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ICELAND
JENNA GOTTLIEB
Contents
Index
List of Maps
Discover Iceland
Reykjavík
Reykjanes Peninsula and the South
Snæfellsnes Peninsula and the Westfjords
North Iceland
East Iceland and the Eastfjords
The Highlands
Background
Essentials
Resources
Photo Credits
Copyright
Icelandic horses Snorralaug (Snorri’s Pool) in
Reykholt

DISCOVER Iceland
10 TOP EXPERIENCES
Planning Your Trip
CHASING THE NORTHERN LIGHTS
Road Tripping the Ring Road
WINTER WONDERS
BEST WILDLIFE-WATCHING
The Best of Reykjavík
GET YOURSELF IN HOT WATER
Iceland Getaway
BEST DAY HIKES

fireworks over Akranes.

Scale soaring mountaintops. Dive into some of the clearest water in


the world. Explore crystalline ice caves and mineral-rich lava tubes.
Hike the rim of a remote volcano that rises from an arctic desert.
Witness a rainbow materialize over a thundering waterfall. Iceland is
a place not just to see, but to experience.
Iceland is revered for its breathtaking landscapes, unrivaled
trekking, and arctic wildlife. Three national parks and a dozen
smaller reserves protect these resources. Vatnajökull National Park
makes up 13 percent of the country and contains the largest glacier
in the world outside the poles. Geothermal pools, like the famous
milky waters of the Blue Lagoon, bubble up from beneath the earth
and provide a place to soak away your worries.
If city life is more your speed, Reykjavík is waiting for you. Stroll
the capital’s streets and explore the galleries, coffeehouses, intimate
concert venues, and music shops—you can’t help but feel the city’s
creative energy. Handcrafted local beers replace specialty coffees as
the drink of choice come evening time, when low-key daytime
hangouts morph into pulsing parties that fuel a thriving nightlife
scene.

whale near Húsavík Reykjavík’s Parliament House


northern lights appearing in the west

In summer, the days seem endless—the sun shines for nearly 24


hours around the solstice. And winter tourism is increasing, with
visitors lured by the chance to hunt the northern lights, yet another
of Iceland’s spectacular natural wonders. Watching the lights flicker
in the sky, changing colors, disappearing and popping up again
stronger and brighter, makes braving the wind and rain worth it.
For scenery and adventure, Iceland is unmatched.
Jökulsárlón, the Glacier Lagoon

Siglufjörður.
annual Viking Festival in
Hafnarfjörður

10 TOP EXPERIENCES

1 Northern Lights: Watching the green and white


lights dance and flicker in the sky is a magical
experience (click here).
2 Blue Lagoon: Bathe in the famous milky blue
waters (click here) of the lagoon, and then seek out
some of the island’s other hot springs and
swimming pools (click here).
3 Hiking: Iceland is a hiker’s paradise with mountains,
volcanoes, lava fields, and valleys begging to be
explored (click here).
4 Wildlife-Watching: From reindeer to puffins to
whales, Iceland is rich with wildlife (click here).
horses in winter

The downside to winter travel is, unsurprisingly, the changeable,


challenging weather. You will likely encounter wind, rain, snow,
sleet, and everything in between. Travel to the countryside is limited
in the winter as many roads are closed, and even open roads can
have tough conditions. Also, many establishments outside
Reykjavík close for the winter.

