The Bernadottes,
lacking comprehension of the Norwegian character, had shown themselves
purblind as bats in their dealings with Norway. They had mistaken a
perfectly legitimate desire for self-government for a demonstration of
hostility to Sweden and the royal house; and instead of identifying
themselves with the national movement (which they might well have done),
they fought it, first by cautious measures of repression, and later by
vetoes and open defiance. Charles XV., and, later, Oscar II., kept the
minority ministries, Stang and Selmer, in power, with a bland disregard
of popular condemnation, and snapped their fingers at the parliamentary
majorities which, for well-nigh a quarter of a century, fought
persistently, bravely, and not altogether vainly, for their country's
rights.
There is no doubt that Norway is the most democratic country in Europe,
if not in the world. There is a far sturdier sense of personal worth, a
far more fearless assertion of equality, and a far more democratic
feeling permeating society than, for instance, in the United States.
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