Volume VI. of this work. The King and the companies which

operated in the region under his grants were reputed to be taking enormous profits from it. Of one of those concessionaire companies, sometimes referred to as the A. B. I. R. Co. and sometimes as "the Abir," it was stated in 1901 that its £40,000 of shares could have been sold for £2,160,000, and that half of its profits went to Leopold. But, as was said later by a member of the British Parliament, who wrote on the subject in one of the reviews, "meanwhile Europe was becoming aware of the price that was being paid in Africa for these profits in Belgium. Travellers, missionaries of various nationalities, administrators in the neighbouring territories belonging to England and France, sent home graphic reports of the cruel oppression that was being practised on the helpless population. In England especially, through the efforts of Sir Charles Dilke, of Mr. Fox-Bourne, the secretary of the Aborigines Protection Society, of Mr. E. D. Morel and of other disinterested men, public opinion was informed of the truth. In May, 1903, a resolution, which I had the honor of moving in the House of Commons, calling upon the Government to take action with a view to the abatement of the evils prevalent in the Congo Free State, was accepted by Mr. Balfour and unanimously passed. A diplomatic correspondence ensued between the two governments. The British Consul in the Lower Congo, Mr. Roger Casement, was sent on a tour of inquiry into the interior, and his lengthy and detailed report fully confirmed—in some respect extending—the indictment that had been drawn. A Congo Reform Association was founded, and immediately secured influential support. … At last King Leopold, pressed by the despatches of the British Government and bowing to the storm of public opinion, yielded so far as to authorise further inquiry into the charges that had been made. The investigation by an International Commission, which had been proposed, he rejected. He nominated three Commissioners of his selection, one a legal officer in the service of the Belgian Government, one a judge in the service of the Congo State, and the third a Swiss jurist of repute. In October, 1904, the Commission reached the Congo. It stayed for five months and made an extended journey into the interior. After an unexplained delay of eight months its report was published on the 6th of November of this year [1905]. …

"Had the report embodied an acquittal of the Congo State it would not, under the circumstances, have been surprising. The Commissioners, however, have to a great degree risen superior to their natural prepossessions. … It is most regrettable … that they present no minutes of the evidence taken before them—a circumstance which deprives the report of actuality and force, and prevents outside observers from drawing their own conclusions from the facts which had been ascertained. But the inquiry was painstaking. The case was fairly tried. The judgment is an honest judgment.

"Being honest, it is necessarily a condemnation. The Belgian defenders of the Congo Government, who were led by a conception of patriotic duty as profoundly false as that of the anti-Dreyfusards in France to deny everything and to meet the critics merely with unceasing torrents of abuse, now have their answer. A tribunal, not of our choosing, selected by the defendant in their cause, has shown that those who denounced Congo misrule were in the right, that the atrocities were not imaginary, that a cruel oppression of the natives has been proceeding unchecked for years."

_Herbert Samuel, The Congo State (Contemporary Review, December, 1905)._

Before this report appeared many witnesses had testified for and against the impeached Government and its commercial monopoly of the Congo State. Atrocities of slaughter, mutilation and flogging, committed by the soldiery, the sentries and other extortioners of a labor tax from the helpless natives, were asserted and denied. It is best, perhaps, to drop these blackest counts from the Congo indictment, because of the controversy over them; and enough remains in the Report of the King’s own Commission of Inquiry, and in general conditions which are flagrantly in evidence, to convict King Leopold and his agents of soulless rapacity, in their treatment of the vast African country that was entrusted to him by the Conference of Powers assembled at Berlin in 1884-1885.

There is great weight of meaning, for example, in a few words that were written, in January, 1903, by Lord Cromer, while returning from a long trip up the Nile, in which his steamer passed along about eighty miles of Congolese shore. Before reaching that border of Leopold’s domain he had traversed 1100 miles of the country lately wrested by the British from dervishes and slave dealers, where, he remarks, "it might well have been expected that much time would be required to inspire confidence in the intentions of the new Government." But, "except in the uninhabitable ‘Sudd’ region," he wrote, "numerous villages are dotted along the banks of the river. {138} The people, far from flying at the approach of white men, as was formerly the case, run along the banks, making signs for the steamer to stop. It is clear that the Baris, Shilluks, and Dinkas place the utmost trust and confidence in the British officers with whom they are brought in contact. …

"The contrast when once Congolese territory is entered is remarkable. From the frontier to Gondokoro is about 80 miles. The proper left, or western, bank of the river is Belgian. The opposite bank is either under the Soudanese or the Uganda Government. There are numerous islands, and as all these are under British rule—for the thalweg which, under Treaty, is the Belgian frontier, skirts the western bank of the river—I cannot say that I had an opportunity of seeing a full 80 miles of Belgian territory. At the same time, I saw a good deal, and I noticed that, whereas there were numerous villages and huts on the eastern bank and on the islands, on the Belgian side not a sign of a village existed. Indeed, I do not think that any one of our party saw a single human being in Belgian territory, except the Belgian officers and men and the wives and children of the latter. Moreover not a single native was to be seen either at Kiro or Lado. I asked the Swedish officer at Kiro whether he saw much of the natives. He replied in the negative, adding that the nearest Bari village was situated at some distance in the interior. The Italian officer at Lado, in reply to the same question, stated that the nearest native village was seven hours distant. The reason of all this is obvious enough. The Belgians are disliked. The people fly from them, and it is no wonder they should do so, for I am informed that the soldiers are allowed full liberty to plunder, and that payments are rarely made for supplies. The British officers wander, practically alone, over most parts of the country, either on tours of inspection or on shooting expeditions. I understand that no Belgian officer can move outside the settlements without a strong guard."

This is in line with some parts of the experience of Mr. Casement, the British Consular Officer referred to in the article quoted above, who travelled for about ten weeks on the Upper Congo in 1903, and whose report of what he saw includes such accounts as the following, of conditions around Lake Matumba:

"Each village I visited around the lake, save that of Q. and one other, had been abandoned by its inhabitants. To some of these villages the people have only just returned; to others they are only now returning, In one I found the bare and burnt poles of what had been dwellings left standing, and at another —that of R—the people had fled at the approach of my steamer, and despite the loud cries of my native guides on board, nothing could induce them to return, and it was impossible to hold any intercourse with them. At the three succeeding villages I visited beyond R., in traversing the lake towards the south, the inhabitants all fled at the approach of the steamer, and it was only when they found whose the vessel was that they could be induced to return."

An incident related by Mr. Casement is this:

"Steaming up a small tributary of the Lulongo, I arrived, unpreceded by any rumour of my coming, at the village of A. In an open shed I found two sentries of the La Lulanga Company guarding fifteen native women, five of whom had infants at the breast, and three of whom were about to become mothers. The chief of these sentries, a man called S—who was bearing a double-barrelled shot-gun, for which he had a belt of cartridges—at once volunteered an explanation of the reason for these women’s detention. Four of them, he said, were hostages who were being held to insure the peaceful settlement of a dispute between two neighbouring towns, which had already cost the life of a man. … The remaining eleven women, whom he indicated, he said he had caught and was detaining as prisoners to compel their husbands to bring in the right amount of india-rubber required of them on next market day. When I asked if it was a woman’s work to collect india-rubber, he said, ‘No; that, of course, it was man’s work.’ ‘Then why do you catch the women and not the men?’ I asked. ‘Don’t you see,’ was the answer, ‘if I caught and kept the men, who would work the rubber? But if I catch their wives, the husbands are anxious to have them home again, and so the rubber is brought in quickly and quite up to the mark.’ When I asked what would become of these women if their husbands failed to bring in the right quantity of rubber on the next market day, he said at once that then they would be kept there until their husbands had redeemed them."

_Parliamentary Papers, Africa, Number 1 (1904), Cd. 1933._

But the facts which condemn the Congo administration most conclusively are found in the report of the Commission of Inquiry appointed by King Leopold himself,—especially in what it represents of the heartless oppression of the labor tax, or labor imposed on the natives, in their compulsory carrying of goods or collection of rubber, food and wood, for the State and for the companies that operate under the King’s grants. As to the labor tax exacted in food, for example, the Commission expresses itself as follows:

"The decree fixes at forty hours per month the work which each native owes to the State. This time, considered as a maximum, is certainly not excessive, especially if one takes account of the fact that the work ought to be remunerated; but as in the immense majority of cases … it is not precisely the work which is demanded of the native, but rather a quantity of products equivalent to forty hours of work, the criterion of time disappears in reality and is replaced by an equivalent established by the Commissioner of the district after diverse methods. …

"_Chikwangue_ (kwanga)is nothing but manioc bread. … The preparation of this food requires many operations: the clearing of the forest, the planting of manioc, the digging up of the root and its transformation into _chikwangue_, which comprises the operations of separating the fibers and stripping the bark, pulverizing, washing, making it into bundles, and cooking it. All these operations, except clearing the land, fall to the women. The _chikwangues_ so prepared are carried by the natives to the neighboring post and served for the food supply of the personnel of the State—soldiers and laborers. … As the _chikwangue_ keeps only a few days, the native, even by redoubling his activity, cannot succeed in freeing himself from his obligations for any length of time. {139} The requirement, even if it does not take all his time, oppresses him continually by the weight of its recurrent demands, which deprive the tax of its true character and transform it into an incessant _corvée_. … Doubtless the adage, ‘time is money,’ cannot be applied to the natives of the Congo; it is none the less inadmissible that a taxpayer should be obliged to travel over ninety-three miles to carry to the place of collection a tax which represents about the value of twenty-nine cents. …

"Natives inhabiting the environs of Lulonga were forced to journey in canoes to Nouvelle-Anvers, which represents a distance of forty to fifty miles, every two weeks, to carry their fish; and taxpayers have been seen to submit to imprisonment for delays which were perhaps not chargeable to them, if we take into account the considerable distances to be covered periodically to satisfy the requirements of the tax."

As applied to the collection of rubber, the so-called labor tax was found by the commission to consume so much of the time of the natives subjected to it that it practically made slaves of them, and nothing less.

When the abused native is pretendedly paid for his labor or its product, it is by some trifle in metal or flimsy woven stuff, which costs the State and its tributary companies next to nothing and is next to worthless to the recipient.

And not only does the State exercise over the unfortunate subjects that were delivered to it an authority of Government which appears to be little else than a power of extortion, but it has taken all their lands from them, substantially, and left them next to nothing on which to perform any labor for themselves. It has decreed to itself the ownership of all land not included in the native villages or not under cultivation. Concerning which decree the Commission remarks:

"As the greater part of the land in the Congo has never been under cultivation, this interpretation gives to the State a proprietary right, absolute and exclusive, to almost all the land, and as a consequence it can grant to itself all the product of the soil and prosecute as robbers those who gather the smallest fruit and as accomplices those who buy the same. … It thus happens sometimes that not only have the natives been prohibited from moving their villages, but they have been refused permission to go, even for a time, to a neighboring village without a special permit."

In the summer of 1903 the British Government was moved to address a formal communication to all the Powers which had been parties to the Act of the Berlin Conference of 1884-1885, whereby the Congo State was created and entrusted to King Leopold, asking them to consider whether the system of government and of trade monopoly established in that State was in conformity with the provisions of the Act. The British Foreign Secretary, Lord Lansdowne, in his despatch (August 8, 1903), rehearsed at length the charges that were brought against the Congo administration, concerning its extortion of labor from the natives by a method "but little different from that formerly employed to obtain slaves," saying: "His Majesty’s Government do not know precisely to what extent these accusations may be true; but they have been so repeatedly made, and have received such wide credence, that it is no longer possible to ignore them, and the question has now arisen, whether the Congo State can be considered to have fulfilled the special pledges, given under the Berlin Act, to watch over the preservation of the native tribes, and to care for their moral and material advancement."

At the same time, the dispatch called the attention of the Powers to the question of rights of trade in the Congo, saying: "Article I of the Berlin Act provides that the trade of all nations shall enjoy complete freedom in the basin of the Congo; and Article V provides that no Power which exercises sovereign rights in the basin shall be allowed to grant therein a monopoly or favour of any kind in matters of trade. In the opinion of His Majesty’s Government, the system of trade now existing in the Independent State of the Congo is not in harmony with these provisions. … In these circumstances, His Majesty’s Government consider that the time has come when the Powers parties to the Berlin Act should consider whether the system of trade now prevailing in the Independent State is in harmony with the provisions of the Act; and, in particular, whether the system of making grants of vast areas of territory is permissible under the Act if the effect of such grants is in practice to create a monopoly of trade."

_Parliamentary Papers, Africa, Number 14 (1903), Cd. 1809._

CONGO STATE: A. D. 1904. Feeling in Belgium concerning the charges of oppression and inhumanity to the natives.

See (in this Volume) BELGIUM: A. D. 1904.

CONGO STATE: A. D. 1906-1909. Reform Decrees and their small effect. Continued reports of rapacious exploitation. Concession secured by American capitalists. Annexation of the State by Belgium. Recognition of the annexation withheld by Great Britain and the United States.

Apparently the endeavor of the British Government to set in motion some action of the Powers which had been parties to the creation of the Congo State, for the purpose of ascertaining whether the provisions of the Berlin Act were being complied with in the administration of that great trust, had no practical result. During the next two years the Congo Government was persistent in denying and attempting to refute some parts of the reports sent home by British consular officers in the Congo; but after the publication of the report of its own investigating Commission, in 1905, there seems to have been more reticence observed. In June, 1906, a series of new decrees, supposed to embody the recommendations of the Reforms Commission, was sanctioned by the King. But the Consuls who reported to London from the Congo country do not seem to have found the wretched natives much relieved by these decrees. Vice-Consul Armstrong, writing from Boma December, 1907, after a prolonged journey through rubber-collecting regions, declared his conviction that "the people worked from twenty to twenty-five days a month" to satisfy their labor tax. He added:

"The improvement that has been made by the application of the Reform Decrees of June 1906 is solely in the withdrawal of armed sentries, a reform which the serious decimation of the population by the sentries demanded. … I saw nothing which led me to view the occupation of this country in the light of an Administration. {140} The undertakings of the Government are solely commercial, with a sufficient administrative power to insure the safety of its personnel and the success of its enterprise. … The following is an estimate of the profits of the State on their rubber tax. I take the village of N’gongo as being a large one, and one of the few villages that supply the amount actually assessed:—

Amount assessed yearly. 1,440 kilograms of rubber. £ s. d. 1,440 kilograms of rubber at 10 fr. 576 0 0 Amount paid to natives at 50 c. per kilogram 28 16 0

"I calculate the rubber at 10 fr. per kilogram, the value placed upon it by the State in the Commercial Report issued this year. The market value in Antwerp is from 12 fr. to 13 fr. per kilogram. From this amount of 576£. must be deducted the cost of transport, which cannot be more than 2 fr. per kilogram rendered at Antwerp, so that the net profits derived from this one village would be a little more than 456£. per annum. One hundred and twenty natives, together with their wives and children, which would bring the population of the town to about 400 souls, share this amount of 28£ 16s., and as this is paid in cloth at 7½d. per yard and salt at 1s. 7½d. per kilogram, it is evident that they cannot receive very much each, and that they complain of their remuneration."

These were not the only official witnesses now testifying to the barbarities of commercial exploitation that were perpetrated in the Congo country under pretences of administering the Government of a State. Reports to the same effect were coming to the Government of the United States from its Consuls in the Congo. Consul-General C. R. Slocum wrote on the 1st of December, 1906, to the Department of State at Washington:

"I have the honour to report that I find the Congo Free State, under the present regime, to be nothing but a vast commercial enterprise for the exploitation of the products of the country, particularly that of ivory and rubber. Admitted by Belgian officials and other foreigners here, the State, as I find it, is not open to trade in the intended sense of article 5 of the Berlin Act under which the State was formed."

A year later, the succeeding Consul-General of the United States in the Congo State, Mr. James A. Smith, made a similar report:

"In excluding the native," he wrote, "from any proprietary right in the only commodities he possessed which would serve as a trade medium—that is, the products of the soil—and in claiming for itself and granting to a few concessionary companies in which it holds an interest exclusive ownership of these products, the Administration, in its commercial capacity, has effectively shut the door to free trade and created a vast monopoly in all articles the freedom of buying and selling which alone could form a proper basis for legitimate trade transactions between the native and independent purchasers. Competition, by which alone can a healthy condition of trade be maintained, has been entirely eliminated. The Government is but one tremendous commercial organization; its administrative machinery is worked to bar out all outside trade and to absolutely control for its own benefit and the concessionary companies the natural resources of the country."

In the same report Mr. Smith gave details of an experiment he had made, in conjunction with the _chef de secteur_ at Yambata, to test the truth of the assertions made by the natives as to the length of time necessary to gather the rubber which they are compelled to furnish. The place for the experiment was selected by the _chef de secteur_, and he chose the five natives who were employed in the experiment, and who were promised rewards as an incentive to do their best. The men worked for four hours, and although Mr. Smith vouches for the fact that they did not lose a minute, they only succeeded in gathering 650 grammes. From this, as Mr. Smith argues, the amount of time they would have to spend in collecting the rubber tax works out at 93 hours a month, or, counting eight hours a day, at 140 days a year. This did not include the time spent in travelling to and from the rubber-bearing districts.

Before this time, American interest in the Congo State had become more than humanitarian, and more than a commercial interest in the general opportunities of trade; for heavy American capitalists had secured concessions from King Leopold in a large territory for the development of railways, rubber production and mines. The fact was announced in the fall of 1906, and the names of John D. Rockefeller, Jr., Thomas F. Ryan, Harry Payne Whitney, Edward B. Aldrich and the Messrs. Guggenheim were mentioned as prominent in the group to which the grant was made.

Under the Convention of 1890 between King Leopold and the Congo State, as one party, and the Kingdom of Belgium as the other, it became the right of the latter, on the expiration of ten years, in 1900, to annex the Congo State to itself.

See, in Volume VI. of this work, CONGO STATE: A. D. 1900.

The right was not then exercised; but the question of taking over the sovereignty of that great African domain came under warm discussion in Belgium before many years, and, finally, in 1908, it reached the point of a keen negotiation of terms with the King, attended by lively conflicts in the Belgian Chambers. While the question was thus pending in Belgium, the British Government took occasion to express its views to the Belgian Government, as to the obligations which such an annexation would involve. This was done on the 27th of March, 1908, in a despatch from the Foreign Minister, Sir Edward Grey, communicating an extended "Memorandum respecting Taxation and Currency in the Congo Free State." The language of the despatch, in part, was as follows:

"His Majesty’s Government fully recognize that the choice of the means by which the administration of the Congo may be brought into line by the Berlin Act rests exclusively with Belgium. Nevertheless, while disclaiming all idea of interference, His Majesty’s Government feel that in fairness they should leave the Belgian Government in no doubt that in their opinion the existing administration of the Congo State has not fulfilled the objects for which the State was originally recognized, or the conditions of Treaties, and that changes are therefore required, which should effect the following objects: 1. Relief of the natives from excessive taxation. 2. The grant to the natives of sufficient land to ensure their ability to obtain not only the food they require, but also sufficient produce of the soil to enable them to buy and sell as in other European Colonies. 3. The possibility for traders whatever their nationality may be to acquire plots of land of reasonable dimensions in any part of the Congo for the erection of factories so as to enable them to establish direct trade relations with the natives. …

{141}

"Taking the three points enumerated above in order, it appears to His Majesty’s Government that—

"1. As regards the question of taxation in labour, the abuses to which the system has given rise have only been rendered possible by the absence of a proper standard of value. They believe, therefore, that the only sure and efficacious means of precluding the existence of such abuses in the future is the introduction of currency throughout the State at the earliest possible date. Both the Reports of the Commission of Inquiry and the experience of His Majesty’s Consular officers agree in the conclusion that the native has learnt the use of money, and that currency would be welcomed by all classes, native and European alike.

"2. The natives in the concessionary areas should not be compelled, by either direct or indirect means, to render their labour to the Companies without remuneration. The introduction of currency should contribute greatly to the protection of the native against the illicit and excessive exactions on the part of private individuals. Such protection, however, cannot be adequately secured unless the latter be compelled to pay the native in specie at a fair rate to be fixed by law.

"3. They would urge that a large increase should be made in the land allotted to the natives."

The exceptional failure of the Congo State, among African colonies, to introduce the use of currency in transactions with the natives, and the connection of this failure with the state of things existing there, is discussed at length in the Memorandum, with a practical summing up in these sentences:

"The Secretaries-General said the native in the Congo had no specie. True, but why has he no specie? Because, as already explained, during the twenty-three years that the Congo State has been in existence no serious attempt, in spite of all assertions to the contrary, has ever been made by the State to introduce currency on a sufficiently large scale. In every other European Colony in Africa has the native come to learn the practical value of a medium of exchange. What are the reasons that the Congo State should stand in an exceptional position in this respect? They are unfortunately obvious enough. The truth is that it is precisely owing to the absence of a proper standard of value that the Congo Government and the Concessionary Companies have been able to abuse the system of taxation in labour, and realize enormous profits out of the incessant labour wrung from the population in the guise of taxation."