TOP EXPERIENCE
Chasing the Northern Lights
The biggest winter attraction in Iceland is the northern lights.
People travel from around the world to catch a glimpse of the
green, white, blue, and red lights dancing in the night sky. The
phenomenon is caused by solar winds, which push electronic
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States, 'while specially asserting the rights of Hungary and
its independence.' Another version of this somewhat oracular
statement runs as follows:—'Hungary, without infringing the
Ausgleich law, will find ways and means of regulating those
affairs which, in virtue of the Pragmatic sanction, are common
to both States, while at the same time protecting her own
interests and giving greater emphasis to her independence.'
Dr. Szell added:—'When the right time comes I shall explain my
views, and eventually submit proposals to the House.
Meanwhile, let us husband our strength and keep our powder
dry.' The self-confident and almost defiant tone of this
forecast, coming from a responsible statesman accustomed to
display such prudence and moderation of language as M. Szell,
has made a profound impression in Austria. It assumes the
breakdown of the Austrian Parliamentary system to be a
certainty, and anticipates the adoption by Hungary of
one-sided measures which, according to M. Szell, will afford
more effective protection to its interests and confirm its
independence. This seems to be interpreted in Vienna as an
indication that the Hungarian Premier has a cut and dry scheme
ready for the revision of the Ausgleich in a direction which
bodes ill for Austria. The gravity of the Ministerial
statement is recognized by journals of such divergent views as
the semi-official 'Fremdenblatt,' the pan-Germanic and
Anti-Semitic 'Deutsche Zeitung,' and the 'Neues Wiener
Tagblatt,' which is the organ of the moderate German element.
The 'Neues Wiener Tagblatt' frankly acknowledges that, in
addition to all her other cares, Austria has now to consider
the crucial question of the form which her relations with
Hungary will assume at no distant date. Commercial severance
and declarations of independence are, it says, being discussed
by the initiated sections of the community in both countries,
as if it were a matter of merely economic concern, instead of
the greatest and most perilous political problem that the
Monarchy has been called upon to solve since the establishment
of the Dual system, which, in spite of its complexity, has
worked well for such a long period. The 'Neues Wiener
Tagblatt,' nevertheless, admits that things have now reached a
stage at which economic severance is no longer impossible." In
a subsequent speech on New Year's Day, M. Szell declared that
it "would be a fatal mistake to sever the ties which had so
long connected the two countries, as the objects for which
they were called into existence still remained and their
fundamental basis was not shaken."

The Vienna journals, on that New Year's Day of 1901, reviewed


the past and surveyed the prospects of the future in gloomy
and pessimistic tones. Heading its article "Progress
Backward," the "Wiener Allgemeine Zeitung" said: "It is true
that Austria has at her disposal a larger and more efficiently
trained army than ever. The natural resources of the country
have been better developed than in the past. The progress of
the century has not been without influence upon ourselves.
But, whereas other nations are more vigorous, greater, and
mightier, we have become weaker, smaller, and less important.
The history of the world during the second half of the past
century has been made at our expense. … In the new partition
of the world no room has been reserved for Austria. The most
important events which will perhaps give the world a new
physiognomy are taking place without Austria's being able to
exercise the slightest influence thereon. We are living upon
our old reputation, but in the long run that capital will
prove insufficient."

AUSTRIA-HUNGARY: A. D. 1900 (December).


Census of Vienna.

See (in this volume)


VIENNA: A. D. 1900.

AUSTRIA-HUNGARY: A. D. 1901.
Parliamentary elections.
Weakening of the Clerical and Anti-Semitic parties.
Gains for the ultra-radical German parties.
Disorderly opening of the Reichsrath.
Speech of the Emperor from the throne.

From the parliamentary elections held in January the Clerical


and Anti-Semitic parties came back to the Reichsrath shorn of
about one-third of their strength, while the various radical
factions, especially those among the Germans, appear to have
made considerable gains. Even in the Tyrol, one of the
strongest of the Clerical leaders, Baron Di Pauli, was
defeated, and in Vienna the Anti-Semitic majority was cut to
less than one-fourth of what it had been three years before.
"The Pan-Germanic group," writes "The Times" correspondent
from Vienna, "which only numbered five in the last Parliament,
now musters 21. It will be remembered that it openly advocates
incorporation with the German Empire, and as a preparatory
measure the wholesale conversion of the German population of
Austria to Protestantism. It has hitherto been to a certain
extent boycotted by the other German parties, being excluded
from their so-called union for mutual defence and joint
action." "But the programme which had thus been boycotted by
the bulk of the German members has been the most successful of
all in the recent general election. The position of its
leading representative, Herr Schönerer, has been so
strengthened that he has been able to impose upon the whole
group the title of Pan-Germanic Union, and to enforce the
acceptance of the principle of 'emancipation from Rome.' The
latter demand caused a certain hesitation on the part of some
of his new followers, who, however, ultimately decided to
adopt it, although not to the full extent of renouncing the
Roman Catholic faith, as Herr Schönerer and his principal
lieutenant, Herr Wolf, themselves had done. At a conference of
the party its programme was declared to be the promotion of
such a federal connexion of the German provinces of Austria
with the German Empire as would furnish a permanent guarantee
for the maintenance of the German nationality in this country.
The party would oppose every Government that resisted the
realization of that object, and it could not participate in
any manifestations of loyalty while such a Government policy
was maintained. At the same time, the party regarded it as
their obvious duty to emancipate themselves from Rome in a
political but not religious sense—that is to say, to free
themselves from the influence of the Roman Curia in affairs of
State.

