CLIMATE. The climate of Bulgaria is on the whole healthful, with the exception of the low lands along the Blaek Sea, which are often vis ited by malaria. The climate in Eastern Ru tuella is considerably milder than in Bulgaria proper, which is generally attributed to the fact that, the former is protected on the north by the Balkans. Winter in Bulgaria usually begins in time middle of November and lasts till :Mandl, while in flu/Delia its duration seldom exceeds two months. The rainy season is in early spring and in autumn. The yearly temperature is about 50°, while the lowest for Bulgaria is about —8', and for limnelia 8°. The flora of Bulgaria is of a somewhat mixed character, combining most of the common European plants with sonic belonging to the East. The mountains are gen erally covered with trees, which are almost en tirely absent from the Valleys. The fauna is of considerable variety. The mountains abound in (wars, wild hoars, different species of deer, chamois, and most of the common European spe cks of wild fowl. The domestic animals include the buffalo, which, together with the bull, is used for agricultural purposes instead of horses, which are seance and of a poor breed.
Aentert.Tuar;. Like most. of the Balkan States, Bulgaria is primarily an agricultural country. A fertile soil, in conjunction with a favorable climate. counteracts to a large extent the effect of the primitive methods of cultivation in vogue, and the crops are generally abundant. The laud is subdivided among the peas antry. who cling tenaciously to their small hold ings. The land belongs nominally to the Govern ment, and its occupants may hold it in per petuity. paying the Government a certain rent in the form of a tax; the only exception is in the ease of woodland and pastureland, which are held in common by the communes and are shared by all members without payment to the Govern ment. Of the total area of the country. about 48 per cent. is ander pasture. 25 per cent. is culti vated for cereals and vegetables. less than If'. per cent. is under vineyards, over 17 per cent. under forest and heath, the rest being under prairies, roads, dwellings, etc. The principal ',rains raised in the country are wheat and corn, yielding from 20,000,o00 to 40,000,000 bushels each annually. according to the condition of the crops. Next in importance are barley, oats, rye, and potatoes. Fruits and vegetables are culti
vated extensively, and considerable quantities of attar of roses are exported. The cultivation of silk. once a very important industry, is now al most extinct. Clrapes of an excellent. quality are cultivated all over the country, hut the wine pro duced is poor, owing to the careless and anti quated methods employed in its A eonsiderable hindrance to the development of agriculture is found in the present system of tithes in kind, which destroys every in centive 0, improvement.. The mineral lands, as well as the agricultural, belong to the State, which works some of the coal-mines on its own account, obtaining over 100,000 tons of coal ate nually. Besides coal. salt is also mined. and stone is quarried.
Commintcl• AND TRANSPORTATION. The chief exports of the country are grain, and their products, tobacco, fruits, cloth, and attar of roses. The imports consist mostly of textiles, metal products, arms, and coal. The trade is mostly in the hands of Greeks, Austrians, Ru manians, and .Jews, the countries participat ing in it most are Austria-Hungary, Germany, Great Britain, France, and Turkey. The volume of commerce shows a considerable decline during the last years of the Nineteenth Century. The value of the imports averaged over $13.000.000 for 1590-1900, and from over $16.000.000 in 1S97 to less than $8,000.000 in 1900. The exports averaged during 1596-1901) over $13,500, 000, ranging from nearly $20,000,000 in 1596 to less than $10,500.000 in 1900. Bulgaria has seven seaports and nine river ports, with a total annual shipping of about 5,000.000 tons. The chief financial institution of Bulgaria is the National Bank. with headquarters at Sofia and branches at the more important towns. It. has a capital of 10,000.000 francs ($1,930,000) and the right to issue gold and silver notes not ex ceeding 13,000,000 francs ($2,509,000). There are also a large number of agricultural banks with an aggregate capital of •6,000,000. The railway mileage of Bulgaria is rather small in comparison with the area of the country. Includ ing the railways of Eastern Rumelia, the total length in 1900 was 980 miles, of which nearly S00 miles belong to the State. Sofia, the capital, is connected by rail with Constantinople and the chief centres of Continental Europe.