:i4 



Letters from Sxitzcrlandf 



[Oct. 



drcflcd jn a uniform «f white ribbons 

 round tlieir teaiiilo, and a ihcpliciu's 

 IVock over their lliouldcr.-. Whenever a 

 coward atleniptcd to clcapc, tliey cauiiht 

 kim, and led hini hack to the fiandiud. 

 I'hiis did the niothci-s and daughtws 

 f;nu.nl the land, while the tUthiis, Lui- 

 bacds, fons, and bi-otliois, cool and ini- 

 nioveahlx! as tkeir native rocks, were 

 braving death in attackinj;' a fu',,crior foe. 

 liy the retreat of the lunlicdlers from 

 Egcl Bcr<r, under the connnand of i\lari- 

 anus, a luiniUer, the French were left 

 mafters of the whole of St. Jolien 

 Berg from Rothentluum to Worpir- 

 ten, wlierc the Schwyzers and Urrurs 

 had taken their ftation. Kcding fent oil" 

 fi reinforcement for the pnrpofe of Uorni- 

 ing Morsarten. lie himl'elf waited with 

 twchc hundred men the attack at llo- 

 thenthuim. The lu.ftile hands approach- 

 ed in vvidc-exlended li!ie>and forinidahie 

 numbers. On comins; witliin <Tun-(li(it, 

 theSchwyzeis dilcharged i'omo rounds of 

 cannon, wliich was luceccded by a fu- 

 leum Itillnefs. liedincr llcw through the 

 ranks, and, conducting his men to\\ aids 

 tlie plain, gave the defircd lignal for 

 Diarching to clofe battle. With a cou- 

 rage aimoft fiirpaffrng human nature, they 

 rulhed forward witii Ihouts and the fixed 

 bayonet againll the enemy. Is either the 

 numbers, nor the advantageous polltioii, 

 nor the military experience of the latter, 

 could deter ihefe hardy mountaineers 

 IVom combating the invaders of their 

 country. In one impenetrable phalanx 

 they moved onwartl to tlie foot of 

 tlic" mountain, iirll marching, and 

 then running, oiiiiers and men emu- 

 lated each other in pr(^ftrating the ene- 

 mies of their country. " Short work, — 

 lay them low in the *<lnit," was the uni- 

 rerfal exclamation here and at Morgar- 

 ten. The boafted conr|uerors of Europe, 

 the invincible armies of the Great IVa- 

 tion, fell before a handful of men ; their 

 ranks were foon broken and thinned by a 

 dreadful llauglitcr ; and in half an hour 

 tlicy were obliged to leave the Schwyzcrs 

 iraiieis of their lawful territory. 



The lofs of the French was immenfe, 

 thegrealeli part of the P.lack Legion hav- 

 iii<r tiiilen on this occalion. At the lame 

 time a hmilar victory was obtained 

 between the lake of Egeri and the 

 mountain of Sattcl in Morgarten, by the 

 Uruer Iharp-lhooters and their reinforce- 

 ments. Ihe turious contelt was there 

 t^vice begun. Yet Morgarten, the fpot 



fo favourable to the viciories of the Swifs 

 was foon kit undilturbtd by every hof- 

 tile intruder. The bnik lire of the ibarp- 

 lliooters ilrewed tlie ground with the 

 dead bodies of the enemy. Many among 

 tlu in kept up a continual diichai-ge from 

 feveral mulkets loaded and carried to 

 thein. by boys. As a fmall party of 

 otticers and men were in conlultation at a 

 diliaiice, fu];pofed to be beyond gun- 

 Ihot, one of thefe iharp-lhooters took a 

 treble charge of powder, faying to his 

 comrades, '' What if 1 lliould hit th« 

 captain in the midll of thofe men r" Al- 

 though the diliance w as fo great that it 

 was Icarcely ])oHible to diltinguilh tiie of- 

 ficers by their long great-coats, yet the 

 words were no fooner uttered, than he 

 filed, and the captain in the midll of the 

 circle fell. This Ihot was the iigniU for. 

 the genend retreat of the French. 



In a rude vale leading from liichterf- 

 wyl to Rothenthurm lies the little village 

 Schiiidelleggi, where Aloys Redmg re- 

 ceived, on the firil of May, the melan-< 

 choly intelligence oi tiic Glarner, Ulzna- 

 cher, Galiler and Sarganfer auxiliaries 

 having dilbundcd and returned to their 

 homes, and of the Schwyzers, with a few. 

 of the Uri and Zug militia, having been 

 overpowered by luperior numheis. But 

 the intelligence moved neither the com-- 

 mander nor his litile band. Cord and 

 undaunted, like Lconidas of old with his 

 three hundred Spaitans, Reding and his 

 people awaited death with' the firm refo- 

 lution of not dying unrevenged. H^ ob- 

 ferving the tone of their minds, addrelTed 

 them in the following energetic words: 

 " Dear countrymen and comrades, we 

 fliall foon reach the goal. Surrounded 

 on all tide? by enemies, and forlaken by 

 friends, the only queiiiou remaining for 

 us is, (hall we keep together, fteady ancj 

 true, now in the hour of danger, as our 

 lathers did at ^lorgarten, Death is om' 

 lot. Should any of us liave a fear, let 

 him go back, and not a lingle reproach 

 fliall attend him. We at lealt will not 

 decei\e each other in this nionunt. Let 

 me have one hundred men on wham I 

 can confidently rely, rather than five 

 iiundrcd who may tlee, and defeat the 

 good purpofe of the valiant few. F'or 

 my part, I vow not to fe(«irate from yoii 

 iu danger, nor even in death itfelf. We 

 are to I'tand or fall. If this propofiti(jn 

 be agreeable to your wilhcs, let two of 

 you I'tcp forward, and make the Iknve 

 vow iu your namcir." 



