THE AMERICAN-SCAN DIN A VI AN REVIEW 
435 
Denmark 
CJAs the month of April drew to a close the long stubborn labor 
conflicts of the winter reached a final settlement and work was re¬ 
sumed in the trades where it had partially or wholly ceased. Unem¬ 
ployment is now on the decrease and is not much greater than at the 
same time a year ago. tj By the new contracts wages are only re¬ 
duced by an average of 15 percent. Many believe that this is so slight 
a reduction that it will be difficult for Danish industry to compete with 
foreign goods. Time will show whether or not these fears are grounded. 
CJ The general strike declared in Banders lasted a full month and then 
collapsed utterly. Several of the workmen who left their municipal po¬ 
sitions have now lost them for good. <[ Young farm-hands who work 
on an annual or semi-annual contract find from May 1 that their wages 
are reduced 30 percent. These now average between 600-800 kroner 
per year plus board and lodging, as compared to 900-1100 kroner. 
CJIn the political world April was a very quiet month. The “In¬ 
dustrial Party” which has only 3 representatives in the Folketing 
(Lower House) has made strenuous efforts at reorganization and has 
adopted a very long program, according to which it is apparently the 
object of the party to resemble the other civic parties, the Lefts, the 
Conservatives and the Social Democrats as much as possible. C| Par¬ 
liament has discussed and passed the revised Law on Income and 
Property Tax to the State which in its original form only brought in 
10,000,000 kroner annually, whereas under the high war-rate of ex¬ 
change, and with several supplementary amendments it brought in 
400-500,000,000 kroner annually. In its present form it will hardly 
net more than 200-300,000,000 kroner annually. The Govern¬ 
ment has proposed a revision of the Customs laws and this will prob¬ 
ably be passed within the next few months. A new tax (10 percent) 
on the restaurant trade and one on chocolate have been passed. <J The 
Church Laws already proposed, a new Law on Old Pensions for Im¬ 
pecunious and Needy and a new Law on Measures of Defence will 
probably be passed before Parliament adjourns in the summer. C| At 
present every effort is being directed toward neutralizing the effects 
of the war and of the post-bellum crises on state and community and 
toward reducing expenses everywhere possible. €J The careful in¬ 
vestigations of the Committee on Savings have succeeded in reducing 
the annual deficit of the Postal Service by 10,000,000 kroner, or from 
17 to 7 million kroner, and State railroads very considerably. The 
very heavy annual deficit of the Royal Theatre is now being submitted 
to a scrutiny and investigations are also being made of the work done 
by government officials in proportion to salaries paid. On April 
30 a well-known politician, ex-minister of Agriculture (1897-1900), 
the right honorable Alfred Hage, chamberlain, died in his 79th year. 
