hamlet of Hampton wick, close to Kingston, 3,992. The town, which is a favourite resort for anglers, is not remarkable either for the width of streets or regularity of the buildings; but many beautiful villas ornament the neighbourhood, among which is one formerly the property of the celebrated David Garrick. A wooden bridge, built across the Thames in 1753, joins the town to E. Moulsey. The church, lately rebuilt, is a very handsome structure, having a square tower at the W. end. A free grammar school was founded here in 1556, and the original endowment has been subsequently so auch enlarged, as to furnish the master with a salary of 230., and a sum of 361. yearly for six poor men. The average attendance of boys is 60: the present instruction is confined to English, writing, and accompts. About 1 m. from the village, and close to the Thames, is Hampton Court Palace, respecting which Grotius has not scrupled to say, Si quis opes nescit (sed quis tamen ille ?) Britannus, The palace was begun by Cardinal Wolsey, who, in 1526, presented it to Henry VIII. The original edifice consisted of five quadrangles, of which two only remain. The W. quadrangle, little altered since Wolsey's time, presents a good specimen of Tudor architecture: the middle or clock court is of mixed style, Sir C. Wren's Jonic colonnade strangely contrasting with the massive construction of the old building: the third quadrangle was erected by William III. The king's entrance in the clock-court leads to the grand staircase and state apartments. The ceiling and walls of the former were painted by Verrio, in his usual glaring style: the rooms, which open from each other, and are partially furnished, consist of the guard-chamber, presence and audience chambers, public dining-room, state drawing-room and bed-rooms. Notwithstanding the removal of some of the best specimens to Windsor, there is still at Hampton Court an extensive and excellent collection of pictures. It comprises many by the principal Italian and Flemish masters; and an extensive collection of portraits connected with English history by Holbein, Lely, Kneller, West, &c. But the great glory of Hampton Court is the Cartoons or drawings executed by Paphael, by order of Pope Leo X., for patterns for tapestry intended to decorate the Vatican. They are called cartoons from being painted on sheets of large paper, cartone. These noble drawings, of which there were originally 25, being left neglected at Brussels, the greater number of them appear to have been lost or destroyed. Fortunately, however, seven were purchased by Rubens for Charles 1.; but even since their arrival in this country they have been exposed to numerous vicissitudes, and would seem to owe their preservation as much to accident as to any thing else. The gallery in which they are now placed at Hampton Court, was built for their reception by William III.; but George III. removed them first to Buckingham Palace, and thence to Windsor, whence they have been again brought back to Hampton Court. They represent some of the most striking incidents recorded in the New Testament, and are unrivalled for sublimity of conception and purity of design. They have been well engraved by Holloway. Among the parts of the palace not usually shown to the public are the chapel and hall, the former of which was refitted after the ravages of the fanatics during the Commonwealth, and handsomely pewed with oak by Q. Anne. The latter, built by Wolsey, and still retaining his name, is a finely proportioned room 160 ft. long, and 40 ft. broad, having two large gabled windows, and an elaborately carved wooden roof, similar to that of Westminster Hall and that of Christ Church Hall, Oxford. This room was thoroughly restored on the old model in 1801. Close to the Hall is the Board of Green Cloth, a small, though very beautiful Gothic chamber, which furnished Sir Walter Scott with the pattern for one of the finest rooms at Abbotsford. "The garden front of the palace, though disfigured by modern windows, is still very magnificent. The gardens comprise about 44 acres: the pleasuregrounds were laid out by William III., in the Dutch taste: the terrace is m. long, and the first view of it is very striking. The home-park, immediately adjoining the gardens, is 5 m. in circuit, and its soil produces very fine herbage. The canal, which is m. long, and 40 yds. broad, is lined with an avenue of lime trees, and other avenues intersect the park in every direction, through one of which is a good view of the tower of Kingston church." (Jesse's Gleanings, 3d ser.) The green-houses contain, aniong many valuable exotics, a vine said to be the largest and most productive in Europe; and a maze or labyrinth furnishes much amusement to young visiters. This palace, in which Wolsey maintained a more than regal state, was afterwards the favourite residence of Henry VIII. and his children, and of James I. and his son Charles I., who escaped from his imprisonment here in 1647. The protector, Cromwell, resided here during the commonwealth; and it afterwards became the usual abode of William III. and his queen, and of the princess, afterwards Queen Anne. George II. was the last monarch by whom it was inhabited. Of late years it has been mostly divided into private dwellings, given to court. pensioners. Latterly it has been fully opened to the public. All individuals are now freely admitted to view the public apartments and grounds, without any demand being made upon them; and without, as formerly, being