The Seattle post-intelligencer. [volume] (Seattle, Wash. Terr. [Wash.]) 1888-1914, 1889-08-14

eysten q Goverrmeat II ths
Swiss CantOns.


the power of government iasessed ~
them according 10 isse Articles Oh ihe
constitution framed Ia is7s: ;ssey elect
the members Of the national council IN
proportion to their population, that +
To say, there Il one deputy 70 each
- 100 persons. - xeil ~ tso deputies
70 the states council for each canton.
These txo authorities together form
the federal assembly. when
norniustes the two supreme ex-
etuflye and iusficial power tie
federal council which sits 1T hffne
and the federal tribunal Al isa1 same.
The federal council consists 81 sssen
members. and the federal asssfnnay
elects from their number snn1asiy TIE
president of the confederation. f.ae1
canton has is own independent I'd.
minissYaslon. The total population OK
Switzerland in is5c Was I.ssi .utss the
proportion OF the sexes icing asuas,st
eqnai; the most popusous csty 10
Switzerland IL Zurich, Win sp,iii IN
habitants: then folloss aenesa, with
about 1900; the number Of foreigners
il, the whole OF Switzerland vas last
year 23s.3i3.
The language chiefly spoken II Ger
man. no less than 1852 80 persons
using that tongue. $50 ~ people
SPEAK French; I56gvS speak Italian
and The remainder Of the population
make use OF various languages The
Professionals and Catholics are not
equally divided, there sseing about ball
q million more OF the former than OF
the latter. tllere are some 500 Jews
resident in the country, and 1000 OF
the population profess other religions.
Agriculture is the principal pursuit OF
the population, IL per cent. being thus
occupied; 81 per cent. pursue various
industrial calIings. per cent are com
merrisl, and per cent. follow admin
istrative and scientific pursuits.
Public instruction IT, carried 10 q
higi, stage Of development in sTitzef-
land. the country contains about
4. so scholastic comrnnne~ In which
are .,i4 infant schools. ! .iss primary
schools and 49, secondary schools,
these give employment 30 nearly
If go teachers. who are occupied
nearly ali the time with over bali a
million OF pupils. The system OF
superior teaching includes normal
schools. colleges, industrial and
commercial schools and agricui-
turL and technical schools,
the total number oil pupils IN
these establishments is about 6.us.
There are several well-snown poisteeh-
MICS and universities, Of which those
Of Zurich, Berne, Bale. Geneva, Lati-
same, Seuchatel, Lucerne, fribourg
and Sion are the principal ones. In
1887 there were 30 students IN these
universities, besides i3s women. 96j
Of the total number were foreigners.
The cost Of conducting the primary
schools Is about 81 800 600 PEI annum.
The total value OF exports from
il now about xi3t .Un,1D
Of which the most important items
are those of silk 1855 80 .0co francst,
nd watches aud musical boxes tsa,-
CO.., 90 fsRncsl Machinery Is exported
TO the value OF about 5000. coo. and
cheese and preserved milk for $40 CO.,
On: other important products exported
are cattle. skins, chemicals. and scien-
tific apparatus. The export silk In
dustry amounts to about $40 co.
90; embroidery Is exported
10 the annual value OF nearly.
$50 .0p0 go, and cotton goods
for over s. 600 60. The value Of goods
imported into Switzerland Is $50 90.
D0, About 2s.3 per cent. OF the total
area OF the country IL uuproduc;ive,
and the total estimated value Of real
estate In the country Is $3.50 90 90;
the revenue obtained from agricultural
operations IL abont $50 CO.. 90; the
cereals produced supply ona-haif of
4. ~ si.sff
The value of the wine industry IL
nearly 100000 per annum,
and wine 10 about halt that
value Is imported. The fruit
crops produce revenue OF nearly So |
u0u0 year. The most important |
agricultural industry Of Switzerland Is
hat of dairy farming. the annual
value of milk produced being At least
80. 900 GO; of this one-iourth Is ex-
ported in the shape OF cheese aud com |
pressed milk. The actual value Of
i've stock in the country Is estimated
AZ nearly SO 600 90. cattle of course
'orming the larger part of this amount.
The gross estimated value of the for
ssts of Switzerland is $2Ss .ssD 600. and
The revenue annually produced Is
j. ,ss1 U0.
In issT there were $50 miles of
railway IN Switzerland. and IN this
length are included some ot the most
difficult examples oi railway engineer
ing that have ever been accomplished.
In the year named. -, ssss 81 persons
were carried on the Swiss railways.
aud s.Hi .has tons of merchandise.
The total receipts amounted to Si5,-
soo 90, and the expenses 10 $4,000.
The capital expended ia rail-
road construction was about
laO.tW.0Do, and the average in
rent. 4 total of as accidents of every
kind is reported Ia have oscnrresi on
The system in iss7. Working % a
large extent with the railways Is the
lake navigation, which TN issT occu-
pied sixty eight large passenger steam
vessels. The construction of tram
ways has made but little progress la
Switzerland, there being less than
twenty miles in work these, however.
carried In iso5 nearly o,tssitsn Of pas
sengers, with profit ot about ID. 80
francs.
Last year there were 5, or postoEilces
In the confederation, employing s,sSs9
assistants. the number OF letters and
postal cards delivered for tae home
service was over II so. 600. the mum
her OF newspapers circulated heing
about the same, the money trans
mitted by postal orders Was s.. ~ ga
The International transmission OF
mails was considerably less than half
Of the figures just given.
There are no less than Il .3ii kilo-
meters Of telegraph lines eonneets,i
with 80 offices. aud employing So
the total number 81 messages
last year Was about s.sssl.-
10. and the receipts oi the aamihistra
ton showed an excess os about sxh 90
francs over the expenditure. There
are II Sis kilomeseFs ei telephone
lines ia service. With : .as6 Receiving
and Transmitting apparatus. and g ss~t
subscribers. There i no government
bank in switzerland. bat hy federal
las thirsy-tonr disisreas hanks srs att
thorssei 70 Issue their own neses in
iSss the actual namhur cf these notes
In circulation VAS lSS .nsl go fraacs.
which represented almost ihe snasi.
mue authorized emission. The col
lecssve eapstal of the Sw.ss tanks sS-
eesSls sll0.tssl On
YRllQn TaEAT ALTAR