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federal army, &c.), is held every two years, alternately at Zürich, Berne and Lucerne, which are called the directing cantons (rororte). The Schultheiss, or governor of the directing canton in which the session is held, then takes the name of Landammann of Switzerland. Each canton has one vote in the diet. Military capitulations, and treaties on subjects of police and economical regulation, may be entered into by the separate cantons with foreign states; but not without the knowledge of the diet. The revenue of the confederacy, arising from the contingents of the cantons, is about 2,000,000 dollars. The public debt, fixed by the congress of Vienna, in 1814, at 3,118,330 Swiss francs, has been cancelled by the interest accruing, from 1798 to 1814, on the capital (£200,000 sterling, and £100,000 sterling) invested by the cantons of Berne and Zürich in the bank of England. The property of this sum is, however, reserved to the two cantons, and also the interest accruing since 1815. The federal army was fixed (Aug. 5, 1816) at 67,516 men, of which half is a reserve. In 1819, an artillery school, or scientific and practical military academy, was established at Thun, by the confederacy; and, in 1820, the first camp for military practice was held at Wohlen. Each canton is governed by its own laws, and the government is administered by a great council, which holds the legislative power, and the small council, which holds the executive, or by the Landesgemeinde (or general assembly of citizens), and the Landrath (an executive council). In Uri, Schweitz, Underwalden, Zug, Glarus, Schaffhausen, Appenzell (Inner and Outer Rhodes), St. Gall, Grisons, Aargau, Thurgau, Ticino, Pays de Vaud, Valais and Geneva, the constitutions are democratic; in the remaining cantons, they are of a mixed aristocratic and democratic character. Neufchatel has a monarchical government, with estates. The literature of Switzerland is a branch of the German; that of Geneva, the Pays de Vaud and Neufchatel, of the French. There is a university at Basle, and the academies of Berne and Zürich have scientific collections. At Lucerne, Winterthur, Zopfingen, and other cities, there are libraries, and cabinets of natural and artificial curiosities. Several learned societies, particularly those for natural history, are distinguished for activity and zeal. The school of Pestalozzi (q. v.) at Yverdun, and the agricultural institute of Fellenberg (q. v.) at Hofwyl, are celebrated.

In 1824 appeared at Zürich Kritische An-
zeigen der Schweizerischen Literatur (Criti-
calNotices of Swiss Literature), containing
a notice of the best works printed in and
concerning Switzerland, and of the la-
bors of Swiss literati abroad. The histo-
ry of Switzerland by John von Müller
(q. v.) is a classical work: it has been con-
tinued by Glutz-Blotzheim to the per-
petual peace with France in 1516. His
valuable labors were interrupted by an
Balthasar's Helvetia, oder
early death.
Denkwürdigkeiten für die 22 Freistaaten
der Schweizerischen Eidgenossenschaft
(Helvetia, or Memoirs of the 22 Repub-
lics of the Swiss Confederacy, 1st vol.,
Zürich, 1823), may be joined with it.
Zschokke's History of the Swiss Nation
(in German, Aarau, 1822; French by
Monnier) is a masterly work. Lardner's
Cabinet Cyclopædia contains a short his-
Raoul-Rochette's
tory of Switzerland.
Histoire de la Révolution Helvétique de
1798-1803 (Paris, 1823) is less accurate
and impartial than Zschokke's Historical
Memoirs of the Helvetic Revolution. On
the ancient history of the country, see
Haller's Historical and Topographical Ac-
count of Helvetia under the Romans (2
vols., 3d edit., Berne, 1818). On Swiss
public law, Usteri's Manual is valuable
(2d edit., Aarau, 1821); also the Hel-
vetic Almanac, and Picot's Statistique de
la Suisse (Geneva, 1819). Lutz's Com-
plete Description of Switzerland (in Ger-
man, alphabetically arranged, 2d edit., Aa-
rau, 1827, 3 vols.), is a valuable work.
(See the separate articles, Busle, Berne,
Geneva, Lucerne, Neufchatel, Chaux de
Fonds, Zürich, &c.)

