Page:Statesman's Year-Book 1899 American Edition.djvu/1266

 910 RUSSIA

emperor, who has the right of veto. The unanimous assent of all four chambers is necessary for making changes in the Constitution and for levying new taxes. The national representatives have been regularly convoked, since 1861, every four or five years ; the last time they met was in 1888. The schemes of laws are elaborated by the 'State's Secretariat of Finland,' which sits at St. Petersburg, and consists of the State Secretary and four members nominated l)y the Crown (two of them being proposed by the Senate). The Senate, which sits at Helsingfors, under the presidency of the Governor-General, is nominated by the Crown. It is the superior adminis- trative power in Finland, and consists of two departments, Justice and Finance, which have under them the administration of posts, railways, canals, custom-houses, hygiene, and the tribunals. The military department is under the Russian Ministry of War, and the Foreign Affairs under the Russian Chancellor Finland has its own money and system of custom-houses. Recent laws have, however, altered this to some extent. In 1898 the Senate was asked by the Grand Duke to prepare a scheme of general obligatory military service in Finland, (See Finland.)

Poland. — Poland, which had a Constitution of its own from 1815 to 1830, and a separate government till 1864, was deprived at the latter date of the last remnant of its administrative independence. Finally, by ukase of the Emperor, dated Feb. 23, 1868, the government of Poland was absolutely incorporated with that of Russia, and the use of Polish language in public places and for public purposes (railways, signboards, wills, &c.), Avas prohibited.

Baltic Provinces. — The Baltic Provinces have had some institutions for self- government of their own. They have, however, been gradually curtailed, and the privileges of the provinces in police and school matters, chiefly vested in the nobility, have been taken away by a laAV of June 21, 1888, the judicial and police rights of the landlords having been transferred to functionaries nominated by the State, By a law of July 21, 1889, the last vestiges of manorial justice and of tribunals under the German-speaking nobility have been abolished, but the Law of Justice of 1864, which is in force in Russia, has been but partially applied to the provinces, so as to maintain the administration of justice under the central Government. The Russian language has been rendered obligatory in the official correspondence of all parish, municipal, and provincial administration ; so also in the Dorpat University, which was deprived in December 1889 of its privileges of self- government, and the gymnasia in 1890, The town of Dorpat has received the namc'of Yuriev, and the seat of the administration of the Baltic Educa- tional District has been transferred to Riga. In April, 1893, new Committees for peasants' affairs were introduced, with the same powers as in Russian Governments.

Area and Population. I. Progress and Present Condition.

The Russian Empire comprises one-seventh of the land-surface of the globe, and covers, with internal waters, an area of 8,644,100 English square miles. There has been no general census of the population until 1897 (February 10), but various enumerations, chiefly made by the statistical committees, furnished an approxi- mately correct return of the people.

The rapidity of growth of the population of the Empire (its acquisitions being included in the figures of population) is seen from the following, the years being partial census years and 1897 being the year of a general census.