COLONIES. The colonies and dependencies of the German Empire comprise German East Africa, German Southwest Africa, Kamerun, Togo, part of Guinea (Kaiser Wilhelm's Land), the Bismarck Archipelago, part of the Solomon Islands, the Caroline Islands, the La drones (Marianne Islands), the Marshall Islands, part of the Samoan Islands, and Kiao-chau (on the Chinese coast). The total area is estimated at a little over 1,000,000 square miles, and the population at about 12,000,000. The German colo nial system is that of a pure absolutism adminis tered through a centralized bureaucracy. Neither the natives nor the white inhabitants of the colo nies have any voice in the fiscal or political ad ministration of the territories. The laws for the colonies are framed by the Imperial Parliament, and German citizens residing in the colonies enjoy the same civil rights as in the mother country. The natives are not regarded as German citizens, but are allowed to acquire citizenship by natural ization in accordance with the general laws regu lating such procedure. A fundamental law in respect to the administration of colonies was laid down by the Reichstag in 1886, and subse quently amended in 1887 and 1888. The only exception, whereby the native element is recog nized in the administration of colonial affairs, is in the case of some of the districts where it was thought advisable to placate the native chiefs by making them the medium of communi cation between the Imperial Government and the native population.
The decision as to the budget for the col onies is nominally vested in the Emperor, though virtually it is in the hands of the Governor of the colony and his immediate sub ordinates. The revenue is derived from taxation, sale or lease of public property, fees, and sub ventions from the home Government. Direct
taxes form as yet but a small item in the reve nues; but having been recently introduced, they will, no doubt, yield a greater share in the near future. A house tax has recently been estab lished, applicable both to Europeans and natives. The rate of the tax is expressed in money, but the natives are allowed to offer produce or labor as the equivalent of the tax. The determination of the value of labor and natural products is left, however, to the local authorities, thus permitting the exercise of a good deal of arbitrary power by the colonial officers. Moreover, "measures are provided for the enforcement of the tax, and for this purpose forced labor is permitted." Ex perience has shown that the system is productive of excessive hardships for the natives, and af fords opportunity for the display of great cruelty by the local officers. The revenues derived from the various sources in the colonies are far, how ever, from being sufficient to cover the necessary expenses, and the home Government finds it necessary to grant large subventions from year to year. Thus, the amounts allowed by the Reichstag for the expenses of colonial adminis tration increased from $2,261,000 in 1896-97 to over $7,378,000 in 1901. As will be ,seen from the following table, the Government sub the countries of Europe. The growth of the population of the German Empire since its mation has been as follows: 1871, 41,058,804; vention forms about 58 per cent. of the revenue in Kamerun; 61 per cent. in Togo; 87 per cent. in New Guinea: