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within the six months following the expiration of the year for which the credits voted by the Storthing are granted; (1) to naturalize foreigners."

The process of legislation corresponds to the British method, except that every measure originates with the Odelsthing. The Lagthing may reject a measure twice before a conference of the two Things is held. This Conference takes the form of a combined sitting, in which twothirds of the votes decide. A measure passed by the Storthing and disallowed by the King, if passed again by the Storthing without alteration after two consecutive sessions, with the intervention of at least two ordinary sessions before each new adoption of the measure, has the force of law without the King's assent, at the close of the last session. That is to say, it requires a persistence of the popular representatives during at least six years in order to override the King's veto.

"The Storthing remains in session as long as it deems serviceable, but not longer than two months without the authorization of the King. When it is prorogued by the King after the completion of its labours, or after having sat for the prescribed time, the King will simultaneously make known his decision concerning the resolutions on which it shall not have pronounced, declaring whether he approves or rejects them." The King promulgates the laws under the royal seal. His sanction is not necessary for a resolution by which the Odelsthing puts Councillors of State or others on their trial.

The next chapter deals with the Judiciary power. “The members of the Lagthing, combined with the Supreme Court (Höieste Ret), constitute the State Court (Rigsret), which definitely tries all accusations set on foot by the

sthing, whether against members of the Council of State or of the Supreme Court, for offences relating to their functions, or against members of the Storthing for offences committed by them in that capacity. The presidency of the State Court belongs to the president of the Lagthing. The accused may challenge one-third of the members of the Court, provided that the Court is never constituted of fewer than fifteen persons. The Supreme Court is a final court of appeal. It may not be constituted of less than one president and six councillors. In time of peace the Supremo Court, with the addition of two superior officers nominated by the King, is an intermediate and final court for all military business, with power to inflict the penalty of death, or degradation, or imprisonment exceeding three months. The decrees of the Supreme Court are in no case subject to appeal or revision."

Then follow a number of general provisions, declaratory of popular rights and privileges.

In this respect also the inhabitants of Sweden Judicial and Norway enjoy a large measure of consti- Administratutional freedom. The judicial system is based tion. upon the town and rural magistrates' courts, and in the latter the inhabitants of every parish, or group of parishes, are entitled to elect a board of twelve assessors, who, if they differ unanimously from the legal judge, may overrule his decision. There are three higher courts in Stockholm, Christianstad, and Jönköping; and the Supreme Court in the capital, over which the King is entitled to preside, takes appeals, higher criminal cases, and questions of Stato policy and law. This court, in fact, combines with an ordinary Supreme Court some of the characteristics of a king's privy council.

Trial by jury exists for Press

offences only, under a special law passed early in the century.

In addition to the Minister of Justice there is a Justiciary, or Justitie-Kansler, appointed by the King, who, with the Attorney-General, directs State prosecutions and controls the administration of justice.

Education

Public education in Sweden and Norway is and free and compulsory. The State grants in Religion. Sweden an annual sum of about £1,700,000 in support of about 10,000 elementary schools, which are attended by 94 per cent. of the children of school age. In Norway the amount of the grant is somewhat less. Thus the educational system is highly efficient; and there are two excellent universities, with normal, technical, and special high schools of various kinds.

The established religion is Lutheran, and other denomi nations, though tolerated, are remarkably few.

Finance.

The Revenue of Sweden for 1887 was £4,712,777, and the Expenditure was estimated to balance it Nearly three-quarters of the income is derived. from customs, public lands, and direct taxes. The Public Debt is over £13,700,000.

exactly.

In Norway the Revenue for the same year was £2,392,621, which was also the amount of the Expenditure. The Public Debt is about £5,965,000.

1887.

The old economical struggle between the principles of free trade and the allurements of protection, which naturally breaks out again in every period of industrial depression, has been waged this year with considerable vigour in almost every country. Where

Governments rely for a revenue mainly upon the taxation of miscellaneous articles, there have been numerous changes of tariff, all intended to check competition in particular branches of trade, and some directed against the competition of particular countries. In Sweden the question has been fought out in the Riksdag and in the constituencies. Early in the year the Lower Chamber (214 members) passed a resolution in favour of a corn law by 111 votes against 101; whilst the Upper Chamber (142 members) maintained free trade by a still closer vote of 70 against 68. The Government, recognizing that a modification in the commercial system of such great importance could not be effected without taking the sense of the nation, dissolved the popular Chamber-and this in spite of the fact that the three years' term of that Chamber would have ended in the ordinary course of things in the month of September. The result of this extraordinary election was to give a large majority of members pledged to maintain the free trade policy of the country.

Home Rule.

The popular party in Norway is not satisfied with the spirit in which the Constitution of 1814 is observed by the King's advisers in Sweden, and there is at this moment considerable tension between the two countries. Loyalty on both sides to the charter of 1814 would have cemented the union of Sweden and Norway. But Swedish politicians have recently taken measures to "weld the two nations into one," by repealing, or attempting to repeal, several of the guarantees secured by Norway as conditions to her acceptance of the union. The result has been to create a long and embittered quarrel, which has not yet been brought to an end. The desire of Sweden to place limitations on the

autonomy of Norway has had the natural effect of generating a Norwegian party favourable to separation. Like other nations in a similar predicament, Sweden has to choose between the evils of federation, which limits the central authority without necessarily diminishing the combined strength of the nation, and the evils of union without unison, which paralyses the national strength, and makes the central authority dependent on an Executive hostile to important sections of the people.

TUNIS.

Tunis (capital, Tunis), on the north coast of Africa, between the French dependency of Algeria and the Turkish vilayet of Tripoli, ceased to be tributary to the Porte in 1871, though it remained nominally under the suzerainty of the Sultan. Since 1881 it has been under the protection of France. There is a French Minister-Resident and his staff, under the control of the Foreign Office at Paris; and French courts have replaced the consular jurisdiction. The Tunis-Tripoli boundary is still in dispute.

Area, over 40,000 square miles-reckoning southwards as far as the 30th parallel, so as to include the hilly districts of El Arg. Population, about 2,000,000, consisting mainly of Bedouin Arabs. (See also page 257.)

TURKEY.

The Absolute Monarchy of Turkey (capital, Constantinople) extends over the south-east of Europe, Asia Minor, Syria, Arabia, and many islands of the Levantine archipelago. The boundaries of these territories are the Russian Empire on the north, Roumania, Servia, Austria, Montenegro, Greece, the limits of Egypt in Africa, and Persia.

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