Part 32
By the linking-up of the various state systems several grand trunk line routes have been developed--notably the lines Berlin-Vienna-Budapest; Berlin-Cologne-Brussels and Paris; Berlin-Halle-Frankfort-on-Main-Basel; Hamburg-Cassel-Munich and Verona; and Breslau-Dresden-Bamberg-Geneva. Until 1907 no uniform system of passenger rates had been adopted, each state retaining its own fares--a condition that led to much confusion. From the 1st of May 1907 the following tariff came into force. For ordinary trains the rate for first class was fixed at 1-1/4d. a mile; for second class at .7d.; for third class at 1/2d., and for fourth class at 1/4d. a mile. For express trains an extra charge is made of 2s. for distances exceeding 93 m. (150 kils.) in the two superior classes, and 1s. for a lesser distance, and of 1s. and 6d. respectively in the case of third class tickets. Fourth class passengers are not conveyed by express trains. The above rates include government duty; but the privilege of free luggage (as up to 56 lb.) has been withdrawn, and all luggage other than hand baggage taken into the carriages is charged for. In 1903 371,084,000 metric tons of goods, including animals, were conveyed by the German railways, yielding L68,085,000 sterling, and the number of passengers carried was 957,684,000, yielding L29,300,000.
The passenger ports of Germany affording oversea communications to distant lands are mainly those of Bremen (Bremerhaven) and Hamburg (Cuxhaven) both of which are situate on the North Sea. From them great steamship lines, notably the North German Lloyd, the Hamburg-American, the Hamburg South American and the German East African steamship companies, maintain express mail and other services with North and South America, Australia, the Cape of Good Hope and the Far East. London and other English ports, French, Italian and Levant coast towns are also served by passenger steamboat sailings from the two great North Sea ports. The Baltic ports, such as Lubeck, Stettin, Danzig (Neufahrwasser) and Konigsberg, principally provide communication with the coast towns of the adjacent countries, Russia and Sweden.
_Waterways._--In Germany the waterways are almost solely in the possession of the state. Of ship canals the chief is the Kaiser Wilhelm canal (1887-1895), 61 m. long, connecting the North Sea and the Baltic; it was made with a breadth at bottom of 72 ft. and at the surface of 213 ft., and with a depth of 29 ft. 6 in., but in 1908 work was begun for doubling the bottom width and increasing the depth to 36 ft. In respect of internal navigation, the principal of the greater undertakings are the Dortmund-Ems and the Elbe-Trave canals. The former, constructed in 1892-1899, has a length of 150 m. and a mean depth of 8 ft. The latter, constructed 1895-1900, has a length of 43 m. and a mean depth of about 7-1/2 ft. A project was sanctioned in 1905 for a canal, adapted for vessels up to 600 tons, from the Rhine to the Weser at Hanover, utilizing a portion of the Dortmund-Ems canal; for a channel accommodating vessels of similar size between Berlin and Stettin; for improving the waterway between the Oder and the Vistula, so as to render it capable of accommodating vessels of 400 tons; and for the canalization of the upper Oder.
On the whole, Germany cannot be said to be rich in canals. In South Germany the Ludwigs canal was, until the annexation of Alsace-Lorraine, the only one of importance. It was constructed by King Louis I. of Bavaria in order to unite the German Ocean and the Black Sea, and extends from the Main at Bamberg to Kelheim on the Danube. Alsace-Lorraine had canals for connecting the Rhine with the Rhone and the Marne, a branch serving the collieries of the Saar valley. The North German plain has, in the east, a canal by which Russian grain is conveyed to Konigsberg, joining the Pregel to the Memel, and the upper Silesian coalfield is in communication with the Oder by means of the Klodnitz canal. The greatest number of canals is found around Berlin; they serve to join the Spree to the Oder and Elbe, and include the Teltow canal opened in 1906. The canals in Germany (including ship canals through lakes) have a total length of about 2600 m. Navigable and canalized rivers, to which belong the great water-systems of the Rhine, Elbe and Oder, have a total length of about 6000 m.