{46}

"This boycotted party and programme now threatens to win the


voluntary or enforced adherence of the advanced section of the
other German groups which had hitherto declined to commit
themselves to such an extreme policy. The most moderate of all
the German parties, that of the constitutional landed
proprietors, has felt called upon to enter an energetic and
indignant protest against the foregoing Pan-Germanic
programme. While they are convinced supporters of the
Austro-German alliance, they unconditionally reject
aspirations which they hold to be totally inconsistent with
the tried and reliable basis of that agreement, and which
would constitute an undignified sacrifice of the independence
of the Monarchy. They further decline to make their
manifestations of loyalty to the Sovereign dependent upon any
condition; and they strongly condemn the emancipation from
Rome movement as a culpable confusion of the spheres of
religion and politics, and an infringement of the liberty of
conscience which is calculated to sow dissension among the
German nationality in Austria.

"It now remains to be seen to which side the bulk of the


German representatives will rally; to that of the Moderates,
who have re-affirmed their devotion to the Dynasty and the
existing Constitution, or to that of the Pan-Germanic
revolutionaries, who have decided to make their manifestations
of loyalty dependent upon the adoption by the Crown of their
programme.
"The outlook has thus undergone, if anything, a change for the
worse since the last Reichsrath was dissolved. The only
reassuring feature of the situation is that the fall of the
Ministry is not a primary end with any of the parties in the
Reichsrath. Dr. von Körber, who is a politician of great tact
and experience, has avoided friction on all sides."

The opening session of the newly elected Reichsrath was held


on the 31st of January, and the disorderly temper in it was
manifested upon a reference by the President to the death of
Queen Victoria, which called out cries of hostility to England
from both Germans and Czechs.

"In the course of the proceedings some of the members of the


Extreme Czech fraction warned the Prime Minister in
threatening terms against introducing a single word hostile to
the Czech nation in the coming Speech from the Throne. They
also announced their intention of squaring accounts with him
so soon as the Speech from the Throne should be delivered. The
whole sitting did not last an hour, but … what happened
suffices to show that not only the Pan-Germanic Union, but
also the Extreme section of the German People's party and a
couple of Radical Czechs, are ready at a moment's notice to
transform the Reichsrath into a bear garden."

On the 4th of February the two Houses of the Reichsrath were


assembled at the Palace and addressed by the Emperor, in a
speech from the throne of which the following is a partial
report: "His Majesty referred to various features of
legislation, including the Budget, the revision of the Customs
tariff, the promotion of trade, industry, and navigation, the
protection of the working classes and the regulation of the
hours of labour, the Government railway projects and the
Bosnian lines, and Bills for the regulation of emigration, the
construction of dwellings for the lower classes, the
repression of drunkenness, the development of the University
system and other educational reforms, and a revision of the
Press laws—in fact a whole inventory of the important
legislative arrears consequent upon the breakdown of
Parliament.