Travels in Switzerland. This beautiful country is so much visited, that it may, perhaps, be acceptable to our readers to have a few of the best guide-books pointed out, and a few directions given for the traveller. Ebel's Guide to the most useful and pleasant Way of Travelling in Switzerland (3d ed., Zürich, 1810, 4 vols., in German) is the best companion. It embraces all Switzerland. The abridgments which have appeared in Geneva and Paris are not satisfactory. Reichard's Guide des Voyageurs en Italie et en Suisse (Weimar, 1819); also Glutz-Blotzheim's Manual for Travellers in Switzerland (in German, 5th ed., Zürich, 1823); the Nou veau Guide des Voyageurs dans les XXII Cantons Suisses, traduit d'un Manuscrit Allemand du Professeur H. par R. W.; and Simond's Tour in Switzerland (Boston, 1822), deserve to be mentioned. Coxe's Travels describes the state of

the country before the French revolution. The late numbers of the Helvetic Almanac afford an accurate view of the statistics of the different cantons. Of works relating to particular parts of Switzerland, the best are Ebel's Description of the Mountaineers of Switzerland (Tüb., 1798-1802, 2 vols.), and, above all, Travels in the Bernese Oberland, by J. R. Wyss (Berne, 1816, 2 vols.), with excellent maps. The same region is described in Voyage pittoresque d'Oberland, accompagné de Notices historiques et topographiques (Paris and Strasburg, 1812). Of the maps of all Switzerland, that published by Keller and Scheuermann (Zürich, 1815 and 1819) is particularly worthy of attention. The great atlas of Weiss embraces only a part of Switzerland. For the use of naturalists, we mention Manuel d'Herboriser en Suisse et en Valais, rédigé selon le Système de Linné (Winterthur, 1811); and Précis d'un Voyage botanique fait en 1811 par Villars, Lauth et Nestler (Paris, 1812).-For travelling in Switzerland, the months of July, August and September afford the most settled weather. The most delightful season is in September, and often even in October, when the shores of the lakes of Geneva, Neufchatel and Bienne, and the charming scenes in the Pays de Vaud, enchant the visitor. The beginning of summer, and even the close of spring, are often equally favorable. The Alpine meadows, which are then decked with the most beautiful and rarest flowers, delight the eye, and afford rich stores to the botanist. The curious atmospheric phenomena, which are frequently seen, and on elevated mountains, even below the spectator, afford a new and sublime spectacle. The mild warmth, and the long days, render travelling, at this period, peculiarly pleasant. May, however, is commonly more beautiful than June, which is often rainy. Most travellers devote only six or eight weeks to visiting Switzerland, and limit themselves to the most interesting parts. With a proper and systematic plan, one can travel through all the cantons in three and a half months, if he proceeds mostly on foot, and remains in every place only as long as is necessary to view all its curiosities; but, owing to the frequent changes of weather, it is impossible to reckon upon three weeks in succession dry and warm: as much as fourteen days, therefore, ought to be allowed out of the three and a half months for obstructions from rain or storms. There are no proper extra posts in Switzerland, though persons

travelling in their own coaches may procure a change of horses. There are good regular coaches, however. Most travellers who arrive at the frontier places in the post-coaches, or in their own carriages, hire the horses and carriages which are always in readiness in the towns. The prices at which horses and mules are let, are high. The horses and mules are so used to the steep and rocky mountain roads, that, even on the brink of a deep precipice, the traveller feels himself perfectly safe. Those should be chosen, however, which have been used to carry, and not to draw. Roads lead over the Cenis, the Simplon (q. v.), and, since 1818, over the Splügen. The road over the Simplon may well be compared with the proudest works of the ancient Romans. (See Alps, Roads over.) Over the other summits, no one can travel, except on foot, or, perhaps, part of the way on horseback. In the valley of Chamouni, and in Grindelwald, there are very low and small four-wheeled carriages, which are extremely inconvenient. It is possible to travel in these a part of the way, also, over the great mountain of St. Bernard. On account of the sudden changes of weather and the cold air on the mountains, it is necessary to be provided with warm clothing. The trayeller, on excursions, should wear a light and easy dress, with half-boots, or, what is still better, shoes with gaiters, fastened tight about the feet to prevent gravel from getting in. A traveller should provide himself with two pairs of shoes, very strong, with thick heels and large-headed nails, to be worn over stony passes, in wet weather, and on glaciers; and with light ones for the smooth plains. Experienced travellers disapprove of the common irons fastened to the shoes. The Alpine shoes, invented by Pictet, are very good. The soles are at least six lines in thickness, with a strong but pliable upper leather, covering the whole foot, and with a covering of leather rising about one and a half inches above the sole, to secure the foot from any blow. Large steel nails, or rather screws, with heads somewhat more than four lines wide, which resemble a truncated four-sided pyramid, are inserted in the soles and heels, about seven in the former and five in the latter. In the intervals between the steel nails, common nails are driven in so that the heads touch one another. With this durable and not heavy shoe, one may walk safely over the naked granite, over ice and smooth grass. A staff, pointed with iron, is indispensable.