This communication from Great Britain to the Belgian Government was followed soon (in April) by memoranda from the Government of the United States, setting forth the hopes and expectations of administrative reform with which it contemplated the proposed annexation of the Congo State.

A few months later the treaty of annexation was agreed upon, and the annexation consummated by an Act of the Belgian Parliament, promulgated on the 20th of October, 1908. To an announcement of the fact by the Belgian Minister at Washington, Secretary Root replied at considerable length, in a communication which bears the date of June 11, 1909: "The Government of the United States," said the Secretary, "has observed with much interest the progress of the negotiations looking to such a transfer, in the expectation that under the control of Belgium the condition of the natives might be beneficially improved and the engagements of the treaties to which the United States is a party, as well as the high aims set forth in the American memoranda of April 7 and 16, 1908, and declared in the Belgium replies thereto, might be fully realized.

"The United States would also be gratified by the assurance that the Belgian Government will consider itself specifically bound to discharge the obligations assumed by the Independent State of the Congo in the Brussels Convention of July 2, 1890, an assurance which the expressions already made by the Government of Belgium in regard to its own course as a party to that convention leave no doubt is in entire accordance with the sentiments of that Government. Among the particular clauses of the Brussels Convention which seem to the United States to be specially relevant to existing conditions in the Congo region are the clauses of Article II., which include among the objects of the convention:

"‘To diminish intestine wars between tribes by means of arbitration; to initiate them in agricultural labour and in the industrial arts so as to increase their welfare; to raise them to civilization and bring about the extinction of barbarous customs. …

"‘To give aid and protection to commercial enterprises; to watch over their legality by especially controlling contracts for service with natives; and to prepare the way for the foundation of permanent centres of cultivation and of commercial settlements.’

"The United States has been forced to the conclusion that in several respects the system inaugurated by the Independent State of the Congo has, in its practical operation, worked out results inconsistent with these conventional obligations and calling for very substantial and even radical changes in order to attain conformity therewith." Moreover, it renders nugatory the provisions of the successive declarations and conventions, cited by the Secretary, which have given such rights in the Congo State to citizens of the United States and others as must be maintained.

"It should always be remembered," wrote Mr. Root, "that the basis of the sovereignty of the Independent State of the Congo over all its territory was in the treaties made by the native Sovereigns who ceded the territory for the use and benefit of free States established and being established there under the care and supervision of the International Association, so that the very nature of the title forbids the destruction of the tribal rights upon which it rests without securing to the natives an enjoyment of their land which shall be a full and adequate equivalent for the tribal rights destroyed."

Referring to a statement made in the Belgian reply given to his memorandum of April 16, which he quotes as in these words:—

{142}

"When it annexes the possessions of the Independent State Belgium will inherit its obligations as well as its rights; it will be able to fulfil all the engagements made with the United States by the declarations of April 22, 1884"—Mr. Root closes his letter with these remarks:

"It would be gratifying to the United States to know that the last clause of the statement just quoted is not intended to confine the rights of the United States in the Independent State to the declarations of the Commercial Association which preceded the creation of the Congo State as a sovereign power, but includes the conventional rights conferred upon the United States by the treaty concluded with the Independent State immediately after its recognition.

"In the absence of a fuller understanding on all these points, I confine myself for the present to acknowledging your note of November 4 last and taking note of the announcement therein made."

Thus no recognition was given to the Belgian annexation. Recognition was held in abeyance, awaiting further information and evidence of reform in the administration of the Congo State. And this is the attitude assumed by the British Government, which waited long and with growing impatience for assurances from Belgium, with proceedings that would give sign of making them good. On the 24th of February, 1909, the subject came up in Parliament, with assertions that "oppression of the natives was still going on just as before the annexation," and that "Great Britain had waited for months while the cruelties against which she had protested still continued." In the debate, Sir Charles Dilke referred to the harmony of action in the matter by the United States and Great Britain, and expressed his conviction that "the cooperation of two such powerful Governments in the cause of humanity would be irresistible." Sir Edward Grey, speaking for the Ministry, said:

"I am glad that in the course of the debate it has been emphasized that this attitude is not ours alone, but that the United States has spoken with equal emphasis and taken up the same position. I am sorry that no other Power has taken up the same position so strongly; but as there is only one Power which has declared itself so definitely on the question as ourselves, I should like to say that I am glad it is the United States."

Alluding to a remark made by one of the speakers in the debate, that the Government might have prevented the annexation of the State by Belgium, Sir Edward said:

"I do not think we should have prevented the annexation, but in any case I should not have tried to prevent the annexation. And for this reason among others—that if Belgium was not going to take the Congo State in hand and put it right, who was? I have never been able to answer that question. Certainly not ourselves, because we have always denied the intention of assuming any responsibility over an enormous tract of land where we have sufficient responsibility already."

The Foreign Secretary concluded his speech by saying:

"If Belgium makes the administration of the Congo humane and brings it into accord, in practice and spirit, with the administration which exists in our own and neighbouring African colonies, no country will more cordially welcome that state of things than this or more warmly congratulate Belgium. But we cannot commit ourselves to countersign, so to say, by recognition a second time, the system of administration which has existed under the old regime."

Again, in May, the question came up in Parliament, with impatient criticism of the Government for not taking peremptory measures to compel a reformation of Belgian rule in the Congo State, one speaker suggesting a "peaceful blockade" of the mouth of the Congo. Sir Edward Grey replied:

"If this question were rashly managed it might make a European question compared to which those which we have had to deal with in the last few months might be child’s play. Take, for instance, the question of peaceful blockade. It is no good talking of peaceful blockade. Blockade is blockade. It is the use of force. If you are to have blockade you must be prepared to go to war, and a blockade of the mouth of the Congo means blockading a river which is not the property of the Congo or Belgian Government. They have one bank of the river. It is a river which by international treaty must be opened to navigation, and if you are to blockade to any effect you must be prepared to stop every ship going in or out of the Congo, whether under the French, Belgian, German, or whatever flag it is. Surely if you are going to pledge yourself to take steps of that kind, and to accept the responsibility for them, it is not too much to say that you must be prepared to raise a European question which would be of the gravest kind. I do not say there are not circumstances which might justify a question of that kind, but do not let the House think that by smooth words, such as by applying the adjective ‘peaceful’ to blockade, you are going to minimize what will be the ultimate consequences of the step you are taking."

CONGO STATE: A. D. 1909 (October). Programme of reforms promised by the Belgian Government.

The programme of long promised reforms to be instituted by the Belgian Government in its administration of the now annexed Congo State was announced in the Belgian Chamber on the 28th of October, 1909, by the Minister for the Colonies, M. Renkin. "He repeated his solemn assurance that the charges of cruelty or oppression made against the Belgian Colonial Administration were false. He had questioned missionaries, officials, chiefs, and other natives during his visit, and heard nothing to justify the accusation. Individual breaches of the law might possibly have occurred, but every abuse brought to the notice of the authorities was immediately made the object of inquiry.

"It was useless, he said, to refer to the past; the situation had been radically altered by the annexation. As regards the land system, the assignment of vacant lands to the State was juridically unassailable, but they must also have regard to the development of the natives. The natives would therefore be granted the right to take the produce of the soil in the Domain. This would be accomplished in three stages. On July 1, 1910, the Lower Congo, Stanley Pool, Ubangi, Bangala, Kwango, Kasai, Katanga, the southern portion of the Eastern Province, Aruwimi, and the banks of the river as far as Stanleyville would be opened to freedom of trade. On July 1, 1911, the Domain of the Crown, and on July 1, 1912, the Welle district would also be thrown open. Furthermore, the Government would levy taxes in money, and the system of the provisioning of the agents would be abolished."

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M. Renkin said furthermore that in regard to the territories held by _concessionnaires_ in the Congo the Government would make an investigation with a view to ascertaining whether it would not be advisable to make fresh arrangements in agreement with the persons interested.

Writing from Brussels a mouth later, an English correspondent represents the Belgian Reformers, who had most bitterly denounced the atrocities of the Leopold regime in the Congo State, as believing that M. Renkin's scheme is on the whole a reasonable and satisfactory scheme, and above all a practical scheme, that the Belgian Government are sincerely determined to carry it through, and that, even if there were any sufficient reason for doubting their sincerity, the Belgian nation is in earnest and has the means of enforcing the execution of the reforms by the exercise of the Parliamentary control with which it is now for the first time invested over the affairs of the Congo as a consequence of annexation.

On the other hand, English opinion, which had been roused to much heat on the Congo question, is far from satisfied with the Belgian proposals, and criticises them with a sharpness which the Belgians resent.

----------CONGO STATE: End--------

----------CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Start--------

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Australia: Undertakings of Irrigation and Forestry.

During a brief visit to the United States in 1902, Sir Edmund Barton, then Premier of the Commonwealth of Australia, contributed to _The Independent_ an article on "Australia and her Problems," in which he wrote:

"Another great problem with which we are struggling is that of irrigation, and a joint irrigation scheme is afoot for using the waters of the Murray, our greatest river, to fertilize lands in New South Wales and Victoria. The Murray forms the boundary of those two States and afterward flows through South Australia. It is to the interest of New South Wales and Victoria to use the waters of the Murray for irrigation purposes, and it is to the interest of South Australia to use the Murray for navigation. We hope to harmonize those interests and are working to that end.

"Just before I left Australia I attended a conference, held on the border, between representatives of the various States as a result of which each has appointed a hydraulic engineer to a joint commission on irrigation. These will make an investigation and report their opinion in regard to the best practicable system for conserving, storing and distributing the Murray’s waters without interfering with its navigation. We have good reason to believe that by means of a system of locks and weirs it is quite possible to irrigate a very large extent of dry country by means of the Murray without injuring its navigability. Later we will take up the problem of using the waters of the Darling in a similar way. It is a very long river, which during the rainy season sends an immense Volume of water into the Murray.

"Another of our problems is in regard to forestry. We have planted some trees but not nearly enough of them, and cannot yet tell anything about results. Along with this tree planting, also, denudation of our timber has been going on, for Australian hard woods, being impervious to water, are now used all over the world for street paving purposes. Great harm has been done, and the waste is still going on, for our national Government cannot interfere in the matter, and the land owners are in many instances reckless. The remedy must come from the common sense of the people."

Since the above was written, progress has been made in carrying out the projects of irrigation, as was stated in a speech by Lord Northcote after his return to England, in the autumn of 1909, from five years of service as Governor-General of Australia. "Both in New South Wales and Victoria," he said, "very large irrigation works are in progress, and will be completed in a very short time, adding enormously to the acreage of land fit for cultivation."

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Canada: The Dominion Forest Reserves Act. Irrigation in the Northwest.

A Dominion Act of 1906, thus short-titled, provides as follows:

"All Dominion lands within the respective boundaries of the reserves mentioned in the schedule to this Act are hereby withdrawn from sale, settlement and occupancy under the provisions of the Dominion Lands Act, or of any other Act, or of any regulations made under the said Act or any such Act, with respect to mines or mining or timber or timber licenses or leases or any other matter whatsoever; and after the passing of this Act no Dominion lands within the boundaries of the said reserves shall be sold, leased or otherwise disposed of, or be located or settled upon, and no person shall use or occupy any part of such lands, except under the provisions of this Act or of regulations made thereunder."

The schedule referred to lists 21 Forest Reserves in British Columbia, Manitoba, Saskatchewan, and Alberta. They are placed under the management of the Superintendent of Forestry, for the maintenance and protection of the growing timber, the animals and birds in them, the fish in their waters and their water supply, the Governor in Council to make the needed regulations.

In a paper read before the Royal Colonial Institute at London, England, in January, 1910, Mr. C. W. Peterson, Manager of the Canadian Pacific Irrigation Colonization Company, gave the following account of what is being done in the Arid Belt, so called, near Calgary, in the Canadian Northwest:

"The irrigated land in Alberta and Saskatchewan nearly equalled half of the total irrigated area of the United States. In the year 1894 the Dominion Government withdrew from sale and homestead entry a tract of land containing some millions of acres located east of the city of Calgary, along the main line of the Canadian Pacific Railway. The object of that reservation was to provide for the construction, ultimately, of an irrigation scheme to cover the fertile Bow River Valley. The Canadian Pacific Railway Company undertook to construct the gigantic irrigation system in question, and selected as part of its land grant a block comprising three million acres of the best agricultural lands. It had now been opened for colonization, and this project—the greatest of the kind on the American continent—was being pushed to its completion. The tract had an average width of forty miles from north to south, and extended eastwards from Calgary 150 miles."

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CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Egypt: A. D. 1909. Completion of the Esneh Barrage.

An important addition to the irrigation works in Egypt, supplementing the great dam at Assouan and the Assiout barrage, was completed in February, 1909, when the Esneh barrage was formally opened, on the 9th of that month. Esneh is a town of some 25,000 inhabitants, situated in Upper Egypt, on the west bank of the Nile, and the work now completed will, even in the lowest of floods, ensure a plentiful supply of water to a great tract of land in the Nile valley from Esneh northwards. In deciding to undertake the construction of this latest barrage, at a point about 100 miles north of the Assouan reservoir, the Government were influenced by the great success of the Assiout barrage, but that work differs from the new barrage in being designed as a low-water summer regulator, whereas the function of the Esneh barrage is to hold up the water in low floods.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Germany: The work begun a century ago, and its result.

"Germany, a century ago, faced just such a situation as now confronts us [the United States]. Then there began the work which we must now undertake. New forests were planted, wherever the land was unsuitable for other purposes. This planting was done year after year, so that each year a new tract would come to maturity. Forest wardens watched for fires, and laws forbade careless hunters setting fires in the woods. Timbermen were forced to gather and burn what twigs from the slashings could not be used in the still or burned for charcoal, and broad lanes were left through the forests as stops for fires. In this way there arose those magnificent German forests which now return the empire an average net annual profit of two dollars and a half for each acre, on land which is otherwise unusable; and, besides, give their services free for the storage of water and for the retention of the soil.

"In our own land something of this sort has already been done. New York has nearly two million acres of land in forest reserves which are being carefully tended. Pennsylvania has half as much. Minnesota is already securing considerable profit from the management of its white pine reserves and is seeding down large areas; and the other lake states are also moving, but all this is being done slowly, and lacks much of the energy and cooperation which should accompany it."

_J. L. Mathews, The Conservation of our National Resources (Atlantic Monthly, May, 1908)._

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Great Britain: Outline of undertakings by the Government in 1909. Development and Road Improvement Act.

In his Budget speech to the House of Commons April 29, 1909, the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Mr. David Lloyd-George, gave a broad indication of undertakings contemplated by the Government, in forestry work (afforestation, or reafforestation) and on other lines directed toward a more effective preservation and development of the natural resources of the country. In the afforestation of the waste lands of the country, he said, "We are far behind every other civilized country in the world. I have figures which are very interesting on this point. In Germany, for instance, out of a total area of 133 million acres, 34 millions, or nearly 26 per cent., are wooded; in France, out of 130 million acres, 17 per cent.; even in a small and densely-populated country such as Belgium, 1,260,000 acres are wooded, or 17 per cent. In the United Kingdom, on the other hand, out of 77 million acres, only 3 millions, or 4 per cent., are under wood. Sir Herbert Maxwell, who has made a study of this question for a good many years, and whose moderation of statement is beyond challenge, estimates that, in 1906, ‘eight millions were paid annually in salaries for the administration, formation, and preservation of German forests, representing the maintenance of about 200,000 families, or about 1,000,000 souls; and that in working up the raw material yielded by the forests wages were earned annually to the amount of 30 millions sterling, maintaining about 600,000 families, or 3,000,000 souls.’ The Committee will there perceive what an important element this is in the labour and employment of a country. Any one who will take the trouble to search out the census returns will find that the number of people directly employed in forest work in this country is only 16,000. And yet the soil and the climate of this country are just as well adapted for the growth of marketable trees as that of the States of Germany. Recently we have been favoured with a striking report of a Royal Commission, very ably presided over by my honourable friend the member for Cardiff. A perusal of the names attached to that report will secure for it respectful and favourable consideration. It outlines a very comprehensive and far-reaching scheme for planting the wastes of this country. The systematic operation which the Commission recommend is a gigantic one, and, before the Government can commit themselves to it in all its details, it will require very careful consideration by a body of experts skilled in forestry. I am informed by men whom I have consulted, and whose opinion on this subject I highly value, that there is a good deal of preliminary work which ought to be undertaken in this country before the Government could safely begin planting on the large scale indicated in that report. … I am also told that we cannot command the services in this country of a sufficient number of skilled foresters to direct planting. …

"I doubt whether there is a great industrial country in the world which spends less money directly on work connected with the development of its resources than we do. Take the case of agriculture alone. Examine the Budgets of foreign countries—I have done it with great advantage in other directions—examine them from this particular point of view, and honourable members, I think, will be rather ashamed at the contrast between the wise and lavish generosity of countries much poorer than ours and the short-sighted and niggardly parsimony with which we dole out small sums of money for the encouragement of agriculture in our country. …

"I will tell the House what we propose. There is a certain amount of money, not very much, spent in this country in a spasmodic kind of way on what I will call the work of national development—in light railways, in harbours, in indirect but very meagre assistance to agriculture. {145} I propose to gather all these grants together into one grant that I propose to call a development grant, and this year to add a sum of £200,000 to that grant for these purposes. … The grant will be utilized in the promotion of schemes which have for their purpose the development of the resources of the country, and will include such objects as the institution of schools of forestry, the purchase and preparation of land for afforestation, the setting up of a number of experimental forests on a large scale, expenditure upon scientific research in the interests of agriculture, experimental farms, the improvement of stock—in respect of which I have had a good many representations from the agricultural community—the equipment of agencies for disseminating agricultural instruction, the encouragement and promotion of co-operation, the improvement of rural transport so as to make markets more accessible, the facilitation of all well-considered schemes and measures for attracting labour back to the land by small holdings or reclamation of wastes."

In realization of this programme an important "Development and Road Improvement Funds Act" was introduced by Mr. Lloyd-George in August, and passed, after considerable amendment of its administrative details in Committee of the Commons and in the House of Lords. It is divided into two parts, the first dealing with development, or the aiding and encouraging of agriculture and other rural industries, inclusive of forestry, reclamation and drainage of land, improvement of rural transport, construction and improvement of inland navigation and harbors, and the development and improvement of fisheries. The Act enables the Treasury to make free grants and loans, from a Development Fund fed by an annual Parliamentary vote and by a charge on the Consolidated Fund. An independent Development Commission is to be appointed by the Treasury, consisting of five members appointed for ten years, whose recommendation for the rejection of applications shall be final, though not that for their acceptance. The second part of the Act sets up a Road Board to carry out schemes of road improvement, either under its own direct control or through the existing highway authorities.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: North America: International Conference of Delegates from Canada, Mexico, and the United States.

The movement instituted in the United States for a better conservation of the natural resources of the country was broadened, early in 1909, into a continental and international movement, by an invitation from President Roosevelt to the Governments of Canada and Mexico to send delegates to a general conference on the subject at Washington, for the purpose of arranging some cooperative and harmonious plans of action in the three countries. The invitation was cordially accepted in both of the neighboring countries, and the delegates sent were met, on the 18th of February, by many of the leaders of the conservation movement in the United States, including the National Conservation Commission. After being received and addressed by the President at the White House, a two days session of the Conference was held in the diplomatic room of the State Department, with good results.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Turkey: A. D. 1909. Reclamation projects in the Tigris-Euphrates Delta.

See (in this Volume) TURKEY: A. D. 1909 (OCTOBER).

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: United States: The Great Movement for an Arresting of Waste. An organized National care-taking of Forests, Waters, Lands, and Minerals. Forest Service, Irrigation, Development of Waterways.

It is more than possible that the administration of Government in the United States under President Roosevelt will be distinguished, in the judgment of coming generations, most highly by the impulse and the organization it gave to measures for conserving the natural resources of the country, in woods, water sources, mineral deposits and fertile or fertilizable soils,—rescuing them from a hitherto unrestrained recklessness of waste. The key-note of a new determination in governmental policy, pointed to this end, was sounded by the President in his first Message to Congress, on the 3d of December, 1901, when he opened the subject largely and earnestly, saying, among other things, this:

"The preservation of our forests is an imperative business necessity. We have come to see clearly that whatever destroys the forest, except to make way for agriculture, threatens our well-being. At present the protection of the forest reserves rests with the General Land Office, the mapping and description of their timber with the United States Geological Survey, and the preparation of plans for their conservative use with the Bureau of Forestry, which is also charged with the general advancement of practical forestry in the United States. These various functions should be united in the Bureau of Forestry, to which they properly belong. The present diffusion of responsibility is bad from every standpoint. It prevents that effective cooperation between the Government and the men who utilize the resources of the reserves, without which the interests of both must suffer. The scientific bureaus generally should be put under the Department of Agriculture. The President should have by law the power of transferring lands for use as forest reserves to the Department of Agriculture. He already has such power in the case of lands needed by the Departments of War and the Navy. …

"The wise administration of the forest reserves will be not less helpful to the interests which depend on water than to those which depend on wood and grass. The water supply itself depends upon the forest. In the arid region it is water, not land, which measures production. The western half of the United States would sustain a population greater than that of our whole country to-day if the waters that now run to waste were saved and used for irrigation. The forest and water problems are perhaps the most vital internal questions of the United States. …

"The forests alone cannot, however, fully regulate and conserve the waters of the arid region. Great storage works are necessary to equalize the flow of streams and to save the flood waters. Their construction has been conclusively shown to be an undertaking too vast for private effort. Nor can it be best accomplished by the individual States acting alone. Far-reaching interstate problems are involved; and the resources of single States would often be inadequate. It is properly a national function. at least in some of its features. …

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"The reclamation of the unsettled arid public lands presents a different problem. Here it is not enough to regulate the flow of streams. The object of the Government is to dispose of the land to settlers who will build homes upon it. To accomplish this object water must be brought within their reach. … Whatever the Nation does for the extension of irrigation should harmonize with, and tend to improve, the condition of those now living on irrigated land. We are not at the starting-point of this development. Over two hundred millions of private capital have already been expended in the construction of irrigation works, and many million acres of arid land reclaimed. A high degree of enterprise and ability has been shown in the work itself; but as much cannot be said in reference to the laws relating thereto. The security and value of the homes created depend largely on the stability of titles to water; but the majority of these rest on the uncertain foundation of court decisions rendered in ordinary suits at law. With a few creditable exceptions, the arid States have failed to provide for the certain and just division of streams in times of scarcity. Lax and uncertain laws have made it possible to establish rights to water in excess of actual uses or necessities, and many streams have already passed into private ownership, or a control equivalent to ownership."

