Powers. Then civil tribunals were for the first
time created in Turkey. In 1867 they were introduced in the Vilayet
of the Danube by the then Governor-General, Midhat Pasha. In 1877
the Russians liberated Bulgaria from the Turks. After the Treaty of
Berlin Prince Dondoukoff-Korsakoff framed a provisional system of
government for Bulgaria. Then a Russian law professor, Gradovsky, with
the help of General Domontovity, framed a constitution for Bulgaria.
This was based upon the commune being, as in Russia, the organic unit
of administrative control, and was aristocratic rather than democratic
in its general character, though it provided for a far more liberal
system of government than that existing in Russia herself.

[Illustration: A GRAVE QUESTION]

The draft Constitution was submitted to a Constituent Assembly elected
by the Bulgarian people at Tirnova in February 1879. The Assembly
elected a Committee of fifteen members to consider the draft. This
Committee revised the draft, making it less democratic than before. The
Assembly rejected their revision and set to work to recast the
Constitution, making it far more liberal, and including a provision for
universal suffrage. The Constitution thus revised was affirmed and has
been in force since, with occasional suspensions when the Prince for a
time took autocratic power. Since 1883 the Constitution has not been
suspended.

The main principles of the Bulgarian Constitution are:

(1) Separation of public authorities into legislative, executive and
judiciary.

(2) Equality of citizens, as regards civil and political rights.

(3) Inviolability of the person, residence, property, and
correspondence.

(4) Liberty of conscience, liberty of the press, liberty of public
meetings, and liberty to form associations.

(5) Direct and secret universal suffrage for the election of members of
the National Assembly, and departmental and municipal councils.

(6) Local self-government.

The authorities under the constitution are:

1. The king, who is head of the army and navy, has the supreme executive
power and can appoint and dismiss ministers, can prorogue Parliament but
not for longer than two months, and can dissolve Parliament. The King
may issue regulations and order measures, having the obligatory force of
laws, whenever the State is threatened with immediate internal or
external danger. All such measures, however, must be adopted by the
Cabinet Council, and entail the c