council elects by an absolute majority of votes. The presidential term is four years (it was six years under the constitution of 1904), and the president cannot succeed himself. The powers of the executive, direct and implied, are very broad and permit the exercise of much absolute authority. The president is assisted by a cabinet of seven ministers and the governor of the federal district, their respective departments being interior, foreign relations, finance and public credit, war and marine, fomento (promotion), public works and public instruction. The ministers are required to countersign all acts relating to their respective departments, and are held responsible both before Congress and the courts for their acts. The department of fomento is charged with the supervision of all matters relating to agriculture, stock-raising, mines, industries, commerce, statistics, immigration, public lands, posts, telegraphs and telephones. The department of the interior is also charged with matters relating to the administration of justice, religion and public worship.
The judicial power is vested in a supreme federal court, called the Corte Federal y de Casacion, and such subordinate tribunals as may be created by law. As the laws and procedure are uniform throughout the republic and all decrees and findings have legal effect everywhere, the state judicial organizations may be considered as taking the place of district federal courts, although the constitution does not declare them so. The federal court consists of 7 members, representing as many judicial districts of the republic, who are elected by Congress for periods of six years (Const. 1904), and are eligible for re-election. It is the supreme tribunal of the republic, having original jurisdiction in cases of impeachment, the constitutionality of laws, and controversies between states or officials. It is also a court of appeal (Casacion) in certain cases, as defined by law. The judicial organization of the states includes in each a supreme court of three members, a superior court, courts of first instance, district courts and municipal courts. The judicial terms in the states are for three years. In the territories there are civil and criminal courts of first instance, and municipal courts. The laws of Venezuela are well codified both as to law and procedure, in civil, criminal and commercial cases.
The state governments are autonomous and consist of legislative assemblies composed of deputies elected by ballot for a period of three years (Const. 1904), which meet in their respective state capitals on the 1st of December for sessions of thirty days, and for each a president and two vice-presidents chosen by the legislative assembly for a term of three years. The states are divided into districts and these into municipios, the executive head of which is a jefe politico. There is a municipal council of seven members in each district, elected by the municipios, and in each municipio a communal junta appointed by the municipal council. The governors of the federal territories are appointees of the president of the republic, and the jefe politico of each territorial municipio is an appointee of the governor. The Federal District is the seat of federal authority, and consists of a small territory surrounding Caracas and La Guaira, known in the territorial division of 1904 as the West district, and the island of Margarita and some neighbouring islands, known as the East district.
There are two classes of citizens in Venezuela—native-born and naturalized. The first includes the children of Venezuelan parents born in foreign countries; the latter comprises four classes: natives of Spanish- American republics, foreign-born persons, foreigners naturalized through special laws and foreign women married to Venezuelans. The power of granting citizenship to foreigners is vested in the president of the republic, who is also empowered to refuse admission to the country to undesirable foreigners, or to expel those who have violated the special law (April 11, 1903) relating to their conduct in Venezuelan territory. The right of suffrage is exercised by Venezuelan males over 21 years of age, and all electors are eligible to public office except where the constitution declares otherwise. Foreign companies are permitted to transact business in Venezuela, subject to the laws relating to non-residents and also to the laws of the country governing national companies.
Army.—The military forces of Venezuela consist nominally of about 20 battalions of infantry, of 400 men each and 8 batteries of artillery, of 200 men each. There is also a battalion of marines employed about the ports and in the arsenals. The organization and equipment is defective, and the force deficient in numbers and discipline. The police force and fire companies in the larger cities are organized on a military basis, and are sometimes used for military purposes. For a people so accustomed to revolutionary outbreaks, the Venezuelans are singularly deficient in military organization. There is no lack of officers of the highest grades, but the rank and file are not uniformed, equipped or drilled, and military campaigns are usually irregular in character and of comparatively short duration. It should be said that Venezuela has a modern military organization so far as law can make it. It is drawn in imitation of European models, and makes military service compulsory for all Venezuelans between 21 and 50 years. This national torce is divided into actives and reserves, the strength of the first being fixed by Congress, and all the rest, of unknown number, belong to the latter. The provisions of the law, however have never been enforced, and the actives or regular army are recruited by impressment rather than through conscription. There is a military academy at Caracas, and battalion schools are provided for officers and privates, but they are of little value.
Education.—In popular education Venezuela has done almost nothing worthy of record. As in Chile, Peru and Colombia, the ruling classes and the Church have taken little interest in the education of the Indians and mestizos. Venezuela, it is true, has a comprehensive public instruction law, and attendance at the public schools is both gratuitous and nominally compulsory. But outside the cities, towns and large villages near the coast there are no schools and no teachers, nor has the government done anything to provide them. This law has been in force since about 1870, but on the 30th of June 1908 there were only 1150 public schools in the republic with a total enrolment of 35,777 pupils. There are a number of parochial and conventual schools, the church being hostile to the public-school system. An overwhelming majority of the people is illiterate and is practically unconscious of the defect. In 1908 the educational facilities provided by the republic, not including some private subventioned schools, were two universities and thirty-three national colleges. The universities are at Caracas and Merida, the latter known as the Universidad de los Andes. The Caracas institution dates from early colonial times and numbers many prominent Venezuelans among its alumni. The national college corresponds to the lyceum and high school of other countries. There are law, medical and engineering schools in the country, but one rarely hears of them. The episcopal seminaries are usually good, especially the one at Caracas. In addition to these, there are normal, polytechnic, mining and agricultural schools, the last at Caracas and provided with a good library and museum. There are several mechanics' schools (Artes y Oficios) in the larger cities, and a large number of private schools. Further educational facilities are provided by a national library with about 50,000 volumes, a national museum,, with a valuable historical collection, the Cajigal Observatory, devoted to astronomical and meteorological work, and the Venezuelan Academy and National Academy of History—the first devoted to the national language and literature, and the second to its history.
Religion.—The Roman Catholic is the religion of the state, but freedom of worship is nominally guaranteed by law. The president, however, is empowered to deny admission into the country of foreigners engaged in special religious work not meeting his approval. Practically no other form of worship exists in the country than that of the Roman Catholic Church, the Protestant and other denominations holding their services in inconspicuous chapels or private apartments in the larger cities, where considerable numbers of foreigners reside. The state contributes to the support of the Church, builds its churches and provides for the salaries of its clergy, and at the same time it has the right to approve or reject all ecclesiastical appointments and to permit or forbid the execution of all decrees of the Roman See relating to Venezuela. The Church hierarchy consists of one archbishop (Caracas) and four suffragan bishops (Merida, Guayana, Barquisimeto and Guarico).
Finance.—The financial situation in Venezuela was for a long time extremely complicated and discreditable, owing to defaults in the payment of public debts, complications arising from the guarantee of interest on railways and other public works, responsibility for damages to private property during civil wars and bad administration. To meet increasing obligations, taxation has been extended and heavily increased; The public revenues are derived from customs taxes and charges on imports and exports, transit taxes, cattle taxes, profits on coinage, receipts from state monopolies, receipts from various public services such as the post office, telegraph, Caracas waterworks, &c, and sundry taxes, fines and other sources. From 60 to 70% of the revenue is derived from the custom-house, and the next largest source is the transit tax. The official budget
