ship of Antonio Canovas del Castillo, on the last day of 1874, was as follows: Canovas del Castillo, President; Marquis de Molins, Minister of the Navy; Pedro Salavierra, Minister of Finance; Abelardo de Ayala, Colonial Minister; Marquis de Orovio, Minister of Commerce and Public Works; Alejandro Castro, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Francisco de Cardenas, Minister of Justice; General Jovellar, Minister of War; Francisco Romero Robledo, Minister of the Interior. On January 3d, the ministry sent a circular dispatch to its diplomatic agents at foreign courts, notifying them of the change that had taken place, and instructing them to bring it to the notice of the governments to whom they were accredited. The King entered the harbor of Barcelona on January 9th, where he was received with great enthusiasm. After

passing through Valencia and other cities he arrived in Madrid on the 14th, where his reception was as enthusiastic as it had been on all parts of the route.

He hastened to place himself on a friendly footing with the Pope. Immediately upon his entrance into Spain he asked for the blessing of the Pope, which was granted without delay. The Minister of Justice, Cardenas, soon after issued a circular to the cardinals, archbishops, and bishops, in which he stated that "a new era was about to begin, in which the friendly relations with the Holy Father, interrupted for a time by the injustice and excesses of the immediate past, were again to be resumed, and the losses sustained by the Church were to be made good." A royal decree soon after ordained the return of the church property, con

fiscated under the previous governments, while the Protestant churches in Madrid were closed. A royal decree of February 9th revoked the law passed under the Republican Government allowing civil marriages. All such marriages were declared illegal, as also those entered into by former nuns or priests. On April 28th the papal nuncio Simeoni, arrived in Madrid. In May a decree was published permitting newspapers to discuss all constitutional questions, and authorizing public meetings of all legal parties. A meeting of former ministers, deputies, and senators, resolved to restore the party of the "Union Liberal" as it had been founded in the time of O'Donnell, with the same political principles, and the unconditional recognition of the monarchy of Alfonso XII. On May 27th a meeting of three hundred and forty-one members of the former Senate of Spain was held in Madrid. Of these, two hundred and thirty-eight had sent in written ad

hesions to the Government of Alfonso XII. Resolutions were passed advocating the union of all the monarchical parties, with a view to support parliamentary government and the constitutional rule of the young King. It was also resolved that a sub-committee should be formed to draw up a political programme, to be submitted on a future occasion. In the beginning of June, General Jovellar resigned his position as Minister of War, to take command of the Army of the Centre, and General Primo de Riverda took his place. In July the commission of nine members, appointed to prepare the draft of a new constitution for the kingdom of Spain, concluded their labors. The draft opened with a declaration of individual and religious liberty. The Legislature is to consist of a Senate and Chamber of Deputies. The Senate shall be composed of three hundred members, of whom one-third are hereditary, one-third appointed by the crown, and

one-third elected by corporations. All grandees of Spain, possessing an income of over fifty thousand pesetas, are also entitled to a seat in the Senate. The Chamber of Deputies is to be elected for five years, one deputy for fifty thousand inhabitants. The King has the right to dissolve the Chamber and the elective senators, and new elections are to take place within three months. The King also appoints the President and Vice-President of the Senate, and has an absolute veto. The magistracy is to be irremovable. At the beginning of September the three ministers, Castro, Cardenas, and Orovio, who represented the ultra-royalists, being averse to the maintenance of universal suffrage, sent in their resignation in opposition to the wishes of Señor Canovas, who urged that the Government ought to respect the state of affairs legally established, and leave to the future Cortes the task of modifying the electoral law, if any alteration should then be considered necessary. After a session of six hours, in which Canovas tried to prevent a rupture, the whole ministry resigned. The King thereupon requested Señor Canovas to form a new cabinet, but he declined the task on the ground that, having for a long time presided over a cabinet which represented the conciliation of the old parties, he ought not to remain in power at the head of one party only. King Alfonso consequently expressed his gratitude to the late premier, and intrusted General Jovellar with the formation of a new ministry, which was, on Sept. 11th, constituted as follows: President of the Council and Minister of War, General Jovellar; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alcala Galiano; Minister of Justice, Calderon Collantes; Minister of Marine, Duran y Lira; Minister of Finance, Salavierra; Minister of the Interior, Romero Robledo; Minister of Public Works, Martin Herrera; and Minister of Colonies, Ayala.

