Subjoined is a tabular statement giving the total value of the exports from Sweden to Great Britain and Ireland, and of the imports of British and Irish produce into Sweden, in each of the five years from 1883 to 1887: The staple article of export from Sweden to the United Kingdom consists of wood and timber. The total exports o Great Britain of wood and timber, including house frames, mounted to 4,390,4177. in 1877, to 3,397,3811. in 1883, to 3,031,6567. in 1884, to 3,134,9747. in 1885, to 2,672,6077. in 1886, and to 2,720,7271. in 1887. Next to wood and timber, the most important article of export is oats, sent, to the value of 1,272,2987. in 1885, 1,305,9717. in 1886, and 936,9727. in 1887, to the United Kingdom. Of other exports to Great Britain, the chief are barron valued 895,7271.; butter and butterine, valued 881,1107.; iron and steel manufactures, 424,6817.; and live animals, valued 160,5731., in the year 1887. The imports of British home produce ure of a miscellaneous nature; the most notable were iron, wrought and unwrought, of the value of 320,1177.; coals, of the value of 176,6871.; cotton yarn and manufactures, valued 254,2911.; machinery 130,2267. in 1887. Of the total land area of Sweden 7.8 per cent. is under cultivaion, 4-4 per cent. under natural meadows, and 44:7 per cent. under, orests, the products of which form a staple export. Of the cultivated land one-half is under cereal crops, the principal crop being bats, which yielded 19,915,100 hectolitres in 1887. Large quan crops in 1887 was estimated at 175 million kronor. In 1886 Swede had 484,885 horses, 2,381,467 oxen, 1,443,676 sheep and lamb In 1880, 34,000 head of cattle and 29,000 sheep were exported, 1886 respectively 25,000 and 30,000. Mining is one of the most important departments of Swedish ind try, and the working of the iron mines in particular is making costant progress by the introduction of new machinery. There we raised in the year 1886, throughout the kingdom, 20,409,976 cente (1 centner 93.5 lbs.) of iron ore. The pig iron produced amounted to 10,297,821 centner; the bar iron to 5,578,530 centner, and t steel to 1,840,402 centner. Of iron ore in 1882 20,197, in 188 34,320, in 1884 39,602, in 1885 25,816, and in 1886 19,288 to were exported; 55,732 tons pig iron in 1882, 52,313 in 1883, 54,42 in 1884, 47,527 in 1885, and 58,139 in 1886; 153,802 tons b iron in 1882, 133,255 tons in 1883, 125,420 tons in 1884, 177,316 in 1885, and 165,067 in 1886. There were also raised in 1886 4,562 lbs. of silver, 12,419 cwt. of copper, and 1,166,172 cwt. zinc ore. There are not inconsiderable veins of coal in the souther parts of Sweden, giving 8,134,877 Swedish cubic feet of coal in 1886. In 1886 there were 29,347 persons engaged in mining. The commercial navy of Sweden, in the beginning of 188 numbered 3,936 vessels, of a burthen of 500,395 tons, of whic total 3,033 vessels, of 385,512 tons burthen, were sailing vessels, an 903 vessels, of 114,883 tons burthen, were steamers. The port Göteborg had the largest shipping in 1887-namely, 254 resses of 89,349 tons; and next to it came Stockholm, possessing 258 rese of a total burthen of 32,135 tons. In 1886, 10,783 vessels, with cargoes of 2,184,814 tons, entered, and 15,769 of 3,304,751 tocs cleared Swedish ports. At the end of 1887 the total length of railways in Sweden wa 7,388 kilometer, of which 2,496 belonged to the State. The receipts in 1886 were 37,996,845 kronor, and expenses 23,732,781 kronor. The total cost of construction for the State railways to the end of 1886 was 243,191,080 kronor, and for private railways 256,000,000 kronor. All the telegraphs in Sweden, with the exception of those of private railway companies, belong to the State. The total length of all the telegraph lines at the end of 1887 was 8,345 kilometer, and of wires 21,304 kilometer. The number of despatches sent in the was 1,242,374. year 1887 The Swedish Post Office carried 101,149,095 letters, post-car's journals, &c., in the year 1886. The number of post-offices at the end of the year was 2,103. The total receipts of the Post Office is 1886 amounted to 6,106,476 kronor, and the total expenditure $96,960 kronor, leaving a surplus of 209,516 kronor. 7 II. NORWAY. Constitution and Government. The Constitution of Norway, called the Grundlov, bears dat November 4, 1814, with several modifications passed at various times up to 1884. It vests the legislative power of the realm in the Storthing, or Great Court, the representative of the sovereign people. The king, however, possesses the right of veto over laws passed by the Storthing, but, except in constitutional matters, only for a limited period. The royal veto may be exercised twice; but if the same bill pass three Storthings formed by separate and subsequent elections, it becomes the law of the land without the assent of the sovereign. The king has the command of the land and sea forces, and makes all appointments, but, except in a few cases, is not allowed to nominate any but Norwegians to public offices under the crown. The Storthing assembles every year. New elections take place every three years. The meetings take place suo jure, and not by any writ from the king or the executive. They begin in February each year, and must receive the sanction of the king to sit longer than two months. Every Norwegian citizen of 25 years of age who in the year before the election has paid income tax, on an annual income of, at least, 500 kroner in the country districts or 800 kroner in the towns (provided that he has resided for one year