First edition. 4to. Original printed wrappers, chipped, presentation inscription to upper wrapper, a little foxed throughout & some very minor dampstaining not affecting the text. Housed in a protective clamshell box. 64pp. Paris, Rignoux & Cie, 27 May, A rare copy of Barbe's thesis presented to (and defended before) the Faculte de medecine de Paris. The work is enhanced in being presented to Francois Arago - mathematician, astronomer and, briefly, 25th Prime Minister of France. (brother of the explorer Jacques). The presentation inscription reads: "Offert a Monsieur Arago secretaire perpetuel de l'Academie. Barbe."Although the French colonial empire began as early as 1605 with the foundation of Port Royal in what is now Nova Scotia, the end of the Napoleonic Wars signalled a second colonial era with possessions in the West Indies, North and West Africa. Drawing on data collected in Saint-Domingue, Cuba and Louisiana, Barbe notes the commercial imperatives that drive the primarily coas