hurried from one apartment to another, at the caprice of some mercenary cicerone. In consequence, Hampton Court is resorted to in summer by crowds of visiters, and is deservedly one of the principal points of attraction in the vicinity of the metropolis. Near Hampton Court palace is Bushy Park, comprising 1,100 acres, with a central avenue 1 m. long. "The numerous thorn-trees, though of great age, are still healthy and vigorous; and when they are in blossom, they appear at a short distance as if covered with snow." (Jesse.) The house on the right of the grand avenue was during many years the favourite retreat of William IV. when Duke of Clarence, and is still inhabited by Queen Adelaide, the present ranger of the park. (Lyson's Environs; Jesse's Gleanings.) HANAU, a town of W. Germany, electorate of Hesse, cap. prov. of same name, and seat of its superior courts, &c.; on the Kinzig, near its junction with the Main, 11 m. E. by N. Frankfort, and 82 m. S. S. W. Cassel; lat. 500 8' 24" N., long. 8° 55′ 17" E. Pop., inclusive of its suburbs, 15,000. Hanau is no longer fortified; and its ancient castle is now used for the purposes of the Wetteravian Society of Natural History. It is divided into the old and new towns; the former is ill-built, but the latter has broad and regular streets, modern built houses, and, near its centre, a good market-place. There are 4 Calvinistic parish churches, a Rom. Cath. church, a large hospital, handsome theatre, gymnasium, free school, drawing academy, many scientific and benevolent associations, a school of trades, &c. Hanau is the most industrious town, and the place of the greatest commercial activity in the electorate. Its manufactures are numerous and extensive, including silk stuffs, camlets, leather, gloves, stockings, hats, excellent carpets, cotton fabrics, tobacco, playing-cards, gold and silver wares, brass musical instruments, carriages, &c. It has a large trade in timber, barrels, and wine. Many of its inhab. are descendants of Dutch and Flemish emigrants, who fled thither from the persecutions in the low countries, under Philip II., early in the 16th century. Very near it are the mineral springs of Wilhelmstadt. Here, on the 30th of October, 1813, Napoleon, on his retreat from Leipsic, gained a decisive victory over a very superior force of Bavarians, and other allied troops, under Marshal Wrede. The combined army lost about 10,000; while the loss of the French did not exceed 3,000 or 4,000 men ; but the opening of the route to France was the most important advantage gained by the latter. The principality of which Hanau was formerly the cap., was, after the extinction of its line of princes in 1736, divided between Hesse-Cassel and Hesse-Darmstadt. (Encyc. des Gens du Monde; Cannabich; Berghaus, &c.) HANG-TCHEOU, one of the largest and richest cities of China, cap. prov. Tche-kiang; on the Tsien-tangkiang, 20 m. from its mouth in the Eastern Sea, and 140 m. S.E. Nanking; lat. 30° 20′ 20′′ N., long. 119°48′ E. Its pop. was estimated by Du Halde at upwards of a million, without, apparently, including the pop. of the suburbs; but this estimate is most probably much beyond the mark, especially as the houses are but one story high, and there are gardens of large size interspersed among them. The city is surrounded with high and thick walls, said to be as much as four leagues in circuit. The W. part of this enclosure is taken up by a fort or citadel, in which the officers of the government reside, and a garrison of 10,000 men is maintained. The Grand Canal has its S. terminus here, in a large commodious basin. This city has, in consequence, a direct communication with Pekin, and a vast command of internal navigation, which it has turned to good account. On its W. side is a lake highly celebrated for its natural and artificial beauties. Barrow, by whom this city was visited, says, "the city of Hangtcheou-foo, being particularly famed for its silk trade, we were not surprised to meet with extensive shops and warehouses: in point of size, and the stock contained within them, they might be said to vie with the best in London. In some of these were not fewer than ten or twelve persons serving behind the counter; but in passing through the whole city not a single woman was visible, either within-doors or without. The crowd of people, composed of the other sex, appeared to be little inferior to that in the great streets of Pekin." (Travels, p. 527.) The streets are not so wide as Cranbourn Alley, but as well paved. They are ornamented in many places with triumphal arches, and monuments to eminent individuals, and are kept remarkably neat and clean. Barrow says: "In every shop were exposed to view silks of different manufactures, dyed cottons and nankins, a great variety of English broad-cloths, chiefly however blue and scar let, used for winter cloaks, for chair covers, and for carpets; and also a quantity of peltry, intended for the northern markets. The rest of the houses, in the public streets through which we passed, consisted of butchers' and bakers' shops, fishmongers, dealers in rice and other grain, ivory cutters, dealers in lacquered ware, teahouses, cook-shops, and coffin-makers; the last of which is a trade of no small note in China. The number of inhab. in the suburbs, with those that constantly resided upon the water, were, perhaps, nearly equal to those within the walls." (Barrow; Du Halde, vol. i.; Dict. Géographique.) HANLEY, a town and chapelry of England, belonging to the par. of