Standing army...
Imperial Royal Landwehr..
Royal Hungarian Landwehr
Staffs
Gensdarmes and military
police.......

Army studs..

Total...

24

148

1,069 24 1,069 5,095 148 5,095

16,635 275,531 29,753 1,013,953

The naval forces at the end of the year 1878

consisted of 14 ironclads and 37 other steam

ers, the majority of the latter of small dimensions, constructed chiefly for coast defense.

The total length of railways in operation on January 1, 1878, was: In Austria Proper, 11,211 kilometres; in Hungary, 6,773 kilometres; total, 17,984. The length of the telegraph lines and wires, and the number of stations and messages carried were in 1877 as follows:

8,659 of forest and woodland, 2,750 of meadow and pasturage, and 530 of sterile soil; altogether, 16,438 square miles. The population includes 325,020 Mussulmans, 390,460 Orthodox Greek Christians, 136,287 Roman Catholics, 2,145 Jews, and 8,290 gypsies; total, 862,202. The occupied portion of the sanjak of NoviBazar has 700 square miles under cultivation, 1,592 of forest and woodland, 509 of pastureland, and 721 of mere sterile desert; altogether, 3,522 square miles. The population is set down at 61,150 Mussulmans, 79,948 Oriental Greek Christians, 95 Jews, and 807 gypsies; total, 142,000. The Herzegovina has 806 square miles under cultivation, 849 of forest, 573 of pasturage and meadow, and 2,080 of sterile soil; altogether, 4,308 square miles. The population is composed of 56,000 Mussulmans, 101,348 Orthodox Greeks, 49,217 Roman Catholics, 65 Jews, and 1,340 gypsies; total, 207,970. The entire area of the occupied provinces therefore amounts to 24,277 square miles, and includes a total of 6,005 square miles under cultivation, 11,100 of forest and woodland, 3,841 of meadow and pasture land, and 3,331 of sterile soil, most of which is probably irreThis population is distributed as follows: 442,claimable, with a total population of 1,212,172. whole; 571,756 Orthodox Greeks, or 47.17 170 Mussulmans, or 36-48 per cent. of the per cent.; 185,504 Roman Catholics, or 15-31 per cent.; 2,305 Jews, or 0.18 per cent.; and 10,437 gypsies, or 0.86 per cent.

The Reichsrath reassembled after the Christaction of some minor business, began the dismas recess on January 15th, and, after the transcussion of the Treaty of Berlin. There were 28 speakers announced against and 12 for the treaty. In the general debate Pächer moved to reject the treaty and to proceed to the order of the day. Dunajewski denied the right of the Reichsrath to come to a decision on the resolutions of a European Congress, and moved that the House receive the treaty. Deputy Fux of Znaim also spoke against the treaty, and moved the order of the day, or, in case the treaty be accepted, a declaration with regard to the constitutional difficulties in the way of the occupation. The debate was then adjourned. It was continued on the 21st, when the report of the committee was made. Pro

fessor Ed. Süss, the reporter of the majority of the committee, confined himself to moving that the constitutional sanction be given to the Treaty of Berlin. He was followed by Dr. Herbst, the reporter of the minority, who stated that the House undoubtedly had the privilege to criticise the events which had come over Austria, and had inflicted on the country and the citizens such heavy burdens. He added that the policy of presenting to the country faits accomplis, which had been inaugurated so successfully by the Government, was continued uninterruptedly; that every day new faits accomplis were created; and that every day new interrogation marks were placed after the provisions of the Constitution. He also referred to the address of the Emperor of last November, and declared that since that time no change had taken place to satisfy the people. He closed his address as follows: "This is a difficult time for parliaments, not only in Austria but in all of Europe. The free speech of the individual is to be restricted, but it would be a still greater crime if the Chamber of Deputies was to renounce its free speech." The debate ended on the 25th, in the acceptance of the Treaty of Berlin by 154 votes against 112, together with the resolution proposed by the Left Centre expressing the conviction that in the direction of foreign affairs the Government would henceforth take into due consideration the views expressed by the House in its address to the Crown on November 5, 1878, regarding the serious financial position and constitutional complications to be apprehended from the occupation of Bosnia. Unlike the first debate on this subject, the debate on this occasion grew more and more animated toward the end, attracting universal popular attention. This was due to the cireumstance that the internal strife of the different fractions of the Constitutional party, subdued in the earlier debate by a compromise, eame this time, after the failure of the compromise, to the front. Added to this, while in the former debate on the address the Government maintained almost a passive attitude, Dr. Unger, its best speaker, came forward in the latter debate, and in a brilliant constitutional exposé set forth the anomalies which must needs arise if the paragraph of the Constitution giving the Reichsrath the right of accepting or rejecting international treaties were taken too literally and applied without due discrimination. This brought to the front the constitutional question, in which most of those now in opposition had made their reputation, and afforded them an opportunity to remind their adversaries that they had become faithless to their colors. In the heat of the debate personal attacks and rejoinders became more and more frequent, till toward the end a warm discussion was developed such as had not been heard for years in the House. The effect of all this was, that the schism and decomposition of the Constitutional party, long patent by the