_President's Message to Congress, December 3, 1901._

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: The Nationalizing of Irrigation Works.

The highest quality of statesmanship is represented by such recommendations as these. So far as concerned the proposed nationalization of irrigation works, to reclaim the arid lands of the West, they bore fruit within a year, in the passage by Congress of the Reclamation Act of June 17, 1902. It devoted most of the proceeds of the sale of public lauds, in Arizona, California, Colorado, Idaho, Kansas, Montana, Nevada, New Mexico, North and South Dakota, Oklahoma, Utah, Washington, and Wyoming, to a special Reclamation Fund in the Treasury, for the creation and maintenance of irrigation works. This was a measure for which the late Major John W. Powell, Director of the United States Geological Survey, had labored incessantly for many years. In his book on "The Lands of the Arid Regions" he was the first to show the possibility of redemption for most of the wide spaces of land then supposed to be hopeless desert, and he pleaded with Congress, session after session, for some national undertaking to store and distribute the waters from the mountains that would give life to their soil. In 1888 he succeeded so far as to win authority and means for investigating the water supply for the region, and from that time he had kept an efficient small corps of engineers at work in the survey and measurement of streams, accumulating information that was ready for immediate use when actual constructive work was taken in hand. At once, on the passage of the Reclamation Act, the Director of the Geological Survey, acting under the Secretary of the Interior, began the execution of plans already well matured, for irrigation in Arizona and Nevada; and was able three years later to report similar undertakings in progress within three of the ten Territories and thirteen States.

In May, 1908, the following statement of the reclamation work then in progress appeared in _The Outlook:_ "The work as a whole rivals the Panama Canal in the labor and expense involved. The employment of 16,000 men and the expenditure of $1,250,000 every month are but incidents in the service. Already the canals completed reach a total of 1,815 miles—as far as from New York to Denver. Homes have been made for ten thousand families where before was desert. In the past five years $33,000,000 has been spent, and the enterprises already planned will add more than a hundred millions to this sum. Nor is this money spent in one locality. In New Mexico one of the largest dams in the world is being constructed. In California and Nevada great reservoirs and irrigation plants are being built. In western Kansas the beet-sugar raisers are to have a $250,000 plant for pumping the ‘underflow,’ or the sheet water found a few feet beneath the top-soil, of the Arkansas River Valley to the surface, that ditches may be filled and crops made certain. On seven great projects, involving the expenditure of $51,000,000 and the reclamation of over a million acres, the benefit is directly to the Northwest. These projects lie in North and South Dakota, Montana, and Washington. In these States lands that have been considered as worthless except for the coarsest kind of grazing are being transformed into productive farms. In South Dakota the largest earth dam in the world is being constructed, that ninety thousand acres of land may be made fertile; while just east of the Yellowstone Park is being built a solid wall of masonry 310 feet high to hold back the waters of the Shoshone River until a reservoir of ten square miles, capable of irrigating a hundred thousand acres, is formed. The production of these irrigated lands is marvelous."

The latest official statistics that are available represent the total of acres irrigated at the end of the year 1907 as being 11,000,000, in 167,200 farms, at an average cost (of constructive work) of $13.46 per acre.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: A National Forest Policy.

Less promptitude of action followed the President's urging of measures for forest preservation, and his warnings to Congress and the country, against the consequences of this inaction, were repeated from year to year. His Message of December, 1904, carried a specially urgent plea for legislation to unify the national forest work.

"I have repeatedly," he said, "called attention to the confusion which exists in Government forest matters because the work is scattered among three independent organizations. The United States is the only one of the great nations in which the forest work of the Government is not concentrated under one department, in consonance with the plainest dictates of good administration and common sense. The present arrangement is bad from every point of view. Merely to mention it is to prove that it should be terminated at once. As I have repeatedly recommended, all the forest work of the Government should be concentrated in the Department of Agriculture, where the larger part of that work is already done, where practically all of the trained foresters of the Government are employed, where chiefly in Washington there is comprehensive first-hand knowledge of the problems of the reserves acquired on the ground, where all problems relating to growth from the soil are already gathered, and where all the sciences auxiliary to forestry are at hand for prompt and effective coöperation."

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During its following session Congress took the desired action, and the whole forest service was transferred to the Department of Agriculture in February, 1905.

Early in June of that year the efforts of the President to waken attention to the seriousness of the forest destruction in the country were greatly helped by a notable convention at Washington of about twelve hundred men, having both interest and knowledge in the matter, who came together to discuss the problems involved. They were mostly practical foresters, intelligent lumbermen, railway men, ranch-owners, engineers and miners, and their urgency of a systematic conservative treatment of the surviving forest wealth of the country carried great weight. The convention was under the direction of the Secretary of Agriculture, and was addressed by the President.

During a journey through parts of the Southern States, in October, 1905, the President took occasion, in some of his speeches, to urge that a large part, at least, of the rapidly disappearing forests on the Atlantic side of the country should be nationalized, for preservation in the manner of the forest reserves of the Far West. In his Message of 1906 he submitted this to Congress, as a specific recommendation, saying that the forests of the White Mountains and the Southern Appalachian regions need to be preserved, and "cannot be unless the people of the States in which they lie, through their representatives in the Congress, secure vigorous action by the National Government." This proposal encountered strong opposition from selfish interests, and Congress was prevailed upon with difficulty to authorize a survey of the forests of the White Mountains and the Southern Appalachians, which resulted in a recommendation by the Secretary of Agriculture that 600,000 acres in the former region and 5,000,000 in the latter be purchased for a National Reserve. A bill responsive to this recommendation was passed by the Senate, but rejected by the House, which appointed a commission, instead, to make further investigations in the matter. Meantime, in the White Mountains alone, busy slaughterers of the forests were said to be stripping three hundred acres per day.

On the eve of the adjournment of Congress in March, 1907, the President issued a proclamation adding some seventeen millions of acres of forest lands to the National Forest Reserves already established. This was just before he signed an Act of Congress which abridged his authority to create reserves in Colorado, Wyoming, Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. It was a characteristic proceeding, for which the President had ample power under a statute of 1891, and it simply held the forests designated in safety from destruction until the question of their treatment was more carefully considered. The next Congress, or the next President, could give them up to private ownership, in whole or in part, if the one or the other found reason for doing so. Meantime they were sheltered from the axeman, while undergoing study. As a matter of fact, Mr. Roosevelt’s successor, President Taft, did conclude that some of the lands reserved should be released for sale, and so ordered soon after he entered the executive office.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: The Inland Waterways Commission.

In his annual Message of December, 1907, the President enlarged the range of considerations that connect themselves with the question of economic forestry, by directing attention to the importance of the waterways of the country and their claim to a more systematic development. "For the last few years," he said, "through several agencies, the Government has been endeavoring to get our people to look ahead, and to substitute a planned and orderly development of our resources in place of a haphazard striving for immediate profit. Our great river systems should be developed as National water highways; the Mississippi, with its tributaries, standing first in importance, and the Columbia second, although there are many others of importance on the Pacific, the Atlantic and the Gulf slopes. The National Government should undertake this work, and I hope a beginning will be made in the present Congress; and the greatest of all our rivers, the Mississippi, should receive especial attention. From the Great Lakes to the mouth of the Mississippi there should be a deep waterway, with deep waterways leading from it to the East and the West. Such a waterway would practically mean the extension of our coast line into the very heart of our country. It would be of incalculable benefit to our people. If begun at once it can be carried through in time appreciably to relieve the congestion of our great freight-carrying lines of railroads. …

"The inland waterways which lie just back of the whole eastern and southern coasts should likewise be developed. Moreover, the development of our waterways involves many other important water problems, all of which should be considered as part of the same general scheme. The Government dams should be used to produce hundreds of thousands of horsepower as an incident to improving navigation; for the annual value of the unused water-power of the United States perhaps exceeds the annual value of the products of all our mines. As an incident to creating the deep waterway down the Mississippi, the Government should build along its whole lower length levees which taken together with the control of the headwaters, will at once and forever put a complete stop to all threat of floods in the immensely fertile Delta region. The territory lying adjacent to the Mississippi along its lower course will thereby become one of the most prosperous and populous, as it already is one of the most fertile, farming regions in all the world. I have appointed an Inland Waterways Commission to study and outline a comprehensive scheme of development along all the lines indicated. Later I shall lay its report before the Congress."

The Inland Waterways Commission thus appointed by the President in March, 1907, gave its attention first to the project of a "Lakes-to-the-Gulf Deep Water Way," which had been commanding wide interest in the Mississippi Valley for some years. What the project, in its full magnitude, contemplated, was stated as follows in the resolutions of a great convention, of 4000 delegates, from 44 States, assembled at Chicago in October, 1908:

"Any plan for the inland waterway development so imperatively necessary to the material welfare of the valley should comprise a main trunk line in the form of a strait connecting Lake Michigan with the Gulf of Mexico by way of the Illinois and Mississippi rivers. {148} The development of this trunk line should begin at once. The improvement of the branches of this main line, such as the upper Mississippi, with its tributaries; the Ohio, with its leading tributaries, including the Tennessee and Cumberland; the Missouri, the Arkansas, the Red, the White, and other rivers, and the interstate inland waterway of Louisiana and Texas, should proceed simultaneously with the development of the principal line.

"The deep waterway is practically complete from Chicago to Joliet through the courage and enterprise of the single city of Chicago, which has by the expenditure of $55,000,000 created a deep waterway across the main divide between the waters of Lake Michigan and those of the Mississippi. A special board of survey, composed of United States engineers, reported to Congress in 1905 that the continuation of the deep waterway from Joliet to St. Louis was feasible and would cost only $31,000,000. The State of Illinois, assuming that the Federal Government will take the responsibility of completing the waterway to the Gulf, is about to cooperate to the extent of $20,000,000."

The waterway here mentioned as being "practically complete from Chicago to Joliet" is that known as the Chicago Drainage Canal. The $20,000,000 with which the State of Illinois would cooperate in carrying out the whole project was voted by that State in November, 1908, for building an extension of the Drainage Canal from Joliet to Utica, Illinois, sixty-one miles, for a development of water power. The depth of these channels is and is to be twenty-four feet, and the project of the Lakes-to-the-Gulf Deep Waterway contemplated that depth throughout. The Board of Engineers to which the project was referred reported, however, in June, 1909, against the desirability of a waterway of such depth. Its cost from St. Louis to the Gulf is estimated to be $128,000,000 for construction, and $6,000,000 yearly for maintenance. In the judgment of the board, the present demands of commerce between St. Louis and the Gulf will be adequately met by an eight-foot channel from St. Louis to the mouth of the Ohio and a channel of not less than nine feet in depth below the mouth of the Ohio. The board’s belief is that an eight-foot channel from Chicago to St. Louis corresponding with the eight-foot project from St. Louis to Cairo is the least that would adequately meet the demands of commerce. It adds that such a waterway would be desirable, provided its cost is reasonable. Present and prospective demands of commerce between Chicago and the Gulf would be adequately served, the board reports, by a through nine-foot channel to the Gulf.

In the States bordering on the Atlantic a "Deeper Waterways Association" is pressing long-mooted plans for uniting the bays, sounds, and navigable rivers along the Atlantic coast by canals, thus affording safe deep-water communication from Boston on the east to Florida at the far south.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Conference of Governors at Washington.

In all his endeavors to establish a national policy directed, systematically and scientifically, to the arresting of waste in the use and treatment of the natural resources of the country, President Roosevelt was assisted very greatly by the knowledge and the energetic public spirit of the chief of the National Forest Service, Mr. Gifford Pinchot. It is understood to have been on the initiative of Mr. Pinchot that the crowning expedient for stirring and determining public feeling on the subject was planned, early in the winter of 1908, when the President invited the Governors of all the States and Territories to a Conference in Washington, for considering the whole question of an economic conservation of natural resources and concerting measures to that end. It was said, indeed, by the President, in addressing the meeting of Governors, that if it had not been for Mr. Pinchot "this convention neither would nor could have been called." The invitation went to others than Governors,—to men of national prominence in public life, in scientific pursuits, in business experience, and to heads of great associations. The resulting assembly at the White House, on the 13th, 14th, and 15th of May, 1908, marked an epoch in American history. There were Governors from forty of the forty-six States of the Union, with the President and members of his Cabinet, the Justices of the Supreme Court, many Senators and Representatives from the Congress, and a distinguished gathering of such citizens as William Jennings Bryan, Seth Low, James J. Hill, Andrew Carnegie, John Mitchell and Samuel Gompers. All sides of the national thriftlessness that needed correction were discussed by men who could best describe the evils produced and best indicate the methods of remedy. Before adjourning their meeting the Governors present adopted with unanimity a declaration in which they say:

"We agree that our country’s future is involved in this: that the great natural resources supply the material basis upon which our civilization must continue to depend, and upon which the perpetuity of the nation itself rests. We agree, in the light of the facts brought to our knowledge and from the information received from sources which we cannot doubt, that this material basis is threatened with exhaustion. …

"We declare our firm conviction that this conservation of our natural resources is a subject of transcendent importance which should engage unremittingly the attention of the nation, the States, and the people in earnest cooperation. These natural resources include the land on which we live and which yields our food; the living waters which fertilize the soil, supply power, and form great avenues of commerce; the forests which yield the materials for our homes, prevent erosion of the soil, and conserve the navigation and other uses of the streams; and the minerals which form the basis of our industrial life, and supply us with heat, light, and power. …

"We commend the wise forethought of the President in sounding the note of warning as to the waste and exhaustion of the natural resources of the country, and signify our high appreciation of his action in calling this Conference to consider the same and to seek remedies therefor through cooperation of the nation and the States. …

"We agree in the wisdom of future conferences between the President, Members of Congress, and the governors of States on the conservation of our natural resources with a view of continued coöperation and action on the lines suggested; and to this end we advise that from time to time, as in his judgment may seem wise, the President call the governors of States and Members of Congress and others into conference.

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"We agree that further action is advisable to ascertain the present condition of our natural resources and to promote the conservation of the same; and to that end we recommend the appointment by each State of a commission on the conservation of natural resources, to coöperate with each other and with any similar commission of the Federal Government."

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: The National Conservation Commission and its Report.

The President acted with promptitude on the suggestion of a National Commission on the Conservation of Natural Resources, to coöperate with kindred State Commissions. Within a month he announced the appointment of such a Commission, composed of nearly fifty men of special qualification for the inquiries to be pursued, the recommendations to be made, and the action to be taken. All sections of the country are represented on the Commission, including such authorities on waters as Professor Swain, of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology; on forests, as Professor Graves, of the Yale Forestry School, and Mr. Charles Lathrop Pack, of New Jersey; on lands, as Ex-Governor Pardee, of California, and Mr. James J. Hill, the eminent railway president; on minerals, as Messrs. Andrew Carnegie, of New York, John Hays Hammond, of Massachusetts, and John Mitchell, of Illinois.

The Commission is divided into four sections, one to consider forests, another waters, a third minerals, and the fourth lands. Over these divisions is an executive committee, of which Mr. Gifford Pinchot is chairman. In each section there are representatives from the Senate and House of Representatives, and officials of Government from the Department which has to do with the subject referred to it.

State action on the lines commended by the Conference of Governors had already been instituted in a number of States, and in many others it was promptly set on foot; so that the desired coöperative organization of effort was soon well under way, and contributing to the first undertaking planned by the Executive Committee of the National Commission, which was the making of an inventory of the natural resources of the United States. So effective was the work done in the summer and fall of 1908 that a Second Conference of State Governors, jointly with the State and National Commissions, was found desirable, for consideration of the mass of facts collected as a basis for definite plans. The Second Conference, like the First, was in Washington, and it was opened on the 8th of December, under the chairmanship of the then President-elect of the United States, the Honorable William H. Taft. The draft of a report prepared to be made by the National Conservation Commission to the President of the United States was submitted confidentially to this Conference, and was sent to Congress a little later with its approval, as well as with that of the President. The Conference adopted, furthermore, two important resolutions, as follows:

"_Resolved_, That a joint committee be appointed by the chairman, to consist of six members of state conservation commissions and three members of the National Conservation Commission, whose duty it shall be to prepare and present to the state and national commissions, and through them to the governors and the President, a plan for united action by all organizations concerned with the conservation of natural resources. (On motion of Governor Noel, of Mississippi, the chairman and secretary of the conference were added to and constituted a part of this committee.) "

"We also especially urge on the Congress of the United States the high desirability of maintaining a National Commission on the Conservation of the Resources of the Country, empowered to coöperate with State Commissions, to the end that every sovereign commonwealth and every section of the country may attain the high degree of prosperity and the sureness of perpetuity naturally arising in the abundant resources and the vigor, intelligence and patriotism of our people."

In subsequently communicating to Congress, on the 22d of January, 1909, the report of the National Conservation Commission, the President said:

"With the statements and conclusions of this report I heartily concur, and I commend it to the thoughtful consideration both of the Congress and of our people generally. It is one of the most fundamentally important documents ever laid before the American people. It contains the first inventory of its natural resources ever made by any nation."

The report of the Commission was prefaced by a brief explanatory statement from the Chairman of its Executive Committee, partly as follows:

"The executive committee designated in your letter creating the commission organized on June 19 and outlined a plan for making an inventory of the natural resources of the United States. On July 1 work was undertaken, accordingly, with the coöperation of the bureaus of the federal departments, authorities of the different States, and representative bodies of the national industries. The results of this coöperative work are herewith submitted as appendices of the commission’s report. … In its coöperation ‘with other bodies created for similar purposes by States,’ the National Conservation Commission has had most valuable assistance. Within the first month after the creation of the commission, the governors of 5 States had appointed conservation commissions, and an equal number of organizations of national scope had named conservation committees. At the time of the recent joint conservation conference 33 States and Territories had formed conservation commissions. The number has now increased to 36, with indications that nearly all of the remaining States will soon take similar action. The number of national organizations which have appointed conservation committees is 41."

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: An Inventory of Natural Resources.

From the report itself it is only possible, in this place, to glean a few of its most impressive and significant disclosures of fact. For example:

CONCERNING FORESTS.

"Forests privately owned cover three-fourths of the total forest area and contain four-fifths of the standing timber. The timber privately owned is not only four times that publicly owned, but is generally more valuable. Forestry is now practiced on 70 per cent. of the forests publicly owned, and on less than 1 per cent. of the forests privately owned, or on only 18 per cent. of the total area of forests.

"The yearly growth of wood in our forests does not average more than 12 cubic feet per acre. This gives a total yearly growth of less than 7,000,000,000 cubic feet.

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"We have 200,000,000 acres of mature forests, in which yearly growth is balanced by decay; 250,000,000 acres partly cut over or burned over, but restocking naturally with enough young growth to produce a merchantable crop, and 100,000,000 acres cut over and burned over, upon which young growth is lacking or too scanty to make merchantable timber.

"We take from our forests yearly, including waste in logging and in manufacture, 23,000,000,000 cubic feet of wood. We use each year 100,000,000 cords of firewood; 40,000,000,000 feet of lumber; more than 1,000,000,000 posts, poles, and fence rails; 118,000,000 hewn ties; 1,500,000,000 staves; over 133,000,000 sets of heading; nearly 500,000,000 barrel hoops; 3,000,000 cords of native pulp wood; 165,000,000 cubic feet of round mine timbers, and 1,250,000 cords of wood for distillation.

"Since 1870 forest fires have destroyed a yearly average of 50 lives and $50,000,000 worth of timber. Not less than 50,000,000 acres of forest is burned over yearly. The young growth destroyed by fire is worth far more than the merchantable timber burned.

"One-fourth of the standing timber is lost in logging. The boxing of long-leaf pine for turpentine has destroyed one-fifth of the forests worked. The loss in the mill is from one-third to two-thirds of the timber sawed. The loss of mill product in seasoning and fitting for use is from one-seventh to one fourth. Of each 1000 feet, which stood in the forest, an average of only 320 feet of lumber is used.

