The following table shows, in thousands of lire, the value of the special trade (excluding the precious metals) with the leading countries in two years :

For the determination of Customs' values, &c., in Italy there is a permanent central commission, comprising official members, representatives of commercial corporations, &c. The values recorded are those of the goods at the frontier, exclusive of import or export duties. For imports and exports the parties interested declare the value of the goods, their quantity, and the country of origin or destination. For imports there is recorded the gross weight in the case of goods subject to a duty of 20 francs per quintal (88. 1d. per cwt.) or less; the net legal weight (i.e. with deduction of an official tare) in the case of goods subject to duty of 20 or 40 francs per quintal (88. 14d. to 168. 3d. per cwt.); the actual net weight in the case of goods taxed at over 40 francs per quintal (168. 3d. per cwt.) For exports the gross weight is usually given. Inaccurate declarations are punishable by fine if the inaccuracies are prejudicial to the Treasury.

The trade of Italy is regarded either as general or special. The general trade comprehends all imports from abroad, whether intended for consumption within the kingdom or merely for transit, and all exports to foreign countries, whether national, nationalised or only issuing after transit. The special trade is restricted to imports for consumption and exports of national or nationalised merchandise. National merchandise consists of the produce and manufactures of the kingdom, while foreign imports on which the duties have been paid at the frontier are said to be nationalised. Transit trade denotes merchandise merely passing through the kingdom whether directly or after having been temporarily warehoused.

The following table shows the re-exportation and transit, in thousands of lire, for eight years :

1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 1,000 Lire Lire Lire Lire Lire Lire Lire 21,105 24,839 23,433 32,922 31,606 30,115 32,488 36,380 100,162 113,388 127,889 132,287 142,883 25,4721 27,9841 35,6911

Lire

1 Only indirect transit, i.e., merchandise which has been kept in the depôts. The value of merchandise in direct transit is no longer recorded.

The treaty of 1883 provides for "the most favoured nation" treatment in matters of commerce and navigation between Italy and the United Kingdom, and Italy is a party to the International Sugar Convention. The Italian import duties are protective, and at specific rates. Books, maps, manuscripts, ships and boats, and a considerable number of articles for use in manufactures are admitted free. Among these are coal, lime, tallow, rags, raw wool and hair, undyed silk yarn, some unwrought metals (tin, zinc), nitrate of soda, and a few other chemicals. Importation of salt is altogether prohibited; that of tobacco (in every form) is prohibited except for the personal use of the importer, in which case high duties are charged.

The value of the imports into Great Britain from Italy, and of the exports of domestic produce and manufactures from Great Britain to Italy for five years, according to the Board of Trade Returns, is shown in the following table:

Imports from Italy. 3,637,096 3,417,790 3,383, 858 3,582,246 3,441,799 Exports of British produce to Italy.

6,985,916 8,772,114 7,612,562 7,409,984 7,801,211

The principal articles of import into Great Britain from Italy, and British exports to Italy (according to the Board of Trade returns) in the last 2 years

were:

On January 1, 1904, there were on the registers of the mercantile marine 5,654 vessels, classified as follows:

In 1903 the vessels entered and cleared at Italian ports were as follows:

At the principal Italian ports the number of vessels entering and clearing in 1903 were :

Internal Communications.

1. RAILWAYS.

A large portion of the Italian railways belong to the State, but in accordance with a law of April 27, 1885, the working of the State lines has been transferred to private enterprise. The contracts are for 60 years, but at the end of 20 and 40 years they may be terminated.

The length of the principal lines, January 1, 1902, was :- -Mediterranean, 3 621 miles; Adriatic, 3,606 miles; Sicilian, 682 miles; Sardinian, 630 miles; various, 1,338 miles; total, 9,877 miles. Total in 1904, 9,960 miles.

The normal gauge is 1445 mètre or about 4 ft. 8 in.

