The Sun.
London, England, 1831-01-25 00:00:00

SWITZERLAND.

(From the Morning Chronicle Private Correspondent.)
LausANNE, JAN. 17.—1 n compliance with your
request, I send you a statistical account of the present
state of this country, which I hope you will find usefoul
and satisfactory. I have also added some observations on
the forces we can call into the field, and on our system of
rifle firing.

A STATISTICAL VIEW OF THE PRESENT STATE OF
SWITZERLAND.

Surface
of the
Cantons. Chief Towns Coun- •
try, tion. Popula- Religion.
square
leagues
----- .----- -----1-.-.
1. Zurich Zurich 90 2•24,lsolProtestant
2. Bern Bern 327 357,710 Mixed
3. Luccru Lucern 73 105,600 Catholic
4. Uri Altorf 57 13,930 Ditto
5. Sehwitz Schnitz 31 36,040 Ditto
Sarnen O. Unterwald t stanz 37 23,150 Ditto
7. Glaris Glaris 31 3,960 Mixed
8. Zug Zug 10 14,710 Catholic
9. Fribourg Fribourg 7S 77,660, Ditto 11
10. Soleure Soleure 33 54,390 Ditto
11. Basle Basle 24 1.5,3.50 Protestant
12. Schatrouse Schatibuse 17 28,050 Ditto
Appenzell
13. Appenzell iTrogen 19 57,510 Mixed
Herisau
14. St. Gall St. Gall 104 157,700 Ditto
15. Grisons Coire 318 96,090 Ditto
16. Argovie Arau 69 192,900 Ditto
17. Thurgovie Frauenfeld 4,2 e 0,54.0 Ditto
Bellinzone
18. Tessin Lugano 146 103,950 Catholic
Locarno
19. Vaud Lausanne 1551 178,860 Protestant
20. Valais Sion 216 77,570 Catholic
2!. Neuchatel Neuchatel 36 58,640 Protestant
11. Geneva Geneva 12 53,560 Mixed
--- -
T0ta1.... 1,925 2,037,030

First
Con-
tingent
or Di.
vision
of the
IForces.

2,630
1,600
2,410
1,520
1,604

2,464
1,280
960
880

33,758

Besides the first contingent or division of the elite,
which are the first troops to be called t• the field, there
is a second contingent of the seine number of men, form-
ing the second division, to be next called to the defence
of the country ; these two divisions amount to 67,516
men, without reckoning the staff of the army, and are
called, in the country, the elite of the Confederation ;
they are all young men, from 18 to 27 years of age.
The Reserve is composed of such men as have served
eight years in the elite; they remain in the battalions of
the reserve until they are fifty years of age; the military
education of these men being considered as completed
after they have left the elite ; they amount to about
150,000 men, which are next to be called into actual
service.

The 67,516 men belonging to the Mite is the amount
of the men which the Cantons place at the disposal of the
Diet, each of the Cantons having to furnish a number of
men according to the before-mentioned proportions ; but
most of the Cantons have more than that number ; thus
the Canton De Vaud is only obliged to furnish 5,928
men in the two first contingents, though the elite of that
Canton is above 8,000.
In case of invasion, Switzerland can set on foot above
220,000 able soldiers; for every Swiss is a soldier from
18 to 50 years of age. In the present circumstances, the
patriotic enthusiasm of the Swiss is at its highest pitch,
and we have no doubt that those men would be a match for
the hest troops of the line of any country.
Protected by this military force, and sheltered by its
mountains, Switzerland would not be easily invaded, even
by an enemy far superior in number. The bravery of the
Swiss is proverbial, and the whole of their history affords a
continual proof of their prowess in war, whether they fight
at home or abroad. Switzerland, like an immense fortress,
is protected on the North by the deep and rapid Rhine, on
the West by the Jura Mountains, on the South and on the
East by the Alps, and an invading army would meet with
unceasing obstacles in that mountainous country. That
the Swiss are numerous enough to defend their country is
not to be doubted—that they are brave enough to do so is
no less certain; but are they unanimous in their determi-
nation ? I think they are; all cantonal jealousies seem to
have vanished since time people have obtained their consti-
tutional reforms ; the Members of the last Diet bad but
one will and one mind ; the instructions given them by
their respective cantons all agreed, and I do not hesitate in
affirming, that at no period of their history were the Swiss
more ready to repulse foreign aggression.

