346 



GERMANY. 



the future might have in store, Germany might 

 rest assured that the blood of her sons would 

 be sacrificed or risked only for the protection 

 of her own honor and interests. But the most 

 important question for which the extraor- 

 dinary session had been called were the three 

 great judicial bills (the law on the constitution 

 of the courts, the civil process, and the crimi- 

 nal process), to the consideration of which the 

 Imperial Commission of Justice had devoted 

 itself since February, with great diligence. 

 Many differences of opinion which had shown 

 themselves in the Federal Council had been 

 settled by the commission, but the proposi- 

 tions of the commission still differed materially 

 on many important paints from the resolu- 

 tions of the united governments. On this 

 point the speech expressly said : " If the unit- 

 ed governments hold to the conviction that a 

 happy solution of the task imposed upon the 

 present session by the consideration of the ju- 

 dicial laws is still possible, they do so in the 

 firm belief that you, gentlemen, in consider- 

 ing these questions, will keep in view a safe 

 and unrestricted execution of justice." The 

 organization of the Reichstag occupied two 

 days, because, instead of Prof. Hanel, a mem- 

 ber of the "Party of Progress," Hen von 

 Benda, a National Liberal, was elected second 

 vice-president. After having rapidly disposed 

 of the budget for the first quarter of 1877, the 

 Reichstag instructed the Imperial Commission 

 of Justice to consider and report on the differ- 

 ences still existing between it and the Federal 



Council ; and, in order to give the commission 

 time for this work, the Reichstag took a recess 

 of one week, from November 8th to Novem- 

 ber 15th. A number of these points were set- 

 tled by compromises in the commission ; but 

 the most important points, as the position of 

 the press (referring all press offenses before a 

 jury, and the abolition of compulsory testi- 

 mony of the persons employed in the office of 

 a journal against the responsible editor), and 

 the relation of the courts to the administration, 

 were referred by the commission to the Reichs- 

 tag. In the second reading of the bills, begun 

 on November 15th and finished December 3d, 

 the Reichstag in all cases decided, by large 

 majorities, for the propositions of the commis- 

 sion, and against the objections of the Federal 

 Council. After the second reading was fin- 

 ished Prince Bismarck declared that not less 

 than nineteen points could not be accepted by 

 the united governments, and that the whole 

 work would be a failure if the Reichstag would 

 not relent. To avert this, the leaders of the 

 National Liberal party, Von Bennigsen, Miquel, 

 and Lasker, declared themselves willing to 

 enter upon some compromise, which offer was 

 accepted by the chancellor. A compromise 

 was finally agreed upon, satisfactory to both 

 parties, the National Liberals sacrificing the 

 clause with regard to the press, while the gov- 

 ernments consented to relinquish the prepon- 

 derating influence of the administration over 

 the courts. This compromise was not only bit- 

 terly attacked by the Catholics and the Social 



AUSBBUEG, GERMANY. 



Democrats, but also by the Party of Progress 

 (Fortschrittspartei), who thus hoped to drive 

 the National Liberals from their position as the 

 leading party of the Reichstag. The compro- 

 mise was, however, sanctioned by the Reichs- 



tag, on December 22d, by a vote of 194 to 100. 

 After passing an appropriation of 10,186,000 

 marks for the condensation of the telegraphic 

 system of Germany, and for the construction of 

 several main lines by subterranean cables, the 