"We take from our forests each year, not counting the loss by fire, three and a half times their yearly growth. We take 40 cubic feet per acre for each 12 cubic feet grown; we take 260 cubic feet per capita, while Germany uses 37 and France 25 cubic feet.

"We tax our forests under the general property tax, a method abandoned long ago by every other great nation. Present tax laws prevent reforestation of cut-over land and the perpetuation of existing forests by use.

"Great damage is done to standing timber by injurious forest insects. Much of this damage can be prevented at small expense.

"To protect our farms from wind and to reforest land best suited for forest growth will require tree planting on an area larger than Pennsylvania, Ohio, and West Virginia combined. Lands so far successfully planted make a total area smaller than Rhode Island; and year by year, through careless cutting and fires, we lower the capacity of existing forests to produce their like again, or else totally destroy them. …

"By reasonable thrift we can produce a constant timber supply beyond our present need, and with it conserve the usefulness of our streams for irrigation, water supply, navigation and power. Under right management, our forests will yield over four times as much as now. We can reduce waste in the woods and in the mill at least one third, with present as well as future profit. … We can practically stop forest fires at a cost yearly of one fifth of the value of the merchantable timber burned.

"We shall suffer for timber to meet our needs until our forests have had time to grow again. But if we act vigorously and at once, we shall escape permanent timber scarcity." The report adds much of interest on this subject.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: CONCERNING WATERS.

"Our mean annual rainfall is about 30 inches; the quantity about 215,000,000,000,000 cubic feet per year, equivalent to ten Mississippi rivers. Of the total rainfall over half is evaporated; about a third flows into the sea, the remaining sixth is either consumed or absorbed. These portions are sometimes called, respectively, the fly-off, the run-off and the cut-off. They are partly interchangeable. About a third of the run-off, or a tenth of the entire rainfall, passes through the Mississippi. The run-off is increasing with deforestation and cultivation.

"Of the 70,000,000,000,000 cubic feet annually flowing into the sea, less than 1 per cent. is restrained and utilized for municipal and community supply; less than 2 per cent. (or some 10 per cent. of that in the arid and semi-arid regions) is used for irrigation; perhaps 5 per cent, is used for navigation, and less than 5 per cent, for power. …

"For irrigation it is estimated that there are $200,000,000 invested in dams, ditches, reservoirs, and other works for the partial control of the waters; and that 1,500,000,000,000 cubic feet are annually diverted to irrigable lands, aggregating some 20,000 square miles. Except in some cases through forestry, few catchment areas are controlled, and few reservoirs are large enough to hold the storm waters. The waste in the public and private projects exceeds 60 per cent. while no more than 25 per cent. of the water actually available for irrigation of the arid lands is restrained and diverted.

"There are in continental United States 282 streams navigated for an aggregate of 26,115 miles, and as much more navigable if improved. There are 45 canals, aggregating 2,189 miles, besides numerous abandoned canals. Except through forestry in recent years, together with a few reservoirs and canal locks and movable dams, there has been little effort to control headwaters or catchment areas in the interests of navigation, and none of our rivers are navigated to more than a small fraction even of their effective low-water capacity.

"The water power now in use is 5,250,000 horse power; the amount running over government dams and not used is about 1,400,000 horse-power; the amount reasonably available equals or exceeds the entire mechanical power now in use, or enough to operate every mill, drive every spindle, propel every train and boat, and light every city, town, and village in the country. … Nearly all the freshet and flood water runs to waste, and the low waters which limit the efficiency of power plants are increasing in frequency and duration with the increasing flood run-off. … The direct yearly damage by floods since 1900 has increased steadily from $45,000,000 to over $238,000,000. …

"A large part of that half of the annual rainfall not evaporated lodges temporarily in the soil and earth. It is estimated that the ground water to the depth of 100 feet averages 16 2/3 percent, of the earth-Volume, or over 1,400,000,000,000,000 cubic feet, equivalent to seven years' rainfall or twenty years’ run-off. This subsurface reservoir is the essential basis of agriculture and other industries and is the chief natural resource of the country. It sustains forests and all other crops and supplies the perennial springs and streams and wells used by four-fifths of our population and nearly all our domestic animals. Its quantity is diminished by the increased run-off due to deforestation and injudicious farming."

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CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: CONCERNING LANDS.

"The total land area of continental United States is 1,900,000,000 acres. Of this but little more than two-fifths is in farms, and less than one-half of the farm area is improved and made a source of crop production. We have nearly 6,000,000 farms; they average 146 acres each. The value of the farms is nearly one-fourth the wealth of the United States. There are more than 300,000,000 acres of public grazing land. The number of persons engaged in agricultural pursuits is more than 10,000,000. …

"There has been a slight increase in the average yield of our great staple farm products, but neither the increase in acreage nor the yield per acre has kept pace with our increase in population. Within a century we shall probably have to feed three times as many people as now; and the main bulk of our food supply must be grown on our own soil.

"The area of cultivated land may possibly be doubled. In addition to the land awaiting the plow, 75,000,000 acres of swamp land can be reclaimed, 40,000,000 acres of desert land irrigated, and millions of acres of brush and wooded land cleared. Our population will increase continuously, but there is a definite limit to the increase of our cultivated acreage. Hence we must greatly increase the yield per acre. The average yield of wheat in the United States is less than 14 bushels per acre, in Germany 28 bushels, and in England 32 bushels. We get 30 bushels of oats per acre, England nearly 45, and Germany more than 47. Our soils are fertile, but our mode of farming neither conserves the soil nor secures full crop returns. The greatest unnecessary loss of our soil is preventable erosion. Second only to this is the waste, nonuse, and misuse of fertilizer derived from animals and men."

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: CONCERNING MINERALS.

"The available and easily accessible supplies of coal in the United States aggregate approximately 1,400,000,000,000 tons. At the present increasing rate of production this supply will be so depleted as to approach exhaustion before the middle of the next century.

"The known supply of high-grade iron ores in the United States approximates 3,840,000,000 tons, which at the present increasing rate of consumption can not be expected to last beyond the middle of the present century. In addition to this, there are assumed to be 59,000,000,000 tons of lower grade iron ores which are not available for use under existing conditions.

"The supply of stone, clay, cement, lime, sand, and salt is ample, while the stock of the precious metals and of copper, lead, zinc, sulphur, asphalt, graphite, quicksilver, mica, and the rare metals can not well be estimated, but is clearly exhaustible within one to three centuries unless unexpected deposits be found.

"The known supply of petroleum is estimated at 15,000,000,000 to 20,000,000,000 barrels, distributed through six separate fields having an aggregate area of 8,900 square miles. The production is rapidly increasing, while the wastes and the loss through misuse are enormous. The supply can not be expected to last beyond the middle of the present century.

"The known natural-gas fields aggregate an area of 9,000 square miles, distributed through 22 States. Of the total yield from these fields during 1907, 400,000,000,000 cubic feet, valued at $62,000,000, were utilized, while an equal quantity was allowed to escape into the air. The daily waste of natural gas—the most perfect known fuel—is over 1,000,000,000 cubic feet, or enough to supply every city in the United States of over 100,000 population.

"Phosphate rock, used for fertilizer, represents the slow accumulation of organic matter during past ages. In most countries it is scrupulously preserved; in this country it is extensively exported, and largely for this reason its production is increasing rapidly. The original supply can not long withstand the increasing demand. …

"The National Government should exercise such control of the mineral fuels and phosphate rocks now in its possession as to check waste and prolong our supply."

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: CONCERNING LIFE AND HEALTH

"Since the greatest of our national assets is the health and vigor of the American people, our efficiency must depend on national vitality even more than on the resources of the minerals, lands, forests, and waters. …

"Our annual mortality from tuberculosis is about 150,000. Stopping three-fourths of the loss of life from this cause, and from typhoid and other prevalent and preventable diseases, would increase our average length of life over fifteen years. There are constantly about 3,000,000 persons seriously ill in the United States, of whom 500,000 are consumptives. More than half this illness is preventable. …

"The National Government has now several agencies exercising health functions which only need to be concentrated to become coordinated parts of a greater health service worthy of the nation."

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: FINAL WORDS.

"The inventory of our natural resources made by your commission, with the vigorous aid of all federal agencies concerned, of many States, and of a great number of associated and individual cooperators, furnishes a safe basis for general conclusions as to what we have, what we use and waste, and what may be the possible saving. But for none of the great resources of the farm, the mine, the forest, and the stream do we yet possess knowledge definite or wide enough to insure methods of use which will best conserve them. … The pressing need is for a general plan under which citizens, States and Nation may unite in an effort to achieve this great end. The lack of cooperation between the States and the Nation, and between the agencies of the National Government, is a potent cause of the neglect of conservation among the people. An organization through which all agencies, state, national, municipal, associate, and individual, may unite in a common effort to conserve the foundations of our prosperity is indispensable to the welfare and progress of the nation. To that end the immediate creation of a national agency is essential."

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CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Beginnings of a General Organization of all Conservation Agencies.

The Joint Committee which the Chairman of the Second Conference of Governors was instructed to appoint, for the preparation of "a plan for united action by all organizations concerned with the conservation of natural resources," met at Washington on the 5th of March, 1909, for its first consultation. The Committee, of eleven members, consists of six chairmen of State Conservation Commissions, and five who are members of the National Conservation Commission. In preparation for the meeting the various conservation bodies which have been actively at work for several months are sending in suggestions based on their own experience.

Action for the preservation and increase of forests has been stimulated in many if not all of the States of the Union by the national agitation of the subject in these late years. Nowhere has the influence been more effective than in New York, which has not only greatly enlarged its control and improved its care and treatment of the extensive forest tracts in the Adirondack region, but has done even more important reforesting work in other parts of its territory. "James S. Whipple, forest, fish and game commissioner, has not only planted more trees in this State than have been planted in any other State, or even by the national government, but this year he has made another great advance in the reforesting movement. The commission has sold to private land owners at cost 1,034,050 pine and spruce trees for reforesting land within the State."

_New York Evening Post, April 24, 1909._

These trees went to every county of the State, in numbers ranging from 50 to 200,000.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Threatened Monopoly of Water Power.

See (in this Volume) Combinations, Industrial, &c.: UNITED STATES: A. D. 1909.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Withdrawal of Water Power Sites from Land Office Entry.

What is said to be the largest number of acres of land withdrawn for temporary water power sites in the history of the Interior Department was made August 13, 1909, when Acting Secretary Wilson withdrew 87,360 acres along the Colorado River, in Utah. The land in question was withdrawn to prevent "monopolies," and with a view to procure legislation from Congress to preserve them to the Government.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: The National Conservation Association.

"Great significance," said a Press despatch from Washington, September 16, 1906, "is attached here to-day to the announcement from Chicago of the formation of the National Conservation Association, with Charles W. Eliot, ex-president of Harvard University, as president. Friends of conservation interpret the launching of the new organization to mean that a national organization of the widest possible membership and the greatest possible scope is to supplant the American Forestry Association in administration favor as the educational branch of the conservation movement."

Not long after its formation the Association issued an earnest appeal to the country to bring the pressure of its opinion on Congress for needed legislation. The special subject of this appeal was the vast coal field in Alaska, which can only be saved from monopoly by speedy amendment of existing laws. "We, therefore," said the Association, "appeal to the American people to bring the urgent needs of the situation to the attention of their representatives in Congress, in order that comprehensive legislation upon this vital matter may be enacted at the next session of Congress. To this end, every individual citizen is urged to do his part, and to act at once."

On the request of Dr. Eliot, Mr. Gifford Pinchot, after the withdrawal of the latter from the office of Chief Forester of the United States, was made President of the Association, in January, 1910, but Dr. Eliot was named Honorary President.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: Legislation recommended by President Taft.

Earnestly upholding the Conservation policy instituted by his predecessor, President Taft, in a Special Message to Congress, January 14, 1910, recommended several measures of legislation, for which suggested bills had been drafted by the Secretary of the Interior.

"One of the most pressing needs," said the Message, "in the matter of public-land reform is that lands should be classified according to their principal value or use. …

"It is now proposed to dispose of agricultural lands as such, and at the same time to reserve for other disposition the treasure of coal, oil, asphaltum, natural gas, and phosphate contained therein. This may be best accomplished by separating the right to mine from the title to the surface, giving the necessary use of so much of the latter as may be required for the extraction of the deposits. The surface might be disposed of as agricultural land under the general agricultural statutes, while the coal or other mineral could be disposed of by lease on a royalty basis."

The importance of an enlargement of the undertakings of the Government in the line of irrigation works, for reclaiming arid lands, is urged by the President with great force, and he recommends "that authority be given to issue not exceeding $30,000,000 of bonds from time to time, as the secretary of the interior shall find it necessary, the proceeds to be applied to the completion of the projects already begun and their proper extension, and the bonds running ten years or more to be taken up by the proceeds of returns to the reclamation fund, which returns, as the years go on, will increase rapidly in amount."

The Message gives approval to a Bill which passed the lower House of the late Congress, directing that "the national government appropriate a certain amount each year out of the receipts from the forestry business of the government to institute reforestation at the sources of certain navigable streams to be selected by the Geological Survey with a view to determining the practicability of thus improving and protecting the streams for Federal purposes."

Finally, on the subject of waterway improvement, the Message recommends the project of dams in the Ohio River from Pittsburg to Cairo, and in the Upper Mississippi from St. Paul to St. Louis.

CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: A. D. 1910. Removal from office of Chief Forester Pinchot. Investigation of charges against Secretary Ballinger.

Unfortunate differences between the Secretary of the Interior, Mr. Ballinger, and the head of the Bureau of Forestry, Mr. Pinchot, led to the removal of the latter from office early in January, 1910. As a further result, formal charges of unfaithfulness to public interests, in conducting national measures of conservation, were brought against Secretary Ballinger, and are undergoing investigation by a Congressional Committee at the time of the passing of this matter to the printers (March, 1910).

----------CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: End--------

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CONSERVATIVE-UNIONIST PARTY: Surrender of the Government in Great Britain. Defeat in the Elections.

See (in this Volume) ENGLAND: A. D. 1905-1906.

CONSPIRACY LAW, British, as affecting Trades Unions.

See (in this Volume) LABOR ORGANIZATION: ENGLAND A. D. 1906 (MARCH).

CONSTABULARY, The Philippine.

See (in this Volume) PHILIPPINE ISLANDS: A. D. 1901-1902.

CONSTANTINOPLE: A. D. 1901. Loss of political importance.

See (in this Volume) RUSSIA: THE ASIATIC FUTURE.

CONSTANTINOPLE: A. D. 1908-1909. The Turkish Revolution.

See (in this Volume) TURKEY: A. D. 1908 (JULY-DECEMBER), and after.

CONSTITUTION OF AUSTRALIA: Proposed Amendments.

See (in this Volume) AUSTRALIA: A. D. 1909 and 1910.

CONSTITUTION OF BRITISH INDIAN GOVERNMENT: The Indian Councils Act.

See (in this Volume ) INDIA: A. D. 1908-1909.

CONSTITUTION FOR CHINA: Nine years of approach to it. Promised for 1907.

See (in this Volume) CHINA: A. D. 1905-1908, 1908 (December), and 1909 (OCTOBER-NOVEMBER).

CONSTITUTION OF ENGLAND: Resolution of the Commons contemplating a change affecting the Legislative Power of the House of Lords.

See (in this Volume) ENGLAND: A. D. 1906 (APRIL-DECEMBER), and 1910.

CONSTITUTION OF GEORGIA: Suffrage Amendment.

See (in this Volume) GEORGIA: A. D. 1908.

CONSTITUTION OF MONTENEGRO.

See (in this Volume) BALKAN AND DANUBIAN STATES.

CONSTITUTION OF OKLAHOMA.

Some of the more radical features of the Constitution under which Oklahoma was admitted to the American Union are summarized in the following:

"Legislative authority is vested in a legislature, but the people reserve to themselves the power to propose laws and amendments to the constitution and to enact or reject the same at the polls independent of the legislature, and also reserve power at their own option to approve or reject at the polls any act of the legislature.

"Eight per cent of the legal voters have the right to propose any legislative measure and 15 percent of the legal voters have the right to propose amendments to the constitution by petition. A referendum may be ordered, except as to laws necessary for the immediate preservation of the public peace, health or safety, either by petition signed by 5 per cent of the legal voters or by the legislature as other bills are enacted. The veto power of the governor does not extend to measures voted on by the people. The powers of the initiative and referendum are also reserved to the legal voters of every county and district as to local legislation or action.

"Every railroad, car or express company is required to receive and transport without delay or discrimination each other’s cars, loaded or empty, and passengers under such regulations as shall be prescribed by law or any commission created for that purpose. All oil-pipe companies are made subject to the reasonable control and regulation of the corporation commission, to which telephone and telegraph lines are also subject in the same manner. No public-service corporation may consolidate with any other like corporation having under its control a parallel or competing line except by enactment of the legislature upon the recommendation of the corporation commission. The legislature, however, shall never enact any law permitting any public-service corporation to consolidate with any other public-service corporation organized under the laws of any other state or of the United States owning or controlling a parallel or competing line in the state. The giving of passes by railroad or transportation companies is forbidden except in the case of employés and other specified persons.

"A corporation commission is created, to be composed of three persons, elected by the people for terms of six years. The commission shall have power to supervise and control all transportation and transmission companies in the state in all matters relating to the performance of their public duties and their charges therefor and of correcting abuses and preventing unjust discrimination and extortion by such companies; and to that end the commission shall from time to time prescribe and enforce such rates, charges, classification of charges and rules and regulations and shall require the companies to establish and maintain until amended all such public service, facilities and conveniences as may be reasonable and just.

"Railroads, other than street or electric roads, are forbidden to charge more than 2 cents a mile for the transportation of passengers. The corporation commission may, however exempt those roads which submit proof that they cannot earn a just compensation for the services rendered by them to the public if not permitted to charge more than 2 cents a mile.

"No corporation may issue stock except for money, labor done or property actually received to the amount of the par value thereof and all fictitious increase of stock or indebtedness shall be void.

"No corporation doing business in the state may be permitted to influence elections or official duty by contributions of money or anything of value.

"Every license issued or charter granted to a mining or public service corporation, foreign or domestic, must contain a stipulation that such corporation will submit any difference it may have with employés in reference to labor to arbitration.

"The selling by firms or corporations of commodities at a lower rate in one locality than in another for the purpose of creating a monopoly or for destroying competition is prohibited.

"Municipal corporations may not be created by special but by general laws, and every corporation now existing shall continue with its present rights and powers until otherwise provided by law. The powers of the initiative and referendum are reserved to the people of every municipal corporation. No municipal corporation may ever grant, extend or renew a franchise without the approval of a majority of the qualified electors residing within its limits, and no franchise may be granted, extended or renewed for more than twenty-five years.

Women are qualified to vote at school-district elections only.

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----------CONSTITUTION OF PERSIA: Start--------

A Constitution for Persia was signed by the Shah, Muzaffer-ed-Deen, December 30, 1906, of which the following is, in part, the text:

In the name of God the all Merciful! Whereas by our Firman of the 5th August, 1906, we commanded the constitution of a National Assembly [Medjliss] for the progress and welfare of the State and nation, the strengthening of the foundations of the kingdom, and the carrying out of the laws of Islam; and whereas, in accordance with the clause by which it is provided that, as each individual member of the State has a right to take part in the superintendence and decision of public affairs, we therefore have permitted the election and appointment of Deputies on behalf of the nation; and whereas the National Assembly has been opened through our gracious benevolence, we have decreed the following Articles of constitutional Regulations for the National Assembly, including the duties and business of the Assembly and its limitations and relations toward Government Departments:

THE INSTITUTION OF THE ASSEMBLY.

[Articles 1-14 declare the National Assembly to be "composed of members elected at Tehran and in the provinces"; their place of meeting to be at Tehran; their number 160, but may if necessary be increased to 200; their term of service two years: they are "representative of the whole Persian nation"; the Tehran deputies to have "the option of instituting the Assembly and starting discussion and debates," and "their decisions by majority during the absence of the provincial deputies will be valid and are to be carried out." The Assembly itself is given the right to fix the time of its recess and its sitting; its members cannot be proceeded against by any person; its proceedings must be public and open to newspaper reporting, but false reporting shall be punished.]

THE DUTIES OF THE ASSEMBLY, ITS LIMITATIONS AND RIGHTS.

Article 15. The National Assembly has the right to discuss truthfully and sincerely all matters it considers to be desirable in the interests of the State and nation to investigate; and, subject to the approval of a majority, to submit them, in the enjoyment of the utmost safety and confidence, with the approval of the Senate, to His Imperial Majesty the Shah, through the first person of the Government, for His Majesty’s signature, and to be then put into execution.

Article 16. In general, all laws necessary for the strengthening of the Government and kingdom, and the regulation of State affairs, and for the Constitution of Ministries, must receive the sanction of the National Assembly.

Article 17. The necessary Bills for making new laws, or for the alteration, amplification, or cancellation of existing laws, will, when desirable, be prepared by the National Assembly to be submitted to His Imperial Majesty the Shah for signature with the approval of the Senate, and to be then put into execution.

