662 



SWEDEN AND NORWAY. 



SWITZERLAND. 



Finances. The revenue for the nine months 

 ending March 31, 1900, was 78,827,000 kroner, of 

 which 5,253,000 kroner came from direct taxes, 

 36,526,000 kroner from indirect taxes, and 24,- 

 135,000 kroner from other sources. The ex- 

 penditures during the same period amounted 

 to 75,963,000 kroner, of which 20,7/2,000 kroner 

 were for defense, 5,344,000 kroner for debt, 18,569,- 

 000 kroner for public works, and 31,278,000 

 kroner for general purposes of government. For 

 the year ending March 31, 1901, the total reve- 

 nue was estimated at 99,641,070 kroner, including 

 a cash balance of 3,763,200 kroner and 14,357,113 

 kroner raised by loan for railroads, telegraphs, 

 and telephones, and expenditure was estimated at 

 the same sum. For the year ending March 31, 

 1902, the budget balanced at 97,300,000 kroner. 

 Of the revenue the income tax yielded 5,300,000 

 kroner, customs duties 35,000,000 kroner, the 

 excise tax on spirits, 4,800,000 kroner, the malt 

 tax 4,100,000 kroner, the succession tax 800,000 

 kroner, stamp 1,170,000 kroner, judicial fees 

 1,100,000 kroner, mines 449,000 kroner, the post- 

 office 5,300,000 kroner, telegraphs 3,500,000 kro- 

 ner, state property 4,105,154 kroner, railroads 

 12,608,600 kroner, miscellaneous sources 7,622,453 

 kroner, and loans for railroads, telegraphs, and 

 telephones 11,444,793 kroner. Of the expenditures 

 the civil list took 592,032 kroner, the Storthing 

 732,000 kroner, the ministries 1,621,776 kroner, 

 the Church and education 10,089,485 kroner, jus- 

 tice 7,263,929 kroner, the interior 3,709.929 kroner, 

 the post-office, telegraphs, etc., 10,330,330 kroner, 

 state railroads 19,943,174 kroner, roads, canals, 

 and posts, 4,664,176 kroner, finance and customs 

 4,282,572 kroner, mines 608,150 kroner, amortiza- 

 tion of debt 2,591,559 kroner, interest 7,481,357 

 kroner, the army 13,809,600 kroner, the navy 

 4,120,000 kroner, foreign affairs 781,158 kroner, 

 miscellaneous expenses 4,678,773 kroner. 



The amount of the public debt on March 31, 

 1900, was 231,064,994 kroner. Rural communes 

 raised 13,377,606 kronerof taxes in 1899 and towns 

 15,371,137 kroner. A loan of 35,000,000 kroner at 

 3 per cent, redeemable in sixty years was obtained 

 from Scandinavian banks in January, 1902. 



The Army and Navy. The land 'forces of the 

 kingdom are divided into troops of the line, the 

 Landvaern and the Landsturm. Without the con- 

 sent of the Storthing the troops of the line ac- 

 tually under arms must never, even in time of war, 

 exceed 18,000 men. They number about 30,000 

 men, with 900 officers, and the Landvaern and Land- 

 Sturm number about 50,000, with 800 officers. 



Norway has a small navy for coast-defense 

 consisting of 4 English-built turret-ships, 4 mon- 

 itors, 31 gunboats, and 31 torpedo-boats. 



Commerce and Production. There were 

 185,605 hectares under cereal crops in 1900, yield- 

 ing 102,010 hectoliters of wheat, 1,284,230 hecto- 

 liters of barley, 3,401,250 hectoliters of oats, 301,- 

 940 hectoliters of rye, and 442,940 hectoliters of 

 mixed grain. The production of peas was 76,680 

 hectoliters. The potato-crop from 39,122 hectares 

 was 8,640,390 hectoliters. Grain and flour for 

 51,182,000 kroner were imported in 1899, the 

 value of rye being 20,530,900 kroner. The value 

 of meat imports was 8,223,600 kroner. The value 

 of mineral products in 1899 was 4,642,600 kroner; 

 of furnace products, 1,757,000 kroner. The catch 

 of cod in 1899 was valued at 11,122,000 kroner; 

 herring, 6,636,000 kroner; mackerel, 374,000 

 kroner; salmon and sea trout, 946,000 kroner; 

 other fish, 4,663,000 kroner; lobsters, 544,000 

 kroner; oysters, 5,845 kroner; total value of fish- 

 eries, 24,291,000 kroner, in addition to which the 

 North Sea mackerel fisheries, the bank fisheries, 

 and the whale, walrus, and shark fisheries 

 brought in 3,400,000 kroner. 



The total value of imports of foreign merchan- 

 dise in 1900 was 310,658,100 kroner. The exports 

 of Norwegian produce was valued at 162,745,100 

 kroner; foreign exports, 10,201,300 kroner. 



Change of Ministry. The Steen ministry re- 

 signed on account of internal differences, and or. 

 April 16 and on April 18 Minister of State Blehr 

 formed a new ministry as follows: President o:: 

 the Council and Minister of the Interior, Herr 

 Blehr; Minister of State at Stockholm, Herr 

 Qvam; Minister of Justice, Herr Arstad; member 

 of the section at Stockholm, Dr. Sigurd Ibsen. 

 The Swedish Government had consented in prin- 

 ciple to the separation of the consular represen- 

 tation of the two kingdoms after a contest con- 

 ducted by the retiring Minister-President for ten 

 years. Sweden still desired a common control 

 over consuls. The Storthing in May unanimous- 

 ly resolved to urge the question of the perma- 

 nent neutrality of Sweden and Norway. A com- 

 mission was appointed for the reorganization of 

 the Norwegian army. 



SWITZERLAND, a federal republic in cen- 

 tral Europe. The legislative power is vested in 

 the Federal Assembly, which is composed of the 

 National Council, of 147 members elected for three 

 years by adult male suffrage, and the State Coun- 

 cil, of 44 members elected in the cantons, some by 

 the legislative bodies, others by the direct votes 

 of the people. The executive power is vested in 

 the Federal Council, the members of which an? 

 elected for three years by the Federal Assembly. 

 The Federal Council elects one of its members to 

 serve for the ensuing year as President of the Swisi 

 Confederation and one to be Vice-President. Ac- 

 cording to custom the Vice-President is chosen to 

 succeed to the presidency at the next annual elec- 

 tion. The Federal Council in the beginning of 

 1902 was composed of the following members: 

 President of the Confederation and Chief of the 

 Political Department. Dr. E. Brenner, of Basel; 

 Vice-President and Chief of the Department of 

 Posts and Railroads, Dr. Joseph Zemp, of Lu- 

 cerne; Chief of the Interior Department, M. 11. 

 Ruchet, of Vaud; Chief of the Department of 

 Justice and Police, R. Comtesse, of Neuchatel; 

 Chief of the Military Department, E. Miiller. of 

 Bern; Chief of the 'Department of Finance and 

 Customs, W. Hauser, of Ziirich; Chief of the 

 Department of Commerce. Industry, and Agri- 

 culture, Dr. A. Deuchor. of Thurgau. 



Area and Population. The area of Switze;'- 

 land is 15.976 square miles. The legal population 

 at the census of Dec. 1, 1900, was 3.315,443. Tlie 

 population present was 3,325,023. In 18 cantoris 



