Page:The New International Encyclopædia 1st ed. v. 04.djvu/723

CHILE. 627 CHILE. interest-bearing scrip payable to bearer, and lend money when secured by first lien on real estate. Tkanspoktation. In regard to transi)orta- tion and communication facilities, Chile stands in the front rank among the Soutli American coiuitries. The tirst railway line in Chile was opened in 1S52 — the short line connecting Copiapo, tlie capital of Atacama, with Caldcra, on the coast. The construction of railway lines by the State was begun as earlj' as 1857, when the line between Valparaiso and Santiago was opened. It was not, however, until 18S8 that the construction of State lines was begun on a large scale. In that year Congress authorized the construction of twelve lines by the State, with a total length of about "50 miles. In 1900 the total length of railways in ojicration was about 2SS0 miles, of which 135.'? miles were operated by the State. The State lines are conducted in a progressive way in regard to equipment and man- agement, while the rates are unusually low. Nu- merous new railway lines are projected; and a number are nearing completion, among them the line connecting Valparaiso with Buenos Ayres, Argentina, of which onlj' a small part across the Andes remains to be constructed. (For a further account of this undertaking, see Railtra;/s. under Argentina.) Tramway lines are operated in every city of importance. The telegraph lines owned bv tbe State had a total length of nearly 11.882 iiiiles in inOO. There were 2710 miles owned by private companies. The telegraph rates are also very low, and the use of the tele- graph and telephone is extensive, owing to the poor condition of the country roads. The shipping of the Chilean ports exceeds that of any other country in South America. In 1899 there entered and cleared over 15,000 vessels, with a registered tonnage of over 18.000,000. There were 11,320,000 tons in 1885. About 40 per cent, of the carrying trade is done in British bottoms, and the rest in German, French, and Chilean. The Chilean merchant marine num- bered, in 1900, 142 vessels (39 steamers), with a total tonnage of 71,214. The Chilean ports are connected with Europe by six steamship lines. FiN.iXCE. The financial condition of Chile is far from satisfactori*. The constant wars have enormously increased the public debt, and the rapid increase in the revenue since the Peru- vian War, on account of the export duties on ni- trate, has brought about an extravagance In public expenditures. The budget has almost doubled during the last fifteen years, the esti- mated reveniie and expenditure for 1901 being .$41,000,000 and $43,000,000 respectively. Of the former, about 50 per cent, was derie(l from export duties on nitrate and the sale of nitrate proper- ties. The chief items of ex|>en(liture are: Railway building and ather profitable works, one-third (if the total expenditures: justice and instruction, one-sixth; interior administration, one-seventh: war and marine, nearly one-fourth: finance. about 8 per cent. The external and internal debts Cinchiding municipal) of Chile in 1900 amounted to .$85,000,000 and $25,000,000 respectively. The rate of interest on the external debt varies from 4% to per cent., and the annual service amounts to about $fi.0n0.00O. The gold stand- ard was adopted by Chile in 1805. In 1898 paper money to the amount of about $17,000,000 was issued, and a new loan of $20,000,000 was authorized for the conversion of this paper with- in four years. In 1901 the Government decided to extend this period two years. (iovEKNMENT. The Constitution of Chile, adopted May 25, 1833, guarantees to all citizens equality before the law, the inviolability of projjcrty, imnumity from restraint.s on domicile an<l migration, and freedom of instruction, asso- ciation, petition, and the press. The legislative authority is vested in a National Congress, consisting of a Senate and a House of Represen- tatives, which meet at the capital, Santiago. The members of the Lower House are elected directly by the people (one for every 30,000 iiduibitants), for a term of three years, while the members of the Senate are chosen from the provinces, by the same electorate, for a period of six years, on the basis of one Senator for every three Deputies. Electors to either House must be 21 years of age, and able to read and write. Jlembers of Congress receive no re- muneration. The executive power is exercised by a President, elected for a term of five years, by delegates chosen bj' the people of the prov- inces, to the number of three delegates for every Deput}'. He is assisted in the discharge of his duties by a Council of State, consisting of five members nominated by himself and six members named by Congress, and by a Cabinet of six Jilinisters who preside over the departments of the Interior. Foreign Aft'airs. Worship and Col- onization, Justice and Public Instruction, War and Navy. Industry and Public Works. The su- ]ireme judicial power is lodged in a high court of justice, located at Santiago, which is composed of seven members, and exercises control over the tribunals of the nation. . democratic republic in form, the govern- ment of Chile in reality is more like an oli- garchy than a democracy. Tlie overthrow of the Spanish authority produced no change in eco- nomic or social conditions, and political power under the new regime remained in the hands of the great landowners who had controlled atl'airs under the monarchy. The great majority of the population have continued to remain con- tent under the old conditions. The Conservative Party has been dominant from the very beginning of the establishment of the Kepul)lican forms of go-ernment, when Spanish rule was thrown otl, and has always wielded a great influence over the people at large. As a result of the monopoly of power by a small number of families, the civil service has suffered. Lucrative places under Government are distributed as favors to impecunious relatives, or as rewards for political services, and the country is over-burdened with public functionaries. Higher ideals of govern- ment, however, are upheld by an active Liberal opposition, which agitates its cau.se in Congress and in the prf^ss. and has best furthered its aims by secularizing and reorganizing publiceducation. The system of local govennucnt is uniform in Chile, and is characterized by the concentra- tion of authority in the President of the repub- lic and his agents. For administrative pur- poses, the country is divided into 23 provinces, "hieh are subdivided into 74 departmenis. 86.5 subdelngations. and 3008 districts, .'^t the head of each district is an inspector: the inspectors are responsible to the subdelegates. the sub- delegates to the governors of the departments, and these to the intcndentes of tbe provinces. The governors and intcndentes are appointed and