GERMANY. 



ntro, while tlie others constitntod the so- 

 i -allrd Kn-iu-li party of protest, which went ti 

 Merlin only to protest against the incorpora- 

 tiin nt' Al-aer-l.orraine with Germany. More 

 than one-hall' of tin- new Keiehstag, 221 of ii'.'T, 

 hail not lioon members of the first, and of the 

 L'ti nieinlnTs of tlu- Frankfort rarliuinunt of 

 1848, who had belonged to the first Reichstag, 

 only 11 had been reflected. 



The Reichstag was opened on February 6th 

 ly I'rinee Hisniarek, the Emperor, though he 

 had recovered from a serious indisposition, 

 having been dissuaded by his physicians from 

 being present. The speech from the throne 

 declared that the reorganization of Germany, 

 as it resulted from tho late war, was nearly 

 complete ; that a uniform legislation had been 

 < arrii -d through nearly nil subjects which, be- 

 fore the establishment of the empire, were re- 

 pmled as common affairs of the North-German 

 Confederation, and that thus the task which 

 had occupied the Reichstag during its first 

 legislative period had been for tho most part 

 arc- iinplished. The representatives of the new 

 Reichsland Alsace-Lorraine, who would for the 

 first time again form part of a German legisla- 

 ture, were warmly welcomed. Among the drafts 

 to be submitted to the Reichstag, tho speech 

 mentioned in the first line a new military law 

 which would fulfill the promise given in the im- 

 perial constitution, and, by a full development 

 of the military strength of the empire, comply 

 with the first duty of every commonwealth to 

 protect the independence of its territory, and 

 the peaceable development of its inherent spirit- 

 ual and economical strength. Another law was 

 announced on the administration of the reve- 

 nue and expenditures of the empire as well 

 as on the composition and the jurisdiction of 

 the Court of Accounts. On tho draft of the 

 new imperial press-law, it was said that the 

 allied governments were endeavoring to har- 

 monize the just claims to a free expression of 

 opinion through the pi-ess with the equally just 

 demands which public interest makes against 

 the abuse of this freedom. An addition to the 

 industrial laws of the country would provide 

 for the appointment of courts of arbitration 

 between employers and employes, and would 

 piwent any illegal pressure being brought upon 

 working-men for the enforcement of strikes, 

 and the violation of contract. Very satisfac- 

 tory statements were made on tho financial re- 

 sults of the preceding year. In conclusion, it 

 was said that the foreign relations of the em- 

 pire encouraged the hope that all governments 

 like that of Germany were determined to se- 

 cure to the world the benefit of a lasting peace. 

 The Emperor was especially encouraged in this 

 hope by the repeated interviews with tlie mon- 

 archs of other countries, and by the continu- 

 ance of friendly relations with nations which. 

 by historical traditions, are closely allied with 

 the German people. 



All the parties of the Reichstag would have 

 united in reelecting as President Dr. Simson, 



who, in December, 1878, had celebrated the 

 twenty-fifth anniversary of his election at 

 dent of German Parliament*, who bad 

 since then filled this important place almost 

 without interruption, and during this time had 

 impressed all the conflicting and changing par- 

 ties with the conviction that in the whole his- 

 tory of legislative assemblies he had few equals, 

 l>oth in point of ability and impartiality. He 

 was just recovering from a long indisposition, 

 and his medical advisers unanimously warned 

 him against taxing his still feeble health with 

 the burden of a position which would require 

 the most robust constitution. A deputation 

 which, before the opening of Parliament, was 

 sent to him by his political friends, returned 

 with his decided refusal to accept the presiden- 

 cy of the new Reichstag. As soon as it was 

 generally known that Dr. Simson was not a 

 candidate for reelection, the parties, with al- 

 most equal unanimity, agreed upon the election 

 of Herr von Forckenbeck, for many years the 

 President of the Prussian Diet, who, like Dr. 

 Simson, had succeeded in gaining the esteem 

 and entire confidence of all parties. As 

 vice - presidents were elected the Bavarian 

 Prince of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfurst and Dr. 

 Hanel, the former, like Forckenbeck, a sympa- 

 thizer with the principles of the Rational 

 Liberals, the latter a member of the party of 

 progress. The candidates of the Centre for 

 the position of vice-presidents, the Bavarian 

 Baron von Aretin and Peter Reichensberger, 

 a member of the Supreme Court of Berlin, 

 received 85 and 81 votes. In order to short- 

 en the time, which during the first legisla- 

 tive period had been consumed by taking the 

 yeas and nays whenever they had been called 

 for, the English system of dividing was adop- 

 ted ; and it was provided that hereafter, 

 whenever it is decided to take the yeas 

 and nays, the members of the Reichstag will 

 leave the hall and reenter through two side- 

 doors, the yeas through one and tho nays 

 through the other, while the secretaries, sta- 

 tioned near the doors, will record the num- 

 bers. The new method, popularly called "the 

 sheep's jump," gave general satisfaction. 



Some drafts submitted to the Reichstag 

 were promptly and almost without debate dis- 

 posed of. Among them were a postal conven- 

 tion with Brazil, a treaty of extradition with 

 Switzerland, a bill for limiting the jurisdiction 

 of the German consuls in Egypt, and the bills 

 for changing some articles of the invalid law, 

 and regulating the indemnification to be paid 

 to communes for war services. The law con- 

 cerning compulsory vaccination called forth a 

 very long debate between the medical experts 

 in the Reichstag, all of whom were in favor of 

 compulsory vaccination, and some members 

 who looked upon it as an encroachment of in- 

 dividual liberty. It was finally passed with 

 an amendment of Dr. Lowe, providing for the 

 establishment of an Imperial Health Office, 

 which is to superintend vaccination and in 