_Roads._--The construction of good highways has been well attended to in Germany only since the Napoleonic wars. The separation of the empire into small states was favourable to road-making, inasmuch as it was principally the smaller governments that expended large sums for their network of roads. Hanover and Thuringia have long been distinguished for the excellence of their roads, but some districts suffer even still from the want of good highways. The introduction of railways for a time diverted attention from road-making, but this neglect has of late been to some extent remedied. In Prussia the districts (_Kreise_) have undertaken the charge of the construction of the roads; but they receive a subsidy from the public funds of the several provinces. Turnpikes were abolished in Prussia in 1874 and in Saxony in 1885. The total length of the public roads is estimated at 80,000 m.
_Posts and Telegraphs._--With the exception of Bavaria and Wurttemberg, which have administrations of their own, all the German states belong to the imperial postal district (_Reichspostgebiet_). Since 1874 the postal and telegraphic departments have been combined. Both branches of administration have undergone a surprising development, especially since the reduction of the postal rates. Germany, including Bavaria and Wurttemberg, constitutes with Austria-Hungary a special postal union (Deutsch-Osterreichischer Postverband), besides forming part of the international postal union. There are no statistics of posts and telegraphs before 1867, for it was only when the North German union was formed that the lesser states resigned their right of carrying mails in favour of the central authority. Formerly the prince of Thurn-and-Taxis was postmaster-general of Germany, but only some of the central states belonged to his postal territory. The seat of management was Frankfort-on-Main.
The following table shows the growth in the number of post offices for the whole empire:--
+------+-------------+-------------+ | Year.|Post Offices.|Men employed.| +------+-------------+-------------+ | 1872 | 7,518 | .. | | 1880 | 9,460 | .. | | 1890 | 24,952 | 128,687 | | 1899 | 36,388 | 206,945 | | 1904 | 38,658 | 261,985 | | 1907 | 40,083 | 319,026 | +------+-------------+-------------+
In 1872 there were 2359 telegraph offices; in 1880, 9980; in 1890, 17,200; and in 1907, 37,309. There were 188 places provided with telephone service in 1888, and 13,175 in 1899. The postal receipts amounted for the whole empire in 1907 to L33,789,460, and the expenditure to L31,096,944, thus showing a surplus of L2,692,516.
_Constitution._--The constitution of the German empire is, in all essentials, that of the North German Confederation, which came into force on the 7th of June 1867. Under this the presidency (_Praesidium_) of the confederation was vested in the king of Prussia and his heirs. As a result of the Franco-German war of 1870 the South German states joined the confederation; on the 9th of December 1870 the diet of the confederation accepted the treaties and gave to the new confederation the name of German Empire (_Deutsche Reich_), and on the 18th of January 1871 the king of Prussia was proclaimed German emperor (_Deutscher Kaiser_) at Versailles. This was a change of style, not of functions and powers. The title is "German emperor," not "emperor of Germany," being intended to show that the Kaiser is but _primus inter pares_ in a confederation of territorial sovereigns; his authority as territorial sovereign (_Landesherr_) extends over Prussia, not over Germany.
The imperial dignity is hereditary in the line of Hohenzollern, and follows the law of primogeniture. The emperor exercises the imperial power in the name of the confederated states. In his office he is assisted by a federal council (_Bundesrat_), which represents the governments of the individual states of Germany. The members of this council, 58 in number, are appointed for each session by the governments of the individual states. The legislative functions of the empire are vested in the emperor, the Bundesrat, and the Reichstag or imperial Diet. The members of the latter, 397 in number, are elected for a space of five years by universal suffrage. Vote is by ballot, and one member is elected by (approximately) every 150,000 inhabitants.
As regards its legislative functions, the empire has supreme and independent control in matters relating to military affairs and the navy, to the imperial finances, to German commerce, to posts and telegraphs, and also to railways, in so far as these affect the common defence of the country. Bavaria and Wurttemberg, however, have preserved their own postal and telegraphic administration. The legislative power of the empire also takes precedence of that of the separate states in the regulation of matters affecting freedom of migration (_Freizugigkeit_), domicile, settlement and the rights of German subjects generally, as well as in all that relates to banking, patents, protection of intellectual property, navigation of rivers and canals, civil and criminal legislation, judicial procedure, sanitary police, and control of the press and of associations.