Stoke-upon-Trent, co. Stafford, hund. Pirehill-north, 24 m. S. E. Stoke-upon-Trent, and 16 m. N. Stafford. Pop., in 1831, 7,121. It consists of one main street, intersected by various others; and many good houses have recently been built, though the pop. is chiefly confined to the working classes.. The church is handsome, and has a fine tower 100 ft. high. Good schools are connected both with the church and the three dissenting places of worship. The inhab. are chiefly employed in the potteries, which alone have raised this district to its present importance. For further particulars, sec STOKE-UPON-TRENT, and POTTERIES. HANOVER, a kingd. of N.W. Germany, situated between lat. 51° 18′ and 53° 52′ N., and long. 6° 43′ and 11° 45′ E., bounded N. by the German Ocean and the Elbe, E. by Prussia and Brunswick, S. by Prussia and Hesse-Cassel, and W. by Holland. Its bounding line is very irregular, and a portion on the W. is almost divided from the rest of the kingdom by the grand duchy of Oldenburg. Length, from mouth of Elbe S., 172 m.; breadth, E. and W., 180 m. It has 7 districts (Landrosteien): the area, population, &c. are as follows (Reden's Hanover, i. 1, 2.): Landrosteien. Hanover Hildesheim Mining In- Total of kingd." Subdivis. No. of a 3 2,615 5 2,330 1,113 366,800 714 245,540 93.9 266,270 114.3 157,430 141.4 210 29,000 138.5 2,830 45 7 14,726 1,688,280 113-6 242,680 4,942 178 The most populous towns of the kingdom are Hanover (the capital), 24,000 inhab.; Hildesheim, 15,000; Göttingen, 10,900; Lüneburg, 11,800: Celle, 10,300; Stade, 5,700; Osnaburg, 11,500: Emden, 12,000; Aurich, 12,000; and Clausthal, 9,100. The population of 1823 was 1,434,130; so that in 12 years there has been an increase of 254,150, or about 21,000 yearly, the ratio of increase being 17-7 per cent. The number of marriages has not, however, increased in a proportional degree; and the present ratio of illegitimate to legitimate children is, for all Hanover, 1 in 10, and in the various districts, as follows:- Hanover, 1 in 8; Hildesheim, 1 in 8; Clausthal, 1 in 8; Lüneburg, 1 in 9; Stade, 1 in 16; Aurich, 1 in 21; Osnaburg, 1 in 28. Surface. Hanover, physically considered, is an inclined plain, gently sloping from S.E. to N.W., and no where, except on a few of its eminences, more ele. vated than 200 ft. above the sea. The districts of Stade, Lüneburg, Hanover, and part of Osnaburg belong to the N. plain of Germany, which stretches from the North Sea E. into Russia. No hill in the central provinces reaches 1,400 ft. In the S. part of Hildesheim are the Harz Mountains, the highest summit of which, Königsberg, is 3,300 ft. high. The well-known Brocken (3,660 ft.), is within the Prussian dominions. This mountain mass forms the watershed between the Elbe and Weser. Its geological formation is chiefly granite overlaid by grauwacké, grauwacké slate, and clay slate; and in these latter formations the mineral riches, hereafter described, are mostly found. Above these strata lie the flötz and tertiary formations. The great plain of the N., with the exception of a few limestone hills in Lüneburg and Stade, is of diluvial formation, and consists either of extensive tracts of sand covered with furze, or of vast moors and marsh-lands. The heath of Lüneburg, in its whole extent, comprises about 1-6th of the kingdom: granite boulders are found in different parts of it, some of very extraordinary size. Of the peat-moors the largest are the Bourtanger moor, on the Ems, and the Hoch moor, in E. Friesland. The lowlands on the sea-coast are below the sea-level, and hence are kept dry by means of dykes similar to those of Holland and the Bedford Level, the maintenance of which occasions an expenditure of several thousand dollars yearly. These lands, however, are by far the most productive of the kingdom. Rivers and Lakes.- Hanover is traversed by three large rivers, all of which fall into the German Ocean: -1. the Elbe, which, rising in the plateau of Bohemia, enters the kingdom at Schnakenburg, and forms, with a slight exception, its whole N. boundary, as far as its mouth; its chief affluents within Hanover are the Jetze, Ilmenau, Este, and Oste, all on the S. bank: 2. the Weser, formed by the junction of the Werra and Fulda at Munden, flowing N. W. as far as the juncture of the Aller, and its tributary the Leine, and thence N. past Bremen into the German Ocean: 3. the Ems, rising in Westphalia, and flowing N. through the moorlands of Mappen, and E. Friesland to Emden, at its mouth. Throughout the flats of N. Germany there are numerous lakes and stagnant pools, in which the watersubside after the floods, which extensively cover the country in winter and spring: the chief of these in Hanover are the Steinhuder-meer, 5 m. long by 21 broad, the Dümmer-see, and the Seeburger-see. In E. Friesland the subterraneous lake Jordan is so thickly coated with vegetation, that waggons can pass over it. The mountain lake Oderteich, in the Harz, is 2,200 ft. above the sea. Soil and Climate. The nature of the soil of Hanover will be best understood from the distribution of the land, as stated by Marcard. (The morgen is equal to 64 Eng. acre.) 5,833,000 morg. 2,242,000 Arable 'meadow, and garden land Waste land, lakes, and rivers Total of the kingdom 6,514,000 14,589,000 The waste lands, which form so large a proportion of the whole country, consist principally of vast sandy tracts wholly unavailable for tillage. They extend in a broad belt across the kingdom, of which they occupy about 