SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 



The aggregate length of railroads in opera- 

 tion at the end of 1872 was 1,8 1 J2.9 kilometres ; 

 of those in course of construction, 2,021.2 kilo- 

 metres (1 kilometre=0.62 mile). The num- 

 ber of post-offices in 1870, was 540. The rev- 

 enue amounted to 2,458,458 riksdalers; the 

 expenditures to 2,316,924 riksdalers. The ag- 

 gregate length of the state telegraph-lines was 

 7,057 kilometres ; and of telegraph-wires 14,943 

 kilometres. 



The area of Norway is 122,280 sqnare miles. 

 The population was, in 1872, estimated at 

 1,763,000. The following towns had, in 1870, 

 a population of more than 10,000 inhabitants: 

 Christiania, 66,657 (in 1872 about 70,000, and 

 with the suburbs 80,000); Bergen, 30,252; 



Drontheim, 20,858; Stavanger, 17,053 ; Dram- 

 men, 15,458; Christiansand, 11,468. The bud- 

 get for the period ending June 30, 1874, esti- 

 mates the revenue and expenditure at 5,455,704 

 specie dalers each (1 specie daler=$l.ll). The 

 public debt at the end of August, 1873, had 

 become reduced to 6,876,000 specie dalers. On 

 January 1, 1872, the troops of the line num- 

 bered 13,000 men, the reserve forces 19,000, 

 and the landvaern 11,000. The naval force, 

 in 1872, consisted of 21 vessels (4 iron-clads), 

 with an armament of 172 guns. 



The imports, in 1871, amounted to 26,738,000 

 specie dalers, and the exports to 20,189,000. 



The movement of shipping, in 1871, was as 

 follows : 



The merchant navy, at the end of 1872, 

 consisted of 7,189 vessels, of a total burden 

 of 533,548 commercial lasts (1 last=2.1 tons). 

 The aggregate length of railroads in operation 

 at the end of 1872 was 496 kilometres. The 

 aggregate length of telegraph-lines 5,992 kilo- 

 metres, of wires 9,852 kilometres. 



On January 20th the Swedish Diet was 

 opened by the King, who in his speech from 

 the throne briefly reviewed the career of the 

 former kings of the house of Bernadotte, espe- 

 cially of his immediate predecessor, the late 

 King Charles XV., and expressed the wish for 

 the establishment of a closer union between 

 Sweden and Norway. He recommended the 

 formation of a general staff for the army, the re- 

 organization of the fleet so as to make it more 

 efficient for the defense of the coast, the im- 

 provement of the public-school system, and the 

 extension of the railroad net north of the Gefle. 

 At the discussion of the budget for 1874, the 

 First Chamber adopted the amount proposed 

 for the civil list of the King, without change ; 

 while the Second Chamber, by 125 against 

 66 votes, resolved to reduce it by 100,000 riks- 

 dalers. In a joint session of the Chambers it 

 was finally agreed to leave it without change. 

 The reorganization of the army, on which the 

 Government had in vain endeavored to come 

 to an understanding with the representatives 

 of the people in 1862, in 1865, in 1869, and in 

 1871, again engaged the attention of the Cham- 

 bers. The new bill of the Government had 

 for its object to strengthen the army and to 

 facilitate the transition to another organization 

 without doing away with the present system. 

 On April 19th both Chambers adopted by 

 large majorities a royal proposition concerning 

 the monetary convention concluded with Den- 

 mark and Norway. On Mny 12th the King 

 and the Queen were solemnly crowned in 

 Stockholm, and on May 26th the Diet was 

 closed by the King. The speech from the 



throne states that, although the organization 

 of the army had not yet been accomplished, 

 there were now hopes that it would be secured 

 at the next session. Both Chambers had agreed 

 (the first by 55 against 54, the second by 128 

 against 63) that the Indelta or national mili- 

 tia which is kept and paid by the land-owners, 

 and to some extent from the income of state 

 domains expressly reserved for this purpose, 

 should gradually be abolished within thirty- 

 three years, in case the Government should 

 be able to find another system of national de- 

 fense offering an equal prospect of safety. On 

 July 19th a postal treaty was concluded be- 

 tween the three Scandinavian kingdoms, ac- 

 cording to which a letter in all the three king- 

 doms will cost 6 Danish shillings (1 shilling= 

 about ^ cent). In August, the King received 

 a visit from the Crown-Prince of the German 

 Empire, on which occasion he expressed his 

 German sympathies. In the same month the 

 long controversy between Swedish and Danish 

 vessels concerning the right to pilot in the 

 sound, was settled by an agreement of the 

 two Governments, according to which the 

 sound, wherever the one coast is Danish and 

 the other Swedish, shall be open to the pilots 

 of both nations; but where both coasts belong 

 to one country, this alone shall have the right 

 to pilot. The Drogden, a small strait which 

 lies between the islands of Snltholm and Ama- 

 ger leads to the Bay of Copenhagen, is to be 

 regarded as exclusively Danish water. 



The Swedish Church Assembly, a body 

 which was created in 1866, when the special 

 representation of the clergy at the Swedish 

 Diet was abolished, and which meets every 

 third year, assembled at Stockholm on Sep- 

 tember 2d. It consists of 30 clergymen and 

 30 laymen. Of the clergymen 13 (12 bishops 

 and the pastor primnrins of Stockholm) are 

 ex officio members. The committee which had 

 been charged with elaborating the draft of a 