Article 18. The regulation of financial matters, the modification of the Budget, the alteration of the arrangement of taxation, the refusal or acceptance of impositions, as well as the inspections which will be undertaken by the Government, will be done with the approval of the Assembly.

Article 19. The Assembly will have the right, for the purpose of reforming financial matters and facilitating the relations of the Governors and the apportioning of the provinces of Persia, and the reappointment of Governors, after the Senate has given its approval, to demand from the Government authorities that the decision arrived at should be carried out.

Article 20. The Budget of each Ministry must be finished for the succeeding year in the last half of each year, and must be ready fifteen days before the 20th March.

Article 21. Should it be necessary with regard to the constitutional laws of the Ministries to make a new law, or to alter or cancel existing laws, it will be done with the consent of the National Assembly, whether its necessity be first pointed out by the Assembly or by the responsible Minister.

Article 22. Whenever a part of the revenue or property of the Government or State is to be sold, or a change of frontier or border becomes necessary, it will be done with the approval of the National Assembly.

Article 23. Without the approval of the National Assembly no concession whatever for the formation of Companies or Associations shall be granted by the Government.

Article 24. Treaties, Conventions, the granting of concessions, monopolies, either commercial, industrial, or agricultural, whether the other party be a native or a foreigner, can only be done with the approval of the National Assembly. Treaties which it may be in the interests of the Government or nation to keep secret are excepted.

Article 25. All Government loans of any nature whatsoever, whether internal or foreign, will be made with the knowledge and approval of the National Assembly.

Article 26. The construction of railways or roads, whether the cost be defrayed by the Government, by Associations or Companies, whether native or foreign, can only be undertaken with the approval of the National Assembly.

Article 27. Should the Assembly find in any place a fault, in the laws or an irregularity in their fulfilment, it will draw the attention of the responsible Minister to the same, and he will have to give the necessary explanations.

Article 28. Should a Minister, in contravention of one of the laws which have received the Imperial sanction, by misrepresentations obtain the issue of a written or verbal order from His Imperial Majesty the Shah, and excuse himself thereby for his delay and negligence, he will by law be responsible to His Imperial Majesty the Shah.

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Article 29. Whichever Minister who in a matter or matters should not be able to answer for his actions in accordance with the laws approved by His Imperial Majesty, and if it should be apparent that he has broken the law and transgressed the stipulated limitations, the Assembly will petition His Imperial Majesty for his dismissal, and when his fault has been determined by the Courts of Justice he will not again be allowed to serve the Government.

Article 30. The National Assembly has the right whenever it considers it desirable to make petitions direct to His Imperial Majesty by the means of a body composed of the President and six Members elected by the six classes. The time for the audience must be arranged for through the Minister of Court.

Article 81. The Ministers have the right to be present at the sittings of the National Assembly, and to sit in the place set apart for them, and to hear the debates of the Assembly; and should they think it necessary, they may ask the President for permission to speak and give the necessary explanations for the discussion and investigation of affairs.

Article 32. Any individual member of the public may make a statement of his case, or complaints or criticisms, to the office of the Assembly, and, if the matter concerns the Assembly itself, a satisfying answer will be given to him; but should the matter concern one of the Ministries, it will be sent to that Ministry for investigation, and in order that a satisfying answer be given.

Article 33. New laws which are necessary will be prepared at the responsible Ministries, and will be given to the National Assembly by the responsible Minister or by the Sadr Azam, and after receiving the approval of the Assembly will receive His Imperial Majesty’s sign-manual and be put into execution.

Article 34. The President of the Assembly can, if necessary, of his own initiative or by the desire of ten Members of the Assembly or of a Minister, form a Secret Committee, without the presence of newspaper reporters or spectators, composed of a number of persons chosen from among the Members of the Assembly, at which the other Members of the Assembly will not have the right to attend. The result of the deliberations of the Secret Committee can, however, only be put into execution when the Secret Committee in the presence of three quarters of the persons elected accept the point at issue by a majority of votes, and if the matter be not passed by the Secret Committee, it will not be stated in the Assembly and will remain secret.

Article 35. Should the Secret Committee be instituted by the President of the Assembly, he has the right to inform the public of any part of it he thinks fit; but if the Secret Committee is instituted by a Minister, the publication of the debate can only be subject to that Minister’s permission.

[Articles 36-42 are regulative of the transaction of business between the Assembly and the Ministries of the Government in matters of debate, inquiry, action on bills, etc.]

THE INSTITUTION OF THE SENATE.

Article 43. Another Assembly, called the Senate, will be constituted, composed of sixty Members, whose sittings will coincide, after its constitution, with those of the National Assembly.

Article 44. The Regulations of the Senate must receive the approval of the National Assembly.

Article 45. The Members of the Assembly will be chosen from among the enlightened, intelligent, orthodox, and respectable persons of the State, thirty persons on behalf of His Imperial Majesty, of whom fifteen from among the inhabitants of Tehran and fifteen from the inhabitants of the provinces, and thirty persons on behalf of the nation, of whom fifteen persons elected by the people of Tehran and fifteen persons elected by the people of the provinces.

Article 46. After the constitution of the Senate all affairs must receive the approval of both Assemblies. If those affairs are initiated by the Senate or by the body of Ministers, they must first be determined in the Senate and passed by a majority, and then be sent to the National Assembly for approval; but affairs initiated in the National Assembly will, on the contrary, pass from that Assembly to the Senate, with the exception of financial matters, which will be the prerogative of the National Assembly, and the Senate will be informed of the arrangements made by the Assembly regarding these affairs in order that the Senate should make its observations on the same to the National Assembly, which is, however, at liberty, after the necessary investigations, either to accept or to refuse the proposals of the Senate.

Article 47. So long as the Senate is not constituted affairs will require only the approval of the National Assembly and the sign-manual of His Imperial Majesty to be put into execution.

[Article 48 provides for the constituting of a "third assembly," composed of an equal number of members from the National Assembly and the Senate, to deal with cases in which those two bodies are in disagreement, and for the ultimate dissolution of the National Assembly, preparatory to the election of a new one, in case no settlement of the disagreement is reached.

Article 49 allows the new Tehran deputies then elected to begin their labors, outside of the points at issue, as soon as they are ready.]

The conclusion of the Constitution is as follows:

Article 50. During each term of election—that is to say, during two years—a general election will not be called more than once.

Article 51. It is decreed that the Sovereign who succeeds us should protect these limitations and Articles, which aim at the strengthening of the State and of the foundations of the kingdom, and the protection of justice and contentment of the nation, which we have decreed and put into execution, and which they must look upon as their duty to fulfil.

In the month of Zilkade the Unclean, 1324. O God the Almighty!

The Constitutional Laws of the National Assembly and the Senate, containing fifty one Articles, are correct.

14th of the month of Zilkade, 1324 (30th December, 1906).

In the handwriting of Muzaffer-ed-Deen Shah;

It is correct.

(Sealed) Valiahd (Mohammed Ali Shah). (Sealed) Mushir-ed-Dowleh (the Grand Vizier).

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CONSTITUTION OF PERSIA: The Constitutional Law, as passed by the National Assembly and signed by the Shah on October 8, 1907.

One hundred and seven articles "to complete the fundamental laws of the Constitution of Persia" were "added to the Constitutional law "by the signature of the Shah on the 30th of December, 1906. The first two are as follows:

Article 1. The official religion of Persia is the branch of the Twelve Imams of the Shia Sect of Islam. The Sovereign of Persia must be of, and contribute to the spread of, this religion.

Article 2. The National Assembly has been founded by the help of the Twelfth Imam, the bounty of His Islamic Majesty, the watchfulness of the Mujteheds and the common people. The laws passed by it must never to all ages be contrary to the sacred precepts of Islam, and the laws laid down by the Prophet. It is obvious that the decision as to whether the laws passed by the Assembly are in opposition to the precepts of Islam rests with the Ulema. It is therefore officially decreed that for all ages a Committee composed of five persons, who shall be Mujteheds and religious doctors, and who also must be acquainted with the requirements of the times, shall be elected in the following manner: The Ulema and doctors of Islam who are recognized by the Shias as the centre of imitation shall make known to the National Assembly the names of twenty of the Ulema possessing the above-mentioned qualities. The National Assembly shall, by agreement on casting of lots, elect five of them or more, according to the requirements of the age, and admit them as members. This Committee shall discuss and thoroughly investigate the Bills brought in by the National Assembly, and reject every one of these Bills which is contrary to the sacred precepts of Islam, in order that it may not become law. The decision of this Committee is final. This Article will not be liable to change until the advent of the Twelfth Imam.

[Articles 3-7 relate to boundaries of the Kingdom, its capital, its flag, protection of the lives and property of foreigners, and the integrity of the Constitution.

Articles 8-25 are in the nature of a "bill of rights," affirming equality of rights to all; immunity from arbitrary arrest, punishment, exile or sequestration of property; freedom of "the study of teaching of arts, letters and sciences" "except in so far as they are forbidden by the Sheri"; freedom of publication for all "except heretical works"; freedom of "societies and associations which do not provoke religious or civil strife"; inviolability of postal and telegraphic communications, except under authority of law. All primary and secondary schools are placed under the direction and surveillance of the Ministry of Education.

Articles 26-29 define, as follows:

THE POWERS OF THE REALM.

Article 26. The powers of the realm spring from the people. The Constitutional Law defines the method of using those powers.

Article 27. The powers of the realm are divided into three parts:—

Firstly, legislative power, whose province it is to make and amend laws. This power emanates from His Imperial Majesty the Shah, the National Assembly, and the Senate. Each one of these three sources possesses the right of originating laws; but their passing is conditional to their not being contrary to the laws of the Sheri, and to the approval of the two Assemblies, and to their receiving the Imperial signature. But the making and approval of laws relating to the revenue and expenditure of the realm belong to the National Assembly alone. The interpretation and commentary of laws is the peculiar duty of the National Assembly.

Secondly, the judicial power, which consists in the distinguishing of rights. This power belongs to the Sheri Tribunals in matters appertaining to the Sheri, and to the Courts of Justice in matters appertaining to the civil law ("urf").

Thirdly, the executive power, which rests with the Sovereign. That is to say, the Laws and Decrees will be executed by the Ministers and Government officials in the name of His Imperial Majesty in the manner defined by law.

Article 28. The three above-mentioned powers shall always be differentiated and separated from one another.

Article 29. The particular revenues of each province, department, and commune shall be regulated by the Provincial and Departmental Assemblies in accordance with their own particular laws.

[Articles 30-34 define the status of the members of the National Assembly.]

RIGHTS AND POWERS OF THE CROWN.

[Articles 35-57 set forth the rights and powers of the Crown. The sovereignty of Persia is declared to be "a trust which, by the grace of God, has been conferred on the person of the Sovereign by the people." The succession is vested in Muhammed Ali Shah Kajar and his descendants; the Crown Prince to be "the eldest son of the Sovereign whose mother is a Persian and a princess." Provision is made for the election by a joint committee of the Senate and the National Assembly on the succession of a minor, who cannot govern personally till his age is eighteen. The powers of the sovereign are thus defined:]

Article 43. The Sovereign cannot, without the approval and sanction of the National Assembly and the Senate, interfere in the affairs of another country.

Article 44. The Sovereign is absolved from all responsibility. The Ministers of State are responsible in all matters.

Article 45. All the Decrees and Rescripts of the Sovereign shall only be put into execution when they have been signed by the responsible Minister, who is responsible for the accuracy of the contents of that Firman or Rescript.

Article 46. The dismissal and appointment of Ministers are by order of the Sovereign.

Article 47. The conferring of commissions in the army and orders and honorary distinctions, with due observance of law, is vested in the person of the Sovereign.

Article 48. The Sovereign has the right, with the approval of the responsible Minister, to choose the important officials of the Government Departments, either at home or abroad, except in cases excepted by law. But the appointment of the other officials does not concern the Sovereign, except in cases defined by law.

Article 49. The issuing of Firmans for the execution of laws is one of the rights of the Sovereign, but he may not delay or suspend the execution of those laws.

Article 50. The supreme command of the military and naval forces is vested in the person of the Sovereign.

Article 51. The declaration of war and the conclusion of peace rest with the Sovereign.

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Article 52. Treaties which, in accordance with Article 24 of the Constitutional Law of the 14th Zilaadeh, 1325 (30th December, 1906), must be kept secret, must, on the removal of this necessity, and provided that the interests and security of the country demand it, be communicated by the Sovereign to the National Assembly and the Senate, with the necessary explanations.

Article 58. The secret clauses of any Treaty cannot annul the public clauses of that Treaty.

Article 54. The Sovereign can summon the National Assembly and the Senate to an extraordinary Session.

Article 55. Coins shall be struck, according to law, in the name of the Sovereign.

Article 56. The expenses of the Imperial household must be defined by law.

Article 57. The powers and prerogatives of the Sovereign are only such as have been defined by the existing constitutional laws.

[Articles 58-70 relate to the Ministers, who must be Mussulmans and native Persian subjects, princes of the first rank not eligible. They are severally and jointly responsible to both Assemblies. Commands of the sovereign cannot divest them of responsibility, which is to be defined by law. The Assembly or the Senate can accuse and prosecute them for offenses before the High Court of Appeal.]

JUDICIAL TRIBUNALS.

[The Judicial Tribunals of the Kingdom are the subject of Articles 71-89. "The Supreme Court of Justice and the subsidiary Courts" are declared to be "the official centres to which all suits must be referred, and judgment in matters appertaining to the Sheri rests with the fully qualified Mujteheds." Suits relating to political rights concern the Courts of Justice, excepting those which are excepted by law. No Court of Law can be instituted except by law. One Court of Appeal for the whole Kingdom is to be instituted at the Capital. The sittings of all tribunals shall be public, except in cases when the tribunal judges that this would be prejudicial to order or decency. "The Presidents and the members of the Courts of Justice will be chosen in the manner decreed by the law of the Ministry of Justice, and will be appointed by virtue of a royal Firman." No judge may be suspended, temporarily, or permanently, without a trial or proof of offence. Military tribunals will be instituted according to a special law.]

MISCELLANEOUS.

[Provincial Assemblies of elected representatives are provided for in Articles 90-93.

Articles 94-103 have relation to finances. They declare that no taxes may be levied or exemptions from them allowed except by law; that no favor to individuals shall be shown in taxation; that nothing shall, on any pretext, be demanded from the people, otherwise than by law; and provision is made for the creation of a State Accounts Department, to be chosen by the National Assembly.

The last four articles relate to the Army, which is required to be in all particulars under regulation of law. "The army vote must pass the National Assembly every year."]

----------CONSTITUTION OF PERSIA: End--------

CONSTITUTION OF RUSSIA, The so-called.

See (in this Volume) RUSSIA, A. D. 1904-1905.

----------CONSTITUTION OF SOUTH AFRICA: Start--------

Omitting the preamble, which sets forth the desirability and expediency, "for the welfare and future progress of South Africa, that the several British Colonies therein shall be united under one Government in a legislative union under the Crown of Great Britain and Ireland," the provisions of the enactment for that purpose by the Parliament of the United Kingdom, approved September 20, 1909, are as follows:

I.—PRELIMINARY.

1. This Act may be cited as the South Africa Act, 1909.

2. In this Act, unless it is otherwise expressed or implied, the words "the Union" shall be taken to mean the Union of South Africa as constituted under this Act, and the words "Houses of Parliament," "House of Parliament," or "Parliament," shall be taken to mean the Parliament of the Union.

3. The provisions of this Act referring to the King shall extend to His Majesty’s heirs and successors in the sovereignty of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

II.—THE UNION.

4. It shall be lawful for the King, with the advice of the Privy Council, to declare by proclamation that, on and after a day therein appointed, not being later than one year after the passing of this Act, the Colonies of the Cape of Good Hope, Natal, the Transvaal, and the Orange River Colony, hereinafter called the Colonies shall be united in a Legislative Union under one Government under the name of the Union of South Africa. On and after the day appointed by such proclamation the Government and Parliament of the Union shall have full power and authority within the limits of the Colonies, but the King may at any time after the proclamation appoint a governor-general for the Union.

5. The provisions of this Act shall, unless it is otherwise expressed or implied, take effect on and after the day so appointed.

6. The colonies mentioned in section four shall become original provinces of the Union under the names of Cape of Good Hope, Natal, Transvaal, and Orange Free State, as the case maybe. The original provinces shall have the same limits as the respective colonies at the establishment of the Union.

7. Upon any colony entering the Union, the Colonial Boundaries Act, 1895, and every other Act applying to any of the Colonies as being self-governing colonies or colonies with responsible government, shall cease to apply to that colony, but as from the date when this Act takes effect every such Act of Parliament shall apply to the Union.

III.—EXECUTIVE GOVERNMENT.

8. The Executive Government of the Union is vested in the King, and shall be administered by His Majesty in person or by a governor-general as His representative.

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9. The Governor-General shall be appointed by the King, and shall have and may exercise in the Union during the King’s pleasure, but subject to this Act, such powers and functions of the King as His Majesty may be pleased to assign to him.

10. There shall be payable to the King out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Union for the salary of the Governor-General an annual sum of ten thousand pounds. The salary of the Governor-General shall not be altered during his continuance in office.

11. The provisions of this Act relating to the Governor-General extend and apply to the Governor-General for the time being or such person as the King may appoint to administer the government of the Union. The King may authorise the Governor-General to appoint any person to be his deputy within the Union during his temporary absence, and in that capacity to exercise for and on behalf of the Governor-General during such absence all such powers and authorities vested in the Governor-General as the Governor-General may assign to him, subject to any limitations expressed or directions given by the King; but the appointment of such deputy shall not affect the exercise by the Governor-General himself of any power or function.

12. There shall be an Executive Council to advise the Governor-General in the government of the Union, and the members of the council shall be chosen and summoned by the Governor-General and sworn as executive councillors, and shall hold office during his pleasure.

13. The provisions of this Act referring to the Governor-General in Council shall be construed as referring to the Governor-General acting with the advice of the Executive Council.

14. The Governor-General may appoint officers not exceeding ten in number to administer such departments of State of the Union as the Governor-General in Council may establish; such officers shall hold office during the pleasure of the Governor-General. They shall be members of the Executive Council and shall be the King’s ministers of State for the Union. After the first general election of members of the House of Assembly, as hereinafter provided, no minister shall hold office for a longer period than three months unless he is or becomes a member of either House of Parliament.

15. The appointment and removal of all officers of the public service of the Union shall be vested in the Governor-General in Council, unless the appointment is delegated by the Governor-General in Council or by this Act or by a law of Parliament to some other authority.

16. All powers, authorities, and functions which at the establishment of the Union are in any of the Colonies vested in the Governor or in the Governor in Council, or in any authority of the Colony, shall, as far as the same continue in existence and are capable of being exercised after the establishment of the Union, be vested in the Governor-General or in the Governor-General in Council, or in the authority exercising similar powers under the Union, as the case may be, except such powers and functions as are by this Act or may by a law of Parliament be vested in some other authority.

17. The command in chief of the naval and military forces within the Union is vested in the King or in the Governor-General as His representative.

18. Save as in section twenty-three excepted, Pretoria shall be the seat of Government of the Union.

IV.—PARLIAMENT.

19. The legislative power of the Union shall be vested in the Parliament of the Union, herein called Parliament, which shall consist of the King, a Senate, and a House of Assembly.

20. The Governor-General may appoint such times for holding the sessions of Parliament as he thinks fit, and may also from time to time, by proclamation or otherwise, prorogue Parliament, and may in like manner dissolve the Senate and the House of Assembly simultaneously, or the House of Assembly alone: provided that the Senate shall not be dissolved within a period of ten years after the establishment of the Union, and provided further that the dissolution of the Senate shall not affect any senators nominated by the Governor-General in Council.

21. Parliament shall be summoned to meet not later than six months after the establishment of the Union.

22. There shall be a session of Parliament once at least in every year, so that a period of twelve months shall not intervene between the last sitting of Parliament in one session and its first sitting in the next session.

23. Cape Town shall be the seat of the Legislature of the Union.

SENATE.

24. For ten years after the establishment of the Union the constitution of the Senate shall, in respect of the original provinces, be as follows:

(i) Eight senators shall be nominated by the Governor-General in Council, and for each original province eight senators shall be elected in the manner hereinafter provided:

(ii) The senators to be nominated by the Governor-General in Council shall hold their seats for ten years. One-half of their number shall be selected on the ground mainly of their thorough acquaintance, by reason of their official experience or otherwise, with the reasonable wants and wishes of the coloured races in South Africa. If the seat of a senator so nominated shall become vacant, the Governor-General in Council shall nominate another person to be a senator, who shall hold his seat for ten years:

(iii) After the passing of this Act, and before the day appointed for the establishment of the Union, the Governor of each of the Colonies shall summon a special sitting of both Houses of the Legislature, and the two Houses sitting together as one body and presided over by the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly shall elect eight persons to be senators for the province. Such senators shall hold their seats for ten years. If the seat of a senator so elected shall become vacant, the provincial council of the province for which such senator has been elected shall choose a person to hold the seat until the completion of the period for which the person in whose stead he is elected would have held his seat.

