granted under date of March 4, 1849, but this was repealed by an Imperial decree of Dec. 31, 1851, which substituted a more absolute form of government; and, during the following years, new edicts altered the public charter. An Imperial diploma, dated Oct. 20, 1860, followed by a decree, or 'Patent,' of February 26, 1861, laid the basis of a new Constitution, which, after a suspension from 1865 to 1867, was put in force in December, 1867, with modifications rendered necessary by the recognition of the independence, of Hungary. The main features of this Constitution are a double Legislature, consisting, first, of the Provincial Diets, representing the various states of the monarchy, and secondly, a Central Diet, called the Reichsrath or Council of the Empire. There are seventeen Provincial Diets, namely, for Bohemia, Dalmatia, Galicia, Upper Austria, Lower Austria, Salzburg, Styria, Carinthia, Carniola, Bukowina, Moravia, Silesia, Tyrol, Vorarlberg, Gorizia, Istra, and Trieste. The Diets of all these provinces are formed in nearly the same manner, only differing in the number of deputies. Each consists of only one assembly, composed, 1st, of the archbishop and bishops of the Roman Catholic and Oriental Greek churches and the chancellors of universities; 2nd, of the representatives of great estates, elected by all landowners paying not less than 100 florins, or 107., taxes; 3rd, of the representatives of towns, elected by those citizens who possess municipal rights; 4th, of the representatives of boards of commerce and trade-guilds, chosen by the respective members; and 5th, of the representatives of rural communes, elected by deputies called 'Wahlmänner,' returned by all inhabitants who pay a small amount of direct taxation. The Provincial Diets are competent to make laws concerning local administration, particularly those affecting county taxation, the cultivation of the soil, educational, church and charitable institutions, and public works. The Reichsrath, or Parliament of the western part of the Empire, consists of an Upper and a Lower House. The Upper House (Herren-haus) is formed, 1st, of the princes of the Imperial family who are of age, fourteen in number in 1875; 2nd, of a number of nobles-fifty-six in the present Reichsrath-possessing large landed property, in whose families the dignity is hereditary; 3rd, of the archbishops, ten in number, and bishops, seven in number, who are of princely title, inherent to their episcopal seat; and 4th, of any other life-members nominated by the emperor, on account of being distinguished in art or science, or who have rendered signal services to Church or State-one hundred and two in 1875. The Lower House (Abgeordnetenhaus), formerly composed of 230 members, nominated by the seventeen Provincial Diets of Austria, consists, under a new law passed in 1873, of 353 members, elected by the direct vote of all citizens who are of age and possessed of a small property qualification. At the first meeting of the Lower House of the Reichsrath elected under the new law, November 4 1873, there were 79 deputies natives of Bohemia, 37 of Moravia, and 61 natives of Galicia and the Polish provinces, the rest being made up of members of German nationality. The emperor nominates the presidents, and vice-presidents of both Chambers of the Reichsrath, the remaining functionaries being chosen by the members of the two Houses. It is incumbent upon the head of the State to assemble the Reichsrath annually. The rights which, in consequence of the diploma of Oct. 20, 1860, and the Patent' of Feb. 26, 1861, are conferred upon the Reichsrath, are as follows:-1st, Consent to all laws relating to military duty; 2nd, Co-operation in the legislature on trade and commerce, customs, banking, posting, telegraph, and railway matters; 3rd, Examination of the estimates of the income and expenditure of the State; of the bills on taxation, public loans, and conversion of the funds; and general control of the public debt. To give validity to bills passed by the Reichsrath, the consent of both Chambers is required, as well as the sanction of the head of the State. The members of both the Upper and the Lower House have the right to propose new laws on subjects within the competence of the Reichsrath; but in all other matters the initiative belongs solely to the Government. The executive of Austria Proper consists of the following eight departments: 1. The Presidency of the Council.-Prince Adolf Auersperg, born at Prague, July 21, 1821, youngest son of the late Prince Wilhelm Auersperg; entered the army of Austria, 1837; retired as major, 1866; elected Deputy to the Diet of Bohemia, 1867; President of the Diet, 1868-70; Civil Governor of the Duchy of Salzburg, 1870-71; appointed President of the Austrian Council of Ministers, November 25, 1871. 2. The Ministry of the Interior.-Baron Joseph Lasser von Zollheim, born at Salzburg, September 30, 1815; Deputy of Salzburg to the first Austrian Reichstag, 1848; Under-Secretary in the Ministry of the Interior, 1851-60; Civil Governor of the Tyrol, 1868-71; appointed Minister of the Interior, November 25, 1871. 3. The Ministry of Public Education and Ecclesiastical Affairs.Dr. Karl von Stremayr, born at Graz, Styria, October 30, 1823; Deputy to the German National Assembly at Frankfurt, 1848; Professor of Jurisprudence at the University of Graz, 1850-70; appointed Minister of Public Education and Ecclesiastical Affairs, November 25, 1871. 4. The Ministry of Finance.-Baron von Pretis-Cagnodo; governor of the Coast-land, 1870-72; appointed Minister of Finance, January 16, 1872. 5. The Ministry of Agriculture.-Count Collerédo Mannsfeld, formerly Captain in the cavalry of Austria; appointed Minister of Agriculture, May 23, 1875. 6. The Ministry of Commerce.-Johann von Chlumečky, born in Moravia, 1824; Vice-Governor of Moravia, 1868-70; Minister of Agriculture, 1871-75; appointed Minister of Commerce, May 23, 1875. 7. The Ministry of National Defence (Landesvertheidigung)— Colonel Julius Horst, appointed March 23, 1872. 8. The Ministry of Justice.