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handbooks prepared under the direction of the
Historical section of the foreign office.— no. 12

BOSNIA AND
HEBZEGOVINA

LONDON :
PUBLISHED BY H.M. STATIONERY OFFICE.
1920

Editorial Note.

In the spring of 1917 the Foreign Office, in connection
with the preparation which they were making for the work
of the Peace Conference, established a special section whose
duty it should be to provide the British Delegates to the
Peace Conference with information in the most convenient
form — geographical, economic, historical, social, religious and
political — respecting the different countries, districts, islands,
&c, with which they might have to deal. In addition,
volumes were prepared on certain general subjects, mostly
of an historical nature, concerning which it appeared that a
special study would be useful.
The historical information was compiled by trained
writers on historical subjects, who (in most cases) gave their
services without any remuneration. For the geographical
sections valuable assistance was given by the Intelligence
Division (Naval Staff) of the Admiralty; and for the
economic sections, by the "War Trade Intelligence Depart
ment, which had been established by the Foreign Office. Of
the maps accompanying the series, some were prepared by
the above-mentioned department of the Admiralty, but the
bulk of them were the work of the Geographical Section of
the General Staff (Military Intelligence Division) of the
War Office.
Now that the Conference has nearly completed its task,
the Foreign Office, in response to numerous enquiries and
requests, has decided to issue the books for public use,
believing that they will be useful to students of history,
politics, economics and foreign affairs, to publicists generally
and to business men and travellers. It is hardly necessary
to say that some of the subjects dealt with in the series have
not in fact come under discussion at the Peace Conference ;
but, as the books treating of them contain valuable
information, it has been thought advisable to include them.

It must be understood that, although the series of
volumes was prepared under the authority, and is now
issued with the sanction, of the Foreign Office, that Office is
not to be regarded as guaranteeing the accuracy of every
statement which they contain or as identifying itself with all
the opinions expressed in the several volumes ; the books
were not prepared in the Foreign Office itself, but are in the
nature of information provided for the Foreign Office and
the British Delegation,
The books are now published, with a few exceptions,
substantially as they were issued for the use of the Delegates.
No attempt has been made to bring them up to date, for, in
the first place, such a process would have entailed a great
loss of time and a prohibitive expense ; and, in the second,
the political and other conditions of a great part of Europe
and of the Nearer and Middle East are still unsettled and in
such a state of flux that any attempt to describe them would
have been incorrect or misleading. The books are therefore
to be taken as describing, in general, ante-bellum conditions,
though in a few cases, where it seemed specially desirable,
the account has been brought down to a later date.
G. W. PROTHEKO,
General Editor and formerly
January 1920. Director of the Historical Section.

No. IS— Bosnia and~|
Herzegovina J

TABLE OF CONTENTS
I. GEOGEAPHY PHYSICAL AND POLITICAL
(1) Position and Frontiers 
(2) Surface and Eiver Systems
Surface ...
Eiver Systems ...
(3) Climate 
(4) Sanitary Conditions
(5) Bace and Language...
(6) Population DistributionMovement

PAGE

II. POLITICAL HISTOEY
Chronological Summary   11
(1) Early History
Hungarian Suzerainty and Native Eesistance 12
The Turkish Conquest .. . ... ... ... 13
(2) Turkish Eule
"Weakness of Turkish Administration... ... 13
The Agrarian Law of 1859  15
The Eevolt of 1874-5  15
The Andrassy Note  17
The Eevolt of Bulgaria  18
The Berlin Settlement of 1878  19
(3) Austrian Eule
The Austro-Turkish Convention of 1879 ... 20.
Administration of Kallay ... ... ... 21
Administration of Burian  ... 23
III. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
(1) Eeligious  25
(2) Political  27
(3) Educational  29
General Observations
(1) Popular Opinion and National Sentiment  30
(2) Questions interesting other Countries ... ... 31
Wt, 33666/70 1000 3/20 F.O.P. [3008]

TABLE OF CONTENTS

[no. 12

IV. ECONOMIC CONDITIONS
(A) Means of Communication
(1) Internal

PAGE

(a) Eoads ...

32

(b) Eivers and Canals

33

(c) Eailways

33

Projects of Expansion

36
(1) Austrian Interests
36
(2) Hungarian Interests ...
37
(3) Local Interests
37
(4) ' Serbian Interests
38
(d) Posts, Telegraphs, and Telephones
38
(2) External
Ports  38
(B) Industry
(1) Labour  39
(2) Agriculture
(a) Products of Commercial Value .7. ... 41
Maize, "Wheat, Oats, Barley, and Eice
42
Wine
42
Fruit and Vegetables 
43
Sugar-beet ... ... ... - ...
44
Tobacco, Flax, Hemp, and Hay ... '
45
Pyrethrum, Sunflowers, Silk, Honey, an(
1
Cheese ...
46
Horses
47
Cattle, Sheep, and Goats ...
48
Swine, Poultry, and Eggs...
49
(b) Methods of Cultivation
49
Irrigation ...
50
Model Farms
50
Model Horticultural Establishments anc
1
Gardens ...
51
(c) Forestry
52
(d) Land Tenure ...
53
(3) Fisheries
56
(4) Minerals
57
Salt 
57
Coal 
58
Chrome Ore
59
Iron and Steel ...
59
Manganese
60
Mineral Springs...
60
Mineral Output... .,.
t • « t
61
Bosnia and "1
Herzegovina J

TABLE OF CONTENTS

PAGE
(5) Manufactures "... ... ... ... ... 61
Chemicals ... ... ... ... ... 61
Minor and Home Industries  ... 63
(6) Power ... ... ... ... ... ... 64
(C) Commerce
(1) Domestic (a) Principal Branches of Trade ... ... . . 64
(b) Towns, Markets, and Fairs  65
(c) Organizations to promote Trade and Commerce 65
(d) Openings for British Trade  ... 66
(2) Foreign  68
(a) Exports ...  69
Timber  69
Live-stock ... ... ... ... ... 70
Plums  71
Tobacco   72
Countries of Destination ... ... ... 72
(b) Imports  73
. Countries of Origin ... ... ... 74
Transit Trade  74
(c) Customs and Tariffs ... ... ... ... 74
(D) Finance
(1) Public Finance  75
(2) Currency  76
(3) Banking  •  76
(E) General Eemarks  77
APPENDIX Table I. Value of Principal Exports, 1905-1910 ... • 79
II. Value of Principal Imports, 1905-1910 ... 79
„ III. Produce of Chief Crops in 1909 and 1910... 80
AUTHO EITIES Historical ... ... ... ... ... ... 81
Economic ... ... ... ... ... ... 82
Maps  82

No. IS— Bosnia and 1
Herzegovina J

I. GEOGRAPHY PHYSICAL AND POLITICAL
(1) Position and Frontiers
Bosnia and Herzegovina, with an area of 19,768
square miles (Bosnia, 16,240; Herzegovina, 3,528), lie
on the north-east of the Adriatic, between. 42° 25' and
45° 20' north latitude, and between 15° 40' and 19° 40'
east longitude. They march on the north with Cfoatia-
Slavonia, on the east with Serbia and Montenegro, and
on the west with Dalmatia. Bosnia is altogether an
inland territory, but Herzegovina touches the coast in
two places: at the Bocche di Cattar© (in a narrow
valley region called Sutorina), and on the Canale di
Stagno, where it possesses a strip of land five miles
long, ending in the shore of the Gulf of Klek, with the
small port of Neum. These coastal frontiers have
however, no commercial or economic importance.
The administrative boundary between the two
provinces is regarded by the Austrian Government as
running along the northern rim of the Narenta Valley,
but there sure no fixed frontiers, and the Herzegovinians
tend to extend their territory by occupying the summer
pastures of Lelija and Zelangora, together with those
of Dumos and Stirnine.
(2) Surface and River Systems
Surface
Bosnia is to a large extent a limestone plateau, in
some parts of which the limestone covering has re
mained intact, while in others the softer impermeable
rocks have been brought to the surface by the move
ments which have formed the mountains. The greater
part of Herzegovina is formed of cretaceous limestone.
[2008] B

2 GEOGRAPHY [no. 12
The Dinaric Alps, which run from north-west to
south-east in Bosnia, and continue through the north
east of Herzegovina, give rise to secondary and lower
chains, which in general present a less regular appear
ance, and spread with outliers through the heart of
Bosnia-Herzegovina. They have a mean altitude oi
1,500 ft., while summits of more than 4,000 ft. occur
frequently— for example, 6,000 to 7,000 ft. at Travnik
and Sarajevo in Bosnia, and ait Mostar in Herzegovina
— while the greatest altitude, 7,800 ft., is attained at
Volnjak near the Montenegrin frontier.
The mountains of Herzegovina are continuous with
the Montenegrin highlands, but differ somewhat in
character. They descend south-westwards to the sea
in parallel ridges, the peaks of Orijen, Orobac, Samo
tica, and Veliki Kap reaching a height of 6,000 ft.
The passes, such as those over the Ivan Planina, .are
neither high nor difficult.
To the north-east of the Dinaric .Alps extends a
region of mountain, moor, and forest, which finally
expands into the rich lowlands of the Posavina that
reach to the boundary formed by the Save. The
Zagorje, a rocky tableland with a poor vegetation in
the midst of the rugged hills which surround the large
district lying between Sarajevo, Foca, Gacko, Nevesinje.
Mostar, and Konjica, is geographically connected with
Herzegovina and formerly belonged to it politically.
The Karst phenomena are exhibited in both Bosnia
and Herzegovina. A large part of the country north
east of the Narenta presents a scene of utter desola
tion, though to the west of the river the hillsides are
in places covered with forests of beech and pine.
Bosnia is not affected to the same extent, as, owing to
the presence of clay and marl, the Karst region east
of the great watershed is not so entirely barren as to
be beyond the possibility of cultivation, and even con
tains stretches of rich arable land. Where the Karst is
very pronounced, vegetation can only grow in clefts,
and any cultivable soil that exists is carefully sur
rounded' by walls and terraces. The oases of red loam

H™ov&a] SURFACE ; RIVERS 3
sometimes found in the Karst are extremely fertile.
The Prolog pass, leading direct from Dalmatia into
the western Karst region, rises in terraces towards the
east, to descend sharply in the region of the Vrbas.
where the wooded land of. the interior begins. The
Bosna may be regarded as the western boundary of the
fertile plain of the lower Save.
A panoramic view of the country would show a chaos
of mountain chains, forming, not peaks, but elongated
or flattened crests, with here and there a more massive
relief presenting the outline of a dome. The native
name foir these chains is planina. Between these
chains there aire long valley-like depressions, known
as poljes or plains, which, high for the most
part, extend from north-west to south-east, and
may be as much as 40 miles in length and of
a very considerable area. These depressions generally
form closed basins and are subject to total or partial
inundation; but they are dry for the greater part of
the year and their soil is the most fertile and the most
capable of cultivation in the country. In Herzegovina
the poljes and valleys, which are usually narrow, are
the only parts of the country suitable for agriculture.
The two principal are the Livansko polje (100,000
acres) running parallel to the Dalmatian border, at a
height of 500 ft., and the Skoplje polje, which is a
riverain plain of the Vrbas about ten miles long.
The Ivan Planina (3,320 ft.), a transverse ridge
separating the Lepanica and the Narenta, forms the
watershed for the streams that flow into the Black
Sea on the one hand and the Adriatic on the other. It
• is not only the political boundary between Bosnia and
Herzegovina but also the natural boundary between the
characteristic vegetable and animal life of the two
provinces. It is pierced by a tunnel 710 yds. in length.
River Systems
Bosnia belongs to the drainage area of the Save, and
its rivers to the Danubian system, no stream of any
[2008] B 2

GEOGRAPHY [*».

12

importance finding its way to the Adriatic. Herze
govina, on the other hand, belongs entirely to the
Adriatic drainage system, of which the watershed
follows the third principal chain of the Dinaric Alps,
running north-west and south-east.
The principal rivers of Bosnia, the Bosna, the
Drina, the Vrbas and the Una, are all tributaries of
the Save, which, flowing eastwards along the northern
frontier for 237 miles, with a breadth of from 208 to
550 yds., receives all the waters of the northern and
eastern slopes and carries them to the Danube and
thence to the Black Sea.
The Una rises in Croatian territory out of the Karst
springs, close to Vaja, on the western border of Bosnia,
receives the waters of its great affluent, the Sana,
near Novi, and, after a course of 135 miles, joins the
Save at Jasenovac, where it has a breadth of 208 yds.
Eor the last 37 miles of its course it serves as a
boundary between Bosnia and Croatia.
The Vrbas rises from the springs on the crest of the
principal watershed above Gornji Vakuf. Cutting a
channel through the Dinaric Alps, its course to the
Save is fairly direct. Near Banjaluka it is reinforced
by the Vrbanja from the right. Up to this point the
Vrbas is confined in great rocky defiles, but here it
expands into the plains, where it loses the impetus of
a mountain stream, and, winding below Klasnica, enters
the Save at Svinjar with a breadth of 75 yds., after a
course of 158 miles. Another" tributary is the Pliva,
which above Jajce expands into the Plivsko Jezero, the
only large lake in Bosnia.
The Bosna differs from the Vrbas in that it is less
tumultuous in its early course. From the point where
it receives the springs breaking out at the foot of the
Igman mountains it has a fairly uniform fall, which
only gradually lessens over its length of 171 miles, til]
it reaches the Save. After receiving some important
tributaries, its breadth increases to about 200 yds. at
Modric.

H^r^na] RIVERS; CLIMATE 5
The Drina, the most important tributary of the
Save, rises on the Montenegrin frontier, and after a
course of over 200 miles, issues near Raca with a
breadth of 330 yds. Curving north-eastwards past
Visegrad, it forms the frontier between Bosnia and
Serbia for 102 miles.
The beds of the five large Bosnian rivers and their
tributaries are all regular. The splendid condition
of the woods is largely due to the well-regulated courses
of the rivers, and only some parts of the Save depres
sion are subject to harmful inundation.
Herzegovina has relatively fewer streams and a
scantier water supply than Bosnia. The Narenta
(Naretva), the only large river which flows above
ground through its whole length, is not navigable by
boats until it reaches Dalmatian territory immediately
above Metkovic, though barges can be taken as far as
the village of Tasovcic. Near Mostar its bed is rocky
and boulder-strewn, and north of the town it passes
through the celebrated Narenta defile. After1 a course
of 144 miles the river reaches the Adriatic below
Metkovic, between which town and the sea it becomes
brackish and flows through a marshy delta. Extensive
works have, however, been carried out in order to con
fine these diffused waters into a single channel, about
eleven miles in length. (3) Climate
Bosnia has practically only two seasons: summer,
lasting from May to October, and winter, which is not
unlike that of England, being cold and rather damp
but without fog. Short periods of frost occur, and
after the beginning of January the weather becomes
severe. During the summer the heat in the valleys may
be enervating, but in the mountains the climate is
nearly always bracing.
Bosnia is very little affected by the bora, but the
scirocco, bringing rain from the south-west, is a
prevalent wind. The snowfall is slight, and except on
a few of the loftier peaks the snow so6n melts.

6 GEOGRAPHY j>- ia
Precipitation is abundant and fairly evenly distri
buted over the year. It increases from the Save
towards the highlands. The mean annual precipitation
is 323 in. (820 mm.), with 457 in. (1,160 mm.), for the
station at Livno, which represents a zone climatically
intermediate between Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The number of rainy days in Bosnia is greater than
in Herzegovina, consequently the conditions of
Bosnia are more favourable for agriculture. The
mean annual temperature for Sarajevo (altitude 1,770
ft.), which may be taken as representative of the
middle Bosnian highlands, is 48° F. (8-9° C), and for
Livno48-2°F. (9° G).
Unlike that of Bosnia, the climate of Herzegovina is
one of great extremes. It is exposed to the formidable
bora, which is at once cold and violent, coming from the
north and sweeping down the lateral valleys of the
Dinaric Alps. On the other hand, the heat of summer
is oppressive, the temperature often rising above 110°
F. (43° C). The basin of Stolac is said to be the
hottest region in the whole of Europe, and to have a
mean annual temperature equal to that of Jedda in
Arabia. In the lowlands — that is to say, up to 1,000
ft., the mean annual temperature is 7 2° F. (4° C.)
higher than that of Bosnia. The mean for Mostar Is
58° F. (145° C), and the maximum 1094° F.
(43° C). A minimum of - 4° F. (- 20° C.) has been
recorded at Gacko.
Owing to the abundance of its autumnal rains and
its summer drought, Herzegovina produces a consider
able sub-tropical vegetation up to an altitude of
nearly 1,000 ft. Further, even the high depressions
of Herzegovina are much favoured by the influences
of the coast as compared with Bosnia. Thus it is
possible to cultivate maize profitably near Gacko, at an
altitude of 3,000 ft., while there are localities where
wheat may be cultivated up to 3,300 ft.
The great disability under which Herzegovina
suffers is connected with the rainfall. This is very
heavy, increasing in quantity with height and distance

1SS&&.1 RACE AND LANGUAGE 7
from the coast, but it is very unevenly distributed over
the year. In addition, evaporation from the soil is very
active. Under the influence of the bora, the moisture
of the air in summer is small (at Mostar 56 per cent.).
This is, from an economic standpoint, the worst side
of the climate The heat dries the ground and the
vegetation suffers from lack of moisture. With
judicious irrigation, rich crops would be raised.
(4) Sanitary Conditions
On the whole the climate of Bosnia is extremely
healthy. There is a certain amount of malaria and
fever, but the people generally are vigorous and of
good physique. In Herzegovina, malaria formerly
raged in the district of Metkovic, but since the con
struction of the Narenta channel it has been greatly
reduced. In the Trebinje district fever is prevalent;
but, taking the country as a whole, the death rate is
low. (5) Race and Language
The original population belonged to a prehistoric'
race of which there are many traces in Bosnia-Herze
govina and the neighbouring lands. The Illyrians
were the first inhabitants of whom there is historic
record ; and the north part of Bosnia was for some time
occupied by Celts. At the beginning of the Roman
conquest of the Balkans, large Roman colonies were
established, and when the Roman Empire was divided
into two parts Bosnia lay on the boundary. In
the sixth and seventh centuries the Serbo-Croatian
tribes immigrated and occupied the country. The
present inhabitants of Bosnia-Herzegovina must be
regarded as in the main the descendants of these tribes,
and as a branch of the southern Slav race.
The Serbo-Croat language is common to both
provinces, the Stokavian dialect prevailing in Bosnia,
and in Herzegovina the purest form of Serbian. At
the beginning of the nineteenth century the Herze-
govinian form was adopted as the Serbian literary

8 GEOGRAPHY |>o.i*
language. The precise and logical structure of the lan
guage is admirable.
The racial type is the same in the two provinces,
and does not differ fundamentally from that of the
rest of the Serbian highlands, though in the northern
plains it becomes somewhat less vigorous. The people
resemble the Serbians both in appearance and character,
having the same love of poetry, music, and romance,
the same intense pride in their race and history, and
the same customs and superstitions.
The Mohammedan conquest produced an important
religious differentiation in the population to which no
racial difference corresponds. The '.' Turks ' ' of
Bosnia, as they call themselves, are not Turks by race,
although sometimes distinguished by rigid adherence
to Turkish religious forms, social customs, manner of
dress, &c. One might have expected that, under
Christian rule, they would have reverted to Chris
tianity, but this has not been the ease. The great
obstacle is the unveiling and emancipation of the
women, which would be a violent reversal of secular
sentiment and custom.
The alien element in the population is small, con
sisting chiefly of Austro-Hungarians, gypsies (Zigans),
Italians, and Jews. Spanish is the common language
of the last. Maglaj, on the Vrbas, has homesteads
of Tyrolese and German colonists, of whom about
10,000 ore scattered over various parts of the country.
There are two distinct races known as Zigans, viz. : the
Kara-Vlachs, who are Christians and speak a lan
guage in which there are many Rumanian elements;
and the Mussulman Zigans, who come from Old Serbia
and Greece and are divided into the white or seden
tary Zigans, and the black or nomadic. Neither race,
however, forms a very important proportion of the
population. The natives are officially described as Bosniaks, but
classify themselves according to their religion. Thus
the Catholics prefer the name of Croats, Hrvats, or
Latins ; the Orthodox of Serbs ; the Moslems of Turks.

