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The national debt of Prussia dates from the reign of Frederick William II. King Frederick II., called 'the Great,' left at his death a treasure of 72 millions thalers, which not only was spent during the eleven years' reign of his successor, but a debt incurred of 50 millions. King Frederick William III. at first succeeded in reducing this debt to less than 30 millions; but the subsequent wars with Napoleon I. again increased the national liabilities. The debt amounted to 53,494,914 thalers, or 7,642,1307., in the year 1805, and had risen to 217,975,517 thalers, or 31,139,3597., in 1813. The French Government had to pay 145 millions of francs to Prussia for war expenses, according to the stipulations of the Treaty of Paris, and by these means, and subsequent large reductions in the expenditure, the national liabilities were reduced to 82,722,200 thalers, or 11,817,4577., which sum was formed into a Consolidated Debt by the law of May 2, 1842. The further progress of the debt is seen in the above table.

Army and Navy.

The military organisation of the kingdom, dating from the year 1814, is based on the principle that every man, capable of bearing arms, shall receive military instruction and enter the army for a certain number of years. There are, practically, numerous exceptions from military service, though no substitution whatever is allowed. Every Prussian subject is enrolled as a soldier as soon as he has completed his twentieth year. He has to be in service during five years according to the new organisation, proposed by Govern

ment, but several times refused by the second Chamber, during seven years-one-half of which time is to be passed in the regular army, and the rest among the troops of the reserve. At the end of this term, the soldier enters the 'Landwehr,' or militia, for nine years, with liability to be called upon for annual practice, and to be incorporated in the regular army in time of war. Leaving the 'Landwehr,' the soldier is finally enrolled in the 'Landsturm,' which body is only called upon for service, within the frontiers of the country, in case of invasion. There are various exemptions from this law of military service, in favour of the nobility, clergy, and some other classes of the population. A certain amount of education and fortune constitutes also a partial exemption, inasmuch as young men of twenty, who pay for their own equipment and can pass a light examination, have to serve only one year in the army. The regular army consists of one general field-marshal, one general feldzeugmeister, 31 generals, 36 lieutenant-generals, 69 major-generals, 77 colonels of infantry, 18 colonels of cavalry, 15 colonels of artillery, 6 colonels of engineer corps, and one colonel of trains. The organisation of the army is as follows:

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The principle of general liability to the service of arms, though strictly upheld in theory, has never been carried out in practice. According to the calculations of an eminent statistician,* the number of Prussian subjects liable, by their age, to be in the 'Landwehr,' in the year 1858, amounted to 1,078,566, while the real strength of the body consisted of but 386,253 men, of which number not more than two-thirds were actually under arms for annual practice.

Nearly the whole of the officers of the regular army, as well as militia, are drawn from the ranks of the nobility. The upper hierarchy of the army is composed entirely of noblemen. It is only among the artillery and the corps of engineers that gentlemen of education, not possessing rank and title, are allowed to rise to high

commands.

The pay of the troops, officers as well as men, is very low. It amounts on the average, including officers and staff, to 91. 9s. 2d. per annum in the infantry; to 127. 8s. a year in the cavalry; and to 337. 18. in the artillery. The seemingly much higher pay of the latter is due to a much larger staff, and altogether superior management. Official returns state that in no other European army is the mortality so small as in that of Prussia. During the ten years from 1829 to 1838, the average of deaths was one out of every 76. Since then a great improvement has taken place, for in 1860 only one died out of every 144, being barely 70 in every 10,000 men. This includes suicides, accidents, and invalids. Without the two former classes the mortality was one in 166, and, deducting also the invalids, one in 187.

Though Prussia has a large Roman Catholic population, the Protestant element preponderates in the army. The religious statistics of the year 1862 show that there are 11,298,276 Protestants, of whom 184,767 are in the army; 6,907,000 Roman Catholics, of whom 82,345 are in the army; 1,202 members of the Greek Church, of whom 6 are soldiers; 13,716 Anabaptists, of whom 8 are soldiers; 16,233 Dissenters, of whom 63 are soldiers; and 254,785 Jews, of whom 1,328 are in the army. This great preponderance of Protestants among the military is partly owing to the fact that out of nearly 8,000 officers in the active army, there are only a few hundred

* Chas. Fr. Wm. Dieterici, director of the 'Prussian Statistical Bureau.'

