Switzerland (La Suisse, Schweiz, Svizzera), the most mountainous country in Europe, lies between 45° 48' and 47° 49' N. Lat., and 5° 55' and 10° 30' E. Long., having France on the W. between Basle on the Rhine and Geneva on the Rhone, the boundary line being formed by one of the ridges of the Jura Mountains, and by the River Doubs, an affluent of the Rhone. On the S. are Savoy, Piedmont, and Lombardy, from which it is separated by the Lake of Geneva, and high ranges of the Alps. To the E. are the principality of Lichtenstein, the Vorarlberg, and the Tyrol, Canton Ticino and some small portions of the Grisons are on the south side of the main chain of the Alps. On the N. lie Württemberg, Lake Constance, and Baden. The town of Constance, with a limited tract about it on the south of the lake, belongs to Baden, while the Canton of Schaffhausen, and a small portion of that of Zurich, lie to the north of the Rhine. The greatest length of the country is from E. to W., in Lat. 46° 30', where it is 200 miles in extent; and its greatest breadth,—about the 9th parallel of E. Long,—is 135 miles. Between Switzerland and Sardinia the boundary line is strongly defined, except towards the west, where the Canton of Geneva is partially surrounded by Savoy, Chablais, and Faucigny, lately ceded by Sardinia to France. Towards the eastern extremity of the Lake of Geneva, where a high range of the Alps terminates on the banks of the lake near St Gingolph, the line runs southward along this range until it reaches the mountain-knot of Mont Blanc. Thence it runs eastward along the higher portion of the Pennine Alps to Mont Rosa, where it turns to the N.E. along the Leponite Alps to the great mountain-mass enveloping the Pass of St Gotard. From this point it trends southward, and afterwards S.E. to the Lago Maggiore. From this lake the line passes southward to the western arm of the Lake of Lugano, the central portion of which lake belongs to Switzerland, whilst the south-western and north-eastern extremities belong to Lombardy. A tract of land, extending several miles to the south of the lake, is also included in Switzerland. About 4 miles to the east of the town of Lugano commences a mountain-range, which, passing to the north, separates the valley of St Giacomo, belonging to Lombardy, from that of Misocco, which belongs to Switzerland. This range meets the principal chain of the Rhaetian Alps at the Pass of the Splügen. After proceeding a few miles only along this chain, the line extends to the east and south along a lateral range, crosses the valley of Bregaglia a few miles above Chiavenna, and meets the Bernina range, forming the southernmost of the three chains of the Rhaetian Alps. The valleys of Poschiavo and Münster, on the southern side of the range, belong, however, to Switzerland; while that of Livigno forms a portion of Lombardy, so that the line here does not follow the water-parting. From the southern extremity of the valley of Münster, bordering on the Tyrol, the line passes nearly due north, and, crossing the valley of the Inn, meets the central chain of the Rhaetian Alps. Passing S.W. along this, it meets the lateral chain called the Rhäticon, which runs N.W. between the Prättigau, belonging to Switzerland, and the Montafoner valley, which belongs to Austria. The mountains of the Rhäticon terminate on the Rhine to the north of Meyenfeld. Up to the point where it enters the Lake of Constance, the Rhine forms the boundary between Austria and Switzerland. The Lake of Constance separates Switzerland from Bavaria and Württemberg, the harbour of Lindau forming the chief point of communication with the former, and that of Friedrichshafen with the latter kingdom. The entire length of boundary is 1040 miles, composed as follows,—602 miles of mountains, 235 of plains, and 203 of water.

The confederation of Switzerland at present consists of political twenty-two sovereign states or cantons, the areas of which, divisions with number of inhabitants, and other statistical data, are given in the following table:— | Canton | Area in Sq. Miles | Population in 1850 | Population in 1863 | Number of Proprietors | Number of Possessors | Services | Chief Industry | Agriculture, and manufacture of salable productions | Remarks | |--------|------------------|--------------------|-------------------|----------------------|---------------------|----------|---------------|-------------------------------------------------|---------| | Aargau | 501 | 143,000 | 182,755 | 199,852 | 255,606 | Tableland, sloping towards the Rhine, highlands, offshoots the lower Alps | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Arbon, Appenzell, Herisau | 4,927 | | Appenzell | 123 | 55,000 | 59,876 | 64,803 | 110,681 | Offsets of the Jura | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Appenzell | 2,910 | | St. Gall | 184 | 45,900 | 63,434 | 77,583 | 141,100 | Offsets of the Jura | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Baden | 8,557 | | Thurgau | 2,543 | 201,200 | 407,913 | 458,201 | 67,210 | Offsets of the Jura | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Lichtenau | 27,313 | | Fribourg | 553 | 67,914 | 91,145 | 156,893 | 109,625 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Berne | 3,032 | | Gail, S. | 728 | 130,901 | 156,893 | 109,625 | 26,579 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Fribourg | 27,758 | | Genf | 91 | 44,000 | 55,695 | 64,146 | 15,275 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Genf | 9,665 | | Glarus | 279 | 75,575 | 92,348 | 89,026 | 39,933 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Glarus | 11,224 | | Graubünden | 2,665 | 75,200 | 86,700 | 134,821 | 132,849 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Graubünden | 36,554 | | Luzern | 586 | 80,700 | 140,722 | 58,016 | 70,533 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Luzern | 4,062 | | Neuchâtel | 250 | 30,000 | 39,282 | 35,200 | 7,961 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Neuchâtel | 5,343 | | Schaffhausen | 115 | 28,000 | 40,750 | 44,168 | 6,907 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Schaffhausen | 10,008 | | Schwyz | 338 | 28,000 | 40,750 | 44,168 | 6,907 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Schwyz | 7,757 | | Solothurn | 254 | 47,882 | 63,196 | 69,674 | 11,503 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Solothurn | 7,757 | | Thurgau | 258 | 78,633 | 84,195 | 88,908 | 16,852 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Thurgau | 7,757 | | Uri | 1,003 | 88,703 | 113,921 | 117,729 | 24,714 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Uri | 7,757 | | Unterwalden | 922 | 21,300 | 22,571 | 22,571 | 2,133 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Unterwalden | 7,757 | | Vaud | 85 | 14,900 | 15,929 | 183,352 | 44,304 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Vaud | 7,757 | | Zug | 684 | 145,315 | 145,315 | 190,675 | 37,056 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Zug | 7,757 | | Zurich | 15,729 | 1,728,127 | 2,090,288 | 2,929,740 | 650,667 | Offsets of the Rhine, Alpine pastures | Agriculture, pasture, dairying, cattle raising | Zurich | 7,757 |

*According to extracts from five volumes published between 1854 and 1858 by command of the federal government under the title of "Materials for the Statistics of Switzerland," and kindly furnished by Professor Paul Chalck of Geneva, the agricultural statistics, comprising sheep, arable land, and building, etc., being together about 31% of the entire area of 17,722 sq. leagues.