Bosnia and 1
Herzegovina J

POPULATION

9

The native language, officially known as Bosnian, is
written by the Roman Catholics in Latin characters,
as in Croatia, and by the others in Cyrillic, as in
Serbia. (6) Population
Distribution
Bosnia and Herzegovina are divided for adminis
trative purposes into 6 districts (Kreise) named after
important towns, viz., Sarajevo, Mostar, Banjaluka,
Travnik, Tuzla, and Bihac. Except Mostar these all
belong to Bosnia.
The area and population of the provinces in 1910
were as follows : — •

District.

Area in
square miles.

Population.

Population per square
mile.

Sarajevo Tuzla
Banjaluka Bihan
Travnik Mostar

3,2453,4433,4812,1633,9053,531

288,061 425,496
403,817229,071284,561267,038

88
123116 :'
106 72
75

Bosnia and Herzegovina

19,768

1,898,044

96

The population of the principal towns was as
follows: Sarajevo, 51,919; Tuzla, 11,333; Banjaluka,
14,800; Bihac, 6,201; Travnik, 6,647; Mostar, 16,392.

Movement
The census of 1910 showed an increase in the popula
tion of Bosnia since 1895 of 282,425. The following
regions showed the highest increase: Prnjavor, 5222
per cent.; Petrovac, 3914 per cent.; Sarajevo town,
3633 per cent.; Glamoc, 3506 per cent.; Rogatica,
3427 per cent.: Visegrad, 34 per cent.; Lepce, 31-41

10

GEOGRAPHY

D

No. 1ft

per cent. The lowest increase was in the Banjaluka
district, only 9-09 per cent. The birth-rate in the
towns was less than in the country, and notably among
the Mohammedan population of the towns the birth
rate had declined. In Herzegovina the census of
1910 showed a net increase of 47,527 in the popula
tion since 1895. The vital statistics of Bosnia and
Herzegovina for three years were as follows: —

Year.

Births.

Deaths. Net increase.

Living.

Dead.

1911

76,693

218

49,622

27,071

1912

81,994

178

48,416

33,578

1913

82,333

210

54,473

27,860

Of the number of living births in 1913, 43,427 were
boys and 38,906 were girls.
Increase actual and natural, 1895-1910: —

Districts.

Actual increase.1

Natural increase.

SarajevoTuzlaBanjaluka BihadTravnikMostar . . . . . .

60,00066,00075,00037,00044,000
No figures obtainable

41,000 57,000 61,000
41,00046,000 62,030

1 Including increase or decrease due to movement of popula
tion. Police statistics are not available, but it is estimated that
during the period 1895-1910, 50,000 people emigrated with permits
to do so.

x

Bosnia and 1
Herzeg-ovinaJ

II. POLITICAL HISTORY
Chronological Summary
1141 Bela II of Hungary occupies Bosnia, which had been
previously dependent on Croatia.
1189 The letter of the Ban Kulin.
1325 The Ban of Bosnia, Kotromanic, conquers Herzegovina.
1376 The Ban, Stephen Tvrtko, styles himself King of, Bosnia,
with the consent of the King of Hungary.
L448 Stephen Vukcic shifts his allegiance from the King of
Bosnia to the Austrian Habsburgs, and is created Duke
(Herzog) of St. Sava, "whence his dominion came to be
called Herzegovina instead of Horn.
1463 Conquest of Bosnia by the Turks.
1483 Conquest of Herzegovina by the Turks.
1526 The Battle of Mohacs assures the permanence of the
Turkish conquests.
1699 Austria acknowledges the Turkish sovereignty over Bosnia
and Herzegovina.
1858 The rising of the rayahs.
1859 The Reforming Law.
1874-75 The revolt of the provinces against Turkish oppression.
1875 (Oct. 2) The Reforming Irade\
1875 (Dec. 12) The Reforming Firman.
1875 (Dec. 30) The Andrassy Note.
1876 (Feb.) The Irade granting the demands of the Andrassy
Note.
1876 (July 8) The Reichstadt Agreement between the Austrian
and Russian Emperors.
1876 (Dec.) The Constantinople Conference.
1877 The Russo-Turkisb War.
1878 .'(Mar.) The Treaty of San Stefano.
1878 (June 6) Secret Convention between Austria and England
respecting Bosnia and Herzegovina.
1878 (June 13 — July 13) The Berlin Congress places Bosnia and
Herzegovina in Austrian occupation.
1879 The Austro-Turkish Convention.
1882-1903 Kdllay's Administration.
1903 Burian's Administration.
1908 (Oct. 7) Austria annexes Bosnia and Herzegovina.
1910 (Feb.) The grant of a Constitution.

12 HISTORY [no. 12
(1) Early History
Hungarian Suzerainty and Native Resistance. —
Bosnia and Herzegovina were at one period pictu
resquely described as the point of the Turkish lance
directed against Europe. Their acquisition by Austria
in 1878 transformed them into the point of the German
lance pressing towards the Balkans. Their present
importance is derived from this fact as their past im
portance was derived from the other.
The early history of the provinces is troubled and
obscure. The Magyars affirm that Bosnia formed the
nucleus of the original kingdom of Croatia. However
that may be, the country for many centuries became
successively the prey of all its neighbours. Croat,
Serb, Hungarian, and Eastern Roman seized it in
turn, and lost it again. Native Bans, however,
among whom Kulin (1168) stands out as a
national hero, constantly asserted with varying success
the claims of national autonomy; and the attempt of
the King of Hungary at the close of the twelfth
century to strengthen his hold over the country by
calculated ecclesiastical • re-organisation led the Ban
Stephen Kotromanic to prof^s_^the^]Bogomilian
heresy, as Kulin had done EeTore^mL TheTTfogQ-
mHians, who took their riseTrTTheTwelfth century in
Bulgaria, were really Manich^eans, and rejected
the Old Testament, marrikge, ancTEhe ministry of the
Church. Their adherents in Bosnia and Herzegovina
were numerous; and their doctrines proved an impor
tant factor in paving the way for Islam. Stephen
Kotromanic also distinguished his administration in
1325 by conquering Herzegovina, whose possession had
been for centuries contested by Bulgaria, Serbia,
and the Eastern Empire. To maintain his acquisition,
however, against Stephen Dushan, the Tsar of Serbia,
he was obliged to seek the help of the King of
Hungary; this he could only procure by return
ing to the Catholic faith, which he, proceeded to do.
Even so the Serbs were strong enough to force him

2£&&aJ TURKISH CONQUEST 13
for a time to acknowledge the Serbian Tsar as his
suzerain. This arrangement did not, however, survive
the reign of Stephen Dushan; and Bosnia drifted back
into the orbit of Hungary under the Ban Stephen
Tvrtko (1353-1391), who, in 1376, with the consent of
his Hungarian over-lord, styled himself King of
Bosnia, and ultimately, shaking off the suzerainty of
Hungary, made himself master of a kingdom which
included parts of Dalmatia, Serbia, and Croatia. •
The Turkish Conquest. — A new and most formio
able power was, however, by this time making its
strength felt in the Balkans. In 1389 the Turks
routed the Serbs at Kossovo; and from that
moment the autonomy_ofJBosnia_was threatened. It
would be unprofltaHeto follow the struggles, 716oth at
home, and with Hungary, in which the Bosnians
wasted their strength before the Turks attacked
them. There seems little doubt that the perse
cution of the Bo^Hoilians by the Catholics madeN
the advent of EhlT Turks ^elcomlHxJra large part~of
^h^^^mIai^iL_ However that may be, the Turkish
conquesT was singularly facile ; and by 1463 the Turks
were masters of Bosnia. Within twenty years Herze
govina had suffered the same fate. Stephen • Vukcic,
its ruler, had, in 1448, transferred his allegiance
from the Ban of Bosnia to the King of the Romans
(i.e., Austria), at the same time adopting the style
of Duke of St. Sava or Primorje; and from this cir
cumstance the name Herzegovina (the Dukedom) was
substituted for that of Horn.
(2) Turkish Rule
Weakness of Turkish Administration. — The battle
of Mohacs (1526) assured the Turkish conquest; and
the Turkish sovereignty over the two / provinces was
ultimately recognised by Austria at the Peace of Carlo-
witz (1699); but a strip of Northern Bosnia, running
south of the Save, was recovered for the Habsburg
Empire by the Treaty of Passarowitz (1718). The
domestic history of tho two provinces after the Turkish

14 HISTORY [no. 12
occupation is not unlike that of other parts of the
Turkish Empire. The promises of. fixed and equitable
taxation, of security of possession, and of religious and
racial equality contained in the Hatti Sheriff of
Gulhane of 1839 and the Hat-i-Humayun of
1856,1 established principles rather than practice!. The
dominant feature of the situation in Bosnia and
Herzegovina was the juxtaposition of a strong con
servative, land-holding Moslem aristocracy, in the
main recruited originally among the Bogomilians,
and an oppressed Christian peasantry, burdened
with taxation and feudal dues. The Turkish
Government exacerbated the feelings of these factions
by investing some of the landlords with a peculiar
interest in certain landed property, as a special
reward for their devotion to the cause of Islam. The
effect of this measure was to give them the right to
take the tenth part of the harvest and to expel, at
will, the Christian rayahs from the territory under
their control. About 1848 the position was aggravated '
still further by the increase from a tenth to a third
(tretina) of the landlord's share of the produce. An
attempt on the part of the Turkish Government to
reform abuses produced in 1850 a revolt of the feudal
aristocracy, which was suppressed by the Government
and led to the abolition of serfdom. The disappear
ance of the feudal system and the substitution of
a metayer system of tenure, under which the land
lord supplied sometimes only the land, sometimes both
land and capital, whilst the profits were divided
between landlord and peasant, had the immediate
effect of intensifying the hostility between the land
lords and the new class of farmers. In 1858 the rayahs
rose in Northern Bosnia; and it was in these circum
stances that a commission was appointed and certain
definite measures of reform published in 1859.
Although these measures were never enforced under
the Turkish rule they became important subsequently,
1 Hertslet, Map of Europe by Treaty, vol. JJ, pp. 1002, 1243,

Herzegovina] AGRARIAN LAW, 1859 15
when the Austrian occupation took place, as they
formed the basis of the Austrian treatment of the
agrarian problem in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
The Agrarian Law of 1859. — In the first place, the
Law of 1859 suppressed the various corvees to which
the kmet, or serf, had previously been subject, and
required him in place of them to convey to the land
lord a third part of his produce. One-tenth part
(desetina) of the remaining two-thirds went to the
State, and served as a basis for the assessment of the
rent. The cost of the construction* and repair
of the kmet's habitation was laid upon the
proprietor, so that in case of eviction no hard
ship would any longer fall upon the former.
Moreover, the kmet obtained the right of pre-emption,
if the landlord desired to sell; and later, under the
Austrian regime, provision was made for the advance
of money to the peasant for this purpose. A further
provision of the Law required the proprietor, who had
previously been accustomed to exact half the produce
in the case of fruit, vegetables, and forage, to
content himself with a third. The landlord
was further restricted by the withdrawal of his
right to billet himself and his family on the
peasant, and to transfer his dues to third parties, who
had often enough been Jews or Greeks and more oppres
sive than the landlords. Disputes were to be settled
not by tribunals but by arbitrators selected by the
parties. (Under the Austrian administration assessors
are still employed in the less important cases.) Finally,
written contracts were substituted for verbal agree
ments, and, after being submitted to the local authority,
were to be signed by the contracting parties.
The Revolt of 1874-5.— The Law of 1859 contained
several elements of reform ; but it Was either evaded
or neglected altogether. Possessed of all administra
tive powers, Moslem officials in general, and corrupt
policemen and oppressive tax-farmers in particular,
rendered the life of the peasantry intolerable. Sym
pathy was shown by the Austrian Slavs towards the

16 HISTORY [no. 12
Slavs under Turkish rule; and a considerable migra
tion across the Austrian border of Bosnians
and Herzegovinians, notably of those engaged in
petty commerce, took place in the summer of 1873, to
the embarrassment of the Austrian Government. In
1874, after a bad harvest, the people grew tired of
suffering. But the causes of the revolt were by no means
purely economic. The withdrawal of the last Turkish
garrisons from Serbia in 1867 and the endeavours of her
Prince, Michael Obrenovic, to form something of the
nature of a. Balkan League against the Turk created in
Bosnia-Herzegovina the hope of attaining libera
tion by union with Serbia. Elated by the rising sense
of Jugo-Slav nationality, Herzegovina rose under the
leadership of Ljubibratic, the former Voivode, Peko
Pavlovic, Ivan Music, a Catholic priest, and Zarko, an
Orthodox pope. Bosnia, where Statimirovic, Tripko-
zakovic, and Bacevi6 were the principal figures,
followed in 1875.
Andrassv, the Austrian Foreign Minister, desired to
maintain the status quo in the Balkans, and had the
sympathy of the greater Powers of Europe in his
attempt. His first moves aimed at preventing the
Austrian Slavs from assisting the Slavs of Turkey,
and at the same time at enabling the Turkish Govern
ment to assert its authority. Slav subjects of
Austria desiring to pass into the revolted Turkish
provinces were disarmed at the frontier; and Klek,
an Austrian port at the mouth of the Narenta, on
the Dalmatian coast, was placed at the disposal
of the Turks for landing troops and supplies, which
the mountainous character of the country rendered
it difficult to convey by land. Then, in conjunction
with Russia and Germany, Andrassy pressed for-
the neutrality of Serbia and Montenegro, for effec
tive military action on the Turkish part in dealing with
the insurgents, and for the introduction of such
reforms in Bosnia and Herzegovina as would prevent
the recurrence of the trouble. The good offices of the
Consular Agents of Austria, Germany, and Russia

te,|o?&a] REVOLT; ANDRASSY NOTE, 1875 17
were offered to the Turkish Government in August
1875; but it was not until Great Britain and France
had joined the other Powers that the Porte agreed to
the institution of a Consular Commission. This
assembled at Mostar in September 1875, and opened
negotiations with the insurgents; but these declined
to treat with the Commission unless the representa
tives of Turkey weTe excluded from it. Turkish
promises of reform, extorted by the Powers and
embodied in an Irade" (October 2, 1875) and a Firman
(December 12, 1875),1 did nothing to satisfy the rebels,
who in the meanwhile gained successes and cut the
Turkish communications with the sea.
The Andrassy Note. — It was in these circumstances
that Andrassy, on December 30, 1875, addressed a
Note to the Turkish Government on behalf of the
Austrian, German, and Russian Governments, in which
he demanded : (1) full religious liberty; (2) the
abolition of the farming of taxes; (3) a law to
guarantee that the product of the direct taxation of
Bosnia, and Herzegovina should be allocated to
the immediate interests of the provinces; (4) the
institution of a special commission composed of
an equal number of Moslems and Christians to super
intend the execution of the reforms proposed by the
Powers, as well as of those proclaimed in the recent
Irade" and Firman; (5) the amelioration of the con
dition of the rural population. The first four points
were to be carried into immediate effect ; the fifth bv
degrees, as was practicable. The reforms mpntioned
in the Firman included the establishment of a pro
vincial council and of tribunals elected by the inhabi
tants ; the irremovability of judges ; the reorganisa
tion of the police ; security for proprietary rights ; and
the suppression of the abuses to which the levies for
public works gave rise, as well as an equitable reduc
tion in the tax for exemption from military service.
The Note has been criticised as containing one grave
1 These are printed in Hertslet'a Map of Europe by Treaty,
vol. IV, pp. 2407-2418.
[2008] C

