France adopted a continental approach in the course of the colonization of West Africa. In other words, it viewed West Africa not as its counterpart of sea trade but as a subject of an expansion of its territory or mainland administration. The French colonization of West Africa was therefore aimed at strengthening its dwindling influence in Europe thus building up national pride, rather than producing profit through trade. With a view to redeeming itself after the French Revolution, Chute of the NapoléonⅠ, and the defeat in France-Prussian War, in addition to competing against Britain and Germany in colonial expansion, France expanded its colonial domination in West Africa to the detriment of fiscal deficits. It was the Navy that first opened the sea routes linking mainland France and West African colonies, which were travelled by Ferries (Paquebot) and merchant ships since then. The establishment of ports and sea lanes were initiated and planned by the French Ministries of the Colonies and Marine not by the private sector. Starting with the launch of Caribbean routes during the rule of the NapoléonⅠ, once France founded a colony the Navy was dispatched to construct naval bases and ports. Third, from an economic perspective, the French colonial rule of the African interior was found to be a loss. In order to make an ostentatious display of its power, France installed Comptoirs colonials on the coast of West Africa, and it sent administrators and set up plantations while advancing inland along rivers, which cost the French government a massive budget. Profits from the colonial domination, however, failed to reach the level enough to recoup investment. Once the need to scramble with Britain and Germany for colonial possessions disappeared, France ceased the exploration of African interior and focused on maritime trade on the coast of West Africa. Lastly, the sea routes between mainland France and West African colonies were operated by merchant ship companies headquartered in Marseille, Bordeaux, and Le Havre. The companies, which were subsidized by the government, imported vegetable oil food and exported French-made industrial products - alcohol, cigarette, weaponry, gunpowder, and metal products - from and to the colonies. They not merely competed fiercely with one another at home but also faced British and German competitors abroad for traffic rights. However, what should not go unnoticed in evaluating the age of colonialism is that it may not be the right way to focus only on political and economic issues or to reflect only on short-term outcomes of colonial trade. Notwithstanding the fact that West Africans suffered for a certain period of time from French exploitation and unequal trade with France, it is not true that France consistently enjoyed a dominant position in the relations with its colonial possessions. West Africans, making their entry through the port of Dakar to Marseille, Bordeaux, and Le Havre, scattered across the whole country. The immigrants also implanted in the French society their own culture, food, and Islamic religion that they brought from their mother land.