1-6th part. This band of sand is aptly termed "the Arabia of Germany." The sandy districts are covered with heath, on which a very small and hardy breed of sheep, known by the name of Staidschnucken, find a scanty subsistence. They yield wool of the coarsest description, but their flesh is well-flavoured. The proportion of land under cultivation to the whole extent of each rovince is as follows: The richest land of the kingdom is the alluvial soil and weald-clay of the Hadeln-land at the mouth of the Elbe, and of E. Friesland at the mouth of the Weser. It is taxed, as belonging to the highest class. of the secondary classes are found in the limestone disThe soils tricts of Hildesheim, Göttingen and Grubenhagen, Bremen and Werden. The least productive of all, belonging to the lowest class, is that of the duchy of Aremberg-Meppen. Much of this land, however, is laid out in meadow, especially the rich soil of E. Friesland, as the following table, giving the proportion of meadow to the whole cultivable soil, will show: The climate is damp and unwholesome in the low country about the coast; but the winters are not so severe as in the interior, where, especially near the Harz, they begin in September, and last till May. The spring is the most gloomy and disagreeable part of the year, owing to the long prevalence of N.E. and E. winds. S. W. winds prevail in the summer months. The temperature of the kingdom is thus stated by Von Reden, in his Statistical Description of Hanover, i. 24. : general mediorre quality, requires effective cultivation the coarse wool of the Staidschnucken). Bees are a to make it profitable to the proprietor: this, however, is favourite addition to a farm throughout the kingdom, seldom to be met with, owing to the smallness of the and thrive well, on account of the quantity of flowering estates into which the land is divided. heath and buck-wheat in the sandy districts. The Table showing the proprietorship of the soil of Ha-annual produce of honey is valued at 40,0007. Large Total of land (ex- flocks of geese are kept in moist situations: their flesh is salted for domestic use, and the feathers are preserved. Leeches, which formerly abounded in the marsh-lands, have become nearly extinct, from being too eagerly fished. Fish are caught in all the ponds and rivers, and contribute to the support of no small number of the poorer orders. The herring and cod fisheries at Emden used to employ about 1,500 hands, taking 13,000 tons annually; but the produce at present is not one third part of its former amount. Mining Industry. This is the most extensive branch of Hanoverian industry; and there is little doubt, that if the government would abandon the mischievous and absurd plan of keeping the mines in its own hands, and administering them by an expensive establishment of officers (die Berghandlung), who have no suflicient stimulus to increase their productiveness, they would, in the hands of private speculators, become much more productive, and employ many more hands. At present, out of 30 mines in the Upper Harz, only 7 are worked; and the amount of ore, at an average of 10 years, was 1,647,023 cwt. yearly, produced at an expense of 877,700 rix-dolls., and realising a nett revenue to government of only 633,100 dolls.! The Harz mines at Clausthal, Tellerfeld, and Andreasberg are worked exclusively by the Hanoverian government, and, if not very profit. able, are carried on upon an expensive scale." One of them (Sampson pit) is 1,900 ft. deep, and many attain to a depth of 700 and 800 ft. The ore of Clausthal is very rich in lead, yielding 75 per cent., and from 1 to 4 per cent. of silver; the ores of Andreasberg, however, produce from 6 to 11 per cent. of silver. The mines of the Rammelsberg, near Goslar, are worked by the states of Hanover and Brunswick jointly (the shares being 4-7ths to the former, and 3-7ths to the latter). Silver, copper, and lead are produced in tolerably large quantities, and sometimes gold is found. In these mines, 1 cwt. of lead ore yields 7 lbs. of lead and 3-16ths of an oz. of silver; and the same quantity of copper ore, 14 lbs. of copper and 3-32ds of an oz. of silver. An average of 5 years' produce from these mines gives 301,230 cwt. of all kinds yearly. The total produce of the lead and copper mines of Hanover is said by Reden (i. 205.) to average 10 marks of gold, 50,000 marks of silver, 100,000 cwt. of lead and litharge, 2,500 cwt. of copper, and 50 cwt. of zine. The iron mines of Hanover are not wrought by the government, but let out to specusmelting-houses at such prices and quantities as will be accepted. Hence the production is very trifling, though the yield of ore be not less than from 40 to 60 per cent. Thus mines, the produce of which might enrich the kingdom to a very great extent, are, by the absurd policy of its government, left to languish and decay. An average of 5 years gives only 290,000 cwt. as the produce of the rich iron ore so extensively spread through the hilly districts of Hanover. The salt-works, as well as the metallic mines, are, most of them, under the stepmother care of government. They employ 480 hands, and furnish 290,000 cwt., yielding a yearly gross revenue of 374,000 rix-dolls., with a clear profit of 80,000 rix-dolls. (Reden, i. 224.) Coal is found in many different localities on the hills that divide the Weser from the Leine, and, with greater convenience for transit, it might be made available for every want of a mining district. At present, however, only 