In warm weather, a straw hat is prefera-
ble to a felt one. A cloak, of oiled taffeta
or oiled linen, to keep off the rain, is very
convenient and warm, and, for this reason,
a good protection on the high mountains
or in a piercing wind. The traveller should
also take a flannel shirt, the best protection
against sudden colds, light woollen pan-
taloons, and a great coat of light cloth;
also a covered flask for cherry brandy to
bathe the tired limbs. The best comes
from Grindelwald. To the mineralogist,
the apron of thin leather, invented by
Pictet, deserves to be recommended. It is
never well for one to travel on the moun-
tains alone, nor, on the other hand, in com-
pany with more than three or four persons,
because of the scanty accommodations of
the inns in the small places. A guide
should always be procured; and very in-
telligent ones are easily to be met with.
If a person is not used to walking, he
should begin with short journeys every
day; but walking in Switzerland, even
for females, is not so difficult as is com-
monly supposed. The mountains should
be ascended, where it is possible, on the
western side. The best descent is on the
eastern declivities. It is unsafe to travel
on the high mountains in spring until
after the avalanches have rolled down the
sides. After a long and violent rain, a
person should wait two days before trav-
ersing the high valleys among the rocks,
where pieces are liable to fall from the
sides at such seasons. In snowy vales
and among the glaciers, it is well to cover
the face with a green or dark gauze. Vol-
atile alkali, diluted with water, mitigates
the burning pains in the face, caused by
the bright reflection of the sun's rays from
the fields of snow and the glaciers. One
should never travel over the glaciers after
a fresh fall of snow (which sometimes
happens even in the summer months),
particularly at mid-day; for a travel
ler might then very easily break through
the soft mass. To these rules the travel-
ler will easily add such as his own expe-
rience may suggest. Many circumstances
combine to make travelling in Switzer-
land more expensive than in the adjacent
countries. But few of the cantons pro-
duce the necessaries of life in sufficient
quantities for the inhabitants. In many
places, the people are obliged to procure
them from a distance; and then the ex-
pense of conveyance augments the price.
Inn-keepers on the mountains and in re-
tired valleys are especially subjected to
this advanced price, and are, therefore,
obliged to charge higher than those in

cities and frequented roads. The hotels,
in towns and in large villages, often even
in the rudest Alpine vales, as in Lauter-
brunnen and the valley of Chamouni, are
very good. In Italian Switzerland, and
generally beyond the southern chain, it is
common to agree upon the price to be
paid to inn-keepers, guides, servants, and
the like, beforehand; for otherwise a per-
son is very liable to be imposed on. The
expenses for one who makes only a short
stay at the various places, are, of course,
greater than for one who remains longer.
If a person devotes five or six months to
travelling through Switzerland, in a car-
riage or on horseback, his daily expendi-
ture will amount to twelve or sixteen
Swiss francs;* but if he limits himself
to six, four or two weeks, his expenses
will be at least eighteen francs a day. If
he travels on foot, and has a guide who
carries his luggage, twelve francs a day
will be sufficient. The difference in the
standard of money in the different Swiss
cantons is inconvenient, particularly since
some cantons have begun to refuse to ad-
mit the money of others. The Manual
of Glutz-Blotzheim, before mentioned,
presents a useful view of the worth of
the different coins. The old louis-d'or
(twenty-four livres tournois), the French
twenty franc piece, the Brabant, Bavari-
an and Würtemberg dollar, and French
five franc piece, are in most general cir-
culation. The reckoning by Swiss francs
(sixteen to a louis-d'or) is pretty general.
In the hotels they reckon much by French
francs. Any one who intends to visit all
the cantons can proceed in the follow-
ing order-either through Constance,
Schaffhausen, Eglisau and Winterthur,
or through Lindau, the lake of Constance,
Roschach and St. Gall, to Zürich (see
Voyage de Zuric à Zuric, 1818); then
over mount Albis to Zug, over lake Zug
to Arth, at the foot of the Righi (q. v.), of
which Fuessly and Keller have publish-
ed beautiful sketches, with a description
by J. H. Meyer (Views of Mount Righi,
drawn from nature, Zürich, 1809); over
the lake to Lucerne (q. v.), which Busin-
ger describes in his guide-Lucerne and
its Environs, with a good Map of the
Lake of the four Forest-Towns (Lucerne,
1811). The traveller now enters on the
route over the mountains. The way leads
through Stanzstadt, Stanz, the abbey of
Engelburg, and over the Surenian Alps;
or from Stanz through Buochs, over the
lake of the four Forest-Towns, Rütli,
* A Swiss franc is about twenty seven or twen
ty-eight cents.