-Dr. Julius Glaser, born at Portelberg, Bohemia, March 19, 1831; Professor of Criminal Jurisprudence at the University of Vienna; Under-Secretary in the Ministry of Public Education and Ecclesiastical Affairs, 1868-70; appointed Minister of Justice, November 25, 1871. The responsibility of ministers for acts committed in the discharge of their official functions was established by a bill which passed the Reichsrath in July, 1867, and received the sanction of the emperor on the 21st of December, 1870. Hungary. The constitution of the eastern part of the empire, or the kingdom of Hungary, including Hungary Proper, Croatia, Slavonia, and Transylvania, dates from the foundation of the kingdom about 895. There exists no charter, or constitutional code, but in place of it are fundamental statutes, published at long intervals of time. The principal of them, the Bulla Aurea' of King Andrew II., was granted in 1222, and defined the form of Government as an Aristocratic Monarchy. The Hungarian Constitution has been repeatedly suspended and partially disregarded, until, at the end of the armed struggle of 1849, it was decreed to be forfeited by the rebellion of the nation. This decree was repealed in 1860, and the present sovereign, on the 8th of June, 1867, swore to maintain the Constitution, and was crowned King of Hungary. The legislative power rests conjointly in the King and the Diet, or Reichstag. The latter consists of an upper and a lower house, the first known as the House of Magnates, and the second as the House of Representatives. The House of Magnates was composed, in the session of 1875, of 731 members, namely 3 Princes of the reigning house; 21 Archbishops and Bishops of the Roman Catholic and Greek churches; 707 Peers and dignitaries of Hungary; 2 deputies of Croatia and Slavonia, and 3 of Transylvania. The lower house, or House of Representatives of Hungary, is composed of representatives of the nation, elected by the vote of all citizens, of full age, who pay direct taxes to the amount of eight gulden, or 16s., per annum. No distinction is made, either as regards electors or representatives, on account of race or religion. New elections must take place every three years. By the electoral law in force in the session of 1875, the House of Representatives consisted of 444 members, of which number 334 were deputies of Hungarian towns and county districts, 35 delegates of Croatia and Slavonia, and 75 of Transylvania. The executive of the kingdom is in a responsible ministry, consisting of a president and nine departments, namely :— The Presidency of the Council.-Baron von Wenkheim; appointed President of the Council of Ministers, March 1, 1875. 1. The Ministry of Finance.-M. de Széll, appointed March 1, 1875. 2. The Ministry of National Defence (Landesvertheidigung).— B. Szende de Kevesztes, appointed March 20, 1874. 3. The Ministry near the King's person (ad latus).-Baron von Wenkheim, President of the Council; appointed Minister ad latus, March, 1871. 4. The Ministry of the Interior.-Louis Tisza, appointed March 1, 1875. 5. The Ministry of Education and of Public Worship.-Dr. Augustine Trefort, appointed September 5, 1872. 6. The Ministry of Justice.-Dr. Bela-Perczel, appointed March 1, 1875. 7. The Ministry of Communications and Public Works.— T. de Péchy, appointed March 1, 1875. 8. The Ministry of Agriculture, Industry, and Commerce.—Baron L. von Simonyi, appointed March 1, 1875. 9. The Ministry for Croatia and Slavonia. von Veröcze, appointed March 20, 1871. Count Pejácsevic The sovereign of Hungary, though acknowledged Emperor of Austria-Hungary, is styled 'king' in all public acts. Church and Education. The State religion of Austria is the Roman Catholic, but there is complete toleration for all dissenters from it, of whatever form of belief. According to the returns of the last census, rather more than 66 per cent. of the inhabitants of the Empire are Roman Catholics, while of the remainder 11 per cent. are Greek Catholics; 10 per cent. Evangelical Protestants, and 9 per cent. Byzantine Greeks. The following table shows the numbers, in thousands, of the various religious denominations, and the relative per-centage of each, in Austria and in Hungary, as well as in the whole Empire. The ecclesiastical hierarchy of Austria comprises 11 Roman Catholic archbishops-of Vienna, Salzburg, Görz, Prag, Olmütz, Lemberg, Zara, Gran, Erlau, Kalocsa, and Agram; 2 Greek Catholic archbishops-at Lemberg and Blasendorf; 1 Greek Byzantine archbishop, and 1 Catholic Armenian archbishop. The Roman Catholic Church has further 57 bishops, with chapters and consistories, and 43 abbots of ancient endowed monasteries, in Austria, Styria, Illyria, Bohemia, and Moravia. Hungary has 22 abbots with endowments, 124 titular abbots, 41 endowed, 29 titular prebendaries, and 3 college foundations. Transylvania has 3 titular abbots, and upwards of 150 monasteries and convents; and Galicia 70 monasteries. The Greek United Church has 1 archbishop and 1 bishop in Galicia, and 5 bishops in Hungary. The Armenian Catholic Church has an archbishop at Lemberg. The Archbishop of Carlowitz is head of the Greek Church, with 10 bishops and 60 protopopas, or deans. Very extensive powers, secured by a special Concordate with the Pontifical government, were formerly possessed by the Roman Catholic clergy in Cisleithan Austria, but the whole of these were swept away in 1867 and 1868, by a series of laws enacted by the Reichsrath, the last and most important of which-passed in April 1868-established civil marriage, and the perfect equality of all religious creeds. The extent of landed property in Austria belonging to the Roman Catholic Church is very considerable. Though reduced in number within the last half century, there are still nearly 300 abbeys, and above 500 convents in the empire. The Protestants have no churches endowed by the state, the clergy being chosen and supported by their congregations. Education until very recently was in a greatly backward state in Austria, the bulk of the agricultural population, constituting twothirds of the inhabitants of the Empire, being almost entirely illite |