proceedings of the clubs, but hitherto deferred or prevented by a series of compromises from appearing in the House, now came openly to light there, manifesting such an intense revulsion that any further attempts to solder the broken party seemed hopeless. There had been many causes gradually leading to this result, the principal one being that the party had in the course of time lost, so to speak, its right of existence in a country endowed with a parliamentary Government. In face of the combination of Clericals, Federalists, and Nationalists in the time of the Hohenwart Ministry, and of the Czechist fundamental articles threatening destruction to the work of compromise effected in 1867, and aiming to upset the dualistic organization of Austro-Hungary, the gathering together of all the German liberal elements, however antagonistic otherwise, in the one purpose of upholding the present Constitution, insuring the virtual supremacy of the German element in Austria and the consolidation of parliamentary government, was nothing but an act of self-defense. Great, too, had been the results of this combination within the past seven years. By substituting for the deputation of the provincial Diets direct elections to the Reichsrath, the power of particularism had been broken and the supremacy of the Reichsrath fully established; while by the regular working of parliamentary government the vitality of the new liberal institutions had been more and more demonstrated, and the system had recommended itself to the public, more and more gaining the bulk of the population. The more, however, the object for which the party had been formed was attained, the bond hitherto keeping the party together was loosed. The most timid among the defenders of the Constitution ceased to fear a reaction, and even the most obstinate among its opponents, the Czechs, despaired of their cause. The dissimilar elements, therefore, comprising all political shades, being no longer held together by a common object, necessarily began to resolve themselves into their original shape. In the beginning of February the Emperor recalled Count Taaffe, Governor of the Tyrol, and intrusted him with the formation of a new cabinet. On February 4th all the subjects awaiting discussion in the Lower House of the Reichsrath were removed from the order of the day, pending the definitive appointment of a ministry. In the beginning of February the Upper House of the Reichsrath adopted the report of the committee on the Treaty of Berlin, recommending its adoption, unanimously and without debate. On the 11th an imperial decree was published accepting the resignation of the Minister President Prince Auersperg, and of the Minister without portfolio Dr. Unger, and appointing Dr. Stremayr President of the Council, Count Taaffe Minister of the Interior, and reappointing the former Ministers to their posts. Even those most opposed to such a solution saw no alternative after the

failure of the attempts to form what might be called a Parliamentary Ministry in the strict sense of the word, supported by a clear and compact majority. Two attempts in the latter direction had been made, the first by Baron Pretis-Cagnodo, which aimed at forming a majority by the fusion of the different fractions of the Constitutional party, and the second by Count Taaffe, who took as the basis of his combination the two more Conservative fractions of the Constitutional party, round which should be grouped some of the fractions outside that political body. Both these schemes, however, failed, and the hope of forming in the present Parliament a compact working majority had to be abandoned. Nothing remained but to tide over the time till the general election, which must be the principal task of the reconstituted Ministry.

