FRANCE, ITALY, AND SWITZERLAND -1886-1887 423 



Italian told me at this time that Manzoni never forgave 

 himself for his humorous delineations of the priest Don 

 Abbondio, who figures in these scenes after a somewhat 

 undignified fashion. Interesting also was a visit to 

 the tomb of Rosmini, with its portrait-statue by Vela, 

 in the monastery looking over the most beautiful part 

 of the Lago Maggiore. Thence by the St. Gotthard 

 to Zurich, where we visited my old colleague, Colonel 

 Roth, the Swiss minister at Berlin. Very simple and 

 charming was his family life at Teufen. In the library 

 I noticed a curious shield, and upon it several swords, 

 each with an inscription; and, on my asking regarding 

 them, I was told that they were the official swords of Colo 

 nel Roth s great-grandfather, grandfather, father, and 

 himself, each of whom had been Landamman of the can 

 ton. He told me that as Landamman he presided from 

 time to time over a popular assembly of several thousand 

 people; that it was a republic such as Rousseau advo 

 cated, all the people coming together and voting, by 

 &quot;yes&quot; and &quot;no&quot; and showing of hands, on the proposals 

 of the Landamman and his council. Driving through the 

 canton, I found that, while none of the people were rich, 

 few were very poor, and that the Catholic was much be 

 hind the Protestant part in thrift and prosperity. 



My love for historical studies interested me greatly 

 in a visit to the Abbey of St. Gall. The mediaeval build 

 ings are virtually gone, and a mass of rococo construc 

 tions have taken their place. Gone, too, in the main, 

 is the famous library of the middle ages ; but the eminent 

 historian and archivist, Henne Am Rhyn, showed me the 

 ancient catalogue dating from the days of Charlemagne, 

 and one or two of the old manuscripts referred to in it, 

 which have done duty for more than a thousand years. 

 Then followed my second visit to the Engadine, reached by 

 two days driving in the mountains from Coire ; and dur 

 ing my stay at St. Moritz I made the acquaintance of many; 

 interesting people, among them Admiral Irvine of the 

 British navy. Speaking of the then recent sinking of 