2,260,000 cubic ft. are worked yearly. (Reden, i. 224–235.) smelting-houses use coke and wood. The best cultivated lands belong to the crown and the nobility, and on these estates as much attention is given to improved systems of tillage as in Pomerania and Prussia. In the land held by small proprietors, the best farms are in the marsh-lands, and they both yield abundant crops and support numerous cattle. The freeholds in the principalities of Hildesheim, Göttingen, Grubenhagen, part of Kalemberg, and near the large towns, are next in order as respects tillage. Among these the system prevails, called Koppel-schlag-wirthschaft, which consists in parcelling the land out into a number of fields for a rotation of crops proportioned to the numbers of the owner's cattle, and his consequent power of keeping the land properly dressed. The smali proprietors in the sandy districts, and the Meier (stewards), who farm small parts of the crown lands, and of the nobles' estates, abide by the old fashion of three courses,-fallow, winter corn (chiefly rye), and summer corn (barley or oats), with clover on the fallow, where the land will bear it. Potatoes are universally grown, and constitute the chief food of the poor. Rye is generally grown for bread, the raising of wheat being confined to the rich weald soils, and the quantity is insufficient for the demand. Barley and cats are largely cultivated, and when in demand, are exported to England in considerable quan-lators, who are obliged to deliver all the ore to the royal tities. Clover and lucern are much grown on good farms, and even by the peasants, on dry soils. Turnips are becoming a favourite article of production, and flax, hemp, tobacco, and hops are more or less cultivated in different parts. The cranberries, abounding on the heath-lands, are gathered for exportation. The forest-land, which amounts to 2,242,576 morgen (equal to about 1,400,000 acres), yields about 51,878,000 cubic ft. of timber yearly, not including inferior wood. The timber in the Harz district consists of fir: large beach and oak forests are found in Kalenberg, the duchy of Bremen, and the Upper Weser. These forests are under special control, and even when forming a part of private property, are confided to foresters scientifically educated and licensed for the purpose. With all this plenty and care, how. ever, the Hanoverian timber merchants are often undersold at Bremen by the Thuringian dealers, who float their deals down the Werra. Cattle-breeding, which is extensively carried on in every province, is on the increase; but grazing husbandry is as little understood and attended to as agriculture. The horses of E. Friesland are those most prized, as the rich pasturage is favourable to the growth of the foals; but horse-breeding is well managed every where in the level country, and a great number of horses are annually exported. The government has a stud at Celle, which sends out stallions to 70 stations, and has proved a most useful institution. In 1817, the number of horses in the kingdom was 224,627; it is now 250,000. The number of horned cattle, in 1817, was 640,633; it is now 900,000. E. Friesland and the district of Hoya have the best breeds, the large Dutch cow being preferred in those parts. In the rest of the kingdom, the breed is small and wretched, excepting always the stocks of rich proprietors. On the marshes, in good years, a cow is reckoned to yield from 140 lbs. to 240 lbs. of butter. In 1817 there were 1,564,355 head of sheep. Malchus estimates their present number at 1,611,284 head; and the yearly produce of wool is said to be 3,224,000 lbs., two thirds of which are exported. The price of the wool varies from 50 to 90 rix-dollars per centner (not including *The forest land of Hanover is distributed as follows:- Hanover, 17: Hildesheim, 33; Lüneburg, 17; Stade, 04; Osnabrück, 12; Aurich, 06; Harz, '8. The Manufactures. -Hanover, though furnished, by its mineral wealth and navigable rivers, with means for carrying on a considerable commerce, holds a very low station among the trading countries of Europe. Its inhab. have little enterprise or ardour for business, and even that which they might exert is effectually checked by restrictions. Most of their manufactured goods are produced at such an expense as to exclude them from the foreign market, and those which go abroad command only inferior prices. The manufacture of linen is, perhaps, more extensive than any other. Few, however, of the improved methods by machinery have been introduced, or can be introduced on the present system. There are only 2 spinning-mills in Hanover, and it is believed that no weaving machinery whatever, of very modern date. is used. Spinning and weaving form the great in-door employment of the rural pop., and hence large quantities both of yarn and thread are the work of private hands. In Grönenburg, for instance, where large crops of flax are raised, no less than 1,378,000 skeins (496.750 lbs.) are spun annually by the farmers' and peasants' families. The number of professional weavers is nearly 5,000, using 7,200 looms, and the linen cloths produced ૩ (૨ Besides these, a large quantity, both of cloths and flax, is brought up without entering the market at all, and nearly the whole is exported. The total yearly value of the linen and linen yarn exported from Hanover is estimated by Reden (1. 