"The following passage occurs in the further course of the


speech: 'The Constitution which I bestowed upon my dominions
in the exercise of my free will ought to be an adequate
guarantee for the development of my people. The finances of
the State have been put in order in exemplary fashion and its
credit has been raised to a high level. The freedom of the
subject reposes upon a firm foundation, and thanks to the
scholastic organization and the extraordinary increase of
educational establishments general culture has reached a
gratifying standard, which has more especially contributed to
the efficiency and intelligence of my army. The Provincial
Diets have been able to do much within the limits of their
jurisdiction. The beneficial influence of the constitutional
system has penetrated as far as the communal administrations.
I am thus justified in saying that the fundamental laws of the
State are a precious possession of my loyal people.
Notwithstanding the autonomy enjoyed by certain kingdoms and
provinces, they constitute for foreigners the symbol of the
strength and unity of the State. I was, therefore, all the
more grieved that the last sessions of the Legislature should
have had no result, even if I am prepared to acknowledge that
such business as affected the position of the Monarchy was
satisfactorily transacted by all parties.'

"The Emperor then expressed his regret that other matters of


equal importance affecting the interests of Austria had not
been disposed of. His Majesty made an appeal to the
representatives of the Reichsrath to devote their efforts to
the necessary and urgent work awaiting them, and assured them
that they might count upon the Government. All attempts at the
moral and material development of the Empire were, he said,
stultified by the nationality strife. Experience had shown
that the efforts of the Government to bring about a settlement
of the principal questions involved therein had led to no
result and that it was preferable to deal with the matter in
the Legislature. The Government regarded a generally
satisfactory solution of the pending language question as
being both an act of justice and a necessity of State.
Trusting in the good will manifested by all parties, the
Ministry would do its utmost to promote a settlement which
would relieve the country of its greatest evil. At the same
time, the Cabinet was under the obligation of maintaining
intact the unity of language in certain departments of the
Administration, in which it constituted an old and well-tested
institution. Success must never again be sought through
paralysing the popular representation. The hindrance of
Parliamentary work could only postpone or render quite
impossible the realization of such aspirations as most deeply
affected the public mind. The Sovereign then referred to the
damage done to the interests of the Empire by the obstacles
placed in the way of the regular working of the Constitution,
and pointed to the indispensable necessity of the vigorous
co-operation of Parliament in the approaching settlement of
the commercial relations between the two halves of the
Monarchy. The speech concluded with a warmly-worded appeal to
the representatives to establish a peace which would
correspond to the requirements of the time and to defend as
their fathers had defended 'this venerable State which accords
equal protection to all its peoples.'"

{47}

AUSTRIA-HUNGARY: A. D. 1901 (March).


Continued turbulence of the factions
in the Austrian Reichsrath.
Outspoken aim of the Pan-Germans.

At this writing (late in March), the disgraceful and


destructive conflict of reckless factions is still raging in
the Austrian Reichsrath, and the parties have come to blows
several times. The hope of the German extremists for a
dissolution of the Empire seems to be more and more openly
avowed. On one occasion, "a Czech member, Dr. Sieleny, having
accused the Pan-Germans of wistfully glancing across the
frontier, Herr Stein, a member of the Pan-Germanic group,
replied, 'We do not glance, we gaze.' Being reproached with
looking towards Germany with an ulterior motive, the same
gentleman answered, 'You Czechs want to go to Russia, and we
Germans want to go to Germany.' Again, on being told that he
would like to become a Prussian, he exclaimed, 'I declare
openly that we want to go to the German Empire.' Finally, in
reply to another remark, Herr Stein observed that everybody in
the country who was an Austrian patriot was stupid."

----------AUSTRIA-HUNGARY: End--------

AUTONOMY, Constitutional:
Granted by Spain to Cuba and Porto Rico.

See (in this volume)


CUBA: A. D. 1897 (NOVEMBER);
and 1897-1898 (NOVEMBER-FEBRUARY).

AYUNTAMIENTOS.

Town councillors in Spain and in the Spanish American states.

See (in this volume)


CUBA: A. D. 1901 (JANUARY).

B.

BABYLON: Exploration of the ruins of the city.

See (in this volume)


ARCHÆOLOGICAL RESEARCH:
BABYLONIA: GERMAN EXPLORATION.
BABYLON: Railway to the ruins.

See (in this volume)


TURKEY: A. D. 1899 (NOVEMBER).

BABYLONIA: Archæological Exploration in.

See (in this volume)


ARCHÆOLOGICAL RESEARCH: BABYLONIA: AMERICAN
EXPLORATION.

