The San Francisco call., 1906-06-03
he qualification

the general suffrage, the qualification
for voters being the annual payment
OF eight kronen (s1 60) in direct taxes,
such as income trade or house tax
The fifth curia really embraced a
universal franchise. as it imposes no
taXpaying conditions whatever But
it is full of inequalities as regards the
proportionate size of the constituencies
varying from the province of Krain, as
before mentioned, with half million
voters. to districts in Lower Austria
with less than tenth of that number
And now all these privileged and
exceptional classes are to be abolished
by the bill which is at present before
Parliament. Its provisions are long
ma complicated as regards the ap-
cortionment of representation among
the different provinces and conflicting
aationalities of the Austrian half of
the dual monarchy. But as regards the
2road basis of the franchise the bill
is simplicity itself In one short par
agraph il provides that the right of
voting is to be enjoyed by every male
Austrian citizen who has reached the
age of "a years and has resided in the
electoral district at least one year be-
fore the day of election Excepted
only are persons who are criminals or
idiots
The condition of one years residence
is not entirely satisfactory to the
Socialists, but they are not making any
fight upon il. The chief opposition to
the bill comes. of course. from the great
landed proprietors, and the chief OBJ
stacles in the way of it's passage arise
from the strife between the Germans
and the Slavs over their proportionate
representation.
The mobiles and great landlords are
furious over the Introduction of the
universal suffrage. entailing, as it does.
the loss to them not only of direct
representation, but also of much pres
tige and power. Prince Schwarzenbere.
whose family once owned one-fifth of
Bohemia and who still has vast pos
sessions there. told the ex-American
ambassador, Bellamy Storer, that uni
yersal suffrage would ruin the country
utterly.
So angry are many of the aristocrats
over the matter that they refused to
entertain in their usual manner this
winter, and the carnival was one of the
dullest on record so far as the highest
classes of society were concerned. But
the mobiles will have to submit 10 the
lcurtailment of their ancient privileges
and recognize the coming of the prole-
tariat.
The obstacles from the inter-rsce
conflicts, however, are much more
serious The new bill increases the
total membership OF the House from
245 TO 455, and according to the ap-
portionment proposed of the new seats
the German party finds itself in a
minority to the Slavs which it ma
turally resents.
The Poles, by far the strongest single
party in the house, are also much dis
pleased because though Galicia is given
more members under the bill, the in
crease goes to the Rutheniap 5is+r;ot.
there and not to the Polish
The Government will have all its
work cut out TO get the bill through
But 1t certainly will be passed and by
the present Parliament, too. For the
Germans and Poles know full well thai
the longer the measure is deferred the
worse their plight will be, as the Slavs
are in a great majority in the country
The probable solution of the whole
matter will be that the Government viii
incrcase the total number of deputies
still further. adding twenty or twenty.