Glaciers and snows are calculated to increase by 20%, whereas the population has increased by 20%. This country was anciently called Helvetia, from its first known inhabitants; its more modern name is supposed to be derived from the canton of Schwytz, the cradle of Swiss independence. Little is known of the inhabitants of Switzerland till about one hundred years before Christ, when the Cimbri, a race of barbarians inhabiting the northern regions of the Chersonesus Cimbrica, now known as North and South Jutland or Sleswig, crossed the Rhine, and extended their conquests into Gaul. Several of the Helvetic tribes, tempted by the immense spoils gained by the Cimbri, entered into an alliance with them, and carried their united ravages nearly to the mouth of the Rhone. In this extremity, the Gauls applied for assistance to the Romans, who speedily sent a powerful army to their assistance, under the command of the consul, Lucius Cassius. This force, however, was suddenly attacked on the banks of the Lake of Geneva by the Tigurini, a tribe of the Helvetii, led by a young general named Divico. The Romans were totally defeated, the consul and his lieutenant, Piso, left dead on the field, and the survivors only permitted to retreat after they had given hostages and marched under the yoke. Emboldened by this success, Divico rejoined the Cimbri, and with their united forces crossed the Alps and entered Italy itself; where, however, they were defeated by Marius with tremendous slaughter, and the few who escaped sought refuge among the fastnesses of the Helvetian mountains.

For nearly half a century after this decisive defeat, the Helvetii confined themselves to their own country. But the recollection of rich pastures and fertile plains outlived the terror of the Roman arms, and made them resolve once more to quit their rocky fastnesses. After spending three years in preparation, they set out with their wives and families, cattle and possessions, led by the same Divico who had commanded their fathers fifty years before. The number who marched out on this expedition is computed at 368,000 souls, of whom 92,000 were able-bodied warriors.

The Roman province of Gaul was at that time under the government of Julius Caesar, and that consummate general no sooner heard of the emigration of the Helvetians, than he took effectual measures to defeat their plans. After some abortive attempts at negociation, he attacked and defeated them in two engagements, with tremendous slaughter. Their strength and spirit were completely broken, and, overwhelmed with shame and grief, their numbers reduced to scarcely 100,000, they returned to their desolated country and rebuilt their ruined habitations. In order to watch and overawe them, Caesar erected a fortress at Noviodunum (Nyon), on the banks of the Lake of Geneva, and established several other garrisons in different parts of the country.

The Helvetii were at first the allies of the Roman people, but in the reign of Augustus they were reduced to complete subjection, and their country remained in the condition of a Roman province for upwards of three centuries, and underwent various reverses of fortune, according to the prosperous or adverse fortune of the empire to which it was subject. When the innumerable swarms of barbarians, issuing from the unknown regions of the north and east, overran Italy and destroyed the Roman empire, Switzerland also became their prey. The Goths established themselves in that portion of the country which bordered on Italy; the Burgundians, a tribe of the Wends, from the shores of the Baltic, fixed their residence on both sides of the Jura, on the Lake of Geneva, and in the Lower Valais, as far as the Aar; and the Allemanni took possession of the country to the eastward of that country, and of great part of Germany.

The Burgundians having been defeated by the Huns under Attila, about the year 450 allied themselves with the Visigoths, a Scandinavian tribe, and adopted the Visigoth chief as their king. They afterwards extended their dominion into Gaul, along the banks of the Rhone and Saone, and gave their name to the fine country which still bears it. After having located themselves in Gaul and in Western Helvetia, a more regular system of society can be clearly traced among them.

The Allemanni, more ferocious than the Burgundians, devastated the valleys of Helvetia, and reduced the country to a wilderness, so that, gradually, vast marshes and forests overspread those parts, at present so beautiful, around the Lakes of Constance and of Zurich.

After this state of affairs had continued some time, a new swarm of adventurers obtained the ascendency. These were the Franks, another race from the north, who, after traversing the Netherlands, gained possession of the whole of Gaul, and pouring their restless myriads into Switzerland, forcibly dispossessed the inhabitants, and at length, after various changes, succeeded in obtaining exclusive dominion over the whole of Rhaetia and Helvetia. The Franks introduced into Helvetia the feudal system and other peculiar institutions and laws of the Teutonic tribes. To them also, under Clovis, the inhabitants were indebted for the adoption of Christianity, which contributed powerfully to the progress of civilization, and the revival of the country from its waste and desolate state. Switzerland remained subject to the Franks till after the death of Charlemagne, when, in consequence of the feuds of that monarch's successors, the vast empire which he had founded was entirely dismembered, and Switzerland was portioned out between France, Italy, and Germany. Rhaetia and the country between the Lake of Constance and the Rhine, the Aar and St Gothard, in which German was the current language, were united to Swabia; while Geneva, the Valais, Neuchâtel, and the present country of Berne, Soleure, Fribourg, and Vaud, the districts in which Romance was the prevailing language, were united to Savoy, under the denomination of Little Burgundy. But this arrangement was of short duration, for the disorders and confusion produced by the continued wars enabled the provincial governors to throw off all allegiance to their feudal superiors, or to secure real independence while yielding nominal obedience. Switzerland was thus divided into a great number of petty states, into petty states generally engaged in hostilities with each other, and seldom uniting among themselves unless when menaced by some great and common danger. Such a case presented itself in the reign of the Emperor Henry I., surnamed the Fowler. An immense horde of barbarians, known by the name of Hungarians, issued from the east and the shores of the Black Sea, and overrun Germany and Italy, burning and destroying wherever they came. In order to protect the inhabitants from the fury of these ruthless invaders, Henry built walls around a number of defensible places, to which all, in case of need, might fly for the security of their lives and property. In this manner Zürich, St Gall, Basle, and various other places, rose from petty hamlets to towns of considerable strength and numerous population. About the same period, the bailiffs of the emperor built and fortified Berne, Fribourg, and various other towns. A ninth of the free and nobler class of inhabitants were required to occupy these national fortresses, and they received the same political organization and rights as the more ancient cities of Germany. This was the first foundation of the class of burghers, who in process of time came to be a third estate in the kingdom. In proportion as the wealth and importance of the towns augmented, the citizens were eager to extend their rights and privileges. They availed themselves of every opportunity to purchase their emancipation from the feudal dominion of the bishops, abbots, and monasteries, to whose authority they had long been subjected; and in a short time the burghers were able to bid defiance to the nobles, and even to balance the political weight of the clergy. The affairs of Switzerland continued in this state, without any material alteration, until the year 1273, when Rudolph of Hapsburg, whose castle was situated in the canton of the Aar, and who, besides possessing manorial rights and great influence in Schwyz, had held the office of imperial bailiff of several towns, was elected Emperor of Germany. This prince, though inhabiting a distant country, continued throughout his life to be strongly attached to Switzerland. He conferred new honours on its nobles, and granted additional privileges to its towns, or confirmed those which they already enjoyed. Rudolph was succeeded by his son Albert, whose ambition and rapacity soon alienated the affections of both his German and his Swiss subjects. Two of the imperial bailiffs, Hermann Gessler and Berengar of Landenberg, who were appointed over the Waldstätten (the three cantons of Schwyz, Unterwalden, and Uri), subjected the inhabitants to every species of insolence and oppression. Gessler, in particular, was guilty of so many acts of wanton cruelty, that he was at length shot through the heart by the famous William Tell, who thus paved the way for the deliverance of his countrymen. Curiously enough, a similar case occurs in ancient Scandinavian history, as recorded by Saxo Grammaticus. Three patriots, whose names are still revered throughout the republic, Werner Stauffacher, from the canton of Schwyz, Walter Furst of Uri, and Arnold Melchthal, from Unterwalden, had formed a conspiracy against the Austrian governors; and their measures were concerted with such wisdom, and executed with so much courage and intrepidity, that they obtained possession of every fortress of any considerable strength or importance. Shortly after this revolt of the forest cantons, the Emperor Albert was murdered by his nephew and some other nobles; but his son, Duke Leopold, marched against the cantons with a powerful army. The Schwyzers waited his arrival at Morergarten, on the slope of the mountain Sattel, and, notwithstanding the disparity of their forces, routed the Austrians with great slaughter on the 15th of November 1315; and it was with no small difficulty that the duke himself escaped, leaving most of his officers, and an immense number of his soldiers, dead upon the field.