364.) at 2,500,000 rix-dollars. The manufacture of cotton cloths, in Hanover, is of recent date, and is chiefly owing to the erection of a cotton spinning-mill at Hanover: it keeps at work about 600 hand-loom weavers, who, when fully employed, gain about 100 rix-dolls. a year, and manufacture 2,200,000 ells of coarser cotton cloths. The tariff of 1835, in the view of encouraging the linen manufacture, taxes the importation of bleached yarn and unbleached linen cloths at the rate of 1 rix doll. per centner, and finished cloths from 8 to 12 rix-dolls. per centner. Flax, hemp, and unbleached linen yarn may be imported duty free. (Reden, i. 364.) The woollen manufactured cloths are reckoned at 28,000 pieces, value 800,000 rix-dolls. The paper, made in 52 establishments, employing 1,000 workmen, amounts to 20,000 ballen, yearly value 360,000 rixdolls. There are no other manufactures of any import ance. Trade. Though seemingly destined by its situation in the valleys of three navigable rivers, to command a large import and export trade, Hanover exhibits little disposition to exchange its goods with foreign nations. The merchants of Hamburg and Bremen buy, in the Hanoverian markets, goods suitable for re-exportation; but the Hanoverians themselves take little interest in shipping their own goods for foreign ports. The number of their vessels entering Bremen and Hamburg, in 1838, was only 76 and 41 respectively; nor is it probable that there will be any great increase till the vexatious disputes about river privileges, between the Hanoverian government and the Hanse Towns, are ended, and the restrictions imposed by both wholly removed. In 1838 there belonged to Hanover 422 sea-going ships, of the burden of 31,730 tons; and of these, 400 belonged to the ports of the Ems. The coasters and river-craft amount to 1,370. The exports in 1838 were, manufactured linens and woollens, worth 1,800,000 rix-dolls.; linen yarns, 500,000 do.; raw flax, 140,000 do. ; raw wool, 500,000 do.; mineral produce, 500,000 do.; horses and cattle, 450,000 do.; wheat and other grain, 300,000 do.; butter and cheese, 214,000 do. ; tobacco (manufactured), 250,000 do. ; timber, 107,000 do.; sundries, 338,000 do.: total, 5,099,000 doll. The chief imports of the kingdom are English manufactures (such as cotton and woollen, hardware and cutlery), colonial produce, wine and spirits. The table of returns, however, as given by Von Reden, is very unsatisfactory, and conveys no intelligible idea of the trade of Hanover. The following are said to be the quantities of the chief articles imported in 1837-38:- Coffee, 48,290 centners; sugar, 58,362; tea, 3.769; tobacco (raw), 49,445; iron, 82,688; toys, jewellery, &c., 157; cloth manufactures, &c., 7,349; pitch and tar, 24,708; wine and spirits, 77,547; horses and live-stock, 12,419 head. 16 feet = 11 Eng. inches 639 Eng. yard. 51 Eng. yards. =25,400 feet = 1 sq. foot = I morgen Surface. 4.6 Eng. miles. 92 Eng. square foot. 64 Eng. acre. Inland transit for goods has hitherto been effected either by tow-boats on the rivers, or by waggons on the roads; but the carriages are of so primitive and clumsy a description, and the roads so bad, that the expense of time and labour is wholly incommensurate with the value of the articles. A railroad has lately been projected from Hanover through Brunswick to Hamburg; but it seems very doubtful whether it will be accomplished. The Condition of the People. Although the soil and climate of Hanover be so unfavourable to agriculture, the condition of the peasantry in the hereditary provs. of the house of Brunswick has, until very lately, been such as to confine them almost exclusively to the cultivation of the soil: indeed, the trading resources offered by the rivers of the kingdom are only beginning to be appreciated by the people. In the sandy districts, the pop, is necessarily scanty, and indigent even to wretchedness; in the better soils of Hildesheim, Göttingen, and Grubenhagen, the peasants are in a better condition, but still very poor. most prosperous districts are E. Friesland, and the rich lands along the Elbe, where good agriculture, united with activity and enterprise in trade, serves to enrich the pop. The people are everywhere industrious and temperate, labouring, without ill-feeling, for the smallest possible remuneration. They are mostly descendants of the ancient Saxons, and, as such, speak the Low German dialect, excepting the inhab. of the Harz, who came from Upper Germany. And we may remark, by the way, that the circumstance of the language of the peasants differing from that of the educated classes, in which all intellectual progress takes place, operates powerfully to keep back the former, and is a serious impediment to the admission of the lower classes to a participation in the government, through their representatives. Government. Before Prussia ceded Hanover to France, in 1804, the form of government was monarchical, and the various territories were subject to feudal lords. The peasants of the marsh-lands had more freedom, and in E. Friesland the constitution of the country was almost republican. In the territories of the princes of the empire, the representation of the people by estates, composed of the nobles, prelates, and depu ties from the towns, served to check the power of the sovereign, as in other parts of Germany. In 1808, when Napoleon created the kingdom of Westphalia, the territories of Hanover, with the districts of Hildesheim and Osnabrück, formed a part of it, and the Code Napoléon took the place of the ancient laws, and a sham representative government was established. On the return