Iowa County democrat. [volume] (Mineral Point, Wis.) 1877-1938, 1901-09-26

The civil list, as they call the ap,
preparations for thu maintenance OF
the king and his court, voted by par.
lament brought two surprises, says a
London dispatch In the first place it
was much smaller than the public gen.
orally expected it would be. and the op-
position to it was much less. Three
hundred and seventy-siX votes were
cast, 309 in favor and only 81 against
The civil list carried a total OF
$2,35O 600 for the king. $3.50 600 foE the
queen, 100000 for their sons and
daughters: continues the annuities
granted many years ago to the broth.
ers an sisters of the king, which
amount to $365,000 allows $50 900 a
year to the duke of Cambridge, the
cousin of the late queen, and $4,000
to the Princess Augusta, his sister
who is the wife of the blind grand duke
of MeCklenburg, making grand total
1885 eco over the amount paid in
Queen Victorias time. 1t is also a
moderate appropriation in comparison
to those granted to some other sover'
eigns of Europe The following will
show the appropriations for royalty
by the European powers:
Russia $13,751,000; Germany
$3,929,S25; Austria $3,625. OO0' Eng
land, $3,230,OOO; Italy, S3,21O,000;
Spain, $1,S5O,OO0; Belgium, $1,975, 900;
Saxony, $941 900; Bavaria, 100000;
Sweden, $560,OOO Portugal, 100000;
Holland, $33O,00O; Denmark, $3S0,000;
France, $2,1300O0
1t was expected that King Edward
would ask at least S3000,000 for him
self alone in place OF the $4,000
granted to Queen Victoria, for his
great uncle. King William, had an al
lowance of $25OOO0O65 years ago,
when the purchasing power of the
pound sterling was double what it is
now and the ruler of England was not
obliged to pay the expenses of many
court ceremonies and public functions
which are charged to him these days.
Furthermore everybody familiar with
the subject knows that the revenues
from the crown property have more
than doubled since 1887. when Queen
Victoria surrendered them to the pub
lie treasury in exchange for a per
manent civil list Of $2.000000 and a
promise from parliament to provide
literally for her family, The govern
ment and not the queen got the best
of this bargain Owing to careful
management and the increased value
Of the lands the treasury, during the
greater part of the queens reign, has
enjoyed a net profit from the proceeds
of the crown property after all the eX-
peuses of it's management and the civil
list and the allowance for the royal
family have been deducted 1t is esti-
mated that this profit has aggregated
at least $30,000,0O0 during the 80 years.
In 1887 the surplus revenues from the
woods, forests and lands Of the crown
alone were $l,075O00. In 1900 they
were $2.125 600, and there are several
other sources of revenue to be added.
1t is a popular mistake that the
1000. 600 a year which was paid to
Queen Victoria throughout her reign,
was in the nature of a salary for her
services as sovereign, just as $4,000
year is paid to the president of the
United States. This impression has
been strengthened by the frequent at
taCks that have been made by the
radicals upon the expense of support
ing the royal family and the continual
complaint that they are a burden up
on the British taxpayers. The ruler
Of Great Britain and the royal family
are by no means pensioners upon the
national treasury. The sovereign pos
sesses an immense amount of property
by right of Inheritance which
is entailed and cannot be
alienated or disposed of except during
life Formerly all the lands of the
realm belonged to the king, but by eX-
travagance and generosity of various
sovereigns they had been reduced to
such degree that parliament, upon
the accession of Queen Anne passed
law prohibiting any furthef alena-
rion, and at the same time gave the
crown perpetually the revenues from
certain sources which are more or
less regular.
King William originally made the
arrangement | have alluded to. under
which the revenues from these sources
were collected by the finance officers
Of the kingdom and paid into the
treasury in exchange for a certain sum,
and following the example of his
mother and her predecessors on the
chrome. King Edward has agreed to
surrender all OF them for an annual
appropriation of $2,230,0O0. although,
like them, he retains for himself the
revenues Of the Duchy of Lancaster,
which amount to about 100000 a
year. and for his son those Of the
Duchy Of Cornwall which have been
the property Of the heir to the crown
for more than three centuries
The civil list, as it is called, is not