The executive power is in the emperor's hands. He represents the empire internationally, and can declare war if defensive, and make peace as well as enter into treaties with other nations; he also appoints and receives ambassadors. For declaring offensive war the consent of the federal council must be obtained. The separate states have the privilege of sending ambassadors to the other courts; but all consuls abroad are officials of the empire and are named by the emperor.
Both the Bundesrat and the Reichstag meet in annual sessions convoked by the emperor who has the right of proroguing and dissolving the Diet; but the prorogation must not exceed 60 days, and in case of dissolution new elections must be ordered within 60 days, and the new session opened within 90 days. All laws for the regulation of the empire must, in order to pass, receive the votes of an absolute majority of the federal council and the Reichstag.
Alsace-Lorraine is represented in the Bundesrat by four commissioners (_Kommissare_), without votes, who are nominated by the Statthalter (imperial lieutenant).
The fifty-eight members of the Bundesrat are nominated by the governments of the individual states for each session; while the members of the Reichstag are elected by universal suffrage and ballot for the term of five years. Every German who has completed his twenty-fifth year is prima facie entitled to the suffrage in the state within which he has resided for one year. Soldiers and those in the navy are not thus entitled, so long as they are serving under the colours. Excluded, further, are persons under tutelage, bankrupts and paupers, as also such persons who have been deprived of civil rights, during the time of such deprivation. Every German citizen who has completed his twenty-fifth year and has resided for a year in one of the federal states is eligible for election in any part of the empire, provided he has not been, as in the cases above, excluded from the right of suffrage. The secrecy of the ballot is ensured by special regulations passed on the 28th of April 1903. The voting-paper, furnished with an official stamp, must be placed in an envelope by the elector in a compartment set apart for the purpose in the polling room, and, thus enclosed, be handed by him to the presiding officer. An absolute majority of votes decides the election. If (as in the case of several candidates) an absolute majority over all the others has not been declared, a test election (_Stichwahl_) takes place between the two candidates who have received the greatest number of votes. In case of an equal number of votes being cast for both candidates, the decision is by lot.
The subjoined table gives the names of the various states composing the empire and the number of votes which the separate states have in the federal council. Each state may appoint as many members to the federal council as it has votes. The table also gives the number of the deputies in the Reichstag.
+-----------------------------------------+----------+----------+ | | No. of | No. of | | States of the Empire. |Members in|Members in| | |Bundesrat.|Reichstag.| +-----------------------------------------+----------+----------+ |Kingdom of Prussia | 17 | 236 | | " Bavaria | 6 | 48 | | " Saxony | 4 | 23 | | " Wurttemberg | 4 | 17 | |Grand duchy of Baden | 3 | 14 | | " Hesse | 3 | 9 | | " Mecklenburg-Schwerin | 2 | 6 | | " Saxe-Weimar | 1 | 3 | | " Mecklenburg-Strelitz | 1 | 1 | | " Oldenburg | 1 | 3 | |Duchy of Brunswick | 2 | 3 | | " Saxe-Meiningen | 1 | 2 | | " Saxe-Altenburg | 1 | 1 | | " Saxe-Coburg-Gotha | 1 | 2 | | " Anhalt | 1 | 2 | |Principality of Schwarzburg-Sondershausen| 1 | 1 | | " Schwarzburg-Rudolstadt | 1 | 1 | | " Waldeck | 1 | 1 | | " Reuss-Greiz | 1 | 1 | | " Reuss-Schleiz | 1 | 1 | | " Schaumburg-Lippe | 1 | 1 | | " Lippe | 1 | 1 | |Free town of Lubeck | 1 | 1 | | " Bremen | 1 | 1 | | " Hamburg | 1 | 3 | |Imperial territory of Alsace-Lorraine | .. | 15 | | +----------+----------+ | Total | 58 | 397 | +-----------------------------------------+----------+----------+
The Reichstag must meet at least once in each year. Since November 1906 its members have been paid (see PAYMENT OF MEMBERS).
