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explanations giyen or it may b'ethat it, liko
some other fashions in wearing apparel, has no
foundation in reason.
I found to my disappointment that Tolstoy is
not contributing materially to the political revo
lution that is taking place in Russia. Being re
vered throughout the land not only because, of
his philosophy but also because of his fearless
"arraignment of the despotism that has afflicted
Russia, ho might bo. a powerful factor in giving
direction to the popular movement, but believing
that individual regeneration furnishes the only
complete emancipation from all forms of evil,' he
takes but little interest in what he regards as
the smaller, and less important remedies pro
posed by the duma. It remains to be seen whether
it is wiser to secure that which is now within
reach and then press forward for other advan
tages or to reject piecemeal reforms in the hope
of ultimately gaining larger ones. Probably, the
pioneer in thought and the practical reformer
will never be able to fully agree iipon this point.
The boat ride from St. Petersburg to Stock
holm is one of unsurpassed beauty. It requires
about thirty hours to make the trip, and of that
time but two hours are spent in the open sea,
the remainder of the route being between islands
that fill the Baltic and the Gulf of Finland as
the stars stud the sky. Just out of St. Peters
burg is Russia's most important naval station,
where we saw a number of warships and were
informed that the crew of, one of them had re
cently refused to comply with a Bailing order,
answering that it was waiting to see what the
duma wpuld do.
Until about a hundred years ago Finland was
a part of the Baltic Empire of which Sweden was
the head, and of the three million inhabitants of
Finland, something like twenty percent are of
Swedish descent. As might be expected, the
Swedish element was not only the official ele
ment, enjoying to a large extent the titles of
nobility, but it is still the wealthier and more
influential portion. The Finns proper are not
Laplanders, as their northern position wpuld sug
gest, neither are thev in race p.lnselv alrin fn Tia
'Slavic or Scandinavian population. As mentioned
'in the article on Hungarythey came from western
Asia and are quite distinct in race characteristics
from their, present neighbors. They acquired from
their Swedish conquerors ' a fondness for the
public school, and the percentage of illiteracy is
much less in Finland than jn other parts of
Russia, under "whose dominion they unwillingly
came in 1808.
" Our boat stopped at IJelsingfors for a Jew
hours, and ,6 "had an opportunity to visit the
principal points of interest in the capital of Fin
land. It is a .substantial and prosperous looking
city -with large school houses, attractive public
. .buildings and commodious churches. We passed
M.seyeral Bmall parks where children -were playing
tond where numerous comfortable seats beckoned
. ; the weary to rest beneath the- Bhade. I confess
'hLS. iafia!ity foLthe sma11 city park'' lfc ls mu
better to have these breathing spaces so scat-
w ?Lihroush densely Populated seotions
that the children as well as the adults can find in
them a daily refuge than to have the entire park
S avis 1(;d ,upon suburban parks which can
only be visited occasionally, it is a pity that
space is not more often reserved for thesepSs
Lv h(Llaying out of tons, for the ground not
Sp Inn'8 mre Vaiuable ln Proportion as
these small parks are the more needed, but the
opening of them in the heart of a city brings a
'STTCm t0 th0Se -hoyown?
twPPTefho0Uld w ieJp notlcinS the contrast be
ZlV TY of HelsIDSfors and those which
peases menA; At tUe frmer' neatly dressed
tho iSS Ui "Xiand Yomen exPsed for sale from
the end of their carts a bountiful supply of veget
ables, meats, butter, eggs and cheese. The Sm
Xprei?tomAed.Vith the name of the ownlr fnd
ll! laJlng' ,10 butter s Packed in wood
en buckets of various sizes, and the cheese was
of many varieties. Some of the carts were filled
L&iT bread ,baked ln Seflat
I S w radl8?es Presented a temptation that
tlJm 2 abV, w thstand; the fondness for
3&n? thG months of travel
X 2 0ri??t overcame me, and at tho risk
Sozen at aS nGrasant, I purchased Ave
lived hh, S? ?B-UOay f a,bout flve cents and
in a nigh until they were all gone.
rAnJ?8 S ,aro rolclnS over the autonomy
recently secured, and they have signalized their
partial independence by creating a single navlK
menary body whose representatives a?e eSed
the age of twenty-four. No one can understand
the persistency with which the Finns hove TstrUg.