18 HISTORY [no. 12
omission. No security was provided that the reforms
would be executed by the Porte, which accepted
the Note and published an Irade in February
1876 granting what was demanded. The Austrian
Government then addressed itself to the task of com
pelling the rebels to submit, and early in 1876 arrested
Ljubibratic. The Nationalists, however, were dis
inclined to fall into line with the wishes of the
Austrian Government while the security for the
execution of the reforms remained insufficient, and
in reply to the Austrian communication on the subject
of the Note and the Irade, they set out in a memoran
dum addressed to General Rodic, the Austrian repre
sentative, the following desiderata : (1) the cession to
the Christians of a third of the land they cultivated;
(2) the withdrawal of the Turkish troops from the
country with the exception of six fortresses; (3) the
restoration of the ruined or damaged dwellings; (4)
permission to retain their arms until the reforms had
been put into effect; (5) administrative reforms and
the grant of a constitution;- (6) the repatriation of
refugees, and the distribution of relief to paupers ; (7)
the execution of reforms under the control of Russian
and Austrian agents resident in the six fortresses
reserved to the Turks.
The Revolt of Bulgaria. — Matters, however, were so
far advanced that, even if the greater Powers had
accepted the memorandum, it is questionable whether
this would have prevented the revolt of Bulgaria, which
took place in May 1876. - In the same month the
Russian Chancellor, Gorchakoff, induced the Prussian
and Austrian Governments to agree to the Memo
randum of Berlin (May 13, 1876), which threatened
Turkey with coercive measures if the promised reforms
were not put into effect. On May 30 a palace revolt
in Constantinople, in which the Sultan, Abdul Aziz,
was killed, weakened the Turkish Government and
encouraged Serbia and Montenegro, after a momentous
hesitation, to take up arms at the beginning
of July. The delay gave the Turks time to

1SS&&J TREATY OF BERLIN, 1878 19
recover from their surprise; and they proved a match
for the Balkan peoples. Prince Milan of Serbia
personally appealed for the intervention of the
European concert; and under pressure from England
a Conference of the Greater Powers met at Constanti
nople on December 23, 1876. The Porte simultaneously
announced the" grant of a constitution to the Turkish
Empire, and on this pretext rejected the proposals of
the Conference, which included administrative
autonomy for Bosnia and Herzegovina under Turkish
governors to be nominated by the Porte with the con
sent of the Powers. This attitude was sustained and
enforced by the Turkish Parliament, in spite of another
English move for a pacific settlement; and war with
Russia, in which the Turks had the worst of it,
followed in April 1877. By the Treaty of San Stef ano,
which concluded hostilities in March 1878; Bosnia and
Herzegovina were to have been treated in the manner
proposed at the Constantinople Conference, subject,
however, to any modifications agreed upon by the
Russian, Austrian, and Turkish Governments. This
arrangement was unacceptable to Austria, which had
for two years entertained other designs for the future
of those provinces. In July 1876 the Austrian and
Russian Emperors had met at Reichstadt; and the
latter, in exchange for a promise of Austrian
neutrality during the Russo-Turkish War, had
grudgingly acquiesced in the substitution of Austrian
for Turkish control in those provinces, should the inde
pendence of Serbia and Monte*negro be recognised or
the incapacity of Turkey to maintain order in Bosnia
and Herzegovina be demonstrated.
The Berlin Settlement of 1878. — The Austrian
motives for desiring the occupation, as set forth by
Andrassy at the Berlin Congress, were the peculiar
inconvenience — notably as regards the support of
refugees— caused to Austria by the disorders in
Bosnia and Herzegovina; the incapacity of the Turkish
Government ; and the consequent- impossibility of a
solution on the lines of the Treaty of San Stef ano.
[2008] C 2

20 HISTORY [no. 12
The provinces, though still in theory Turkish terri
tory, were, by the twenty-fifth article of the Berlin
Treaty, placed in Austrian occupation, an arrangement
which was to last until the pacification of the provinces
and an amelioration of their condition had been
achieved. The Turkish representative refused to sign
until a clause thus definitely affirming the temporary
nature of the occupation had been inserted. An im
portant concession was made in that Austria was per
mitted to place garrisons and to make commercial and
military roads in the Sanjak of Novi-Bazar. The
detail connected with these changes was left to be
decided between the two Powers concerned; and by
subsequent negotiation with Turkey the right of
garrisoning was restricted to the towns of Priboj,
Prijepolje, and Plevlje. Garrisons were accordingly
introduced in these places in 1879, but withdrawn
when Bosnia and Herzegovina were annexed in 1908.
(3) Austrian Rule
The Austro-Turkish Convention of 1879. — The
actual occupation of Bosnia and Herzegovina in 1878-9
proved a troublesome affair owing to the vigorous
resistance of the Moslems, particularly at Sarajevo.
Little active resistance was offered by the Christians,
who were exhausted by years of fighting against the
Turk; but Orthodox as well as Moslem sentiment was
bitterly opposed to the, occupation. At the close
of 1878, Andrassy, in reply to an interpella
tion in the Budget ' Commission of the Austro-
Hungarian Delegation, stated that the occupation
would last until its objects were attained ; and that, if
the question of annexation arose, it would be considered
by the Austro-Hungarian legislative bodies in concert
with the Crown. On April 21, 1879, an Austro-
Turkish Convention defined the nature of the Austrian
control. An attempt during the negotiation on the part
of the Turks to insert a clause affirming the provisional
character of the Austrian occupation of the two pro
vinces was firmly resisted by Austria, The Sultan's

l°eSi|ov\ta] CONVENTION Of 1879 21
sovereign rights were, however, affirmed; and four
administrative principles were laid down. Of these the
first stipulated for the continued employment of com
petent Turkish officials pending the introduction of a
native staff of officials, when circumstances allowed ;
the -second for the maintenance of religious, and more
particularly of Moslem, liberty ; the third for the exclu
sive reservation of the revenues of the two provinces
for their internal requirements ; and the fourth for the
free circulation of Turkish coinage. The adoption of
Austro-Hungarian money-standards made the use of
Turkish coinage impossible, and in 1879 and 1880 the
Turkish currency was disallowed ; whilst the. education
of the natives was still too backward to admit of their
taking anything like complete control of the adminis
trative machine. The provinces were drawn into the
Austro-Hungarian Customs-Union in 1879; and their
diplomatic and consular affairs were gradually under
taken by the Austrian Foreign Office. The withdrawal
by the Great Powers in 1880 from their Consuls of the
rights exercised in Turkey under the Capitulations
marked another stage in the substitution of the
Austrian for the Turkish Government; and the
introduction in 1882 of conscription for the Austro-
Hungarian Army was a serious infraction of the terms
of the Treaty of Berlin.
Administration of Kdllay. — The misconduct of
Austrian petty officials charged with the financial
administration and the introduction of conscription
combined to produce a revolt in 1882. But whatever
charges may be brought against Austria on the score
of defective sympathy with the racial aspirations of
the Bosnians, there can be no serious question that in
certain directions notable advances were made in the
direction of practical efficiency under Austrian
guidance. These achievements are associated with the
names of Kallay and Burian.
Baron von Kallay, the translator of Mill's Essay on
Liberty, and a not unsympathetic student of Serbian
affairs", was Governor of Bosnia between 1882 and 1903,

22 HISTORY [No. 12
Kallay 's administration aimed rather at creating a
tradition of competent government than at instituting
self-government, though this was not altogether neg
lected. It ran on despotic though benevolent lines, and
involved the use of spies and severe restrictions upon
the liberty of the press. Repression of national senti
ment went so far that Kallay with commendable logic
prohibited the circulation in the provinces of his own
History of the Serbs, in which the racial identity of
Serbs and Bosnians was admitted. Brigandage and the
corruption of justice, both of which had been noto
riously rampant under Turkish rule, practically dis-
appearedr thanks to an admirable staff of police and
civil servants; and sanitation was vastly improved.
Kallay's policy in ecclesiastical, educational, and
agrarian matters has inevitably been a target for criti
cism ; and racial prepossessions no less inevitably play a
part in the judgments passed upon them. In ecclesias
tical matters Kallay seems to have held . the balance
equitably. The disappointment of the Catholics at their
limited influence upon policy, the facilities afforded to
Moslem officials to go on pilgrimages to Mecca, the
foundation by the Government of a fine college for the
education of Moslem jurists,' and the general improve
ment in the statistics of crime and illegitimacy, are
in their different ways evidence of political and even-
handed administration. Educational matters, like
religious, are more fully treated elsewhere. Here it
may be said that Kallay's guiding principle was to
avoid the creation of a body of highly cultivated men,
for whose attainments so primitive a society as the
Bosnian could offer no outlet except political intrigue,
by preferring the claims of a practical and technical
education. Thus the promise gradually to transfer the
administration to competent natives has been rendered
impossible of fulfilment; and the number of Austro-
Hungarian officials in the province has multiplied. On
the other hand, the construction of roads and railways,
the entire cost of which was borne by the provinces, was
carried out in the strategic and economic interests of

ierzelo^a] KALLAY'S ADMINISTRATION 23
Austria-Hungary; and the outlay brought no compen
sating advantages. The railway constructed from Sara
jevo to the eastern frontier at a cost of 78,000,000 kr.
had admittedly a strategic object and little economic
importance. At the same time, Austria refused per
mission to build a line connecting Bosnia with the
commercial ports of the Adriatic.1 In regard to the
agrarian question, Kallay took his stand upon the law
of 1859, which has already been discussed. The
peasant grumbled, but partly at the pains of progress.
He suffered from the obligation to pay his tithe to
the Government and his tribute to the landlord
(tretina) at regular times and in money instead of in
kind ; but the facilities afforded for the purchase of his
holding by the establishment in 1895 of a Landesbank,
to advance him money at 6^ per cent, for this purpose,
show that the Government was actuated by a genuine
desire to better his condition. As a matter of fact,
however, land purchase has proceeded so slowly under
these arrangements that they can hardly be said to have
contributed much to the solution of this acute agrarian
problem. The. fact that taxation increased must be
regarded as an inevitable consequence of the successful
attempt to develop the communications of the country,
though in Austrian rather than specifically in Bosnian
interests. Administration of Buridn. — Baron Burian suoceeded
Baron von Kallay in 1903. The main feature of his
policy was the attempt to develop further the practice
of self-government, of which a beginning had been
made in 1897 in the towns. Other points in his ad
ministrative policy were the conversion of the tithe
into a tax, by making it calculable on the basis of ten
years harvest, instead of leaving it to be assessed each
year on the harvest itself to the sometimes disastrous
inconvenience of the tenant, who might have to leave
1 In 1901 a strategic railway was completed which connects
Sarajevo with the naval base of the Gulf of Cattaro, and has a
branch line to Gravosa; but the economically more valuable con
nection with Spalato and Sebenico was withheld.

24 HISTORY [no. 12
his crop to spoil whilst waiting for the Govern
ment assessor; the mitigation of the press law;
the regulation of usury; and, above all, the abolition
of forced labour on the roads, for which the taxation of
rich and poor, according to their means, was substi
tuted. The desire to settle the complicated land ques
tion, without reference to the Greater Powers interested
in the Berlin Treaty, must be recognised amongst the
objects which Austrian officials had in view at the time
of the annexation of Bosnia and Herzegovina to the
Austro-Hungarian Empire.
The Austrian occupation (1878) is not incapable of
defence. The necessary pacification of the provinces
could be undertaken only by a strong neighbouring
Power, and the subsequent development only by the
same Power or by an international Commission. While
the latter would have been free from the temptation to
consider other interests than those of the provinces, it is
improbable that it would have shown much activity
or a disposition to spend money. This has been done
by Austria, as is proved by the fact that
material, and especially sanitary, conditions before
the war were more advanced in Bosnia than in Serbia.
But it was impossible for Austria to be disinterested.
If she did not at that date definitely regard the
provinces as a stage on the road to Salonika, she saw
in their possession security against the development
of Serbia into a powerful State. The annexation in
1908 marks a further stage; the policy of the Drang
nach Osten was now mature, and was pursued regard
less of the fact that it would in all probability involve
the use of these populations in the near future in the
struggle against their own kinsmen.

*„,* More recent history will be found under Social and Political
Conditions, pp. 27-8. See also the Jugo-Slav Movement,
No. 14 of this series, pp. 21-30.

Bosnia and ~|
Herzegovina J

III. SOCIAL AND POLITICAL CONDITIONS
(1) Religious
Under the Convention of 1879 between Austria and
Turkey, complete liberty in the exercise of religion was
secured 'to the peoples of Bosnia and Herzegovina ; but
religious feeling, though successfully restrained in
general, has always to be reckoned with, owing to the
co-existence of three vigorous religious communities — -
Catholic, Orthodox, and Moslem. The figures, accord
ing to the census of 1910 for Bosnia and Herzegovina
combined, were as follows : —

Orthodox 

.. 825,418

Moslems

.. 612,137

Roman Catholics

.. 434,061

Uniats ...

8,136

Jews

11,868

Evangelicals

6,342

The Christians in Bosnia are largely Orthodox, in
Herzegovina Catholic and Orthodox mixed ; but the fact
that territorially the two confessions are inextricably
intermixed has added to the complexity of the situa
tion. The affairs of the Orthodox Church are regulated by
a Concordat concluded in 18801 between Austria
and the Patriarch of Constantinople, whose financial
claims on Bosnia and Herzegovina were compensated
by a sum of 58,000 piastres in gold from the Austrian
Government. According to this arrangement the
Orthodox bishops were no longer paid by casual dona-
1 The text will be found in French in Larmeroux's La Politique
exUrieure de VAutriche-Hongrie, vol. I, p. 213.

26 PRESENT CONDITIONS i»o.i4
tions from their flocks in proportion to their popularity,
but by regular taxes which were subsequently (m 1884)
abolished as being a violation of the principle of the
equality of religions, and replaced by a grant from the
public treasury. It was also arranged by the Concordat
that the appointment to the three metropolitan sees
should be made by the Government after communicat
ing with the Patriarch, who retained his spiritual
supremacy over them. The Government have built
churches, endowed them largely with, books, provided
for the widows and orphans of the clergy, and erected
a seminary for Orthodox priests. The policy pursued
towards the Orthodox Church by Baron von Kallay was
consummated in 1905, under Baron Burian, by the
grant of a large measure of autonomy.
The Moslems have received most considerate treat
ment. The Sultan's spiritual sovereignty was recog
nised at the time of the Austrian occupation by the
permission to continue the mention of his name in
public prayer, and the practice of flying the Ottoman
flag from the minaret, where this had been the custom,
though subsequently a green flag with the in
scription " Hour of Prayer " was substituted for the
other. By arrangement with the Sultan of ,Turkey, the
Reis-ul-Ulema, the head of the Bosnian Moslems, is now
nominated by the Emperor; but the community is
autonomous, is endowed in common with the Jewish and
Christian religions, and has special courts to deal with
questions of matrimony and succession. Its large
ecclesiastical properties, which go by the title of
vakuf, have also been reorganised by the Govern
ment and placed under the control of a department in
Sarajevo, administered by Moslem officials under
Government supervision, with the result that their value
has largely increased. The Moslems, being of the
Serbian race, retain little feeling for the Turkish
Government; and the migration of Moslems to Turkey
must be attributed to the religious pride of a Moslem
aristocracy, subject under the new conditions to
Christian officials. At the same time the identity of

l0e8iav^aj POLITICAL 27
race is not without influence in moderating the
antipathy between the Moslems and the Christians.
(2) Political
Bosnia and Herzegovina were first placed under the
joint Austro-Hungarian Administration, but on
February 26, 1879, were transferred to the care of the
joint Austro-Hungarian Minister of Finance alone, in
whom was vested the control over the local Government
and expenditure, and who was made responsible to the
Joint Parliamentary Delegations, not to the Austrian
or Hungarian Parliament. Ultimate legislative autho
rity rested with the Emperor, though no change could
be made in the relations between the Monarch and the
provinces without the approval of the Parliaments of
Austria and Hungary, to which also appertained
revisional powers where their interests were concerned.
The actual initiative in framing prospective legislation
was left with the Provisional Government. This last
consisted of a Landeschef, who is the Commandant of
the Imperial and Royal Army, and the " Civil
Adlatus," who, with a council consisting of the heads
of the political, financial, judicial, and public works
departments, controls the civil administration.. The
language used in education and in legal proceedings is
Serbian. In public proclamations either Serbian or
German is employed, and in the case of legislation
both are customary.
On October 7, 1908, the annexation of Bosnia and
Herzegovina to the Austro-Hungarian Empire was
announced by Baron Aehrenthal without any previous
authority from the signatories of the Treaty of Berlin.
The annexation was not unconnected with the
Turkish Revolution . of July 24, 1908, which promised
to introduce constitutional government among the
various nationalities under Turkish rule, and roused in
Austria the fear that in these circumstances the
return of Bosnia-Herzegovina to Turkey might be
demanded of her. On February 20, 1910, a constitu-

28 PRESENT CONDITIONS [N0.12
tion Was given to the annexed provinces by imperial
decree. The elective machinery was good, as was shown
by the orderly conduct of the ensuing elections ; but the
legislative power conferred was too limited to
give any real satisfaction, and consequently became
the subject of immediate protest and agitation.
The ingenious system of representation is based
upon a direct and universal suffrage, organised
on curial lines, and classified by religious opinion.
Parliamentary representation proportionate to their
numbers is allotted to the Orthodox, Moslem,
Catholic, and Jewish communities, viz., thirty-
one, twenty-four, sixteen, and one members re
spectively, making a total of seventy-two elected
members of the Diet. Besides this the Diet
contains ex officio the Chief Rabbi and' five
members of the Orthodox, Moslem, and Catholic
hierarchies. There are also four ex officio lay members
of the Diet, viz., the President of the Supreme Court,
the Mayor of Sarajevo, and the Presidents of the
Sarajevo Chambers of Advocates and of Commerce.
The old administrative organisation still obtains, and
the " Civil Adlatus " and the Chiefs of the Administra
tive, Financial, and Economic Departments can all
attend the sessions of the Diet. The legislative power
of the Diet is, however, very restricted. Under the con
stitution, all bills carried in the local legislature
require confirmation in the Parliaments of Austria and
Hungary and approval by the Austro-Hungarian
Common Ministry before they come up for the royal
assent. Local politics have so far pivoted upon the
demand for the reform of this arrangement. At
the elections of May 1911, the Serbian National,
Croatian, and Moslem Leagues, which advocated the
abolition of Austro-Hungarian control, and the sub
stitution of a Ministry responsible to the Diet and in
direct touch with the Emperor, overwhelmingly
defeated their respective rivals, the Serbian Indepen
dents (Agrarian Socialists), the Croatian Catholics,
and the Moslem Independents.