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25. Parliament may provide for the manner in which the Senate shall be constituted after the expiration of ten years, and unless and until such provision shall have been made—

(i) the provisions of the last preceding section with regard to nominated senators shall continue to have effect;

(ii) eight senators for each province shall be elected by the members of the provincial council of such province together with the members of the House of Assembly elected for such province. Such senators shall hold their seats for ten years unless the Senate be sooner dissolved. If the seat of an elected senator shall become vacant, the members of the provincial council of the province, together with the members of the House of Assembly elected for such province, shall choose a person to hold the seat until the completion of the period for which the person in whose stead he is elected would have held his seat. The Governor-General in Council shall make regulations for the joint election of senators prescribed in this section.

26. The qualifications of a senator shall be as follows: —He must— (a) be not less than thirty years of age; (b) be qualified to be registered as a voter for the election of members of the House of Assembly in one of the provinces; (c) have resided for five years within the limits of the Union as existing at the time when he is elected or nominated, as the case may be; (d) be a British subject of European descent; (e) in the case of an elected senator, be the registered owner of immovable property within the Union of the value of not less than five hundred pounds over and above any special mortgages thereon. For the purposes of this section, residence in, and property situated within, a colony before its incorporation in the Union shall be treated as residence in and property situated within the Union.

27. The Senate shall, before proceeding to the dispatch of any other business, choose a senator to be the President of the Senate, and as often as the office of President becomes vacant the Senate shall again choose a senator to be the President. The President shall cease to hold office if he ceases to be a senator. He may be removed from office by a vote of the Senate, or he may resign his office by writing under his hand addressed to the Governor-General.

28. Prior to or during any absence of the President the Senate may choose a senator to perform his duties in his absence.

29. A senator may, by writing under his hand addressed to the Governor-General, resign his seat, which thereupon shall become vacant. The Governor-General shall as soon as practicable cause steps to be taken to have the vacancy filled.

30. The presence of at least twelve senators shall be necessary to constitute a meeting of the Senate for the exercise of its powers.

31. All questions in the Senate shall be determined by a majority of votes of senators present other than the President or the presiding senator, who shall, however, have and exercise a casting vote in the case of an equality of votes.

HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY.

32. The House of Assembly shall be composed of members directly chosen by the voters of the Union in electoral divisions delimited as hereinafter provided.

33. The number of members to be elected in the original provinces at the first election and until the number is altered in accordance with the provisions of this Act shall be as follows: Cape of Good Hope, fifty-one; Natal, seventeen; Transvaal, thirty-six; Orange Free State, seventeen. These numbers may be increased as provided in the next succeeding section, but shall not, in the case of any original province, be diminished until the total number of members of the House of Assembly in respect of the provinces herein provided for reaches one hundred and fifty, or until a period of ten years has elapsed after the establishment of the Union, whichever is the longer period.

34. The number of members to be elected in each province, as provided in section thirty-three, shall be increased from time to time as may be necessary in accordance with the following provisions:

(i) The quota of the Union shall be obtained by dividing the total number of European male adults in the Union, as ascertained at the census of nineteen hundred and four, by the total number of members of the House of Assembly as constituted at the establishment of the Union:

(ii) In nineteen hundred and eleven, and every five years thereafter, a census of the European population of the Union shall be taken for the purposes of this Act:

(iii) After any such census the number of European male adults in each province shall be compared with the number of European male adults as ascertained at the census of nineteen hundred and four, and, in the case of any province where an increase is shown, as compared with the census of nineteen hundred and four, equal to the quota of the Union or any multiple thereof, the number of members allotted to such province in the last preceding section shall be increased by an additional member or an additional number of members equal to such multiple, as the case may be:

(iv) Notwithstanding anything herein contained, no additional member shall be allotted to any province until the total number of European male adults in such province exceeds the quota of the Union multiplied by the number of members allotted to such province for the time being, and thereupon additional members shall be allotted to such province in respect only of such excess:

(v) As soon as the number of members of the House of Assembly to be elected in the original provinces in accordance with the preceding subsections reaches the total of one hundred and fifty, such total shall not be further increased unless and until Parliament otherwise provides; and subject to the provisions of the last preceding section the distribution of members among the provinces shall be such that the proportion between the number of members to be elected at any time in each province and the number of European male adults in such province, as ascertained at the last preceding census, shall as far as possible be identical throughout the Union:

(vi) "Male adults" in this Act shall be taken to mean males of twenty-one years of age or upwards not being members of His Majesty’s regular forces on full pay:

(vii) For the purposes of this Act the number of European male adults, as ascertained at the census of nineteen hundred and four, shall be taken to be—

For the Cape of Good Hope, 167,546; for Natal, 34,784; for the Transvaal, 106,493; For the Orange Free State, 41,014.

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35. (1) Parliament may by law prescribe the qualifications which shall be necessary to entitle persons to vote at the election of members of the House of Assembly, but no such law shall disqualify any person in the province of the Cape of Good Hope who, under the laws existing in the Colony of the Cape of Good Hope at the establishment of the Union, is or may become capable of being registered as a voter from being so registered in the province of the Cape of Good Hope by reason of his race or colour only, unless the Bill be passed by both Houses of Parliament sitting together, and at the third reading be agreed to by not less than two-thirds of the total number of members of both Houses. A Bill so passed at such joint sitting shall be taken to have been duly passed by both Houses of Parliament.

(2) No person who at the passing of any such law is registered as a voter in any province shall be removed from the register by reason only of any disqualification based on race or colour.

36. Subject to the provisions of the last preceding section, the qualifications of parliamentary voters, as existing in the several Colonies at the establishment of the Union, shall be the qualifications necessary to entitle persons in the corresponding provinces to vote for the election of members of the House of Assembly: Provided that no member of His Majesty’s regular forces on full pay shall be entitled to be registered as a voter.

[Section 37 of the Act applies to the elections of members of the House of Assembly all existing election laws in the respective provinces relating to the elections for their more numerous Houses of Parliament, excepting that it requires all polls to be taken on one and the same day throughout the Union.

Sections 38 to 43 inclusive provide for the creation of a joint commission to determine the first division of the provinces into equalized electoral divisions, and for subsequent commissions of three judges of the Supreme Court of South Africa for re-divisions, as they may become necessary.]

44. The qualifications of a member of the House of Assembly shall be as follows:—He must— (a) be qualified to be registered as a voter for the election of members of the House of Assembly in one of the provinces; (b) have resided for five years within the limits of the Union as existing at the time when he is elected; (c) be a British subject of European descent.

For the purposes of this section, residence in a colony before its incorporation in the Union shall be treated as residence in the Union.

45. Every House of Assembly shall continue for five years from the first meeting thereof, and no longer, but may be sooner dissolved by the Governor-General.

46. The House of Assembly shall, before proceeding to the despatch of any other business, choose a member to be the Speaker of the House, and, as often as the office of Speaker becomes vacant, the House shall again choose a member to be the Speaker. The Speaker shall cease to hold his office if he ceases to be a member. He may be removed from office by a vote of the House, or he may resign his office or his seat by writing under his hand addressed to the Governor-General.

47. Prior to or during the absence of the Speaker, the House of Assembly may choose a member to perform his duties in his absence.

48. A member may, by writing under his hand addressed to the Speaker, or, if there is no Speaker, or if the Speaker is absent from the Union, to the Governor-General, resign his seat, which shall thereupon become vacant.

49. The presence of at least thirty members of the House of Assembly shall be necessary to constitute a meeting of the House for the exercise of its powers.

50. All questions in the House of Assembly shall be determined by a majority of votes of members present other than the Speaker or the presiding member, who shall, however, have and exercise a casting vote in the case of an equality of votes.

BOTH HOUSES OF PARLIAMENT.

[Section 51 prescribes the oath or affirmation of allegiance to the British Sovereign which each senator and member of the House of Assembly must subscribe to before taking his seat.]

52. A member of either House of Parliament shall be incapable of being chosen or of sitting as a member of the other House: Provided that every minister of State who is a member of either House of Parliament shall have the right to sit and speak in the Senate and the House of Assembly, but shall vote only in the House of which he is a member.

53. No person shall be capable of being chosen or of sitting as a senator or as a member of the House of Assembly who—

(a) has been at any time convicted of any crime or offence for which he shall have been sentenced to imprisonment without the option of a fine for a term of not less than twelve months, unless he shall have received a grant of amnesty or a free pardon, or unless such imprisonment shall have expired at least five years before the date of his election; or

(b) is an unrehabilitated insolvent; or

(c) is of unsound mind, and has been so declared by a competent court; or

(d) holds any office of profit under the Crown within the Union:

Provided that the following persons shall not be deemed to hold an office of profit under the Crown for the purposes of this subsection:

(1) a minister of State for the Union;

(2) a person in receipt of a pension from the Crown;

(3) an officer or member of His Majesty’s naval or military forces on retired or half pay, or an officer or member of the naval or military forces of the Union whose services are not wholly employed by the Union.

54. If a senator or member of the House of Assembly—

(a) becomes subject to any of the disabilities mentioned in the last preceding section; or

(b) ceases to be qualified as required by law; or

(c) fails for a whole ordinary session to attend without the special leave of the Senate or the House of Assembly, as the case may be; his seat shall thereupon become vacant.

[Section 55 imposes a penalty of £100 for each day on which any disqualified person may knowingly sit in Parliament.]

56. Each senator and each member of the House of Assembly shall, under such rules as shall be framed by Parliament, receive an allowance of four hundred pounds a year, to be reckoned from the date on which he takes his seat: Provided that for every day of the session on which he is absent there shall be deducted from such allowance the sum of three pounds: Provided further that no such allowance shall be paid to a Minister receiving a salary under the Crown or to the President of the Senate or the Speaker of the House of Assembly. A day of the session shall mean in respect of a member any day during a session on which the House of which he is a member or any committee of which he is a member meets.

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[Sections 57-58 relate to the privileges of each House of Parliament and its right to make rules and orders of procedure for the conduct of its business.]

POWERS OF PARLIAMENT.

59. Parliament shall have full power to make laws for the peace, order, and good government of the Union.

60.— (1) Bills appropriating revenue or moneys or imposing taxation shall originate only in the House of Assembly. But a Bill shall not be taken to appropriate revenue or moneys or to impose taxation by reason only of its containing provisions for the imposition or appropriation of fines or other pecuniary penalties.

(2) The Senate may not amend any Bills so far as they impose taxation or appropriate revenue or moneys for the services of the Government.

(3) The Senate may not amend any Bill so as to increase any proposed charges or burden on the people.

61. Any Bill which appropriates revenue or moneys for the ordinary annual services of the Government shall deal only with such appropriation.

62. The House of Assembly shall not originate or pass any vote, resolution, address, or Bill for the appropriation of any part of the public revenue or of any tax or impost to any purpose unless such appropriation has been recommended by message from the Governor-General during the Session in which such vote, resolution, address, or Bill is proposed.

63. If the House of Assembly passes any Bill and the Senate rejects or fails to pass it or passes it with amendments to which the House of Assembly will not agree, and if the House of Assembly in the next session again passes the Bill with or without any amendments which have been made or agreed to by the Senate and the Senate rejects or fails to pass it or passes it with amendments to which the House of Assembly will not agree, the Governor-General may during that session convene a joint sitting of the members of the Senate and House of Assembly. The members present at any such joint sitting may deliberate and shall vote together upon the Bill as last proposed by the House of Assembly and upon amendments, if any, which have been made therein by one House of Parliament and not agreed to by the other; and any such amendments which are affirmed by a majority of the total number of members of the Senate and House of Assembly present at such sitting shall be taken to have been carried, and if the Bill with the amendments, if any, is affirmed by a majority of the members of the Senate and House of Assembly present at such sitting, it shall be taken to have been duly passed by both Houses of Parliament: Provided that, if the Senate shall reject or fail to pass any Bill dealing with the appropriation of revenue or moneys for the public service, such joint sitting may be convened during the same session in which the Senate so rejects or fails to pass such Bill.

64. When a Bill is presented to the Governor-General for the King’s Assent, he shall declare according to his discretion, but subject to the provisions of this Act, and to such instructions as may from time to time be given in that behalf by the King, that he assents in the King’s name, or that he withholds assent, or that he reserves the Bill for the signification of the King’s pleasure. All Bills repealing or amending this section or any of the provisions of Chapter IV. under the heading "House of Assembly," and all Bills abolishing provincial councils or abridging the powers conferred on provincial councils under section eighty-five, otherwise than in accordance with the provisions of that section, shall be so reserved. The Governor-General may return to the House in which it originated any Bill so presented to him, and may transmit therewith any amendments which he may recommend, and the House may deal with the recommendation.

65. The King may disallow any law within one year after it has been assented to by the Governor General, and such disallowance, on being made known by the Governor-General by speech or message to each of the Houses of Parliament or by proclamation, shall annul the law from the day when the disallowance is so made known.

66. A Bill reserved for the King’s pleasure shall not have any force unless and until, within one year from the day on which it was presented to the Governor-General for the King’s Assent, the Governor-General makes known by speech or message to each of the Houses of Parliament or by proclamation that it has received the King’s Assent.

67. As soon as may be after any law shall have been assented to in the King’s name by the Governor-General, or having been reserved for the King’s pleasure shall have received his assent, the Clerk of the House of Assembly shall cause two fair copies of such law, one being in the English and the other in the Dutch language (one of which copies shall be signed by the Governor-General), to be enrolled of record in the office of the Registrar of the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of South Africa; and such copies shall be conclusive evidence as to the provisions of every such law, and in case of conflict between the two copies thus deposited that signed by the Governor-General shall prevail.

V.—THE PROVINCES.

ADMINISTRATORS.

68.— (1) In each province there shall be a chief executive officer appointed by the Governor-General in Council, who shall be styled the administrator of the province, and in whose name all executive acts relating to provincial affairs therein shall be done.

(2) In the appointment of the administrator of any province, the Governor-General in Council shall, as far as practicable, give preference to persons resident in such province.

(3) Such administrator shall hold office for a term of five years and shall not be removed before the expiration thereof except by the Governor-General in Council for cause assigned, which shall be communicated by message to both Houses of Parliament within one week after the removal, if Parliament be then sitting, or, if Parliament be not sitting, then within one week after the commencement of the next ensuing session.

(4) The Governor-General in Council may from time to time appoint a deputy administrator to execute the office and functions of the administrator during his absence, illness, or other inability.

69. The salaries of the administrators shall be fixed and provided by Parliament, and shall not be reduced during their respective terms of office.

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PROVINCIAL COUNCILS.

70.— (1) There shall be a provincial council in each province consisting of the same number of members as are elected in the province for the House of Assembly: Provided that, in any province whose representatives in the House of Assembly shall be less than twenty-five in number, the provincial council shall consist of twenty-five members.

(2) Any person qualified to vote for the election of members of the provincial council shall be qualified to be a member of such council.

[Sections 71-77 are regulative of the elections, the terms (three years), and the sittings of the Provincial Councils.

Sections 78-84 are creative of Executive Committees, for which each Provincial Council shall elect "from among its members, or otherwise," four persons, to be joined with the administrator of the Province, the latter being chairman of the Executive Committee thus constituted. This Committee, "on behalf of the Provincial Council," being appointed to "carry on the administration of provincial affairs," and, "subject to the provisions of this Act," to be invested with "all powers, authorities, and functions which at the establishment of the Union are vested in or exercised by the Governor in Council, or any minister of the Colony."]

POWERS OF PROVINCIAL COUNCILS.

85. Subject to the provisions of this Act and the assent of the Governor-General in Council as hereinafter provided, the provincial council may make ordinances in relation to matters coming within the following classes of subjects (that is to say):—

(i) Direct taxation within the province in order to raise a revenue for provincial purposes:

(ii) The borrowing of money on the sole credit of the province with the consent of the Governor-General in Council and in accordance with regulations to be framed by Parliament:

(iii) Education, other than higher education, for a period of five years and thereafter until Parliament otherwise provides:

(iv) Agriculture to the extent and subject to the conditions to be defined by Parliament:

(v) The establishment, maintenance, and management of hospitals and charitable institutions:

(vi) Municipal institutions, divisional councils, and other local institutions of a similar nature:

(vii) Local works and undertakings within the province, other than railways and harbours and other than such works as extend beyond the borders of the province, and subject to the power of Parliament to declare any work a national work and to provide for its construction by arrangement with the provincial council or otherwise:

(viii) Roads, outspans, ponts, and bridges, other than bridges connecting two provinces:

(ix) Markets and pounds:

(x) Fish and game preservation:

(xi) The imposition of punishment by fine, penalty, or imprisonment for enforcing any law or any ordinance of the province made in relation to any matter coming within any of the classes of subjects enumerated in this section:

(xii) Generally all matters which, in the opinion of the Governor-General in Council, are of a merely local or private nature in the province:

(xiii) All other subjects in respect of which Parliament shall by any law delegate the power of making ordinances to the provincial council.

[Sections 86-93 are regulative of the exercise of the powers thus conferred.]

94. The seats of provincial government shall be— For the Cape of Good Hope, Cape Town; for Natal, Pietermaritzburg; for the Transvaal, Pretoria; for the Orange Free State, Bloemfontein.

VI.—THE SUPREME COURT OF SOUTH AFRICA.

95. There shall be a Supreme Court of South Africa consisting of a Chief Justice of South Africa, the ordinary judges of appeal, and the other judges of the several divisions of the Supreme Court of South Africa in the provinces.

96. There shall be an Appellate Division of the Supreme Court of South Africa, consisting of the Chief Justice of South Africa, two ordinary judges of appeal, and two additional judges of appeal. Such additional judges of appeal shall be assigned by the Governor-General in Council to the Appellate Division from any of the provincial or local divisions of the Supreme Court of South Africa, but shall continue to perform their duties as judges of their respective divisions when their attendance is not required in the Appellate Division.

97. The Governor-General in Council may, during the absence, illness, or other incapacity of the Chief Justice of South Africa, or of any ordinary or additional judge of appeal, appoint another judge of the Supreme Court of South Africa to act temporarily as such chief justice, ordinary judge of appeal, or additional judge of appeal, as the case may be.

98.— (1) The several supreme courts of the Cape of Good Hope, Natal, and the Transvaal, and the High Court of the Orange River Colony shall, on the establishment of the Union, become provincial divisions of the Supreme Court of South Africa within their respective provinces, and shall each be presided over by a judge-president.

[Further prescriptions on the same subject are contained in this and the next section of the Act.]

100. The Chief Justice of South Africa, the ordinary judges of appeal, and all other judges of the Supreme Court of South Africa to be appointed after the establishment of the Union shall be appointed by the Governor-General in Council, and shall receive such remuneration as Parliament shall prescribe, and their remuneration shall not be diminished during their continuance in office.

101. The Chief Justice of South Africa and other judges of the Supreme Court of South Africa shall not be removed from office except by the Governor-General in Council on an address from both Houses of Parliament in the same session praying for such removal on the ground of misbehaviour or incapacity.

102. Upon any vacancy occurring in any division of the Supreme Court of South Africa, other than the Appellate Division, the Governor-General in Council may, in case he shall consider that the number of judges of such court may with advantage to the public interest be reduced, postpone filling the vacancy until Parliament shall have determined whether such reduction shall take place.

[Rules concerning the cases, civil and criminal, which may be appealed from inferior courts to the Appellate Division, and not to the Supreme Court, are laid down in sections 103-105.]

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106. There shall be no appeal from the Supreme Court of South Africa or from any division thereof to the King in Council, but nothing herein contained shall be construed to impair any right which the King in Council may be pleased to exercise to grant special leave to appeal from the Appellate Division to the King in Council. Parliament may make laws limiting the matters in respect of which such special leave may be asked, but Bills containing any such limitation shall be reserved by the Governor-General for the signification of His Majesty’s pleasure: Provided that nothing in this section shall affect any right of appeal to His Majesty in Council from any judgment given by the Appellate Division of the Supreme Court under or in virtue of the Colonial Courts of Admiralty Act, 1890.

107. The Chief Justice of South Africa and the ordinary judges of appeal may, subject to the approval of the Governor-General in Council, make rules for the conduct of the proceedings of the Appellate Division and prescribing the time and manner of making appeals thereto. Until such rules shall have been promulgated, the rules in force in the Supreme Court of the Cape of Good Hope at the establishment of the Union shall mutatis mutandis apply.

[Other details concerning the rules and the sessions of the several provincial and local divisions of the Supreme Court, the execution of their writs and other processes, etc., are set forth in sections 108-116.]

VII.—FINANCE AND RAILWAYS.

117. All revenues, from whatever source arising, over which the several Colonies have at the establishment of the Union power of appropriation, shall vest in the Governor-General in Council. There shall be formed a Railway and Harbour Fund, into which shall be paid all revenues raised or received by the Governor-General in Council from the administration of the railways, ports, and harbours, and such fund shall be appropriated by Parliament to the purposes of the railways, ports, and harbours in the manner prescribed by this Act. There shall also be formed a Consolidated Revenue Fund, into which shall be paid all other revenues raised or received by the Governor-General in Council, and such fund shall be appropriated by Parliament for the purposes of the Union in the manner prescribed by this Act, and subject to the charges imposed thereby.

