the chief city of the canton of Aargau, situated on the right bank of the river Aar, at the south base of the Jura. It is well built, paved, and lighted, and contains 4500 inhabitants, whose principal occupations are spinning and weaving cotton, making silk ribbons, bleaching, and casting cannon. Lat. 47.23.35. N., Long. 6.2.55. E. The famous baths of Schintzach are about ten miles distant along the right bank of the Aar. The inhabitants are chiefly Protestants.

ARGAU, or ARGOVIA, one of the cantons of Switzerland. It was originally a part of Berne, but by arrangements begun in 1798, and continued in 1803, it was erected into a separate and independent canton. It is bounded on the north by the river Rhine, which divides it from the duchy of Baden, on the east by Zurich, on the south-east by Zug, on the south by Lucerne, on the south-west by Berne, and on the west by Solothurn and Basle. Its extent is 502 square miles, and it is divided into eleven circles, which are again subdivided into forty-eight smaller ones. By the census taken in 1850, the number of inhabitants amounted to 193,720, comprehending 107,194 Protestants, 91,096 Catholics, and about 1500 Jews.

The greater part of the canton is either level or undulating, but some of the mountains on the right bank of the Aar are of the height of 2700 feet. The chief river is the Rhine, which forms the boundary, and is navigable, though, on account of shoals and rocks, with difficulty. That river receives into it the water of the Aar, the Wigger, the Suren, the Reuss, and the Limmat, as well as that of many smaller brooks and rivulets. The climate is milder than in most parts of Switzerland.

The rearing of cattle, agriculture, and the cultivation of vines and other fruits, are carried on with great activity; and in its towns and villages are found tradesmen, mechanics, and manufactories of all kinds. This is one of the cantons most distinguished for industry and generally diffused prosperity; and by the union of pastoral with mechanical pursuits the citizens have attained a comfort almost unparalleled. The education of the people, by the establishment of improved schools, and by popular publications, has been greatly promoted within the last thirty or forty years, especially in the Protestant parts of the canton.

The legislative power is vested in the great council, consisting of two hundred members, the one half Catholics, and the other Protestants—who are elected by the general body of the people every six years. A lesser Council, consisting of nine members, is elected by the members of the great Council out of their own body for a like period of six years. The preparation of the annual financial reports is committed to this body, as also the initiative in legislation, subject to the approval and sanction of the great Council. Each circle has a Justice of the Peace who decides in matters under 16 francs. The District Court decides in cases above that sum; but in cases above 160 francs its decision can be appealed to the Highest Court. This canton possesses a military force of 16,000 men, and its resources amount to 16,000,000 of francs, or about £600,000; its income is about 680,000 francs or £27,200, and its expenditure about 650,000 francs or £26,000.