380 H £ L V 
tonments; and between three and four o’clock in the 
morning of the 2d of March, the French attacked their 
whole line from Dornec to Friburg, carried the pod of 
Lengnau by furprife, and marched rapidly towards 
Grange. At this place,-however, general Gibelin, who 
had been routed by the roar of the cannon at Langnau, 
made, with twelve hundred men, an obdinate refiftance 
againft feveral thoufands ; but, after a confTnSt of fix 
hours, was obliged to retreat, leaving the French at li¬ 
berty to advance to Soleure. 
Schawembourg fummoned this town in terms of un¬ 
common indolence and ferocity, threatening, If the 
fnialleft reddance was made, to drike olf the heads of 
all the members of government, and, unlefs the town 
furrendered in half an hour, to reduce it to athes, and 
put the garrifon to the fword. While the_nlagidrat.es 
Tiefitated on this barbarian fummons, two pretended 
couriers, difguifed in the livery of Berne, galloped to 
the gates, and being admitted, publicly proclaimed that 
Berne had furrendered to Brune: the alarm became 
general; twelve hundred men, who were preparing to 
join Gibelin, difperfed ; the French faftion gained the 
afcendancy; and Soleure capitulated. 
On receiving intelligence of thefe events, Erlach con¬ 
centrated his forces and hadened towards the capital; 
but every palfion and every prejudice contributed to the 
deftrudtion of fubordination, and rendered his followers 
furious. Printed papers were profufely didributed, ac- 
cufing the officers of treachery; and the troops, agitated 
with alarm and enraged at the unprecedented circum- 
fhince of retiring in their own territory before a foreign 
enemy, committed all the exceffes to which extravagant 
fufpicion and hady repentance gave birth. They muti¬ 
nied, wounded and threatened to inafiacre their com¬ 
manders, demanded new leaders, broke thdir officers 
and re-elefted them, murdered two colonels, Stettler 
and Rhyiner, and then, (truck with remorfe, returned 
to their duty. The militia, and large bodies of peafan- 
try, whom the condition of their country had caufed to 
afTemble, refufed to a£t with a body fo diforganifed ; 
and Erlach, Supported only by the left wing, who main¬ 
tained a date of fullen obedience, occupied the ftrong 
pods of Neunec, Laupen, and Gummenen. 
In the niidd of thefe dreadful events, the French party 
gained a total afcendency at Berne: the populace tu¬ 
multuously feized the arfenal, aboliffied the govern¬ 
ment, and edablifiied a new provifional regency, ex¬ 
cluding thofe perfons to whom Brune had previously 
objected. Thefe changes were notified to the French 
general, and the new government offered to difband their 
army, provided he would quit the pofts he had occu¬ 
pied ; but Brune rejected the proportion, and required 
the admiffion of a French garrifon into Berne. This 
demand was too infulting even for the new government, 
nor had they Sufficient audacity to brave the fury of the 
people by furrendering the capital to the French com¬ 
manders, whofe perfidy they could no longer afteft to 
miftake ; they therefore ilfued orders for a general at¬ 
tack. At the clofe of this fatal day, the venerable 
avoyer Steiguer Solemnly depofed the infignia of his 
office, and, accompanied by his brother and family, 
haftenedto Frauenbrunnen, where he joined general 
Erlach. But, before this vigorous order was iflued, the 
publicSpirit, which alone eould have given due efte£l 
to its execution, had been trifled away. The army of 
Berne was reduced to fourteen thoufand men, in a (fate 
of infubordination, weaknefs, and irritation againft their 
officers, while the contingents ffill flood aloof. Erlach, 
though apprized of the difficulties, and danger of his 
Situation, prepared with this incompetent force to a flail 
forty thoufand Frenchmen; and, although he anticipated 
certain death or difhonour, never loft his prefence of 
mind, but made the moft fkilful difpofitions, and per¬ 
formed the duties both of general and Soldier. 
At one in the morning of the 4th of March, general 
E T I A. 
