wer in less
important suits and crimes. More serious cases come within the purview
of the _an-sat_, a judicial auxiliary of the governor. An assembly of
notables from villages grouped together in a canton chooses a cantonal
representative, who is the mouthpiece of the people and the intermediary
between the government and its subjects. The direct taxes, which go to
the local budget of Annam, consist primarily of a poll-tax levied on all
males over eighteen and below sixty years of age, and of a land-tax
levied according to the quality and the produce of the holding.

The following table summarizes the local budget of Annam for the years
1899 and 1904:--

+------+-----------------------------------+----------------+
| -- | _Receipts._ | _Expenditure._ |
+------+-----------------------------------+----------------+
| 1899 | L203,082 (direct taxes, L171,160) | L175,117 |
| 1904 | L247,435 ( " " L219,841) | L232,480 |
+------+-----------------------------------+----------------+

In 1904 the sum allocated to the expenses of the court, the royal family
and the native administration, the members of which are paid by the
crown, was L85,000, the chief remaining heads of expenditure being the
government house and residencies (L39,709), the native guard (L32,609)
and public works (L24,898).

Education is available to every person in the community. The primary
school, in which the pupils learn only Chinese writing and the precepts
of Confucius, stands at the base of this system. Next above this is the
school of the district capital, where a half-yearly examination takes
place, by means of which are selected those eligible for the course of
higher education given at the capital of the province in a school under
the direction of a _doc-hoc_, or inspector of studies. Finally a great
triennial competition decides the elections. The candidate whose work is
notified as _tres bien_ is admitted to the examinations at Hue, which
qualify for the title of doctor and the holding of administrative
offices. The education of a mandarin includes local history, cognizance
of the administrative rites, customs, laws and prescriptions of the
country, the ethics of Confucius, the rules of good breeding, the
ceremonial of official and social life, and the practical acquirements
necessary to the conduct of public or private business. Annamese
learning goes no farther. It includes no scientific