloe-fibre, raw hides, &c. Food-stuffs are principally imported from India; manufactured articles from England, oxen from Madagascar. The imports consist mainly of grain (rice, wheat flour, &c.), cotton manufactures, motor spirits and coal, iron and steel goods and fertilizers. Considerable progress has been made in the tobacco industry; factories have been opened in Port Louis and efforts are being made to establish an export trade. Other new industries include fruit canning, and the manufacture of matches. About 95 per cent. of the value of the exports consists of shipments of sugar. In 1937 the weight of sugar exported was 313,012 metric tons with an estimated value of Rs. 35,250,607 (not including the value of sugar quota certificates). The value of copra or poonac exported was Rs. 350,012; aloe-fibre, Rs. 282,526; fruits, preserved, Rs. 32,630. Currency and Banking. The Mauritius Commercial Bank has two establishments in the Colony. The total amount of deposits on 30th June, 1938, being Rs. 7,084,873, with paid up capital of Rs. 2,000,000. The Mercantile Bank of India Ltd., took over the business of The Bank of Mauritius Ltd., on the 3rd May, 1916. The total local deposits on 30th June, 1938, amounted to Rs. 2,311,432. The total paid up Capital is now 1,050,000%. formerly The National Bank of South Africa, Limited, Barclays Bank (Dominion, Colonial and Overseas), has been established in the Island since 1919, the paid up capital being 4,975,500l. and the total amount of local deposits on 30th June, 1938, Rs. 3,081,658. A Government savings bank was established in 1837. The total deposits during the year ended 30th June, 1938, amounted to Rs. 2,142,250. The sum standing to the credit of depositors at the end of June, 1938, was Rs. 6,815,120. All accounts are kept in rupees and cents of a rupee, which is the currency of the island. A new Government note issue was established in 1934, the notes being legal tender to any amount. The circulation as at the 30th June. 1938, was Rs. 9,417,485. Weights and Measures. The Metric System, as regards weights and measures, came into force on the 1st May, 1878. DEPENDENCIES. The dependencies of Mauritius comprise a large number of islands scattered over the Indian Ocean. Rodrigues, the most important, is situated in latitude S. 19° 44' and longitude E. 63° 34', and is 344 nautical miles from Mauritius. The island which has an area of 42 sq. miles, about 26,000 acres, is 18 miles long by 7 miles broad, and is surrounded by coral reefs, extending in some places 5 or 6 miles from the shore. It is under the adminis tration of a magistrate, who takes his instructions from the Governor of Mauritius. Laws for the island are made in the form of regulations framed by the Governor of Mauritius in Executive Council. The estimated population at 31st December, 1937, was 9,977. The birth rate in 1937 was 437 and the death rate 20'8 per 1,000. Cable communication, through a branch of the Eastern and South African Telegraph Company, was opened on 16th May, 1902. The island, which is volcanic, mountainous, and in some parts well wooded, is beautiful and picturesque in the extreme. 1,760 feet above the level of the sea, and may be The highest land is seen in clear weather at a distance of 10 or 12 leagues. The temperature differs little from that of Mauritius, although the breezes are stronger and hurricanes more frequent and severe. The |