In a circular note to the bishops, the papal nuncio, Mgr. Simeoni, demanded religious unity and the execution of the Concordat of 1851, and called attention to the fact that otherwise the good feeling existing between the Vatican and the cabinet would be disturbed. The Concordat of 1851 enforced the principle of religious exclusiveness to its utmost extent. The Catholic religion is declared the only ruling one in Spain, while every other religion is prohibited. The other articles have reference to the schools and to the sale of obnoxious books. In reply to a Spanish note called forth by Cardinal Simeoni's circular, the Vatican further stated that it did not desire to embarrass the new Spanish Government; it particularly wished to assist it, but only by such means as would be truly efficacious, and which would not permit the rupture of that sacred tie which has always been the glory of Spain. Religious unity, which was now sought to be banished, could not impede the development of civilization, but was on the contrary its true beacon. It was the duty of the papacy to

combat not civilization, which was brought forward merely as a pretext, but the corrup tion invading the hearts of nations. In adhering to the positions taken, the papacy believed it rendered great service not only to the Spanish Government, but to all Spain. The conduct of the papal nuncio and of the Vatican must be regarded from this point of yiew. But, if Spain, moved by extreme necessity, wished to draw up an understanding on the same principles under another form, the papacy would be open to negotiation, with the object of introducing acceptable modifications into the Concordat. After each one had declared its views, it was to be seen how far the Vatican could accept the draft of the new constitution. In conclusion the Vatican accepted the declaration of the Spanish Government that it was desirous of coming to an understanding, and stated that instructions to negotiate had been given the nuncio at Madrid. On November 28th King Alfonso came of age, being eighteen years old. The day was celebrated in various ways. On December 2d another ministerial change occurred. The following new ministers entered their offices on that day: Canovas del Castillo, President of the Ministerial Council; Calderon Collantes, Minister of Foreign Affairs; Martin Herrera, Minister of Justice; and Torreno, Minister of Public Works. The other heads of departments remained unchanged. On December 22d General Jovellar resigned his position as Minister of War, in order to accept the position of Captain-General of Cuba, and General Ceballos was appointed in his place.

At the close of the year a royal decree was promulgated, convoking the Cortes for February 15, 1876. Deputies and Senators were to be elected by universal suffrage on this occasion only. The elections were to commence on the 20th of January in Spain. The decree further provided that the towns in Biscay and Navarre, which would be free from the presence of hostile factions, should elect deputies and senators for the parts of those provinces occupied by the enemy. Another decree was issued imposing penalties upon the press for attacks upon the King, the royal family, and the constitutional monarchy, and instituting a tribunal composed of three judges, in each of the royal courts, to try newspaper offenses.

The proclamation of Alfonso as King of Spain had no effect on the Carlist movement. The following official dispatch was issued from the Carlist headquarters: "The Alfonsist pronunciamiento produces no change in the Carlist situation. There is no defection in the Carlist army. The Carlist army will be strengthened and that of the enemy weakened by the change. As heretofore, the contest must be decided by the armies in the field." On January 13th a battle took place at Santa Coloma de Farnes, in which the united Carlist bands of the province of Gerona, under the command of Saballs, Huguet, and others, were completely routed.

