T agitating that country. To the immediate | consideration of this latter we now proceed. II. The country of Vaud, which, previous to the French Revolution, had been a dependency of the canton of Berne, had complained of this unreasonable political inferiority, on the ground of its own importance in wealth and population, and its obligations to afford its full quota for the common defence of the confederation. Berne disregarded its appeal, and as one vicious extreme always brings on its opposite, the Vaudois, instead of persisting in their lawful demands, in which they were powerfully seconded by Schwytz and the other democratic cantons, gave way to secret and treasonable plots for subverting the entire Swiss constitution, and forming of the whole one consolidated government, in place of a confederacy of states. Directory, which is dated April 5th, of that year, and was therefore framed after the fall of the democratic cantons of Lucerne, Friburg, and Solothurn, along with their aristocratic allies, Berne and Zurich, and just one month before the prostration of Schwytz, which we have a little above recorded. "The French Republic," they say, "in declaring that it is the friend and ally of the and sovereignty, professed first to wish only to Swiss nation, and promising to protect its rights assist the inhabitants of the aristocratical states in regaining the primitive liberty of which the democratic cantons have always been the source and exemplars. . . 66 . . . . On the sudden we received from the provisional government of Solothurn, the plan of a new Helvetic constitution, with a pressing invitation to concur in it; and learned, at the same time, unofficially, that all the cantons of Switzerland would be obliged to submit to "In vain should we attempt to describe to you the grief with which it fills our souls. We esteem no misfortune equal to the loss of the free constitution established by our ancestors, adapted to our wants and manners, and cemented during ages, by the enjoyment of all the comfort and happiness of which our peaceful valleys are susceptible. The presiding genius of this wretched scheme was Cæsar de Laharpe, an inhabit. itant of Vaud, who formed of his fellowcitizens the first jacobin or revolutionary club within the borders of Switzerland, and scrupled nothing to invite the intervention of the French Republic to carry out his project by force of arms. In degree as the French advanced in gaining dominion over the country, the ancient name of Swiss, that the whole league had taken from the gallant canton of Schwytz, was changed to the artificial appellation of Helvetians,* and the new organization was called "The Helvetic Republic, One and Indivisible." Here, all simply, is the origin of that poitical revolution, that within the past year as a second time been violently forced ipon Switzerland. And as the contest has been the same, so if the conservative canons in 1847 had wished to remonstrate with the radicals, they could not have ound better words or arguments whereith to defend the freedom and sovereignty f their respective cantonal governments, han were used by the same cantons against he incursions of French jacobinism, in 798. On this account we will quote ›me sentences from the memorial of the ve democratic cantons, Schwytz, Uri, Unrwalden, Zug and Glaris, to the French A brilliant political writer of European celebrihas said: "No human institution can last . . it bears not a name taken from the national lanage, originating itself without anterior deliberan."-De Maistre, Principe Generateur. "Permit us in the first place, to ask you plainly what you have found in our constitutions adverse to your principles ? Where can you find a mode of government, whose exercise and sovereign rights are more entirely in the hands of the people, than in ours? where civil and political equality is more perfect? where every citizen enjoys a larger measure of liberty? Our chains are but the easy ones of religion and good morals; our yoke but the laws to which we have ourselves agreed. If in other states the people have much to desire, with us, at least, the children of William Tell; with us, who have maintained the constitution he left us, without any change, and for whose preservation we now appeal to you with all the energy that the consciousness of the most just cause inspires; with us, but one unanimous wish remains, and that is of remaining subject to the government which Providence and the courage of our ancestors have bequeathed to us. "We, the people of these countries, whose sovereignty you have so often promised to respect, are ourselves the sovereigns of the cantons; we elect and displace our magistrates as we choose; our councils are elected by the several districts, and our representatives are in the truest manner the representatives of the people. 