Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 21.djvu/487

Rh S C I S C I 465 miles). The highest point is the Grieseltstock or Faulen (9200 feet) ; the summit of the Rigi (Rigi Kulm) is also within its limits. In 1880 the population (nearly equally divided between the two sexes) was 51,235, an increase of 3530 since 1870. The only towns of any size are Einsiedeln (population, 8401) and the capital, Schwyz (6543). German is the mother-tongue of 49,631 of the inhabitants, and there is an Italian colony of 1377. The Roman Catholics number 50,266, the Protestants but 954. Till 1814 the canton formed part of the diocese of Constance ; since that time it is practically (though not formally) included in that of Chur. Besides a monastery of Capuchin friars and four nunneries, the canton boasts of the great Benedictine abbey of Einsiedeln, which grew up round the cell of the hermit St Meinrad (d. 863) ; it received its first charter in 946 from Otho I., and contains a black statue of the Virgin, which attracts about 150,000 pilgrims annually. In Schwyz primary education is free and compulsory, the state also giving grants in aid of secondary instruction. The population are mainly engaged in pastoral occupations, the chief article of export (largely to north Italy) being a special breed of cattle, which enjoys a very high reputation in the confederation. The only railways in the canton are the portion of the St Gotthard line between Kiissnacht, Immensee, and Sisikon, and the line from Arth to the summit of the Rigi. The valley of Schwyz first appears in history in 970. Later a community of free men is found settled at the foot of the Mythen, possessing common lands and subject only to the count of the Zurich. gau, as the representative of the emperor ; from the Hapsburgs Steinen in 1269 and Arth (completely) in 1354 bought their free- dom and became part of the free community of Schwyz. The early history of Schwyz consists mainly of struggles with the abbey of Einsiedeln about rights of pasture. In 1240 the inhabitants obtained from Frederick II. the " Reichsfreiheit," i.e., direct depend- ence on the emperor, being thus freed from the Hapsburg counts of the Zurich gau. In 1273 the younger branch of the house of Hapsburg sold all its property and rights in the valley to the elder branch, which a few months later obtained the empire, and in April 1291 bought the rights of the Alsatian abbey of Murbach over Lucerne. Schwyz took the lead in making the famous league of 1st August 1291 with the neighbouring districts of Uri and Unter- walden, for which its position and the free spirit of its inhabitants specially fitted it. An attack by Schwyz on Einsiedeln was the excuse for the Austrian invasion which on 15th November 1315 was gloriously beaten back in Morgarten Pass. In the history of the league Schwyz was always to the front, so that its name in a dialectal form (Schweiz) was applied by foreigners from the 14th century onwards to the league as a whole, though it formed part of its formal style only from 1803. Soon after the victory of Sempach (1386) the men of Schwyz began to extend their borders. In 1394 they acquired the town of Einsiedeln (becoming in 1397, and finally in 1434, the "protectors " of the great abbey) and in 1402 Kiissnacht, while in 1412-37 they won the " March," and in 1440 Wollerau and Pfaffikon, all on or near the Lake of Zurich. All these districts were governed by Schwyz as subjects, not as equals or allies, supreme power resting with the " Landsgemeinde " (or assembly of all citizens of full age) of Schwyz, which is first mentioned in 1294. Schwyz joined the other forest cantons in opposing the Reformation, and took part in the battle of Cappel (1531), in which Zwingli fell. In 1586 it became a member of the Golden or Borromean League, formed to continue the work of Charles Borromeo in carrying out the counter-Reformation. In 1798 Schwyz, including Gersau (free since 1390), formed part of the "Tell gau" or "Republique Telliane," set up by the French, which a week later gave way to the " Helvetic republic," though the free men offered a valiant resistance under Aloys Reding. In 1799 it was the scene of the disastrous retreat from Altdorf to Glarus made over the Kinzigkulm and Pragel Passes by the Russians under Suwaroff in face of the French army. Schwyz steadily resisted all proposals for the revision of the federal constitution of 1815, joined the league of Sarnen in 1832, and, when religious disputes had further complicated matters, the " Sonderbund " (1843 and 1845), which was only put down by the war of November 1847. The constitution