BACHI,
BASHEE ISLANDS, The American acquisition of.

See (in this volume)


UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1898 (JULY-DECEMBER).

BACTERIAL SCIENCE, Recent.

See (in this volume)


SCIENCE, RECENT: MEDICAL AND SURGICAL.

BADENI, Count: Austrian ministry.

See (in this volume)


AUSTRIA-HUNGARY: A. D. 1895-1896.

BADEN-POWELL, General R. S. S.: Defense of Mafeking.

See (in this volume)


SOUTH AFRICA (THE FIELD OF WAR):
A. D. 1899 (OCTOBER-NOVEMBER); and 1900 (MARCH-MAY).

BAGDAD, Railways to.

See (in this volume)


TURKEY: A. D. 1899 (NOVEMBER); and JEWS: A. D. 1899.

BAJAUR.

See (in this volume)


INDIA: A.D. 1895 (MARCH-SEPTEMBER).

BALFOUR, Arthur J.:


First Lord of the Treasury in the British Cabinet.

See (in this volume)


ENGLAND: A. D. 1894-1895; and 1900 (NOVEMBER-DECEMBER).

BALFOUR, Arthur J.:


Tribute to Queen Victoria.

See (in this volume)


ENGLAND: A. D. 1901 (JANUARY).

BALKAN AND DANUBIAN STATES, The.

"The States of the Balkan Peninsula, ever since the practical


disruption of European Turkey after the war of 1877-78, have
been in a condition of chronic restlessness. Those who desire
the repose of Europe have hoped against hope that the new
communities which were founded or extended on the ruins of the
Ottoman dominion in Europe would be able and willing to keep
the peace among themselves and to combine in resisting the
intrusion of foreign influences. These expectations have been
too frequently disappointed. The lawlessness of Bulgaria and
the unsettled state of Servia, more especially, continue to
constitute a periodical cause of anxiety to the diplomacy of
Europe. The recent murder at Bukharest of Professor
Mihaileano, a Macedonian by birth and a Rumanian by
extraction, appears to be a shocking example of the teaching
of a school of political conspirators who have their centre of
operations at Sofia. These persons had already combined to
blackmail and terrorise the leading Rumanian residents in the
capital of Bulgaria, where the most abominable outrages are
stated to have been committed with impunity. Apparently, they
have now carried the war, with surprising audacity, into the
Rumanian capital itself. Two persons marked out for vengeance
by the terrorists of Sofia had previously been murdered in
Bukharest, according to our Vienna Correspondent, but these
were Bulgarians by birth. It is a further step in this
mischievous propaganda that a Rumanian subject, the occupant
of an official position at the seat of the Rumanian
government, should be done to death by emissaries from the
secret society at Sofia. His crime was that, born of Rumanian
parents in Macedonia, he had the boldness to controvert in the
Press the claims of the Bulgarians to obtain the upper hand in
a Turkish province, where Greeks, Turks, Bulgarians,
Albanians, and Serbs are inextricably mixed up. Professor
Mihaileano had probably very good reasons for coming to the
conclusion that, whatever may be the evils of Ottoman rule,
they are less than those which would follow a free fight in
the Balkans, ending, it may be, in the ascendency of Bulgarian
ruffianism.

"It is for this offence that M. Mihaileano suffered the


penalty of death by the decree of a secret tribunal, and at
the hands of assassins sent out to do their deadly work by
political intriguers who sit in safety at Sofia. The most
serious aspect of the matter, however, is the careless and
almost contemptuous attitude of the Bulgarian Government. The
reign of terror at Sofia and the too successful attempts to
extend it to Rumania have provoked remonstrances not only from
the government at Bukharest, but from some of the Great
Powers, including Austria-Hungary, Germany, and Italy. … There
is only too much reason to fear, even now, that both the
Bulgarian Government and the ruler of the Principality are
afraid to break with the terrorists of Sofia.
{48}
Political assassination is unfortunately among the traditions
of the Bulgarian State, but it has never been practised with
such frequency and impunity as under the rule of Prince
Ferdinand. … His own conduct as a ruler, coupled with the
lamentable decline of the spirit of Bulgarian independence,
which seemed to be vigorous and unflinching before the
kidnapping of Prince Alexander, has steadily lowered his
position. The Bulgarian agitation—to a large extent a sham
one—for the 'redemption,' as it is called, of Macedonia is a
safety-valve that relieves Prince Ferdinand and those who
surround him from much unpleasant criticism. …

"The situation in the Balkans is in many respects disquieting.


