rove that the
Crown Prince had no legal right to make known his opinion in that
manner[51:1].

Those who now held the reins in Norway, had to carry out their plans
before the worked up excitement cooled down. Therfore the way of the
negotiations was so dangerous. The Crown Prince found it necessary to
consent to a change of Ministry. Mr MICHELSEN, who was pointed out as the
man equal to the situation, was summoned, also a so called mixed Cabinet
consisting of Ministers of different parties; the two Prime Ministers,
however, Mr MICHELSEN und Mr LOeVLAND, were rank radicals. In the
beginning of March the Special Committee appointed by the Storthing were
able preliminarily to communicate the plan to be followed; it was not a
novel one, it was the old method from the beginning of the nineties to
take matters, especially those relating to the Consular service, into
"their own hands".

In the middle of March the Crown Prince returned to Stockholm, and here
twelve members of the Diet were immediately summoned, according to
decrees in the government regulations, in order to confer with the Crown
Prince Regent on the matter.

On the 5th April the Crown Prince, as Regent, dictated a proposal in the
joint Cabinet[51:2] that the two governments should immediately open
negotiations in view of the settlement of all matters concerning the
Union on the basis of the programme for a mutual Minister for Foreign
affairs and separate Consular services. He, at the same time, declared
himself willing to accept other proposals for the settlement of the
matter so long as the joint control of Foreign affairs was allowed to
remain undisturbed, as that was an indispensable guarantee for the
continuance of the Union[52:1].

On the publication of the Crown Prince-Regent's proposal, the Prime
Minister BOSTROeM, against whom the wrath of the Norwegians had especially
been directed, resigned his office, which was immediately placed in the
hands of State Secretary RAMSTEDT. The Crown Prince's proposal was
immediately unanimously adopted on motions from the leading men in both
Chambers of the Diet[52:2].

_In this we thus find a clear and unevasive offer from Sweden to Norway,
for the establisment of full equality within the Union, and that too in
terms to which Sweden would never have consented but a few years
back_[52:3].

But the course of Norwegian politics could not be obstructed. The goal
was already in sight. In a communication from the No