[Sections 118-123 provide for a commission "to institute an inquiry into the financial relations which should exist between the Union and the provinces"; prescribe the division to be made meantime of the Consolidated Revenue Fund; make the interest of the public debts a first charge on that fund; transfer to the Union all stocks, moneys, and securities, all crown lands, public works, etc., and all rights in mines and minerals that belonged to each of the colonies at the establishment of the Union.]

124. The Union shall assume all debts and liabilities of the Colonies existing at its establishment, subject, notwithstanding any other provision contained in this Act, to the conditions imposed by any law under which such debts or liabilities were raised or incurred, and without prejudice to any rights of security or priority in respect of the payment of principal, interest, sinking fund, and other charges conferred on the creditors of any of the Colonies, and may, subject to such conditions and rights, convert, renew, or consolidate such debts.

125. All ports, harbours, and railways belonging to the several Colonies at the establishment of the Union shall from the date thereof vest in the Governor-General in Council. No railway for the conveyance of public traffic, and no port, harbour, or similar work, shall be constructed without the sanction of Parliament.

126. Subject to the authority of the Governor-General in Council, the control and management of the railways, ports, and harbours of the Union shall be exercised through a board consisting of not more than three commissioners, who shall be appointed by the Governor-General in Council, and a minister of State, who shall be chairman. …

[Of the remaining sections of the Act (127-152) the following are the more important or the more significant.]

133. In order to compensate Pietermaritzburg and Bloemfontein for any loss sustained by them in the form of diminution of prosperity or decreased rateable value by reason of their ceasing to be the seats of government of their respective colonies, there shall be paid from the Consolidated Revenue Fund for a period not exceeding twenty-five years to the municipal councils of such towns a grant of two per centum per annum on their municipal debts, as existing on the thirty-first day of January nineteen hundred and nine, and as ascertained by the Controller and Auditor-General. The Commission appointed under section one hundred and eighteen shall, after due inquiry, report to the Governor-General in Council what compensation should be paid to the municipal councils of Cape Town and Pretoria for the losses, if any, similarly sustained by them. Such compensation shall be paid out of the Consolidated Revenue Fund for a period not exceeding twenty-five years, and shall not exceed one per centum per annum on the respective municipal debts of such towns as existing on the thirty-first January nineteen hundred and nine, and as ascertained by the Controller and Auditor-General.

134. The election of senators and of members of the executive committees of the provincial councils as provided in this Act shall, whenever such election is contested, be according to the principle of proportional representation, each voter having one transferable vote. The Governor-General in Council, or, in the case of the first election of the Senate, the Governor in Council of each of the Colonies, shall frame regulations prescribing the method of voting and of transferring and counting votes and the duties of returning officers in connection therewith, and such regulations or any amendments thereof after being duly promulgated shall have full force and effect unless and until Parliament shall otherwise provide.

136. There shall be free trade throughout the Union, but until Parliament otherwise provides the duties of custom and of excise leviable under the laws existing in any of the Colonies at the establishment of the Union shall remain in force.

137. Both the English and Dutch languages shall be official languages of the Union, and shall be treated on a footing of equality, and possess and enjoy equal freedom, rights, and privileges; all records, journals, and proceedings of Parliament shall be kept in both languages, and all Bills, Acts, and notices of general public importance or interest issued by the Government of the Union shall be in both languages.

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138. All persons who have been naturalised in any of the Colonies shall be deemed to be naturalised throughout the Union.

140. Subject to the provisions of the next succeeding section, all officers of the public service of the Colonies shall at the establishment of the Union become officers of the Union.

141. (1) As soon as possible after the establishment of the Union, the Governor-General in Council shall appoint a public service commission to make recommendations for such reorganisation and readjustment of the departments of the public service as may be necessary. The commission shall also make recommendations in regard to the assignment of officers to the several provinces. …

142. After the establishment of the Union the Governor-General in Council shall appoint a permanent public service commission with such powers and duties relating to the appointment, discipline, retirement, and superannuation of public officers as Parliament shall determine.

143. Any officer of the public service of any of the Colonies at the establishment of the Union who is not retained in the service of the Union or assigned to that of a province shall be entitled to receive such pension, gratuity, or other compensation as he would have received in like circumstances if the Union had not been established.

147. The control and administration of native affairs and of matters specially or differentially affecting Asiastics throughout the Union shall vest in the Governor-General in Council, who shall exercise all special powers in regard to native administration hitherto vested in the Governors of the Colonies or exercised by them as supreme chiefs, and any lands vested in the Governor or Governor and Executive Council of any colony for the purpose of reserves for native locations shall vest in the Governor-General in Council, who shall exercise all special powers in relation to such reserves as may hitherto have been exercisable by any such Governor or Governor and Executive Council, and no lands set aside for the occupation of natives which cannot at the establishment of the Union be alienated except by an Act of the Colonial Legislature shall be alienated or in any way diverted from the purposes for which they are set apart except under the authority of an Act of Parliament.

148.— (1) All rights and obligations under any conventions or agreements which are binding on any of the Colonies shall devolve upon the Union at its establishment.

(2) The provisions of the railway agreement between the Governments of the Transvaal, the Cape of Good Hope, and Natal, dated the second of February, nineteen hundred and nine, shall, as far as practicable, be given effect to by the Government of the Union.

IX.—NEW PROVINCES AND TERRITORIES.

149. Parliament may alter the boundaries of any province, divide a province into two or more provinces, or form a new province out of provinces within the Union, on the petition of the provincial council of every province whose boundaries are affected thereby.

150. The King, with the advice of the Privy Council, may on addresses from the Houses of Parliament of the Union admit into the Union the territories administered by the British South Africa Company on such terms and conditions as to representation and otherwise in each case as are expressed in the addresses and approved by the King, and the provisions of any Order in Council in that behalf shall have effect as if they had been enacted by the Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland.

151. The King, with the advice of the Privy Council, may, on addresses from the Houses of Parliament of the Union, transfer to the Union the government of any territories, other than the territories administered by the British South Africa Company, belonging to or under the protection of His Majesty, and inhabited wholly or in part by natives, and upon such transfer the Governor-General in Council may undertake the government of such territory upon the terms and conditions embodied in the Schedule to this Act.

X.—AMENDMENT OF ACT.

152. Parliament may by law repeal or alter any of the provisions of this Act: Provided that no provision thereof, for the operation of which a definite period of time is prescribed, shall during such period be repealed or altered: And provided further that no repeal or alteration of the provisions contained in this section, or in sections thirty-three and thirty-four (until the number of members of the House of Assembly has reached the limit therein prescribed, or until a period of ten years has elapsed after the establishment of the Union, whichever is the longer period), or in sections thirty-five and one hundred and thirty-seven, shall be valid unless the Bill embodying such repeal or alteration shall be passed by both Houses of Parliament sitting together, and at the third reading be agreed to by not less than two-thirds of the total number of members of both Houses. A Bill so passed at such joint sitting shall be taken to have been duly passed by both Houses of Parliament.

SCHEDULE.

1. After the transfer of the government of any territory belonging to or under the protection of His Majesty, the Governor-General in Council shall be the legislative authority, and may by proclamation make laws for the peace, order, and good government of such territory: Provided that all such laws shall be laid before both Houses of Parliament within seven days after the issue of the proclamation or, if Parliament be not then sitting, within seven days after the beginning of the next session, and shall be effectual unless and until both Houses of Parliament shall by resolutions passed in the same session request the Governor-General in Council to repeal the same, in which case they shall be repealed by proclamation.

2. The Prime Minister shall be charged with the administration of any territory thus transferred, and he shall be advised in the general conduct of such administration by a commission consisting of not fewer than three members with a secretary, to be appointed by the Governor-General in Council, who shall take the instructions of the Prime Minister in conducting all correspondence relating to the territories, and shall also under the like control have custody of all official papers relating to the territories.

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3. The members of the commission shall be appointed by the Governor-General in Council, and shall be entitled to hold office for a period of ten years, but such period may be extended to successive further terms of five years. …

14. It shall not be lawful to alienate any land in Basutoland or any land forming part of the native reserves in the Bechuanaland protectorate and Swaziland from the native tribes inhabiting those territories.

15. The sale of intoxicating liquor to natives shall be prohibited in the territories, and no provision giving facilities for introducing, obtaining, or possessing such liquor in any part of the territories less stringent than those existing at the time of transfer shall be allowed.

16. The custom, where it exists, of holding pitsos or other recognised forms of native assembly shall be maintained in the territories.

17. No differential duties or imposts on the produce of the territories shall be levied. The laws of the Union relating to customs and excise shall be made to apply to the territories.

18. There shall be free intercourse for the inhabitants of the territories with the rest of South Africa subject to the laws, including the pass laws, of the Union.

19. Subject to the provisions of this Schedule, all revenues derived from any territory shall be expended for and on behalf of such territory. …

----------CONSTITUTION OF SOUTH AFRICA: End--------

----------CONSTITUTION OF TURKEY: Start--------

CONSTITUTION OF TURKEY.

The following is a synopsis of the Constitution promulgated December 23, 1876, the first year of the reign of Abd-ul Hamid, then soon withdrawn, and practically forgotten for thirty-two years, but brought to light by the revolution of 1908 and promulgated anew, on the 24th of July in that memorable year;

See, in this Volume, TURKEY: A. D. 1908 (JULY-DECEMBER):

THE INDIVISIBILITY OF THE OTTOMAN EMPIRE.

The Sultan, the supreme Caliph of the Mussulmans and sovereign of all Ottoman subjects, is irresponsible and inviolable. His prerogatives are those of the constitutional sovereigns of the West. The subjects of the empire are called, without distinction, Ottomans. Individual liberty is inviolable, and is guaranteed by the laws.

Islamism is the religion of the state, but the free exercise of all recognized creeds is guaranteed, and the religious privileges of the communities are maintained. No provision investing the institutions of the state with a theocratic character exists in the constitution.

The constitution establishes liberty of the press, the right of petition to both chambers for all Ottomans, liberty of education, and the equality of all Ottomans before the law. They all enjoy the same rights, and have the same duties toward the country. Ottoman subjects, without distinction of religion, are admitted to the service of the state. Taxation will be equally distributed; property is guaranteed, and the domicile is declared inviolable. No person can be taken from the jurisdiction of his natural judges.

The Council of Ministers will deliberate under the presidency of the Grand-Vizier. Each minister is responsible for the conduct of the affairs of his department. The Chamber of Deputies may demand the impeachment of the ministers, and a high court is instituted to try them. In the event of the Chamber adopting a vote hostile to the ministry on any important question, the Sultan will change the ministers or dissolve the Chamber. The ministers are entitled to be present at the sittings of both Chambers, and to take part in the debates. Interpellations may be addressed to the ministers. Public functionaries will be appointed in conformity with the conditions fixed by law, and cannot be dismissed without legal and sufficient cause. They are not discharged from responsibility by any orders contrary to law which they may receive from a superior.

The General Assembly of the Ottomans is composed of two Chambers, the Senate and the Chamber of Deputies, who will meet on the 1st of November in each year, the session lasting four months. A message from the Sultan will be sent to both Chambers at the opening of each session. The members of both Chambers are free with regard to their vote and in the expression of their opinions. Electors are prohibited from imposing binding engagements upon their representatives. The initiative in proposing laws belongs in the first place to the ministry, and next to the Chambers, in the form of propositions. Laws must be first submitted to the Chamber of Deputies, then to the Senate, and finally to the imperial sanction. The Senate is composed of members nominated by the Sultan and chosen from among the most eminent personages in the country. The Senate votes the laws already passed by the Chamber of Deputies, and returns to the latter, or rejects, any provisions contrary to the constitution or to the integrity or safety of the state. In the event of a dissolution of the Chamber of Deputies, the general election shall be held and the new Chamber meet within six months from the date of dissolution. The sittings of the Chamber of Deputies are public. The deputies may not be arrested or prosecuted during the session without authority from the Chamber. The Chamber votes the laws article by article, and the budget by chapters. There is to be one deputy for every fifty thousand inhabitants, and the elections will be made by secret ballot. A special law will determine the mode of election. The mandate of a deputy will render him ineligible for any public office, except for a ministry. Each legislature will continue for a period of four years. The deputies will receive 4,600 francs for every session, which will last from November to March. The senators are appointed for life by the Sultan, and will receive 2,300 francs monthly. Judges are irremovable.

The sittings of the tribunals are public. The advocates appearing for defendants are free. Sentences may be published. No interference can be permitted in the administration of justice. The jurisdiction of the tribunals will be exactly defined. Any exceptional tribunals or commissions are prohibited. The office of Public Prosecutor is created. The High Court, which will try ministers, members of the Court of Cassation, and other persons charged with the crime of _lese Majeste_, or of conspiracy against the state, will be composed of the most eminent judicial and administrative functionaries.

No tax can be established or levied except by virtue of a law. The budget will be voted at the commencement of each session, and for a period of one year only. The final settlement of the budget for the preceding year will be submitted to the Chamber of Deputies in the form of a bill. The Court of Accounts will send every year to the Chamber of Deputies a report upon the state of public accounts, and will present to the Sultan, quarterly, a statement showing the financial condition of the country. The members of the Court of Accounts are irremovable. No dismissal can take place except in consequence of a resolution adopted by the Chamber of Deputies.

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The provincial administration is based upon the broadest system of decentralization. The Councils-General, which are elective, will deliberate upon and control the affairs of the province. Every canton will have a council, elected by each of the different communities, for the management of its own affairs. The communes will be administered by elective municipal councils. Primary education is obligatory.

The interpretation of the laws belongs, according to their nature, to the Court of Cassation, the Council of State, and the Senate.

The constitution can only be modified on the initiative of the ministry, or of either of the two Chambers, and by a vote of both Chambers, passed by a majority of two-thirds. Such modification must also be sanctioned by the Sultan.

_Appletons' Annual Cyclopaedia, 1876, pages 773-774._

See amendments, in this Volume, under TURKEY: A. D. 1909 (APRIL-DECEMBER).

----------CONSTITUTION OF TURKEY: End--------

CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES: Proposed Income Tax Amendment.

See (in this Volume) UNITED STATES: A. D. 1909 (JULY).

CONSTITUTION OF VENEZUELA, New.

See (in this Volume) VENEZUELA: A. D. 1904.

CONSTITUTION, A World: The Making of it in Process.

See (in this Volume) WORLD MOVEMENTS.

CONSTITUTION ISLAND.

"In the Hudson River opposite West Point lies Constitution Island. It is a wood-covered tract of nearly three hundred acres, and for many years it has been coveted by the authorities of the Military Academy and the War Department. Its owner, Miss Anna Bartlett Warner, was always willing to sell to the Government, but Congress could never be induced to make the necessary appropriation for its purchase. Now Mrs. Russell Sage has joined with Miss Warner in making a gift of the island to the Nation, to be used as a part of the military reservation at West Point."

_The Outlook, September 19, 1908._

CONSTITUTION-MAKING, and Unmaking, in Servia.

See (in this Volume) BALKAN AND DANUBIAN STATES: SERVIA.

CONSTITUTIONAL DEMOCRATS.

See (in this Volume) RUSSIA: A. D. 1905-1907, and 1906 and 1907.

CONSULAR SERVICE, The Reform of the American.

See (in this Volume) CIVIL SERVICE REFORM: UNITED STATES: A. D. 1906-1909.

CONSUMPTION.

See (in this Volume) PUBLIC HEALTH: TUBERCULOSIS.

CONVICT LEASE SYSTEM: Its abolition in Georgia.

See (in this Volume) CRIME AND CRIMINOLOGY.

COOK, Frederick A.: Claimant of North Pole discovery.

See (in this Volume) POLAR EXPLORATION.

COOLEY, Dr. Harris R.: Director of Charities and Corrections, Cleveland, Ohio.

See (in this Volume) CRIME AND CRIMINOLOGY.

COÖPERATION, Industrial and Commercial.

See (in this Volume) LABOR REMUNERATION.

COPENHAGEN: A. D. 1906. Conference of the International Woman Suffrage Alliance.

See (in this Volume) ELECTIVE FRANCHISE: WOMAN SUFFRAGE.

COPYRIGHT: The new Law in the United States.

"To the general surprise, the new copyright bill slipped through both houses of Congress yesterday [March 3, 1909]. It consists of one complete and consistent copyright statute, in sixty four sections. The term of copyright is lengthened. The bill leaves the present first term of twenty-eight years unchanged, but provides for a renewal term of twenty-eight years instead of fourteen, thus making possible a period of protection of fifty-six years from the publication of the work. The bill also provides for the extension of subsisting copyrights upon the same basis.

"Copyright may now be secured for all the ‘writings’ of an author, using the constitutional expression. In enumerating and classifying works protected by copyright, the bill is more explicit than the present statutes, and adds the following new designations: ‘Lectures, sermons, and addresses, prepared for oral delivery’; ‘dramatico-musical compositions’; ‘plastic works of a scientific or technical character’; ‘reproductions of a work of art,’ and ‘ prints and pictorial illustrations,’ in lieu of ‘engravings,’ ‘cuts,’ and ‘chromos,’ and ‘works of art’ instead of the present specific designations, ‘painting,’ ‘drawings,’ ‘statue,’ and ‘statuary.’ Express provision is made that compilations, abridgments, adaptations, arrangements, dramatizations, or translations and works republished with new matter shall be considered new works subject to copyright.

"As regards a musical work, the bill provides, as does the present law, that the author shall have the sole right to perform the work publicly for profit, but adds the sole right ‘to make any arrangement or setting of it or of the melody of it in any system of notation or any form of record from which it may be read or reproduced.’ The composer’s control of the reproduction of his music by mechanical instruments is qualified as follows:

(a) to cover only music published and copyrighted after the act goes into effect;

(b) not to include music by a foreign author or composer unless the foreign state or nation of which he is a subject grants to citizens of the United States similar rights;

(c) whenever the owner of a musical copyright has used or permitted or acquiesced in the use of his work upon parts of instruments serving to reproduce mechanically the musical work, any other person may make similar use of the work upon the payment of a royalty of two cents on each part manufactured, notice to be filed in the copyright office of such use or license to use by the copyright proprietor.

"American manufacture is required in the case of a book, not only as regards type-setting in the United States, but ‘if the text be produced by lithographic or photo-engraving process, then by a process wholly performed within the limits of the United States.’ The provision is also extended to illustrations within a book, and to separate lithographs and photo engravings, ‘except where in either case the subjects represented are located in a foreign country.’ The printing and binding of the book must also be performed within the United States. {167} Photographs are released from the present requirement that they ‘shall be printed from negatives made within the United States or from transfers made therefrom.’ The ‘original text of a book of foreign origin in a language or languages other than English ’ is also excepted from the requirements of type-setting in the United States. A new _ad interim_ protection is given books printed abroad in the English language. If one complete copy of such book is deposited in the copyright office not later than thirty days after publication abroad, copyright is granted for a period of thirty days from the date of receipt of the copy. If an authorized edition of the book is produced from type set in the United States during this second thirty days, the full term of copyright is secured.

"The much discussed provisions prohibiting the importation of copyrighted books are considerably modified. The importation of piratical copies of any work copyrighted is prohibited, and the importation of any books, '_although authorized by the author or proprietor_,’ which have not been produced in accordance with the manufacturing provisions, is prohibited. The Act of 1891 permits importation of books in 'the case of persons purchasing for use and not for sale, who import, subject to the duty thereon, not more than _two_ copies of such book at any one time.’ The new law permits importation, ‘not more than _one_ copy at one time, for individual use, and not for sale,’ and adds the proviso that ‘such privilege of importation shall not extend to a foreign reprint of a book by an American author copyrighted in the United States.’ The Act of 1891 allows importation in good faith for the use of societies _incorporated_ or established for educational, philosophical, literary, or religious purposes, or for the encouragement of the fine arts, or for any college, academy, school, or seminary of learning. The new law confines the privilege to incorporated societies or institutions, but adds scientific societies and ‘any State, school, college, university, or free public library’; but while the Act of 1891 permits ‘_two_ copies in any one invoice’ to be so imported, the new law provides for ‘not more than _one_ copy of any such book in one invoice’ when ‘for use and not for sale.’

"In the case of infringement, an injunction may issue, as now, and damages be recovered as well as all the profits due to the infringement."

_New York Evening Post, March 4, 1909._

COPYRIGHT: Pan-American Convention.

See (in this Volume) AMERICAN REPUBLICS.

CORINTO, Treaty of.

See (in this Volume) WAR, THE REVOLT AGAINST: A. D. 1902: CENTRAL AMERICA.

CORPORATE WRONGDOING: Summary of recent Governmental Action against it in the United States.

See (in this Volume) COMBINATIONS, INDUSTRIAL: UNITED STATES: A. D. 1901-1906.

CORPORATION TAX, United States.

See (in this Volume) TARIFFS: UNITED STATES.

CORPORATIONS: Forbidden to contribute to Political Elections.

See (in this Volume) UNITED STATES: A. D. 1907 (JANUARY).

CORPORATIONS AND THE PUBLIC.

