The following are the budget estimates for the year ending June

There was besides an extraordinary budget for 1883-84, involving expenditure to the amount of 3,120,000l., to be covered partly by the sale of national lands and partly by the proceeds of conversion of the debt.

The Minister of Finance declared, in presenting the budget for 1871-72, that the State was 'on the verge of bankruptcy,' from which it could be saved only by the most strenuous exertions, devoted both to raise the revenue, by the imposition of new taxes and otherwise, and to depress the expenditure to the lowest possible point.' The finances of Spain have never been in a satisfactory condition. Although in 1881-82 the budget estimate of the revenue was 31,320,000l., and the expenditure 31,306,000l., still, as in previous years, there was a large deficit, and in October 1881, the Minister of Finance spoke in strong terms of the mismanagement of his predecessors, and proposed a new basis of financial administration, by which to rectify past deficiencies and secure a surplus in the future. He proposed a budget for 1882-83, with a revenue of 782,997,225 pesetas and an expenditure of 782,639,250 pesetas, leaving a balance of 14,3197. Efforts were made again, in preparing the budget for 1883-84, to adopt extraordinary means to increase the revenue.

The large and constantly increasing annual deficits, dating from the reign of Queen Isabel, were covered, partly, by loans, partly by extraordinary taxation-such as 'exemptions from military ser

vice,' figuring in the budget of 1874-75,-and partly by the sale of national property, formerly belonging to churches, convents, and monasteries. The national and church property of Spain was and is still of immense value, but there was a reluctance in some persons to buy the latter on account of religious scruples, till 1858, when a concordat was concluded with the Pope and sanction obtained for the sales, which were then actively continued, the Government giving great facilities to the purchasers. The payments are made onetenth in cash, and the remainder in promissory notes from 1 to 10, and, in some cases, to 19 years, the property remaining mortgaged to the final instalment, owing to which the biddings at times have been for even more than double the amount of its value. The Cortes, in 1859, 1861, and 1863, authorised the Government to apply 28,000,000l. for extraordinary expenses in constructing roads and railways, and of this sum about 18,000,000l. had been spent in 1869, the money being obtained out of the funds placed at interest by capitalists, corporations, and the public in the Caja de Depositos,' or Deposit Bank, under the direction of the Government.

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The constant and ever-increasing excess of Government expenditure over public revenue created a national debt of very large amount. On January 1, 1881, the total Spanish debt was estimated to amount to 512,000,000l.

It was admitted by successive ministers of finance in recent years that Spain was absolutely unable to pay interest on its debt in the existing state of things, ruined both by a costly and wasteful civil war, and desperate and equally costly efforts to suppress the insurrection in Cuba. In a report of the Government of the King Alfonso XII., dated July 1875, it was stated that not any of the national creditors could hope to be satisfied without having recourse to credit operations at an enormous rate of interest, which in a short time doubles the original debt.' It was arranged in 1881-2 that the bulk of the Spanish debt should be converted into a new series of 4 per cents. The external debt was thus reduced to a capital of 80,000,000l. at 4 per cent.; the redeemable internal debt reduced to a capital of 70,000,000l. new internal 4 per cents.; and the perpetual internal including the railway obligations to a capital of 90,000,000l., also at 4 per cent. Exceptions to the reduction were the 5 per cent. consolidated due to the United States, 120,000.; the 3 per cent. due to Denmark, 120,0007.; and the 3 per cent. securities and guarantees. The total capital of the debt is thus reduced to 240,000,000l. Under the new adjustment the annual charge would be 9,500,000l., equal to about 11s. per head of the population. In the budget of 1883-4 the total charge of the debt is 10,955,3377., one-third of the total expenditure and nearly one-half the value of the exports. In addition to this, the

State has incurred obligations in respect to the island of Cuba estimated at over 10,000,000l.

Army and Navy.

The army of Spain was re-organised in 1868, after the model of that of France, and by subsequent laws in 1877, 1878, and 1882. Under the new military law, the armed forces of the kingdom consist of-1. A permanent army; 2. A first or active reserve; 3. A second or sedentary reserve. All Spaniards past the age of 20 are liable to be drawn for the permanent army, in which they have to serve three years; they then pass for three years into the first or active reserve, and for six years into the second reserve. By a payment of about 60l. any one may purchase exemption from service. For the colonial army the total period of service is eight years, four with the colours and four in the second reserve. By increasing the number of depôt battalions, assigning to each reserve battalion a special district, and making it the essential basis of regimental organisation, both for recruits and for the reserves, it is hoped that in time Spain may be able easily to mobilise in case of necessity an army of 400,000 men. The strength of the permanent army of the Peninsula for 1883-84 was framed at 20,000 officers and 94,894 men; while for Cuba the number was 25,653; Porto Rico, 3,302; and the Philippines, 7,870 men. Of the infantry there are 140 battalions, of the cavalry 24 regiments; 8 regiments of field and 3 of mountain artillery, besides 6 reserve regiments, and 10 battalions of pioneers; there are 5,000 officers for the colonial army. On the war-footing the artillery would have 85 batteries, with 510 guns in all. There are besides 13 battalions of fortress artillery, and 5 regiments of engineers. The Civic Guard consists of 15 regiments with 780 officers and 14,756 men. On the staff are 406 generals and 133 reserve generals.

