Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 10.djvu/48

* HESSE. a4 5!).000 eontniiieil les3 tlmn -Via acres eat-li, nnj only about !»400 holdings coiilaineJ over 25 acres each. Over (>4 per cent, of the area is under cul- tivation. There is 31 per cent, in lorest, more than one-third of which is JStiite pro|ierl.v. The forests constitute an important source of income- producing wealth. About one-half of the total area is arable, and one-eighth is in niciulows and pastures. Kye, l)arley. wheat, and oats are cultivated. Hay and potatoes are produced in large tpiantities, and fruit is extensively grown. The cultivation of the vine, together with the production of fine wines, is a very important industry, not only in Rhine-Hesse, but on the slo|x-s of the Odenwald. There were about 82,500 acres in sujpir-bcet-s and turnips in 1900. Agriculture is promoted actively by a Government board of agriculture at Darmstadt, by numerous associations, and e.c-ellcnt agricul- tural schoids which instruct in all branches of farming, fruit-growing, etc. Fishing and hunt- ing yield well commercially. Stock-raising as a sej)arate industry can hardlv be said to exist. In lilOO there were" 59,001 hor'ses, 330.C79 cattle, 82,3(i0 sheep, 124.790 goats, and 312,899 hogs. The mining region of Hesse is found chiefly in the northern part, and produces coal, iron, and salt. In 1900 the mined minerals amounted to .■{;474.000, and salt $125,000. The total of these products, togellier with those of the snielt- ing-works and foundries, was about $2,525,000, the persons engaged numbering 3737. Peat is an important output, and Hainstadt-am-Main ex- ports famous clays. The manufacturing indus- tries are generally in a prosperous eomlition. He=se is known for its manufactures of leather and leather goods. Other chief manufacturing liroducts are tobacco and cigsirs. metal articles, paper, sugar, chemicals, spirits, etc. There were live sugar-factories in 1901. The province has many handicraft schools and courts of trade. Commerce and Tkansi'ortation. The trade of Hesse is of considerable importance, and is favored by many organizations and industrial banks, as well as by the central position of the grand duchy and the excellent transj)ortation facilities. The exports consist mainly of agri- cultural and manufactured product-^; the chief imports are raw and half-finished materials. The river conmierce is extensive, including much Belgian and Dutch trade. There are over 700 miles of railway, nearly all owned by Hesse, Prussia, and Baden. Government and Finance. The government is that of a hereditary constitutional mimarchy. The Grand Duke is very largely dependent on the civil list, which .amounts to about $300,000. The Constitution was adopted in 1820, and has been repeatedly modified. The executive power lies in a responsible Ministry- of three members, who are the heads of the departments of the Interior, Justice, and Finance. The Minister of the In- terior is president of t%c Ministry, and is the Minister of Foreign .Xfi'airs and of the Ducal House. The legislative power is represented by two Chambers. The Upper Chamber is eoni|)osed of all the princes of the reigning hou^e, the heads of several noble families, the Roman Catholic bishop, a Protestant church dignitary, the chan- cellor of the I'niversity of Gies.scn. the repre- sentatives of the landed nobilitv, and not over twelve life members nominated by the Grand Duke. The Lower Chamber consists of tea HESSE. members elected by the large municipalities and forty members returned by the small towns and rural communities. The ftiendiers of the l^wer Chamber are elected indirectly for six years. The Chambers meet each year. The three prov- inces are divided into eighti-en circles. The provinces and circles have local councils elected by a restricted suU'rage. The duchy is repre- sented by three members in the German Itundes- rat, and returns nine members to the licidiNtag. The budget for 1901-02 was estimatcil at about .f 20.000.000. The chief items of revenue are from public domains, lottery. Imperial customs, and direct taxes. The chief articles of expendi- ture are for the Department of the Interior, lottery, service of the debt, and contributions of the Empire. The public debt amounted in 1901 to about .$74,000,000, nearly all incurred for railways. PofiL.VTioN AND RELIGION. The population was !)92.St;:J in 1890 and 1.119,893 in 1900. show- ing an increase of nearly 13 per cent, for the decade. Hesse ranks seventh as to population among the German States. Number of inhabi- tants per square mile, 377.7. Emigrants arc few. Darmstadt (ipv.) is the capital ; the largest city. Mainz; other large towns are OITenbach and Worms. Over 65 per cent, of the inhabitants are Protestants. The CJrand Duke is Protestant, and is the head of the Evangelical Church (em- bracing the Lutheran and the Reformed). It is governed by a synod and a consistory. The se/.t of the Roman Catholic bishop is at Mainz. The State contributes to both the leading faiths. This item was $120,000 in 1900. Educational and Other Institutions. Edu- cation is free, compulsory, and maintained part- ly iv the (lovermnent and partly by the coni- nnincs. Secondary education was represented in 1900-01 by 29 gymnasia and 'real' schocds, 5 high schools for girls, mid 48 private schools. Advanced elementary scliools — high schools and middle schools — numbered 34. and there were 902 'continuation schools' (Fortbildunf/sschulcn) , for scholars leaving the elemcntarv scliools. Higher education is supplied by the University of G lessen, and also by the Technical School of Damistadt. The latter has about 1500 students. Both institutions are sipported in part b.v the State. There are. in addition, not onl.v the in- dustrial schools, but nunierois special institu- tions, as, for instance, a merchants' school and an ivorv-earving school. The important libraries and museums number three each. Hesse has a State fire-insurance conipan.v, and institutions or pensions or insurance funds for all classes of need.v, ill. or otherwise unfortunate persons, in- cluding indigent ladies of the nobility. In this respe<'t Hesse is one of the most highly or- ganized commonwealths in the world. History. (See preee<ling article.) The line of Hesse-Darmstadt, the second main branch of the House of Hesse, is derived from George I., the fourth son of Philip the Magnanimous. I.and- grave of Hesse, who. on the death of his father in l.'')l)7. obtained the Principality of Katzen- elnbogeu. with the town of Darmstadt for hia residence, and received in 1583. on the deatli of his brother Philip without heirs, a third of the patrimonynf the latter. (See Hesse-Cassel.) -At his death, in 1596, he was succeeded in the greater part of hi« possessions by his eldest son, Louis V. (1596-1626), while another son.