NORWAY 



in tin- -li'itint.'. Tin 



In n|y in .-i ,*ed of 



iL'll iiii-ml.ris, ,.|,.,.|,.,| dllei-tly fi>r 

 tlin-i- \i MI . l,y .til \..r\\i--i. in Him 

 ami umiicii imt uinlcr L'.~> years of 

 age. Women arc eln.'iMr im Imih 

 iiu-il mill tin- -i..itin-.'. Thr 

 stiiriiii..', which meets wit limit 



illiilinuii-il hy tin- king, is 



divided iiitn t\\n li.inil.i-is. ( tin- 

 fourth i.f tin- m.-iiilx-rs fnnn tin- 

 in- odeMiiiL'. The 

 odel>t in." originates bills n,.| 

 passes them to the lagtini:, \\liich 

 has the |p-u< i in approve or reject, 

 lull ii-it to amend. A lull twice 

 1 l.y the lag ting is sub- 

 mit tt-il to a joint, sosion uf the 

 two chambers, when a two-thirds 

 majority is required to pass it. 

 The king's approval is required 

 before a bill becomes law, but a 

 bill passed by three successive 

 stortings becomes law m spite ol 

 the king's veto. 



Local Government 



For local administration the 

 country is divided into 18 amter 

 or fylker, and the cities of Christ- 

 iania (Oslo) and Bergen. The arat 

 is administered by the arntmand, 

 appointed by the crown, and the 

 amtsting or county council, com- 

 posed of the chairman of the rural 

 communes of the amt, which are 

 governed by elected councils. 



The Norwegians, who are of 

 Teutonic stock, are tall, fair, and 

 well proportioned. Enterprising, 

 hardworking, and thrifty, they 

 make the most of their unproduc- 

 tive country, but lack of fertile 

 soil drives the majority to turn 

 to the sea for a livelihood. Health 

 conditions are good, except for a 

 certain amount of tuberculosis 

 and bronchial catarrh. 



The population at the census 

 of 1910 was 2,357,790 ; in 1918 it 

 was estimated to be about 

 2,500,000. This total includes 

 21,000 Lapps, who are found only 

 in the north. The birth-rate is 

 high and the death-rate low. Popu- 

 lation is largely restricted to the 

 coasts and the valleys. That part 

 of Norway N. of Trondhjem Fiord, 

 about three-sevenths of the area 

 of the country, has only 15 p.c. 

 of the population. Emigration, 

 chiefly to the U.S.A. and Canada, 

 is extensive. Between 1836 and 

 1910 there was a total of 750,000 

 emigrants. The result is an ab- 

 normal proportion of old people 

 and children in Norway. 



The established religion is Luthe- 

 ran. Dissenters number 62,553. 

 Jews are tolerated. Jesuits are 

 excluded. The king is head of the 

 Church and appoints the six 

 bishops, the archdeacons, and 

 lower clergy. Education, which is 

 compulsory and free from 6J to 



378t 



NORWAY 



Norway. Map pi the kingdom in western Scandinavia, inset, environs o. 

 Chnstiania (Oslo), the most populous area ot the country 



14 years of age, is of a high stan- 

 dard. There are many secondary 

 public and private schools. Private 

 schools of sufficiently high standard 

 may receive state aid. In addition 

 to several higher commercial and 

 technical schools, there is a tech- 

 nical college at Trondhjem with 

 670 students and a university at 

 Christiania, founded in 1811, with 

 74 professorial chairs and 1,500 

 students. There are 10 training 

 colleges for primary, and one for 

 secondary teachers. The press 

 flourishes, and even the smallest 

 towns have one or more news- 

 papers. 



National Defence 



The navy is small and scarcely 

 adequate for coast defence, consist- 

 ing of only 4 old armoured vessels, 

 1 2gunboats, and some40 destroyers. 

 Service in the national Miilitia is 

 compulsory, and in time of war 

 all males between 15 and 55 years 

 of age may be called to the colours. 

 This results in a war footing of 

 about 110,000 men. 



INDUSTRIES, TRADE, ETC. Soil 

 and climate are not very favour- 

 able to agriculture. Norway with 

 3 p.c. of its area has a smaller 



proportion of arable land than 

 any other country in W. Europe. 

 lian half the cereal foods re- 

 quired are grown at home. The 

 chief eroj) is oats; barley, rye, and 

 potatoes are also cultivated ; 

 wheat is of small importance. The 

 hay harvest is large and important 

 Cattle are kept principally for 

 milk. In summer they are taken 

 to mountain pastures, but in win- 

 ter the problem of fodder is often 

 difficult Dairy farming on co- 

 operative lines is making great 

 progress, and under normal con- 

 ditions much butter and tinned 

 milk are available for export 

 Cheese is made mainly for home 

 consumption. Reindeer are the 

 draught animals in Lapland and 

 the mainstay of the Lapps. 



Fishing is the principal occupa- 

 tion. Norway claims a four-mile 

 instead of a three-mile territorial 

 limit, and so many of the coastal 

 fishing grounds are under her 

 sovereignty. The cod fishery is the 

 most important The "winter 

 fishing centres in the Lofoden 

 Islands from Jan. to April, and the 

 spring or capelin (smelt) fishery 

 on the coast of Fin mark from Feb. 