ISS&S&J EDUCATIONAL 29
(3) Educational
Instruction in Bosnia and Herzegovina is still defec
tive in quantity, although the quality appears to be
food, and has attracted the attention of the
'russian Government. According to the statistics of
1905-6, under 15 per cent, of the children of school age
possessed educational facilities; and, though more
schools were promised, Dr. Baernreither, a member of
the Austrian Delegation, commented in 1908 upon their
insufficiency to meet the needs of the situation.
Elementary schools are of two classes : State schools, of
which, in 1906, there were 253, and confessional
schools, of which there were 101 (70 Orthodox and 31
Catholic). According to a recent Jugo-Slav authority,
there were, in 1916, 458 elementary schools, giving a
proportion of one school to about 4,000 inhabitants.
These figures compare unfavourably with those of
Serbia, and, combined with the fact that education is
not compulsory, lend support to the view that Austrian
policy aimed at perpetuating the tutelage of the pro
vinces. Catholic and Orthodox priests and the
Moslem hodzas have the right of entry into the State
schools, and give instruction according to the wishes of
parents. Educational associations have been formed
by the Orthodox, Catholic, and Moslem communities
since 1902 under the titles of Prosvjeta, Napredak, and
Gajret respectively. Education in State schools is free ;
and confessional schools receive a subvention from the
State. The Moslems, and especially the Moslem women,
show a strong disinclination to allow their daughters to
mix with Christian girls in the State schools, but their
taste for education is said to have been stimulated by
the Young Turk Movement. The Orthodox community
complain to some extent of the oppressive attitude of
the Government towards their schools; but the reply
would be that- the schools were not up to the mark in
point of efficiency. Certainly there seems to be no lack
of liberality in regard to the study of racial history in
Orthodox schools,

30 GENERAL OBSERVATIONS [N0.12
Secondary education is mainly dependent upon two
gymnasia at Sarajevo and Mostar and upon a real-
schule at Banjaluka; but there are also a technical
intermediate school, an institute for. the training of
teachers, and a military academy. It is one of the
grievances of the Jugo-Slav party that, owing to prac
tical exigencies, a knowledge of German is compulsory
in secondary education. The country contains no uni
versity; a circumstance which illustrates the principle
adopted by the Government of encouraging practical
rather than theoretical studies.

GENERAL OBSERVATIONS
(a) Popular Opinion, and National Sentiment
Bosnia and Herzegovina possess a strong sentimental
attraction for the Serbs, and have been described as the
Moscow of Serbia. This is partly due to the fact that
the oldest extant document in the Serb language — the
letter of the Ban Kulin in 1189 — originated in Bosnia,
partly to the adoption of the dialect of Herzegovina
by Vuk Karadjic as the basis of the Serbian literary
language, and partly also to the Bosnian origin of many
distinguished Serbs.
It is difficult to gauge the extent to which the
Bosnians reciprocated the feeling of the Serbs for them,
but their sentiment was probably the weaker of the two.
For one thing they were in many cases too illiterate to
appreciate Jugo-Slav ideals in their fulness ; and the
ties of the Catholics and Moslems, though not
necessarily alien, rather distracted their sympathies.
Large numbers of Bosnians, however, eluded Austrian
vigilance and fought in the Serbian ranks in the Balkan
Wars ; and after the Serbian invasion of Bosnia in the
first year of the European War very many followed the
retreating army into Serbia, while others sought a
refuge in Montenegro. The Government adopted from
the outbreak of hostilities a policy of repression in its
most extreme form, There is no doubt that throughout

-i££&&»1 GENERAL OBSERVATIONS 31
the War the feeling of the provinces has been strongly
anti- Austrian. (b) Questions interesting other Countries
The Turkish interest in Bosnia and Herzegovina
may now be written off.
The Serbian interest in the acquisition of the pro
vinces is obvious. Their possession would give
Serbia an accession of population equal to two-
thirds of her own, as well as the Save and
the Dinaric Alps for boundaries, and would bring
her within grasp of the Dalmatian seaboard, and of
Croatia- Slavonia. Without them any hold on the
countries last named must be precarious. Prior to the
Balkan Wars, the Serbs aspired at the least to the
acquisition of a strip of territory of some 10,000 square
kilometres on the right bank of the Drina, which would
have given them a connection with Montenegro, and at
the same time have cut right across the. Austro-Turkish
communications. They claimed that authority over
this region had once been exercised from Serbia or from
the Sanjak of Novi-Bazar, which, under Turkish occu
pation, had apparently constituted the Sanjak of
Zvornik.1 The possession of this corridor would have
given Serbia access to the sea by a route running from
Mokragora past Foca, along the Sutjeska, past Gacko
and Bilek to Sutorina.
1 See on this. Cvijid, L' Annexion de la Bosnie, &c, p. 55.

[No. 12

IV. ECONOMIC CONDITIONS
(A) MEANS OF COMMUNICATION
(1) Internal
(a) Roads
At the time of the Austrian occupation (1878) there
were in the two provinces less than 600 miles of roads
of any kind, and even these were not properly
engineered and were mostly unprovided with bridges.
In 1910 the total length of the roads amounted approxi
mately to 4,500 miles, of which 1,300 miles consisted
of main roads with a normal width of 15 ft., 1,400
miles of district roads with a normal width of 12 ft.,
and 1,800 miles of cart roads and bridle tracks. The
main and district .roads are almost everywhere in first
class order, duly provided with bridges, and well
engineered. Some of them, as for instance the road
over the Makljen Saddle (3,685 ft.) between Bugojno
and Prozor and that which leads from the plateau at
Bilek to Trebinje, are remarkable for boldness of con
struction. A considerable addition to the existing
system is, however, desirable if the resources of the
country are to be developed to their full extent.
According to the Turkish Law of 1869 all male
inhabitants between the ages of 16 and 60 were obliged
to work six days in the year on the roads and to furnish
draught animals for the purpose. This law (stras-
senrobot) remained in force, with modifications, dur
ing the early years of Austrian occupation, but in 1908
the robot was abolished and the roads are now kept
up by the State at an annual expenditure of about
£62,500 under the direction of a chief and district
engineers.

!££&&•] RIVERS; RAILWAYS 33
(b)' Rivers and Canals
The waterways, considered as a means of transport
and communication, are of but small economic impor
tance. Bosnia lies for the most part in the basin of
the Save and its tributaries, of which the chief are the
Una (with its affluent the Sana), the Vrbas, the Bosna,
and the Drina. In Herzegovina the only river of im
portance is the Narenta. Shallow draught steamers can
navigate the Save and the lower waters of the Drina
and the Una ; the remainder of the rivers are too much
encumbered with shallows to be of any use as means
of communication. Their chief value, so far as trans
port is concerned, is as waterways for the timber
traffic. The schemes for making the Drina navigable
as far as Visegrad and for deepening the channel of
the Bosna and connecting that river by a canal with
the Narenta, thus establishing uninterrupted communi
cation by water between Hungary and the Adriatic,
are worth mentioning, but their feasibility would
appear to be extremely doubtful.
(c) Railways
The railway system of Bosnia and Herzegovina
consists of (i) a normal gauge line from Doberlin
on the Croatian frontier to Banjaluka; (ii) narrow
gauge lines extending from fiosna Brod, on the
Hungarian frontier, to Sarajevo, Mostar, and the
Adriatic, with many branches; (iii) forest and in
dustrial lines. With the exception of some of those
in the last class, all the lines are owned by the State.
(i) The line from Doberlin to Banjaluka was the
only one existing at the date of the Austrian occupa
tion. It was built by Baron Hirsch under a concession
from the Turkish Government as part of a line which
was to extend to Sarajevo and eventually to join up
with the proposed railways to Salonika and Constan
tinople. In 1878, however, it was in such a state of
disrepair as to be unusable. The Austrians reopened
it and connected it with the Croatian system. It
[2008] D

34 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. 12
has a length of 65 miles, and is worked by the military
authorities. In 1913 its rolling stock consisted of 11
locomotives and 292 cars. The goods carried by it
amounted in 1909 to 102,315 tons and in 1913 to 94,406
tons. For the future prospects of this line see below.
(ii) The main system of the country consists of the
narrow gauge single-line railways, the earlier of which
were hastily constructed by the Austrians for military
purposes at the time of the occupation. Of these
the line from Brod, on the Croatian (Save valley) line,
to Sarajevo was built in 1882, and has a length of 165
miles. It has the following branches : (a) from Doboj
to Tuzla and Siminhan, 111 miles, running east
towards the Drina and the rich Posavina district ; (b)
from Semizovac to Oevljanovic a short line (12^
miles) immediately north of Sarajevo; and (c) from
Lasva, half-way between Doboj and Sarajevo, a line
44 miles long runs to Dolnji Vakuf (with a branch
20 miles long to Jajoe) and thence to Bugojno in the
valley of the Vrbas. This was completed in 1894-5.
In 1891 the railway from Brod to Sarajevo was ex
tended to Mostar, whence a line had already been
constructed to the port of Metkovic. The line, which
connects the watershed of the Bosna with that of the
Narenta, is for much of its length on the rack and
pinion system and is one of the most remarkable
engineering works in Europe.
There remain the two so-called strategic railways.
These have been a source of much heart-burning, as
they are alleged to have been built at the cost of the
provinces although primarily serving Austro-Hun
garian interests only. This is at most only partially
true. The first of these railways is the line which
leaves the Mostar — Metkovic' section at Gabala, and runs
to Zelenica on the Gulf of Cattaro with short branches
to Gravosa and Trebinje. The first part of this line is
a vital necessity to the prosperity of Bosnia and Herze
govina, for i*t gives them direct access to the Adriatic
at Gravosa, which, until or unless the port of Neum-
Klek (see below, under Ports) is developed, forms, in

H°68r^oavniia] RAILWAYS 35
view of the unsuitability of Metkovic, by far the best
outlet to the sea. The trains from Sarajevo run direct
to Gravosa and not to Metkovic. The extension to the
Gulf of Cattaro was1 no doubt built to give direct land
communication with the chief southern naval base of
the Monarchy, but it also opens up the district about
Trebinje, one of the most fertile in Herzegovina. The
line, which is 81 miles long, was completed in 1901
and, though running for -part of its course through
Dalmatia, is controlled by the Bosnian Railway
Administration. The second strategic line is that which goes from
Sarajevo to Uvac on the old Turkish frontier, with a
branch from Megjegjin via Uzhitse to Vardiste, on
the Serbian frontier. This line was completed in 1906
at enormous cost and has a length of 111 miles. If it
had been continued to Mitrovitza and Uskub it
would have given Bosnia access to the iEgean
Sea at Salonika. The recent extension of the Vardiste
branch to Uzhitse in Serbia has linked the Bosnian
with the Serbian system, for which see below.
The narrow gauge railways (Landesbahnen) also
control the municipal electric railway at Sarajevo and
the mountain railway Podlugovi-VareS. Including
these, thev had in 1913 a total length of 584 miles, and
their rolling stock consisted of 242 locomotives and
5,005 cars. In 1909 the tonnage of goods carried by
them was 1,704,969, and in 1913, 2,092,919.
(iii) There are a considerable number of forest
and industrial lines, some of whi^h are merely
temporary lines for the timber trade. The most
important are the following: (a) the line Usona-Pri-
binic (northern Bosnia), owned by the State Agricul
tural Department and managed by its forestry section ;
(&)Zavidovid-01ovo-Kusace (60 miles), the property of
the Agricultural Department and leased to the firm Of
Eissler & Ortlieb; (c) the line Ribnik-Ostrelj-Drvar
(western Bosnia), owned by the Bosnische Forst-
industrie A/G Otto Steinbeis; this line connects with
the North Dalmatian railway system at Knin.
[2008] D 2

36 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. 12
The total length of the railways in the two provinces
in 1913 was about 963 miles. The Landesbahnen and
the military railway (Doberlin-Banjaluka) possessed
253 locomotives and' 5,297 cars. The tonnage of goods
carried by them amounted in 1911 to 1,818,096 tons, and
in 1912 to 2,198,808 tons. The receipts in 1911 were
£705,062, in 1912 £903,086; the working expenses in
1911 amounted to £473,618, and in 1912 to £679,838.
The two strategic railways were, however, run at the
considerable loss of about £12,500 a year.
Projects of Expansion. — 'The existing railway
system has long been inadequate for the growing trade
of the provinces. The original lines are unsuited for
heavy traffic, and the communications with the
Monarchy and with the sea coast are awkward to a
degree. For many years the rivalry between Austria and
Hungary on the one hand and the conflict of both with
local interests on the other have prevented the carrying
out of a comprehensive scheme of improvement. In
the year 1912, however, a compromise was effected and
a large programme of expansion sanctioned. A loan
of £1,250,000 was authorised, of which the Monarchy
was to contribute two-thirds and Bosnia one-third, to
cover the cost of new construction. Under this scheme
277 miles of new line and 219 miles of normal gauge
in place of narrow gauge would have been provided.
It will be best to consider it in relation to the interests
involved. (1) Austrian Interests. — The existing normal gauge
line was to be continued from Banjaluka to Jajce.
From Jajce to Bugojno the narrow gauge line was to
be converted to normal gauge. A new line was to run
up the valley of the River Vrbas and down that of the
Rama to join Bugojno with the Sarajevo-Mostar line
at Rama, while the line from Rama to Mostar was to
be normalised. Thus direct communication would be
afforded between Vienna and Southern Dalmatia via
Zagreb and Mostar. Further connection with the
sea was to be given by a narrow gauge railway
from Bugojno via Arzano to Spalato. But to make

I^Mia] RAILWAYS 37
this scheme complete it would further have been
necessary to connect Sarajevo with this line by a normal
gauge railway, either by normalising one of the exist
ing lines, Sarajevo -Rama or Sarajevo-Lasva-Dolnj I
Vakuf or by building a new line from Sarajevo to
Prozor via Fojnica.
(2) Hungarian Interests. — The real obstacle to the
improvement of the Bosnian railway system has been
the attitude not of the Austrian but of the Hungarian
Government, which has taken advantage of the fact
that all the existing railways lead through Hungarian
territory to try to force all traffic to pass through
Budapest. Nevertheless Austria, the industrial
part of the Monarchy, provided 70 per cent., and
Hungary, the agricultural rival of Bosnia, only 30 per
cent, of the imports from the Monarchy. The
Doberlin-Banjaluka extension would have done much
to remove this anomaly. The Hungarians were com
pensated under the new scheme by a more direct line
from Hungary into Bosnia. This was to leave the
existing Hungarian line at Samac on the Save and
run up the valley of the Bosna to Doboj on the Brod-
Sarajevo line. The narrow gauge line from Doboj to
Sarajevo was to be normalised, and thus direct com
munication by a normal gauge line would have been
established between Sarajevo and Budapest. The
connection with Hungary was to be further secured by
a line from Brcka on the Save (which town was
already on the Hungarian system) to Tuzla.
(3) Local Interests. — The part of the scheme
hitherto described concerns the interests of Austria
and Hungary almost as much as those of the provinces.
The two remaining lines chiefly concern the latter only.
The first of these is the branch from the Brcka-Tuzla
line to Bjelina and Raca in the extreme north-eastern
corner of Bosnia, by which the rich Posavina district
would have been opened up for the first time. The
second is the line from Novi to Bihac on the Croatian
frontier in the extreme north-west of Bosnia. This
line was to be built entirely at Bosnian expense.

38 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [*».*
(4) Serbian Interests. — It is hardly necessary to
say that these formed no part of the scheme of exten
sion. Nevertheless it is important to note, in view of
existing circumstances, what were the Serbian aspira
tions in respect of railway extension in Bosnia. It is
here that the strategic railway running south-east from
Sarajevo is all-important, for it is evidently destined
to be one of the chief connections between Old Serbia
and the Adriatic, as well as between Bosnia and New
Serbia and the yEgean. Now that the Serbian line
has been extended from Uzhitse to Vardiste in Bosnia,
access to the sea is secured tor Serbia, either by way of
Sarajevo-Mostar-Gravosa (or Neum-Klek) or, when
the line Bugojno-Arzano is completed, via Sarajevo to
Spalato. (d) Posts, Telegraphs, and Telephones
In 1914 there were 249 post offices and 405 telegraph
stations, all under the control of the military and sub
ject to the same conditions as those of the Monarchy.
The General Post Office in Sarajevo was opened in
1913, and here both the telegraph and telephone ser
vices are centralised.
Two postal motor-car services are now in operation :
one from Banjaluka to Jajce, and the other from Novi
to Bihac.
There were in 1914, 6,625 miles of telegraph and 990
miles of telephone wire. Subscribers to the Sarajevo
telephone service pay an annual rate of £4 3s. $d., and
a three minutes' call costs 3d.

