Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 12.djvu/77

65 GOVEENMENT.] HOLLAND 65 The greater density of population in the Holland provinces as compared with Drenthe cannot be explained, however, merely by the character of the soil ; the variety of in dustries and the great number of large towns contribute to the inequality. All the towns with 100,000 inhabitants and upwards (Amsterdam, Rotterdam, and the Hague) are situated in the provinces of Holland ; of the 36 communes with more than 10,000, 9 are in Holland, none in Drenthe : of the 35 communes between 10,000 and 4000, 9 are in Holland and 2 in Drenthe. The reason why in the west, and especially in the district between Amsterdam and Rotterdam, there is such a clustering of large towns, only surpassed in a few parts of England and Belgium, i is to be found in the facilities there afforded for earning a subsistence. Holland is emphatically a country of large towns. According to the census of 1869 there were forty -four which had a population of upwards of 5000. The greatest of all was Amsterdam, with 256,154 in habitants ; and next in order came Rotterdam, with 113,731. Two others had upwards of 50,000, the Hague and Utrecht, respectively 81,881 and 57,085. Arnheim, Leyden, Haarlem, Groningen, and Maastricht were all above 25,000 ; and Bois-le-duc, Delft, Dort, and Leeu- warden above 20,000. The five towns of Nimeguen, Gouda, Helder, Deventer, and Zwolle had each between 15,000 and 20,000; and Breda, Zutphen, Zaandam, Amers- foort, and Kempen were all above 10,000, though less than 15,000. Since that date many of these have considerably increased in size. In 1879 Amsterdam had about 300,000 inhabitants, Rotterdam 140,000, the Hague 100,000, and Utrecht 70,000. ition- As the density of the population varies within the nar- ties. row limits of the Netherlands, so varies likewise the origin of the people. Although ethnographically the whole popu lation belongs to the Indo-Germanic family, or more defi nitely to the Teutonic branch of it, the descendants of the Frisians may be clearly distinguished in the north-west. The mouths of the Meuse separate these from the descend ants of the Franks, who pushed eastward across the Meuse but never settled beyond the Waal, while the territory of the Saxons, who came later from the east, extends no further than to the Utrecht Vecht. The descendants of the Saxons consequently lie between those of the two first- named peoples, although naturally much commingling lias taken place between Frisians and Saxons, and Saxons and Franks, especially in the towns and on the newly-acquired lands. The representatives of the Semitic stock (Portuguese or German Jews), though their influence is not unimportant, number only 50,000 or 60,000, of whom about 40,000 re side at Amsterdam. The descendants of the three Teutonic peoples above named are very slightly distinguished from each other by their physical, intellectual, and moral char acteristics, and all the less so because the Dutch type is not itself strongly marked and bears the traces of foreign commixture ; for many Flemings and Brabanters settled in the country at the time of the revolt against Spain, many Germans, Englishmen, and Scandinavians during the pros perity of the republic, and many Frenchmen after the revocation of the edict of Nantes. The differences most clearly discernible are in the old local laws, in the pecu liar customs, and above all in the dialects. Among these last must be distinguished the Holland dialect (Hollandsch) spoken in the provinces of Holland and part of Utrecht; the Zealand dialect (Zceuwsch, in Staats Flanders inclin ing towards Flemish) ; the Brabantine (modified), also spoken in a part of Limburg and the south of Guelder- land ; the Lower Rhenish, which is again subdivided into the Guelderland, the Overyssel, and the Drenthe dialects ; and, finally, the Groningen dialect. The peasant or country Frisian forms a completely separate language with a literature of its own. It has not been at all satis factorily determined in what parts of the Netherlands the remains of a pre-German population are to be found, nor to what extent they are to be distinguished from the Ger mans by the form of the skull ; but investigations are being carried on in this department of inquiry, and a map is being prepared to indicate the boundaries of the various dialects. The government of the Netherlands is regulated by the eonstitu- Govern- tion of 1815, revised in 1848, under which the king s person is in- ment. yiolable and the ministers are responsible. The crown is hereditary in both the male and the female line according to primogeniture ; but it is only on the complete extinction of the male line that females can come to the throne. The crown prince or heir apparent is the first subject of the king, and bears the title of the Prince of Orange. The king alone has executive authority. To him belong the ultimate direction of foreign affairs, the power to declare war and peace and to make treaties and alliances, the supreme command of the army and navy, the supreme administration of the finances and of the colonies and other possessions of the kingdom, and the prerogative of mercy. By the provisions of the same constitution he establishes the ministerial departments, and shares the legisla tive power with the first and second chambers. The heads of the departments to whom the especial executive functions are entrusted are eight in number, ministers respectively of the interior, of public works (the &quot; waterstaat,&quot; including trade and industry, railways, post-oflice, &c. ), of justice, of finance, of war, of marine, of the colonies, and of foreign affairs. They are appointed and dismissed at the pleasure of the king, usually determined, however, as in all constitutional states, by the will of the nation as indi cated by its representatives. The members of the first chamber are chosen by the provincial states from among those who bear the greatest burden of direct taxation in each province, the propor tion of persons thus eligible being 1 to every 3000 of the popu lation. North Brabant sends 5, Guelderland 5, South Holland 7, North Holland 6, Zealand 2, Utrecht 2, Fricsland 3, Overyssel 3, Groningen 2, Drenthe 1, Limburg 3 or altogether 39. The duration of parliament is nine years, a third of the members retiring every three years. The retiring members are eligible for re-election. The members of the second chamber are chosen in the electoral districts by all citizens of full age who pay direct taxes varying according to local circumstances from 20 to 160 guilders. One member is elected for every 45,000 of the popula tion. At present (1880) there are eighty-six; they must be at least thirty years old, and they cease to be members if they take a salaried Government appointment. They discuss all laws, and have the right of proposing amendments. Their term is four years, but they are re-eligible. All communications from the king to the states-general and from the states to the king, as well as all general measures relating to internal administration or to foreign possessions, are first submitted, to the consideration of the coun cil of state, which also has the right of making suggestions to the king in regard to subjects of legislation and administration. The king appoints the vice-president of the council, which con sists of fourteen members; he is himself the president, and can name councillors, to the number of not more than fifteen, for special service. The provincial administration is entrusted to the provincial Trovin- states, which are returned by direct election by the same electors cial ad- as vote for the second chamber. The term is for six years, but ministra- part of the members retire every three years. The president of the tion. assembly is the royal commissioner for the province. As the pro vincial states only meet a few times in the year, they name a com mittee of deputy-states to which the management of current general business is entrusted, and which at the same time administers the affairs of the communes. At the head of every commune stands a communal council, hose members are chosen by the inhabitants for a definite number of years. The president of the communal council, the burgomaster, is named by the king in cveiy instance for six years, and along with the .magistrate to be chosen by and from the members of the council is charged with the ordinary administration. The provinces, as already stated, are eleven in number (the grand- duchy of Luxembourg, over which the king has control, is not incorporated with the kingdom); the number of communes at 31st December 1878 was 1128. The administration of justice is entrusted (1) to the high council, Ju&amp;gt;tice. the supreme court of the whole kingdom, which holds its sessions at the Hague, and is the tribunal for all high Government officials and for the members of the states-general ; (2) to the five courts of justice for criminal cases, and for appeal in more important police and civil cases ; (3) to courts established in each arrondissemcnt ; (4) to cantonal judges appointed over a group of communes, whose jurisdiction is restricted to claims of small amount (under 200 guilders), and to breaches of police regulations, and who at the same time look after the interests of minors. XTT. o