always begins, "Good gentlemen and Swedish men." The prime minister
then reads a review of the acts of state since the adjournment of
parliament, which he skims over as rapidly as possible, because the
printed copy will be placed in the hands of every person present as
soon as the ceremony is over. The presiding officers of the two houses
of parliament step forward and make speeches of congratulation, and
reassure their sovereign of their loyalty and respect. The king then
rises, bows first to the queen, and to each house in turn, and slowly
leaves the chamber accompanied by the procession that followed him in.

The courts of Sweden are conducted upon the French plan, and no jury
is ever impaneled except in cases concerning the liberty of the press.
When a newspaper is accused of libel or sedition, the complainant,
whether he be a member of the police or any other official of the
government, chooses three jurymen, the defendant three, and the court
three. These nine men hear and decide the merits of the case without
application of such strict rules of evidence as prevail in the legal
practice of the United States. All judicial procedure in Sweden is
based upon the assumption that the court is sufficiently intelligent
and impartial to determine the reliability of witnesses and to judge
of the application of facts laid before it. All judges and judicial
magistrates are appointed for life on good behavior, but they can be
impeached by processes similar to those authorized by the Constitution
of the United States.[g]




CHAPTER VIII