Page:1902 Encyclopædia Britannica - Volume 26 - AUS-CHI.pdf/496

 BULGARIA

448

[statistics

thus abandoned still remains unoccupied. On the other hand, a considerable influx of Bulgarians from Macedonia, the vilayet of Adrianople, Bessarabia, and the Dobruja took place within Population, ^ometre® the same period, and the inhabitants of the mountain villages show a tendency to migrate into the richer districts of the 33-45 232,507 Philippopolis. plains. 170,514 27-36 Sliven The principality is a constitutional monarchy, hereditary 33-43 215,483 Stara Zagora. 24-10 138,778 Tatar-pazarjik in the family of a prince “freely elected by the popula38-38 124,985 Haskovo tion and confirmed by the Sublime Porte with GoYera_ 19-74 116,164 Burgas. the assent of the Powers ” (Berlin Treaty, Art. meat The population of the principal towns in 1893 was as III.). According to the constitution of Trnovo, follows:—Sofia, the capital (the Bulgarian name Sredetz voted by the Assembly of Notables, 29th April 18(9, and is now little used), 46,593; Philippopolis or Plovdiv revised by the Grand Sobranye, 27th May 1893, the princely (capital of eastern Rumelia), 41,068; Russe (Turkish dignity descends in the direct male line. The prince must RAstchuk), 37,174; Varna, 28,174; Trnovo (the ancient profess the Orthodox faith, only the first elected sovereign Bulgarian capital), 25,295; Gornia Orekhovitza, 25,013; and his immediate heir being released from this obligation. Sliven (Russian Slivno), 23,210 ; Pleven (Russian Plevna), The legislative power is vested in the prince in conjunction the national assembly; he is supreme head of the army, 23,178; Tatar-pazarjik, 22,056; Razgrad, 21,551. The with supervises the executive power, and represents the country increase of the population of Sofia in the period 188893 was 10-62 per cent, yearly; the capital now probably in its foreign relations. In case of a minority or an interregnum, a regency of three persons is appointed. The national possesses 65,000 inhabitants. representation is embodied in the Sobranye, or ordinary The population according to sex is given as 1,690,626 males assembly (Bulgarian, Subrariie, the Russian form hobranye and 1,620,087 females, or 51 males to 49 females. A somewhat being usually employed by foreign writers), and the Grand similar disparity may be observed in the other countries of the Peninsula. Classified according to occupation, 2,447,198 persons, Sobranye, which is convoked in extraordinary circumor 73 "9 per cent, of the population, are engaged in agriculture ; stances. The former is elected by manhood suffrage, in the 421,121 in various productive industries ; 145,988 in the service proportion of 1 to 20,000 of the population, for a term of five of the government or the exercise of liberal professions, and years. Every Bulgarian citizen who can read and write and 122,104 in commerce. The population according to race cannot be stated with absolute accuracy, but it is approximately shown has completed his thirtieth year is eligible as a deputy. by the census of 1893, which gives the various nationalities Annual sessions are held from the 27th October to the 2/th according to language as follows :—Bulgars, 2,505,326; lurks, December. All legislative and financial measures must first 569,728 ; Rumans, 62,628 ; Greeks, 58,518 ; Gypsies (Tziganes), be discussed and voted by the Sobranye, and then sanctioned 52,132; Jews (Spanish - speaking), 27,531; Tatars, 16,290 ; Armenians, 6445 ; other nationalities, 12,115. The Bulgarian and promulgated by the prince. The Government is responinhabitants of the Peninsula beyond the limits of the Principality sible to the Sobranye and the ministers, whether deputies may, perhaps, be estimated at 1,500,000 or 1,600,000, and the or not, attend its sittings. The Grand Sobranye, which is grand total of the race possibly reaches 4,500,000. The movement of the population at intervals of five years has elected in the proportion of 2 to every 20,000 inhabitants, is convoked to elect a new prince, to appoint a regency, to been as follows :— sanction a change in the constitution, or to ratify an Natural Births Still- Deaths. Increase.1 