INDO-CHINA
769
INDO-CHINA
so frequent nor so serious as in Tong-king. Of all the
divisions of Indo-China, the heat of Cochin China and
Cambodia is the severest test for foreigners in conse-
quence of the unvarying elevation of the temperature,
especially in districts remote from the sea. Only the
most careful avoidance of mid-day heat and all un-
usual exertion can safeguard the European. He must
also take great care to guard against changes of tem-
perature, for even the slightest variation at night often
suffices to occasion attacks of dysentery almost impos-
sible to cure. Wooded and mountainous, Laos is in
general very unhealthy, and the climate is rendered
the more intolerable for foreigners by the privations
necessitated by the absence of proper or regular com-
munication with Tong-king and Armam.
Government of French Indo-China. — The author- ity of the French Republic is represented by the Gov- ernor-General, whose powers have been defined by decree of 21 April, 1891. Having the sole right to cor- respond with the French Government, he is in direct communication not alone with the ministers In France, but also with all the French diplomatic representa- tives in the Far East. He has complete control of the land and sea forces in Indo-China, and, only in case of an emergency which demands immediate action, can any military or naval operation take place without his authorization. He is also intrusted with the organiza- tion and administration of the native police and all public services. All or any of his powers may be dele- gated to the Lieu tenant-General of Cochin China, or to the Resident Superior of any other of the poUtical divisions. The Residents Superior, in addition to their political and diplomatic relations with the sovereigns of the vassal territories, have charge of the local bud- gets and the general administration of the political divisions to which they are appointed. The Governor- General is assisted by two councils, the Conseil supd- rieur of Indo-China and the Conseil de defense. To the former belong the Governor-General (president), the commanders-in-chief of the French naval and military forces, the Lieutenant-General of Cochin China, the Residents Superior of the other divisions, the heads of various councils, and two indigenous members ap- pointed annually by the Governor-General. This coun- cil sits each year to consider the general budget for Indo-China (including Kwang-chau-wan since 1900), and the local budgets for the five constituent territo- ries, to make the necessary naval and military appro- priations, and to discuss in general matters of public interest. The place of assembly lies in the discretion of the Governor-General. The Conseil de difense, which also sits under the presidency of the Governor- General, is attended by the chiefs of all the important divisions of the land and sea forces, its deliberations being mainly concerned with measures for the preser- vation of peace within the territories. Though all effective authority is thus vested in the French repre- sentatives, certain local powers are exercised in mat- ters of purely native interest by the native sovereigns.
Administration of Justice. — On taking possession of its Indo-Chinese territories, France found itself con- fronted with a very serious judicial problem. The natives had naturally to be judged in conformity with their own laws, which were not merely completely un- known to Europeans, but were either written and not translated, or customary and not formulated. The appearance in French of many excellent treatises on native law having made its study possible for Euro- peans, a decree of 25 July, 1864, declared that thence- forth the Annamite Law should regulate all civil and commercial conventions and litigations between na- tives and Asiatics in general, while all other causes were to be decided by French Law. The chief law officer for the French possessions is the Procureur Gene- ral at Saigon. At present there is one Supreme Court of Appeal for Indo-China with three chambers, two at Saigon and one at Hanoi. To decide civil dis- VII.— 49
putes three mL^ed tribunals have been instituted — at
Saigon, Hanoi, and Haiphong. There is one general
court of first instance at Saigon; tribunals of first
instance (first class) at Mytho, Vinh-long, Hanoi, and
Hai-fong, and (second class) at Bentre, Chaudoc,
Travinh, Long-xuyen, Cantho, and Pnom-penh. In
Cochin China the French tribunals are competent to
decide even purely native disputes, and here remains
no trace of the ancient indigenous justice. Of the
native courts some mention will be made in treating
of Annam.
Public Education. — In spite of the increasing ten- dency to centralize all the fundamental offices of gov- ernment, the organization of public education in the various divisions is still entrusted to the five territorial Conseils. A short description may be here given of the educational system in Cochin China, where alone it is at present properly developed. The direction of education in this colony is entrusted to a Directeur, immediately responsible to the Lieutenant-General. Every village of any importance has its ecole can- tonale (primary school), at which the native children above six years are first instructed in French and quoc-gnu, and elementary arithmetic. The ecoles d'arrondissement (district schools) impart secondary education, and are directed by a European profes- sor, assisted bj' native teachers. The Ecole profes- sionetle at Saigon aims at producing expert workmen for various industries (e. g. bookbinders, leather- workers, coach builders, etc.), a special staff of pro- fessors giving the practical instruction, while the scientific is supplied by the stafT of the College Chasse- loup-Laubat. This last-named college, together with that at Mytho, are the leading educational institutions of the peninsula. Ecoles de caracttres chinois, in which the Chinese and Annamite idealogic characters are taught, are kept by old native scholars in almost every canton. Save in the case of these alone education in Indo-China is free. In imitation of the native custom throughout the Far East the French make no provi- sion for the education of the native women. For the daughters of European or European and native par- ents, the Institution municipale has been instituted, as also an Ecole maternelle. The mistresses and staff of both these institutions are appointed by the Mayor of Saigon. In 1S99 the Ecolefrangaise de V Extreme-Orient was founded at Saigon for the study of the historj', races, languages, and religions of Indo-China, while, within the last few years, a Grande ecole has been insti- tuted at Cholon to supply the young Chinese with the education which they had previously sought in Japan. The recent organization of a Conseil suptrieur de I'en- seignement indigene for Indo-China is another instance of the growing desire of France to respect the ancient civilization of the people, while imparting to them a proper acquaintance with Western learning. The numerous schools carried on by the various religious orders wiU be dealt with under the heading of Chris- tianity.
Political Divisions of French Indo-China. — (1) Cochin China. — This term, which was formerly applied to the territories of the Annamite Empire (Tong-king, Annam, and Cochin China proper), is now confined to the French colony in the south-east of the peninsula. Cochin China proper is bounded on the north and north-east by Cambodia and the Province of Binh- thuan (.-Vmiam), on the east and south by the Sea of China, and on the west by the Gulf of Siam. Its area is estimated at 23,000 square miles; its population at 2,973,128 inhabitants (1909). For purposes of ad- ministration, the colony is divided into 21 arrondisse- ments (districts), comprising 207 cantons and 2,425 communes. Each arrondissement is administered by a French functionary known as the administrateur des affaires indigenes, and, through its conseil d'arrondis- sement, votes a special budget, called the budget regional. The Islands of Poulo Condore are included