The three cantons of Uri, Unterwalden, and Schwyz, having thus by their courage and virtue, achieved their independence, held a meeting on the 8th of December 1315, at which they entered into a solemn compact, and thus laid the foundation of the Swiss Confederation.

In 1332, the inhabitants of Lucerne formed a perpetual league with the Waldstätten; and in 1351 the citizens of Zurich, having thrown off the yoke of the aristocracy, joined the Swiss republic; and, on account of the power and wealth of the town, it was promoted to the chief rank. Glaris came next; Zug joined the confederation in 1352; and Berne in the following year. To the latter, in consideration of its importance, was assigned the second place of precedence.

The above-mentioned eight cantons, Schwyz, Uri, Unterwalden, Lucerne, Zurich, Glaris, Zug, and Berne, remained for more than a century the federative republic of the Swiss. With few interruptions, the republic enjoyed tranquillity until the year 1375, when a mixed English and French army of adventurers, under a French nobleman, Enguerrand de Coucy, a cousin of Leopold of Austria, and married to the English princess Isabella, advanced on the Limmat as far as Wettingen. Surprised, however, at night by the Swiss, they were dispersed, and the Lord de Coucy retreated into Alsace.

Duke Leopold III. of Austria viewed the extending confederation with jealousy and alarm, and various quarrels having taken place between him and the cantons, hostilities were at length commenced. The duke, with a numerous force, chiefly composed of cavalry, marched rapidly towards the interior of the country, and, on the 9th of July 1386, encountered the Swiss in the neighbourhood of Sempach. The battle was long and fiercely contested, but at length the Swiss patriots gained a complete victory; the duke himself was slain, and more than 600 of the higher and lower nobility, with about 2000 of their less distinguished adherents, were left dead on the field.

Two years after the battle of Sempach, the Austrians took Näfels, a small town in the canton of Glaris. The garrison retreated from the town as far as Mount Rute where they took up a strong position, and awaited the approach of the enemy on the 9th of April. The Austrians again maintained the fight for some time with great ardour, but were in the end overthrown and put to flight. The bridge of Wesen, on the Linth, was broken down by the weight of the fugitives, and above 3000 common soldiers, and 183 knights, were slain in the battle, or drowned in the lake and in the river. These defeats induced Duke Leopold IV., in 1389, to enter into a truce with the cantons for seven years, during which the Swiss contrived by various means to extend their territory and to increase their power.

This truce was renewed in 1394 for twenty years more, and was faithfully kept on both sides until 1415. At the commencement of the fifteenth century, the house of Austria possessed yet in Switzerland, Aargau, Fribourg, Rappperschwyl, Thurgau, and Winterthur. The house of Savoy owned the Pays de Vaud. The Valais and the valleys of Rhaetia belonged to their feudal nobles. The Abbot of St Gall and the Counts of Toggenburg in the east, and the Bishop of Basle and Counts of Neuchâtel in the west, were powerful neighbours of the eight Swiss Cantons. In the north existed still the independent imperial towns of Basle, Schaffhausen, and Soleure. The year 1415 was famous for the celebrated Council of Constance. About this time the Swiss Cantons carried their arms across the Alps into Italy; but the troops of Savoy, crossing the Simplon to Dosso d'Ossola, drove the Swiss garrison away. The cantons of Unterwalden and Uri having next purchased the town and valley of Bellinzona, the Duke of Milan sent the celebrated condottieri Pergola, who, after an obstinate fight at Arbedo, in June 1422, obliged the Swiss to recross the St Gotthard. In 1444, Charles VII. of France sent the Dauphin Louis, at the head of the Armagnacs, composed of soldiers of fortune of all nations, against Basle. The two armies met outside that town, when, after a most desperate fight, in which out of one Swiss division of 1200 men only ten remained alive, the dauphin, struck with surprise at the conduct of the Swiss, concluded a truce and sought their alliance. The house of Austria had, however, gradually lost nearly all their possessions in Helvetia, when, in 1467, Duke Sigismund sold his last remaining property, Winterthur, to the Swiss, and the patrimonial estates of that house, even the castle of Hapsburg itself, passed into the hands of the stranger.

With the exception of the disputes which took place between the people of the canton Appenzell, and of the Valais and Rhaetian Alps, with their lords, and of the civil war which arose between Zurich and Schwyz relative to the right to some lands, no other event of great importance occurred in the history of Switzerland till the year 1474, when Louis XI. of France induced the Swiss to make a diversion in his favour, by falling on the territory of Charles the Rash, Duke of Burgundy, who had advanced to the very walls of Paris, and threatened Louis with the loss of his throne. This unprovoked attack induced the duke to offer terms of peace to the King of France and the Emperor of Germany, with whom he was at the same time at war; and these monarchs accepted his offer, leaving their late allies to meet his whole vengeance as they best might. Peace was no sooner concluded, than Charles History. determined to inflict condign punishment on the Swiss for their unjustifiable aggression, and in the spring of 1476 he crossed the Jura with an army of 60,000 men. He encountered the army of the confederates near the town of Grandson, and after a desperate conflict on the 3rd of March, was totally defeated with the loss of a thousand men. His camp, with an immense booty, fell into the hands of the Swiss. A few months after, on the 22nd of June, he was defeated, with prodigious slaughter, in a second action, near the little town of Morat; and on the 5th of January 1477, when the duke was slain in the battle of Nancy, the states of Upper Burgundy agreed to pay the confederates the sum of 150,000 florins to make peace with them.

These repeated victories procured for the Swiss the reputation of being the best soldiers in Europe; and a considerable number of them were hired to fight the battles of foreigners. The sudden wealth acquired by plunder and pensions excited its possessors to profusion and extravagance; their morals became corrupted, and the simple republican honesty almost disappeared. A spirit of cupidity and pride displayed itself among the rulers, and dissipation and love of plunder among the people; and the Swiss became notorious throughout Europe as the hirelings of any potentate who had battles to fight and gold to squander. Domestic troubles and feuds generally prevailed; the peace and security of the country were disturbed to such a degree by an armed and desperate banditti of disbanded soldiers and idle vagabonds, that in 1480, during the short space of three months, nearly 1500 assassins and robbers were condemned to death.

The confederates had been faithfully supported in their wars by the towns of Fribourg and Soleure, and in 1481 these requested to be admitted into the confederation. Their request was warmly supported by the town cantons; but the mountaineers of the forest cantons objected to it, and the dispute ran so high that, at a general congress of all the confederates, the deputies were at the point of coming to blows, and the confederation was threatened with dissolution. This catastrophe was happily averted by the eloquent remonstrances of a pious hermit, called Nicholas Lovenbrugger. His simple but pathetic appeal had the effect of removing their differences, and Soleure and Fribourg were received into the Swiss confederation.

