Length of telegraph lines and wires in 1897:—
| Belonging to | the | State | 5,474 | miles | of line, | 15,009 | miles of | wires. |
| ,, | ,, | railways | 1,172 | ,, | ,, | 2,172 | ,, | ,, |
| Total | 6,646 | ,, | ,, | 17,181 | ,, | ,, | ||
The number of paid messages in the year 1897 was on the State lines 1,940,840, on the railway lines 71,254, total, 2,012,094, of which 1,221,934 (on the lines of the railways, 71,254) were internal, 332,350 sent abroad, and 386,556 received from abroad. Number of telephone conversations on trunk lines, 361,760. The number of telegraph offices in 1897 was:—244 belonging to the State, 239 to the railways, total 483. Receipts: State telegraphs 1,650,599 kroner, railways 54,680 kroner, total 1,705,279 kroner. Expenses:—State telegraphs 1,454,587 kroner, railways 213,902 kroner, total 1,668,489 kroner.
Money and Credit.
On December 31, 1897, the Norwegian coins in circulation (the coinage after the monetary reform deducting the coins melted down) were:—
| Gold coin | 15,858,490 | kroner |
| Silver coin | 8,215,842 | ,, |
| Bronze coin | 629,218 | ,, |
| Total | 24,703,550 | ,, |
There exists no Government paper money.
The value of income and property assessed for taxes in 1897 was:—
| Income. | Property. | |||||
| The towns | 179.2 | millions of | kroner | 658.3 | millions of | kroner |
| The rural districts | 206.4 | ,, | ,, | 1,069.8 | ,, | ,, |
| The whole kingdom | 385.6 | ,, | ,, | 1,755.1 | ,, | ,, |
There are two State banks, the 'Norges Bank' (Bank of Norway) and the 'Kongeriget Norges Hypothekbank.'
The 'Norges Bank' is a joint-stock bank, of which, however, a considerable part is owned by the State. The bank is, besides, governed by laws enacted by the State, and its directors are elected by the Storthing, except the president of the head office, who is nominated by the King. There is a head office at Kristiania, and 12 branch offices. It is the only bank in Norway that is authorised to issue bank notes for circulation. The balance-sheets of the bank for 1897 show the following figures:—Assets at the end of the year—bullion, 47,607,599 kroner; outstanding capital, mortgaged estates, foreign bills, &c., 40,703,170 kroner; total, 88,310,769 kroner. Liabilities—notes in circulation, 59,311,592; the issue of notes allowed was 71,607,599 kroner; deposits, cheques, unclaimed dividends, unsettled losses, &c., 9,482,203 kroner (of which the deposits amounted to 8,893,226 kroner); dividends payable for the year, 1,590,820 kroner; total, 70,384,615; balance, 17,926,154.
The 'Kongeriget Norges Hypothekbank' was established in 1852 by the State to meet the demand for loans on mortgage. The capital of the bank is furnished by the State, and amounted to 15,000,000 kroner in 1897. The bank has besides a reserve fund amounting in 1897 to 1,000,000 kroner. At the end of 1897 the total amount of bonds issued was 110,180,000 kroner. The loans on mortgage amounted to 117,210,739 kroner.
There were, at the end of 1896, 38 private joint-stock banks, with a collective subscribed capital of 44,430,260 kroner, and a paid-up capital of 17,940,287. The reserve fund amounted to 9,397,784. The deposits and