Catholics. In the military schools, out of 1,300 pupils, there are only from sixty to seventy Catholics.

There are 27 fortresses in the kingdom, of which five are of the first rank. They are garrisoned by 7,317 men in time of peace, and 135,182 during war, or preparation for war-Kriegs bereitschaft.' According to a statement of the Minister of War, laid before the second Chamber in the session of 1863, it is intended to strengthen and enlarge the whole of these fortifications. Only some old fortresses of minor importance in the interior of the country will provisionally remain without alteration; but eventually and by degrees they also will be completed with the current means at the disposal of the military administration. It is considered that the other fortresses, especially those on the frontier, urgently require strengthening. It is also stated that the powder magazines used in time of war are almost everywhere more or less exposed to the fire of the improved artillery of the present day; that there is an urgent need for the completion as speedily as possible of the works now in progress at the fortifications of Königsberg, Fort Boyen, Posen, and Spandau; that, at least, the fortresses of strategic importance should be completely armed with rifled guns, and that the others, according to their importance, should be half or partly armed with such weapons, and that to this end some guns intended for places indicated will be transferred elsewhere; and lastly, that for the present the security of the great harbours and mouths of rivers--such as Memel, Pillau, Dantzic, and Peenemunde-must be considered to be of paramount importance, in order to secure the places of commercial importance and the parts of the coast liable to the landing of an enemy. The execution of these measures will require the expenditure of the sum of 8,990,000 thalers, or 1,284,300l., to be thus distributed :-For the building operations and the necessary strengthening of the more important of the old fortresses, 3,000,000 thalers; for the security of the exposed powder magazines in the fortresses against improved artillery, 240,000 thalers; for the extension of the works of fortification at Königsberg, Fort Boyen, Posen, and Spandau, 2,450,000 thalers; for providing rifled guns for the speedy arming of the fortresses, 2,790,000 thalers; and, lastly, for the defence of the coasts, 450,000 thalers.

The formation of a navy for the kingdom dates from the year 1848. According to a return made by the Government in August 1863, the fleet of war at that period consisted of the following

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The principle of general liability to the service of arms, though strictly upheld in theory, has never been carried out in practice. According to the calculations of an eminent statistician,* the number of Prussian subjects liable, by their age, to be in the 'Landwehr,' in the year 1858, amounted to 1,078,566, while the real strength of the body consisted of but 386,253 men, of which number not more than two-thirds were actually under arms for annual practice.

Nearly the whole of the officers of the regular army, as well as militia, are drawn from the ranks of the nobility. The upper hierarchy of the army is composed entirely of noblemen. It is only among the artillery and the corps of engineers that gentlemen of education, not possessing rank and title, are allowed to rise to high commands.

The pay of the troops, officers as well as men, is very low. It amounts on the average, including officers and staff, to 91. 9s. 2d. per annum in the infantry; to 127. 8s. a year in the cavalry; and to 337. 18. in the artillery. The seemingly much higher pay of the latter is due to a much larger staff, and altogether superior management. Official returns state that in no other European army is the mortality so small as in that of Prussia. During the ten years from 1829 to 1838, the average of deaths was one out of every 76. Since then a great improvement has taken place, for in 1860 only one died out of every 144, being barely 70 in every 10,000 men. This includes suicides, accidents, and invalids. Without the two former classes the mortality was one in 166, and, deducting also the invalids, one in 187.

Though Prussia has a large Roman Catholic population, the Protestant element preponderates in the army. The religious statistics of the year 1862 show that there are 11,298,276 Protestants, of whom 184,767 are in the army; 6,907,000 Roman Catholics, of whom 82,345 are in the army; 1,202 members of the Greek C of whom 6 are soldiers; 13,716 Anabaptists, of whom 16,233 Dissenters, of whom 63 are soldiers; and 2 whom 1,328 are in the army. This great prepo testants among the military is partly owing to t nearly 8,000 officers in the active army, there are

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* Chas. Fr. Wm. Dieterici, director of the 'Prussi

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