SWEDEN, Si 



Gothenburg, the second city of Sweden in magnitude, stands partly 

 on the ridges of rocki, and partly in a plain, and is divided from these 

 situations into the upper and lower town. The latter is entirely level, 

 intersected by several canals, in the manner of the Dutch towns, and 

 its houses are all constructed upon piles. The upper part hangs on 

 the declivities ; and rows of buildings rise one above another like the 

 seats of an amphitheatre. The whole is regularly fortified ; and its 

 circumference is nearly three miles, exclusive of the suburbs, called 

 Haga, which lie towards the harbour. The number of inhabitants is 

 about 25,000. 



Carlscrona, the station of the royal navy in Sweden, has a harbour 

 capable of containing 100 ships of the line. Its inhabitants are about 

 12,000. 



Manufactures and commerce. ...The manufactures of Sweden 

 are neither numerous nor flourishing. Even the manufacturing of iron 

 was introduced into Sweden so late as the 16th century, for till that 

 time they sold their own crude ore to the Hanse-towns, and bought it 

 back again manufactured into utensils. About the middle of the 

 17th century, by the assistance of the Dutch and Flemings, they be- 

 gan some manufactures of glass, starch, tin, woollens, silk, soap, and 

 leather. They have now some of sail-cloth, cotton, linen, fustian, and 

 other stuffs; as also of alum and brimstone. In 1785, it was com- 

 puted that those of sail-cloth, wool, silk, and cotton, employed above 

 14,000 hands. Vast quantities of copper are now wrought in Swe- 

 den. They have also founderies for cannon, forges for anchors and 

 fire-arms, armouries, wire and flatting mills, mills also for fulling, and 

 for boring and stamping : they likewise build many ships for sale. 



The exports of Sweden principally consist of the native productions 

 of the country ; as iron, the staple commodity, of which 400,000 ship- 

 pounds are annually exported; copper ; timber, the export of which 

 produces a revenue of 3 1 5,000/. annually; pitch, tar, herrings, and fish- 

 oil. The imports are, rye and other kinds of grain, flax, hemp, to- 

 bacco, sugar, coffee, silk, and wines. In the year 1782 the exports 

 of Sweden amounted to 1,368,830/. and the imports to 1,008,392/. leav- 

 ing a balance in favour of the country of about 360^00/. 



Government... The government of Sweden has undergone many 

 changes. The Swedes, like the Danes, were originally free, and du- 

 ring the course of many centuries the crown was elective ; but after 

 various revolutions, Charles XII, who was killed in 1718, became des- 

 potic. He was succeeded by his sister Ulrica, who consented to the 

 abolition of despotism, and restored the states to their former liberties ; 

 and they, in return, associated her husband, the landgrave of Hesse-? 

 Cassel, with her in the government. A new model of the constitution 

 was then drawn up, by which the royal power was brought perhaps 

 too low ; for the king of Sweden could scarcely be called by that name, 

 being limited in every exercise of government. The senate had even 

 a power of imposing upon the king a sub-committee of their number, 

 who were to attend upon his person, and to be a check upon all his 

 proceedings, down to the very management of his family. 



But in August, 1772, the whole system of the Swedish government 



otaliy changed by the late king, in the most unexpected manner. 



The circumstances which attended this extraordinary revolution will 



be found in our history of Sweden. By that event the Swedes, instead 



of having the particular defects of their constitution rectified, found 



king iii vested with a degree of authority little inferior to that of 



