Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 22.djvu/815

 SWITZERLAND 779 The following table shows the annual number of births, &c. : Marriages. Per 1000. Births. Per 1000. Deaths. Per 1000. 1871-75 21,732 8-0 85,832 31-6 64,479 23-8 1876-80 20,740 7'4 91,197 32-5 64,671 23-1 1881-84 19,708 6-8 85,612 29-6 61,082 . 21-1 1885 20,105 6-8 83,579 28-6 61,548 21-0 "oreign- -rs. rgmigra- aon. 3ities. Eeligion Agri- cultural stat- istics. At the census of 1880 there were in Switzerland 211,035 foreigners (112,311 males and 98,724 females), or one foreigner to every 13 or 14 of the population. The origin of this alien element was very various : from Alsace-Lorraine, 2607 males, 2732 females ; Germany, 43.923, 45,991 ; Austria-Hungary, 8389, 4929; Italy, 27,821, 13,709 ; Spain and Portugal, 175, 93 ; France, 26,264, 27,389; Holland and Belgium, 445, 493; Great Britain, 1027, 1785 ; Russia, 599, 685 ; Servia, Roumania, and Greece, 119, 35 ; Denmark, Norway, and Sweden, 194, 188; America, 563, 548. Between 1868 and 1877 the average number of emigrants from Switzerland was 3516 per annum ; between 1878 and 1882 it was 7196. In 1883, 1884, and 1885 the figures were respectively 13,502 (12,758 of them native-born Swiss), 9608, and 7583. By far the greater proportion of the emigrants found their way to America, and mainly to the United States, though some of the South American republics (as Chili) attract a considerable number. In the five years 1876-80 3172 persons on an average left for North America annually, 99 for Central America, 594 for South America, and 107 for Australia, while Asia and Africa together did not count more than 167. The population is to a very great extent rural. Only three cities (Zurich, Geneva, and Basel) have a population exceeding 50,000, and at the census of 1880 only 59 other towns had each more than 4000 inhabitants. Of these Bern (see table above), Lausanne, Chaux de Fonds (22,456), St Gall, Lucerne, Neuchatel, Winterthur (13,595), Schaffhausen, Biel (11,623), Freiburg, Herisau (11,082), and Locle (10,464) exceeded 10,000. A religious census was taken in 1850, 1860, 1870, and 1880 ; in the first case only three categories were recognized Catholic, Protestant, and Jew; in 1860 and 1870 four Catholic, Protestant, Christians of other denominations, and non-Christian. After much discussion the federal council, which had proposed to drop the religious census in 1880, was prevailed upon by the arguments of ten cantons to adopt a similar classification in 1880. The figures in 1870 were 1,566,347 Protestants, 1,084,369 Catholics, 11,435 members of other sects, and 6996 Jews; in 1880 the Protestants numbered 1,667,109, the Catholics 1,160,782, the Jews 7373, and miscellaneous 10,838. The Jews are most strongly represented in the cantons of Bern (1316 in 1880), Basel (1053), Aargau (1234), Zurich (806), Neuchatel (689), and Geneva (662). It has been estimated that, of the whole area of Switzerland, 1,642,471 acres are under arable cultivation and 1,917,632 acres in forest, while 2,866,113 acres are altogether unproductive. Agricul- tural statistics have never been systematically registered by the federal authorities, and only a few of the cantons have devoted seri- ous attention to the matter. Herr C. Miihlemann (Z. f. scJtu-i i. Stat., 1886) gives the following estimate of the area cropped and the annual value (in thousands of francs) of the produce : Acres. Value. Acres. Value. Wheat 153,308 193,993 86,089 33,610 122,645 64,938 43,850 16,056 333,612 217,897 27,744 89,324 36,054 43,340 18,805 5,057 20,468 79,859 13,254 3,148 Sfi,fi77 6(i,048 7,449 19,340 Oth erf odder plant* Pease and beans... liapc 10,589 9,f74 1, 9Gfi 2,666 1,060 486 6,101 18 704 4,842 153,519 82,928 28,115 139,001 62,359 Spelt Rve Barley Oats Hemp and flax 12,463 89 1,730 41,545 529,122 009,865 578,940 1,962,693 79,020 Potatoes Beet and turnips.. C.'UTOlS Mixed fodder Clover tables Meadows, good medium ,, poor Pastures and"alp8" Lucerne Esparcet All- < mends." "Alps. 1 Forests. The value of the fruit produce is given as 127,418,391 francs (apples, 71,316,992; pears, 38,656,150). The name "allmend" is given to land still held in common, whether arable, meadow, pasture, or forest. The main part of the "allmends" now existing consists of pasture and forest land. The pasture lands, "alps," or high mountain pastures comprise "voralpen," used in the spring, "mittelalpen," or cow-pastures, and "hochalpen" (sometimes 9000 feet above the sea), for sheep and goats. They are most numerous in Neuchatel, Bern, and Grisons. The capital value of the whole is estimated at 200,000,000 francs or more. Of the 3032 miles of forest land 127 '3 belong to the state, 2007 '1 to "communes" or private associations, and 897 to private persons. The federal Government has done much to reafforest tracts, both by itself and by stimulating cantonal effort, and generally to promote the science of forestry. The silk industry of Switzerland was already established at Zurich and Basel in the latter half of the 13th century; but after In- a period of prosperity it died out. It was again introduced by dustries. the Protestants expelled from Locarno in 1555. Crape, velvet, and taffetas were the