(2) External Ports
Bosnia is wholly an inland province, but Herze
govina has two very small stretches of sea coast. The
first of these is on the southern side of the estuary
of the River Narenta; and it is possible that
here will be found the solution of the difficult

Herze!ov\ta] POSTS ; PORTS ; LABOUR 39*
problem of procuring for the two provinces a satis
factory outlet on the sea. The Dalmatian port of
Metkovic has for some time past been declining — a
process due to the silt carried down by the Narenta and
also to the prevalence of malaria. Gravosa has, there
fore, supplanted it; but Gravosa lies too far south
to form a convenient port for Bosnia. It would,
however, be quite possible to construct a wholly
new port on the small stretch of Herzegovinian sea
coast; and for some years past the Bosnian Diet has
favoured a project of this kind. Such a port could be
formed in Klek Bay, an inlet 3^ miles long and \ mile
broad, with an entrance four cables wide and 13
fathoms deep and a general depth of 10-14 fathoms,
which is described in the Admiralty Pilot as "an
excellent port for vessels of the deepest draught."
Port Neum, which would be the site of the future port,
has already a post and telegraph station and is visited
by the Dalmatian Line steamers of the Metkovic-
Stagno-Piccolo and the Trappano-Stagno-Piccolo ser
vices. It is moreover free from the malaria which
devastates Metkovic. At present, however, it has no
railway connections of any kind and not even a mole.
The second point at which Herzegovina touches the
sea is in the Bocche di Cattaro, a short way west of
Castelnuovo between Kobito Point and the mouth of
the River Sutorina. But this stretch has only a
historical interest. (B) INDUSTRY
(1) Labour
Labour Supply, Emigration and Immigration
The population of the two provinces increased from
1,158,164 in 1879 to 1,898,044 in 1910. It is difficult
to give a definite opinion on the supply of labour. On
the one hand it is asserted that, so far as agriculture is
concerned, it is adequate, and that any further in
crease of the population will have to find employment

40 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. 12
in industrial pursuits. On the other hand, it has been
said that there is plenty of untilled soil suitable for
colonisation. So far as immigration is concerned, there were in
the provinces in 1910 46,859 immigrants (forming
2-47 per cent, of the entire population) from the
Austrian part of the Monarchy; 61,151 (or 3 -23 per
cent.) from the lands of the Hungarian Crown, three-
fourths of them coming from Croatia-Slavonia ; and
6,581 (or 0-34 per cent.) foreigners. In the early
years of the occupation the Government encouraged
colonists and gave grants of land and various privi
leges to them. Thus there was a settlement of Catholic
Germans, chiefly from Westphalia, in the district of
Banjaluka, while in the Posavina district were two
settlements of German Calvinists from Hungary. The
total number of such settlers amounted in 1905 to
9,660. Latterly, however, the growth of the nation
alist movement has led to this policy of encouragement
being abandoned, though naturally the real reason for
the change has not been admitted.
In accordance with usual custom, Austria has put
all possible obstacles in the way of emigration; and
those intending to leave the country have to obtain
permission from the Government and. the police. The
Administration prided itself on the fact that after the
occupation few Mohammedans emigrated except the
Turkish officials, but it would probably have been
better if greater numbers had done so, for the obsti
nate conservatism of the Mohammedans has been a
great hindrance to the progress of the country. Nor
has the Government acted wisely in putting diffi
culties in the way of emigration to America, for the
example of Italy has shown iiow much good may
accrue to the mother country from such emigration,
which is often only temporary. From 1883 to 1905
only 32,625 persons emigrated from Bosnia and
Herzegovina (of whom 4,042 returned), a yearly
average of 1,243, or scarcely 6-33 per cent, of the
yearly increase of the population.

He^vVna] LABOUR; AGRICULTURE 41
(2) Agriculture
(a) Products of Commercial Value1
The agricultural progress of Bosnia and Herze
govina in recent years has been remarkable. It is
estimated that between 1882 and 1910 the amount of
cereals produced increased by 78 per cent. ; of potatoes
by 190 per cent. ; of tobacco by 167 per cent. ; of plums
by 94 per cent. ; and of grapes by 73 per cent. Under
the Turks the chief interest of the inhabitants, espe
cially in the forest and Karst regions, lay in the
raising of live-stock. This was accounted for by the
fact that cattle were not taxed at all, and sheep, goats,
and pigs only very lightly, whereas agricultural pro
duce was liable to the State for tithe and to the land
lord for his share (see below, under Land Tenure). In
times of danger, too, live-stock could be .more easily
placed in safety, while' the general oriental outlook of
the inhabitants was responsible for laziness and scorn
of bodily labour, this tending again to elevate "Feld-
graswirthschaft " above '' Feldbau."
In 1910 the agricultural population of Bosnia-
Herzegovina was 1,668,887, or about 88 per cent, of
the whole. According to another estimate, two-thirds
of the working population were actually employed on
the land. In Bosnia especially conditions both of soil
and climate are propitious to agriculture, and failure
of crops is practically unknown. The districts spe
cially named in the consular reports as grain-growing
areas — Bjelina, Zenica, Dervent, Livno, Gradiska,
Tesanj, and Bugojno— are all in Bosnia. Herzego
vina, a mountainous country with an uncertain rain
fall and liable to excessive heat in summer, is less
favourably endowed. Its hills are mostly barren rock,
and cultivation is possible only in the valleys and
hollows. Tobacco and the vine, however, both flourish
exceptionally well, and many thousands of aores of
1 For the amount of the produce of the chief crops in 1909 and
1910, Bee Appendix, Table LTI.

42 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS LNo^
arid, stony ground, at present unproductive, could be
prontabiy laid out in vineyards, while the extensive
Alpine pastures might be put to far fuller use than
they are at present.
Cereals. — Maize is the most important crop, as it
forms the staple food of the peasants and labouring
classes. In 1912 the yield was 217,000 metric tons/
It is specially grown in north-west Bosnia in the neigh
bourhoods of .banjaluka, Prijedor, and Bihac.
Wheat is the only winter crop of any kind sown in
the country. It is all bearded, is chiefly sown in the
autumn, and in favourable seasons yields two crops a
year in some parts of Herzegovina. As there is not
enough wheat grown to satisfy the domestic demand,
nearly 10,000 metric tons of flour are annually im
ported from Hungary. The finest wheat is grown in
and around Banjaluka.
Oats rank next in importance, the finest of these
also coming from the province of Banjaluka, where
climatic conditions favour the crop. Before the
Austrian occupation they were little cultivated, as,
according to' the custom of the East, horses were fed on
barley. Now, however, they are in great demand.
The importance of barley has steadily increased;
and in 1895 the Government took steps to improve the
quality of the crop by the introduction of fresh seed.
One hundred and fifty tons are daily consumed in the
country. Excellent beer is also brewed in considerable
quantities, the principal brewery being the Aktien-
brauerei Sarajevo.
Rice was formerly grown in some parts of Herzego
vina, where irrigation was possible, but it has been
found much more profitable to grow tobacco there
instead. Wine. — The climate and soil of Herzegovina are
particularly well suited to the vine, especially in the
1 Compared with 81,000 metric tons of wheat, 69,000 of oats,
62,000 of barley, and 11,000 of rye. In the same year the yield
of hay was 712,000 metric tons, and of potatoes 95,000 metric
tons.

Herzegovina] AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS 43
fruitful valley of the Narenta, where the vineyards
give by far the greatest yield.
In 1888 the Government established1 a model vine
yard at Buna, near Mostar, where some nineteen acres
were put under cultivation; and in 1893, with a view
to further development, distributed fine cuttings of
new varieties of vine among the peasants and gave
demonstrations in modern methods of cultivation.
They also supplied the utensils necessary to the indus
try either free of charge or at a very low price on the
instalment system. These measures, combined with
the introduction of chemicals for the prevention of
disease, from which the vines are on the whole remark
ably immune, greatly stimulated efficiency in vine
dressing. In recent years, however, when phylloxera
spread' from Dalmatia — it was especially destructive
in the neighbourhood of Mostar — no steps were taken
to stamp out the scourge or to replant the affected
vineyards. In 1910 16,000 acres of new ground were made over
to viticulture, 95 per cent, of this area being in Herze
govina, where the sandy soil is congenial to the
Arabian vine. The quality of the wine, of which
zilavka (white) and blatina (red) are the principal
varieties, is fairly good, but would be better were more
care and attention given to manufacture and storage.
The flavour resembles, but is superior to, that of the
Dalmatian wine, being rather strong and sweet.
Modern methods of sterilising and filtering have now
been adopted, and German machines have been im
ported for the purpose. The annual vintage is from
2,000,000 to 3,000,000 gallons. Most of it is consumed
in Bosnia-Herzegovina itself, the rest being exported
to Austria-Hungary.
Fruit and Vegetables. — It has been said that there
are few countries where fruit cultivation is so bound
up with the life of the people. Except in the exposed
districts of south-west Bosnia and north-east Herze
govina, the climate and soil are admirably suited to it.
Plums, which are grown in all parts of the country,

44 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. 12
both by peasants and by landowners, are Of the greatest
commercial as weii as domestic importance; but if the
trees were more scientifically pruned, the ground' better
manured, and sufficient provision made for packing the
fruit, the value of the harvest could be considerably
increased. There is a large trade in dried plums, and drying
ovens of the latest pattern have been installed by
Government at the principal centres of the industry,
which, are in northern Bosnia, especially in the Posa-
vina district. Manufactured products are slivovitz,
or plum brandy; ^estilj, a jam made without sugar;
and legnar, or plum marmalade. All these are con
sumed mainly by the peasants. Nearly aU the crop is
bought up by the Landesbank, and resold to dealers in
Vienna and Budapest.
Pears, apples, cherries, figs, quinces, apricots,
peaches, currants, gooseberries, raspberries, and chest
nuts all flourish luxuriantly in Bosnia or Herzegovina.
The cherries in the valleys of the Narenta and Drina
are remarkably fine, and would find a ready sale if
properly packed. At present they are gathered without
their stalks, and consequently receive much damage in
transit. Walnuts, which have received great attention,
are of especial importance. The best grow in Foca,
Cajnica, Konjica, and Mostar. In the sub-tropical
climate of Herzegovina figs, pomegranates, olives, and
oranges are grown for local and Bosnian consumption.
Sarajevo is the chief fruit market for the two provinces.
The following vegetables are cultivated with good
results: potatoes, cabbages, French beans, gourds,
cucumbers, peas, tomatoes, beetroot, lettuce. The cab
bage is of particular importance, being the staple food
of the working classes during the winter. The large
white haricot bean is grown extensively.
Sugar-beet: — The peasants of Tuzla first started
the cultivation of the sugar-beet in 1887. In
view of their success it is now grown in many other
parts of the country, the best being produced in the dis
tricts of Bjelina, Bugojno, Sarajevo, Visoko, and

1SS&3L] AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS 45
Zenioa. Great efforts have been made by the peasants
themselves to improve and extend the cultivation. In
1892 the Government enlarged the sugar factory at
Usora, near Doboj, on the Brod — Sarajevo line of rail
way. The yearly consumption of sugar-beet at this
factory was about 34,448 tons, and in 1896 the annual
production was 30,000 net quintals of sugar. This
supply was almost adequate to the demand of the
country. Only 6,000-8,000 quintals were imported in
1910, but the import has increased since that date.
Tobacco is grown extensively in Herzegovina, where,
as an article of importance in agricultural commerce,
it is only equalled by the vine. The native tobacco
dries quickly, and is strong and very aromatic, the best
crop and finest quality being produced in Trebinje.
The Bosnian plant is inferior, and is only grown T!n
Foca, Banjaluka, and Srebrenica. The trade is a
monopoly of the Government, who have factories at
Sarajevo, Mostar, Banjaluka, and Travnik, and take
over at a fixed price the entire crop with the exception
of a small proportion reserved for the grower's private
consumption, and not allowed to be put on the market.
Prospective growers have to obtain a Government per
mit defining the exact area to be sown. Under suitable
conditions and careful cultivation the yield is often to
the value of £40 per acre, and the area sown increases
annually. In 1912 about 2,200 metric tons of Herze-
govinian and 700 of Bosnian tobacco were worked up
at the factories into about 88,000,000 cigarettes and
90,000,000 packets of tobacco. Seventy-five' per cent.
of the output is consumed in the country, and the
greater part of the remainder is bought by the
Austrian and Hungarian monopolies.
Flax and hemp are only grown in sufficient quan
tities for home industrial spinning, but the quality of
both is good.
Hay is grown on all the uplands, and in Herzego
vina is of particularly fine quality; but the yield is
minimised by the fact that the cattle are left at grass
until March or April, and cutting is postponed until

46 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. 12
July, when the crop is already dried up and the har
vest is likely to be ruined by rain.
Pyrethrum cinerarifolium is grown in a few places
in Herzegovina for the manufacture of insect-powder.
Sunflowers are cultivated widely for the useful oil
their seeds contain.
Silk. — Sericulture was once widespread, but fell into
decay before the Austrian occupation. With a view to
reintroducing the silkworm industry the Government
in 1895 planted some young mulberry trees in the dis
trict of Banjaluka, where the climate is very favour
able. They obtained good silkworm eggs from the State
establishment at Szegzard, in Hungary, which in turn
buys up all the cocoons produced in these provinces.
The only people who have responded to these measures
are the German colonists at Maglaj, on the Vrbas.
The peasants are not eager to experiment in a branch
of farming which is now quite unknown to them, and
they will require a great deal of encouragement and
instruction before they take it up with any enthusiasm
Honey. — Apiculture, on the other hand, enjoys a good
measure of popularity. An association of -beekeepers
at Sarajevo, formed under the auspices of the Govern
ment, and receiving an annual subsidy of 4,000 kr.
(£167), had a membership of 2,500 in 1903, when there
were 6,000 hives1 of up-to-date pattern in the country,
the honey from which was of excellent quality.
Cheese. — Cheese is a popular native product, and
is made either from cow's, sheep's, or goat's milk, as
is also a cheap curd cheese, which is a food of the
peasants. The Trappist agricultural order of monks
at Banjaluka are experts in the making of a mild kind
of Swiss cheese, . which finds a ready market both in
Bosnia and in Austria. The demand for this com
modity far exceeds the supply.

1 In the British Consular Report for 1888 it is stated that there
were estimated to be over 100,000 hives in the country; but the
subject is not mentioned in any subsequent report until that of
1903.

Herzi|oav\na] AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTS

47

Live-stock. — In 1910 the numbers of the live-stock
in the two provinces were estimated to be: —

Horses, mules, and asses

... 228,831

Cattle and buffaloes 

... 1,309,922

Goats 

... 1,393,068

Sheep 

... 2,499,422

Pigs 

... 527,271

The horses of these provinces, though small, are very
strong and hardy. In former times they were held in
high repute; but, owing to the lack of good sires, the
stock has degenerated, the average animal not being
over fourteen hands.
The Government has, however, taken steps to im
prove the breed by the importation of Arab stallions
from the State breeding establishment at Bablona, in
Hungary.1 These are maintained at the Government
depots at Sarajevo, Mostar, and Travnik, and from
March to July are sent to the breeding districts
throughout the country, where the peasant can obtain
their services free of charge. Annual horse-shows
have been instituted, at which good prizes are given
for native exhibits, and at Sarajevo the Government
has laid out an excellent racecourse, where is held an
annual international meeting, at which there are
special entries for native-bred horses.
Notwithstanding these measures, before the breed is
really satisfactory, more judgment will have to be
shown in the choice of stallions. At present the con
sideration of size overrules that of bone and stamina.
Stallions imported direct from Asia Minor would not
only be far better suited to the conditions of a rocky
country like Bosnia-Herzegovina, but would cost much
less than those now procured from Bablona.
The native horses, on account of their low stature,
are better adapted for saddle and pack than for
draught. They are used, however, in preference to
larger breeds, not only to draw the light carts of the
1 Stallion asses have also been imported from Cyprus,

48 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [»o.ia
Bosnian peasants, but even in the Austrian military
transport service.
Cattle. — Although the provinces have been described
as "far better suited for cattle breeding than agri
culture," until comparatively recently there was little
scientific effort to promote the industry. Thirty years
ago the following deplorable conditions obtained: —
" In winter but little care is devoted to the cattle.
Hardly any shelter is given them, and they are left to
pick up what food they can so long as the snow is not
too deep for them to get about, and even when the
ground is frost-bound and deep in snow, barely suffi
cient food, and never anything beyond hay and straw,
is given to keep them alive till the spring."1 In the
exceptionally hard winter of 1887-8 some 25 per cent.
of the cattle perished. It may, perhaps, be taken for
granted that State encouragement has persuaded the
peasant to the practice of a wiser economy. Many
animals have been imported, of breeds selected with a
view to their suitability to the districts- to be supplied.
The bulls are lent to the cattle-owner free of charge,
and the cows sold to him- on the instalment system.
Annual shows, at which pure-bred calves are exhibited,
take place in the various districts, prizes being given
by the Government and additional prizes for bulls kept
in the best condition. By 1895 the number of animals
in the country had almost doubled since the Austrian
occupation ; and, though the census of 1910 showed a
decrease of 76 per cent, in comparison with that taken
fifteen years earlier, this was capable of a satisfactory
explanation, and a compensatory improvement in
quality could be claimed. From 1899 to 1903 there
was a steady increase in the cattle export trade, but
subsequently a rather marked falling off.
The breeding of sheep and goats is everywhere en
couraged. In Herzegovina, and in a few of the more
barren parts of Bosnia., each peasant family is allowed
to keep ten sheep or goats free of tax; and while, for
1 British Consular Eeport (Agriculture), 1888, p. 4.

l&zelov&a] METHOPS OF CULTIVATION 49
the sake of the forests, the tax on goats has been raised,
that on sheep has been lowered. Astrachan sheep have
been introduced from Caracul, a district between Khiva
and Bokhara, and have been successfully reared on the
model farms (see below) at GaSko and Livno.
Swine are reared in the valleys of the Posavina and
Livno and along the Save, but, because of the preju
dices of the Mohammedan population, are not uni
versally kept, and are rarely brought to market. The
native breed is very inferior, but it has been success
fully crossed with the Berkshire.
Poultry and Eggs. — From the Government poultry
farm at Prijedor, in north-west Bosnia, the peasants
can obtain birds and eggs of choice breeds at a very
low price, in some cases even free. This establishment,
which came into being in 1892, has been no small
stimulus to poultry farming, and a good trade has
been done in eggs. Eggs produced in Bosnia-Herze
govina are particularly suitable for export, as they
contain very little fatty matter ; but the peasants have
still to learn the best principles of selection and
methods of packing.
(b) Methods of Cultivation, including irrigation
Methods of cultivation in Bosnia -Herzegovina are as
superficial as they are primitive. Practically the only
assistance given to the soil is to allow it to lie fallow
for periods varying from three to seven years; it is
seldom ploughed to a sufficient depth, receives but
little manure or" chemical dressing, and abounds in
weeds. Naturally, therefore, its output falls far below
its capacity. Only in the case of tobacco do the crops
receive adequate manuring.
Harvesting methods are equally primitive. After
reaping, the grain is trodden out by horses, and is sub
sequently winnowed by being thrown up on a shovel
on a windy day. This entails much loss of time and
labour. A successful harvest depends entirely upon
[2008] E

