Transportation.—The total length of railways at the end of 1915, the latest date for which statistics are available, was 23,709 miles. The total capital of English railways at the end of 1917 was £1,122,655,000; of Scottish railways, £187,801,000; and of Irish railways, £309,678,000. In 1918 there were 1,202 miles of waterway in England, and 304 miles in Ireland, under the Canal Con trol Committee. In addition, the Rail way Executive Committee controlled 1,025 miles in England and Wales. The total traffic conveyed by canals is about 35,000,000 tons per year. The most im portant canal is the Manchester Ship Canal, which is 35% miles in length. The gross revenue of this canal in 1919 was £1,976,591. There are about 25,000 post offices in the United Kingdom. The total mileage of telegraph wire in 1917 was 3,375,247. The total number of telegraph offices open in that year was 14,035.
Education.—In England and Wales pa rents are required to compel their children to receive sufficient elementary education or to attend school from 5 to 14 years of age. In Scotland efficient education is required up to 15 years, and in Ireland from the ages of 6 to 14. Local authorities are in power to make free accommodation, attendance of pupils, and teaching staffs, while the State supplies nearly one-half of the maintenance funds, conditional upon receipt of satisfactory reports from government inspectors. There are about 33,000 local schools. The teachers num ber about 200,000. The number of schol ars in the local schools in 1918 was about 6,000,000 in England and Wales. The average attendance in Scotland in 1917 was 743,725, and in Ireland, 488, 785. Secondary and technical education is provided under the Education Act of 1918, by which county and borough councils are required to provide for the progressive development and compre hensive organization of education. Con tinuation schools are to be established, and courses in physical training and vocational education are made availble. There were in 1918, 1,061 secondary schools in England and Wales, with 238,314 full time pupils. Higher educa tion is given in the Universities of Ox ford and Cambridge, the University of Durham, Victoria University at Man chester, Birmingham University, Liver pool University, Leeds University, Sheffield University, and Bristol Uni versity. There are also special and technical colleges in other cities. The University of Wales has three colleges at Cardiff, Aberystwyth, and Bangor. There are four universities in Scotland, at St. Andrew, Glasgow, Aberdeen, and Edinburgh. In Ireland are the Uni versity of Dublin, Queens University of Belfast, and the National University of Ireland. There were in the colleges of England in 1919-20, 28,010 students, in Scotland, 10,140 students; in Ireland, 4,200; and in Wales, 2,500; or a total of 44,850.
Finances.—The revenue for the fiscal year ending March 31, 1920, was f1,339, 571,381, and the expenditure was £1, 665,772,928. The estimated revenue for 1921 was £1,418,300,000, and the esti mated expenditure, £1,184,102,000. The chief sources of revenue are customs, excise, taxation, and the sale of stamps. The chief expenditures are for the army and navy, and civil service. Included
in the latter are about £56,000,000 for public education, about £26,000,000 for old age pensions, and about £123,000,000 for pensions. The national debt on November 30, 1919, was approximately 17,976,900,000. The estimated total national debt on March 31, 1920, was about £8,075,000,000. This debt was in curred chiefly for expenses in the World War, and against the total is about £2, 626,000,000 due from the Allies for re payment of loans and from the domin ions of the Empire. The total charges on the debt amounted to about £316, 000,000 annually.
Army and Navy.—See ARMY and NAVY, THE.
Government.—The supreme legislative power is vested in Parliament, which in cludes the House of Commons and the House of Lords. Parliament may be summoned by the writ of the sovereign and may be dissolved by his will. The House of Lords consists of peers who hold their seat either by hereditary right, by creation of the sovereign, by virtue of office, as bishops, by election for life, as in the case of Irish peers, by election for the duration of Parlia ment, as with the Scottish peers. The full House of Lords consists of about 700 members. The House of Commons consists of members representing county, borough, and university con stituencies in the three Divisions of the United Kingdom. No one under 21 years of age can be a member of Parliament. Clergymen of the Church of England. ministers of the Church of Scotland, and Roman Catholic clergymen are disquali fied from sitting as members. Under the Parliament Act of 1918, women are eligible to sit in the House, and the first woman took her seat in December, 1919. Members of the House of Com mons are paid £400 per year. The total membership of the House of Commons is 707. The executive power of the gov ernment is vested nominally in the sov ereign, but practically in the Cabinet, whose existence is dependent on the sup port of the majority in the House of Commons. Prior to December, 1916, the Cabinet consisted of the political chiefs of the principal government depart ments, and numbered about 20. With the formation of the Lloyd George Gov ernment, in 1916, the Cabinet was re duced to about six in number. This was known as the War Cabinet and was gradually expanded into an Imperial War Cabinet by the inclusion of the Prime Ministers, and other representa tive ministers, of the various parts of the Empire. In July, 1918, the Prime Minister of each Dominion was given the right to nominate a Cabinet Min ister either as a resident or a visitor in London, to represent him at the meet ings of the Cabinet held between full meetings. In October, 1919, the War Cabinet was dissolved and a full Cabinet with about 20 members constituted. The head of the Ministry is the Prime Min ister, and it is usually held in conjunc tion with some other high office of State, usually that of First Lord of the Treas ury. The other members are appointed on the recommendation of the Prime Minister, and he dispenses the greater part of the patronage of the Crown.
History.—The history of the United Kingdom is practically identical with that of ENGLAND (q. v.). For the col onies of the United Kingdom, see BRITISH EMPIRE.