676 



SWITZERLAND. 



State, was also temporarily assigned the duties 

 of Minister for Foreign Affairs. In November 

 the King accepted the resignation of Dr. Tors- 

 sell, the Minister of Finance, and Count Posse 

 was given the portfolio of that office in addi- 

 tion to that of Minister of State. M. Themp- 

 tander, one of the chiefs of department, was 

 appointed Councilor of State. 



The Norwegian Storthing was opened on 

 February llth. A difference with the Govern- 

 ment arose on the army question. A Govern- 

 ment bill which did not recognize the prin- 

 ciple of a general liability to military duty, 

 was rejected by the Chamber. 



A more severe conflict arose on the question, 

 whether the members of the Council should be 

 compelled to attend the meetings of the Cham- 

 ber. According to the Norwegian Constitu- 

 tion, the King has no absolute veto, and when 

 a bill has been passed three times by the 

 Storthing it becomes a law. The bill provid- 

 ing for the attendance of the members of the 

 Council had been passed at two previous ses- 

 sions of the Storthing, and had been vetoed by 

 the King on both occasions. The bill passed 

 the Storthing for the third time on March 17th, 

 but, as it proposed a change of the Constitu- 

 tion, the King claimed the right of an absolute 

 veto in this case a claim which was denied 

 by the opposition. 



A complete rupture between the King and 

 the popular House was brought about by the 

 passage, on June 9th, of a bill authorizing the 

 army committee to continue its sessions until 

 the next meeting of the Storthing. This bill 

 was also vetoed by the King. The Storthing 

 was closed on June 23d. 



SWITZERLAND, a republic of Central Eu- 

 rope, consisting of twenty-two cantons, three 

 of which are each divided into two indepen- 

 dent half-cantons. The President of the Fed- 

 eral Council for 1880 was Dr. E. Welti, of Aar- 

 gau ; and the Vice President, F. Anderwert, of 

 Thurgau. The area is 15,981 square miles, and 

 the population, according to an official estimate 

 of July 1, 1879, 2,808,493. The movement of 

 population in 1879 was 19,447 marriages, 89,- 

 692 births, 67,158 deaths, and 3,512 still-births. 

 The total revenue of the Confederation for 

 1879 amounted to 41,456,213 francs, and the 

 expenditures to 39,525,274 francs. The budget 

 for 1880 estimated the receipts at 40,599,000 

 francs, and the expenditures at 40,782,000 

 francs. The liabilities of the republic amount- 

 ed at the close of 1879 to 32,331,284 francs, as 

 a set-off against which there was Federal prop- 

 erty amounting to 43,782,000 francs. 



The most important subjects that received 

 attention in the course of the year were the 

 defenses of the Confederation, and propositions 

 for a revision of the Constitution. 



The chief of engineers was directed by the 

 Council of State, in January, to draw up a re- 

 port relative to the strength and condition of 

 the fortifications on the frontier. A meeting 

 held at Thun in February, which was attended 



by a considerable number of officers of the 

 army, adopted resolutions declaring 1. That 

 the sacrifices lately made for the development 

 of the armed forces of Switzerland can only 

 benefit the country when the principal avenues 

 leading into it have been so secured as to ren- 

 der it impossible for an enemy to advance sud- 

 denly into the interior, and before the mobili- 

 zation of the militia can have been accom- 

 plished; 2. That the fortification of the frontiers 

 of Switzerland is therefore a precaution neces- 

 sary for self-preservation ; 3. That, if this step 

 be neglected, a grave responsibility will devolve, 

 in case of disaster, upon those to whom the 

 country has confided the care of its interests, 

 and especially of its independence; 4. That the 

 meeting trusts that the Federal Assembly will 

 vote the sums necessary for completing an effi- 

 cient system of defensive works, and for arm- 

 ing them with suitable ordnance, and expresses 

 its own readiness to make the necessary sac- 

 rifices. The subject engaged almost universal 

 interest. Addresses were made upon it in the 

 larger towns and in the villages, and it was dis- 

 cussed in the daily papers as well as in the 

 journals devoted to the interests of the military 

 service. The people were reminded that, when- 

 ever in olden times their small and compara- 

 tively insignificant state successfully defended it- 

 self against the onslaughts of its more powerful 

 neghbors, it always relied largely upon the ar- 

 tificial defenses which in those days existed in 

 large numbers throughout the country. So it 

 would most likely be in the future. It was 

 further shown that it would not be enough to 

 erect fortifications designed to oppose an army 

 coming from France only, for the country was 

 exposed also on its northern frontier, and might 

 be invaded from that direction. 



The Council of State in September adopted 

 the proposals of the National Council for a re- 

 vision of the Constitution, and the question was 

 submitted to a popular vote on the 31st of Oc- 

 tober. The revision was generally opposed by 

 the Catholic cantons; the Liberals were not 

 decided upon it, and no great popular interest 

 was excited in it. The plebiscite resulted in 

 the rejection of the proposed revision by a ma- 

 jority of two thirds. 



The Landgemeinde of the Canton of Appen- 

 zell, at its annual meeting in May, decided by 

 a large majority in favor of the restoration of 

 capital punishment for the crimes of murder 

 and incendiarism resulting in death. The Can- 

 ton of Schwytz reestablished capital punish- 

 ment in July, and ordered that executions 

 should take place in public. This was the 

 fourth canton that had restored the penalty of 

 death. 



A bill for the separation of Church and state 

 was submitted in July by the Great Council of 

 the Canton of Geneva to a popular vote. It 

 was intended to take effect from the beginning 

 of 1882, and provided that, while the Protestant 

 and Old Catholic congregations might use the 

 churches, as they had previously done, for re- 



