The Moors are probably the least respectable of the inhabitants. Living in the towns, and more luxurious than either the Arabs or Kabyles, they are, from the constant oppression of their Turkish rulers, a timid race, reserving nevertheless their cruelty and vindictiveness, while in moral character they stand very low. The nomads live in tents; other tribes inhabit dwellings of somewhat greater stability called gourbis; only a few have houses. The proportion of the three classes in 1857 is shown by the following table:

- The census of 1866 returned 211,195 Catholics. 5,002 Protestants, 33,952 native Jews, 1,785 European Jews, 17,232 members of other Christian sects or persons of unknown religion, and 2,652,072 Mohammedans. For the Catholics a bishopric was erected at Algiers in 1838, which in 1867 was raised to an archbishopric; in the same year the new dioceses of Oran and Constantine were created. For the Protestants a decree of 1857 created consistories at Algiers, Oran, and Constantine, under which both the Lutheran and the Reformed churches are placed. The religious affairs of the Mohammedan population are placed under the muftis of the two principal mosques at Algiers. The number of free public schools in 1866 was 426, with 45,375 pupils. For secondary instruction there were lyceums at Algiers, Bona, Constantine, Philippeville, and Oran, the secondary institutions at Tlemcen, and the free school of Oran. The system of public instruction for the Mohammedans comprised the douar schools, the law schools (zaiouas), the schools of law and literature (medresus), the French-Arabic schools, and the French-Arabic colleges. The French troops in Algeria consisted in 1866 of 67,774 men.

Besides the garrison troops, which after a certain number of years return to France, there are the so-called native troops, which do not leave the colony except in time of war, and consist of three regiments of Turcos, three of zouaves, three of chasseurs d'Afrique, and three of spahis; altogether 15,000 infantry and 3,000 horse. - The administration of Algeria was in 1859 placed under a special ministry, which was abolished by decree of Dec. 11, 1860. It was then placed in the hands of a military governor general, to whom all civil as well as military authorities were subordinate. The republic, established in 1870, placed at the head of the administration a civil governor, who convokes annually for the establishment of the budget a council, consisting of the three prefects, the archbishop, the military commander, and other notables. Algeria also received the right to send six deputies to the national assembly. At the head of each of the three provinces is a prefect. - The revenue of Algeria in 1866 amounted to 42,223,000 francs, and the expenditure to 47,-470,000. The French budget provides in addition for the maintenance of the army, for public works, and for many other expenditures.

In the budget of ordinary and extraordinary expenditures of 1871, the expenditure for Algeria is set down at 22,691,1925 francs. According to a statement made by Picard in the legislative body in 1854, Algeria at that time had cost France about three milliards of francs and the lives of 150,000 soldiers. In 1868 the government made an agreement with the societe generale algerienne for a loan of 100,-000,000 francs, which is gradually to be used for the general improvement of the country. The imports in 1868 were valued at 192,664,-360 francs, and the exports at 103,069,304. The chief articles of import in that year were cotton cloth, woollens, leather and leather goods, wine, brandy, and spirits, fresh fruit, sawed timber, and materials for building. The exports included sheep, wool, tallow, hides, coral, iron, fibre, reeds, cork, olive oil, tobacco, fruit, vegetables, rags, and cotton. In 1870 the most important article of export was esparto for making paper. The movement of shipping in 1807 was as follows:

The merchant navy of Algeria, on Dec, 31, 1808, consisted of 147 sailing vessels, of 4,098 tons. A decree of July 11, 1800, gave to a company, at the head of which were Count Branicky and the banker Gautier, a charter of 99 years for the construction of a number of important railroad lines; but in 1870 only one of them, that from Constantine to the sea, was near its completion. The telegraphic connection of Algeria with France was established in July, 1S70, by a submarine cable between Bona and Marseilles. - The earliest inhabitants of Algeria of whom we have any trustworthy accounts were the Numidians and the Moors (Mauri). The former lived in the mountain districts of the east, and the Moors in the west, where they established many flourishing coast towns, which carried on a brisk trade with Europe. The conquest of Carthage in 140 B. C. laid the foundation of the rule of the Romans in this part of Africa, which was gradually extended over the whole of the present Algeria. The eastern district at first constituted a portion of the province of Africa, but from the time of Constantine the Great it formed the province of Numidia, and the western district became the province of Mauritania Ca?sariensis. The whole country attained a high degree of prosperity.

As a defence against the savage mountain tribes the Romans built several forts, one of which, Guelma, is still extant, In the early part of the 5th century the country was conquered by the Vandals, in whose possession it remained till 534, when Belisarius subjected it to the Byzantine empire. The Arabs about 100 years later advanced into the mountains of the Numidians. The Christian religion, which had early been introduced into the country, was wholly extinguished by the Mohammedan conquerors; but the people partially recovered from the state of barbarism into which they had relapsed under the rule of the Vandals. After belonging for a time to the dominions of the Ommiyade caliphs, Algeria became an independent Moorish state, under the dynasty of the Zereides, which ruled it from 970 to 1148, when Roger of Sicily conquered northern Africa. A few years later (1159) the Almohades of Morocco obtained possession of Algeria and ruled there till 1269, when they were expelled by the Zianides of Fez. This dynasty became at the close of the loth century involved in protracted conflicts with the Spaniards, especially when about 20,000 families of Moors and Jews, who in 1492 had been expelled from Spain, settled in Algeria and sought revenge in piracy.