50 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. 12
the weather, and in a wet autumn a very large propor
tion of the crop is wasted. Cutting is often delayed
until the grain is over-ripe and falling. There have,
however, been distinct signs of improvement in recent
years. The Government has sought to encourage agriculture
by the distribution of the necessary machinery and
implements, which can either be hired or bought out
right by the peasant at a reduced rate on the instal
ment system. In 1912 the Serbian National Bank took
over from the Landesbank a special depot for the sale
of agricultural machinery, and has opened showrooms
at Banjaluka, Bjelina, Brod, and GradiSka.
Irrigation. — Uncertainty of rainfall and frequency
of drought are among the chief obstacles to agricul
tural development, especially in Herzegovina, and in
order to provide against shortage of water numerous
rain-water reservoirs have beehr constructed!. Three
mountain streams have been dammed at Klina, near
Avtovac, for the irrigation of the Gacko plain. Thus
1,482 acres of meadow land have been brought under
cultivation. Formerly this area, though marshy in
winter, was parched in summer, there being frequently
no rainfall for two months. Two good crops of hay
are now annually got from the land, and the peasants
of Gacko find this harvest most remunerative. The
Mlade district, in Ljuvuski,. has also been regulated,
the high spring floods of the Mlade and Imotski
valleys having been controlled and made available for
irrigation. The Livno plain has been drained.
Model Farms. — In order to afford the peasants the
opportunity of learning improved methods of agri
culture the Government established two model farms
in 1886, one at Modric, in the Buna valley (north
Bosnia), the other at Gacko, near the Montenegrin
frontier, in Herzegovina. In 1888, at Livno, near
the Dalmatian frontier, and in 1893, at Butmir, near
Sarajevo, other farms of the same kind were estab
lished, the latter almost exclusively supplying Ilidze

Herz&oT&a] METHODS OF CULTIVATION 51
and Sarajevo with pure milk and vegetables, and
having also mountain stations where cows and sheep
were kept for making cheese in imitation of Western
types. The position of all these farms was carefully
chosen in order to illustrate the different varieties of
climate, soil, and branches of farming. Thus Gacko
and Livno are devoted to' cattle-rearing, the poor,
rocky soil in these localities being little suited to agri
culture. Modrid, lying in the corn-producing plain of
the Posavina, is specially adapted for showing cereal-
growing methods. Ilidz© gives equal attention to both
branches. Experienced farmers are sent from
Austria-Hungary to instruct the peasants. A number
of natives are received as farm pupils, and given food,
lodging and moderate wages. Special attention is
given to the raising of crops for fodder, and the care
needed for the successful rearing of stock. Dairy farm
ing, especially cheese-making, is also demonstrated, a
few dairymen being sent to Hungary for the express
purpose of studying cheese-making. The stations also
serve as bases for the supply of new varieties of seed,
young plants, and new breeds of animals. Theoretical
instruction is given in the winter. These enter
prises have not, however, been attended with much
success, and for some years before the war the Govern
ment was anxious to dispose of them at a low cost.
Model Horticultural Establishments and Gardens. —
Four establishments were laid out by the Government
in 1894, at Dervent and Travnik, in Bosnia, and at
Mostar and Lastva, in Herzegovina. Pupils were
taken, and thousands of young fruit trees and cuttings
were annually distributed to the peasants, special pro
minence being given to the grafted apple, pear, plum,
cherry, quince, apricot, and peach trees. Numbers of
mulberry trees and cuttings of vines, currants, goose
berries and raspberries of the choicest kinds were
also distributed. The peasants seemed eager to obtain
these, especially the vine cuttings. In addition to the
establishments named, one hundred and eighty-,seven
municipal fruit gardens, in various parts of the
[2008] E 2

52 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. 12
country, have been planted with grafted fruit trees for
distribution. (c) Forestry
The forests of Bosnia and Herzegovina cover a
greater extent than those of any country in Europe
except Finland. About half the total area of the two
provinces (that is to say, some 6,672,000 acres) is
reckoned as forest land, but over not more than
3,550,000 acres are the trees fit for felling. The prin
cipal trees are the beeches, which constitute more than
half the trees of the country, and sometimes reach a
height of 200 feet with a girth of 20 feet at the level of
a man's shoulder. They cover the hills of northern
Bosnia up to 2,500 feet. The oak, which used also to
grow on those hills, has almost disappeared. On the
central ranges, where there are altitudes of 5,000 feet,
the characteristic trees are the beech, the ash, the elm,
the fir and the pine ; while on the still higher mountains
further south firs, pines and other conifers predominate.
The chestnut, aspen, willow, hornbeam, birch, alder,
juniper and yew occur in all these districts; also, but
more rarely, mountain ash, hazel, wild plum, pear and
other fruit trees. After the beeches, by far the most
numerous trees are the conifers, of which the black
spruce is of particular value owing to its importance in
shipbuilding. With the exception of small areas, amounting to
about one-fifth of the whole, which are held by the
Mussulman ecclesiastical commissioners or by private
owners, and on which a tithe is levied in proportion to
the net annual profits, the forests are the property of
the Government, without whose permission they cannot
be cut. The timber trade, which is the most important
of Bosnian industries, is almost entirely in foreign
hands; the largest firms being the Bosnische Forst-
industrie A/G Otto Steinbeis, owners of the railway
from Ribnik to Knin, by which the timber is carried to
the Dalmatian port of Sebenico; Eissler and Ortlieb of
Zavidovic ; and the Italian firm of Giuseppe Feltrinelli

Herzegovina] FORESTRY ; LAND TENURE 53
at Sjetline, with headquarters at Milan. The greater
number of the shares of the Steinbeis Company were
recently acquired by the State.
The forests had been suffered by the Turks to fall
into a deplorable condition. Fires, ruthless felling for
the sake of a little firewood, and encroachment by land
lords and peasants alike had wrought great havoc. It
is true that there was an admirable Turkish forest law,
dating from 1869, which divided the forests into four
categories (State, vakuf, village, and private),1 and
regulated the right of the villagers as to the collection
of firewood, &c. ; but, like most Turkish laws, it had re
mained a dead letter. The Austrians have done a great
deal to remedy this state of things. They instituted a
forest department, stopped the indiscriminate fellings
and burnings, and appointed local commissions to in
quire into disputed forest rights. About the beginning
of the century the reclamation of the Herzegovinian
Karst by the planting of saplings was commenced ; and
since the annexation various remedial steps have been
taken, including a goat tax, the restriction of cattle-
grazing areas and the re-afforestation, begun in 1913, of
the denuded areas of Herzegovina. It was also proposed
to surround Sarajevo with a belt of forest. In conse
quence of these measures the timber trade of Bosnia is
a continually increasing one. About 94 per cent, of the
timber for agricultural purposes is exported, of which
about 40 per cent, goes to Italy.
(d) Land Tenure
The land question in Bosnia and Herzegovina is a
very complicated one, and is difficult to explain without
some reference to historical conditions. So far as the
categories of ownership are concerned, it is best to take
the Turkish designations, as most clearly explaining
the situation. Of mulk, or freehold proper, there
1 These categories are now reduced to two — i.e., State and
private. The village or communal forests — i.e., those in which
the inhabitants of the neighbouring villages have extensive rights
—amount to about one-third of the total area of the State forests

54 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS £*o.ia
is very little in Bosnia, and practically only the house,
out-buildings, and a small area of garden or vineyard
come under this head. By far the greater part of the
cultivated land is mirie, which is really a leasehold
tenure, paying tithe to the State as reserved rent. Mulk
can be disposed of freely, mirie only with the consent
of the State. The remaining categories include
vakuf or Mohammedan religious foundations,
mevat, or waste and forest lands, and metruke
(roads, etc.), the last two being State property. The
present land system grew up out of the circumstances
of the Turkish conquest. The result of that conquest
was the creation of an exclusively Mohammedan land
lord class, representing either the Turkish conquerors,
or such of the old feudal nobility of Serb race as em
braced. Islam for the sake of preserving their lands,
or, again, the free yeoman or peasant class. The con
querors cultivated very little themselves, the bulk of the
land being worked by the original Christian owners
in return for a share of the produce ; thus grew up the
kmet class, which has continued to the present day.
(The vakuf lands also were usually leased.) In the
year 1895 out of 221,581 heads of families there were: —
5,833 landlords (agas, begs) ... = 2'63 percent.
86,867 free peasants ... ... = 39'21 ,, ,,
88,970 kmets  ... = 40*15 „ „
22,655 free peasants, who were
also kmets1  = 10*23 „ „
17,256 unattached agricultural
labourers ...  = 7*78 „ „
Although the balance of opinion appears to be against
the kmet system, there is something fo be said for it.
It must be remembered that the kmet is under no per
sonal subjection, and is in no way bound to the soil.
Moreover, the landlord has to provide him with dwell-
1 I.e., an intermediate class, consisting partly of kmets who
have raised themselves, and partly of free peasants who have sunk
in status.

l^teta] LAND TENURE 56
ing house, farm buildings, &c, and to keep them in re
pair; and these are generally in a far better condition
than those of the free peasants. On the other hand, it
is said that the system produces friction between the
landlord and peasant, due partly to economic causes
(see below), and partly to the difference in religion
between them; and that it tends to sap the industry
and energy of the peasant class as a whole. The system
may be summed up as follows : The produce is
divided between the landlord, or aga, and the tenant
(kmet) in certain established proportions. When the
aga provides the seed and the cattle for ploughing, the
division is equal; when the kmet himself finds those
necessaries, he is entitled to two-thirds of the resultant
harvest, and the aga to one-third, though in some parts
of Herzegovina, where the land is very poor, the
tenant's share is three-quarters. The kmet has also to
pay a tithe to the Government ; this is the only land tax
levied. The Austrians have introduced certain reforms
to the benefit of the kmet. Though the aga still takes
his share in kind, the tithe is now paid in money and is
reckoned on a ten years' average; whereas under the old
dispensation a new assessment was made every year and
the Crops were often spoilt while they stood waiting
the advent of the official assessor.
The land question is perhaps the most prominent in
Bosnian politics; and, although at the Congress of
Berlin the Austrian Government recognised its
urgency, the steps which they have since taken have not
proved decisive in their results. They are still accused
by their critics of fostering the antagonism, always
acute, between aga and kmet, and of showing undue
favour to the former. The peasant, it is true, has
always enjoyed the right of pre-emption should
his landlord be willing to sell; but until recently
the terms on which he was obliged to raise the
purchase money were so onerous that he was usually
ruined in the course of acquiring his property.
In 1911 a law came into force to enable him to borrow
from the State the whole sum required, but since

56 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. 12
this law contains no provisions for compulsory sate)
the process of redemption is still likely to be slower
than the enemies of the kmet system would wish.1 That
the law has not been a dead letter, however, there are
figures available to show. Between 1879 and 1909
about 26,000 kmets became freeholders, the largest num
ber of purchasers in any one year being 1,539 in 1909,
at which date some 80,000 kmets still remained.2 Be
tween December 1911, when the new law came into
operation, and the end of July 1912, 4,248 redemption
loans, amounting in the aggregate to £333,000, had
already been sanctioned, the money being derived from
a preliminary advance of £416,000 provided by two
financial groups represented by the Landesbank and
the Agrarbank. By the middle of March 1913 the
number of loans had risen to 8,641, their aggregate
value to £665,000, and the enfranchised area to
203,000 acres. (3) Fisheries
The streams of both provinces are rich in all kinds of
river fish, but especially in various kinds of salmon.
Trout and crayfish are present in the whole Bosna and
Drina districts ; the eel fisheries of the Narenta are
valuable; and salmon, sturgeon, and sterlet from the
Danube are netted in the Save. There is an establish
ment for scientific pisciculture near the source of the
1 According to the calculations of Professor Griinberg, of
Vienna University, the last kmet will not be owner of his land
before the year 2025. With this may be compared the opinion of
His Majesty's Consul-General, expressed, however, before the law
had become effective, that ' ' the process of redemption will, in all
probability, advance with increasing rapidity, so that in a fevi
years' time there will be no kmets left " (British Consular Eeport
for 1910). According to Dr. R. "W. Seton- Watson, writing since
the outbreak of war: " The feudalism of the Moslem Beys still
survives almost unimpaired, and land purchase is only in its most
elementary stage." (The Balkans, Italy, and the Adriatic, p. 43).
2 In 1885 the proportion of free peasants to kmets was as
11 to 19, or 36-66 per cent, to 63 -33 per cent. In 1895 it was as
20 to 23, or 46 -51 per cent, to 53 -49 per cent.

HeSetro^a] FISHERIES; MINERALS 57
Bosna, 1\ miles west of Ilidze ; there are four ponds,
with space for 600,000 fish, ,and river trout is the chief
object of attention. Only, about 300,000 fish of the finer
kinds were caught annually before 1899, but since then
the industry has been greatly developed.
(4) Minerals1
The province of Bosnia is rich in minerals of com
mercial value. The most abundant of these are salt,
coal, and iron, but the manganese and chrome ore de
posits are also of great importance. The copper and
quicksilver mine at Mascara was closed in 1909, but
both copper and lead have been worked during the war.
Asbestos was discovered at Halilovar in 1897, and it is
believed by experts that Karst bauxite seams extend
into Bosnia and Herzegovina. In olden times both gold
and silver were worked in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
Gold is actually found in the districts watered by the
Rivers Vrbas, Lasva, Fojnica, and Rama. Silver is
found, chiefly in connection with galena, especially at
Srebrenica, where the mines had already been worked
by the Romans and in the Middle Ages. Since the
occupation, researches have been made both by the
Government and by private enterprise for alluvial gold
and for silver mines, but they have so far been attended
with no great results.
The mineral wealth of Herzegovina scarcely admits
of comparison with that of Bosnia, but has never yet
been satisfactorily explored.
The mining law of Bosnia and Herzegovina is that
of 1882, which is based on the Austrian mining law of
1854. It regulates the granting of concessions for the
working of minerals, which are a State monopoly.
With few exceptions the mines are either entirely in
the hands of the Government or worked by companies
in which the Government holds a considerable interest.
Salt. — The salt springs form one of the most valuable
commercial assets of Bosnia-Herzegovina. The most
1 The figures given are, except in specified cases, taken from
the Bosanski Glasnik or Bosnischer Bote for 1918,

58 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. 12
important are those at Tuzla, where there are 8 bore
holes with an average depth of 300 metres. The yearly
output of brine is 200,000 cubic metres, of which
125,000 are used by the Ammoniak-Sodafabrik
Lukavac. The rest goes to the saltworks at Kreka and
Siminhan. There are six pans at each of these works,
and their combined yearly production is 36,000 metric
tons, converted into 30,000 metric tons of fine salt,
5,800 of coarse salt, and 200 of briquets. This product
is largely consumed in the country.
Coal. — The coal of Bosnia-Herzegovina is most satis
factory in quality, and were there better facilities for
transport and greater enterprise shown by the pro
ducers a considerable export trade might well be
developed. The three mines of Kreka, Zenica, and
Kakanj Doboj alone supplied all the requirements of
the province in 1903. At the most recent international
congress of geologists it was estimated that the lignite
deposits amounted to 3,676,000,000 tons, of which half
have been opened up. In 1916 the total output of
lignite was estimated at 930,000 metric tons, an in
crease of 130,000 metric tons over 1915. *
The following are the principal centres of the in
dustry, the mines in each case being owned and worked
by the State.
Kreka, near Tuzla. — These mines have been steadily
working since 1884. They are run by electricity,
and produce annually some 350,000 metric tons
of lignite. The workers number 910.
Zenica. — The Mining Treasury in 1886 took these
mines over from the Viennese Coaling Industry.
The staff employed here numbers 600, and there
is an annual output of 150,000 metric tons.
Breza, near Podlugovi. — This mine commenced
operations in 1907. It has developed rapidly,
and the average yearly production for 1918 was
170,000 metric tons. The workers number 560.

1 Neue Freie Presse, September 25, 1918.

Bosnia and
Herzegovina

] MINERALS 59

Banjaluka. — The annual output of these mines,
which were opened in 1897, was at one time
20,000 metric tons, but now stands at 12,000
metric tons. There are 70 workers.
Kaka,nj-Doboj. — New coal mines were opened here
in 1900. Their situation on the Brod-Sarajevo
line of railway should greatly help in their
development. Their yearly production is at
present 160,000 metric tons, and the number of
men employed 680.
Uglijevik, near Bjelina. — This coal pit, with a work
ing staff of 12, maintains an annual production
of 5,000 metric tons of lignite.
Chrome Ore. — The chrome ore mines at Dubostica are
the only mines of their kind in Europe. The deposits
of chrome earth are abundant, but scattered over a con
siderable area, which necessitates the periodic shifting
of the mining plant. Operations are carried out by
the Gewerkschaft Bosnia, and their chemists reckon
that the raw ore, as extracted, contains 44 to 50 per
cent, of oxide of chromium. The yearly output of ore,
which doubled between 1915 and 1916, is now 900
metric tons.
Iron and Steel. — The centres of the iron industry are
the ironworks at Vares, which are under Government
administration, and the iron and steel works at Zenica,
which are supplied with metal from the blast furnaces
at VareS, and produce 18,000 metric tons of rolled iron
goods yearly. These, though of a very rough descrip
tion, are of good quality and quite adequate to the
needs of the country and of the neighbouring Balkan
states, to which they are exported in considerable quan
tities. In 1900 the Vares" works, where the yearly out
put is 150,000 metric tons of ore, 43,000 metric tons of
pig-iron, and 4,000 metric tons of castings, paid a divi
dend of 13^ per cent., while those at Zenica were " very
moderately prosperous." In 1903 the dividend from
Vares was 9 per cent., but Zenica was reported " to
have achieved rather better results than hitherto.'^ On

60 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. 12
the whole, though the fortunes of the industry have
shown a tendency to fluctuate, there seems to be no
reason why, given favourable circumstances, it should
not prosper.1 In 1916, in view of the scarcity of ore
for the State foundries, the Prijedor deposits were
opened by the military authorities and extensive opera
tions commenced, a railway 18 kilometres long having
been built from the mine to the station at Prijedor.
The ore of the State seams at Ljubija (Prijedor) is
said to be plentiful and of excellent quality.
Manganese. — There is a mine at Semizovac which
has been worked by the Gewerkschaft Bosnia since
1881. The yearly output is some 20,000 metric tons
of pure ore,2 which are exported. Pig-iron is used in
the initial processes of refinement. The workers
number 180.
Mineral Springs. — Bosnia-Herzegovina abounds in
mineral springs of all kinds, the majority of which,
though remaining unexploited, should, yield a con
siderable profit under scientific management.
The sulphur springs at Ilidze have been famous
since the days of the Romans. A hydropathic estab
lishment was opened there in 1898, and has been
largely frequented, adding to the attractions of the
already popular bathing resort. In former times the
hot sulphur springs were only used for bathing, but
arrangements have now been made by which the
patients can drink the water medicinally.
The Guber springs at Srebrenica, which, have been
working since 1889 with a staff of 60 workers, now
produce annually some 300,000 bottles of arsenic-iron
water, which find a ready sale on foreign markets.

