Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume XII.djvu/522

{|width="100%" has led to the establishment of corn magazines where farmers may deposit their surplus produce, receiving interest for it at the rate of 12½ per cent. per annum, and in time of scarcity may borrow grain at the interest of 25 per cent. per annum. Most of the land is the property of the cultivators. The number of landed estates in 1869 was 147,453, of which 131,780 were cultivated by owners. The owners till the soil themselves, with the aid of their tenants. The latter in 1865 numbered 60,330. The tenant hires from the owner land enough to keep one or two cows and a few sheep, for which he pays rent in days' work in each season. Much of the agricultural work is done by women. There are large tracts covered with valuable timber. Fir, mountain ash, birch, poplar, and willow grow in all the provinces; oak only in the southern. The pine and fir forests, which are chiefly on the banks of the rivers flowing into Christiania fiord, give employment to great numbers of timber merchants; and their product, besides being converted into planks and beams, is invaluable for fuel in working the mines, no coal being found in the kingdom. Nearly all the exported timber is sent to France.—The principal wild animals are the wolf and the bear. Deer are now scarce. The lynx and wolverene are occasionally met with, and there are hares, wild fowl, and other game in abundance. One of the most valuable domestic animals is the reindeer, which constitutes the main dependence of the inhabitants of the northern provinces. Cattle are reared in great numbers, but the breed is inferior; and the horses, though strong and sure-footed, are of small size. Ponies of a good breed are raised and exported. Sheep and goats are numerous. In 1866 the number of horses in the kingdom was 149,167; horned cattle, 953,036; sheep, 1,705,394; goats, 290,985; swine, 96,166; and tame reindeer, 101,768. The rivers and lakes are abundantly stocked with many varieties of excellent fish, among which are trout and salmon, while the neighboring seas afford valuable fisheries of cod and herring.—Among the inhabitants born in Norway, besides Norwegians proper, there were in 1866 7,637 Finns, 15,601 settled Laplanders, 1,577 Laplander nomads, called in Norway Finner, and about 4,000 of mixed races. The number of foreign inhabitants was 21,260, of whom 15,784 were Swedes, 1,791 Danes, 1,684 Finns, 1,257 Germans, and 348 English. The Laplanders live in the northern provinces, almost isolated from the rest of the inhabitants; their chief occupation is tending their reindeer herds. In the southern provinces industry is devoted more to stock raising than to tillage. The Norwegians are among the best sailors in the world, large numbers being engaged from early life in the coast fisheries and local navigation, which is intricate and dangerous. The people generally are frugal, industrious, upright, and enterprising.
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 * } and Russia. The precariousness of the crops

They are somewhat reserved in manner, but kind and hospitable, simple in habits, firm in purpose, and exceedingly patriotic. The condition of the working classes is poor, and in some parts of the country they are said to live in the same manner that they did three centuries ago. The use of strong drink prevails extensively, and few laboring men save any money. Companies have been formed to build better dwellings for the working poor, who have shown an inclination of late years to emigrate in large numbers to the United States. From 1856 to 1865 this emigration amounted to 54,000; from 1866 to 1870, to 76,400; in 1871, 12,300; and in 1872, 14,400. The Lutheran is the established church, and although all creeds are permitted to be publicly professed, no one can be legally married until confirmed in the Lutheran church, and only members of that communion are admitted to public offices. Of the population in 1866, 1,696,651 were Lutherans, 3,662 belonged to other Protestant sects, 1,038 were Mormons, 316 Roman Catholics, 15 Greek Catholics, and 25 Jews. The established church is governed by six bishops, the eldest of whom is primate. The right of presentation to sees and livings belongs to the king, the minister for ecclesiastical affairs, and the Norwegian council of state. The clergy are generally well educated, and their incomes average about $1,000 per annum, which, taking into account the value of money in Norway, may be considered high. There is no privilege of birth, hereditary nobility having been abolished by a law which passed the storthing Aug. 1, 1821; but, as in Sweden, the sons of the technically noble and the wealthy always have the preference for places of honor. Scholastic or university education is also essential to obtaining position in church or state. The press is practically free, and almost every important town has at least one newspaper; in 1870 there were 80 published in the kingdom. There are several scientific periodicals. Education is compulsory, all children from 7 to 14 years of age being obliged to receive public instruction. Each parish has its schoolmaster, who is paid by a small tax levied on householders. Instruction in the primary schools, of which there are 6,500, is limited to reading, writing, arithmetic, geography, grammar, and religion. In 16 of the principal towns there are as many public classical schools, where are taught theology, Latin, Greek, Norwegian, German, French, English, mathematics, history, and geography. There is a university at Christiania, with faculties of theology, law, medicine, philosophy, and the sciences, which is attended by about 700 students. There are also a royal school of design, a military high school in the capital, and an agricultural school in Aas. The “Society of Public Good” maintains public libraries in different parts of the kingdom, and there are many learned and scientific societies.—Although Norway is essentially an agricultural and pastoral country, it