of the rightful sovereign to Hanover, in 1813, the French institutions were summarily abolished, and the old forms re-established; and in 1818 the estates, summoned upon the ancient footing, drew up the form of a new constitution, modelled on that of England and France, and substituting a uniform system of representation for the various representative forms which prevailed under the empire. The chief change that excited disapprobation arose from the arbitrary decision of the sovereign (George IV.), advised by Count Munster, that there should be two chambers instead of one, contrary to the proposal of the estates, and the universal custom of Germany. The respective rights of the sove reign and of the country to the crown land revenues were not clearly defined by this fundamental law; but the interests of the people were supposed to be sufficiently consulted by the institution of a national treasury, the commissioners of which, named for life, were ex afficio members either of the upper or of the lower chamber. This constitution, however, contained no properly defined statements respecting either the rights of the people, or the prerogatives of the crown; and as the new system of representation was not sufficiently consolidated to resist the encroachments of a monarch supported by powerful foreign influence, the necessity of a more definite fundamental law, in which the rights of the citizens should at least be declared, was felt on all The teachers for these schools are prepared for their sides. This feeling led to the drawing up of the consti- duties in 6 normal schools, established in princips. of tution of 1833, which differed in but few, though most Hanover, Hildesheim, Stade, and Osnabrück. Besides essential, points from that of 1819. The principal points this provision for the education of the lower orders, of difference were a fuller acknowledgment of the right there are 17 gymnasia and higher schools, taught by of the chambers to control the budget, and to call the mi- 153 masters, and attended by 2,200 scholars, and also 13 nisters to account for their conduct; the restriction of the elementary grammar-schools, taught by 71 masters, and king's expenditure, by a regulated civil list; and the re-attended by more than 2,000 children. These schools servation, for the use of the nation, of the surplus revenue prepare youth for the university, or for the various of the crown demesnes. These modifications rendered the callings of life. The university of Göttingen, which was treasury, whose functions thus devolved upon the cham- one of the best attended of Europe a few years back, bers, wholly unnecessary; and it was dissolved. The and counted from 1,500 to 1,900 students, has now new fundamental law, after being discussed by both scarcely 500. The greatest loss is, however, that of its chambers, received the assent of William IV. in 1833, moral influence over the institutions for education, ocwho, however, by the same act, modified 14 articles of the casioned by the dismissal of 7 of its most respected probill. New elections followed, and the new chambers were fessors, for expressing their doubt of the king's power exhibiting their activity in reforming abuses, and intro- to absolve his subjects from their oaths. (See Görducing economy into the state disbursements, when the TINGEN.) The press is under a censorship, the milddeath of William IV. interrupted their proceedings. As ness or severity of which depends on the character of the the salic law, excluding females from the succession to monarch; and this censorship affects the public lithe throne, prevails in Hanover, William IV. was suc- braries, as well as publishers and editors of newspapers. ceeded by his eldest surviving brother, Ernest, Duke of The coercive measures of King Ernest's government have Cumberland, in England. Immediately on taking the been very unpopular. government, the new king declared the chambers dissolved; and previously to their re-assembling, he abolished, by proclamation, the fundamental law which had been adopted under the reign of his predecessor, and in the most arbitrary manner, insulting alike his brother's memory and the whole country, declared the fundamental law of 1819 to be alone valid. Under the last-named law, he summoned a fresh parliament: but he found the spirit of the nation aroused and indignant; for not only the courts of law, but the highest legal authority in Germany, and several faculties of universities, declared his proceedings illegal; many towns refused to send representatives to the parliament, and those which met signed a memorable protest, declaring their opinion that the fundamental law of 1833 was still the law of the land. As the chambers could not be convened, for decency's sake, they were declared dissolved. In this state of things, the present government of Hanover is managed by authorities partly belonging to the period of 1819: the independent treasury, however, no longer exists, not having been reinstated by the king, when he abrogated the law of 1833. The privy council, too, which met to advise the king on state affairs, in the same manner as that of England, has been arbitrarily abolished; and a cabinet council, composed of the king's ministers and creatures, has been ap pointed in its place. This council, like a new starchamber, has on one occasion even arrogated the novel power of assuming a judicial control over the supreme court of appeals at Celle. As none of the decrees which the king, under the advice