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NETHERLANDS, THE. 



raised by nil classes of the population made a 

 change in the plan desirable, so that it was 

 given out that the civil official had come to 

 introduce certain reforms in co-openition with 

 Van der Heyden. At length the progress 

 toward order and prosperity was so manifest, 

 and the outside pressure so strong, that the 

 military governor was relieved, and Pruys 

 van der lloeven assumed the full authority in 

 March, 1881. The new administration was no 

 sooner set up, than tumults and aggressions 

 broke out afresh. 



The documents relating to the rebellion in 

 Acheen, which the Government finally commu- 

 nicated to the Chamber, after repeated refusals, 

 contained evidence showing that the scheming 

 of the American and Italian consuls at Singa- 

 pore was the original cause of the costly mili- 

 tary expedition in Acheen. 



The evil consequences of the silver crisis 

 are felt keenly in Holland, which is the only 

 country in Europe that has clung to the single 

 silver standard a standard originally adopt- 

 ed to secure its financial system from the shocks 

 of monetary crises and disturbances in Lon- 

 don. The Government continues to work 

 in a diplomatic way for the conclusion of an 

 international agreement to preserve the double 

 standard. In the fourteen months ending 

 with October, 1881, the Netherlands Bank lost, 

 through the drain to America, not only all its 

 gold bullion, but 21,950,240 guelders in minted 

 pieces besides. The Minister of Finance ex- 

 pressed a hope of a satisfactory conclusion 

 to the deliberations of the next International 

 Monetary Conference, which meets in April, 

 1882 ; otherwise the Government must choose 

 between withdrawing from circulation and 

 eelling a large part of the heavy silver coins, 

 or accepting a silver currency only, either of 

 which results would be accompanied by serious 

 inconveniences to the country. 



The Transvaal rebellion excited the intensest 

 sympathy in Holland. An address to the 

 British Parliament, composed by Professor 

 Hartung, received the signatures of all the 

 principal citizens of every community, and 

 was circulated in other cities of Europe and in 

 the United States. There was even talk of 

 enlisting a corps of volunteers in Holland for 

 the war. The Netherlands Government, in 

 December, 1880, interceded for the Transvaal 

 .Boers with the British Government, and re- 

 ceived the reply that their representations 

 would be considered, on the condition that no 

 official pressure should be exerted. 



The subject of the North Borneo Company, 

 and the charter granted it by the British Par- 

 liament, was brought up in the Assembly, and 

 Rochussen, who had lately exchanged the post 

 of Embassador at Berlin for the portfolio of 

 the Exterior in the new Cabinet, explained 

 that the British Government disclaimed the 

 intention of asserting any political authority 

 over the territory acquired by the company, 

 which would be in contravention of a treaty 



concluded with Holland in 1829, and the lands 

 would continue, therefore, under the sover- 

 eignty of the Sultans of Brunai and Solok, 

 from whom the company purchased its privi- 



A Government measure for tax reform was 

 thrown out by the Chamber, and the Minister 

 of Finance, in consequence, handed in his 

 portfolio. The minister, Vissering, was a pro- 

 fessor of political economy, and entered the 

 Cabinet at its formation, on August 19, 1879. 

 His defeated measure was a proposal for a two 

 and a half per cent tax on dividends and cou- 

 pons. The Chamber voted in favor of the 

 tax, but amended the bill by exempting all 

 dividends and interest which could be consid- 

 ered as mercantile capital, upon which the bill 

 was withdrawn. The Prime Minister and the 

 Minister for Foreign Affairs took charge of 

 the Finance Department ad interim upon the 

 acceptance of Minister Vissering's resigna- 

 tion in June. In September, the Prime Min- 

 ister, Baron Lynden van Sanderburg, gave 

 up the Ministry of the Exterior, in which he 

 was followed by Rochussen, and became the 

 regular Minister of Finance. It is the twenty- 

 fifth time that the portfolio of the Exterior 

 has changed hands since 1848. The new min- 

 ister entered upon a diplomatic career in 1856 

 as attache to the embassy in Berlin, and was 

 Resident Minister at Copenhagen and at Stock- 

 holm from 1864 to 1869. In 1870 he went to 

 Brussels as Minister Extraordinary and Pleni- 

 potentiary, and in 1871 to Berlin in the same 

 capacity, in which post he remained until he 

 was called into the Cabinet. 



Since the days of Thorbecke the cohesion 

 and discipline of the Liberal majority have 

 been so lax, and the party so divided by per- 

 sonal rivalries and aversions, that the Clerical 

 and Conservative opposition have exerted a 

 greater influence over affairs than the Liberal 

 party, which has been supported by a greatly 

 preponderant majority of voters. The election 

 laws of Holland give the electoral franchise to 

 only a select portion of the people, and of that 

 portion only a small fraction take enough in- 

 terest in the political struggles to deposit their 

 ballots. Usually there are not over 25,000 

 votes cast in the whole country. The exten- 

 sion of the franchise has been talked about by 

 the Liberals for some time, and was in the 

 programme of legislation for the session; but 

 it would have been disadvantageous for the 

 dominant party in the summer elections, and 

 was for that practical reason deferred. 



The general election took place on the 15th 

 of June. The Chamber, before the election, 

 was composed of 52 Liberals, 17 Ultramon- 

 tanes, 12 of the Orthodox Evangelical party, 

 called Anti-Revolutionists, and 5 Conserva- 

 tives. One half the seats were contested, 

 among them those of 29 Liberals. The Roman 

 Catholics and Evangelicals joined efforts to 

 oust the Liberals from power, and gained sev- 

 eral seats, but not enough to give a majority 