The Commotio
gled for constitutional government without recal
ling that as a part of Sweden their country long
enjoyed the right to representation in the nation's
councils. The people have always resented Rus
sian methods, and only a few years ago the
governor general sent from St. Petersburg was
assassinated by a young Finn who, having thus
given expression to his nation's hatred of des
potism, immediately took his own life. The death
orthe governor was followed by the suspension
of such few privileges as the people had been
enjoying, but when last year the whole of Russia
seemed about to rise in rebellion, the czar an
nounced his willingness to grant all that was
asked, and now one can travel through Finland
without being harassed by soldiers or bothered
about passports.
If Constantinople can claim to be the natural
capital of the eastern hemisphere, Stockholm can
with equal justice claim to be its natural summer
.resort. It is situated at a point where a chain
of lakes pours its flood into the Baltic, so that
the citizens of Sweden's capital have their choice
between the fresh water and the salt. As the
lakes and the sea are filled with innumerable
islands, each family can have one for itself. Sum
mer homes are probably more numerous near
Stockholm, in proportion to the population, than
anywhere else, because during the winter months,
the people live in flats. One is immediately struck
with the compactness of the city and with the
absence of single dwellings surrounded by y,ards.
Owing to the severe cold and the long, dark' days
of winter, the people huddle together in great
blocks and thus economize fuel, and they are at
the same time close. to their work. As soon as
spring opens there is a general movement toward
the islands, and ..as we 'approached Stockholm
from the Baltic and left it through the lakes, we
saw a great many summer cottages and watched
the boats carrying their cargoes of passengers
to and fro.
Sweden's lakes are so numerous and so large
that about eight per cent of her entire area is
given up to these internal waterways, and they
probably account for the fact that her people
had a large domestic commerce before the era
of railroads. These lakes are so situated that by
connecting them by canals water transit, has been
secured between Stockholm on ,the east coast
and Gothenburg on the west. The boat trip
through these lakes and canals is one of the most
pleasant to be found in Europe.
The Swedes, who have come to the United
States are such excellent farmers that I was sur
prised to find but twelve per cent of the. area of
Sweden devoted to agriculture and fifty-one per
cent described as woodland. Only fifty-five per
cent of the population is now engaged in farming,
the proportion having fallen from seventy-two
per cent since 1870, while the proportion engaged
in other Industries has risen from fifteen to twenty-seven
per cent.
Lumbering, fishing and shipping each gives
employment to a large number of men, and iron
mining, long a leading industry, is still impor
tant, although owing to the development of mines
elsewhere Sweden now furnishes but one per
cent of the entire output of ore as against ten
per cent in the eighteenth century. The fact that
she had such an abundant supply of the raw ma
terial early gave her a conspicuous place in iron
manufactures, and the familiarity with this metal
may be due to the fact that Sweden was quick
to take advantage' of the railroad, the telegraph
and the telephone. In electrical appliances she
now claims second place among the nations. A
large use has also been made of the water power
with which the country abounds, notably at
Norrkoping where an industrial exposition is now
in progress.
We spent a day at this exposition for the
purpose of gathering information in regard to
industrial Sweden. While the agricultural dis
play was not ready, the exhibit of the products
of the factory was exceedingly interesting. The
articles shown included metal work of all kinds
and varieties, from heavy machinery to parlor
ornaments. In one section canned fruit was dis
played, in another great rolls of linoleum and oil
cloth, and in still another textile fabrics. The
cloth was especially worthy of notice, being of
superior quality and of every shade of color.
There was also a complete assortment of dairy
Implements and farm tools. So skillful is the
Swedish artisan that the International Harvester
company has recently established a branch fac
tory at Norrkoping and with the aid of American
foremen Is preparing to manufacture reapers
and mowers there, not only for Sweden but for
northern Europe.