66 Such, in the abstract, are the bases And on the same day, to the same Directory, the people of Appenzell, St. Gall, Zaggenburg, Rheinthal, and Sargans, protested: Why is it wished to democratize us? Is not our constitution sufficiently democratical? Are not our people sole sovereignare they not their own law-makers do they not choose their own magistrates, and that according to a representative system so well contrived that a better is not easy to conceive of? These are facts which it is not possible to call in doubt." But "la grande France," "la grande nation," and especially "les grands jacobins," like the empirics of our own day, must needs "re-organize" a society that desired it so little. Something must be wrong with it, or it would admire their medicine. Ubi voluntas, ibi libertas; and therefore, when the will of jacobins and radicals is to demolish existing institutions, to oppress and plunder their neighbors, and thus to make themselves rulers and great men, if aught opposes their will, they are greatly grieved at the violence done to liberty. It was a matter of course that the moment the force of external pressure was removed from Switzerland, the Republic one and indivisible of Cæsar de Lafarge should fall amid popular execrations. Napoleon himself was obliged to confess, in opposition to his earlier conduct, that the more he became acquainted with that country, the more convinced he was that it could never continue under a single government. And in 1802, Lord Hawkesbury, in an official note from Downing street, declared, in the behalf of England, that the crown looked upon the exertions of the Swiss cantons "in no other light than as the lawful efforts of a brave and generous people to recover their ancient laws and government, and to procure the reestant of a system which experience rated to be favorable to the of their domestic happi ha I of Napoleon, one of the ear liest acts of the Congress of the European powers assembled first in Paris, was the recognition of the independence of Switzer land. Thereupon the ancient cantons of the confederation instantly reclaimed their separate sovereignty, and measures were taken at the earliest possible date, to revive the league, with no other difference than that the states which had before been dependencies of the ancient cantons were now either incorporated into one or another of them, or were themselves erected into sovereign confederates; so that in the new confederacy there should be twenty-two independent sovereign cantons. In the first movements of the cantons towards renewing the league, Schwytz gave a fresh proof of that profound political sagacity that has almost entitled her to the character of a prophetic oracle. Uniting in her sentiments a portion of Unterwalden and Appenzell, she refused to unite in the atcient pact, as descrying within the other cantons a lawless and unfaithful principle, that would not scruple afterwards to abuse the tie of confederacy to the invasion her cherished principles in politics and in religion. The diet of the other cantons and none more loudly than Berne and Vaud, protested their good faith, and their attachment to the time-honored and cher ished principle of the sovereign independ ence of each canton in all things whatever. relating to its internal affairs. Schwy still declined concurrence, until by a sep rate assurance of the great Europea powers, which were now continuing the sittings of their Congress at Vienna in 1815 it had received the solemn endorsement d all Europe to the bond of the diet, that no change in this particular of cantonal free dom should be made, at least without the unanimous consent of every single canton Upon this doubly guarantied provisi Schwytz and its companions descendeda enter into a league, some of the parties which they could not profess to est trustworthy. But their motive was word of them: it was not only in compliant with the entreaties of some of the nes cantons, with whom they sympathized principles, but also, and chiefly, to be s to extend a protection greatly desirable Friburg, which was like them democ in politics and similar in religion, and y geographically was in an isolated pass being surrounded by cantons of a totally | how far their influence has penetrated into opposite character. But the jacobins, by the restoration of good order, were thrown out of the high places to which French influence had aised them. With the return of freedom o the majority of the people, all who had been the partisans of the revolutionary asociation, or of the republic one and indivisble, fell into disgrace. But to them the emory of their former power was sweet, nd this sweetness was communicated to he form of government that had afforded to them. Forthwith those pests of ocial order, as of religious faith, the secret olitical clubs, were formed and ripened. ome of these bore names the most inoffenve in appearance, but all were in connecon with one another, and all working toards one end. The same kind of sociees at this time were continuing, in the onarchical countries of Europe, the proigation of the wild notions of the French volutionary school, and the conservative pers of the time contain frequent referice to their dangerous proceedings. With I of these, sympathy of aim brought the ubs of Switzerland into intelligence. The orst of these societies were the freeooters, from whom at length the freerps grew out. In their secret meetings ey called themselves the godly marksmen, öttliche shützen,) and gave themselves e mission of bearing a gospel of radicala, by means of their carabines, to the nighted people of all Europe. Thus plottings of these secret political lodges, m being aimed solely at the subversion the Swiss constitution, and the enslaving the independent cantons, growing to re formidable proportions, proposed at gth a propagandism of destruction to the nations of Europe; and the Swiss ubles assumed the form, as we said in outset of this essay, of an European estion. Indeed, supposing that national h and the sacredness of solemn treaties re terms that retained any meaning in dern diplomacy, it was clear to the iss radicals from the first, that in attackthe integrity of the conservative cantons, y were throwing a defiance in the face all Europe. To prepare for the effects this, they pushed the ramifications of ir secret organizations into all the intries of the European alliance; and the very courts of kings, and into the ministerial cabinets of the great monarchies, can be conjectured only by the most deeply implicated of their own managers, and perhaps by the Catholic priests, who, bound beforehand by their official vows to an eternal silence, are from time to time called to visit such on their death-beads.