

EUROPE. 



of the Bourbons in 1868, has undergone frequent 

 changes, was for a time a military dictatorship, 

 then a monarchy under a prince of the reigning 

 family of Italy. The old dynasty was restored in 

 the person of the ex-queen's son, Alfonso XII., 

 who died in 1885, and was succeeded by his 

 daughter. The population is under 17,000,000 ; 

 revenue, ,31,000,000; debt (1881) .500,000,000. 

 Capital, Madrid, with a population of 398,000. 



I 



SWITZERLAND. 



between lat 45 and 



Situated between lat 45 and 47 49' north, 

 and long. 5 55' and 10 30' east, Switzerland 

 occupies the very centre of the Alpine develop- 

 ment, and is consequently the most elevated and 

 irregular of European countries. It is bounded 

 on the north by Germany ; on the east, by 

 Austria ; on the south, by Italy ; and on the west, 

 by France. Its superficies is estimated at 15,991 

 square miles, of which a large proportion is 

 covered with lakes and glaciers. 



The superficial character of the country is suffi- 

 ciently indicated by the mention of its position a 

 region composed of mountain-ridges, radiating in 

 every direction, with narrow and tortuous river- 



r valleys between. The higher mountain-ridges 

 range from 6000 to 1 5,700 feet above the sea ; 

 their summits, from 9600 feet and upwards, buried 

 in perpetual snow and glaciers, and their sides 

 broken into every imaginable diversity of crag, 

 cliff, ravine, and water-fall, dotted at intervals with 

 clumps of pine and fir. The valleys, on the other 

 hand, are distinguished alike for fertility and 

 beauty, and form a singular contrast with the 

 rugged heights which frown above them. The 

 ract lying between the Alps and the Jura Moun- 

 tains, and in which all the great lakes, from 

 Constance to Geneva, are situated, may be re- 

 garded as the Lowlands of Switzerland. 



The rock formations in the higher and central 

 -districts are strictly primary, flanked by transition 

 and the older secondaries. The equivalents of 

 our own lias and chalks are also found at great 

 "heights overlying the older rocks, thus marking 

 the date of the Alpine and Jura elevation ; and in 

 the low tract above described, occur alternations 

 of soft greenish sandstones and limestones, the 

 supposed equivalents of the Paris tertiaries. The 

 -mineral products are insignificant. 



Several important European rivers the Rhine, 

 Rhone, Inn, Ticino, and Doubs have their sources 

 amid the glaciers of Switzerland, but the Aar is 

 the only river of any navigable importance having 

 its course exclusively within the territory of the 

 Confederation. The lakes of Switzerland, either 

 as regards their extent or the beauty and magnifi- 

 cence of their scenery, are unexcelled by any in 

 the world. The principal are Constance, or the 

 Boden-see, Geneva or Leman, Neuchatel, Zurich, 

 and Lucerne, on this side the Alps ; and portions 

 of Maggiore, Lugano, &c. which lie on the other 

 side of the Alps, chiefly within the confines of 

 Italy. 



With respect to climate, Switzerland is much 

 colder than its latitude or its position in Europe 

 would appear to warrant. While the mean annual 

 temperature at London is 50-5 Fahrenheit, that 

 at Bern, which is more than four degrees of lati- 

 tude further south, is 45 ; at Zurich, 48 ; Geneva, 

 49-5; at St Gothard, 30. Of course, altitude is 



the prime cause of this deficiency. The plants of 

 nearly all the different zones of Europe are found 

 in Switzerland, from the vine, olive, and mulberry 

 of the sunny valley, up to the herbaceous willow, 

 the lichens, and mosses that struggle up to the 

 confines of eternal snows. 



The inhabitants are usually ranked under two 

 races the Germanic and the Celtic : the former 

 comprising the German Swiss of the northern, 

 eastern, and central cantons ; the latter, the 

 French and Italian Swiss of the western and 

 southern parts. Of the 2,846,102 inhabitants 

 (1880), 2,030,000 speak German, 608,000 French, 

 and 162,000 Italian ; while the language of 

 38,700 inhabiting the valleys of the Grisons, is 

 derived from Latin, and called Romansch. 



The religious statistics give the Protestants 

 1,667,000 of the population; the Roman Catholics, 

 1,160,369; other Christian sects, 11,000; and 

 Jews, 7370. Some of the cantons (Ticino, Uri, 

 Unterwalden, Valais, Schwytz, Lucerne, &c.) are 

 almost exclusively Catholic ; while ^ in others 

 (Bern, Aargau, Basel, and Geneva), Protestantism 

 predominates. 



In regard to education, Switzerland holds a 

 high place in Europe. In most of the Protestant 

 and mixed cantons, i in 5 of the population may 

 be assumed as attending school, and a greater 

 proportion of the public revenue is devoted to 

 schools of various grades than in any European 

 state. The Catholic states are not quite so far up. 

 There are normal schools for teachers in most of 

 the cantons. For higher education there are 

 gymnasia in all the chief towns ; and universities 

 at Basel, Zurich, Bern, and Geneva, with 300 pro- 

 fessors and teachers, and 1000 students. Several 

 schools in Switzerland are distinguished for com- 

 bining industrial training with intellectual culture. 



The productive industry of the country is 

 great. Although more a pastoral than agri- 

 cultural country, a considerable area is under 

 tillage, yielding excellent crops of wheat, oats, 

 barley, and rye. Maize, beans, lentils, potatoes, 

 turnip, hemp, and flax are also raised. It is in 

 the management of the dairy that the Swiss 

 chiefly excel cattle, cheese, and butter being 

 articles of export The vine is cultivated in the 

 valleys ; and in some districts are large orchards of 

 apples, pears, and cherries, for the manufacture of 

 liqueurs. In several of the arts and manufactures 

 the Swiss exhibit great ingenuity and taste ; and 

 many branches (watch-making, wood-carving, &c.) 

 are carried on in the cottages of the peasants. 

 Zurich is the chief seat of the silk and cotton 

 manufacture. The chief industrial products for 

 export are silk, cotton, watches, jewellery, and 

 straw-plait. The railway and telegraph systems 

 have penetrated even into Switzerland. At the 

 end of 1882, nearly 1600 miles of railway had 

 been laid down; and at the end of 1881, more 

 than 4000 miles of telegraph. 



In respect of government, Switzerland is a 

 federative republic, composed of 22 cantons, each 

 of which has an internal government of its own. 

 The sovereign power of the confederation is 

 vested in the Federal Assembly, which consists 

 of a national council and a senate or council of 

 state. The first is chosen for three years, by 

 universal suffrage, one member for every 20,000 

 inhabitants ; the senate consists of forty-four 

 members, two from each canton. The Federal 



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