OCR Text |
Show House of Nobles Long Prominent in Sweden The Swedish house of nobles, the ancient national body of Swedish uo-hleiueu. uo-hleiueu. hokl I heir solemn ussetnbly lu the "house or knights," kuown as the finest specimen of old Stockholm architecture. , The families belonging to the house of uohlea now number (M 19 of whom ure counts, IUj barons, aud the remaining 471 ordinary noblemen. The house or nobles la quite a wealthy Inst li utlon. Its total assets now amount to a sum of over l'J.WKJ,- tKJti kre r (ahoiit Sti.mxi.OdO). The house also has no fewer than 211) benevolent funds, with a combined capital of well over a million kroner, enabling the directors of the house to pay out annual suhventlons unci scholarships lo children In need or Mmineial .support for tlo-lr education, as well as pensions to widows and orphans. Formerly Sweden's noblemen had many evchislve privileges and pre rogatives that tntve now heeii alio! Ished; hut they still form a linn and stable element In the social structure of Sweden, conscious of the obligations obliga-tions of their ancient traditions of knightly chivalry and patriotic loyalty. loy-alty. Kxehunge. |