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 SWEDEN 507 every third year, to watch with the procurator general over the liberty of the press. Laws for changing or abolishing rights of the no- bility require the consent of an assembly of nobles, and ecclesiastical laws can be enacted, changed, or abrogated only with the consent of a general church assembly. The king has the- right of absolute veto of any measure passed by the diet. The judiciary consists of the supreme court of the kingdom, composed of 16 judges in two divisions, which interprets the laws and renders justice in the name of the king, who when he presides has the right of two votes; three royal courts of justice, sit- ting at Stockholm, Jonkoping, and Christian- stad; a royal court of military justice; and a supreme court of admiralty. There are also throughout the kingdom petty courts, of which the clergy are often magistrates. The estimate of receipts and expenditures of the administration for the year 1875 is as follows : GROSS RECEIPTS. Ordinary revenue, including land tax, receipts from railways, telegraphs, forests, tonnage dues, &c 25,13o,000 Extraordinary : Customs 19,500,000 Posts 8,400,000 Stamps 1,880,000 Impost on spirits 12,000,000 " on beet sugar 60,000 Income tax 2,800,000-39,640,000 On account of the public debt: Cash, interest, &c 11,037,939 Loan of 1872 for construction of railways 9,437,000 Eemainder of do. and new loan. . . 14,000,00034,474,939 Total receipts 99,249,939 EXPENSES. Ordinary : Eoyal household 1,266,000 Justice 8,340,408 Foreign affairs 609,365 Army 11,710,400 Navy 4,459,100 Interior 11,591,500 Church and public instruction .... 6,822,900 Finance 10,498,000 Pensions 1,539,13551,836,800 Extraordinary, including railway con- struction, army and fleet, and sup- plement to budget of 1874 28,447,108 On account of the public debt : Liquidation of loans for railway construction 11,557,185 Loaned for construction of private railways 2,000,000 Various expenses 5,408,84518,966,031 Total expenses 99,249,939 At the close of 1873 the total public debt amounted to about 122,080,000 crowns. From this must be subtracted credits of about 32,- 240,000, which leaves the actual debt about 89,840,000 crowns. The whole of this debt was contracted for railway construction, and all in Germany, with the exception of two loans of about 30,000,000 crowns in the ag- gregate, which were negotiated in London. All the loans are paid off gradually by means of a sinking fund. In 1872 the diet author- ized the emission of a new loan of 24,000,000 riksdalers, at 4 per cent., to continue the con- struction of the railways ; but the budgets of 1872 and 1873 having exhibited surpluses, only 6,650,000 had been issued up to May, 1874. Sweden has but one colony, the island of St. Bartholomew in the West Indies, the administration 1 of which costs 25,000 crowns per annum. The army of Sweden is composed of five classes of troops, the vdrfoade or en- rolled troops, the indelta or military colonists, the 'bewaring or conscripted troops, the militia of Gottland, and volunteers. The active army consists of the first two of these classes. The vu'rf vade are enlisted usually for six years ; they comprise a body of about 6,000 men, among which are the royal life guards, the artillery, the engineers, and one regiment of hussars. The indelta consist of about 25,000 men, 21,000 of whom are infantry, the remain- der cavalry. This body, which was established by Charles XL, is peculiar to Sweden. The men are cantoned in military districts, where they are provided for by the holders of crown lands in those districts. Each man has also assigned to him a house and a piece of land, which he cultivates for himself. The infantry are exercised annually 30 days and the cavalry 46 days. The remaining three classes consti- tute the reserve. The bevaring are drawn by annual levy from the whole male population between the ages of 20 and 25. The right to purchase substitutes was abolished by the diet in 1872. In 1873 this body numbered 86,101 men. The militia of Gottland have a separate command, and cannot be obliged to serve out of the island ; they number usually about 8,000 men. The volunteers were first organized in 1861. In time of peace they are subject only to their own rules, although their command- ers are chosen by the king ; but in war they may be compelled to serve under the military authorities. About 20,000 were enrolled in 1873. The effective force of the kingdom in 1873, including all the five classes, was 150,773 men. The navy was entirely reorganized in 1873, and now forms a single body called the royal fleet, with two stations, at Stockholm and Carlscrona. It consisted in 1874 of the following vessels : steamers 1 ship of the line with 66 guns, 1 frigate with 22 guns, 2 corvettes with 14 guns, 4 monitors with 8 guns, 10 small monitors (4 constructing) with 10 guns, 12 gun boats with 21 guns, 4 vessels without guns, 1 transport with 1 gun, and 2 despatch boats with 5 guns ; sailing vessels 1 frigate with 36 guns, 5 corvettes with 102 guns, 1 brig with 10 guns, and 1 schooner with 8 guns ; rowing vessels 4 mortar boats with 5 guns, 44 gun boats with 98 guns, and 40 launches with 49 guns ; in all, 133 vessels with 455 guns. The navy is officered by 2 rear admirals, 6 commanders, 20 captain-command- ers, 43 captains, 43 lieutenants, and 26 sous- lieutenants ; it has an effective force of about 7,000 men, and a reserve of 35,000 men. The Lutheran is the established church of Sweden, but all sects are tolerated. Previous to 1873,