Upon the death of Louis XI. of France, Charles VIII. renewed the alliance with the Swiss cantons, and received permission to recruit soldiers among them in exchange for subsidies. The friendship of the confederation was now sought by many sovereigns, among whom the Pope, the Duke of Milan, the house of Austria, and even Mathias of Hungary were prominent. During the Italian wars for the possession of the Milanese and of Naples, Swiss volunteers were extensively used. So great became the importance of the confederation, that their offer of mediation between Charles VIII. and Maximilian of Austria was accepted, when, by the treaty of Senlis in 1493, the county of Upper Burgundy was ceded to Maximilian. Ludovico Sforza, having usurped the Duchy of Milan, the Swiss were offered the districts of Bellinzona, Locarno, and Lugano by Charles VIII. to obtain their assistance in the conquest of the Milanese. The cantons, with the exception of Berne, having accepted the offer, 20,000 Swiss troops joined the French army in Italy.

In the year 1497, the Grisons entered into a treaty offensive and defensive with the confederate cantons. This alliance gave great offence to the Emperor Maximilian, who immediately collected his troops, and marched both against the Grisons and their Swiss allies. Battle after battle took place, in all of which, more particularly at Bregentz, Frastenz, Malserheyde, and Dornach, the Austrians were defeated; and the Emperor, having lost 20,000 of his troops in eight months, and finding further exertions useless, concluded a peace with the Swiss at Basle in September 1499, by which he acknowledged their unconditional independence as a nation. This war, called the Swabian war, was the last the Swiss had to sustain for their independence. For three centuries after this date no farther attempts were made against the liberties of the Swiss cantons, which assumed their station as an independent power in Europe. The towns of Basle and Schaffhausen were Thirteen received into the confederation in 1501, and Appenzell was added in 1513, and completed the number of thirteen cantons which have constituted the Helvetic body till within our own times—namely, Zürich, Schwyz, Uri, Unterwalden, the three Waldstätten or forest cantons, Lucerne, Glaris, Zug, Berne, Fribourg, Soleure, Bade, Schaffhausen, and Appenzell. Besides these there were various confederates and associates who were in alliance with the cantons, and entitled to assistance in case of foreign attack. These were the Abbot of St Gall, the city of the same name, the Pays de Vaud, the towns of Mulhausen and Bienne, the Grisons and the Valais, the republic of Geneva, and the county of Neuchâtel.

In 1513 the Swiss defended Sforza, whom they had the year before installed as Duke of Milan, against France at the battle of Novara, and another Swiss army invaded Burgundy. After the death of Louis XII. of France, Francis I. invaded Italy, and at the battle of Marignano, called the battle of giants, defeated the Swiss, who retired across the Alps into their own country, and concluded peace the next year with France. In the subsequent wars of Francis I. in Italy, Swiss troops fought in his ranks, and at the disastrous battle of Pavia, in 1525, the Swiss lost no less than 7000 men.

Switzerland had scarcely obtained rest from her political Reformation wars when religious disputes arose among the cantons, and converted into fierce enemies those who had lately fought side by side in defence of their liberties. The unscrupulous sale of indulgences by the agents of Pope Leo X. in Germany, Switzerland, and the other countries, led to a searching inquiry into the whole of the papal system, and caused vast multitudes to renounce altogether the authority of the Church of Rome. In no country did the doctrines of the Reformation create a greater excitement, or meet with more zealous supporters, than in Switzerland. The inhabitants of Zürich, Berne, Schaffhausen, Basle, St Gall, and the Grisons, as well as of many parts in the neighbourhood of Geneva and Neuchâtel, eagerly adopted the opinions of Calvin and Zwingli; while the people of the Waldstätten, and of Soleure and Fribourg, being more secluded and ignorant, and more under the control of the priests, continued staunch in their support of the papal authority. Fierce animosities speedily arose between the reformed and the papal cantons, and various sanguinary wars were carried on for many years. During these internal broils, the territory of the confederation was violated, and their rights infringed without remonstrance; and such was the divided state of the cantons, that Austria, their ancient enemy, might perhaps have subdued them but for the jealousy of the other great powers. To prevent this danger, they, in concluding the treaty of Westphalia in 1648, formally recognised the independence of the Swiss confederation. But though Switzerland was thus secured against the invasion of any of the greater powers, it continued to be torn by internal dissensions. The arbitrary manner in which the large towns levied taxes upon the people of the country, and of the smaller towns and villages, caused great dissatisfaction, especially in the territories of Berne and Lucerne, and at length the peasantry rose up in rebellion against their rulers; and it was not until after considerable bloodshed that the revolt was quelled, and several of the chiefs who were taken alive were tried, condemned, and executed. Scarcely had this insurrection terminated when religious quarrels again broke out between the Protestants and the Romanists. Till near the close of the seventeenth century, Switzerland was distracted by the dissensions arising from this cause; and in 1703, the whole of the Protestant and of the Catholic cantons were openly arrayed against each other, and a civil war of several years' duration ensued. The immediate cause of the war was a quarrel between the people of Toggenburg and their superior the Abbot of St Gall, who had endeavoured in a fraudulent manner to deprive them of their privileges. Zürich and Berne took part with the people, while the Catholic cantons espoused the cause of the Abbot. Several battles were fought, and at length, in 1712, an army of Catholics, 12,000 in number, encountered 8000 Bernois at Vilmergen. The conflict lasted six hours, and in the end the Catholics were completely routed, leaving 2000 of their number dead upon the field. A peace was soon after concluded at Aarau, on terms advantageous to the victors.

From this period till towards the close of the eighteenth century, the state of Switzerland underwent no material alteration; and their internal discords paved the way for external aggression, and rendered them an easy prey to the grasping ambition of the French republic. In 1797, the French government, which had previously interfered in the affairs of Switzerland, manifested a determination to take possession of that country, and evidently sought for a pretence to come to an open rupture. The Swiss government placed their only hope in a passive neutrality, which in the end proved their ruin. For the sake of peace, they submitted with the utmost servility to the imperious and insulting demands of the Directory; but their humiliation did not save them from destruction. The emissaries of France laboured but too successfully to incite dissensions among the people, and the French rulers made these dissensions a pretext for their interference with the constitution of the country. In this way the bailiwicks of Valteina, Chiavenna, and Bormio, which had been for centuries dependent on the Grisons, but whom the Grisons had obstinately refused to admit to a community of civil and political rights, were incorporated with the Cisalpine republic. Insurrections broke out in several of the cantons, and were rendered triumphant by the assistance of the French arms. Geneva and the Pays de Vaud placed themselves under French protection, and at length the French armies under Brune and Schauenburg, having defeated the Bernese army under D'Erlach in 1798, united Geneva to the French republic, and established the "Helvetic Republic." The inhabitants of Berne, Soleure, Freiburg, and especially of the Waldstätten, made a brave but ineffectual stand in defence of their rights and liberties. The most horrible excesses were committed by the French soldiers; the towns were successively rifled of their public property, and great part of the country was laid waste, and many of the inhabitants reduced to utter destitution. A new constitution was framed by the French directory, which provided that Switzerland should form a single republic, one and indivisible, under a central government to be established at Aarau. The country was divided into twenty-two cantons, and the supreme authority was committed to two councils and an executive directory, in whom was vested the appointment of prefects and other authorities for the various cantons, which were thus transformed into departments, with the loss of their independence as separate states. After this new constitution was established, a treaty was made with France, by one of the articles of which the Swiss republic was bound to furnish to its new ally a force of 16,000 men. Great miseries were suffered by the people, from the excesses of every kind committed by the French troops, and their heavy requisitions and exactions. The small canton of Unterwalden refused to swear fidelity to the new constitution of the Helvetic republic; but after a desperate struggle it was subdued; the inhabitants were massacred without distinction of sex or age; and that district, once peaceful and happy, was left a scene of horrible desolation. During the campaign of 1799, Switzerland was the theatre of the struggle between the armies of Austria, Russia, and France; the Austrians under Hotze; the Russians under Suvarrow and Korsakov; and the French under Massena, Molitor, Soult, and Lecourbe. The mountain cantons were in consequence utterly ruined, a considerable part of the country rendered uncultivated, and the population reduced to little short of actual starvation. The Helvetic directory was suppressed in 1800, and an executive commission substituted in its room; and about seven months after, this commission dissolved the councils and convoked a new legislature. A general diet was called in September 1801, for the purpose of re-organizing the constitution of the country. Meanwhile the treaty which was signed at Luneville between France and Austria guaranteed the independence of the Helvetic republic, and the French troops were consequently ordered to evacuate Switzerland. Their departure was the signal for a general revolt. All the old factions were awakened afresh. The Pays de Vaud formed itself into a single republic; Uri, Schwytz, and Unterwalden took up arms against the Helvetian government; and the towns of Zürich, Basle, and Schaffhausen renounced their allegiance. A civil war appeared inevitable, when Napoleon Bonaparte offered himself as arbitrator between the contending parties, and ordered Marshal Ney to advance with a body of troops to the frontiers of Switzerland to enforce compliance with his mandates. The existing government was dissolved, a provisional government established, and deputies from all the cantons were ordered to assemble at Paris to deliberate upon a constitution for their country. Several months were spent in debates; and Napoleon, after he had heard and reflected on their representations, promulgated an act of mediation, which was drawn up with a view of reconciling opposite factions, and of fairly meeting various interests. It restored the old federative system, but introduced very considerable improvements. The act of mediation was promulgated 19th February 1803; and mediation, the Helvetic general government having been dissolved, and the new constitution put in force, the French troops finally evacuated the country.