The new Ministry met on February 18th in the Reichsrath, and Dr. Stremayr made a declaration, in which he alluded to the attempts made to form a new Cabinet. Besides the difficulties of the general political situation, he said, the circumstance that the duration of the present Parliament would end in the course of the current year proved an insuperable obstacle. This decided the position of the present Cabinet. It had no programme of the future, no new policy to announce; its main office was to guard against any interruption in the constitutional working of Parliament and in the administration. As to the principles directing the Ministry in this province, the House had known them for seven years. In regard to the work to be done, there were, above all, the budget and the bills connected with it. With reference to Eastern affairs, which so deeply affect the interests of the monarchy, a precise and positive basis had been laid down for them by the Treaty of Berlin. Taking its stand on this instrument, the Government would esteem it its duty to execute fully the task assigned it by the Powers. The Government would seek to avoid all constitutional complications and further sacrifices, as far as they regarded it compatible with the honor and security of the monarchy. After voting the budget, the session of the Reichsrath was closed on May 17th by the Emperor. In the speech from the throne he said that the sacrifices which had been made by the country had rendered it possible for the Government, in the interest of the maintenance of peace, to employ all its influence in consolidating the work achieved by Europe in the East, and that the attainment of this object was near at hand. The elections for the new Reichsrath were held during June and July, and resulted in a loss of seats by the Liberal party. Of the deputies elected, 173 belonged to the different Liberal fractions and 175 to the Conservatives. From these figures it will be seen that the two parties nearly balanced each other, and that if they both were compact parties neither could furnish a working majority. There were,

however, no signs of cohesion on either side. Among the 173 of the so-called Constitutional party, there were the representatives of all the clubs into which the party was divided in the previous session-that is, the Left Center, the Left, and the new and old Fortschritt Clubs. On the other side were reckoned the Clericals, the Czechs, the Poles, and the Slovenes, a conglomeration as mixed as, if not more so, than the other party. A new Cabinet was formed on August 14th under the presidency of Count Eduard Taaffe. (See above.)

An important political conference was held on August 31st at Linz, in which all the newly elected German liberal members of the Reichsrath took part. It was called for the purpose of determining the position of the party toward the new Ministry, which comprised Liberals, Czechs, Clericals, and Feudals. It was unanimously resolved at this meeting that the composition of the present Cabinet did not justify its support by the German Liberal Constitutional party. The leaders of the different groups of the opposition to the Liberal party held a meeting about two weeks later, under the presidency of the Count Hohenwart, and resolved to act as a united Right. In the beginning of October an autograph letter of the Emperor was published, acceding to Prince Carlos Auersperg's repeated request to be relieved, on account of ill health, of the post of President of the Upper House of the Reichsrath. On September 30th the Emperor appointed Count Trautmannsdorf in his place.

The Reichsrath met on October 7th, but the formal opening did not take place till the next day. In his speech from the throne, the Emperor referred with pleasure to the fact that the Bohemian delegates, who formerly had declined to enter Parliament, had taken their seats, and stated that an important step had thus been taken to secure that general reconciliation and agreement which have always been his wish. Among the measures which would probably come before Parliament, he mentioned decrees relating to the military system of the country, laws relating to Bosnia and Herzegovina, and the revision of treaties and trading laws. With regard to foreign affairs he said:

It is with great satisfaction that I record the undisturbed continuation of friendly relations with other Powers. The Berlin Treaty has been carried out in all its essential conditions. The entry into the san

jak of Novi-Bazar has been made upon the basis of that treaty, in friendly accord with the Porte. The Government is now in a position, and it will be its principal task, to devote its earnest and full attention to cherishing with unremitting care its economical relations with the East.

Referring to the finances, he said:

The endeavor to recover an equilibrium in the finances by careful arrangement will above all things concern you, and this also applies to the war budget; so far only, however, as may appear compatible with the position and safety of the empire. A considerable diminution of the expenditure has, through the simplification in the administration of the individual

departments of the public service, been arranged, and in respect to this I have ordered the submission of appropriate proposals. The covering of the deficit which the next budget may show should be effected without calling upon the state credit, and without injuring the productive power by increasing the revenue. These proposals will form the subject of your earnest consideration because the contemplated reform in reference to direct taxation undertaken in previous sessions has not been carried out. My Government will submit new proposals, making use of previous preparatory researches, and I hope that the Reichsrath will at last succeed in bringing about the improvements so pressing in our system of taxation in the interests of à more just division of the burdens.