* At length the commotions of 1830 enabled these secret lodges to put forth and urge their proposition of abolishing the cantonal constitutions in favor of the old unitary scheme. But so deep was the attachment of the people in the much greater part of the cantons for their national government, and so utter, their abhorrence of the centralizing demagogism, that the radicals found it necessary to change their tactics. They resolved first to produce revolutions in the governments of each conservative canton, the object of which was to place their own friends at the head of all the particular cantons. Having now done as much as they were able in this way, and having drawn into Switzerland all the bad men, the political and moral bankrupts of France, Germany and Italy, as far as they could, they proceeded at length to propose in the diet of the confederation a revision of the national pact, beginning with its first article. It was this first article that most expressly acknowledged the inviolable sovereignty of each canton, and limited the objects of the pact to defending the cantons from foreign aggression, and from efforts at home to interfere with the cantonal independence. Again, however, the diet rejected the proposition, amid the declaration of the conservative cantons that such a change would, ipso facto, dissolve the league, and that they would *The unmitigated horror with which the most intelligent and highest of the European clergy, whom we have met, invariably regard these secret societies, was at first the object of our amusement, or, to confess it frankly, of our ignorant derision; but further reflection, and especially further acquaintance with the workings of European radicalism led us to inquire whether the priesthood were not precisely in the position to be possessed of dreadful details, which they were not at liberty to make any use of in the way of proof. The desperate me that the lodges employ to keep their member intercourse with the priests on their deat must be the subject of familiar anecdote one who has resided in the Catholic kinge resist the proposed unitary government | ing out the decree of the diet. In place with their blood. of doing this, Berne looked on, without a remonstrance, at the further acts of confis cation of property and expulsion of monks in which Argow engaged when it saw the storm averted by its smooth words. When the regular meeting of the annual diet was held, the majority in favor of compelling the canton of Argow to retract its proceedings was not sufficient to carry it into effect. The radicals then attacked the national charter in another way. Its twelfth article guarantied the inviolability of monasteries, convents, and capitulary foundations of the Catholic Church, throughout all the cantons of the league. In 1840 to 1841, Berne was the vorort,* or directing canton; and at its instigation the canton of Argow, on a charge of a Catholic conspiracy, directed by the monks of Muri, and It is an unfortunate fact, that the res which all parties have since acknowledged principles at issue were not apprehended as a mere fabrication to give a momentary generally by the Swiss people at this junc color to their already fixed determination, ture. The premeditated political schemes called in the aid of Berne, and by military of the secret societies of Berne were not force, after bombarding the Catholic vil- yet thoroughly penetrated, and hence lages, took possession of, plundered, and seemed impossible that some occasion had suppressed the ancient abbey of Muri, not been given by the Catholic parishes, or and all the convents that had sprung from communes, for the extraordinary acts d it, and were established in the canton. A Argow. Yet Switzerland was not without special convocation of the diet was instant-conservative journalists, Protestants as well ly demanded by many of the conservative cantons. It assembled in April, 1841, and seventeen of the twenty-two cantons declared the suppression of the monasteries a violation of the charter, and namely of its twelfth article. Thereupon the diet requested Argow to withdraw the steps that had been taken, and restore the convents. The grand council of Argow, in reply, affected a tone of great moderation. It averred that the diet could not have understood the motives of Argow in the action that canton had taken. It made a friendly (freundnachberlich) request to the confederates to forbear following up the decree of the diet, but professed its readiness to submit, if they should urge its execution. This seeming moderation deceived many who had at first taken sides against Argow. Moreover, it cost nothing, for, as Berne was this year the vorort, it belonged to it to take the initiative in carry According to compact the national diet is to