The Carlists' loss was seventy dead, while the Government troops only lost six dead and thirty-two wounded. Upon his arrival in the Basque provinces, King Alfonso issued a proclamation to the inhabitants, calling upon them to lay down their arms, and offering a pardon to all those who would submit to his authority. In consequence, defections from the Carlist army became quite frequent. Toward the end of January a general advance of the Government troops toward Pampeluna took place. In the beginning of February they succeeded in relieving this city, which had been besieged by the Carlists for five months, and in taking from the latter Puente del Reina, and other strong places, and forcing them to retire to Estella. Owing to extreme carelessness, however, on the part of the Government troops, the Carlists succeeded in recapturing Lacar, thus enabling them to bring their artillery safely to Estella. In the mean while, General Loma, in Guipuzcoa, also continued to advance, and occupied the whole coast up to Zumaya, from which city he drove the Carlists, pursuing them to Cestona. In February, several changes were made in the Army of the North. General Laserna was replaced by General de Quesada y Mathews, in the command of that army, and General Echeverria took command of the Second Corps of the Army of the North, in place of General Prima de Riverda, who had only held that position since January, while General Echague was appointed to the chief command of the Army of the Centre. On February 26th the Carlists made a severe attack on Bilbao, but were repulsed, with considerable loss. In March the Carlist cause suffered a severe loss in the defection of General Cabrera, one of its oldest partisans. He published an appeal to the Carlists, calling upon them to lay down their arms, stating that the country imperatively demanded peace. Appended to the appeal was a convention, offered by the Madrid ministry and accepted by Cabrera. It provided that the Basque and Navarre provinces which submitted to King Alfonso within a month should enjoy their fueros as they existed before the present war; that all Carlist civil and military appointments and decorations, after having been duly proved before Cabrera, should be recognized, their holders being incorporated in the Alfonsist army and civil service, but that this privilege should not extend to persons who did not submit within a month after the publication of the convention. Cabrera was to have the right of proposing appointments, decorations, or rewards, to officers who, without exercising an active command, had deserved this favor by their conduct under present circumstances. The Madrid Government would undertake, in concert with the Cortes, to make good the material damage sustained by communities and individuals in districts then the theatre of war. Immediately after the appearance of this document only eight Carlist officers took advantage

of the convention and submitted to King Alfonso; but as the year progressed the defections from the Carlist army increased to an alarming extent. Serious differences also arose between Don Carlos and the Carlist Council for Navarre. The Navarrese Junta left Estella and established itself at San Esteban, near the French frontier. The Carlists at Renteria, Oyarzum, and around Bilbao, hoisted a flag of truce and fraternized with the royal troops. The defection of General Cabrera caused Don Carlos to proceed with great severity against any other of his generals suspected of treason. Thus, General Lizarraga, one of the most prominent leaders of the Carlist cause, was arrested in Catalonia in March. During the month of March the Government troops continued to advance at various points. In Catalonia General Campos captured the city of Olot, taking 300 prisoners, and soon after gained another decisive victory at Ridaura. In April the Government made a new levy of troops, at which the total number of recruits obtained was 43,000. During the month of April the war continued with varying success. In the beginning of April the Carlists were defeated in an engagement near Tolosa in Guipuzcoa, while, a few days after, the royal troops lost Fort Aspe, near Santander, with 200 prisoners and four guns. Toward the latter part of the month a portion of the Carlist forces on the frontier of Navarre revolted against their leaders. They demanded peace, and submission to the Government of King Alfonso. In May a report, stated to be official, was published, of the Carlist forces in the provinces of Navarre, Biscay, Guipuzcoa, Alava, and Castile. In this report, the total number of men was stated at 40,029, but, as neither the Basque Tercios, nor Jamdesa's brigade, nor Dorregaray's two battalions were reckoned, Don Carlos's army at that time could not, according to this report, be much less than 50,000 men. In May the Carlists shelled Guetaria and did great damage. The fire was returned from the fort and five men-of-war in the harbor, which forced the Carlists to retire with great loss. The Government forces soon gained another important victory at Montserrat. They captured the formidable positions of the Carlists on that mountain, with a loss of only 93 killed and wounded. During May General Cabrera raised a force of about 600 former Carlists for King Alfonso, which he placed under the command of Aguirre, a formerly well-known Carlist chief. Toward the close of May the Government troops under General Montenegro drove the Carlists under Dorregaray from their fortifications at Alcora, in Valencia. The Carlists lost about 100 killed and 320 wounded, and retired toward Lucerna. The Carlists were also defeated with considerable loss at Balaguer, in Lerida. In June General Jovellar was ap pointed to the command of the Army of the Centre. By withdrawing troops from different parts of the country, and especially from