The following table shows its composition after the elections of 1903 and 1907:--
+--------------------------------------------+-----+-----+ | Parties. |1903.|1907.| +--------------------------------------------+-----+-----+ | Centre | 100 | 108 | | Social Democrats | 81 | 43 | | Conservatives | 51 | 60 | | National Liberals | 49 | 57 | | Freisinnige Volkspartei | 27 | 33 | | Reichspartei | 19 | 22 | | Alsatians, Guelphs and Danes | 18 | 5 | | Poles | 16 | 20 | | Wirtschaftliche Vereinigung (Reform Partei)| 12 | 21 | | Freisinnige Vereinigung | 9 | 16 | | Wilde (no party) | 9 | 5 | | Bund der Landwirte | 3 | 6 | | Bauernbund | 3 | 1 | +--------------------------------------------+-----+-----+
All the German states have separate representative assemblies, except Alsace-Lorraine and the two grand-duchies of Mecklenburg. The six larger states have adopted the two-chamber system, but in the composition of the houses great differences are found. The lesser states also have chambers of representatives numbering from 12 members (in Reuss-Greiz) to 48 members (in Brunswick), and in most states the different classes, as well as the cities and the rural districts, are separately represented. The free towns have legislative assemblies, numbering from 120 to 200 members.
Imperial measures, after passing the Bundesrat and the Reichstag, must obtain the sanction of the emperor in order to become law, and must be countersigned, when promulgated, by the chancellor of the empire (_Reichskanzler_). All members of the federal council are entitled to be present at the deliberations of the Reichstag. The Bundesrat, acting under the direction of the chancellor of the empire, is also a supreme administrative and consultative board, and as such it has nine standing committees, viz.: for army and fortresses; for naval purposes; for tariffs, excise and taxes; for trade and commerce; for railways, posts and telegraphs; for civil and criminal law; for financial accounts; for foreign affairs; and for Alsace-Lorraine. Each committee includes representatives of at least four states of the empire.
For the several branches of administration a considerable number of imperial offices have been gradually created. All of them, however, either are under the immediate authority of the chancellor of the empire, or are separately managed under his responsibility. The most important are the chancery office, the foreign office and the general post and telegraph office. But the heads of these do not form a cabinet.
_The Chancellor of the Empire (Reichskanzler)._--The Prussian plenipotentiary to the Bundesrat is the president of that assembly; he is appointed by the emperor, and bears the title Reichskanzler. This head official can be represented by any other member of the Bundesrat named in a document of substitution. The Reichskanzler is the sole responsible official, and conducts all the affairs of the empire, with the exception of such as are of a purely military character, and is the intermediary between the emperor, the Bundesrat and the Reichstag. All imperial rescripts require the counter-signature of the chancellor before attaining validity. All measures passed by the Reichstag require the sanction of the majority of the Bundesrat, and only become binding on being proclaimed on behalf of the empire by the chancellor, which publication takes place through the _Reichsgesetzblatt_ (the official organ of the chancellor).
_Government Offices._--The following imperial offices are directly responsible to the chancellor and stand under his control:--
1. The foreign office, which is divided into three departments: (i.) the political and diplomatic; (ii.) the political and commercial; (iii.) the legal. The chief of the foreign office is a secretary of state, taking his instructions immediately from the chancellor.
2. The colonial office (under the direction of a secretary of state) is divided into (i.) a civil department; (ii.) a military department; (iii.) a disciplinary court.
3. The ministry of the interior or home office (under the conduct of a secretary of state). This office is divided into four departments, dealing with (i.) the business of the Bundesrat, the Reichstag, the elections, citizenship, passports, the press, and military and naval matters, so far as the last concern the civil authorities; (ii.) purely social matters, such as old age pensions, accident insurance, migration, settlement, poor law administration, &c.; (iii.) sanitary matters, patents, canals, steamship lines, weights and measures; and (iv.) commercial and economic relations--such as agriculture, industry, commercial treaties and statistics.
