582 



NETHERLANDS, THE. 



try, as agreement between the present Cham- 

 bers and the Government seemed to be im- 

 possible, and new elections would only result 

 in the return of a new Chamber of precisely 

 the same stamp as the old one ; so the ministers 

 had no alternative but to stay, confining their 

 attention, however, to keeping the machinery 

 of the Government in regular operation, with- 

 out attempting to enter upon or carry out any 

 definite policy. Early in August the King in- 

 vited Heer Kappeyne van de Copello to a 

 consultation with reference to the formation 

 of a new ministry. Heer Kappeyne was one 

 of the most prominent speakers on the side of 

 the Left in the debate which resulted in the 

 rejection of the military law. The confer- 

 ences were without result. Heer Heemskerk 

 refused to withdraw his resignation. 



About the beginning of September the King 

 succeeded in partly reconstructing his minis- 

 try, by naming Heer Alting Mees to be Minis- 

 ter of the Colonies, and by giving the Ministry 

 of War temporarily to Heer Taalman Kip, Min- 

 ister of the Marine. 



A difficulty which had arisen with the Re- 

 public of Venezuela with reference to the ship 

 Midas was peacefully adjusted in August, the 

 Government of Venezuela agreeing to deliver 

 the ship to the Dutch consul at St. Thomas. 



The new session of the States-General was 

 opened September 18th. The King in his 

 speech said that the relations of the kingdom 

 with foreign powers continued friendly. The 

 country was in a flourishing condition, agricult- 

 ure was prosperous, and the crops generally 

 were satisfactory. A part of the land had 

 been visited with floods at the beginning of 

 the year, but the help afforded by the nation to 

 the sufferers had healed many wounds. The 

 great public works which were in progress, 

 the new approaches from the sea to the com- 

 mercial towns, now almost completed, the 

 extension of the railroad system, the improve- 

 ment of the rivers, and the proposed connec- 

 tion by canal of the northern part of the country 

 with Germany, promised to be of great advan- 

 tage to trade. The condition of the finances 

 was favorable, and the public revenues were 

 increasing, thereby also showing the material 

 progress of the nation. The display of the art 

 and industry of the nation, and of the skill of 

 its ship-builders, at the International Exhibition 

 at Philadelphia, was spoken of as creditable. 

 The attention of his Majesty was given to the 

 strengthening of the military force. Extraor- 

 dinary exertions were still necessary to protect 

 the dominions of the nation in Northern Su- 

 matra. The army and the fleet in that region 

 were doing their duty steadfastly and vigor- 

 ously. In all the other possessions of the East 

 Indies quiet prevailed. It was hoped that a 

 peaceful solution of the difficulties with Vene- 

 zuela was assured. The cooperation of the 

 States-General was invoked in the revision of 

 the laws. Propositions would be made for the 

 improvement of the military laws and the re- 



vision of the election laws. A bill respecting 

 elementary education would be submitted. 

 Bills were contemplated concerning railroads 

 and the quarantine laws, bills modifying the 

 tax laws, and bills concerning the regulation 

 of the money standard, both at home and in 

 the Indies, in all of which the cooperation of 

 the States-General was asked. Shortly after 

 the opening of the Chambers, the King ap- 

 pointed Msijor-General Bey en War Minister. 

 On the 25th of September, in the Second Cham- 

 ber, the Minister of Finance brought forward 

 the budget for 1877. The expenditures were 

 estimated at 115,500,000 gulden, of which 10,- 

 000,000 gulden were for the making of rail- 

 ways, 27,000,000 gulden for the payment of 

 interest on tflie public debt, and 4,000,000 gul- 

 den as extraordinary expenditure for improv- 

 ing the national defenses. The receipts were 

 estimated at 107,000,000 gulden, thus showing 

 a deficit of 8,600,000 gulden, which would be 

 covered by the accumulated surpluses from 

 previous budgets and the regular increase in 

 the public revenues. In a discussion in the 

 Second Chamber concerning the affairs of the 

 colonies, Heer van der Putte asked the Gov- 

 ernment to limit its operations to the erection 

 of a few coast-forts. The Colonial Minister 

 replied that he doubted if such a limitation 

 were possible. Speaking in reference to the 

 relations of the country with Venezuela, the 

 Minister of Foreign Affairs remarked that he 

 considered that the formal resumption of diplo- 

 matic relations was very near. On the 24th 

 of November the Second Chamber adopted a 

 money bill which temporarily continued the 

 double (gold and silver) standard of value, and 

 authorized the Minister of Finance to sell sil- 

 ver and buy gold, as circumstances required. 

 The bill likewise provided for the currency of 

 gold and silver in the East Indian colonies, but 

 did not give the Government the right to sell 

 silver further than to limit the circulation of 

 foreign coinage. On the 22d of December the 

 First Chamber, by a vote of 1 6 to 1 1 , rejected the 

 money law passed for Holland, and laid on the 

 table the one relating to the East Indies. On 

 the 1st of December, in the course of the debate 

 on the colonial budget in the Second Chamber, 

 the statement was made by the minister that 

 it was understood that the agricultural laws 

 would be carried out in the East Indies, and 

 the culture of coffee would be maintained by 

 the Government. On the 26th of December, 

 in the Second Chamber, the Minister of War 

 made an explanation of the condition of the 

 defenses of the nation. He suggested that it 

 would be better to consider the subject in a 

 secret session, so that foreigners should not be 

 made acquainted with the present deficiencies. 

 The defenses were weak, and the nation had 

 the right, and ought, to refuse to publish the 

 particulars of its weakness. 



Much interest was attached to the modifica- 

 tions of the electoral law which the Govern- 

 ment intended to propose to the Chambers. 



