Preface
This volume is an abridgment of the author's Governments and Parties in Continental Europe, published in 1897. It has been prepared in order that certain portions of the latter, particularly those dealing with the framework of government in France, Italy and Germany, may be more easily used in college classes.
Some changes have been made in the text, but only where the legislation of the last seventeen years has changed the actual machinery of government. Matters of opinion are left as they were in the original edition.
Chapter I France : Institutions
PA8B
Origin and nature of parliamentary government in England . . 2
The system imperfectly copied on the Continent ... 6
The French constitutional laws ....... 7
History of their creation . , 8
The method of amendment 12
Their legal and moral effect ....... 13
V The Chamber of Deputies 14
V The method of election, scrutin de liste and scrutin d'arrondisse-
The Chamber a tumultuous body . o .... 18
Its functions and actual influence 21/
The ministers as a rule not responsible to it . . . . 22
The National Assembly 26
' The President of the Republic 26
V His functions 27
■ His powers really exercised by responsible ministers . . 28
The Council of State ......... 30
The ministers 32
\y^ Their responsibility to the Chamber of Deputies . . .33 Their enormojjs^jjower (which is due to the four following matters) 7' "'. '. 33
The paternal nature of the government ...... 34
The centralization of local government ...... 36
The department, with its prefect and general council . . 36
The arrondissement and the canton ..... 40
The commune, with its mayor and communal council . .40
Paris and Lyons ......... 42
The legislative powers of the executive 43
Ordinances and appropriations . . . e s • 44
CONTENTS V
The judicial powers of the executive '^7
Difference between English and French history ... 47 In England the royal power grew early and took a judicial
form . 48
In France it developed late and took an administrative form 61
Effect of the doctrine of the separation of powers ... 54 Questions of the legality of official acts withdrawn from the
ordinary courts ...•••••"''
The administrative courts and the court of conflicts . 67
The state of siege • • • ^3
Effect of the French system on the position of the ministers . 64
Note on Gneist's views on English and French history . . . 65
Chapter II France : Parties
90 93
The influence of parties in popular government .
The parliamentary system normally produces two parties
It cannot work well otherwise ....
In France there are many parties or groups Causes of the subdivision of parties ....
Lack of a political consensus
Theoretical character of French political opinions . Lack of the habit of political organization The election of the deputies by majority vote The system of committees in the Chambers .... This undermines the authority of the cabinet and its ability
to hold the majority together
"The use of interpellations
This has a similar effect 9*
It is due to jealousy of the ministers
Results of the subdivision of parties
A change of ministry does not mean change of party
The cabinets short-lived
As a rule they are coalitions and therefore weak
They must confer favors on the deputies to win votes .
The deputies in turn must curry favor with the local nominating
committees and the constituents •
Prospects of the Republic
Since the Revolution there has been no change of the party in
power without a revolution 114:
Possible organic changes
100 103 103 104 105 106
108 113 vi CONTENTS
Chapter III Italy : Institutions
i The formation of the kingdom 120
The Statuto 122
The King 126
''"•■'■' The ministers 127
^ The Chamber of Deputies 130
The franchise, the method of election, etc. .... 131
The administrative system 135
The ordinance power 139
The civil service ......... 140
The judicial system 144
The courts and the officials 145
Administrative law and the administrative courts .• . . 147
Weakness of the judicial system .... . . 150
The church 152
The doctrine of a free church in a free state .... 153
The monastic orders . 155
The Pope, and the law of the Papal Guarantees . . . 157
Embarrassing situation of the Vatican 159
Chapter IV Germany : The Structure Of The Empire
The Holy Roman Empire ... .... 164
The growth of Prussia 165
The Germanic Confederation and the Diet 166
The failure of the Liberal attempt at union in 1848-49 . . 168
Bismarck and the war of 1866 171
The North German Confederation and the Empire . . . 172 The constitution .......... 174
Nature of the federal union ........ 175
Legislative centralization and executive decentralization . . 175 Inequality of rights among the members .... 178
The privileges of Prussia 178
The privileges of the other states 181
The Reichstag : its composition 184
Its powers 188
CONTENTS
Vll
The Bundesrath : its composition
Its character and the position of the members
Its internal organization .......
Its powers and privileges
Its actual influence
The Emperor .
Interlacing of his powers as Emperor and as King of Prussia The Chancellor
He is not responsible to the Reichstag ....
His functions and substitutes
The judicial system : The Reichsgericht
Power of the courts to hold statutes unconstitutional General character of the federal system
THE GOVERNMENTS OF FRANCE, ITALY, AND GERMANY
THE GOVERNMENTS OF FRANCE, ITALY, AND GERMANY
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