A conference of the Constitutional members of the Upper House was held on October 1st, under the presidency of Herr von Schmerling, and a party club was formally constituted for the first time since the creation of the Upper House. The programme adopted by the conference was as follows: Inviolable adhesion to the fundamental laws of the state, especially those concerning the competency of national representatives; opposition to every attempt at diminishing the rights of the Reichsrath, to the profit of the separate provinces of the Crown. One of the first signatures attached to the programme was that of Cardinal Kutschker.

The Lower House organized by the election as President of Count Coronini, a Constitutionalist, and as Vice-Presidents of Dr. Smolka, a Pole, and Baron Goedel Launay. On the 27th the reply to the address from the Throne was voted by the Lower House, after a short debate. It was on the whole friendly to the Government. On the 28th the Minister of Finance presented the estimates for 1880. The balance closed with a deficit for 1879 of 12,000,000 florins. This deficit it was proposed to cover without having recourse to any new credit; and for this purpose the Government proposed several alterations in the stamps and special taxes, from which the total increase of revenue expected was 5,800,000 florins; to impose a tax on the consumption of home mineral oils and increase the customs duties on petroleum from 3 to 8 florins, thereby providing an addition to the revenue of 4,800,000 florins; to increase the duty on brandy so as to realize an additional revenue of 1,500,000 florins; and, as temporary measures for 1880 only, to lay a tax of 10 per cent. upon passenger traffic on railroads and steamers, and a supplementary tax on all incomes exceeding 1,400 florins, which were estimated to yield 4,000,000 florins. The financial statement concluded by saying that reductions in the expense of administration, a thorough reform in the system of taxation, the introduction of a general income-tax, and the taxation of joint-stock companies, would firmly secure a financial equilibrium in the future.

The Delegations met in Pesth on February 27th. The budget was presented by the Government and referred to the Budget Committees. On March 4th the Budget Committee of

VOL. XIX.-5 A

the Austrian Delegation, after a long debate, resolved, on motion of Herr Sturm, to give an ulterior sanction to the expenditure of 41,720,000 florins in excess of the grant of 60,000,000 florins, with the reservation of a final decision being arrived at when the accounts were closed and the results made known. At the same time it was resolved not to approve the additional 5,000,000 florins asked for by the Government for expenses in November and December, 1878. The chief argument urged against granting the credit demanded was that a large sum had already been spent on barracks, roads, and railways, and that in the estimates for 1879 3,000,000 florins were set down for such purposes, which are investments in the provinces which the Delegations had no right to accord. By way of rejoinder, the Minister of War pointed out that all the works undertaken had been determined by purely military considerations, and that the saving they would effect in the cost of transport would in a comparatively short time compensate for the money expended on them. After a similar vote in the Committee of the Hungarian Delegation, the Delegations themselves approved the budget and then adjourned.

In August Count Andrassy resigned his position as Prime Minister of the Common Ministry. Previous to the departure of the Emperor to Ischl in the beginning of August, he had an audience with him. The latter hesitated to comply with Count Andrassy's desire for retirement, and a leave of absence sufficiently long to enable the Minister to recover from the fatigues of office, which had somewhat shaken his health, was at first thought of. The Count, on the other hand, was not disposed to bear the responsibility of the policy of the Government so long as he did not personally direct it. He accordingly renewed his petition on the first opportunity at Ischl, when the Emperor at last granted his request, reserving his formal acceptance of Count Andrassy's resignation to the time when he should have decided on his successor. It was stated officially at the time that the Minister's resignation was entirely spontaneous on his part, and only accorded to his most ardent desire, and that no question of foreign or home policy had brought it about. The change in the Government was completed on October 9th. On that day the "Official Gazette" contained the Imperial letter relieving Count Andrassy of his functions, and also one nominating Baron Haymerle Minister of the Imperial House and of Foreign Affairs, and intrusting him with the Presidency of the Common Ministry. (For a biography of the new Minister, see HAYMERLE.) The letter addressed to Count Andrassy says:

If I, though really with regret and reluctance, grant your request and relieve you of the office of a Minister of my House and of Foreign Affairs, you may take this as a proof of the high value that I set on the presone of the most eventful and memorable periods, and ervation of your health. You have for years, during under heavy responsibility, borne the charge with