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as A M ID ST th e general corruption o f manners, thofe ,of thq - S |tif s
Ms; A have long excited applaufe, from 'th e ir moral uniformity, anti
fran k indépendance. T h e -writings o f Rouffeau, and other celebrated
authors* : have depiTed. the Swifs manners in almoft every p oint o f
view,- fo .th a t the theme" has become trivial. ; T h o u g h moderate in d ie t
' th e Swifs are attached to wine, which produces gaiety and riôfeKrxta-
tioö.— T h e houfes are g e n e ra lly c ö n ftru a ed o f wood; in the moft
fimple form, w ith ftaircafes' on th e outfidé ; ye t th e ir appearance-
fingujarly coincides ;with th e p ia u re fq u e c harafte r o f the country.
. T h e drefs o f th e lower ranks is little fubj e ft to the laws o f falhion, and
in many cantons there are regulations to prevent idle ornament. Among
th e fuperior clafles th e manners " may be" confidered as partly German',
partly French ; b u t it may be imagined th a t at prefent the latter pre-
: ponderate. T n general th e Swifs,are remarkable fo r an intenfe attachment
to the ir native country ; anti there are few who do not re tu rn
, th e re to terminate the ir exiftence. T h is xmpreffion is almoft irrefiftable,
and liable to be awakened by the moft minute circümftances. H ence ;
in the French armies the tu n e called the Rance des Vaches, often fung
by th e Swifs milk maids when th ey went to the paftures, 'was carefully
interdicted, becaufe it melted the ' rough Swifs foldier into tears, and
feldom failed to produce defertion.' Th is inconquerable paffioh fee‘nisi
t ö
• p&ftf •#(»& a rHoral;fehftl^h't^ t<y tM eriehdntitig; ea&- and fratnisj
p a rt f r e tt features
<©f the' eo'unteyv th e 'v e rd a n t'h ills" cdfitrhfteti -with Alpine friows, and
tie! i clous ■ vales watered by- tran lp a fen t - dreams ; fCenes no where' elfe
to he difeerned in fuch perfection, an ti w hich m u | powerfully affqCt
thp imagin^tiopj.the m re h t^ tc fm u h jE q g s.p '1"
' T h e language o f Swifferlancl is aldiaieift o f the ’ G e rm a n ; but the
'F re n c h is much diftufed, and is often employed. | y their- beft'authors.
In the moft fouthern parts, bordering on Ita ly , the' Valteline, anti'other
territories, acquired from Milan,- the Italian is the common tongue.
Among;the Grifons in Engadina, an d .ip fome,. other, parts, is fpokeR
what is called the Romanfti, ‘which feems immediately derived from th e
Lntftbj T hp JFajJais,r;optpat p a r t o f Swi^erlanc^-watered b y v^ e .Rhone,
h a s allo,a particular ,dbde<ft;:j an d . at. th e c ity , jofjgjpp^fihq Er«jyipa,hegink.
to be fpoken, as it is alfo the prevalent language in that beautiful: part
q f the canton o f Bern called the Baysft.de Yaud* -<.Thb language‘called
-have. hfean> ennfined tenthe valleys o f Piedmont.
! , T a r ly monutnentS; &TSwi^S:htegatUre, cnhfjfting; asfuhWrhfnlubihcles
^n dt-.liyssiofT^tp, m ay he foundtinffhetcojfeCtion o f .GoMaAns;.above-
mentioned.. . Sinee:. the_jreftoration the
religion, Svyifferland boafts o f many eminent'hatoes,-as the Tefofmelr
:t t r t € ;2 iviig% ;bQ ra at Wildhaulfen; De W atr,“c$ VacfiahW, a '‘native,
o f ^ t i 'G a h ; B u llin g e rp Hfetblf, who called himliilf'OnQnpus. ^tfie
printer’;1 Conrad' G e fne r,‘h om f a t-^ur^ch in iy ifi,^ who'. p u b lfih ed a tt
.univerfal library, and fome treatifes on n a tu ra l. h ifto ry ; that noted
quack Paracelfus, Tu rre tin , and Ofterwald. Among the writers o f the.
laft century may be named Bernoulli, the .mathematician, a native o f
Bafel ; Stheuchzer, the natural h ifto ria n ; Haller, Jo h n Gefner, th e
natural philofopher ; Solomon Gefner, the p o e t; Bonnet,. Hirzel, ,ancj
Zimmerman, phyfic ians; Rouffeau, and Necker, natives.of Geneva j
Lavater, the' p h y fio g n om ift; Euler the ma t hema t i c i anCour t de
Gebelin, a learned Ibtit viftonary writer,. &c. '&c. •
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