IK addition to the'mrichino-made , exhibits,
there wore specimens of the handwork of
p,eaf j? students; These included many ,
rieties-of needle, wqrk, wood carving, and decc
ation on leather and bark. Peasant girls in nT
tive costiime -presided over these displays and
gave the visitor a glimpse of the picturesque earh
now fast disappearing before the prosaic dress of
the cities. At Skansen, in the suburbs of Stock
holm, and at a few of the enterprising stores this
quaint costume may still be seen, but it is not
generally worn now even in the country.
There is a gallery at Norrkoping exposition
where one may see a collection of Swedish and
Danish art, the pictures not only portraying tho
familiar features and flaxen hair of the north
but recalling- the long nights and the winter
scenes of that latitude.
Sweden was a pioneer in the matter of uni
verfeal education and has at Uppsala a state uni
versity founded in 1477 fifteen years before
Columbus sailed for America, She has also had
a college of medicine for more than a hundred
years, and her sons have taken high rank in all
the departments of science. Her grammar schools
run back to the time of Gustavus Adolphus, and
her common school system is almost as old. She
has given to the world among other things the
Sloyd system of teaching, which combines man
ual training with mental instruction. Sweden
has shown by her prominence in literature,
science, art and music that the higher altitudes
do not chill the imagination or repress genius,
and yet, the country is even more noted for the
high average of intelligence among the people
than for the extraordinary accomplishments of
a few.
The Swedish language contains so many words
that resemble the English that the Swedish news
paper looks much more familiar than the Greek
or the Russian, but it is not always safe to rely
upon the similarity in spelling. For instance,
"rum" means room, and when it appears in a
window or on a door, it is only an innocent an
nouncement that travelers can find accommoda
tion within. The word "bad" means bath, and
"bad rum," therefore, is a familiar sign in
hotels.
Sweden has her political problems like all
the1 other nations, and just now her people are
absorbed in the question of extending the suffrage.
The upper house is 'an aristocratic body composed
of representatives of the wealthier classes. In
electing members of this body a rich man's vote
counts for more than a poor man's vote, it being
possible for the richest person to have about ten
times as many votes as the poorest. As might
be expected, the upper house is conservative and
stands in the way of some of the reforms pro
posed by the more popular branch. The last
ministry was a liberal one, but resigned when
the upper house defeated the measure for the
extension of the suffrage. The new ministry has
at Its head Mr, Lirtdmann, a business man who
represents the commercial and conservative ele
ment, and his party is willing to accept an exten
sion of the franchise provided it is coupled with
minority representation', the aim being to Increase
the conservative strength in the lower house in
order to protect the upper house from attack.
The conservatives fear and not without reason
that an overwhelming liberal majority in the
popular branch would soon endanger the aristo
cratic character, if not the very existence, of tho
upper house. The situation is interesting in that
it indicates the growth of radicalism in the coun
try. Tho conservatives recognize this and are
prepared to make concessions; they hope to
retard the progress of the movement but realize
that, they can not defeat it entirely.
Industrial questions are receiving considera
tion in Sweden; laws concerning child labor have
been enacted, accident insurance has been pro
vided, and art. old age pension is being discussed.
Attention is also being given to the housing prob
lem in the cities, to farm allotments and to the
establishment of labor bureaus and boards of
arbitration. The Gothenburg license system is
in operation In Sweden, under which the sale
of liquor, where the sale is not entirely pro
hibited, Is in the hands of semi-official corpora
tions. Whether this system is responsible for it
or not may be open to question, but statistics
show that there has been a large decrease in
the sale of beverages containing a high percent
age of alcohol.
By the courtesy of the American minister,
Colonel Graves, I had an opportunity to pay my re- 4
spects to King Oscar II. I was glad to do so for
two reasons," first, because so many of his for
mer subjects have become American citizens;
and second, because of the honorable part which
he played in the recent crisis which resulted in
the separation of Sweden and Norway. He Is of
powerful frame, apd though seventy-seven years
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