Year. Marriages. (living). alteration in the boundaries of the principality. The born. executive is entrusted to a cabinet of eight members the 38,884 35,758 74,642 300 1882 19,795 ministers of foreign affairs and religion, finance, justice, 39,396 43,783 83,179 144 1887 20,089 public works, the interior, commerce and agriculture, 1892 27,553 117,883 321 103,550 14,333 90,134 59,497 education, and war. Local administration, which is 1897 29,227 149,631 858 organized on the Belgian model, is under the control of The death-rate shows a tendency to rise. In the five years 1882- the minister of the interior. The country is divided into 86 the mean death-rate was 18*0 per 1000 ; in 1887-91, ^0 4 ; twenty-two departments (okrug, pi. okruzi), each adin 1892-96, 27-0. Infant mortality is high, owing to various ministered by a prefect (uprdvitel), assisted by a decauses, especially among the peasants. _ As the less healthy infants rarelv survive, the adult population is in general robust, hardy, partmental council, and eighty-four sub-prefectures {okolm), and lon^-lived. The census of 1893 gives 3372 persons of 100 each under a sub-prefect (oholiishi natchaluilt). The years and upwards. Young men, as a rule, marry before the age number of these functionaries is excessive and will probof twenty-five, girls before eighteen. The number of illegitimate ably be reduced. The four principal towns have each m births is inconsiderable, averaging only 0-12 of the total. _ The devastation of the country which followed the lurkish con- addition a prefect of police (gradonatchalnik) and one or quest resulted in the extirpation or flight of a large proportion of more commissaries (pristav). The gendarmery numbers the Bulgarian inhabitants of the plains, who were replaced by about 4000 men, or 1 to 825 of the inhabitants. The Turkish colonists. The mountainous districts, however, retained prefects and sub-prefects have replaced the Turkish their original population and sheltered large numbers of the fugitives The passage of the Turkish armies during the wars mutessarifs and kaimakams ; but the system of municipal with Austria, Poland, and Russia led to further Bulgarian emi- government, left untouched by the Turks, descends from grations The flight to the Banat, where 22,000 Bulgarians primitive times. Every commune (obshtina), urban or still remain, took place in 1730. At the beginning of the 19th rural, has its kmet, or mayor, and council; the commune century the majority of the population of the Eastern Itumelian plain was Turkish. The Turkish colony, however, declined, is bound to maintain its primary schools, a public library partly in consequence of the drain caused by military service, or reading-room, &c.; the kmet possesses certain magisterial while the Bulgarian remnant increased, notwithstanding a con- powers, and in the rural districts he collects the taxes. siderable emigration to Bessarabia before and after the Russo- Each village, as a rule, forms a separate commune, but Turkish campaign of 1828. Efforts were made by the Porte to strengthen the Moslem element by planting colonies of Tatars m occasionally two or more villages are grouped together. 1861 and Circassians in 1864. The advance of the Russian army The civil and penal codes are, for the most part, based on the in 1877-78 caused an enormous exodus of the Turkish population, Ottoman law. As the principality forms a portion of the lurkis of which only a small proportion returned to settle permanently. empire, the privileges of the capitulations are guar- justice. The emigration continued after the conclusion of peace, and is anteed to foreign subjects (Berlin Treaty, Art. VII •)• still in progress, notwithstanding the efforts of the Bulgarian The lowest civil and criminal court is that of the village km ^ Government8 to krrest it. In twenty years (1879-99) .t east whose jurisdiction is confined to the limits of the commune no 150,000 Turkish peasants left Bulgaria. Much of the land corresponding tribunal exists m the towns. Each sub-prefectur _ lTl some cases two or more ; 1 and town has a justice of the peace -in ^on Excess of births over deaths. Eastern Rumelia, 6 Departments.