Vessels in the "immigrant" trade are not delayed by the customary health rules of the port. The sick are sent to the hospital. All are examined by physicians at the reception house.

The description list, containing names, &c., and which accompanies each cargo, is recorded in a register kept for this purpose. The "special commissary of immigration" having made the formal inquiries, then apportions the “immigrants" in the manner described in my despatch No. 36, of June 11, 1862.

I am happy, in my despatches Nos. 33, 34, 35, and 36, to have been able to furnish the facts of public interest in connexion with this matter from its commencement on this island down to the latter part of February last, when I first arrived at Martinique, and entered upon my consular duties.

JULY 21, 1862.

I have the honor to enclose herewith a table of exports of Martinique and Guadaloupe from January 1 to July 1, 1862.

Table of exports from Martinique and Guadaloupe, from January 1 to July 1,

I have the honor to enclose herewith a topographical description of Guadaloupe and its dependencies. I have received the information contained in this enclosure from the "Annuaire de la Guadeloupe pour 1862."

TOPOGRAPHICAL DESCRIPTION OF GUADALOUPE AND ITS DEPENDencies.

Guadaloupe is the largest and most flourishing of the Antilles, having a population of 151,672 souls. The island is irregular in shape. Its circumference is 444 kilometres. It is divided into two equal parts by a canal six miles in length, named the Riviére Salée, and which communicates with the sea. The size of the canal varies from 30 to 120 metres. It cannot be used by vessels of very large tonnage. To the west of the Riviére Salée lies the part called Guadaloupe. It is of volcanic nature, traversed by high mountains, among which is the Sonfriére, 1,600 metres above the level of the sea. The Solfaterre, majestic and picturesque, is one of the principal objects of the panorama of Basse-Terre. To the southwest of the Sonfriére, and at its base, lies the village of Basse-Terre. It is in latitude north of the meridian of Paris 15° 59′ 30′′, and in west longitude 64° 4' 22". A bishop resides here; and this is also "la residence du gouvernement," with the addition of the court of appeals, the assize court, the tribunal of first instance, the justice de paix, and the chamber of commerce and of agriculture. The coast, protected by the batteries of the fort, Ruchepance offers an excellent anchorage. Population, 9,976. There is at Basse-Terre

one military hospital and one civil; one house of correction, two convents, one seminaire college, and one young ladies' boarding-school. A diligence daily runs between Basse-Terre and Pointe á Pitre, and there is also daily communication between these places by a steamer. Upon the east coast, Lanse á la Barque, in the commune of Vieux-Habitants, and the bay of Deshaies, offer good anchorage for large ships and men-of-war; but the bay of Mahault, in the northeast, can only receive small vessels. In that portion called Guadaloupe, after Basse-Terre, the most popular communes are Baie Mahault, de la Capestene, des Lamentin, and de Sainte Rose. Population, from 4,000 to 6,000 souls. There is a civil hospital and a justice of the peace at Capestene, and a justice de paix at Lamentin and Pointe Naire. To the east the Riviére Salée is the second grand division of the island, designated Grande Terre. This is a low and calcareous formation. Pointe à Pitre was visited with a terrible earthquake, followed by a terrible conflagration, on February 8, 1843. Its harbor is one of the best, capable of sheltering any number of ships and frigates of the first class. Its entrance is defended by Forts Fleur d'Epée et l'Union and by numerous batteries. This chief emporium has one bank, two foreign consulates, one chamber of commerce, one agricultural society, one military and civil hospital, one fine church, one theatre, one house of correction, and many "établissements d'education." The population of Pointe á Pitre is 15,581 souls.

In this part is situated the "Port des Moule," sufficient for vessels of three hundred tons; and to the northeast the bay of "Port Louis," of equal capacity. The "Moule" city is the chief place of the justice of the peace, and was anciently the seat of the high court. It is the second "ville" of Grand Terre. Population, 10,111 souls. Here is a chamber of agriculture and establishment of commerce. A daily diligence plies between here and Pointe á Pitre via Bordeaux Bang, and a mail by way of "Sainte Anne." The commune of "Port Louis" has 5,160 souls. It has a beautiful church, and also two central “usines" for sugar. There are also the communes of "Petit Canal," with 6,567 population; "l'Anse Bertrand," with 4,198; "Morne á l'Eau," with 5,475; and others of smaller note, and without special interest to notice here.

The staples of the colony are sugar, coffee, cotton, rice, corn, &c. Almost every kind of fruit is cultivated. The climate is of remarkable mildness. There are no serpents or venomous insects. Two hot mineral springs exist. The forests are full of trees most valuable for the construction of houses and also of ships, and likewise abound in game. Guadaloupe has four dependencies administered by two commandants " particuliers." The first and largest is the island of Marie Galunte, which is 83 kilometres in circumference, and with a population of 13,942 souls. The second is formed of the group of islands called the "Saintes," which are situated 19 kilometres from Vieux fort. Population, 1,655. From its peculiar location it is sometimes called the "Gibraltar des Antilles." The third is the island of "Desidade," 11 kilometres northeast of "Pointe des Chateaux de la Grande Terre." Circumference, 22 kilometres. Population, 1,793. The fisheries form the principal occupation. The fourth is a portion of St. Martin's, the other division being held by Holland. It is estimated 233 kilometres north of Guadaloupe, is 39 kilometres in extent, and numbers 2,961 souls.