1 In 1915 the total output of ore for the provinces was 110,000
metric tons ; in 1916 it rose to 160,000 ; while it was estimated (per
haps rather generously) that the output for 1918 would be between
500,000 and 600,000 metric tons. (Neue Freie Presse, September
25, 1918.) 1 In 1916 the output is said to have been 22,700 metric tons,
which was nearly five times the pre-war output.

Bosnia and 1
Herzegovina J

MINERALS

61

Mineral Output. — The Statesman's Year Book for
1918 gives the following figures for the mineral out
put of Bosnia-Herzegovina: —

Mineral.

1914.

1915.

metric cwts.

metric cwts.

Coal

8,068,310

7,988,916

Iron ore

1,778,301

, 1,104,095

Manganese

41,200

104,221

Pig-iron

440,780

257,009

Steel ingots. .

285,203

189,333

Rolled iron

227,793

140,192

hectolitres

hectolitres

Salt

1,577,248

1,465,354

The total value was
7,700,000 kr. in 1915.

6,670,000 kr. in 1914 and

(5) Manufactures
The industrial development of Bosnia-Herzegovina
has been thwarted by lack of capital and the sluggish
state of the money markets in recent years. There
are few factories, most of which are under Govern
ment control. Such private firms as exist are unable
to compete with the large foreign houses, and their
custom is purely local. The total number of industrial
enterprises in 1912 was 492.
Chemicals. — By far the most important factories are
those concerned in the production of chemicals. These
are for the most part well-equipped with modern plant
and machinery. The factory organising staffs have
proved themselves capable and far-seeing, preparing
for all emergencies and year by year developing the
industry to a high grade of efficiency.
The following are the chief chemical factories:—
The Bosnische Mineralolprodukten- und Chemikal-
ienfabrik Danica, which was originally a depen-

62 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no. is
dency of the Ammonia Soda Factory at Lukavac,
has proved a most successful enterprise, well
staffed and capably managed, dealing with' some
2,400 waggons of Galician crude oil, 80 per cent.
containing paraffin and 20 per cent, free of paraffin.
Its annual production averages 1,500 waggons of
various mixed petroleums, benzine, spindle oil, mixed
and machine oil, refined and rough paraffin, and blue,
gas and Diesel-motor oil. The factory also produces
asphalt, coke, vaseline and vulcan oil. About 25-30
per cent, of the total output is exported, petroleum to
Turkey and the Balkan States, the rest to England,
France, Switzerland, Italy, and South America. The
factory is connected by an overhead line and two small
branch lines, also by telephone with the railway station
of Bosna Brod. In May, 1912, it employed 250 hands.
The Ammonia Soda Factory (Erste Bosnische Am-
moniaksoda Fabriks- Aktiengesellschaft), established
at Lukavac, near Tuzla, with a working capital of
4,500,000 kronen, consumes annually some 125,000
cubic metres of salt water from the Tuzla Salt
Works, and 6,000 waggons of coal from the mines at
Kreka. The annual output averages 2,200 waggons of
ammonia soda, 400 waggons of caustic soda, and 200
waggons of crystal soda. Considerable quantities of
calcium carbide and pyroligneous acid are produced.
The works employ some 310 workpeople, and the wages
are good.
The Bosnische Holzverwertungs-A ktiengesellschaft
in Teslid specialises in the products of beechwood,
methylic alcohol, pyroligneous acid and charcoal. They
make a speciality of the chemical treatment of railway
sleepers and building timber to preserve them from rot.
The manufacture of acetone and acetate of lime were
included in the company's original activities but were
abandoned on account of unsuitability of plant.
The enterprise has provedvery successful, and in 1901
held a contract with the Government iron works at
Vare§, by which, up till 1916, the latter were to take
the entire output of charcoal. Some 300,000 cubic

b3£&£&J MANUFACTURES 63
metres of beechwood are dealt with annually, and 2,500
workmen are employed in the forests and 1,000 in the
factory. The Bosnische Elektricitats- Aktiengesellschaft in
Jajce (formerly known as the Elektricitdtswerke in
Jajce) is chiefly concerned with the production of
calcium carbide. As the process is a secret one it is
very difficult to get access to the works, which are said
to be the largest of their kind in Europe. In 1898 the
company acquired from the Government the sole right
of utilising the water power of the celebrated Pliva
waterfall for the production of electric motive power.
The beauty of the falls has in no way been marred, and
the power derived from them is very considerable. In
1901, owing to a glut on the market, the original
company failed and was taken over by a combine which
included the Frankfurter Gold- und Silberscheide-
Anstalt and the Wiener Credit-Anstalt. The new
enterprise has proved very successful, and has included
the production of chloride of lime and caustic soda in
its activities. About 600 persons are employed.
Wine, Tobacco, and Sugar. — See under Agriculture.
Minor and Home Industries. There is at Sarajevo,
under Government control, a carpet factory, which is
also a school of instruction and has numerous branches
in other towns ; it produces carpets which compete with
those of Persia, Turkey, and Bulgaria, and are
exported to. most European countries; the yarn is
imported from Bradford. There are also in Sarajevo a
Government embroidery factory, and ateliers where the
peasants are instructed in the home production of
chased and inlaid wood, leather and metal goods, which
are of high quality and popular in foreign markets.
A kind of Broussa silk and a cotton fabric of a
similar nature are widely made by the native women
in their own homes. This industry is also encouraged
by the Government, under whose auspices the goods
find ready purchasers in France and the Dual
Monarchy.

64 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no.is

(6) Power
Owing to its excellent natural water supply, and to
the precipitous course of its rivers, Bosnia-Herze
govina is assured of a plentiful supply of hydraulic
power. The water system of the country is good,1 and
electricity is in use for both light and power in all the
chief towns. Water power and the production and
distribution of electricity are strictly under Govern
ment control ; terms are low and conditions satisfactory.
Generating stations are numerous and are capably run.
Hydro-electric installations provide motive power for
many mines, metallurgic enterprises and factories, and
an increasing number of towns are supplied with
electric tramway systems. The more important schemes
recently begun or projected include an electric power
station for Sarajevo, and another at Jablanica, where
the Aussig Chemico-Metallurgical Association has a
concession for utilizing the waters of the Narenta to
provide 21,000 h.p. for a chemical factory and 5,000
h.p. to work the Sarajevo-Mostar railway.

(C) COMMERCE
* (1) Domestic ,
(a) Principal Branches of Trade
On the subject of internal trade there is nothing of
significance to add to what has already been indicated
in connection with the various industrial, and more
particularly the agricultural, pursuits of the
population.,

1 ' ' Since 1882 not a year has passed buu some town in Bosnia
or the Herzegovina has been provided with waterworks. " (British
Consular Eeport, 1903, p. 11.)

He^vfta] COMMERCE; TOWNS, Ac.
(b) Towns, Market's, and Fairs

65

Population (accord

Town

ing to census returns

Principal Industries.

of Oct. 10, 1910).

Sarajevo -
51,919
i Timber, flour, beer, cigarettes,
inlaid gold and silver work,
carpets and embroidery.
MksBfe .
16,392
Wine, tobacco,- fruit, vegetables.
Banjaluka
14,800
Cereals^ live-stock, farm produce,
skins, bees.
Tuzla ..
11,333
Salt, plums, coal, live-stock,
bricks, electric power.
Bjelina. .
10,061
¦ Fruit, grain, plums, plum brandy,
j live-stock.
Zenioa . .
7,215
Coal, iron and ironworks, plums,
grain, hides.
1 ravnik
6,647
Tobacco, horses, sheep.
Brcka . .
6,511
. Plums, live-stock.
Bihad
1 " 6,201
Maize, fruit, horses, cattle,
Dervent
5,363
Grain, live-stock, plums.
Prijedor
5,184
Grain, maize, eggs, plum brandy.
Livno
. . • .
Wool, grain, hay, sheep, goats.
Jajce . .
t • • *
Chemicals.
Gradiska
i • • •- •
Grain.
Brod ..
• * • ¦
Plums, swine.
Tesanj
....
Live-stock, plums, grain.
Konjica
* « . .
Fruit.
Buigojno

Beetroot, grain, live-stock.
Markets are held bi-weekly in most of the principal
towns, the peasants often bringing their produce from
a great distance. Fairs are held at festival times and,
like most mid-European events of this kind, combine
commercial activity with entertainment.
(e) Organizations to promote Trade and Commerce
A Chamber of Commerce was established in 1909 to
further the trade and industiy of the provinces. Its
activities are multifarious, and its foundation was
regarded " as a link in the chain of measures preceding
[2008] £
66 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [*o.a
the endowment of the country with partial self-
government."1 The Government, .however, keeps a
certain control over it by the presence at its sittings
of a commissary appointed by the Common Minister of
Finance. There are Co-operative Societies scattered over the
country for the purpose of providing loans, encourag
ing thrift, facilitating the sale of produce, supplying
the necessaries of agriculture and purchasing land.
The membership and funds of these were consider
able, but on the outbreak of war the Orthodox organi
sations were dissolved and their property confiscated.
Industrial Education. — At the technical school at
Sarajevo, founded in 1895, carpentry, lock- and black-
smithery, carriage-building, and other trades are
taught. Only native pupils are accepted. In 1897
practical agricultural instruction was introduced into
the village schools. The instruction given at the State
model farms and gardens is referred to elsewhere.
(See pp. 50-51).

(dj Openings for British Trade
It is difficult to give exact figures as to British trade
in Bosnia and Herzegovina,, as very few British goods
come directly to the provinces. Most of them are
ordered through merchants at Vienna, " who in this
respect act as distributing agents for the whole of
Austria- Hungary," the only exceptions being small
quantities of stationery, jam and table delicacies.
Another difficulty arises from the fact that the term
" Engleska roba " (English goods) does not necessarily
mean that the goods are British at all. " The Austrian
manufacturer," said the British Consul at Sarajevo
in 1910, "seeks to appropriate for his productions
some of the halo surrounding British goods by affixing
to his own wares fictitious trade marks and designa-
1 British Consular Eeport, 1908, p. 10.

!85kSv&j COMMERCE 67
tions in English. The retailer is aware of this, but
allows his customer to be deceived by these devices.
He argues that it is after all one of the tricks of his
trade to which he is justified in resorting. The English
label affixed to a hat or an overcoat of Austrian manu
facture will often decide a wavering customer to buy
the article. And, as customers persist in asking for
British goods at prices far below those at which it
would be possible to sell them, the trader who does not
wish to lose his trade considers that he has no alterna
tive but to keep a stock of ' Engleska roba,' more or
less English in style and design. The appellation
'English ' has, in fact, almost come to be a generic
term used to denote the style and design rather than
the origin of an article." There is, however, a demand
for a large number of genuine British goods of various
kinds, among the more important of which are agri
cultural and other machinery. Most of the motor cars
used are of German origin, strongly built for wear
and tear in a mountainous country ; but there appears
to be an opening for British-made cycle cars, steam
locomobiles, oil and benzine motors, driving and
threshing machines and flour mills. At present most
of the ploughs, reaping machines, etc., are of Austrian
make, though Sweden supplies some of the locomobiles
and America some of the machines. There is a great
demand for cotton yarns, but at present British yarns
constitute only 2^ per cent, of the total required. It is
reported that they could easily improve their position.
The same may be said of woollens, hosiery, haber
dashery, linoleum and oilcloth. Most of the cutlery
being supplied from Germany, the trade in Sheffield
goods has wholly ceased; but it could be revived. Other
British industries to which attention has been directed
include coke — " which should eventually capture the
market, as being better and cheaper than its only rival,
Wfstphalian " — jute and jute manufactures, Scotch
herrings, mustard, rubber heel-plates, games (even the
footballs used in Association football come from
Berlin), perfumery, and photographic apparatus.
[2008] G

68

ECONOMIC CONDITIONS
(2) Foreign

[No. 18

If we consider Bosnia and Herzegovina as component
parts of Austria-Hungary, their foreign trade is ex
tremely small, their exports being limited to timber,
shipped from the Austrian ports, and some live-stock,
which chiefly goes to Italy ; whilst the share of. foreign
countries in their imports is even smaller, only a very
small fraction being supplied by countries other than
Austria-Hungary. For purposes of convenience, how
ever, Bosnia and Herzegovina are here considered as
an independent entity, and the flow of goods into and
out of the country, which would normally come under
the heading of internal trade, is classed here under im
ports and exports.1 Austria herself considers Bosnia-
Herzegovina as a colony which supplies its raw pro
duce to the mother country in return for manufactured
goods. The balance of the trade is all in Austria's
favour; she supplies far more than she receives, and
her trade with her " colony " during the period 1904-13
was much greater than that of Hungary, since she coulld
supply what Bosnia needed, and needed what Bosnia
could supply.
The general trade movement of the country between
1905 and 1913 was as follows: — i

Year.

Exports.

Imports.

Totals,

Average. 1905-09 1910
1911 19121913

£
3,878,0005,536,4595,073,5615,424,126 5,753,708

£
4,013,118 6,022,4596,420,9157,279,7298,370,667

£
7,891,118
11,558,91811,494,47612,703,85514,124,375

Up to 1909 exports and imports kept pace with each
other, but since that date the exports have shown ofily
a slight increase, whilst the imports have increased
1 For detailed figures see Appendix,

He£&oavVL] COMMERCE (EXPORTS) 69
enormously. This growing disproportion is to be attri
buted to (a) the rising cost of manufactured articles,
which form a large proportion of the import: agricul
tural produce has. not shown an increase in prices which
is at all commensurate; (b) the cultural development of
the people, bringing with it a higher standard of
living; and (c) in the case of 1912 and 1913, the con
centration of troops in the country in consequence of
the Balkan Wars, which diminished the export of live
stock and augmented the import of other foodstuffs.

(a) Exports
The most important exports of Bosnia-Herzegovina
are timber, live-stock and the products of the plum
(prunes and plum brandy). No others approach these
in economic value.
Timber represents 50 per cent, of the total quantity
of goods exported from Bosnia, and about 25 percent.
of the total value. The values of timber in 1911, 1912,
and 1913 were respectively £1,431,125, £1,385,875, and
£1,376,667. About three-quarters of this export was
sawn timber, and the rest sleepers, staves for casks,
firewood, etc. About seven-tenths went through Croatia
and Slavonia, and three-tenths to Dalmatia, but the
ports of Sebenico, Spalato, Metkovic and Gravosa were
steadily increasing their proportion of the trade. The
percentages were as follows: —

Year.

Croatia and
Slavonia.

Dalmatia.

Serbia, Turkey
and Montenegro.

1910 1911
19121913

77-9876-82
77-61
75-38

21-32
22-4421-51
24-55

0-70
0-740-88
0-07

The ultimate destinations of Bosnian timber were
very varied, including Egypt, the Argentine, Belgium,
[2008] G 2

70

ECONOMIC CONDITIONS

[No. 18

China, Great Britain, France, Greece, Holland, Italy,
Asia Minor, the East Indies, the Persian Gulf, and
West, South and North- West Africa; a little went to
the Balkan countries, Germany and Switzerland. For
the years 1906-8 the respective percentages of Bosnian
timber taken by the chief foreign customers were: —
Italy 39 66 per cent., Egypt 14-46 per cent., Hungary,
Croatia and Slavonia 13-77 per cent., Austria 6-53 per
cent., France 5-78 per cent., Tunis and North- West
Africa 3 53 per cent., Spain 3-02 per cent., Germany
2:84 per cent, Senegal and West Africa 2-79 per cent.,
Great Britain 2-64 per cent.
Live-stock. — The export of live-stock shows the
following figures in recent years: —

Average 1905-9.

1910.

1911.

1912.

£
619,033

£
980,306

£
525,667

£
980,500

For 1913 total figures are unavailable, but the value
of the cattle, horses, mules, and donkeys exported was
£657,375 ; this leaves out of account sheep, goats, pigs
and buffaloes.
The following were the numbers of the different
animals exported in the years 1910-13: —

1910.

1911.

1912.

1913.

Horses

12,578

9,716

8,052

5,207

Mules and Donkeys

135

301

422

411

Cattle

121,203

33,471

78,555

58,348

Buffaloes

179

43

115

13

Sheep

68,892

50,517

56,279

83,717

Goats

46,868

13,701

21,656

41,720

Pigs

10,839

6,568

14,004

17,790

Total ..

260,694

114,317

179,083

207,206

Bosnia and ~\
Herzegovina]

Exports

71

The large export in 1910, and also in the preceding
year was due to the tariff war between Austria and
Serbia, which encouraged the export of Bosnian live
stock into Austria to take the place of Serbian. • The
normal export was to Austria, Hungary and Italy,
together with a negligible quantity to Serbia and
Turkey, which by 1913 had ceased altogether; there
was probably a small export to other countries via the
Dalmatian ports. All cattle exported via Croatia and
Slavonia went to Austria and Hungary (by far the
larger proportion to Austria); that through the
Dalmatian ports went chiefly to Italy. The following
percentages represent the respective proportions: —

Year.

