The Minneapolis journal. [volume] (Minneapolis, Minn.) 1888-1939, 1905-08-09
.NORWAY'S MOVE
MADE WITH CARE
Her Leaders Made Ready for
Every Emergency in Break
| with Sweden.
Consular Question Was Merely an
Excuse for an Inevitable
Rupture.
BY w. B. CHAMBERLAIN,
Managing Editor OF The journal.

BY w. B. CHAMBERLAIN, ...
Managing Editor OF The Journal.
Copyright, 1905, by Tho Minneapolis Journal.
Christiania, Norway, July 19.-Polit-
zeal freedom, that priceless heritage
from their viking forefathers, has bred
in the Norwegian nation self reliance
never been more strikingly displayed
| than in the Scandinavian crisis. The
very air seems to change the moment
one crosses the boundary line into Nor
way. Bureaucracy gives way to democ-
racy-red tape to simple directness. In
everything that goes to make up ma
tional life Norway stands as type
of the best there is in Europe. Her
constitution is said to be- the most
that has passed into living law. Her
craftsmanship is Of the pushing, pro-
gressive kind that rises on the ,founda-
ton Of pure democracy. It is intel
ligent, patriotic leadership. Her litera
ture is as vital, as inspiring as any
national literature Of today. In the
drama, in music and in painting and
eminence not warranted by her size,
but ttributable, no doubt, to the pulls
ing vitality of her national life. And
in all departments of human endeavor
the hardy Northmen are usually to be
found in the van.
The union crisis has long been fore
seen by the Norwegian statesmen. They
have been preparing for it with all
the craft and calculation that have
marked the preparedness Of the Jap
anese in the war with Russia. Every
step in the "rosewater revolution -
as the storthing's act Of June Z is
facetiously called by the Christiania
newspapers-was thought out in adj
vance and a reply prepared for every
possible move that King Oscar or the
Swedish government might make. 1t
was like a great game of chess, in
which Norway has had Hthe novel,
almost ready to say "checkmate in
! two moves.'
Consular Question an Excuse.
Of course, the consular question was
merely the occasion and the excuse for
the severance of the union relation. If
it had been settled amicably by the
yielding of King Oscar to the wish of
his ministry and the storthing, some
other one Of the troublesome questions
that have arisen between the dual king
doms would have furnished the occa-
/ sion for the crisis. For just so long as
the two governments took such divergent
views of the meaning e the Nriksakt,
or act Of union, it was inevitable that
differences SO fundamental would
eventually lead to rupture. This being
SO, the Norwegian leaders determined
to fight the battle on ground of their
own choosing. They laid before King
Oscar the choice Of signing the indie
pendent consular service bill or of &C.
: cepting the resignation Of the ministry,
which involved the impossible task of
forming a new ministry. The king, re-
lying upon his Swedish advisers, chose
the designations of the ministers. This
gave Norway her opportunity. The
storthing promptly declared that the
, king was not Gin Junction. and hav.
ing ceased his rulership under the Nor.
wegian constitution, the one link that
bound Norway to Sweden was thereby
broken. And so the Nicholson minis
try was commissioned by the storthine
to carry on the government until a new
dynasty had been established, conse
quent upon the practical abdication OF
Oscar Bernadotte.
The hair-splitting jurists Of Sweder
are still discussing, and will discuss fol
a long time, the total illegality anc
$ monstrous absurdity of this position
But while they have been arguing ant
: considering and debating, the new gov
, eminent Of Norway has been going OF
as peacefully and calmly as if tn,
): house of Bernadotte still held the over
! lordship. Brushing aside all question:
4 of procedure and form, the Norwegian
simply declare that the union has beer
dissolved, that the king is no longe
in function and that Sweden must &C
! cept the accomplished fact willy-nilly
;. They maintain that the free and indie
l. pendent people Of Norway have tn
g right that inheres in any sovereign
:, people to choose their own rulers an,
q form of government. The method b.
which this is accomplished matters not
G so long as it carries out the will of tn
/, people, :.
), sweden's Move Now.
" just now it is Sweden 8 move. I
has been Sweden s move ever since tn
storthlng setrup the new governmen
" in Norway. The fact is that the Swel
/ ish consultants in this great game O
political chess are having the creates
difficulty in agreeing on what is tn
. best move. AS [ have attempted t
nicsAo CASoA LII my AcCCcIS 1IOm OCOCE
), holm, the riksdag chambers are divide
, into. many factions, each more or les
T. anxious to resent in some effective wa
the insult from Norway and eac
y having a different plan for doing i
. BY the time this letter reaches Ame1
lea it is altogether probable that tn
> joint committee Of the two chamber
will have agreed on a report. and wi
! have submitted it to the riksdag fc
:, action. It is not unlikely, too, that tn
n riksdag, may have adopted the recon
IS mendations of the report: But it seen
Is clear at this writing that whateve
l., terms of settlement the Swedish rik
q dag may offer to the Norwegian sto
"a thing:-if indeed, it offers any-the
: will be such as the storthing will fin
3 it quite impossible to accept. In othe
y words. the riksdag's forthcoming a
ton, in the opinion Of the closest oil
servers both here and at Stockholm
will spell postponement.
e. # this forecast proves accurate,
g, will then again be Norway's NOV
to The Nicholson ministry is confident
er the recognition Of Norway at the prop,