Spirit of the age. [volume] (Woodstock, Vt.) 1845-1913, 1883-12-05
WHAT KINGS COST.
The Expense of Maintaining Moharchs
on Their Thrones.

The Expense of Maintaining Monarchs
on Their Thrones.
1t is interesting to compare the ex-
pense of maintaining monarch on q
throne, and that of supporting Pres
ident in the executive chair of Re-
public.
For many years the salary of the
President of the United States was
$4,000 year. This sum, indeed, did
not represent the entire cost to the
country of the executive office. The
White House was supported, to some
extent, from the public purse land
there were sundry other sums spent on
the Presidents office. The salary of
the President was raised to $780, a
year during Gen. Grants term, and
continues at that figure; and the whole
expense to-day Of the Presidential
office is probably something less than
100000 yearly.
The cost of kingships in the various
monarchies Of Europe is much greater,
in the smaller nations. The sovereigns,
in the old days used to spend pretty
much what they pleased out of the
public revenue. They were mostly alb
5olute, and would impose taxes at will,
and so raise an indefinite income for
their own display and pleasure. This
is still the case with the Gar of Rus
sia, whose expenditures are never re-
ported and cannot be estimated. The
Sultan of Turkey, too, has power to
raise all the taxes he can squeeze out
Of his impoverished and indolent SUBJ
iects, and cannot be called to account
for his spendings. But in all other Eu-
ropean monarchies the sovereign is re-
stricted. Absolute despotism with
them has been replaced by constitu-
tional systems. The Emperor or King
can only spend what is voted to him by
the Parliament or Congress. A device
new to this century, called the civil
list, has been adopted by nearly every
monarchial country, and also by the
French Republic. The civil list is de-
signed to provide the sovereigns with
A liked income. 1t comprises a num-
Der of items, or heads of expenditure;
and these are discussed and passed
upon each year by the several legisla-
tive bodies. Of course, each sovereign
has a greater or smaller private prop
erty of his own as family inheritance;
with which his subjects have nothing
to do. The revenues he receives from
the civil list, therefore, are what might
be called his salary in his public ca
pacity, and by no means show what
his entire incomeis. The English civ
il list, for instance, provides Queen
Victoria with an income of about two
million dollars.
Germany provides the veteran En-
peror William with q civil list of about
three million dollars; which it must
be difficult for a monarch so frugal and
simple in his tastes and habits to get
rid of in the course of year. His
private property moreover, adds at
least million to that vast sum.
King Humbert of Italy's civil list is
three million eighty thousand dollars a
year, somewhat larger than that of the
German Emperor; while young Alton
so of Spain has only about a million
and a half, 50 impoverished are the
people of his historic kingdom.
The lesser nations are, Of course,
more economical The sovereign of
Denmark has civil list allowance Of
two hundred and seventy-fve thousand
dollars a year ; which, however, is
three times what our President costs.
The King of Holland gets three hun
dred thousand dollars, and the King of
Greece two hundred and twenty thou
sand dollars.
Thus it is evident that, without re-
gard to any other ASPECT of the differ
ence between mOnarchies and repub-
lies, at least the former is much the
more costly luxury of the two to the
masses of the people who have to pay
tho hills