GENERAL 
are far from proposing to Swit- 
zerland that it should display any 
other force than such as is pro- 
portioned to the resources and 
usages of its people; and that 
their only desire is that the confe- 
deration would assume an ener- 
petic attitude, and adopt mea- 
sures commensurate to the ex- 
traordinary circumstances of the 
time. They say that they have 
received instructions from their 
courts to regulate, by a conven- 
tion, the footing on which Swit- 
zerland is to stand in this associ- 
ation, and they request the diet 
to nominate plenipotentiaries for 
negociating with them. 
The diet, in its answer, after 
explicitly asserting its resolution 
to oppose with all its might a 
ower which threatens the peace, 
independence, and rights of all 
nations, intimates that the part 
to be taken by 22 little republics 
united for mutual security, must 
naturally be that of the vigorous 
defence of their frontiers. For 
this purpose, it is said that more 
than 30,000 men have been set on 
foot ; in return for such exertion 
Switzerland thinks it may expect 
from the kindness of the allied 
powers that their armies will re- 
spect its territory, till it shall call 
for their aid. If, however, any 
thing is to be done to fix in a 
more precise manner the political 
relations of the confederation with 
the allied powers, the diet is 
ready to listen to overtures, and 
has commissioned three persons 
(named) to enter into a negocia- 
tion with the ministers. In every 
case, however, the right is re- 
served to the Cantons of taking a 
definitive resolution on this head, 
and giving validity to these ar- 
Vou, LVII. 
HISTORY. 
rangemients by constitutionally 
confirming them. 
The result of this determina- 
tion of the diet was a convention, 
by the articles of which Switzer- 
land declared its formal adhesion 
to the system of the four allied 
powers ; and on the other hand, 
the sovereigns promised that on 
the conclusion of a general peace, 
all the advantages conferred on 
Switzerland by the congress of 
Vienna should be secured to it. 
The confederation bound itself to 
have in the field an army suffici- 
ent as well to cover its frontiers 
from the enemy, as to impede any 
attempt on that side against the 
forces of the allies. Various ar- 
ticles were inserted in favour of 
Switzerland, and pecuniary assist- 
ance was offered to those cantons 
which should not be able to sup- 
port a protracted armament. The 
signature of the convention by 
both parties was dated May 20th, 
and deputations immediately went 
to their respective cantons to at~ 
tend the deliberations on the sub- 
ject. It appears that the conven- 
tion was ratified in the canton of 
Zurich by 109 voices against 52, 
but was rejected at Basle by 55 
to 53. Bern and several other 
cantons are mentioned as having 
joined in the ratification. The 
city of Basle, which was probably 
induced by its position under the 
cannon of the French fortress of 
Huningen, to withhold its con- 
currence in the convention, soon 
experienced the impossibility of 
maintaining a state of tranquillity 
between contending armies.— 
Huningen being invested by the 
Austrians, its commandant, on 
June 28th, without any previous 
notice, commenced a bombard- 
(1) 
[113 