in the electoral district at the time when the election takes place, and that he does not belong to the household of another as a servant), or who is, or has been a public functionary, or possesses property in land, or has been tenant of such property for five years at least, or is a burgess of any town, or possesses real property in a town to the value of 600 kroner, is entitled to elect. Under the same conditions citizens thirty years of age, and settled in Norway for at least ten years, are entitled to be elected. The mode of election is indirect. Towards the end of every third year the people choose their deputies, at the rate of one to fifty voters in towns, where the election is administered by the magistrate, and one to a hundred in rural sub-districts, where they meet in the 1. Com Minis Depar Bosted Depar parish church under the presidency of the parish minister. The deputies afterwards assemble and elect among themselves, or from among the other qualified voters of the district, the Storthing re presentatives. No new election takes place for vacancies, which are filled by the persons who received the second largest number of votes. The number of electors in 1885 was 122,952, or 6.28 per $, 1858 cent. of total population, while 92,308 votes, or 75.1 of the whole number, were recorded. Of the total male population, 45 per cent. are 25 years of age and above. The Storthing has 114 members38 from towns, 76 from rural districts. Depar Depar 3,1888 Depar ted Depa Revis int IL Del Hans Baar Peter The Storthing, when assembled, divides itself into two houses, the 'Lagthing' and the 'Odelsthing.' The former is composed of onefourth of the members of the Storthing, and the other of the remaining three-fourths. All new bills, whether presented by the government or a member of the 'Odelsthing,' must originate in the Odelsthing,' from which they pass into the 'Lagthing,' to be either accepted or rejected. If in the latter case the Odelsthing' and 'Lagthing' after renewed consideration do not agree, the two Houses assemble in common sitting to deliberate on the measure, and the final decision is given by a majority of two-thirds of the voters. The ordinary business of the Storthing is to settle the taxes for the next year, to vote the amounts required for the public expenditure, to supervise the administration of the revenue, and to enact, repeal, or alter any laws of the country. But the Storthing can also form itself into a high court of justice, for the impeachment and trial of ministers, members of the chief court of justice, and members of the Storthing for delicts committed by them in performing their official duties. The bill of accusation must always come from the 'Odelsthing' and be brought from thence before the 'Lagthing,' sitting for the occasion, together with the Chief Court of Justice, as 'Rigsretten,' or supreme of the realm. Before pronouncing its own dissolution, every Storthing elects five delegates, whose duty it is to revise the public accounts. While in session, every member of the Storthing has an allowance of twelve kroner a day, besides travelling expenses. tribunal The and wi near The executive is represented by the king, who exercises his authority through a Council of State, composed of two Ministers of State and at least seven Councillors. Two of the Councillors, who change every year, together with one of the Ministers, form a delegation of the Council of State, residing at Stockholm, the king. Ministers and Councillors of State are, since July 1884, entitled to be present in the Storthing and to take part in the discussions, when public, but without a vote. The following are the members of the Council of State : E I. Council of State at Christiania. Minister of State.-Johan Sverdrup, appointed June 26, 1884. Department of Education and Ecclesiastical Affairs.-Jakob Liv Rosted Sverdrup, appointed June 26, 1884. Department of Justice.-Walter Scott Dahl, appointed March 5, 1888. Department of the Interior.-Vacant. Department of Public Works.-Oscar Jacobsen, appointed March 5, 1888. Department of Finance and Customs.-Olaf Johan Olsen, appointed July 19, 1888. Department of Defence.-J. Sverdrup, Minister of State. Revision of Public Accounts Department.-Lars Knutsen Liestöl appointed March 5, 1888. II. Delegation of the Council at Stockholm. Hans Georg Jacob Stang, Minister of State, appointed July 19 1888. Baard Madsen Haugland, appointed June 26, 1884. Peter Olrog Schjött, appointed March 13, 1888. Religion and Education. The inhabitants of the kingdom are almost entirely Protestants and with the exception of 7,238 dissenters (census 1875) adhere to the Lutheran Church. All creeds, the order of the Jesuits excepted, are tolerated, but only Lutherans are regularly admitted to the highest offices. Education is compulsory, the school age being seven in town and eight in the country, until fourteen. The number of public elementary schools in 1885 (the latest date for which there are statistics) was 6,418, with 261,392 pupils; the amount expended on them being 258,9801. raised for the greater part by a tax levied in every parish. Almost every town supports a superior school; and in seventeen of the principal towns is an 'offentlig skole,' or college, maintained partly by subsidies from the government. The number of pupils at these seventeen public high schools in 1885 was 3,445. Christiania has a university, which was attended in 1887 by 1,700 students. Revenue and Expenditure. The financial estimates are voted by the Storthing for the term of one year. |