See (in this Volume) Combinations, Industrial, &c., and Railways.

CORPORATIONS, The Bureau of. Its establishment in the Federal Administration of the United States.

See (in this Volume) UNITED STATES: A. D. 1903 (FEBRUARY).

CORRAL, Ramon: Vice-President of Mexico.

See (in this Volume) MEXICO A. D. 1904-1905.

CORREGAN, Charles Hunter: Nominated for President of the United States.

See (in this Volume) UNITED STATES: A. D. 1904 (MARCH-NOVEMBER).

CORTELYOU, George B.: Secretary of Commerce and Labor and Secretary of the Treasury.

See (in this Volume) UNITED STATES: A D. 1901-1905, and 1905-1909.

COST OF LIVING.

See (in this Volume) LABOR REMUNERATION: WAGES, &c.

COSTA RICA.

See (in this Volume) CENTRAL AMERICA.

COUNTRY LIFE COMMISSION, Report of the.

See (in this Volume) UNITED STATES: A. D. 1908-1909 (AUGUST-FEBRUARY).

COURTS, Industrial, German.

See (in this Volume) LABOR ORGANIZATION: GERMANY: A. D. 1905-1906.

COURTS OF LAW.

See (in this Volume) LAW AND ITS COURTS.

COWPER-TEMPLEISM.

See (in this Volume) EDUCATION: ENGLAND: A. D. 1906.

CREEK NATION, Alleged frauds on the.

See (in this Volume) INDIANS, AMERICAN.

CREMER, William Randal: Originator of the Inter-parliamentary Union.

See (in this Volume) WAR, THE REVOLT AGAINST: A. D. 1904-1909; also NOBEL PRIZES.

CRETE: A. D. 1905-1906. Insurgent demand of Union with Greece. Investigation of discontent by the Protecting Powers. Resignation of the High Commissionership by Prince George. Appointment of Zaimis.

A determined revolutionary movement to secure union with Greece was set on foot in March, 1905. Remonstrance against it by Prince George was unavailing, and the National Assembly, newly elected on the 2d of April, gave support to the insurgents, proclaiming the desired union of Crete with "her mother Greece," and ordering the Greek flag to be raised over the public buildings of the island. The government of Greece, while declaring its sympathy with the feeling which the movement expressed, could not give countenance to it, and urged the insurgents to lav down their arms. The latter, however, continued to hold the interior of the island and to make attacks on the Mohammedan population, until the approach of winter, when, on the 19th of November, they gave up their arms. The four protecting Powers then appointed a commission to investigate the grounds of discontent in the island, and its report made in the following spring justified a good deal of the Cretan complaint of arbitrary rule. In May a new Assembly was elected, in which the Government won 78 seats, the Opposition 36, and the Moslems were represented by 16. In July a resolution in favor of annexation to Greece was voted by acclamation in the Assembly, and its sittings were suspended to await the decision of the Powers. The latter announced a little later the intention to organize a gendarmerie to take the place of foreign troops in the island; and also to extend the operations of the Greek Finance Commission to Crete. Prince George now expressed his unwillingness to continue in the office of High Commissioner, and, on the request of the Powers, the King of Greece nominated M. Zaimis to succeed him. The nomination was accepted, and Prince George withdrew from the island, after issuing a farewell proclamation, September 25th. M. Zaimis arrived and assumed office on the 14th of October, being warmly received. He was understood to have the powers of a Greek Viceroy, with a mission to prepare the island for annexation to Greece.

{168}

"I should not like," said a writer in the summer of 1905, "to speak too positively of Prince George’s mistakes; but I have met no European who has lived in the island who had a good word to say for his administration. On the one hand, he played the despot. The local independent newspapers were destroyed, and the right of public meeting withdrawn. Worst of all, the mayors and prefects, who had originally been elected by the inhabitants of their districts, were degraded to the position of mere officials nominated by the Prince. At the same time, he aspired to be a sort of party leader. Quite early in his term of office he contrived to alienate the best men among the leaders who had conducted the insurrection with so much patience and wisdom. The President of the Provisional Government, Dr. Sphakianakis, an extremely able and, what is rarer, a wise and disinterested man, went into retirement when the Prince arrived. …

"By the summer of last year, [1904] when the Prince cast Professor Jannaris, a philologist of European reputation, into Canea gaol, the rift between himself and his people had become desperate. … It was now quite clear that no solution remained save union with Greece. To Prince George it provided an honorable and graceful path of retreat. He could retire and bring with him in his withdrawal a great gift to the Greek nation, and confer, at the same time, contentment on Crete. … Prince George, accordingly, devoted the closing months of 1904 to a tour among the European courts. The Powers had never intended to make him the permanent sovereign of Crete. His mandate was only for three years, and it had already been prolonged for a second term. He urged that the time had at length arrived for a definite solution, which could only be a union with Greece. But either his pleading was half-hearted or the Powers were deaf. His term was once more extended, and he was weak enough, or vain enough, to accept the dangerous mission. He returned to Crete and reported his failure.

"What followed is recent history. For a month or two the Cretans were passive, and then suddenly they rose in arms. A sort of provisional government was established at Therisso, a stronghold in the mountains, near enough to Canea to threaten the Prince’s administration, far enough from the sea to be out of range of the European war-ships. Dr. Sphakianakis and MM. Venizelos and Foumis are at its head, and it soon received the allegiance of the whole interior. Simultaneously, under very strained conditions, a general election was held; and, though the members were probably drawn for the most part from the Prince’s party, the Chamber adopted the programme of the insurgents and solemnly proclaimed the annexation of the island to Greece. The Prince threatened, but he had no force behind him; and he too could only reiterate his prayer that Europe should assent to union. It is a whimsical display of unanimity. In other lands, subjects rebel to emphasize some difference of opinion with their rulers. The Cretans have taken up arms to prove how violently they all agree."

_H. N. Brailsford, The Future of Crete (North American Review, August, 1905)._

CRETE: A. D. 1907-1909. How and why the Cretans have been restrained by the Four Protecting Powers.

In February, 1907, the Cretans framed and adopted a new Constitution, providing for an Assembly of sixty-four Deputies, elected every two years, and continuing the executive office of High Commissioner, with a Council of three. They were fully exercising all the rights of independent self-government, under the protection of the four Powers which still maintained the old "Concert," namely, Great Britain, France, Russia, and Italy. The Turkish Government touched them in no other way than through the theoretical, intangible suzerainty which the Sultan claimed. But that claim, acknowledged by their potent protectors, barred them from annexation to the kingdom of their fellow Greeks, which was their heart’s desire. If Turkey had continued in the condition to which it had sunk when the Powers set them free from all but a fiction of feudal law (see in Volume VI. of this work, TURKEY: A. D. 1897-1899) there seems little doubt that they would have won their wish in no long time, with the help of those Powers; but the great change in Turkish conditions which came about in 1908 was not favorable to Cretan hopes.

To the Cretans, in October, 1908, the Turkish Revolution appeared to have brought them the best of opportunities for breaking the irksome thread of an unexercised Ottoman sovereignty. Bulgaria snapped the thread; why should not they? But Bulgaria had no responsible guardians to look after her conduct; while Crete was, unfortunately at this juncture, the ward of an international trust company, whose responsibilities for her were made immeasurably more serious by the very circumstances which invited her to an escapade. The revolutionary undertaking of the Young Turks, to reform their own nation, claimed the sympathy and good will of every right-feeling government in the world. Great Britain, France, and Italy, at least, could not afford to lay, or consent to the laying, of a straw of difficulty in its way. A declaration of Cretan independence and annexation to Greece, countenanced by the Powers, would have raised excitements in Turkey more than likely to wreck the reform movement in a catastrophe of war, which might involve much larger fields than those that lie between Turkey and Greece. The action of Bulgaria and that of Austria in annexing Bosnia and Herzegovina had put a dangerous strain on the situation; but neither of these had tried Turkish feeling as it would have been tried if Crete and Greece had been suffered to follow their example by the four protecting Powers.

The attempt was made in Crete on the 12th of October, 1908, when the Assembly voted union with Greece, and elected a committee of six members to conduct the Government in the name of the King of Greece, under Greek laws. The four Powers intervened in a soothing way, agreeing to treat with the Turkish Government on the subject, provided that order in the island should be maintained and protection afforded to the Mohammedan population. In the previous May they had decided to withdraw the forces they were jointly keeping in Crete, and had announced that their evacuation of the island should be completed by the end of July, 1909. {169} When the time thus appointed drew near there was some anxiety as to what might follow the withdrawal of troops; but the Powers adhered to their agreement. Meantime the Turkish Government was giving plain expression to its determination to "maintain Ottoman rights in Crete." Early in July, 1909, the intentions of the four Powers were made known by an announcement to the French Chamber of Deputies from the Foreign Minister of that Government. The international contingents of troops, he stated, would be recalled by the contemplated date of July 27; but four war ships (stationnaires) would be sent, one by each Power, "to guard the Ottoman flag and the flags of the four Powers, as well as to ensure, in case of trouble, the protection of the population. A declaration would be addressed to the people of Crete promising, in particular, that the Powers will continue to occupy themselves with the Cretan question in a benevolent spirit, but adding that it is their duty to see that order is maintained and the safety of the Mussulmans in Crete assured; that with this object they reserve the right of adopting such measures as may be expedient for the restoration of tranquillity, in case disturbances should break out which the local authorities were unable to quell. The declaration addressed to the Cretans to be communicated to the Porte and a declaration to be made at Constantinople, in order to give an exact account of the spirit in which the foregoing measures have been adopted."

This decision was communicated formally to the Greek and Turkish governments a little later. The latter, in reply, thanked the four Powers for their promise to safeguard Ottoman interests in the island, but declared that it could not tolerate "any extension of the privileges of the Cretans beyond those guaranteed by their autonomy, least of all any such extension as might give rise to the supposition that Crete was in any way politically connected or dependent on the Hellenic kingdom."

The attitude of the four Powers in their action was stated very distinctly to the British House of Commons on the 22d of July, by Sir Edward Grey, Secretary for Foreign Affairs, as follows:

"The _status quo_ maintained in Crete is that Crete remains in trust to the four Powers who hold the island in trust, and continue to maintain the obligations of preserving the supreme rights of Turkey. That is the _status quo_, and to put any other interpretation upon it and say that it means this or that, or that it amounts to virtual annexation, is misleading and is not true. That is not intended. The question of Crete has been exceedingly difficult, partly for the very reasons which I have already named, that it was raised at a time when the Turkish Government itself was passing through a stage exceedingly difficult, but exceedingly hopeful. What we have desired to do with regard to Crete is to secure that nothing shall happen which will be damaging to the prestige of the new _régime_ in Turkey, and by being damaging to that prestige make the prospects of reform and of the increasing welfare of Turkey less hopeful."

The last of the international contingents left Crete on the 26th of July; whereupon the Cretans ran up the Greek flag on the fortress evacuated. Some days passed before the naval _stationnaires_ of the four Powers arrived on the scene, and Turkey opened a somewhat sharp correspondence with Greece. The Powers intervened, assuming responsibility for conditions in Crete, and asking that communications on the subject be addressed to them. At the same time, the Cretans were admonished to take down the Greek flag. As they did not do so, sailors from the war ships were landed on the 18th of August, who lowered the flag and cut the flag-staff down. Sixty were left on guard to prevent further demonstrations of a provocative kind. To the time of this writing (February 1, 1910) nothing has occurred since to disturb the quiet in Crete. In November, however, the Turkish Government addressed to the four Powers a request for a definite settlement of the status of Crete. The reply, given on the 9th of December, was as follows:

"The protecting Powers do not deem the moment opportune for diplomatic negotiations tending to establish a definite _régime_ in the island. The circumstances have not changed since the date of evacuation of the island by the international troops. Though infractions of the _status quo_ had been committed, they were at once suppressed, and if more serious infractions occurred the Powers would meet them in accordance with the standpoint expressed in their Notes of July last with regard to the supreme rights of the Sultan. In present conditions negotiations on the Cretan question might excite public opinion in Turkey and elsewhere, and lead to dangerous complications."

----------CRIME AND CRIMINOLOGY: Start--------

CRIME AND CRIMINOLOGY: THEIR PROBLEMS. "Black Hand," The: Sicilian Blackmail Terrorism brought to the United States.

"Toward the end of the last century the Sicilian gangs which made their living by blackmail became aware that not a few Italians who had left their home country as peasants had acquired wealth across the Atlantic. Even the ordinary workman, they learnt, who could gain only 40 cents a day in Sicily, could make about four times that wage in New York. Accordingly they hastened to exploit by their familiar methods the rich field of the Italian colony in that city. It was not long before the American police found themselves faced by an elaborate machinery of crime far more ingenious and complicated than anything with which they had previously had to deal. The Black Hand, as the society called itself, proceeded normally to extort what it wanted by frank demands and threats, and it did not hesitate at kidnapping, outrage, and murder when these means seemed necessary to its ends."

_New York Correspondent London Times, March 16, 1909._

CRIME AND CRIMINOLOGY: Cleveland’s Farm Colony.

"A City in the Life Saving Business" is the title given by Mr. Frederick C. Howe to an article in _The Outlook_ of January 18, 1908, descriptive of the Farm Colony which the City of Cleveland, Ohio, has substituted for the old time "work-house" or "penitentiary" for the detention and treatment of its vagabonds and petty offenders. {170} The change has been wrought within the past seven years by the City Director of Charities and Corrections, Dr. Harris R. Cooley. The following facts of it are summarized from Mr. Howe’s article:

The colony occupies the larger part of a 1900 acre farm, on which some other institutions, such as a city infirmary, are to be placed; but the ex-workhouse-prisoners are, so far, the interesting occupants of the farm. They are prisoners with no prison. They wear no convict garb, drag no ball and chain, are surrounded by no wall or stockade, are watched by no armed guards. They are working a quarry, making roads and sewers, gathering stone, doing all descriptions of farm work, as free in their movements as farm laborers who work for hire. And out of hundreds on whom this treatment has been tried for nearly seven years "only a handful," it is said, "have ever taken advantage of their liberty. And it was the other prisoners who were most incensed at their escape."

These unimprisoned prisoners are put on honor; they are treated as men to whom society would like to do good. It gives them a few weeks or months of healthful, honestly laborious life, in the midst of wholesome and beautiful surroundings (for the farm is nobly situated); and when they are dismissed from it they do not go dispirited and weakened and marked with a prison brand, as they would go from a workhouse, but strengthened in body, helped to self-respect, and encouraged to a change of life by the experience they have had. It is not punishment they have received, but a revelation, in most cases, of a better side of life than they had known. And this treatment is proving its success.

There are classes for instruction, on various lines, at the farm, and some come back, for evening study, after their release. Two years ago one of the released colonists began the formation of a Brotherhood among those who came out, to assist their fellows and take care of them till they got a new footing in the world; and no less than 427 had received that helping hand of fellowship when Mr. Howe wrote his account. The Brotherhood was then occupying a rented house, on the furnishing of which it had expended over $2000, made up within its own ranks.

Besides its Farm Colony, Cleveland has established another, somewhat similar, farm for boys. This, called Boyville, is 285 acres in extent, and the young delinquents sent to it live in cottages, named Washington Cottage, Lincoln Cottage, etc., each with a motherly woman in charge. They are kept in attendance at a school pursuing the same studies as in the city schools; their big playground affords them all kinds of healthful sports. They have horses, cattle, goats and dogs to take care of, and they are drilled in a fire company which is expected to protect the property of Boyville.

CRIME AND CRIMINOLOGY: The Convict Lease System: Its abolition in Georgia.

During the Civil War the Penitentiary buildings of the State of Georgia, at Milledgeville, were destroyed, and for many years subsequently the prevailing conditions were not favorable to their replacement. There grew up, in consequence, an evil practice of working convicts in chain-gangs, leading finally to the leasing of such gangs to contractors. A frightful brutalizing of all concerned in the operation of the vicious system—convicts, overseers, and lessees alike—is said to have been the result, as it could hardly fail to be. Within late years public attention, in Georgia and outside of the State, was increasingly drawn to the treatment and condition of the chain-gangs, by shocking stories of barbarity and depravity; yet the evil was hard to reform, because of the profit which the State derived from the hire of its criminals. Years of agitation and exertion by right-minded people in Georgia were required to overcome the sordid influence of this fact, and it was not until September, 1908, that the Legislature, called in special session by Governor Hoke Smith to deal with the question, passed an Act which brought the lease system to an end on the 31st of March, 1909. Provision was made at this important session for an establishment of State farms on which convicts can be employed; for introducing a parole system into the penological policy of the State, and for the institution of juvenile courts. The legislative session was a memorable one.

CRIME AND CRIMINOLOGY: English Court of Criminal Appeal.

See (in this Volume) LAW AND ITS COURTS: ENGLAND.

CRIME AND CRIMINOLOGY: The English Prevention of Corruption Act.

The object of the English Prevention of Corruption Act, passed in 1906, is to check the practice of giving and taking secret commissions, which, as the late Lord Russell of Killowen caused the country to realize, was widely prevalent in commercial and professional circles, as well as in the humbler sphere of the "servants’ hall." Before the passing of the Act, of course, it was illegal to give and receive secret commissions. After the Act came into force, it became criminal. The provisions of the measure make it a misdemeanour, punishable, on summary conviction or on indictment, with fine or imprisonment—

(1) For any agent corruptly to receive any gift or consideration for doing or not doing any act, or showing or not showing favour or disfavour, in relation to his principal’s affairs;

(2) For any person corruptly to offer such gift or consideration to any agent;

(3) For any person to give to an agent, or for any agent to use, any false or defective receipt or other business document with intent to deceive the principal.

Two years after the Act came into force its effects were discussed by a writer in the London _Times_, who said: ‘The circumstances that the fiat of the Attorney-General must be obtained before any prosecution can be instituted under the Act, and that, until recently, there was no organization qualified to take active steps to prevent the Act from becoming a dead letter, account for the comparatively small number of cases in which proceedings have been taken under the Act during the past two years. Fifteen prosecutions have been authorized by the Attorney-General. In 12 cases there have been convictions, one case has been abandoned, and two are still pending. These figures show, at any rate, that prosecutions are not lightly instituted, and that the charges which have been preferred against offenders have been, as a rule, well founded.

{171}

"It is undoubtedly true, in this matter as in others, that ‘everybody’s business is nobody’s.’ Soon after the passing of the Act it was realized that, if it was to prove effective ‘for the better prevention of corruption,’ some organization must be formed to give effect to the measure—to furnish information in respect to its provisions, to investigate complaints, and, if necessary, to institute prosecutions. A society was formed, therefore, with the title of ‘The Secret Commissions and Bribery Prevention League,’ to work on lines similar to those of the societies which strengthen the arm of the law so effectively in respect of cruelty to children and cruelty to animals. … The committee has investigated a large number of cases which have been brought to their knowledge, they have given advice freely to members and others interested in the working of the Act, they have issued thousands of circulars and letters, as well as occasional ‘news sheets,’ they have made representations to the War Office and other public bodies as opportunities occurred, and have summoned various trade conferences for the consideration of points of importance arising out of the Act. The value of the League’s work is emphasized by the fact that the members include many important limited liability companies and trade associations, and that the League is becoming in a special sense representative of the commercial community as a whole."

CRIME AND CRIMINOLOGY: Indeterminate Sentence and the Parole System of New York State.

The first provision in New York for indeterminate sentences was by Section 74, Chapter 382 of the Laws of 1889, as follows: "Whenever any male person over sixteen years of age, shall be convicted of a felony which is punishable by imprisonment in a State prison, for a term to be fixed within certain limits by the court pronouncing sentence, the court authorized to pronounce judgment upon such offender, instead of pronouncing upon such offender a definite sentence of imprisonment in a State prison for a fixed term, may pronounce upon such offender an indeterminate sentence of imprisonment in a State prison for a term with minimum and maximum limits only specified, without fixing a definite term of sentence within such limits named in the sentence, but the maximum limit so specified in the sentence shall not exceed the longest period for which such offender might have been sentenced, and the minimum limit in said sentence specified shall not be less than the shortest term for which such offender might have been sentenced. The maximum term specified in such indeterminate sentence shall be limited in the same manner as a definite sentence in compliance with the provisions of section six hundred and ninety-seven of the Penal Code."

A Parole Board was constituted under this Act, composed of the Superintendent of Prisons and the chief officers of the four State Prisons.

"It will be noted that this law permitted the indeterminate but did not abolish the definite sentence. Its provisions applied to all classes of male felons over sixteen years of age. No distinction was made between the first offenders and the professional and persistent criminals. The court in its discretion could impose either form of sentence on any convicted male felon provided he was more than sixteen years old. How general the preference of the judges was for the definite sentence is shown by the fact that during the twelve years that this law was in force approximately 13,000 prisoners were received at the prisons, only 115 of whom had indeterminate terms. …

"As there were but 60 men paroled during the life of this statute (1889 to 1901), there was naturally but slight progress made during that period toward organizing, systematizing and perfecting the parole system; but some experience was gained and data secured that has since been useful. …

"The Legislature of 1901 passed two important and effective laws relative to the parole of prisoners which became operative September 1, 1901. The first amended Section 74 of