From that time till 1814 Switzerland enjoyed internal peace; and during the gigantic wars which at that momentous period raged throughout Europe, this country rested in security amid the din of battles and the crash of falling empires, and made rapid progress in the arts of industry and in the career of intellectual and social improvement. On the downfall of Napoleon, the act of mediation was dissolved; but the integrity of the country was guaranteed by the Congress of Vienna in 1815. The territories formerly dependent on the Bishop of Basle, which had been annexed to France, together with Valais, Neuchâtel, and Geneva, in 1815 were ceded to it as new cantons, and a constitution, based on the act of mediation, was framed for the whole cantons, now amounting to twenty-two. On the 7th of August 1815 the federal compact was finally signed by all the deputies in the diet assembled at Zürich. The deputies then repaired in procession to the cathedral, where they bound themselves by a solemn oath, and in the name of their constituents, to the faithful observance of its enactments.

During the fifteen years which elapsed from 1815 to 1830, Switzerland enjoyed profound tranquillity. The general condition of the country was prosperous, and education was improved in several districts; but the civil and criminal laws remained in a defective state; the press was under a strict censorship, and various anomalies existed in the institutions of many of the cantons. Petitions were from time to time presented for the revision of the constitution of Statistics, 1814, but were everywhere rejected by the councils. The first alteration of this state of things took place in the canton of Ticino in May and June 1830, and the example was speedily followed by all the other representative cantons of Switzerland. A new constitution established equality of political rights among all the citizens of the state; the direct system of electing all the members of the legislature, the elections to take place every four years; separation of the three powers, legislative, executive, and judicial; publicity of debates; liberty of the press, subject to fixed laws against libels; inviolability of person and property and the right of petition. No tax to be imposed unless sanctioned by a majority of two-thirds in the great council. The constitution not to be modified until twelve years shall have elapsed from its enactment; and then any alterations proposed in it must be submitted to the approval of the primary assemblies of the people. These alterations in their constitution were peaceably adopted by the most of the cantons; but in some of them popular tumults arose, which were speedily suppressed by the firmness and prudence of the Diet.

In 1834, the tranquillity of Switzerland was endangered by a considerable body of Polish, German, and Italian refugees, who had taken up their residence in Switzerland. In the month of January, some hundreds of these refugees made a sudden attack on the dominions of the king of Sardinia, in expectation of combined attacks and insurrections in other parts of the Sardinian monarchy. The Sardinian government made strong remonstrances to the confederation concerning this violation of the neutrality of the Swiss territory; and the courts of Austria, Prussia, and other German states, whose territories border on Switzerland, joined in these remonstrances. After some negotiations, the matter was brought to an amicable termination by the Swiss governments promising in future to send away from their territory all those who should attempt to disturb the tranquillity of other states.

The new law establishing a system of education for the clergy in 1839 was opposed at first by the Protestants, and the government at Zurich was dissolved. Aargau, in 1844, demanded the expulsion of the Jesuits; and in 1848, in order to effect this, bodies of armed men, called the Free Corps, were organised in several cantons. The Free Corps under Colonel Oechsenbein having invaded Lucerne were defeated, and in 1846 a separate league, termed the Sonderbund, was formed by the seven Catholic cantons for a defence against the Free Corps. In 1847 the Diet passed a resolution declaring the illegality of the Sonderbund and the expulsion of the Jesuits. The Federal army, under General Dufour, having, in November of that year, defeated the forces of the Sonderbund at Fribourg and at Lucerne, the Catholic cantons submitted, the Jesuits were expelled, and monasteries suppressed. On the 12th of September 1848, the new constitution was promulgated. With the exception of the attempt of a small aristocratic party to separate Neuchâtel from Switzerland and to incorporate it with Prussia—an attempt which at once called forth the strong opposition of the united cantons, and which led to the entire separation of Neuchâtel from Prussia and its incorporation into Switzerland—the cantons have since maintained their internal tranquillity and external independence. During the late contest in Italy, between Austria on the one hand and France and Sardinia on the other, Switzerland maintained the strictest neutrality. (For further notice see Government, &c.)

The physical features of Switzerland are remarkable, and for beauty and grandeur are unsurpassed by those of any other country in Europe, being a singular assemblage of lofty mountains, glaciers, valleys, ravines, rivers, and lakes. Two groups of mountains are spread over its surface, the Jura on the W. and N.W., and the Alps on the S.E. and centre. The Jura range is composed of six Statistics, parallel ridges, lying in a S.W. and N.E. direction, with few interruptions and no spurs. This range extends from Jura, the neighbourhood of Geneva along the boundary between France and the Pays de Vaud, and then enters the canton of Neuchâtel, which it almost entirely covers, as well as the N.W. part of Berne, the greater part of Soleure and Basle, and north-western Aargau. The hill of Bozberg is generally considered as the north-eastern extremity of the Jurassic chain, although some geographers have adopted the names of the Jura of Franconia and Swabia, for the chain which receives in Germany the very undeserved title of Rauhe Alp. The theoretic extension thus given to the Jura as far as the neighbourhood of Ratisbon, is justified by the analogy of direction, geology and fossil remains; but the same may be said for the southern prolongation of the chain to the south-west of Geneva, on both sides of the Rhone as far as Seyssel in France, and the Mont du Chat and Montagne de l'Epine, south-west of Chambery, thus increasing its extent to more than 350 miles, instead of 250 as formerly calculated. Geologically speaking, the Jura is composed of a nucleus of the bluish-grey limestone called liassic, covered with an upper stratum of oolitic limestone of a yellowish hue. Fossil remains are abundant in the latter, and have lately been found in great quantities in the Mormont, where the South-Western Railway has been the cause of a deep cutting at La Sarraz, in the canton of Vaud.