of 1848 was revised in 1855, 1876 (when membership of one of the twenty-nine "Gemeinde" or communes became the political qualification), and 1884. SCIACCA, a town of Italy, in the province of Girgenti, Sicily, 28 miles south-east of Castelvetrano (Selinus) and 37 north-west of Girgenti, lies on the south coast on a steep rocky decline, and with its walls and castles has from a distance an imposing appearance. The cathedral was founded in 1090 by Julia de Hauteville, daughter of Roger I., who had presented her with the lordship of Sciacca on her marriage with Perollo; and two other churches, S. Salvadore and S. Maria delle Giummare, date from the same period. In the cliffs are excavated granaries in which under the Spanish viceroys the grain used to be stored under Government control. To the east of the town, at the foot of Monte S. Calogero, are the hot wells (sulphur- ous and saline) of Sciacca; and the steam that breaks forth from the top of the hill seems to have been used (as it still is) for vapour baths from a remote (possibly Phoenician) period. The population was 21,451 (22,195 including Marina) in 1881. Sciacca was the birthplace of Tommaso Fazello (1498-1570), the historian of Sicily. In the 15th century it was the scene of a ter- rible feud between the Perollos (lords of Sciacca) and the counts of Luna. SCIATICA. See NEURALGIA, vol. xvii. p. 364. SCILLY ISLES, a group of islands, about forty in number, in the county of Cornwall (see vol. vi. plate IX.), England, are situated about 25 miles west by south of Land's End and 40 west from Lizard Point, in 50 N. lat. and 6 W. long. They are composed wholly of granite, outliers of the granite highlands of Cornwall. There are some metalliferous veins or lodes, but none that could ever have yielded much iron. On account of the mild climate the vegetation is remarkably luxuriant. The mean average temperature in winter is about 45 and in summer about 58. Fuchsias, geraniums, and myrtles attain an immense size, and aloes, cactus, and the prickly pear grow in the open air. The inhabitants devote their attention principally to the cultivation of early potatoes for the London market. Asparagus and other early vegetables, as well as flowers, are also largely cultivated. Lobsters are caught and sent to London, but the fishing industry is of comparatively minor importance. The total area of the islands is 3560 acres, with a population in 1871 of 2090, and in 1881 of 2320, including 276 persons on board vessels. The inhabited islands are St Mary's (area about 1500 acres), Tresco (700), St Martin's (550), St Agnes (350), and Bryher (300). The principal town, Hugh Town in St Mary's, occupies a sandy peninsula crowned by the height called the Garrison, with Star Castle, erected in the time of Elizabeth. It possesses a harbour and pier with a roadstead affording anchorage for large vessels. The coast-line is wild and picturesque, with precipitous headlands and many extensive caves. On Tresco there are remains of an abbey ; and St Agnes has a lighthouse 72 feet in height. On the islands there are numerous rude pillars and circles of stones, similar to those in Cornwall. The Scilly Isles are probably the Cassiterides or "Tin Islands" of the Greeks (see vol. xviii. p. 806). The islands were granted in 936 by Athelstan to the monks settled at Tresco, but on the endowment of the abbey of Tavistock the greater portion of them were included amongst its possessions. In the reign of Elizabeth they were divided amongst several proprietors. During the Civil War Hugh Town held out for the king, and in 1645 afforded shelter for a time to Prince Charles until he escaped to Jersey. In 1649 they were taken possession of by Sjr John Grenville, a Royalist, who made use of them as a convenient shelter, whence he issued to sweep the neighbouring seas, until in 1651 he was forced to surrender to a fleet under Blake and Sir John Ayscue. In ancient times a frequent haunt of pirates, the islands were afterwards notorious for smuggling. On the suppression of smuggling Mr Augustus J. Smith did much to introduce order and encourage habits of industry amongst the inhabitants. SCINDE. See SIND. SCIO, the Italian name of an island on the west coast of Asia Minor, called by the Greeks Chios (17 Xtos, 's TT) Xt'o) and by the Turks Saki Adasi; the soft pronunciation of x before t in Modern Greek, approximating to sh, caused Xt'o to be Italianized as Scio. Scio, which is about 30 miles long from north to south, and varies in breadth from 8 to 15 miles, is divided into a larger northern part and a smaller southern part, called respectively apanomeria XXI. 59