Rampon attacked Laupen, Neunec, and Gummenen, 
where, after a long conteft, be was repulfed; and gene¬ 
ral Graffenreid, having driven him with great lofs be¬ 
yond the valley of Neunec, was rapidly advancing to 
Friburg, when his career was arretted by a command to- 
fufpend hortilities, as Berne was in poffelfion of the in¬ 
vaders. The capture of the capital was preceded by a 
total defeat of the main army under Erlach, who, with 
only Seven thoufand men, withftood the repeated affaults 
of Schawembourg at the head of eighteen thoufand. 
The avoyer Steiguer fought in the ranks, -and, by liis 
exhortations and example, animated the troo'ps to deeds 
of valour worthy their anceftors. The poft of Fruen- 
bennen being forced, and Erlach, after being defeated 
in four defperate- engagements by Superior numbers, 
haying been a fifth time vanqniffied under the walls of 
Berne, the French entered the'city, and. planted the, 
fatal emblem of their atrocities, mifcalled the tree of 
liberty. The fury of the populace in Berne was re- 
ftrained by the prefence' of an armed force ; but the 
broken remains- of the retreating army committed the 
moft horrid excefies, alfafiinated feveral officers, and the 
two adjutant generals Kroufaz and Gumoens. 
Through thefe frantic hordes of difbanded foldiery 
Steiguer and Erlach were haftening towards the moun¬ 
tains of Hafli'Smd Oberland, where the borders of the 
lake of Thun offered an impregnableVetreat, and whi¬ 
ther bad been conveyed large quantities of arms and 
ammunition, thirty pieces.of artillery, and a confidera- 
ble treafure. The venerable Steiguer in difguife and 
led / by a peafant, palled unknown through crowds of his 
enraged countrymen,’and along roads infefted with the' 
light troops of the enemy, and reached the lake of 
Thun after a walk of five leagues ; repofing himfelf.for 
a ffiort time on the trunk of a tree, he crofted mount 
Bruniz into the canton of Underwalden, and found a 
refuge at Bregentz, in the Auftrian territories.—This 
venerable and intrepid patriot did not long Survive the 
fall of his country ; he died at Augfburg, in Decem¬ 
ber 1799, aged Seventy. 
Erlach, after miraculoufly efcaping from the repeated' 
affaults of the enemy, was.haftening towards the moun¬ 
tains of Oberland, undaunted by defeat, and infpired 
with hopes of colle£ting his fhattered forces to make 
another effort. Recognifed by fome draggling Soldiers 
near Mufingen, b.etween Berne and Thun, he was feized, 
bound, and placed in a cart, With an intention of con¬ 
veying him to the capital; but another defperate band 
affaulted him, and, amidft reproaches and execrations, 
maflacred him with their bayonets and hatchets. 
Although the directory had declared war againft 
Berne alone, yet when they had confummated the con- 
queft of that canton, and plundered it with their ufual 
rapacity, their army proceeded to reduce the whole of 
Swifferland, under pretence of offering to the people a 
conftitution founded on the Parifian model. Bafil had 
previoufly Separated from the ancienLconfederacy ; Zu¬ 
rich, Soleure, Friburg, and Schaffhaufen, accepted the 
proffered code; and Lucerne, after fome (light opposi¬ 
tion, was compelled to Submit. Five of the little can¬ 
tons alone maintained a momentary Struggle, and com¬ 
pelled Schawepibourg to conclude a treaty, by which 
he engaged not to interfere with their government. The 
example of freedom maintained by military force againft 
their invalion was, however, too dangerous to be en¬ 
dured by France ; the general, without Scruple, violated 
his compact, and infilled that all the cantons ftiould 
take the civic oath. Uri, Zug, and Glaris, complied ;' 
but Schweitz and' Underwalden Sent deputies who ap¬ 
pealed to the treaty. Schawembourg received them 
with infult and indignity, and returned the following 
anfwer: “You, as well as the other cantons, mull take , 
the oath ; and you muff further give up to us, alive or 
dead, nine of your principal leaders, and among them . 
three of your clergy. Many hundreds more Shall (hare 
1 the 
