Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 16.djvu/563

* PRUSSIA. 493 PRUSSIA. from the decisions of certain lower organs, and performs a variety of miscellaneous duties. The organs for the administration of matters of purely local concern in the province are the Provincial Diet (Landtag), the Provincial Com- mittee, and the Director. The Landtag is the legislative assembly of the province and is com- posed of members elected for a term of six years by the Diets of the rural circles and bj' the munic- ipal councils of the urban circles within the prov- ince. They are distributed among the circles of the province on the basis of population and one- third retire every third year. The Landtag is sum- moned in regular session by the Crown biennially, and oflener when necessity requires. Its duties relate to the organization and management of pro- vincial institutions, the election of local officer's, the voting of appropriations and taxes, and the enactment of by-laws on various subjects. The Provincial Committee is the local executive au- thority for the province and is composed of from seven to fourteen unsalaried members elect- ed by the Landtag for a term of six years. Its chief dut}- is the enforcement of the measures of the Landtag, and the chief officer through whom it acts is the director, a salaried minis- terial official elected by the Landtag and con- firmed by the King. It will be seen from the above description of the provincial administra- tion that a complete separation of the provincial and local functions of administration is observed. The Government district, unlike the province, exists only for the administration of those affairs which are regarded as being of general concern, and it has, therefore, no organs for the adminis- tration of purely local matters. In each of these areas is a l)oard consisting exclusively of pro- fessional administrators appointed by the King, collectively known as the government (Regicr- ung) and having at its head an officer called the government president (Regieriuigsprasident) . This official is in some respects the most impor- tant in the Prussian local administration. He may veto or set aside the resolutions of the government (Regierung) . and is the real head of the local service. The duties of the 'govern- ment' fall chiefly within the domain of the ilinistries of the Interior, of Agriculture, of Pul)lic Works, of Trade and Commerce, of War, and of Education and Worship, to al! of whom they are responsible. Another organ of the Gov- ernment district is the District Connnittee {Bezirksausschuss), composed of the government president, two professional members appointed by the King for life, and four laymen chosen by the Provincial Committee for a term of six years. The chief function of this predominantly lay authority is to exerci.se control over the action of the professional government president. Its consent is necessary for the validity of his police ordinances; it exercises supervision over subordinate officials, and acts as an administra- tive court for the district. As to the circle (Kreis). there is found again, as in the province, the distinction between those aflfairs which are regarded as of general concern and those which are looked upon as of purely local interest. The matter is, however, somewhat simplified by intrusting to one set of organs the administration of both spheres, hnt when they act as central organs they are subject to strict central control. These are the Landrat, the Circle Committee (Kreisausschuss), and the Circle Diet (Kreistag). The Landrat is the chief executive authority of the circle and the agent of the central administration. He corresponds somewhat to the OberpriLsident of the province and the government president of the district. When acting as agent of the central administration he is the subordinate of the latter official, but when acting as a purely local officer he is a subordinate of the Circle Committee. He is a highly trained professional administrator and is appointed by the King. The Circle Com- mittee is coilipo.sed of the Landrat and si.x non- professional members elected b.v the Circle Diet for a term of six years, and acceptance of the office is compulsorj'. As a central organ it exer- cises oversight over the justices of the peace; as a local organ it has supervisory authority over other officers of the circle. It is also the admin- istrative court for the circle, and in this capacity hears appeals from the acts of inferior adminis- trative officials. The Circle Diet is the repre- sentative assembly of the circle and is composed of members elected for a term of six years, one- half of whom retire every three years. They are distributed equally between the urban circles (cities with over 25,000 population) and the rural circles. The members assigned to the urban circles are elected b.y their municipal au- thorities. Those assigned to the rural circles are again divided between the greater landowTiers and the rural communes. The greater land- owners form themselves into electoral colleges for the choice of their members, while the rural commimes elect theirs in groups and also through electors. The Circle Diet elects the raemljers of the Provincial Diet, votes the pro- vincial taxes, contracts loans, enacts ordinances for the administration of various local affairs, and has power to create certain offices and es- tablish local institutions. The justice of the peace district {Aintsbezirk) consists of a gi'oup of rural communes with a population of about 1500 inhabitants. The jus- tice {Amtsmanii or Amtsvorsteher } is appointed b.y the King upon the nomination of the Circle Diet for a term of six years, and the office is compulsory and unpaid. The duties of the jus- tice include the control of the local police and the administration of the poor and health laws. The office is therefore one of the most important in the system. As to the communes, there is found a dis- tinction between those which are rural and those which are urban. The larger rural communes act through representative councils chosen by taxpayers, while the less populous manage their affairs through mass meetings of the voters. The chief executive officer in the commune is known as the Schiilze or Dorfrichter and is elected for a term of six years by the communal council or mass meeting. Communal affairs include the regulation of pasturage, tillage, schools, churches, etc. In the government of the cities of Prussia the deliberative organ is the council, chosen for a term of six rears by the taxpayers according to the three-class arrangement already de- scribed in connection with the Prussian House of Representatives. Its powers are not specifical- ly enumerated, but comprise the general admin- istration of city affairs. It may. therefore, tnidertake whatever municipal enterprise it chooses. The chief executive authority in the