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 62 PRUSSIA morocco, cordovan, &c., flourishes in Saxony, in Berlin, and in Prussia proper. In the manu- facture of paper the progress has been more rapid even than in textile fabrics ; it is car- ried on in the Rhine province, "Westphalia, Brandenburg, Saxony, and Silesia. Chiccory and starch are manufactured principally in Saxony, tobacco in all parts of the kingdom. The most extensive copper and brass manufac- turing establishments are found in Saxony and on the Rhine. Glass ware, crockery, stone- ware, and china are produced in large quanti- ties, principally in the central and eastern prov- inces. The porcelain of Berlin rivals the best made in France. Tassels, fringes, trimmings, &c., are manufactured at Breslau, Magdeburg, Cologne, and Berlin ; furniture and pianos at Berlin. The postal arrangements of Prussia, which have long been celebrated for their ad- mirable convenience, economy, and exactness, have now, in common with those of the other states of the German empire, passed into the hands of the imperial government, by which however their leading features are retained. The telegraphs, all of which are under state control, followed the same course. The aggre- gate length of the railway lines in operation in May, 1874, was 9,042 m., of which 2,520 m. rere comprised in roads belonging to the state, 1,611 m. in roads of private companies managed by the state, and 4,911 m. in roads belonging to and managed by private companies. The rolling stock in 1872 consisted of 4,827 loco- motives, 6,794 passenger cars, and 95,296 freight cars. The number of passengers carried over the roads in 1872 was 86,442,679 ; total freight, 1,550,000,000 cwt. In 1878 the commercial marine comprised 2,961 vessels (including river steamers), with an aggregate tonnage of 489,- 890, of which 1,104 were steamers. The en- trances at the various ports in 1872 were 56,974 vessels, tonnage 4,613,228; clearances, 55,088, tonnage 4,61 1,598. Until 1855 the Royal bank at Berlin (which had been transformed into a joint stock bank in 1846) was the only bank of issue. In December, 1873, the number of banks of issue was 12. The circulation of the Roy- al bank, which until 1850 had not exceeded $15,000,000, rose to $50,000,000 in 1857, and in December, 1878, amounted to $215,000,000. In all the principal cities there are branches of the Royal bank. The Frankfort bank, in Frank- fort-on-the-Main, had a circulation of about $10,000,000, and the Hanover bank of $2,800,- 000 ; the note circulation of each of the other banks does not exceed $700,000. A pecu- liar moneyed institution of Prussia, first intro- duced by Frederick the Great, but since imi- tated in other countries, is the real estate bank (Hypothekeribanle), originally intended to save the large landholders from the usurious prac- tices of money lenders. These banks issue transferable mortgage bonds to the amount of one half or two thirds of the value of landed estates, the bank or association of landholders guaranteeing the principal and interest to the holders of the bonds. The aggregate amount of such bonds exceeds $380,000,000. The as- sociation of capital for commercial and trial purposes, not including railways, turn- pikes, or canals, has of late greatly increased. In December, 1872, the total number of com- panies was 1,041, of which 762 had been found- ed since June 11, 1870, the date of the pro- mulgation of the new law on stock compa- nies. Of the latter number 126 were banking, 28 insurance, 108 mining, 6 steamship, and 298 manufacturing companies. A large number of these companies disappeared npain in conse- quence of the financial crisis of 1878-'4. The savings banks of Prussia are municipal institu- tions, belonging to the towns (stadtitche tijxtr- banken) or to the circles (Kreiuparbanken). The aggregate deposits in them amount to more than $113,000,000. -The system of public edu- cation in Prussia is one of the most thorough in the world. Instruction in the common branches is compulsory. It is difficult in Prus- sia to find adult persons unable to read. The number of common schools in 1878 was about 35,000, with over 8,700,000 pupils. The num- ber of "middle schools," academies, appren- tices' schools, Sunday schools, and industrial schools is very large, and increasing from year to year. In 1878 there were 32 provincial technical schools (Gewerbeschuleri). The mid- dle schools embraced 218 Gymnatien (classical colleges), 8 Realgymnaiieit, 78 Progymnatien (preparatory colleges) and Latin schools, and 246 Reahchuhn and hohere Burgerschulen, having together 120,000 pupils. There were nine universities, at Berlin, Konigsberg, Halle, Breslau, Greifswald, Marburg, GottSngen, Bonn, and Kiel, with more than 800 teachers and 9,600 students ; two Roman Catholic academies ; and 128 normal schools, 94 for male and 34 for female teachers. Besides these there are numerous educational institutions for special branches of science, as theological seminaries connected with the universities and at the seats of the Roman Catholic bishops, a philo- sophical academy at Paderborn, a polytechnic institution and an academy of architecture at Berlin, polytechnic schools at Hanover and Aix-la-Chapelle, mining academies at Berlin and Clausthal, academies of veterinary surgery at Berlin and Hanover, academies of forest culture at Neustadt-Eberswalde and Munden, agricultural colleges at Eldena, Proskau, Pop- pelsdorf, and GOttingen-Weende, 84 agricul- tural schools, and a great number of private commercial academies. All educational insti- tutions are controlled, more or less directly, by the government. Even private teachers must submit to a thorough examination before they are permitted to open schools. The com- mon schools are sustained and managed by the municipal corporations, but the teachers are appointed by government. Of charitable in- stitutions, there are 18 deaf-mute asylums, 16 asylums for the blind, several orphan asylums and nurseries, Bible and missionary societies,