Siam.—This kingdom is chiefly important as a buffer state between French and British India, and little by little has been pared by these nations until practically nothing but the basin of the Menam River remains. The administration of the state is progressive, and much of the resources have been developed in the last few years.
Rice and teak are the leading products. The rice is cultivated by native laborers—much of it by enforced labor—and is sold to Hongkong, British India, and the more northerly states. It is collected by Chinese middlemen, and by them sold to British and German exporters. The teak-wood business is managed by British firms. The logs are cut by natives, hauled to the Menam River, and floated to Bangkok; there they are squared and sent to European markets. Pepper and preserved fish are also exported. The Menam River is the chief trade-route, and Bangkok, at its mouth, is the focal point of trade.
French India.—The French control the region south of China, called French Indo-China, together with various areas in the peninsula of Hindustan; of these Pondicheri and Karical are the most important. Indo-China includes the basin of Mekong River, and rice is the staple product. The most productive rice-fields are the delta-lands of the Mekong, formerly known as Cochin-China.
From these lands more than half a million tons of rice are exported, the product being sold mainly at Hongkong and Singapore. Pepper is also an export of considerable value. France, China, and the Philippine Islands are the final destination of the rice export. The imports are mainly textiles, machinery, and coal-oil from the United States. The machinery pertains chiefly to the manufactures of cotton and silk textiles. On account of cheaply mined coal, there is a considerable growth of this industry. Saigon is the business centre and port at which the Chinese middlemen meet the European merchants and forwarders.
QUESTIONS FOR DISCUSSION
What have been the chief effects of the British occupation of these countries, so far as the natives are concerned?
What is the position of Khaibar Pass with respect to the commerce of India?
How has the building of the Sind-Pishin Railway strengthened British occupation of India?
Singapore and Batavia are the two great focal points of trade in the East India Islands. At the former all trade is absolutely free; at the latter there is both an import and an export tax. What are the advantages of each policy?