of this authority, has issued since his accession have received the sanction of the chambers, the legislative power is at present vested in the council of state, or rather in its president the king,who may be said to be the absolute monarch and despot of Hanover. Except this degradation of the supreme court of appeals at Celle, no change has hitherto been made in the judicial arrangements, which consist of 9 chanceries or district courts, besides the magistracies of the towns, and the manorial and minor royal courts, as primary tribunals. Religion and Education. The pop., considered in respect of religious creeds, is thus divided (not including the military):-Lutherans, 1,356,000; Calvinists, 102,850; Roman Catholics, 212,300; Jews, 11,000; Memnonites, 1,850. The Roman Catholics chiefly reside in the princips. Osnabrück and Hildesheim: their number is small elsewhere. Religious matters are directed by Calvinist consistories at Hanover, Stade, Aurich, and Nordhorn, with the subordinate consistories of Hadeln and Neustadt; the Lutheran consistory at Osnabrück, and the Roman Catholic consistory of the same see, which is alternately filled by a Roman Catholic and by a secularised Protestant bishop; lastly, the bishop and consistory of Hildesheim, for the Roman Catholic inhab. of that district. Education has been much attended to in Hanover; but, as was before stated, it is not carried on in the dialect most familiar to the people, the instruction being universally in the High German tongue. The following table shows the distribution of elementary schools in Hanover. Poor. The poor are provided for by voluntary contributions procured for them, at stated periods, from the wealthier inhab. They are, in a great degree, supported in workhouses built and maintained by subscription, where their own labour contributes in some measure to their subsistence. Their food and clothing are of the coarsest description; but, on the whole, they are as well taken care of as in some countries burdened with poor rates. Condition of People.· -Most of the Hanoverians are of Saxon origin; but in the N. W. there are Frieslanders, and in other parts may be traced Thuringians, Franks, and Vandals. The people are generally strong and well built, industrious and persevering. The distribution of the land into small estates has produced a good deal of family pride even among the peasants; and it is considered discreditable to intermarry with families in inferior cir cumstances. The rural pop. in the S. provinces is much more advanced in civilisation than in the N.; but there is every where a great disinclination to adopt improvements in farming. The great majority of the farmers act as labourers, and even the richest live in the plainest style, except in the duchy of Bremen and the Hadelnland, where mahogany furniture is to be seen in their houses, and four or five sleek Holstein carriage-horses in their stables. In these districts the country people are very frank and hospitable; but they are equally obstinate with the rest in their adherence to ancient fashions. Beer is the favourite beverage: some occasionally produce wine. The national dishes of the Hanoverians are smoked geese, beef and raisins, and pork served with dried fruit. Taxation. The changes of the government of Hanover have necessarily, and in the most important degree, affected its finances. The re-establishment of the ancient order of things, in 1813, brought upon the country the whole mass of abuses belonging to a past age, which had been abolished by the French. Amongst the most obnoxious was, the claim of the nobles to exemption from the land-tax: and this, as well as many other points, had to be arranged by the estates assembled under the constitution of 1819. Between 1821-26, a measurement and valuation of the country and its soil was made; and the amount of annual produce, after deducting expenses, being taxed at 10-2 per cent., was calculated to yield 1,310,000 dolls.; but in this loose estimate, the values undoubtedly fell much below the reality. An indemnity was, at the same time, granted to the nobles, in lieu of exemption, to the amount of 1 per cent. on the revenue taxed. This charge appeared in the budget of 1826-27, and amounted to 65,000 dolls. The revenues claiming exemption amounted, conse quently, to 6,500,000 dolls., nearly equalling the amount of taxable property belonging to peasants and burghers, and which, in 1816, was found (exclusive of E. Friesland) to amount to 6,689,717 dolls. Thus, half the nation was obliged to purchase justice from the other half, after the re-establishment of the so-called constitution of 1819 had been granted. The other direct taxes are the housetax, which is 4 per cent. on the appraised rent; the personal tax, rated in 6 classes; an income-tax, which likewise includes all salaries, and the rate of which is per cent. below 500 dolls., rising to 2 per cent above 2,000 dolls. annual income; and lastly, the industry-tax, which is paid by all tradesmen, in 7 classes, the lowest paying doll., the highest 80 dolls. The indirect taxes include the customs, the tax on spirits, beer, &c., the monopoly of the sale of salt, the stamp and legacy duties, besides duties levied on the grinding of corn, and unslaughtered beasts. The royal and national revenues amounted, in 1838-39, to 6,566,140 rix-dolls.; and the expenditure, during the same period, was 5,581,850 rix-dolls., leaving a surplus of 984,290 rixdolls., which was devoted to the payment of the public |