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For military purposes the kingdom, with the islands, is divided into fourteen districts, or capitanias generales,' at the head of each of which stands a 'captain-general,' with the rank of field-marshal. It is further subdivided into 140 territorial divisions for infantry, in each of which is a regimental depôt; for the cavalry there are 24 districts, and 6 for artillery. There are, on the peace-footing, 17,500 horses and 2,500 mules.

The navy consisted, according to official returns, of the following vessels afloat and under construction, in 1883:

The armour-clad ships of the Spanish navy were constructed in England and in France. The largest of them, the Vittoria, launched early in 1868, was constructed by the Thames Ironworks Company. The dimensions of the ship are, in length, 316 ft.; in breadth, 57 ft.; and in depth, 38 ft.; while the displacement is 7,100 tons. The Vittoria carries four 12-ton, three 9-ton, and twelve 7-ton guns, and is armoured from stem to stern with 5-in. plates and 10-in. teak; the engines, of 5,000-horse power, are of the same type as those of the Warrior and Minotaur. Next to the Vittoria in size is the Numancia, constructed by the company of the 'Forges et Chantiers de la Mediterranée,' at Marseille, France. The Numancia is built entirely of iron, with the exception of the teak backing for the armour plating, and is 316 feet long, and 57 feet broad at the beam, with a draught of water of 27 feet. The Numancia is encased by 5-in. plates, and has an armament of six 18-ton, three 9-ton, and sixteen 7-ton Armstrong guns, broadside battery. Next in rank after the Numancia stands the Arapiles, oldest of Spanish ironclads, built at Blackwall, near London, and launched October 17, 1864. The Arapiles, constructed after French models, is of wood, covered with plates 4 inches thick, and carries 34 guns in broadside battery. Of similar construction is the Saragossa, also with 4-inch armour, and the Mendez Nunez, formerly named the Resolution. The other five ironclads, called the Sagunto, Puycerda, Duque de Tetuan, Aragon, Castilla, and Navarra, are smaller vessels, with 4-inch armour, carrying from three to ten guns. The three last-named ironclads were built for coast defence.

For the defence of the colonies, and mainly of Cuba and Porto Rico, Spain maintains a small fleet of gunboats, thirty-five in

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number, all of the same size, 107ft. long, 224ft. beam, 8ft. depth of hold, and drawing about 5ft. water. They are screw steamers, and each one carries a 100-pounder pivot gun at the bow.

The navy of Spain was manned, in 1883, by 14,000 sailors and 7,033 marines, and commanded by one admiral, thirty vice- and rearadmirals, and 644 commissioned officers of various grades; there were 7,033 marines. The navy, like the army, is recruited by conscription, naval. districts for this purpose being formed along the coast, among the seafaring population.

The Spanish frontiers are defended by the following fortified places: On the North and North-West coast, Fontaarbia, the fortified port of Passage, and the military ports of Santona and Santander, Ferrol, Coruña, Vigo; in the Basque country, between the coast and the Ebro, are Bilbao and Vittoria; in the country on the left bank of the Ebro are Pampeluna, Tafalla, Jaca, Venasqua, Mouzon, Puycerda, Seo de Urgel, Balaguer, and Lerida; between the Segré and the Mediterranean are Cardona, Hostalrich, Campredon, Ripoll, Girone, Olot, Cartelfollit, Figueras; on the Mediterranean, Palamos, Barcelona, Tarragona, Malaga, Almeria, Carthagena, and Alicante; on the Ebro are Logrono, Tudela, Saragossa, Mequinenza, and Tortosa; south of the Ebro are Burgos and Morella. Along the Portuguese frontier are Toro, Ciudad Rodrigo, Valencia de Alcantara, Albuquerque and Badajoz; Tarifa and Algeciras in the Strait of Gibraltar, and Cadiz at its entrance.

Area and Population.

The last general enumeration of the population took place on the 31st December 1877, the returns showing that at that date the kingdom, including the Balearic and Canary Islands- Baleares' and 'Canárias,' each considered a province-and the small strip of territory in North Africa, facing Gibraltar, had an area of 195,767 square miles, and a total population of 16,634,345, comprising 8.134,331 males and 8,500,014 females. The legal population as distinct from the population present was returned at 16,753,591, of whom 8,253,293 were males and 8,500,298 females. The area of Continental Spain is 191,100 square miles, and its population 16,061,859. An estimate for June 1883 gives the total population as 16,858,721. The following table gives the area and population of each of the forty-nine provinces into which the kingdom is divided, according to the census of December 31, 1877 :—