16 AUGUST 1940, Page 20

WE have learned some geography during this war, and shall

therefore be only moderately surprised to discover that the French Colonial Empire is (or should it be was?) larger in population than the British and more than twice as large in area. Abour that Empire this valuable and singularly opportune pamphlet tells everything that it is most essential to know- peitical, economic, industrial, commercial, social, strategic—with four very useful maps, in the space of 52 pages. It is a character- istic example of Chatham House's diffusion of relevant infor- mation.