The Bulgarian agitation for the absorption of Macedonia is not
discouraged in high quarters. The hostility of the Sofia
conspirators to the Koutzo-Wallachs, the Rumanians of
Macedonia, is due to the fact that the latter, being a small
minority of the population, are ready to take their chance of
equal treatment under Turkish rule, subject to the supervision
of Europe, rather than to be swallowed up in an enlarged
Bulgaria, dominated by the passions that now prevail in the
Principality and that have been cultivated for obvious
reasons. Russia, it is believed, has no wish to see Bulgarian
aspirations realized, and would much rather keep the
Principality in a state of expectant dependence. Servia and
Greece would be as much embarrassed as Rumania by the success
of the Bulgarian propaganda, and Austria-Hungary would regard
it as a grave menace. Of course the Turkish government could
not be expected to acquiesce in what would, in fact, be its
knell of doom. … In Greece, the insubordination in certain
sections of the army is a symptom not very alarming in itself,
but unpleasantly significant of latent discontent. In Turkey,
of course, the recrudescence of the fanaticism which
periodically breaks out in the massacres of the Armenians
cannot be overlooked. A more unfortunate time could not be
chosen for endeavouring to reopen the Eastern question by
pressing forward the Bulgarian claim to Macedonia. Nor could a
more unfortunate method be adopted of presenting that claim than
that of the terrorists who appear to be sheltered or screened
at Sofia."

London Times, August 23, 1900.

See, also (in this volume),


TURKEY: A. D. 1899-1901.

BALKAN AND DANUBIAN STATES:


Bulgaria.

On the 15th of July, 1895, M. Stambouloff, lately the powerful


chief minister in the Bulgarian government, but now overthrown
and out of favor, was attacked by four assassins, in the
streets of Sofia, and received wounds from which he died three
days afterwards.

The increasing influence of Russia in Bulgaria was manifested


unmistakably on the 14th of February, 1896, when Prince Boris,
the infant son and heir of the reigning Prince Ferdinand, was
solemnly baptised into the Orthodox Greek Church, the Tzar of
Russia, represented by proxy at the ceremony, acting as
sponsor. This is understood to have been done in opposition to
the most earnest remonstrances of the mother of the child, who is
an ardent Roman Catholic, the father being nominally the same.

BALKAN AND DANUBIAN STATES: Montenegro:


Recent changes.