CUSTOMS DUTIES.

Information has been received at this department from Mr. Andrew G. Carothers, the consul of the United States at Martinique, that, " under the present law, all goods admitted into France are also admitted into the colonies.

"Importers can make a choice of tariffs-either the French or the colonial; in other words, whenever the colonial tariff prescribes a higher duty than the French tariff, advantage can be taken of the latter.

"The products of the United States imported into Martinique in American vessels having a certificate of origin countersigned by the French consul at the port, are admitted upon the same conditions as if taken there under the French* flag, and do not have to pay the surtax of twelve francs."

SPANISH DOMINIONS.

BARCELONA. JOHN ALBRO LITTLE, Consul.

JANUARY 6, 1862.

. I have the honor to inform you that the number of American vessels entered and cleared at this port from January 1 to December 31, 1861, is as follows: Entered, 33; tonnage, 14,28983. Cleared 32; tonnage, 14,071. Entered in ballast, 33. Cleared in ballast, 32.

The imports from the United States in 1861 are: Cotton, 74,228 bales; staves, 723,500; lumber and timber, 712,060 feet each; hides, 6,788; cow horns, 4,900; rosin, 1,085 barrels; alcohol, 190 barrels; cocoa, 200 sacks; mahogany, 145 blocks; rappee snuff, 2 boxes; iron, 8 tons.

In my report on commercial information I gave the exports from this port to the United States from the 1st December, 1860, to the 30th November, 1861. During the month of December there have been no exports for the United States. This statement of the exports I obtained through the aid of the cashier of the treasury at Barcelona, and I consider myself fortunate in having received it at all, as it is necessary to have an order from Madrid to be allowed to examine the books of the custom-house. Since the general scarcity of cotton the duties charged upon that article coming from ports of non-productive countries have been discontinued, making the duties upon cotton at present the same, arriving from Marseilles, or Liverpool, or from the United States. The result of this has been that 12,242 bales have been received at this port from Livpool and other ports during the months of November and December. The annual consumption of cotton in Catalonia is about 100,000 bales. The consumption of 1861 has been less than that of the last five years, and many of the cotton factories are now stopped, and the rest are working on short time. As tobacco is a government monopoly, it is impossible for me to obtain any statistics upon the amount imported from the United States, but I should think information might be obtained at Madrid, where the principal manufactory is situated. What information I have been able to obtain in the consumption of tobacco I have given in my report on commercial information.

PORT OF TARRAGONA.

The number of American vessels entered at this port from January 1 to the 30th December, 1861, is as follows:

Entered, 7; tonnage, 2,7723. Cleared, 7; tonnage, 2,77234. Entered in ballast cargo, 6. 1 cargo in transit from Marseilles to Rio Janeiro. Imports in American vessels: Pipe staves, 138,360; barrel staves, 8,320. Mr. Opim, United States consular agent at Tarragona, has not yet forwarded to me his full returns, and I shall not wait for them for this report.

The exports from Tarragona to the United States during the year, in American vessels, are: 493 pipes wine; 61 cases licorice paste; 1,623 bags almonds; 10 bags almond kernels.

I have found it impossible to make out full reports, as the books and accounts of the consulate have been neglected during the whole year, owing to the absence of the consul.

APRIL 5, 1862.

I have the honor to forward to you herewith the returns of navigation and commerce for the ports of Barcelona and Tarragona during the quarter ending March 31, 1862.

Cotton being the chief article of importation from the United States, and none having arrived at Barcelona direct since the 16th August, 1861, the manufacturers have been obliged to seek the raw material elsewhere, and since the first of January the number of bales arrived at this port is 11,671, chiefly from Liverpool and Marseilles. 839 bales have been received from Havana, which undoubtedly escaped the vigilance of our blockading fleet at an earlier period of the rebellion. The total amount of cotton entered at the port of Barcelona for the quarter ending March 31 is, therefore, 12,510 bales, which is not one-half of the average amount for this period since the year 1852. The following is the change that has been made in the duties upon raw cotton, per quintal:

Doubtless as soon as the facility for obtaining cotton increases, the present duties will be increased, as it is understood to be only a temporary change. The imports from the United States from the 1st of January last have been exceedingly small, and are as follows:

PORT OF BARCELONA.

American ships, 195 tons logwood; Spanish ships, 118,800 pipe staves.

PORT OF TARRAGONA.

American ship, 36,600 pipe staves.

There have been no exports in American ships, and I have been unable to obtain information from the custom-house authorities as yet in regard to the general imports and exports, but I hope in a few days to obtain the information I desire. There are no custom-house reports published at Barcelona, and I am therefore obliged to collect my statistics, from day to day, from the official newspaper, which does not give the exports. The following is a statement of the

vessels entered at this port from the 1st January to the 31st March, not including coasting vessels of the province under 20 tons burden:

I have the honor to enclose to you herewith the returns of navigation and commerce for the quarter ending September 30, 1862.

The following is the amount of cotton entered at this port during the quarter,

viz :

It will be seen the 22,707 bales of cotton that have been received during this quarter is nearly equal to the average quarterly receipts in former years. Five hundred bales of the above amount have been reshipped for Liverpool, and should the prices continue to be in favor of that port, more will undoubtedly follow. If this cotton was in the hands of the manufacturers of Barcelona, instead of being held entirely by speculators, they would give employment to their operatives one-half time during the coming winter.