Tell's Chapel to Altorf. Thence you pass on the great road from German Switzerland to Italy, in three days, to Bellinzona. Through Ursern, the road leads from Altorf to Dissentis, and the adjacent springs of the Rhine; and further through Trons to Coire, where a traveller who wishes to visit Graubündten (the Grisons, q. v.) stops. Among the principal curiosities of the Grisons are the valley of omlesch, the bridge of Solis, which is the highest in Europe, the Via Mala, the glaciers of the Rhine, the valley of Misocco, the glacier of Bernina. From Coire, the traveller pursues his journey through Sennwald to Appenzell and Gais, and then through Utznach and Einsiedeln; or, if he does not intend to visit first the bath at Pfeffers (q. v.), through Panyx, Elm and Matt, to Glarus, and thence to Einsiedeln, from which he returns, over Schweitz and the ruins of Goldau, to Lucerne. Then he goes through the charming Entlibuch, or over the battle-field of Sempach, through Zopfingen, Morgenthal, Hindelbank, Hofwyl (q. v.), to Berne. (q. v.) From Berne, the traveller proceeds over Thur, in four to six days (including the time occupied in returning through Interlaken and Brientz), to the beautiful Oberland, to Lauterbrunnen, to Staubbach, over the little Scheideck to Grindelwald, at the foot of the Jungfrau (first ascended by the two Meyers in Aarau, 1811 and 1812; see Travels over the Glaciers of Berne, Aarau, 1813), and of the Schreckhorn, and over the great Scheideck to Haslithal. From Merzringen, the chief place in the valley, those who have not travelled from Altorf to the hospice of St. Gothard can go by the new road through the Susten valley. The hospice on the Grimsel, 5887 feet high, is particularly worthy to be visited. Thence the traveller_proceeds to the glaciers of the Rhone. From Berne he goes through Murten and Avenches, or Friburg, Murten, Avenches, Payerne, Lausanne, Aubonne, to Geneva. Thence he proceeds to the icy heights and glaciers of the valley of Chamouni, either through Thonon, Evian, Simoens and Sixte, or through Bonneville and Salenche, to Servoz; thence on to Chamouni, at the foot of Mont Blanc (q. v.), which requires three days. The glacier of Montanvert and La Flechière, opposite to it, are commonly the limit in this direction. The best guides are Saussure's and Bourrit's works, Pictet's Itinéraire, and Gottschalk's description (the Valley of Chamouni, Halle, 1811), with a map. In 1812, Lori published some beautiful

views of the valley of Chamouni. If the traveller does not return from Chamouni to Geneva, he either takes a difficult path through the valley of Valorsine, and over the village of Trent, or the Col de Balme, to Martigny, at the foot of the Great Bernard. From this place, one may go over the Simplon road to the Borromean islands (to go and return, six or seven days are necessary), or over St. Branchier to the Val de Bagnes (where, in 1818, owing to the fall of the glacier Getroz, lake Mauvoisin broke through its banks, and spread fearful devastation); then to the hospice on St. Bernard, and back to Martigny, which requires three days. A good map of the mountain was published by Lapie (Paris, 1803). A full description of it is given by Wibel of Berne in his Voyage Pittoresque depuis Lausanne jusqu'au Mont Bernard,ornamented with fourteen colored plates. From Martigny, the traveller goes through St. Maurice, by the Pissevache, or, by a circuitous way, which well rewards him for his trouble, through Sitten, and along the new road, so called, over mount Azeindaz, to Bex (where the remarkable salt mines may be seen), and then through Aigle and Clarens to Vevay, whence the traveller may proceed by water to Geneva, if he does not wish to go. by land through Lausanne. On the opposite shore of the lake, the road passes through Meillerie and Evian to Geneva; then through Orbe, adjacent to the beautiful valley of the Lac du Joux and the valley of Romainmotier, to Yverdun (q. v.), and along the lake to Neufchatel (q. v.), whence a visit may be paid to the manufacturing villages Chaux de Fonds (q. v.) and Locle (in the neighborhood of the latter is the Saut de Doubs); from Neufchatel through Bienne, or Aarberg, to Soleure (q. v.), near which rises the Weissenstein, affording from its summit a fine view of the wide valley that divides the Jura (q. v.) from the Alps. It is one of the most splendid prospects in Switzerland. If a person wishes to go through the Münster valley to Basle (q. v.), he must return to Bienne; and, following the directions in Bridel's text to Birrmann's Voyage Pittoresque de Bâle à Bienne, two days are requisite to pass over the road leading through Pierre Pertuis, an ancient Roman gate of rock, forty feet high. If one desires to visit the principal curiosities in Switzerland in six or eight weeks, it is best to pursue the following course:Schaffhausen, Zürich, Zug, Righi, Lucerne, Schweitz, Altorf (perhaps to the hospice on mount Gothard), Berne, Ober