The Jura scarcely attains one-third of the height of the Alps, yet, in proportion to its elevation, it is colder. The highest summits occur in the ridge near to Geneva and Lausanne, between the Fort de l'Écluse and Orbe, partly in French territory. Although most frequently mentioned, through the observations of De Luc and De Saussure, the Dôle, 5453 feet, is not the highest; Mount Tendre, the Colombier, and the Reculet surpass it; and the Crêt de la Neige has been found by the French engineers to be 11 feet higher than the Reculet, 5642 feet. They do not, however, rise into peaks, being but little superior to the general level of the chain, and entirely destitute of the imposing features of the Alps. Passages across the Jura are little inferior in height to the general line of the crests; but in a few cases, such as the gorges by which the Rhone at Bellegarde, the Rhine, and the Doubs at Morveau, emerge from their upper to their lower valleys, the chain is cut through to its very foot, and sometimes presents stupendous chasms. The Perte du Rhône, and the Malpertuis near Billet, 5 miles lower down, are the most renowned, the whole body of the river being confined, in this portion of its course, between two immense walls, of 600 feet in height, into a channel estimated at from 15 to 50 feet in width.

From the radiating direction of the ridges, most of them Alps centring in the neighbourhood of the St Gotthard, the Alps better deserve the name of a system than of a chain. The main ridge, called the Pennine Alps, forms the boundary between Canton Valais and Italy, and separates the basin of the Upper Rhone on the north from that of the Po on the south. To the south of Mont Blanc, the Alps consist of a number of partly detached groups without well-defined axes. Eastward they are divided into two great ranges, which enclose the valley of the Upper Rhone, and meet at Mount St Gotthard, whence four ranges diverge: the Bernese Alps to the west; the Alps of Glaris and the northern Grisons to the north-east; the south-east branch, which forms the southern boundary of the Grisons on the side of Italy; and the south-west branch, connecting the St Gotthard with the Pennine Alps. Between these ranges are four large valleys,—those of the Rhone, the Reuss, the Upper Rhone, and the Ticino. There is a remarkable difference in the shape of the Alps, as they cover the central and western parts of Switzerland, and in the Alps of Tyrol. Statistics, and the Grisons, or Rhaetian Alps. In the latter, though the summits are inferior in altitude to those of Savoy, Oberland, and Valais, their mass is larger in comparison with the width of the valleys, and is generally raised so high as to have a greater part of its surface covered with snows and glaciers, or unfit for production. In Rhaetia the valleys are mere deep alleys, which is the cause of the scanty population. The mean breadth of the highest portion of the Alps does not exceed 100 miles, but it widens considerably as you proceed eastward. Many of the valleys of the Grisons, Engadine, &c., are, however, wide and open, and the character of the country seems to vary accordingly as the geological conformation is crystalline, slaty, or calcareous. The number of Swiss glaciers are reckoned at 805, of which nine-tenths, or about 540, are in the following cantons: 235 in the Grisons, 155 in Berne, and 130 in Valais. The supply of water they produce is discharged into the basins of the following rivers: 170 glaciers into the Rhine, 15 to the Linth, 25 to the Reuss, 160 to the Aar, 135 to the Rhone, 35 to the Po, and 65 to the Inn.

M. Franscini, in his Statistique de la Suisse, divides Switzerland into five regions, viz., alpine region, of about 9850 square miles in extent, and containing 388,493 inhabitants; the eastern region, of about 1930 square miles, and 564,124 inhabitants; the northern, of about 2130 square miles, and 803,395 inhabitants; the western or Jurassic, of about 2990 square miles, and 517,804 inhabitants; and the Italian or southern, of about 1230 square miles, and 123,924 inhabitants. It may also be divided thus: 1. The alpine; 2. the Jurassic; 3. the southern part of the space lying between these two ranges, in the form of a plain with isolated hills; and, 4. the northern portion, traversed by ridges of moderate elevation.

The tableland of Switzerland, lying to the north of the alpine region and east of the Jura, is the finest and most productive of the whole. It slopes from south to north, from the foot of the Alps to the Rhine and the Lake of Constance, and includes the cantons of Vaud and Fribourg, the greater part of Berne, Lucerne, and Aargau, the whole of Zurich, Zug, Thurgau, and part of St Gall. The elevation of this tableland varies from 1200 to 1800 feet above the sea. Its surface is furrowed by numerous valleys, which generally run from south-east to north-west. Each of these valleys is divided by its river, and various ranges of wooded hills follow the course of the streams.

Four-fifths of Switzerland belongs to the basin of the Rhine. This river has its rise in the Alps of the Grisons, receives the waters of some of the glaciers of that lofty region, and is at its source, Hinterrhein, at the foot of the glacier, 7268 feet above the level of the sea. Thence it pursues a northerly direction to the lake of Constance, receiving on its left the Tamina from the canton of St Gall, and on its right the Ill from the Austrian territory. It issues from the north-west portion of Lake Constance, at the town of Stein, where it is 1300 feet above the sea; it then flows in a tortuous but generally westerly direction to Basle, passing by Schaffhausen, Waldshut, and Seckingen, receiving the waters of the Thur, the Aar, and the Birs, forming for a direct distance of about seventy miles the northern boundary of Switzerland. At Basle, where it is 821 feet above the sea, it turns abruptly to the north and leaves the Swiss territory. The Falls of the Rhine are celebrated for their grandeur.

The Aar flows through the lakes of Brienz and Thun, into the Rhine, having previously formed a cataract at Handeck; and receives the waters of the Limmat, Saane, Thiel or Ziel, Emmen, and Reuss. At Aarberg the Aar is 1469, and at its junction with the Rhine 1033 feet above the level of the sea.

The Linth, a rapid stream, rises in the Alps of Glaris, it then flows through the lake of Wallenstadt, and is called the Limmat: after marking the limits between Schwyz and St Gall, it forms the lake of Zurich, and, flowing through part of the cantons of Zurich and Aargau, enters the Aar below the confluence of the Reuss.

The Thur has its sources at Wildhaus, in the mountains of High Toggenburg, in the canton of St Gall, and enters the Rhine below Rheinau. Its level at its source is 3358, at Bischoffzell 1500, and at its confluence with the Rhine, 1141 feet above the level of the sea.

The Birs has its rise in the Jura, to the east of the pass of Pierre Pertuis, flows through the cantons of Berne and Basle, and enters the Rhine just above the town of Basle.

The Thiel or Zihl also has its source in the Jura, under Thiel, the name of Orbe, and is at the Lac de Joux 3312 feet above the sea; flows through the Lac des Brenets, where it disappears, and after a great subterranean descent, makes its re-appearance at the spot called "Source of the Orbe," where it is 1459 feet above the sea; it then flows through the lakes of Neuchatel and Biemne, and soon after, leaving the latter, enters the Aar at an altitude of 1416 feet above the sea.

The Saane has its source in the Bernese Alps, and after a rapid course of about 70 miles, in which it passes Saanen, Freibourg, and Laupen, enters the Aar a few miles below the latter town.

The Rhone is formed from a glacier below the Pass of Furca, in the north-eastern extremity of the Valais, at a height of 5500 feet above the sea. Descending rapidly to Oberwald, it proceeds in a south-west direction past Brieg and Sion to Martigny, when it turns abruptly to the north-west, and continues in that direction to its entrance into Lake Leman. It issues from this lake at Geneva, below which it receives the Arve from the valley of Chamouni, and quits the Swiss territory near Chanci, the last village of the canton of Geneva.