In 1901 the total receipts were 321,864,843 lire, of which 121,695,644 lire were for passenger traffic. In the same year the expenses were 247,214,695 lire. The number of passengers was in all 61,443,037.

II. POSTS AND TELEGRAPHS.

During the year ending June 30, 1902 there were transmitted 288,990,237 letters and postcards, 19,363,619 business papers and 385,375,075 printed papers, besides 52,112,274 official letters. The money orders numbered 15,516,528, value 1,015,765,589 lire. On June 30, 1902, there were 8,252 post-offices and collecting-boxes.

The public telegraph service is a monopoly of the Government, certain concessions, however, being made to the railway and tramway companies. On June 30, 1902, the total length of line was 27,640 miles, and of wire 108,920 miles. During the year ending June 30, 1902, there were despatched from Government and railway telegraph offices 8,487,048 private telegrams inland, and there were sent or received from abroad 2,348,991 telegrams. Number of State offices, 4,401; other offices, 1,833.

In 1902 there were in the public service 79 urban, 37 inter-urban, and 1 international telephone system, with 20,979 subscribers, besides 1,515 private teleph one lines.

The gross revenue from posts 1901-02 was 68,876,082 lire, and telegraphs 16,547,602 lire (exclusive of official despatches, free), the common expenditure was 64,712,654 lire, and that exclusively telegraphic was 3,567,004 lire.

Money and Credit.

The following table shows the amount of State notes and bank notes in circulation at the end of each of the last five years in thousands of lire :

"

1 Inclusive of 13,796,775 lire di "buoni di cassa,' in 1900; 4,060,809 in 1901; 2,358,701 in 1902; 2,057,799 in 1903.

The total coinage from 1862 to the end of 1903 was: gold, 427,241,470 lire; silver, 570,037,025 lire; nickel, 23, 417,000 lire; bronze, 83,636,121

lire; total, 1,104,331,616 lire. 41,118,184, bronze 1,288,068) lire. The nominal value of the money coined (including recoinage) in the last five years has been :

The re-coinage was 42,406,252 (silver

By the monetary convention of October 29, 1897, the contracting States agreed that each (except Greece) might increase its fractional silver coinage (2-franc pieces and smaller coins) from the limit of 6 francs per inhabitant to 7 francs; and thus Italy, which, by the convention of 1885 was restricted to 182,400,000 lire of fractional silver and 20,000,000 lire additional for special reasons, may increase its issue by 30,000,000 lire, the total amount authorised being now 232,400,000 lire. By a protocol of March 15, 1898, Italy is freed from the obligation, created by the convention of 1885, to take back its fractional coins within the year following the dissolution of the Union on condition of forbidding the exportation of such coins while the Union continues, and undertaking not to change its present system with respect to such coins during five years following the dissolution of the Union. A law of February 16, and Royal decree of July 19, 1899, authorise the issue of 2-lire and 1-lira silver coins, on the withdrawal of "buoni di cassa' (see below) to a corresponding

amount.

On

By law of July 22, 1894, gold and silver (5-franc pieces 900 fine) were temporarily withdrawn from circulation, being represented by paper. September 30, 1904, the actual currency consisted of 442,890,775 lire of State notes, 1,975,930 lire of "buoni di cassa" (one and two-lire notes guaranteed by silver in the Treasury), 1,265,582,000 lire of bank notes, and about 100,000,000 lire of copper and nickel coin.

There is no national bank in Italy. According to the law of August 10, 1893, there are only three banks of issue: the Banca d'Italia (formed by the fusion of the two Tuscan banks with the Banca Nazionale nel Regno d'Italia), the Banco di Napoli, and the Banco di Sicilia. The following table shows the state of the assets and liabilities of those three banks on December 31, 1903, in thousands of lire :

1 Gold, 602,962,482 lire; bills of exchange on foreign countries, foreign bank-notes, treasury bonds, &c., 117,719,290 lire; silver (900 fine), 92,342,890 lire; fractional silver, 16,801,688 lire.