NEW 
a TO IMPROVE THE SOIL AND THE MIND.” 
SERIES. 
VOL. III. 
ALBANY, MARCH, 1846 
No. 3. 
THE CULTIVATOR. 
Is published on the first of each month, at Albany, N. Y., by 
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LETTERS FROM MR. HORSFORD.—No. IX. 
FELLENBERG SCHOOL AT HOFWYL. 
Giessen, Oct. 17th, 1835. 
Mr. Tucker — I have just returned from an excur¬ 
sion in Southern Germany, Switzerland, and Sardinia. 
My course lay along the valley of the Rhine through 
the Grand Duchy of Baden to Freiburg; thence across 
the Black Forest to Schaffhausen, where the waters of 
the Rhine pour over a ledge of rocks, furnishing the 
largest water-fall in Europe—thence to Zurich, where 
Pestolozzi was born ; thence by Koppel, where Zuingli, 
the companion of the reformers fought and fell,—and 
through Zug and Goldau, upon the Riga,—an isolated 
mountain peak of six thousand feet, commanding a mag¬ 
nificent view of the Alps, in the distance, on one side, 
and the Jura on the other, with all the lakes and richly 
cultivated lands between; thence to Lucerne, the thea¬ 
tre of the recent ill-starred revolution; thence along 
the Vierwaldstaeder lake, through the scenes of Tell's 
history, to Altorf; thence along the St. Gothard’s road to 
the Italian summit; thence, by foot-paths, through 
snow, and over the glaciers, to the sources of the Aar, 
where Agassiz, Desor, and their associates have for ten 
years been recording the history of that river of ice, the 
Aar glacier; thence through all the remarkable passes 
of the Bernese Alps to Interlacken; thence over the 
Gemmi to the valley of the Rhone, and along the Sim¬ 
plon road to Martigny, where Longfellow’s Excelsior 
sets out; thence over the Col de Balme, to Chamouni, 
from which rises Mont Blanc; thence to Geneva; thence 
through French Switzerland, by Lausanne, Fribourg, 
Berne, Hofwyl, Solothurn, Aurau, Zurich again, St. 
Gallan to Constance, where Huss was burned; thence 
over Schaffhausen, through the Black forest, crossing 
the sources of the Danube to Stutgart, the capital of 
Wurtemburg; thence, after visiting Hohenheim, [as 
described in the letter published in our last— Ed.] near 
Stutgart, over Heilbroom, down the Necker to Heidel¬ 
berg, and along the Bergstrassa to Darmstadt, Frank¬ 
fort and Giessen in all a tour of nearly fifteen hundred 
miles. 
After this enumeration of the principal points visited 
in my tour, I need scarcely add that opportunity has 
been presented me for learning much of agriculture and 
affiliated pursuits, in greatly diversified situations, soils, 
and climate. Some of the observations I have been 
enabled to make, may perhaps be worth, hereafter, 
sharing with your readers. 
The most prominent objects of my tour, however, 
were the institutions for education in Southern Germany 
and Switzerland. Of these I visited eleven, eight of 
which were more or less schools for instruction in th® 
science and practice of agriculture. In all of them, the 
announcement that I was an American, and theobjectof 
my wishes, secured me the kindest reception and the 
most generous co-operation. Two or three days were 
devoted to each of several of them, in learning their 
systems and distinguishing peculiarities. Of what I 
saw and heard, I have taken somewhat ample notes, and 
begging for them the consideration they deserve from 
having necessarily been written in great haste, I will 
give you a copy of my notes at Hofwyl; prefacing them 
with a brief notice of M. Fellenberg, and the origin of 
his school. 
Emanuel von Fellenberg was descended from one 
of the oldest families of the nobility of Switzerland. 
Early dissatisfied with political life, he became a pupil 
of Pestolozzi. Inspired with the ideas of that great 
man, he resolved to devote his life and fortune to their 
development. Superior to his master in the refinements 
of life and in wealth, he was scarcely second to him in 
zeal and firmness of purpose. 
He consumed ten years in visiting schools and other¬ 
wise fitting himself for the execution of his plans. 
Having sought through Switzerland a location uniting 
all the essentials to his conception of a site for a school, 
he fixed upon Hofwyl, an estate in Canton Berne, about 
five miles from the capital. It is a large irregular 
mound, embracing about two hundred acres. In the 
distance, on the east, are the Bernese Alps. On th® 
west is the Jura chain. Lesser elevations, between, 
crowned with forests of different ages, meadows rich in 
verdure, grain fields, and cottages embosomed in shad® 
trees, greet the eye on every side as one looks out from 
the grounds upon which the group of buildings is situ¬ 
ated. 
The school was commenced with poor children, whose 
education not only, but whose food and clothing were 
provided. I cannot follow the history in its detail, 
showing how unwilling for a long time the humbler 
classes were to receive education as a gift—how from 
these little beginnings the institution has gone forward, 
till it now numbers some twenty-five professors and 
teachers, with pupils from every quarter of Europe—how 
M. Fellenberg was condemned for his enthusiasm—how 
his holy purpose to temper the keenness, and lessen the 
pressure of want, stood, like the granite peaks in his 
land,—all unchanged, amid the shock of elements 
around—and how, full of years and of happiness, he has 
just closed his mission. 
I must turn to my notes. There were three schools 
founded by M. Fellenberg—two at Hofwyl, and a third 
at Kutti, another estate near. The latter is the school 
for agriculture. The higher school at Hofwyl, receives 
pupils from the more wealthy families, of whom there 
are about forty from England—the lower is for the poor. 
The courses of instruction are totally different. 
The English Professor was kind enough to presen* 