"The accession of territory obtained under the Berlin Treaty


has already begun to alter the character of the country. The
area of the Principality has been almost doubled, and fertile
valleys, tracts of rich woodland and a strip of sea-coast have
been added to the realm of Prince Nikolas. Montenegro is now
something more than the rocky eyrie of a warlike clan, and the
problem of its commercial development constantly occupies the
mind of its ruler. The state of transition is reflected in the
aspect of the capital. A tiny hamlet in 1878, Tzetinye now
bears witness to the growth of civilisation and to the
beneficent influence of a paternal despotism. … Nikolas I.,
'Prince and Gospodar of free Tzrnagora and the Berda,' is the
most picturesque and remarkable figure in the South Slavonic
world. Descended from a long line of heroes, the heir of the
Vladikas, he has, like them, distinguished himself in many a
hard-fought conflict with the hereditary foe. In the field of
poetry he has also won his triumphs; like his father Mirko,
'the Sword of Montenegro,' he has written lyric odes and
ballads; like his ancestor, the Vladika Petar II., he has
composed historical dramas, and his poems and plays hold a
recognised place in contemporary Slavonic literature. The
inheritor of a splendid tradition, a warrior and a bard,
gifted by nature with a fine physique and a commanding
presence, he forms the impersonation and embodiment of all
that appeals most to the imagination of a romantic and
impressionable race, to its martial instinct, its poetic
temperament, and its strange—and to us
incomprehensible—yearning after long-vanished glories. … Any
attempt to describe Prince Nikolas' work as an administrator
and a reformer would lead me too far. The codification of the
law, which was begun by his ancestors, Danilo I. and Petar I.,
has been almost completed under his supervision. … The
suppression of the vendetta is one of the greatest of the
Prince's achievements. … Crime is now rare in the
Principality, except in the frontier districts, where acts of
homicide are regarded as justifiable, and indeed laudable, if
perpetrated in payment of old scores, or if the victim is an
Albanian from over the border. Primary education has been made
universal, schools have arisen in every village, and lecturers
have been appointed to explain to the peasants the advantages
of learning. Communications are being opened up, and the
Principality, which a few years since possessed nothing but
mule-tracks, can now boast of 138 miles of excellent
carriage-road, better engineered and maintained than any I
have seen in the Peninsula. The construction of roads is
viewed with some apprehension by the more conservative
Montenegrins, who fear that their mountain stronghold may lose
its inaccessible character. But the Prince is determined to
keep abreast of the march of civilisation. Nine post-offices
and thirteen telegraph stations have been established. The
latter, which are much used by the people, will play an
important part in the next mobilization of the Montenegrin
army. Hitherto the forces of the Principality have been called
together by stentorian couriers who shouted from the tops of
the mountains. A great reform, however, still remains to be
attempted—the conversion of a clan of warriors into an
industrial nation. The change has been rendered inevitable by
the enlargement of the bounds of the Principality, and its
necessity is fully recognised by the Prince.
{49}
Once the future of the country is assured, his order will be
'à bas les armes.' He is aware that such an edict would be
intensely unpopular, but he will not flinch when the time for
issuing it arrives. Every Montenegrin has been taught from his
cradle to regard warfare as his sole vocation in life, and to
despise industrial pursuits. The tradition of five hundred
years has remained unbroken, but the Prince will not hesitate
to destroy it. So enormous is his influence over the people,
that he feels confident in his ability to carry out this
sweeping reform."

J. D. Bourchier,
Montenegro and her Prince
(Fortnightly Review, December, 1898).

BALKAN AND DANUBIAN STATES: Montenegro:


New title of the Prince.

On the 19th of December, 1900, at Tzetinye, or Cettigne, "the


President of the Council of State, in the presence of the
other Ministers and dignitaries and of the members of the
Diplomatic Corps, presented an address to the Prince of
Montenegro praying him, in token of the gratitude of the
Montenegrin people for the benefits which he had conferred on
them during his 40 years' reign, to take the title of Royal
Highness. The Prince acceded to the request, and, replying to
the President, thanked all the European rulers who on this
occasion had given him a fresh proof of their friendship by
their recognition of his new title. After the ceremony a Te
Deum was celebrated in the Cathedral, and the Prince
subsequently reviewed the troops, receiving a great welcome
from the people."

Telegram,
Reuter's Agency.

BALKAN AND DANUBIAN STATES:


Servia.

In January, 1894, the young king, Alexander, called his


father, the ex-king, Milan (abdicated in 1889—see, in volume
1. BALKAN AND DANUBIAN STATES: A. D. 1879-1889), to Belgrade
to give him help against his Radical ministers, who had been
taking, the latter thought, too much into their own hands. The
first result was a change of ministry, soon followed by a
decision from the synod of Servian bishops annulling the
divorce of ex-King Milan and Queen Natalie; by a public
announcement of their reconciliation, and by an ukase from
King Alexander, cancelling all laws and resolutions which
touched his parents and restoring to them their rights and
privileges as members of the royal house. This, again, was
followed, on the 21st of May, by a royal proclamation which
abolished the constitution of December, 1888, and restored the
old constitution of 1869. This was a tremendous step backward, to
a state of things in which almost no protection against
arbitrary kingship could be found.

