486 



NETHERLANDS. 



Van Wyck 68,617, Bentley 6,235. The Repub- 

 licans elected their candidates in the Second, 

 Third, and Fourth Congressional Districts ; the 

 Democrats were successful in the First District, 

 and the Independents in the Fifth and Sixth 

 Districts. Members of the Legislature were 

 chosen as follow: Senate Republicans 15, 

 Independents 14, Democrats 5 ; House Repub- 

 licans 47, Independents 40, Democrats 12. 



At the same election two constitutional amend- 

 ments were submitted to the people, and both 

 were adopted. The amendment providing for 

 the election of a board of railroad commis- 

 sioners by the people received 80,032 affirmative 

 and 14,185 negative votes. The amendment 

 authorizing the investment of the permanent 

 school fund in registered school district bonds 

 received 84,426 affirmative and 11,258 negative 

 votes. 



NETHERLANDS, a constitutional monarchy 

 in western Europe. The legislative authority 

 rests conjointly in the sovereign and the Parlia- 

 ment. The latter is called the States-General, 

 and consists of 2 Chambers. The Upper or First 

 Chamber is composed of 50 members, elected by 

 the citizens most highly assessed by the provin- 

 cial governments. The Second Chamber num- 

 bers 100 Deputies, and is elected by male citizens 

 twenty-three years old who pay a ground tax of 

 at least 10 guilders or a personal tax of a higher 

 amount than the limit of partial exemption from 

 taxation, or who are lodgers as defined by the 

 law. The period of election is four years for the 

 Second Chamber and nine years for the First 

 Chamber, the former retiring in a body, and of 

 the latter one third is replaced every three years, 

 The King has the power of dissolving either 

 Chamber or both, new elections to be held with- 

 in forty days, and the new Chambers to be con- 

 voked within two months. The First Chamber 

 can not introduce new bills ; it can only approve 

 or reject those introduced by the Government 

 or the Second Chamber, and can not even amend 

 such bills. Constitutional amendments can only 

 be made by a bill explaining the reasons for the 

 change, which must be confirmed by the Cham- 

 bers, and then, after their dissolution, must be 

 ratified by the new Chambers by a two-third 

 majority. 



The reigning sovereign is Wilhelmina Helena 

 Pauline Maria, born Aug. 31, 1880, daughter of 

 the late King Willem III by his second wife, 

 Princess Emma of Waldeck, who acts as Regent 

 during the infancy of the Queen. 



The ministry in the beginning of 1892 was 

 composed of the following members: Minister 

 of Foreign Affairs and President of the Minis- 

 terial Council, Dr. G. van Tienhoven, appointed 

 Aug. 20, 1891 ; Minister of the Interior, Dr. I. 

 P. Tak van Poortvliet; Minister of Finance, Dr. 

 H. Gr. Pierson ; Minister of Justice, Dr. H. I. 

 Smidt; Minister of the Colonies, Dr. W. K. 

 Baron van Dedem ; Minister of Marine, J. C. 

 Jansen; Minister of War, A. L. W. Seyffardt; 

 Minister of Public Works, C. Lely. 



Area and Population. Trie area of the 

 kingdom is 12,648 square miles. The estimated 

 population on Dec. 31, 1890, was 4,564,565, of 

 whom 2,255,681 were males and 2,308,884 were 

 females. The number of marriages in 1890 was 

 32,304 ; the number of births, 149,329 ; and the 



number of deaths, 93,246 ; thus leaving a sur- 

 plus of births over deaths of 56,083. Of 17,136 

 people who emigrated in 1890, 3,526 were Dutch, 

 the remainder foreigners ; 3,282 Dutchmen emi- 

 grated to the United States, 167 to South Ameri- 

 ca, and 77 to Africa. The principal cities of the 

 kingdom are Amsterdam, with a population of 

 417,539 in 1890; Rotterdam, with 209,136 in- 

 habitants : the Hague, containing 160,531 peo- 

 ple; Utrecht, with 86,116 inhabitants; and Gro- 

 ningen, with 56,413. 



Finances. The budget for 1892 estimates 

 the revenue at 127,600,150 guilders, of which 

 12,502,000 guilders are derived from land taxes, 

 11,498,000 guilders from personal taxes, 4,528,- 

 000 guilders from patents, 44,720,000 guilders 

 from excise duties, 23,638,000 guilders from indi- 

 rect taxes, 5,710,800 guilders from import duties, 

 235,900 guilders from tax on gold and silver, 2,- 

 330,000 guilders from domains, 7,100,000 guilders 

 from the post office, 1,368,000 guilders from the 

 telegraph service, 661,500 guilders from state lot- 

 tery, 140,000 guilders from shooting and fishing 

 licenses, 1,350,000 guilders from pilot dues, 7,250 

 guilders from dues on mines, 4,345,000 guilders 

 from state railroads, and 7,465,700 guilders from 

 miscellaneous receipts. The expenditure is esti- 

 mated at 129,959,036 guilders, of which 811,000 

 guilders are for the civil list, 653,555 guilders 

 for the legislative body and royal Cabinet, 756,- 

 173 guilders for the Department of Foreign 

 Affairs, 5,232,774 guilders for the Department 

 of Justice, 11,644,604 guilders for the Depart- 

 ment of the Interior, 14,080,420 guilders for the 

 Marine, 18,959,546 guilders for the Department 

 of Finance, 21,299,268 guilders for the Depart- 

 ment of War, 20.272,812 guilders for the Depart- 

 ment of Public Works, 1,200,071 guilders for the 

 Department of Colonies, 34,998,813 guilders for 

 public debt, and 50,000 guilders for contingen- 

 cies. 



The total funded debt in 1892 amounted to 

 1,091,447,073 guilders, of which 630,567,200 guil- 

 ders pay 2 per cent, interest, 94,642,800 guilders 

 3 per cent., and the bulk of the remainder 3| 

 per cent, interest. The interest charge on the 

 funded debt amounted to 31,592,955 guilders, 

 the sinking fund to 2,645,800 guilders, the float- 

 ing debt to 500,000 guilders, and annuities to 

 260,057 guilders. The paper money in circula- 

 tion amounted to 15,000,000 guilders. 



(For statistics of the army and navy, see the 

 " Annual Cyclopedia " for 1890.) 



Commerce and Production. The value of 

 trade with the leading countries in 1890 is set 

 forth in the following table, in guilders : 



The total estimated value of the imports for 

 home consumption in 1890 amounted to 1,299,- 

 750,000 guilders, and the estimates of the ex- 