favourite products of the first stage ; ribbon- weaving came later with another band of Locarno refugees and the French Huguenots. In 1872 116 firms were engaged in the silk trade, in 1881 134. Between those dates the employees had increased from 39,940 to 49,816 (65,000 in 1883), and the wages from 15,382,186 to 19,815,453 francs. In 1881 2,153,100 kilos of raw silk and 1.067,700 of silk-waste were imported ; and the export of silk goods, ribbons, and ferret silk was 1,152,300, 1,965,400, and 819,000 kilos respectively. Cotton begun to be manufactured in Switzerland in the 15th century, and power-loom weaving was introduced in 1830. The industry has owed a good deal to the abundant water-power of the country. In 1881 there were about 23,000 cotton looms; and cotton-spinning employed about 60,000 spindles. The workers numbered 88,046 in 1883. Bleach- ing and cloth-dressing have attained a great development in the neighbourhood of St Gall, both in the cantons of St Gall and Appenzell. Printworks are especially numerous in Glarus. Aargau is the chief seat of the woollen manufacture, having 4 millions of the total production valued at 11^ million francs. Linen, the first of the Swiss textile fabrics to find its way to a foreign market, is no longer manufactured on a large scale. Embroidered goods are the great specialty of the export trade of eastern Switzerland, the cantons of St Gall, Appenzell, Thurgau, and part of Zurich. In flat-stitch machine embroidery 15,256 workers were employed in 1872, and 27,801 in 1880 (43 and 47 per 1000 inhabitants). In the different departments of hand embroidery 33,359 persons, were employed in 1881. The St Gall market is also supplied by a large number of workers in Vorarlberg. The value of the embroidered goods exported from the consular district of St Gall for America alone increased from 19 to nearly 30 million francs between 1879 and 1882. Straw-plaiting is an important industry in Aargau (centre at Wohlen), Ticino, and Freiburg. In 1867-68, when the trade was at its best, the total export was worth 10| million francs. Watch and clock making is a specially Swiss industry, giving employment to 44,000 workers in 1883. In Geneva alone 296 establishments were at work in 1882 in some department or other of the manufacture. The valley of Joux (Vaud and Saint Croix), Chaux de Fouds, Locle, Les Breuets, Les Fonts, Fleuvier (Neu- chatel), Bienne, Porrentruy, Saint Imier (Bern), Granges (Soleure), Waldenberg (Basel), and Schail'hausen are all Important seats of the craft. The condensed-milk industry of Switzerland is also well known. The exports in 1875 amounted to 4,261,800 kilos, and in 1883 to 12,086,900. A similar article is Nestle' s infants' food from Vevey. Swiss cheese (Emmenthal and Gruyere) has a widespread reputation ; the export increased from 5,093,100 kilos in 1851 to 25,959,400 in 1883. The production of beer in Switzerland was 6,160,000 gallons in 1867 and 20,240,000 in 1882; in the latter year 289,564 gallons were exported. The dis- tilleries (1006) produce about 990,000 gallons of pure alcohol annually. Allusion can only be made here to the great chemical industries of the country, its potteries, paper-mills, engineering works, gun-factories, &c. Wood-carving was one of the most ancient, as it is now one of the best known, of the minor arts of Switzerland. The great seat of the modern industry is the Bernese Oberland, where the peasants during the long evenings of winter for centuries devoted themselves to producing artistic articles in wood. It was regularly organized by Christian Fischer in Brienz (1825), and is now mainly in the hands of a company, founded in 1881, which associates capitalists and workmen in the profits. In 1870 1139 men and 56 women were employed throughout Switzerland in this department ; in 1880 the numbers were 1202 and 105. J Owing to the original abundance of timber it was almost the only Wooden material employed in the building of houses. There are practically houses, three styles : the so-called block-house, in which the logs are laid one upon the other ; the post-built house, in which upright posts and a strong framework are filled in with planks ; and the " riegel- hans," in which a framework of wood is filled in with brick or stones. In the cantons of Zurich, Thurgau, and Schaffhausen the riegelhaus (the usual form in southern Germany) has chiefly owing to the increased cost of timber displaced the two other styles, which alone were in use there till the beginning of the 17th century. 2 In Gsell-Fels's Bddcr u. Uimcttisclic Kurorte dcr Schwciz (1880), Health 505 health stations are mentioned. In Aargau we have the hot stations, springs of Baden and Schinznach (sulphur), the salt baths of Rheinfelden and Mumpf, the mineral waters of Wildegg and Birmensdorf. In Appenzell there are a number of places between 1 See Rahn, Gesch. der bildenden Kiintte in der Srhweiz; Salvisberg, Die Holzschnitzerei des Berner Oberlandes; and Davinet. Bericht iiber ffolzschnitzerei, 1884. 2 See Gladhach, Die Holt-ArehUeetvr der Scfiu-eiz 1885; Grnffenried and Stiirler, Architecture Suisse; Hochstatter, Schiceizer ArcMtektur ; Varin, L'Arch. pittoresqiie en Suisse ; and Gladbach, Der Schweizer llohstyl.