land, to Meiringen; from Berne to Lausanne, Geneva; thence to the valley of Chamouni, to Chamouni or Martigny (perhaps along the Simplon road to Domo d'Ossola, or to the hospice on mount Bernard), and, in the way before mentioned, through Bex, Vevay, Yverdun, &c., to Basle. In two or three weeks, the following journey may be made: through Basle, Münsterthal, Bienne, Soleure, Berne, Oberland, Hofwyl, Lucerne, Righi, Schweitz, Zug, Albis, Zürich, Schaffhausen, Constance. If a traveller wishes to visit particularly French Switzerland and the Savoy Alps, he can perform the following journey in about twenty-five days: Schaffhausen, Baden, Aarau, Berne, Friburg, Vevay, Bex, St. Maurice, Martigny, Val de Bagnes, Col de Balme, Chamouni, Geneva, Lausanne, Bienne, Münsterthal, Basle. Since Aberly, the following artists have distinguished themselves by views of scenes in Switzerland: Rieter, König, Hegi, Fuessly, Keller, Birrmann, Wocher, and the two Loris.-See, also, Wetzel's Voyage Pittoresque aux Lacs Suisses (Zürich, 1824, containing eightyfive plates).

SWIVEL; a small piece of artillery, carrying a shot of half a pound, and fixed in a socket on the top of a ship's side, stern or bow, and also in the tops. The trunnions of this piece are contained in a sort of iron crotch, whose lower end terminates in a cylindrical pivot resting in the socket, so as to support the weight of the cannon. By means of this swivel (which gives name to the piece of artillery) and an iron handle on its cascabel, the gun may be directed by hand to any object.— Swivel is also a strong link of iron used in mooring-chains, &c., which permits the bridles or cables to be turned as occasion requires.

SWORD. This weapon, probably because it is more constantly carried about the person than other weapons, such as the arrow, spear, &c., has acquired a peculiar connexion with the circumstances of the wearer. To this day, the surrender of the sword denotes submission, and the breaking of it degradation. In many countries, it has become the emblem of power. In Germany, the sword was one of the imperial insignia. In Turkey, the sultan is girded with the sword of Osman on ascending the throne. In England, the sword of state is one of the regalia, and the "offering of the sword" one of the ceremonies of coronation. In France, the sword is also one of the royal insignia. In the middle ages, knights gave names

to their swords; thus Charlemagne's sword was called Joyeuse, and Orlando's Durindana. The efficacy of no other weapon depends so much upon the courage and skill of the individual. It is the poetical representative of all arms; and, in the middle ages,the word degen (sword) was used in German to denote a worthy man; later, a servant, but a servant of a dignified character, and a free man. In this sense, Otfried, in his translation of the Gospels, calls John the Baptist Christi Thegan. In a German poem of the fourteenth century, the apostle Peter is called Gotes Degen, and the forste and senat of all apostles. Thane, which is derived from the same word, is also an Anglo-Saxon title of honor familiar to the readers of Shakspeare. Under the emperors of Rome, no one was allowed to wear a sword except soldiers; hence the custom of presenting the sword on investing with a military dignity. Trajan, when he made Sura Licinius commander of his guards, put a naked sword into his hands, with the words, "Take this, and use it for me if I rule well, against me if I rule ill." The secular infeoffment of crown vassals, in the middle ages, was performed by presenting the vassal a naked sword. To this day, decapitation with the sword is considered more honorable than hanging, in those countries where both modes of execution are in use, as in many on the continent of Europe. In England, the axe is used, and only in cases of high treason. As soon as the art of forging metals was invented, arms of metal were probably made; and the sword must have been one of the first, as the club, and similar weapons, would naturally lead to it. Wooden swords are found at present among many savage tribes. Some historians mention Belus, king of Assyria, as the inventor of the sword. The Greeks ascribed the invention, according to Diodorus, to the Cretans. From the Scriptures we learn that swords were used in the earliest times in Asia. Abraham drew his sword to sacrifice his son Isaac. The knife probably originated from the sword by degrees. The knife, in many countries, as in Spain, is still a formidable weapon. Swords were probably made at first, like other weapons, of copper, as men acquired the art of forging this metal sooner than any other. The heroes of antiquity never appear without the sword. Whether the Greeks wore it on the left or right side is not determined; but the Romans, as long as they used short swords, wore them high on the right side, as ap

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