BELGIUM. 



91 



down as derived from land-taxes, 18,623,000 

 francs from personal taxes, 7,058,000 francs 

 from trade-licenses, 26,597,000 francs from 

 customs, 40,162,800 francs from excise duties, 

 19,040,000 francs from succession duties, 22,- 

 300,000 francs from registration duties, 6,000,- 

 000 francs from stamps, 122,500,000 francs 

 from railways, 3,000,000 francs from tele- 

 graphs, 8,707,150 francs from the post-office, 

 and the rest from domains and forests, naviga- 

 tion dues, mines, and other sources. Of the 

 329,905,674 francs at which the ordinary ex- 

 penditures are estimated, 104,001,559 francs 

 are assigned to interest on the public debt, 

 4,748,675 francs to the civil list and dotations, 

 15,488,211 francs to the Department of Justice, 

 2,363,210 francs to foreign affairs, 22,535,155 

 francs to the Interior Department, 21,710,961 

 francs to public instruction, 91,961,588 francs 

 to the administration of public works, 46,063,- 

 800 francs to the War Department, 15,856,015 

 francs to the administration of the finances, 

 3,490,000 francs to the gendarmerie, and 

 1,686,500 francs to miscellaneous expenses. 

 There have been almost constant deficits in 

 the ordinary budgets in recent years. In each 

 of the two preceding budgets the estimated 

 excess of expenditures was in the neighbor- 

 hood of 25,000,000 francs. 



The public debt in 1884 amounted to 2,130,- 

 411,115 francs, of which 219,959,632 francs of 

 the old 2 per cent, debt and 746,712,582 francs 

 of 4 per cent, loans issued between 1871 and 

 1879 represent the share of Belgium in the 

 debt contracted before separation from the 

 Netherlands in 1832; 519,859,000 francs are 

 3 per cent, bonds of 1873 to 1882, 134,719,- 

 000 francs a 4 per cent, loan issued in 1880, 

 164,796,000 one issued in 1883, 334,064,266 

 francs 4^ per cent, railroad annuities, and the 

 remainder various annuities. Treasury bonds 

 issued in 1882 at 4 per cent, constitute a float- 

 ing debt of 60,800,000 francs. The debt con- 

 stitutes a burden of 375 francs per head of the 

 population, but the railroad revenue alone cov- 

 ers the interest and amortization. 



Legislation. An act raising the import duty 

 on foreign sugar 5 per cent, and imposing a 

 duty of forty -five francs on cocoa was passed in 

 the beginning of May. The sur-tax on sugar 

 was increased in July from 10 to 15 per cent. 

 A change in the electoral law was enacted in 

 August, the effect of which was to extend the 

 franchise in the rural districts and thereby 

 augment the clerical vote. Leaseholders and 

 occupiers of rented premises were admitted to 

 suffrage on the land-tax census. Another pro- 

 vision, curtailing the liberal vote, counts sala- 

 ries only, and not percentages, as the incomes 

 of salesmen. 



The Congo. In the early part of the year 

 there was rejoicing in Belgium over the results 

 of the Congo Conference and the founding of 

 the new state (see CONGO STATE), mingled with 

 some misgivings at the assumption of the title 

 of sovereign of the state he had created, by 



King Leopold. To the school already estab- 

 lished for the instruction of missionaries to the 

 Congo was added a new African seminary con- 

 nected with the University of Louvain. Smile 

 de Laveleye elaborated a project for a Congo 

 railroad. An enabling act permitting the King 

 to become the head of the Congo State was 

 passed by the Chamber April 29, and by the 

 Senate the following day. The authorization 

 was limited to King Leopold, and does not de- 

 volve on his successors in the dynasty. The 

 bill contained the reservation that the connec- 

 tion between Belgium and the new Congo 

 State is of an exclusively personal nature, in- 

 volving no national responsibilities of a politi- 

 cal or financial character. The acceptance of 

 the sovereignty of the Free State of the Congo 

 was announced by King Leopold in August. 



Industrial Exposition at Antwerp. An interna- 

 tional exhibition was opened at Antwerp May 

 1. The exhibition-grounds were 230 acres in ex- 

 tent; the number of exhibitors was 1,200. The 

 United States was scantily represented. Can- 

 ada displayed the resources of her vast unpeo- 

 pled territories. The French exhibit was the 

 finest and best ordered and much the largest. 

 German industries were well represented. Rus- 

 sia exhibited all the products of her anxiously 

 fostered industries, and the many beautiful 

 natural products and the gorgeous artistic hand- 

 iwork of Muscovy. Italy had a brilliant dis- 

 play of her art-work and of her manifold com- 

 mercial commodities. The Austrian exhibit 

 was large and fine, and those of Switzerland, 

 Sweden and Norway, Spain, and Brazil com- 

 paratively so. The great hall for metals and 

 machinery was the chief glory of the exhibi- 

 tion. The German exhibition of machines was 

 the most varied. The Belgian exhibit of motors 

 and the steam-driven tools for a multitudinous 

 variety of purposes from France were the most 

 interesting features. In electric lighting Ameri- 

 can inventors took the lead; in sugar-manu- 

 facture and chemical industries the Germans. 



International Congresses. A succession of sci- 

 entific and technical conventions took place in 

 Brussels during the year. A congress of rail- 

 road officials from all countries met at Brussels 

 in August, on the fiftieth anniversary of the 

 opening of the first railroad on the Continent, 

 the one running from Brussels to Mechlin. An 

 international congress to discuss internal navi- 

 gation assembled at Brussels in May. In Sep- 

 tember the Institut de Droit International held 

 its sessions. One of the prominent subjects 

 discussed was that of international marriages. 

 The Institut adopted resolutions recommending 

 that a marriage celebrated in due form should 

 not be assailable in other countries because 

 their legal forms are different ; that diplomatic 

 and consular authorities should be empowered 

 to perform the formalities of civil marriage; 

 and that foreigners may be married in coun- 

 tries where religious marriage is required, if 

 they belong to a different religion, according 

 to the legal forms of their own country. With 