The Arve does not strictly belong to Switzerland, the greater part of its course being through Savoy, but it is the most considerable alpine tributary to the Rhone, into which it flows about 1 mile below Geneva. It is at the source, near the village Du Tour, 4277 feet above the sea, has a course of 65 miles, and at its mouth is 1222 feet above the sea-level; it discharges into the Rhone, on the average, 4300 cubic feet of water per second.

The Inn rises in some small lakes near the Maloya Pass, is fed by the glaciers on the north side of the Bernina range, and, after flowing through the Grisons in a general N.E. direction, leaves the Swiss territory at Finstermünz.

The Ticino issues from Mount Gries, and traverses the Lago Maggiore in Italy.

The Swiss rivers are subject to rises during the summer season of sometimes as much as 16 feet. Their lowest waters last generally from the beginning of November to the end of March, their highest state is in the month of June; and from the middle of July to the end of October they preserve their average volume. The Falls of the Rhine are 78 feet in height, those of the Doubs 88 feet, and the underground fall of the Thiel or Orbe, from the valley of Joux to its re-appearance near Vallorbes, 741 feet.

The lake of Geneva or Leman, the great reservoir of the Rhone, spreads in the form of a crescent, its northern bank being about 56 miles in length, and the southern bank about 46. Its breadth near the centre is about 9 miles, but it becomes much narrower towards Geneva. The surface of the lake is 1230 feet above the level of the sea, its greatest depth is about 1100 feet, and its area 340 square miles. It receives several streams, the principal being the Dranse, from the Alps of Savoy, and the Veveyse and the Venoge, from the Swiss side. The lake of Geneva is known to have been frozen over only twice—in A.D. 762 and 805. It is subject to remarkable risings, called seiches, of from 4 to 5 feet, lasting about 25 minutes. Several steamers The lake of Constance, or Boden See, is about 42 miles long and 9 miles wide. Its surface is 1300 feet above the level of the sea, its area is about 290 square miles, and its greatest depth is 1800 feet. Numerous steamers navigate this lake.

The lake of the Four Cantons, or Vier Waldstätter See, is 26 miles in length. The southern part, called the lake of Uri, is a sheet of deep water, 8 miles long, and between 1 and 2 broad, running from south to north between two almost perpendicular ranges of mountains; a narrow channel unites it with the middle basin, which is about 9 miles in length and about 2 wide. Another strait leads from the middle into the western basin, called the lake of Lucerne, the widest and finest of the three. The surface of the lake is 1428 feet above the sea, and its greatest depth is 1000 feet. The country around the Waldstätter See is the cradle of Swiss independence, and many of the localities possess great historical interest from the exploits of its heroes. Steamboats ply between Lucerne and Küssnacht, and Lucerne and Fluelen, the port of Altort.

The lake of Zürich, formed by the Limmat, is 24 miles long, and from 1 to 2 miles wide. Its greatest depth is 600 feet, and its surface is 1341 feet above the level of the sea. Steamboats run on this lake between Zürich, Horgen, Richterschwil, Rapperschwil, and Schmerikon.

The lake of Neuchâtel is about 30 miles in length, and 5 miles broad throughout one-half of its length. It is 1426 feet above the sea, and has a depth of 350 feet. Steamers ply on this lake, and through the Thiel river on that of Bienne, connecting the railways of Yverdon and Nidau.

The lake of Bienne is about 10 miles long and 2 wide; the level of its surface is 8 feet below that of Neuchâtel, and its greatest depth is 217 feet.

Besides these there are several other lakes of considerable extent, such as the lake of Wallenstadt, or Wallensee, an expansion of the Seer, and lately artificially connected with the Linth, 11 miles in length, and 1394 feet above the level of the sea; and the lakes of Brienz and Thun, both formed by the Aar; the latter, 13 miles long, has a depth of 800 feet, and is 1823 feet above the sea. Steamboats ply on this lake, which is much visited by tourists from Berne. The fish these lakes contain are trout, pike, salmon, tench, carp, perch, and a very delicate fish called umber. The collective extent of the twenty-two largest lakes is about 1035 square miles, of which 260 have to be subtracted as being out of the Swiss territory. The remainder, about 775 square miles, is about one-twentieth of the whole country. The variation of level in the lake of Geneva is 6 feet, and in the lake of Neuchâtel 7 feet 6 inches; the lowest state in the latter is in August, while in the former it is in spring.

Switzerland receives a considerable supply of metals from abroad, a great portion of which, however, is again exported in a manufactured state. Iron is produced to the amount of about 10,000 tons annually, of which 5000 tons of excellent character is produced by the Bernese Jura, 1900 tons by Soleure, 1100 by Schaffhausen, and 450 tons from Arlon in the Valais. Salt is produced to the amount of 13,000 tons; of which the works at Schweizerhall, near Basle, yield 11,000 tons, and the remainder by those at Bex; the salt works at Rheinfelden and Kaiser Augst in Aargau have been abandoned. About 250 tons of copper is produced annually, and 500 tons of lead. There are some mines of anthracite coal of a poor quality, at Outre-Rhône, Salvant, Iscrable, in Valais, and a few other places. Among the other mineral productions of Switzerland are marble, alabaster, gypsum, slate, granite, and other kinds of building stone; sulphur near Lake Thun; asphaltine in the Valais; and particles of gold are found in the sands of some of the rivers, but not in sufficient quantities to pay for the search.

The number of mineral springs in Switzerland is very great; there are as many as twenty first-rate watering-places, and a great number of inferior ones. The most frequented are those of Pfeffers and Leuk. The temperature of the springs at the former is 36°6' centigrade, or 98 Fahr., and at the latter 50°6' centigrade, or 123 Fahr. Those of Baden, Schinzach, St Moritz, Heinrichshad, Rosenlau, and Stachelberg, are also well known, and much visited.

The observations of Kaentz on the Rigi, Schönér on Climate, the St Gothard, Bravais on the Faulhorn, and Plantamour on the Great St Bernard, show the average diminution of temperature to be of 1° of the centigrade thermometer for about 570 feet of ascension. The temperature of a place does not, however, altogether depend on its elevation, but also upon the proximity of large glaciers, the reflection of heat from adjoining slopes, and in the mobility of the atmosphere. The slopes are heated by ascending currents of warm air from the valleys; the neighbourhood of glaciers has always, and that of lakes very often, a cooling influence, and are subject during the warmest hours of a summer day to a motion of cool air originating in the same cause as that which produces the land and sea breezes on the shores of the ocean. At a height of about 8000 feet the average temperature is not above freezing point. The average temperature of Berne is 45° Fahr., that of Basle 46°, and that of Geneva 46½°.

Among the wild animals of Switzerland are the bear, wolf, wild boar, ibex, deer, and game of all kinds; the marmot, ermines, &c. Large birds of prey are common in the mountains, but the chamois is becoming scarce, and bears and wolves are found in some districts only.

Switzerland is distinguished for the extent and excellence of its pastures, and the number of cattle they support, though in opposition to received opinion, the Swiss import more cattle than they export; the numbers of late years having been in the average 72,000 and 50,000; they are, however, imported when young and sold when fat, in addition to which there is greater profit derived from cheese and hides than from selling the cattle themselves, as their keep is not expensive. Early in the spring, on the disappearance of the snow, they are sent into the lower pastures; in the beginning of June they are moved into the middle pastures, and a portion of them ascend into the highest pastures during July and August. The number of cattle in Switzerland is estimated at 875,000; the number of horses at 105,000; that of sheep 405,000; that of goats 376,000; and that of pigs 279,000; the cattle and goats are on the increase, but the horses and pigs are on the decrease.