4. The imperial admiralty (_Reichsmarineamt_), which is the chief board for the administration of the imperial navy, its maintenance and development.
5. The imperial ministry of justice (_Reichsjustizamt_), presided over by a secretary of state. This office, not to be confused with the _Reichsgericht_ (supreme legal tribunal of the empire) in Leipzig, deals principally with the drafting of legal measures to be submitted to the Reichstag.
6. The imperial treasury (_Reichsschatzamt_), or exchequer, is the head financial office of the empire. Presided over by a secretary of state, its functions are principally those appertaining to the control of the national debt and its administration, together with such as in the United Kingdom are delegated to the board of inland revenue.
7. The imperial railway board (_Reichseisenbahnamt_), the chief official of which has the title of "president," deals exclusively with the management of the railways throughout the empire, in so far as they fall under the control of the imperial authorities in respect of laws passed for their harmonious interworking, their tariffs and the safety of passengers conveyed.
8. The imperial post office (_Reichspostamt_), under a secretary of state, controls the post and telegraph administration of the empire (with the exception of Bavaria and Wurttemberg), as also those in the colonies and dependencies.
9. The imperial office for the administration of the imperial railways in Alsace-Lorraine, the chief of which is the Prussian minister of public works.
10. The office of the accountant-general of the empire (_Rechnungshof_), which controls and supervises the expenditure of the sums voted by the legislative bodies, and revises the accounts of the imperial bank (_Reichsbank_).
11. The administration of the imperial invalid fund, i.e. of the fund set apart in 1871 for the benefit of soldiers invalided in the war of 1870-71; and
12. The imperial bank (_Reichsbank_), supervised by a committee of four under the presidency of the imperial chancellor, who is a fifth and permanent member of such committee.
The heads of the various departments of state do not form, as in England, the nucleus of a cabinet. In so far as they are secretaries of state, they are directly responsible to the chancellor, who represents all the offices in his person, and, as has been said, is the medium of communication between the emperor and the Bundesrat and Reichstag.
_Colonies._--The following table gives some particulars of the dependencies of the empire:--
+------------------------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ | | | Area | | | Name. | Date of |(estimated)| Pop. | | |Acquisition.| sq. m. |(estimated).| +------------------------------------+------------+-----------+------------+ |In Africa-- | | | | | Togoland | 1884 | 33,700 | 1,000,000 | | Cameroon | 1884 | 190,000 | 3,500,000 | | S.W. Africa | 1884 | 322,450 | 200,000 | | East Africa | 1885 | 364,000 | 7,000,000 | | +------------+-----------+------------+ | Total in Africa | | 910,150 | 11,700,000 | |In the Pacific-- | | | | | German New Guinea | 1884 | 70,000 | 110,000(?)| | Bismarck Archipelago | 1884 | 20,000 | 188,000 | | Caroline, Pelew and Mariana Islands| 1899 | 800 | 41,600 | | Solomon Islands | 1886 | 4,200 | 45,000 | | Marshall Islands | 1885 | 160 | 15,000 | | Samoan Islands | 1899 | 985 | 33,000 | | | +-----------+------------+ | Total in Pacific | | 96,145 | 432,600 | |In Asia-- | | | | | Kiao-chow | 1897 | 117 | 60,000 | | | +-----------+------------+ | Total dependencies | 1884-1899 |1,006,412 | 12,192,600 | +------------------------------------+------------+-----------+------------+
Except Kiao-chow, which is controlled by the admiralty, the dependencies of the empire are under the direction of the colonial office. This office, created in 1907, replaced the colonial department of the foreign office which previously had had charge of colonial affairs. The value of the trade of the colonies with Germany in 1906 was: imports into Germany, L1,028,000; exports from Germany, L2,236,000. For 1907 the total revenue from the colonies was L849,000; the expenditure of the empire on the colonies in the same year being L4,362,000. (See the articles on the various colonies.)