EUROPE. 



England, France, and Russia, in achieving their 

 independence. The country was accordingly 

 formed into the new kingdom of Hellas, and 

 Otho, a prince of Bavaria, appointed king. Otho 

 abdicated in 1862, and was succeeded by Prince 

 George of Denmark. The government is a consti- 

 tutional monarchy, the legislature consisting of a 

 senate and chamber of representatives. The 

 administration is corrupt and inefficient, and 

 brigandage is prevalent. During King George's 

 reign, the average duration of ministries is less 

 than a year. The population, according to the 

 census of 1879, amounted to 1,979,423; the 

 revenue is about two millions; debt, 15 millions 

 sterling; army, 30,000 men; navy, 15 vessels (2 

 iron-clads) manned by 2700 men. Capital, Athens, 

 rith a population, in 1884, of 84,000. 



AUSTRO-HUNGARV. 



The Austro-Hungarian Empire occupies a large 

 artion of Central Europe, and consists of an ag- 

 regation of kingdoms, principalities, and duchies, 

 :quired at various times by treaty or by conquest ; 

 3ut though composed of a heterogeneous assem- 

 blage of tribes and nations, it lies compactly 

 sgether, and is situated between lat. 42 and 51 

 lorth, and long. 9 41' and 26 30' east. Its area 

 estimated at 240,000 square miles. 

 The natural features of the empire exhibit wide 

 id well-marked diversity of hill and plain. Of 

 ic former, the principal are the Alpine develop- 

 icnt of the Tyrol, which, under the title of the 

 Jamie, Julian, and other ridges, diverges into 

 Illyria and Styria ; the eastern and western Car- 

 aathians, which encircle the whole of Hungary 

 id Transylvania north of the Danube ; and 

 stly, the Riesengebirge, Erzgebirge, and Boh- 

 lerwald ranges, which, inclosing Bohemia, form 

 ae boundary with Saxony and Bavaria. In the 

 western or Germanic provinces of the empire, 

 there are a number of fine valleys, watered by such 

 rivers as the Inn, Enns, Moldau, March, Muhr, 

 md Drave ; while in Galicia and Hungary expand 

 jme of those vast plains which give character to 

 this region of Europe. 



The country abounds in minerals, and mining 

 is long been practised and encouraged by the 

 jovernment. Gold and silver are mined in Hun- 

 and Transylvania ; quicksilver at Idria in 

 ^arniola ; iron, lead, tin, and copper are abun- 

 mt ; calamine, zinc, cobalt, antimony, bismuth, 

 langanese, and almost every other metal can be 

 Drocured. There are also abundant supplies of 

 3ck-salt, as at Wieliczka ; marble, coal, alum, 

 Itpetre, and sulphur. 



In point of climate, the country is generally 

 divided into three regions. i. The southern, 

 extending from lat. 42 to 46 north, where are 

 found the fig-tree, olive, mulberry, and myrtle. 

 2. The middle region, from lat. 46 to 49 north, 

 where the olive is not found, but where maize 

 and vines thrive in favourable situations. 3. The 

 northern zone, extending from lat. 49 to 51 north, 

 where winter is severe, and lasts fully five months ; 

 where vines and maize are no longer met with, 

 but wheat, barley, oats, and rye form the usual 

 crops. The forests of Austria are very extensive, 

 forming about a fourth part of the surface, and 

 comprising all the timber-trees known in England. 

 The population of Austria, amounting, in 1880, 



to 37,000,000, embraces a great variety of peoples 

 distinct in origin and language. The most 

 numerous are the Slaves, stated at 16,200,000. 

 They form the bulk of the population of Bohemia, 

 Moravia, Carniola, Dalmatia, Croatia, Slavonia, 

 the Military Frontiers, the north of Hungary and 

 Galicia. The Germans number 9,840,000, or one- 

 fifth of the whole. They are more dispersed over 

 the empire than any other race ; but they occupy 

 in greater numbers the Duchy of Austria, Salzburg, 

 Tyrol, Styria, Carinthia, and the west of Hungary. 

 The Roumans speaking languages derived from 

 that of ancient Rome amount to 3J millions. 

 They consist of the Italians of Istria and Dalmatia ; 

 the Ladins, occupying some valleys in the Tyrol ; 

 and the Vallaks or Walachians of Transylvania, 

 &c. The Magyars or Hungarians proper, 6,430,000 

 in number, are located chiefly in Hungary and 

 Transylvania. Besides these leading races, there 

 are Armenians, Albanians, Gipsies, Jews, whose 

 combined numbers are estimated at 1,350,000. 



In respect of religion, 24^ millions of the in- 

 habitants (66 per cent.) belong to the dominant 

 church, the Roman Catholic ; the Greek and 

 Armenian churches, including those Greeks who 

 acknowledge the supremacy of the pope, 7 millions ; 

 the Protestants, 3^ millions; and Jews, 1,600,000. 

 The extensive powers formerly secured to the 

 Roman Catholic clergy by a special concordat 

 (1855) with the pontifical government, were all 

 swept away by the Reichsrath in 1 867-68, and at 

 present throughout the empire the law recognises 

 the perfect equality of all religious creeds. In 

 1 880, the Catholic Church in Austria had 1 1 arch- 

 bishops, 5 1 bishops, and more than 30,000 secular 

 priests. 



Of late years, since the rapid growth of liberal 

 opinion in Austria, education has made great 

 progress. Naturally, the German provinces stand 

 foremost in this honourable work. Primary edu- 

 cation is universal and compulsory, but the variety 

 of languages spoken in the country embarrasses 

 and impedes the operation of the law. Some- 

 times three or four are required in one school. 

 There are 9 universities Vienna, Prague, Pesth, 

 Gratz, Innsbriick, Cracow, and 3 minor ones. 



Industrially, Austria is more an agricultural 

 and pastoral than a manufacturing country. It fur- 

 nishes wheat and other bread-corns in abundance ; 

 fruits, wine, hops, hemp, flax, tobacco, saffron, and 

 dye-stuffs ; hides, horns, wax, honey, silk, and 

 other animal produce. Bohemia and Moravia 

 have long been celebrated for their manufactures 

 in woollens, linens, cottons, leather, glass, hard- 

 ware, and fire-arms. The mineral produce has 

 been already adverted to ; and, commercially, 

 Trieste is a place of great importance. Austria 

 possesses magnificently constructed roads, leading 

 throughout the chief provinces ; has several well- 

 kept canals of considerable length; and in 1872, 

 7530 miles of railway, and 22,700 miles of tele- 

 graph, besides its great navigable rivers, the Maros, 

 Theiss, Drave, Po, and Danube, on the last of 

 which, passengers and goods are conveyed by 

 steam between Ulm and Galatz, and on to Con- 

 stantinople. 



Since 1867, the Austro-Hungarian empire has 

 formed a double state, consisting of a German or 

 ' Cisleithan ' (so called from the river Leitha, which 

 runs near the Hungarian border), and a Hungarian 

 or ' Transleithan ' monarchy. Each countrv has 



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