In Switzerland agriculture is carried on to the greatest perfection that the climate and soil of such a country will allow. By means of trenches and sluices water is conveyed from the mountains to any required point; extreme care is taken to economise and render available the manure obtained from their herds; and great judgment is shown in the culture of the different kinds of soil. Even apparently sterile and unavailable slopes are made use of, mould being carried up from below and spread upon them in the form of terraces. The use of animal labour in agricultural operations is not extensive, chiefly owing to the rugged surface of the country; and nearly everything is done by hand. The grain crops are inferior in quantity, but the pasturage is extremely good, and its bright verdure such as to render it a distinguishing feature of the country. The vine is cultivated in several localities, and some of the wines produced are of a very good quality. The cultivation of tobacco is undergoing great development, especially in the northern part of Vaud, which yields a cheap though rather indifferent produce. The domestic economy of a Swiss country household is very simple; from their land and cattle they can supply nearly the whole of their wants. Statistics, and the profits of their dairy afford them the small sums of money they require. The quantity of timber at present exported exceeds L.86,000 in value, but this must ultimately have a very bad effect on the country, as it is so far beyond the rate of growth.

Commerce. Previous to 1852 commerce throughout Switzerland was limited by a number of internal duties, which were exacted at many of the frontiers of particular cantons. From that time, however, a general line of custom-house offices has been drawn round its frontiers, and one general tariff of duties established by the central government, which, though moderate, is very complicated, and shows that the Swiss legislators have derived but little profit from the example given to Europe by England and Sir Robert Peel. Nobody would believe that singing birds have the honour of figuring in the Swiss tariff. Geneva, where free trade had always been practical, suffered very much by the change, but other cantons gained in proportion as they were more or less fettered previously. The national import duties are divided by the federal government, and each canton in proportion to the number of inhabitants. Each canton is at liberty to levy excise duties. The federal revenue and expenditure of Switzerland for each of the years 1853, '56, and '57, is as follows:

| Year | Revenue | Expenditure | |------|---------|-------------| | 1853 | L.842,600 | 619,000 | | 1856 | 650,000 | 643,320 | | 1857 | 627,440 | 608,240 |

Transit trade. Since the abolition of internal customs, the transit trade has increased from 391,000 quintals in 1852 to 597,000 in 1856, out of an import trade which amounted in bulk to 1,890,400 quintals in 1840, 2,652,200 in 1849, and 10,297,055 upon an average from 1852 to 1857—a rate of increase greatly beyond that of the population. The progression is the same with regard to value; the imports and exports together amounted in 1842 to L.18,553,643, in 1852 to L.28,452,219, and, on the average, from 1852 to 1855, to L.40,606,177. The last sum gives a proportion of L.16 to each individual; while in Belgium it is L.12; in France, L.4; in the Zollverein, 6½s.; in Sardinia, 50s.; and in Austria, 3¼s. Of the total sum of L.40,666,177, L.14,000,000 should, however, be deducted as only transit trade, reducing the actual amount due to each individual Swiss to L.10,10s. France and Lombardy receive but little Swiss produce for their home consumption, while Switzerland receives from the former wines, spirits, and corn, and from the latter silk to a large amount.

Railways. The railway system of Switzerland, considering the physical difficulties presented by the country, is very extensive, most of the large towns of the north and central portions being connected by this means. The electric telegraph is also much used, there being a total length of over two thousand miles laid down.

Manufactures. The watches, for the manufacture of which Switzerland is famous, are mostly made at Geneva, Neuchâtel, Val St Imier, the valley of Joux, and the Val de St Croix, in the Jura of Vaud. This branch of industry, together with that of jewellery, employs about 23,000 people, and the number of watches made annually is about 190,000. The value of those exported in 1853 was L.117,000, and L.255,000 in 1857; but though the quantity produced is thus greatly on the increase, the quality is said not to be so good as formerly, owing, it is believed, to the growing immorality of the workmen in the large towns.

The silk manufactures employ a great number of people in the canton of St Gall, and the manufacture of ribbons is carried on at Basle. In addition to the large quantity of silk imported for these branches of industry, a considerable quantity is produced in Switzerland itself. About five-sixths of the raw material imported comes from Lombardy, and about two-thirds of the manufactured fabrics exported passes through France, and the remainder through the Zollverein. The cotton manufactures are very animated, and it is estimated that they employ more than 660,000 spindles. In Zurich there are 330,000 spindles and 76 mills at work; in Argovia, 137,000; in St Gall, 85,000; in Glaris, 62,000; and in Thurgovia, 22,500.

The manufacture of cutlery and cheap mathematical instruments, a great number of which come to the London market, is carried on to a great extent at Aarau and Zurich.

Switzerland forms the centre where three great continental races meet; the Teutonic Swiss occupy the northern cantons, the French the western, and the Italians the canton of Ticino and the southern valleys of the Grisons; while those speaking the language called Romansch a dialect somewhat similar to Latin, occupy half the Grisons. Of the whole population 1,680,000, or about two-thirds, speak German; 540,000, French; 120,000, Italian; and 42,000 the Romanic dialects in the Grisons. Notwithstanding these peculiarities of language, and the variety of physical features, they have lived so long together in a state of confederation as to have assumed quite a national character, and may be looked upon as one people. The French language has long been on the increase.

The annual average of the births in Switzerland during the three years 1850, '51, and '52, was 70,000, being in proportion to the population as 1 to 34. The proportion of the males to the females with regard to the number of births is as 15 to 14, while to the total population it is as 40 to 41; so that, though there are more males born, they are on the average shorter lived than the females. The proportion of illegitimate to legitimate births is as 1 to 18. The annual average of marriages during the same period was 16,270, being in proportion to the population as 1 to 147. The average annual number of deaths during these three years was 55,500, being in proportion to the population as 1 to 43.

Before 1798 Switzerland consisted of a confederation of states of three very different kinds:—1. Thirteen cantons; 2. The subjects or vassals of these cantons; and 3. The allies of these cantons. The federal bond uniting the various cantons was very loose, and there was no permanent sovereign body, or central government, equally acknowledged by all. No important questions could be decided in the general diets, unless it had been previously debated and decided on in the councils of each of the cantons. The subjects of the Swiss were either subjects of certain particular cantons, or common bailiwicks subject to all the cantons. The whole population of the thirteen cantons at the close of last century was about 1,000,000; that of their subjects was about 250,000; and that of their associates and confederates, and the subjects of these confederates, amounted to nearly half a million more. Altogether, the territory belonging to the Helvetic Federal Body contained a population of about 1,700,000.

By the present constitution, promulgated in 1848, the general affairs of the Confederation are intrusted to a National Council, the members of which are elected for three years, and in the proportion of one to 20,000 inhabitants; and the council of the states, composed of forty-four deputies, two for each canton. Formerly these used to assemble at Berne, Zurich, and Lucerne alternately, but Berne is now fixed upon as the regular place of meeting. A president of the Federal Council and six members, to form an executive government, are chosen by the national council and the council of the states together every three years. The two councils also elect the Tribunal Federal, consisting of eleven judges, for three years; and conflicts between the cantons, and between them and the federal council, are decided by this high court. Each canton has sovereign authority in its own affairs, with the exception of certain rights which are vested in the federal power, such