itself. _This latter
conception has been adopted of old._

[15:1] Compare No. I Secs. 5, 15, 30, 31.

[18:1] The Swedish majority had contemplated a provision in the Act of
Union, wherevy it became incumbent for both Kingdoms to place a fixed
minimum of fighting forces to the disposition of the Union.

[18:2] NANSEN says (page 71) "Divisions arose partly over the resistance
from the Swedish side to the unanimous demand of the Norwegian delegates
for a separate Consular Service." This is, as plainly apparent, an
extremely modified version of the truth.

III.

[Sidenote: _His Excellency Mr. Lagerheim's Proposal._]

His Excellency Mr. LAGERHEIM'S proposal implied an attempt to settle the
Consular Question itself, by retaining the existing Foreign
Administration and dissolving the joint Consular Service. By doing this,
he plainly foresaw that the Consular Question would inevitably be raised
afresh on the part of Norway. It was necessary therefore to lead the work
of reform in the quiet paths of Union negotiations, in order to prevent
the old attempts on Norway's side "to take matters into her own hands",
to the detriment of the harmony in the Union. If results in that way
could be gained, negotiative operations might win more confidence from
distrustful Norwegian politicians. The Swedish government seems also to
have taken into account the contingency that, by making this offer, they
would get Norway to meet them half way, and agree sooner or later to a
definite solution of the Union conflict, by a reorganisation, on the
grounds of having a joint Minister for Foreign affairs.

In one respect, it was undeniably a good opportunity for such an attempt.
The violent Russianizing of Finland, and the undefined plots it
concealed, could not fail to open the eyes of many in Norway. Even
Norwegian Radicals were obliged to acknowledge that the integrity of the
Kingdoms of Scandinavia formed a necessary guarantee for their freedom
and independence[19:1]. It was certainly on that account that their
courage was not so fully shared by all, when the Norwegian Radicals
prepared to renew their old efforts to break the Union. An honourable
compromise with Sweden, on that occasion, would probably have been
acceptable.

But Mr LAGERHEIM'S experiment had, on all hands, almost insurmountable
difficulties through which to pilot its way.

[Sidenote: _The difficulties attending the satisfactory settlement of the
Consular Question