Of all the means which-thewiss have to repulse their
enemies, none is more formidable than the skill they pos-
sess in the art of shooting with rifles. They are, no
doubt, the best marksmen in the world ; besides the
riflemen belonging to the army of the Confederation, who
have all been at the Military School, an who have been
regularly trained and drilled for the purpose, there is not
a parish in the land which has not one or more societies
of riflemen, where prizes are yearly contended for.—
During the whole of the summer, their Journals are filled
with advertisements for public firing matches all about the
country. This is truly a national exercise, and enjoyed by
the greatest part of the population.
One of these meetings was held last year at Bern.
The prizes to be fired for amounted to 1,1791. sterling ;
the Government and town of Bern, and various societies,
added gifts to a large amount, consisting of silver cups,
and other articles of silver plate. Eight thousand of the
beet marksmen of Switzerland met to try their skill; the
targets were placed at two hundred yards' distance, the
riflemen could only fire one shot at each of the seven first
targets, and no shot was inscribed to pretend to a prize
which struck farther than six inches from the centre ;
there were thirty other targets where the marksmen could
fire many shots, but where no shot was inscribed
to pretend to a prize which struck farther than one inch
and a half from the centre. This description will give an
idea of the skill of the marksmen.

How often have I been a spectator of these firing
matches; and I have found, on examination, that on an
average, 100 balls out of 106 struck a square of 18
inches; and it appeara to me, by what I have seen,
that out of 110 balls fired by these marksmen against the
single figure of a man placed as a target, above 100
would strike it; from which I conclude, that if they fired
against ranks or the enemy's columns of troops, few would
be the balls that misled them. It may be paid that it is
quite another thing to fire in battle than against a target.
It may be so s but the skill of the Swiss rifleman is a
fact which cannot be denied, and the war of 1798 afford
many proofs of the dreadful havoc the Swiss mountaineers
of the small cantons, though so few in number, made in the
ranks of the best French army which, perhap,, France
ever set on foot. Switzerland was divided, at that time,
into many factions. Few of the canton; ;rated in con-
concert; partial engagements only took place, in all of
which the Swiss *bowed their bravery and skill ; and we
th
do not hesitate in affirming, that if the Swiss are fairly
united,fearapot: form
rolirkne
Austria l
an idea of the firing of the musketry, when com-
pared with that of the riflemen, let us bear in mind
andey
itsnumerous
would by no
armies. means
In order t
that in the last long war of France against all the Powers
of Europe, between two hundred and three hundred mus-
ket-shots were fired to kill or wound a man ! The Tyro-
lean riflemen, called lea Chaeaeurs do Loup (Tyrolean
wolf.huntere) were, on the contrary, the terror of the
French soldiers ; and when afterwards the Tyrolean pea-
sants rose against the Prench, though the army which was
sent against them was ten times more numerous, the pea-
sants protracted the struggle, and would not have submitted
had not their Chiefs fallen into the hands of the enemy.
The present view of the state of Switzerland I believe
to be correct, and I hope that the Cantons will feel the
necessity of drawing closer the national bond, and if once
firmly united, they may defy the enemies of their country,
Geneva,
P.S. A letter from Harbourg, Argovia, has just
Jan. 18, 1831.
reached me, and contains the following intelligence :
" On Thursday (15th inst.), the citizens of Basle fought
with the peasantry ; one hundred men were killed and
wounded, We have not heard what passed yesterday at
Basle, the communications being all stopped. Many fami-
lies from Basle have reached our town, and others have
sought shelter at Arau and Zefingue—they left the town
before the engagement took place."

There
and will
townsno whichdo ub
have
a vbee oith
egrroe stirabteen
denied
enaimedotnbge
the cities
blessing of representation in Parliament. The bustling
town of Walsall. has already asserted its claim, by preparing
a petition to Parliament to grant the elective franchise to
their " borough and foreign," the population of which is
‘
about 15,000.

We have Papers from the Cape of Good Hope
to the 25th of November. The Sir Edward Paget,
bound to India, had arrived there, having spoken his Ma-
jetty's ship Beagle on the Equator. The Commander of
this vessel stated that be had on board a man who formerly
belonged to a piratical vecsel which had attacked, and,
after a sharp
Redpole, and put every 'soul on board to death. The
engagement taken his Majesty's ship the
Redpole, it will be remembered, was the packet bound to
Buenos Ayres, which has now been missing about twenty-
one months. The Burrell, Captain MErcaLr, had
anchored in Table Bay, bound to New South Wales, with
180 male convicts on board, who, during the voyage, had
concocted a conspiracy to murder the Captain and crew,
and run the vessel on the coast of Brazil. Oue of the con-
victs confessed the plot, and the ringleaders had been
secured,