738 SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 



SWITZERLAND. 



The population of the principal cities, in 

 1875, was as follows: 



CITIES. Population. 



Christiania 75,986 



Bergen 33.480 



Drontbeim 22,038 



Stavanger 18,923 



Drammen 18,608 



Christiansand 11,696 



The receipts for 1875 amounted to 41,386,- 

 500 crowns (1 crown = $0.26^), and the ex- 



THE NEW STORTHING HOUSE, CHRISTIANIA, NORWAY. 



penditures to 39,091,500 crowns. The public 

 >debt, on December 31, 1875, was 48,307,600 

 crowns. The imports, in 1874, amounted to 

 185,776,000 crowns, and the exports to 121,- 

 198,000 crowns. The war navy, in 1874, con- 



sisted of 91 vessels with 146 guns. The com- 

 mercial navy, in the same year, consisted of 

 7,664 vessels of 1,319,734 tons. The railroads 

 in operation, in 1875, amounted to 557 kilo- 

 metres. The number of Government tele- 

 graph-stations, at the close of 1875, was 109; 

 length of lines, 6,480, and of wires, 11,600 

 kilometres. The number of inland dispatches 

 sent was 469,034 ; of foreign dispatches sent, 

 115,654 ; and of foreign dispatches received, 

 130,233: making a total of 714,921. Including 

 the railroad- telegraphs, the length of lines 

 amounted to 7,175 kilometres, and of wires to 

 12,405 kilometres; the number of stations to 

 171, and the total number of dispatches to 

 781,482. 



The Swedish Parliament was opened by the 

 King on January 19th. In his speech from 

 the throne, referring to his visit in 1875 to 

 Denmark, Germany, and Russia, he laid partic- 

 ular stress on the good feeling entertained by 

 the princes and the people toward Scandinavia, 

 and added that the latter would preserve this 

 feeling by not interfering with foreign rights, 

 but, at the same time, would do everything to 

 preserve its dignity. The First Chamber elected 

 for its president Count Lagerbjelke, and the 

 Second Count Arvid Posse, the leader of the 

 Peasant party. In February both Houses 

 adopted an amendment to the Constitution by 

 which the Council of State was changed into a 

 ministry, with a responsible president at its 

 head. The King, having approved this amend- 

 ment, appointed as President of the Council 

 Baron de Geer. On May 13th both Cham- 

 bers adopted the bill introducing the met- 

 rical system, and on May 19th Parliament 

 adjourned. 



The Storthing of Nor- 

 way met on February 2d, 

 and was opened by the 

 King in person. In March 

 the King ratified the ad- 

 mission of Norway to the 

 Scandinavian monetary 

 union. On May 23d the 

 Storthing resolved to con- 

 tract a loan of 24,000,000 

 crowns for railway pur- 

 poses, which is to bear in- 

 terest at a rate not higher 

 than four and one-third 

 per cent., and is to be 

 payable in from thirty 

 to fifty years. On June 

 13th the Storthing finally 

 adjourned. In Novem- 

 ber the elections for the 

 Storthing resulted in a 

 complete victory for the 

 Opposition. 

 SWITZERLAND, a republic of Central Eu- 

 rope, consisting of twenty-two cantons, three 

 of which are divided each into two indepen- 

 dent half-cantons. The President of the Fed- 

 eral Council for 1876 was Dr. E. Welti, of the 



