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SERVIA. 



SERVIA, a kingdom in eastern Europe. 

 Complete independence was recognized in the 

 Treaty of Berlin. The Constitution of 1869 

 reaffirmed succession in the family of Obreno- 

 vich, declared the responsibility of the minis- 

 ters to the Assembly, and vested the legislative 

 power in the Skuptschina, jointly with the 

 sovereign. The Senate was transformed into 

 a Council of State, charged with the elabo- 

 ration of laws. The Skuptschina, which is 

 elected for three years, consists of 177 mem- 

 bers, of whom 133 are elected by the people, 

 every tax-payer having a vote, and 44 are 

 appointed by the King. A Great National 

 Assembly, composed of four times the number 

 of the ordinary, is elected to decide on consti- 

 tutional questions. Servia was proclaimed a 

 kingdom March 6, 1882. 



The King, Milan I, is the fourth of the dy- 

 nasty. He was born in August, 1854, and suc- 

 ceeded his cousin, Prince Miehail, assassinated 

 June 10, 1868. The Cabinet is composed of 

 the following members : President of the Coun- 

 cil, Minister of Foreign Affairs, and Minister 

 of Finance, M. Garaschanin ; Minister of the 

 Interior, S. Novakovich ; Minister of Public 

 Works, D. Raipvich; Minister of War, Col. 

 Petrovich; Minister of Justice, D. Marinko- 

 vich ; Minister of Public Instruction and Wor- 

 ship, E. Popovich ; Minister of Agriculture 

 and Commerce, ad interim, J. Gondovich. 



Area and Population. The area of Servia is 

 20,850 square miles, including 4,250 square 

 miles added by the Treaty of Berlin, from 

 which the Turkish population has nearly all 

 emigrated. The population was estimated at 

 the beginning of 1884 to be 1,865,683. The 

 number of marriages in 1883 was 21,991 ; of 

 births, 76,962; of deaths, 47,181; surplus of 

 births, 29,781. The bulk of the population are 

 of the Servic race and the Greek Catholic 

 religion. Belgrade, the capital, contained 36,- 

 177 inhabitants in 1883. 



Finances. The revenue is derived mainly 

 from direct imposts. The budget for 1882-'83 

 makes out the receipts as 34,930,000 dinars, 

 or francs, and the expenditures as 34,469,919 

 dinars. The public debt is over 100,000,000 

 francs, incurred for the construction of the 

 Belgrade and Vranja Railroad, to repay the 

 war requisitions, and lesser sums to compen- 

 sate the disinherited Turkish proprietors, and 

 repay a war debt to Russia, 



The Army. The military forces are made tip 

 of the standing army and the national army. 

 The standing army is employed in time of 

 peace to instruct the national army. Every 

 Serb is obliged to serve two years. The peace 



effective on Jan. 1, 1883, was - 12,979 officers 

 and men. The war effective was 265,000 men. 



Commerce. The chief trade is with Austria, 

 and the principal article of export, live hogs. 

 The leading exports in 1882 were of the fol- 

 lowing quantities: hogs, 240,546; cattle, 19,- 

 170; sheep and goats, 60,588; skins, 1,404,- 

 541 ; rye, 344,813 metric quintals; other cereals, 

 114,310 metric quintals ; dried prunes, 257,594 

 metric quintals; wine, 43,605 metric quintals. 



Railroads. The length of railroads in 1884 

 was 245 kilometres, consisting of the line from 

 Belgrade to Nisb. There was building a line 

 from Nish to Vranja, 90 kilometres in length. 

 The Nish and Belgrade line, built at a cost of 

 90,000,000 francs, was opened September 4. 



Education. The system of state education 

 that has been introduced in Servia is exceed- 

 ingly liberal. Education in the primary schools 

 is free, and compulsory from the age of sevc 

 to tliat of twelve. The normal schools, rt 

 schools, and gymnasiums are free and open 

 every boy. At the age of eighteen any Serb 

 can, upon passing an examination, become a 

 student in the University of Belgrade, which 

 has faculties for science, technicology, philoso- 

 phy, and law. All instruction is gratuitous, 

 and to the sons of poor parents the state allows 

 a stipend. For the liberal professions or the 

 public service, young Serbs nearly always com- 

 plete their education in the universities of 

 Austria, Germany, or France. If unable to 

 defray all their expenses, the Government aids 

 them, and, if entirely without means, allows a 

 student abroad 2,500 francs a year in addition 

 to traveling expenses. 



Election. The election for the Skuptschii 

 which took place February 6, was attended 

 intense but suppressed excitement. The Radi 

 cal party was crushed after the suppression 

 the revolt in the district between the Tim< 

 and the Morava two months before. Its let 

 ers were driven into exile, liberty of the pn 

 and of meeting was suspended, and soldiei 

 were posted in every district. Yet no offic 

 interference and intimidation could countem 

 the impression produced on the minds of tl 

 Servian farmers and herdsmen by a deficit 

 8,000,000 francs which could no longer be con- 

 cealed, new taxes, and fresh military burdei 

 The Radicals and Progressists combined to de- 

 feat the ministerial candidates, and left the 

 Government with a minority too small to be 

 altered by any manipulation of the returns. 

 The Radicals obtained but a few seats, but the 

 Progressists came out much stronger than the 

 Government party, electing 71 members. 



Change of Ministry. Since Cristich was unable 

 to secure a majority with the forty-four mem- 

 bers to be nominated by the Crown, he gave 

 way to a Progressist ministry. The King sum- 

 moned M. Garashanin, who had been a member 

 of the Pirotshanetz Cabinet, and was serving at 

 the time as minister to Austria. The Cristich 

 ministry announced a Government victory, and 

 with the aid of M. Garashanin endeavored to 