For some years the ex-king exercised considerable influence


over his son, and was again an uncertain and much distrusted
factor in the troubled politics of southeastern Europe. In
1898 the son appointed him commander-in-chief of the Servian
army, and he is said to have ably and energetically improved
its efficiency during the brief period of his command. A
breach between father and son was brought about before long,
however, by the determination of the latter to marry a lady,
Madame Draga Maschin, considerably older than himself, who had
been lady-in-waiting to his mother; while the father was
arranging a political marriage for him with a German princess.
The young king married his chosen bride in August, 1900, and
guarded his frontier with troops to bar the return of his
father, then sojourning at a German watering place, to the
kingdom. It was a final exile for the ex-king. He visited
Paris for a time; then went to Vienna, and there, on the 11th
of February, 1901, he died, at the age of 47.

BALLOONS, Declaration against explosives from.

See (in this volume)


PEACE CONFERENCE.

BALTIC and NORTH SEA CANALS.

See (in this volume)


GERMANY: A. D. 1895 (JUNE); and 1900 (JUNE).

BANK OF FRANCE: Renewal of privileges.

See (in this volume)


MONETARY QUESTIONS: A. D. 1897.

BANKING: Its effect on the Nineteenth Century.

See (in this volume)


NINETEENTH CENTURY: THE TREND.

BANKRUPTCY LAW, National.


See (in this volume)
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1898 (JULY 1).

BARBADOS: Condition and relief measures.

See (in this volume)


WEST INDIES, THE BRITISH: A. D. 1897.

BARCELONA: A. D. 1895.
Student riots.

See (in this volume)


SPAIN: A. D. 1895-1896.

BAROTSILAND:
British Protectorate proclaimed.

See (in this volume)


SOUTH AFRICA (RHODESIA): A. D. 1900 (SEPTEMBER).

BARRAGE WORKS, Nile.

See (in this volume)


EGYPT: A. D. 1898-1901.

BARRIOS, President: Assassination.

See (in this volume)


CENTRAL AMERICA (GUATEMALA): A. D. 1897-1898.

BARTON, Miss Clara, and the Red Cross Society.


Relief work in Armenia and Cuba.

See (in this volume)


ARMENIA: A. D. 1896 (JANUARY-MARCH);
and CUBA: A. D. 1896-1897.
BASHEE,
BACHI ISLANDS, The American acquisition of.

See (in this volume)


UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1898 (JULY-DECEMBER).

BECHUANALAND, British:
Annexation to Cape Colony.

See (in this volume)


AFRICA: A. D. 1895 (CAPE COLONY).

BECHUANALAND, British:
Partial conveyance to the British South Africa Company.

See (in this volume)


AFRICA: A. D. 1895 (BECHUANALAND).

BEEF INVESTIGATION, The American Army.

See (in this volume)


UNITED STATES OF AMERICA: A. D. 1898-1899.

BEET SUGAR.

See (in this volume)


GERMANY: A. D. 1896 (MAY);
and SUGAR BOUNTIES.

BEHRING SEA.

See (in this volume)


BERING SEA.

BÊL, Temple of:


Exploration of its ruins at Nippur.
See (in this volume)
ARCHÆOLOGICAL RESEARCH: BABYLONIA: AMERICAN
EXPLORATION.

BELGIAN ANTARCTIC EXPEDITION.

See (in this volume)


POLAR EXPLORATION, 1897-1899.

{50}

BELGIUM: A. D. 1894-1895.
The first election under the new constitution.
Victory of the Catholics and surprising Socialist gains.

Elsewhere in this work the full text of the Belgian


constitution as it was revised in 1893;

See in volume 1
CONSTITUTION OF BELGIUM).

The peculiar features of the new constitution, especially in


its provision of a system of cumulative or plural voting, are
described.

See in volume 3
NETHERLANDS (BELGIUM): A. D. 1892-1893)

The singularity of the experiment thus introduced caused the


elections that were held in Belgium in 1894 and 1895 to be
watched with an interest widely felt. Elections for the
Chamber of Representatives and the Senate occurred on the same
day, October 14, 1894. Previously the Belgian suffrage had
been limited to about 130,000 electors. Under the new
constitution the electors numbered no less than 1,370,000, and
the working of the plural system gave them 2, 111,000 votes.

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