assemble yearly and alternately at Berne, Zurich, and Lucerne. During the year ensuing, the can ton in which the diet has been held is considered the vorort, its president and council being the executive. This vorort has no original powers, it is merely to take the lead in executing what the diet has already decreed; nevertheless, persons acQuainted with the detail of political intrigue will if understand that this presidency gives it a preponderance during the year, and enables it rv many things into execution that would othbe impossible. as Catholics, who insisted that what was And so the Protestant villages, that f of old were subject to the palati of the Bishops of St. Gall and of though at the reformation they had chang their religion, were never interfered after the new treaty of peace by bishops who were their sovereigns. they permitted to their subjects in ters religious, an ultimate appeal to governments and consistories of the can of Zurich and Berne, as esteeming it onable that they might distrust the im tiality of a government hostile to confession. The Gazette Fédérale, aP 3 ant but conservative journal, in a very e article that was reproduced in full by Journal Historique et Littéraire of Liege, ts number for October, 1841, after citing 1 arguing on similar facts, remarks it as ingular phenomenon "that Protestants ng under Catholic governments should e enjoyed such a foreign protection, le, on the contrary, Catholics under testant governments have never anyere found it." And with still more nt, as applying to the affairs of Argow, article concludes with saying that, ince the adherents of the Protestant imunion, as no one doubts, would enercally repulse all intervention of Cathoin their religious concerns, as irrational highly wicked pretensions, must we likewise acknowledge that the intertion of Protestants in the domain of Catholic church which is wholly foreign heir jurisdiction, is a violation of eterjustice, of constitutional equality, and n of sane human reason?" o far for the views of the conservative mals in Switzerland, which showed at t good feeling, though only an impergrasp of the real points which were issue. Their remarks were aimed at se who were disposed to favor the rads because they thought them opposed y to the Catholic religion and its instions, and this was the ground on which y argued plausibly, if not always soundfor universal toleration. But the hunradicals cared nothing for Protestant Catholic their object, was a political ; their desired good, like that of hungry icals everywhere, was power and pelf. uld they have gained anything by it, y would have fawned on the Catholic ests, as the Italian radicals did on Pius in the earlier stages of his reform; the Swiss priesthood were predisposed judge of political changes by the spirit the first French Revolution, and thanks Swiss radicalism, they had no opportuy to do otherwise. They were theree conservative, as we think, to a faulty reme-that is, in a wrong sense; y seem to us to have been conservae of political prejudices and customs, well as of principles and methods. t it is a part of a true liberality to make de allowances, in these matters, for hes and circumstances; and, in details, to sometimes even distrust the influence that these exert on ourselves. At any rate the radicals hated the priesthood, (it is to the honor of the latter,) and desired their destruction, not because of dogmas of faith but of the influence that they exerted socially upon the body of the people, and in behalf of the national constitution. The grand object of the movements in Argow was to annul practically the Swiss constitution by attacking one of its fundamental provisions; and the radicals after this extended the plan of their operations. They succeeded in changing the cantonal constitution of Berne, and putting at the head of its new government the ringleaders of the free corps and their adherents. They also got the canton of Zurich into their hands. But on the other hand, they utterly lost Lucerne, where they had hitherto had a strong footing. The latter change was the result of a general religious revival throughout the canton; and on the head of this, so early as 1841, they made changes in the constitution of their canton in the sense contrary to radicalism; but we are not sufficiently well acquainted with their details to be able to judge of their propriety. One consequence of the changes in Lucerne, was the calling into the canton some four or five Jesuits to take charge of the Theological Seminary. Owing to the want of a right separation of the church from the state in the cantons of Switzerland, it was necessary that this call should proceed from the civil government of the canton. Had it been, as it should have been, a simple act of the bishop of the diocese, so small an affair could never have given occasion to so much noise. As it is, such an undue importance has been attributed to the fact, on one side and the other, that it is worth while to discuss it in a few words. We have never been able to tune our voices to the chorus of those commonplace romancers, or would-be remarkable people, Protestant as well as Catholic, who sing peans to the Jesuits, as a race of heroes all, and worthy of the blood of Apollo. Still less have we ever found reason to believe that they are a band of dark, designing men, who cherish evil schemes against political order, or even political liberty. We were predisposed to |