Croatia and
Slavonia.

Dalmatia.

Serbia.

Turkey.

1910
1911 19121913

55-36
, 36-04
1 66-01
45-42

44-63 63-95
• 33-9954-58

0-01

0-01

Austria imported from Bosnia the following
numbers of cattle : —

1910.

1911.

1912.

.1913

140,498

138,230

109,978

91,590

There was a considerable export of fresh meat,
mainly pork.
The diminution in 1912 and 1913 was due to the in
creased consumption within the country, which is to be
accounted for by the increase of garrison troops result
ing from the Balkan Wars.
Plums, y-~Fresh. plums are catalogued under fruit ; the
large plum-product export consists of dried plums and

-72

ECONOMIC CONDITIONS

[No. IS

zwetschkenmus, a native spirit distilled from plums.
The values of this export were as follows: — ¦¦

Year.

Dried plums.

Zwetschkenmus.

Total.

1910
1911 19121913

£
174,595
279,251 76,772
463,064

£
60,200
35,784 13,458
110,078

£
234,795
315,035 90,230 ,
573,142

Tobacco, raw and manufactured. — The values of the
exports in the period 1910-13 were: —

1910.

1911.

1912.

1913.

£
160,570

£
153,265

£
7,085

£
68,738

The export of tobacco fluctuates greatly, but as its
average value in the period 1905-9 was only a little over
£40,000, whilst the figures of 1910 and 1911 show'a con
siderable advance on this, it would seem to have a future
before it in normal years.
Countries of Destination. — The bulk of the exports
Went to Austria and Hungary; but timber was re
exported from Trieste to other countries, and a fluc
tuating proportion of the live-stock went to Italy. The
small share taken by other countries may be presumed
from the fact that the Statistische Monatsschrift for
April and May. 1916, reviewing Bosnian commerce up
to 1914, does not find it worth while to give separate
figures for goods sent to Austria and to ojther countries.

Bosnia and 1
HerzegrovinaJ

EXPORTS

73

It gives the following values for Austria plus othei
countries and for Hungary: —

Y«ar

Austria and other countries.

Hungary.

Value.

Percentage.

Value.

Percentage.

1909 1910
1911 19121913

£
3,884,5424,486,917 3,993,9174,053|8344,652,000

77-1381-04 78-7274-7480-85

£
1,151,5421,049,542 1,079,6671,370,2921,101,708

22-87 18-96
21-2825-26 19-15

Taking all the figures from 1904 to 1913 inclusive,
Hungary's share in the exports of Bosnia amounted to
one-fifth only.
(6) Imports
The two outstanding imports are articles of consump
tion (food, drink and tobacco) and textiles. The value
of the former shows a rapid rise; the chief article is
flour, of which the import in 1913 reached a value of
£743,667, whilst the maize import was £290,958,
making a total for flour and maize alone of £1,034,625.
Coffee in 1913 was imported to the value of £409,125,
and sugar to the value of £208,792, both having nearly
doubled in value since 1904.
The textile and clothing import was very large in
1911 and 1913, but rather lower in 1912; the 1913 value
was made up as follows : —

Raw cotton and cotton yarn
Cotton goods
Clothing 
Linenngoods Various

£
.. 213,208
.. 303,917
.. 617,417
.. 120,500
.. 142,458
£1,397,500

74

ECONOMIC CONDITIONS

[No, 18

This is an increase of half as much again on the
average value imported 1905-9.
The value of the machinery import was making
enormous strides. The average value yearly imported
in the period 1905-9 was £104,000, in 1913 the value
was over £541,600. Most of the other imports show a
very steady upward tendency.
Countries of Origin. — Austria-Hungary was almost
the only supplier. The relative proportions supplied
by Austria and Hungary are seen in the following
figures, the amount supplied by other countries being
so small as not to require special attention.

Austria and other countries.

Hungary.

Year.

Value.
Percentage.
Value.
Percentage.
£
£
1909
4,055,708
69-76
1,758,417
30-24
1910
4,305,792
71-50
1,716,667
28-50
1911
4,397,417
68-49
2,023,500
31-51
1912
5,220,792
71-72
2,059,042
28-28
1913
5,907,583
70-55
2,463,083
29-45
Taking all the figures from 1904 to 1913 inclusive,
Hungary's share in the imports of Bosnia amounted to
one-third. Transit Trade. — A small proportion of the imports
are transit goods intended for Novi-Bazar. They
chiefly consist of furniture and cotton goods. No
statistics are available. (c) Customs and Tariffs
Bosnia-Herzegovina is included in the Austro-
Hungarian customs union, and receives an annual sum
of 600,000 kr. under the title of customs awersum
(compensation). This amount was fixed in 1879 on the
basis of the trade returns for that year, and, although
the foreign trade of the provinces has since increased
considerably, has never been raised.
Bosnia and 1
HerzegrovinaJ

IMPORTS; FINANCE

75

(D) FINANCE
(1) Public Finance
The principal items in the budgets of Bosnia-
Herzegovina for the years 1911 and 1912 are as

follows:

Receipts.

1911.

1912.

£

£

Tobacco

615.253

631,806

Railways

524,514

567,917

Commuted tithe

310,590

307,118

Excise

245,486

272,917

Mines

243,298

257,243

Forests

183,272

230,621

Stamps

125,069

136,875

Salt

126,875

130,348

Land, house and income taxes

112,257

128,577

Liquor licences

48,611

48,611

Miscellaneous

212,326

221,961

Debit balance

14,106

—

Total..

2,761,657

2,933,994

Expenditure.



1911.

1912.

£

£

Railways

498,002

526,389

Service of loans

253,215

269,724

Bosno-Herzegovinian troops . .

234,207

248,879

Mines

229,267

241,854

Tobacco administration

233,514

238,228

Education

179,279

196,568

Justice . . . . . • • •

163,698

178,605

Gendarmerie. .

158,974

163,594

Public works

123,282

136,865

Woods and forests

98,118

99,354

Sanitary services

58,528

61,050

Salt administration. ..

56,243

53,473

Civil service and miscellaneous

476,330

519,068

Credit balance

—

343

Total . . . . . .

2,761,657

2,933,994

76 ECONOMIC CONDITIONS [no.is
Taxes are levied under the following heads: —
1. An octroi on all goods entering Sarajevo and other
large towns.
2. State monopoly dues on tobacco and salt.
3. The tithe on agricultural produce (see above,
under Land Tenure).
4. House tax.
5. Income tax (which before the war was levied at
the rate of 4 per 1,000 on every individual).
6. Mining royalties.
7. Pig, goat, and sheep tax.
(2) Currency
The currency of Bosnia-Herzegovina is the same as
that of Austria-Hungary. (3) Banking
The banking business of the provinces is very largely
based on foreign capital. The Privileged National
Bank (Privilegirte Landesbank, Privilegovana Ze-
maljska Banka), which has a paid-up capital of
14,000,000 kr. and a deposit account with the Austro-
Hungarian Bank, has a far larger clientele than all
the other banks together. Until 1909 it was the only
institution in the country that did mortgage business;
but in that year was founded, with a fully paid-up
capital of 8,000,000 kr., the Privileged Agrarian and
Commercial Bank (Privilegirte Agrarische und Kom-
merziale Bank, Privilegovana Agrarna i Kommer-
cijalna Banka), of which the object of the agrarian
section is to carry on business in mortgages, and in par
ticular to advance money to the kmets for the purpose
of land purchase. The Austro-Bosnian Bank was
started in 1912 by the Union Bank of Vienna and the
Boden-Credit-Anstalt to take over the business
formerly transacted by the Union Bank. Its capital
was increased from 4,000,000 kr. to 8,000,000 kr. in
1917.

iSE&v&a] FINANCE; BANKING 77
Besides these the most important banks are the
Croatian, Moslem and Serbian Central Banks, with
their affiliations, which are all in intimate relation
ship with the Union Bank and the Landesbank. Their
business consists mainly in discounting bills and
negotiating small loans.
A Post Office Savings Bank was opened in 1911 and
has proved popular.
In 1918, under the direction of the Pester Erster
Vaterlandisoher Sparkassenverein and the Nieder-
Oesterreichische Escomptebank, a new bank, the
Bosnische Industrie und Handelsbank, was established
at Sarajevo with a share capital of 6,000,000 kr., among
its objects being the exploitation of the natural wealth
of Bosnia.1
The number of peasants' loan societies, which are
worked on the Raiffeisen system, increased from 73 in
1910 to 228 at the end of 1912.

(E) GENERAL REMARKS
Any consideration of the present state, or conjecture
as to the future, of a country about which for more
than four years only the most casual and unreliable
information has been available, must needs be purely
tentative; and when that country is one whose inhabi
tants enjoy, or suffer under, an alien domination,
generalisation is doubly hazardous, for it is almost im
possible to disinfect one's conclusions from the political
taint of the authorities on which they are necessarily
based. It may safely be asserted that Bosnia-
Herzegovina has resources both agricultural and
mineral which have not yet been developed to anything
like their full extent, and that the Christian Slavonic
peasantry is. backward in culture and primitive in its
industrial methods; but, while some would attribute
this to the Bosnian's native indolence, others
put it down to his discouragement at seeing his land in
1 Algemeen Handelsblad, August 20, 1918.

78 Economic conditions j>o.i»
the hands of the Moslem and his political destiny at
the disposition of Austria- In the eyes of many the
kmet system of land tenure is an unmitigated curse,
while according to one authority, whose view is endorsed
by so careful an observer as Miller, it is " a golden law
for the peasant." It is scarcely to be disputed that
since the Austrian occupation many substantial reforms
have been introduced, some of which at any rate, such
as the abolition of the road corvee, have been directly
beneficial to the whole population; but the Slavophil
maintains that from the vast majority of these reforms
only the German or Magyar colonist has reaped, or
been intended to reap, any advantage. In any case the
determining causes of the progress or stagnation of
Bosnian commerce are not altogether political. The
prosperity of a country so predominantly agricultural
must always depend to a large extent on the harvest;
and that, however up to date the mechanical devices
employed to produce and protect it, can never be en
tirely under human control. The industries of the pro
vinces, moreover, although " the financial history of the
occupation in the Budget returns is one of unbroken
success,"1 have always been hampered by lack of
capital. Nevertheless, until the outbreak of the Balkan
War,3 the trade returns had for a good many years
shown a steady increase ; and, though direct trade with
England was almost insignificant, there were indica
tions that the demand for British goods might easily
have been stimulated (see above, pp. 66-7).

"Drage, Austria-Hungary, p. 631.
2 ' ' Traders of experience declare that not for many years past
have conditions been so bad as those which have prevailed since
the outbreak of the war. They are, nevertheless, convinced that
once the crisis is over a period of good trade and easy financial con
ditions will set in." (British Consular Report, 1912, p. 7.)

Bosnia and 1
HerzegrovinaJ

EXPORTS; IMPORTS

79

APPENDIX
Table I.— VALUE OP PRINCIPAL EXPORTS, 1905-1910.

Average 1905-9.

1910.

£

£

Cereals

299,070

397,250

Chemicals (including drugs, dyes, and

explosives)
365,393
401,215
Foods and fodder
378,130
419,169
Iron and iron manufactures
318,836
374,197
Iron ore, base metals, &c.
78,120
78,252
Leather and leather manufactures
14,195
21,714
Live-stock
619,033
980,306
Oils and fats
84,944
87,446
Paper
55,963
117,078
Spirits, wine, &c.
108,261
63,607
Textiles (wool, cotton, linen, silk, &c.) . .
144,256
146,248
Timber, wood products, and coal
1.076,235
1,182,034
Tobacco (raw only — not manufactured) . .
42,753
133,809
Table II.— VALUE OP PRINCIPAL IMPORTS, 1905-1910.

Average, 1905-9.
1910.
Base metals and manufactures
Bricks, earthenware and cement. .
Cereals
Chemicals (including drugs, dyes and
explosives)
Coal and timber
Foodstuffs . , . . 
£
69,997
66,041
719,307 126,903 44,877
450,837
£
61,191
100,347
690,192 146,535 51,977
687,327
80

IMPORTS; CROPS
Table II — (continued?).

No. 18

Average, 1905-9.

1910.

£

£

Glass

35,604

60,952

Iron and steel " . .

299,463

406,133

Leather

145,329

225,282

Live-stock

111,085

225,543

Machinery

104,666

91,174

Oils and fats

197,569

250,466

Paper

41,577

51,517

Spirits, wines, &c. .

181,085

244,338

Textiles

841,323

1,121,549

Vehicles

54,317

66,037

Table IIL— PRODUCE OF THE CHIEF CROPS IN 1909 AND 1 910

1909.

1910.

,Quintals
Quintals
Wheat 
723,373
929,416
Rye 
104,166
118,580
Barley
765,580
684,398
Oats
766,808
898,843
Maize
2,787,066
2,503,010
Potatoes
1,439,703
822,593
Plums (black and white)
222,358
176,118
Beet sugar
257,338
112,927
Tobacco
52,267
39,550
Bosnia and 1
Herzegovina J

AUTHORITIES Historical
The early history of the country can be conveniently read in
Caix de Saint- Aymour's Les Pays Sud-Slaves de V Autriche-Hon-
grie (1883) ; and a useful summary of the history from the earliest
times to 1448 will be found in an article by Wm. Miller in the
English Historical Review, 1898, Bosnia before the Turkish Con
quest. More recent history is to be found in the chapters on
Austria in the Cambridge Modern History; Hertslet's Map of
Europe by Treaty, vols. II and IV, for various documents, includ
ing Andr&ssy's Note of December 30, 1875; Larmeroux (Jean), La
Politique exterieure de I'Autriche-Hongrie, chaps. I, II, III (Paris,
1918) ; and the Foreign Office Confidential Reports of 1906-13.
Wertheimer's (Ed. von) Graf Julius Andrassy, sein Leben und
seine Zeit' (Stuttgart, 1913) is particularly valuable for the diplo
macy which preceded the Occupation, and for the Congress of
Berlin. Sosnosky's (Theodor von) Die Balkanpolitik Oesterreich-
Ungarns seit 1866 (Stuttgart and Berlin, 1913 and 1914) is an
essential book. It includes a detailed account of the military
operations connected with the occupation, and an elaborate
analysis, from the Austrian point of view, of the effect of the
annexation on public opinion in Europe.
As regards present conditions Geoffrey Drage's Austria-Hun
gary (1909) tabulates the dominant facts and statistics in a
convenient form; and William Miller's Travel and Politics in the
Near East, chap. Ill (1898), contains a useful criticism of them
by an intelligent observer.
The subject can be viewed from an Austrian standpoint in
Dr. J. M. Baernreither's Bosnische Eindriicke (Vienna, 1908), and
from a Serbo-Croat one in Vouk Primorac's La Question Yougo-
Slave (Paris, 1918); Cvijid's L' Annexion de la Bosnie et la Ques
tion serbe (Paris, 1909); Andre Barre's La Bosnie-Hemegovine
(Paris, 1906); Nikola Stojanovid's Bosnie-Herzegovine (Geneva,
1915); and The Southern Slavs, Land, and People (London, 1916).
Other authorities are August Foumier's Wie wir zu Bosnien
kamen (Vienna, 1909); A. Chervin's L'Autriche et la Hongrie de
demain (Paris, 1915), chap. XVIII; E. Denis's La Grande Serbie
(Paris, 1915), ehap. VIII; and Sir Charles Eliot's Turkey in Europe
(London, 1908).

82 • AUTHORITIES [N°-£-*§£&rd
Economic
British and Itahan Consular Reports, 1888-1912.
Census of Bosnia, 1895.
Die Landeswirthschaft in Bosnien. Sarajevo, 189P.
Bordeaux, A. La Bosnie populaire. Paris, 1904.
Capus, G. A travers la Bosnie, &c. Paris, 1896.
Denis, E. La Grande Serbie. Paris, 1915.
Deage, Geoffeey. Austria-Hungary. London, 1909.
Foebes, Nevill, and others. The Balkans : a History. Oxford,
1915.
Laffeat, M. Livre Bleu Serbe.
Lamox, Pieeee de. La Jugoslavie. Paris, 1916.
Lewin, Percy Evans. The German Road to the East. London,
1916.
Loiseau, Charles. Le Balkan slave et la Grise Autrichienne
Paris, 1898.
Mill'er, W. Travels and Politics in the Near East. London
1898.
Newbigin, Marion J. Geographical Aspects of Balkan Pro
blems. London, 1915. _ '
Renner, H. Lurch Bosnien und die Herzegowina. Berlin, .189^
Schmid, Ferdinand. Bosnien und die Herzegowina Leinzii--
1914. 6'
Seton-Watson, R. W. The Southern Slav Question and the
Hapsburg Monarchy. London, 1911.
 German, Slav, and Magyar. London, 1916.
Spalajkovic, J. La Bosnie et VHerzegovine. Paris, 1897.
Stoianovitch, Nikola. Bosnie-Herzdgovine. Geneva, 1917.
Nuova Encyclopedia Italiana, vols. IV and VIII.
Southern Slav Library.
Compass : Finanzielles Jahrbuch fiir Oesterreich-Unqarn Vienna
1911.
Bulletin Jugoslav, 1914-18.
Articles in the Sarajevo Tagblatt, Statistische M onat ss chrif t, The
New Europe, &c. Maps
Bosnia and Herzegovina are covered by four sheets (L 33
Trieste, L. 34 Buda-Pesth, K. 33 Roma, K. 34 Sofiya; G.S.G S
2758) of the " International " Map published by the War Office on
the scale of 1 : 1 ,000,000.
For ethnography, see the Ethnographical Map of Central and
South-East Europe, issued by the War Office (G.S.G.S. 3703a) in
four sheets : Maps, Vol. 4, in this series; and " L'Europe ethniai
et linguistique : Atlas descriptif, en trois cartes," published Win
Agostini's Geographical Institute, Novara (1917). y ei
YALE

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