Page:Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition, v. 3.djvu/618

600 Hill. The Government consists of a governor appointed by the Crown, and a privy council of nine members appointed by the governor. The House of Assembly consists of thirty- six members, who receive salaries. The Acts are usually passed for a definite period, and require to be renewed from time to time. Much of the judicial administration is left to unpaid magistrates. The currency of the colony, which had formerly twelve shillings to the pound sterling, was assimilated to that of England in 1842. The colony is ecclesiastically attached to the bishopric of Barbados. Both Presbyterians and Wesleyans are en dowed. There are numerous schools, and in 1847 an educational board was established ; but the general educa tional condition is unsatisfactory. Of 2 GOO children be tween the ages of five and six, only about 1500 attend school. Sunday schools are of much greater importance than in England, and most of them have libraries. The revenue of the islands in 1872 was .33,256, inclusive of 1500 raised by loan; the gross expenditure was 32,236; and the public debt amounted to 17,330. The population in 1850 was 11,092, of whom 4669 were whites; by the census of 1871 it had increased to 12,121.

1em  BERN, or, a canton of Switzerland, situated between 46 19 and 47 30 N. lat., and between 6 50 and 8 28 E. long. It extends from the French and Alsace frontier south-east through the heart of the Confederacy to Yalais, by which it is bounded on the S., while it has the cantons of Basel, Soleure, Aargau, Lucerne, Unterwalden, and Uri on the E., and Vaud, Freiburg, Neufchatel on the W. Bern is the second largest canton of Switzerland, its surface being estimated at 2562 square miles. The population in 1870 amounted to 506,465, of whom 436,304 were Protestants, and 66,015 Catholics, while 1401 were Jews. German was spoken in 83,693 families, and French in 16,646, the latter language prevailing in the N.W. The canton is naturally divided into three regions, in which the climate varies with the elevation. The southern part, called the Oberland, is for its scenery the most attractive part of all Switzerland. Many of the grandest mountains of the Alpine system such as the Grimsel, the Finsteraar- horn, the Schreckhorn, the &quot;Wetterhorn, the Eiger, and the Jungfrau lie along the frontier chain, and numerous offshoots and valleys of great beauty stretch northward towards the central part of the canton. This latter district consists for the most part of an undulating plain, inter spersed with lesser chains and hills, the soil being fertile and well cultivated. The north is occupied with the ranges of the Jura system. The principal river in the cannon is the Aar, which drains by far the larger proportion of its surface, either directly or by means of its numerous tributaries. Of these, the most important are the Saane, from the S.; the Thiele, which forms the outlet of the lakes of Bienne and Neufchatel ; and the Emme, which gives its name to the beautiful Emmenthal. The northern corner of the canton is divided between the basins of the Rhone and the Rhine. On the upper course of the Aar are the two lakes of Brienz and Thuu. The mineral wealth of the country is neither extensive nor varied ; but iron- mines are worked, and gold is found in the River Ernme. Quarries of sandstone, marble, and granite are abundant. The pastures in the Oberland and the Emmenthal are excellent, and cattle and horses of the best description are largely reared. The latter district also produces cheese of excellent quality, which is exported to Germany and Italy. Fruit is extensively cultivated in the central region and in the neighbourhood of the lakes of Brienz and Thun ; the vine is principally grown to the north ef Lake Bienne. In the forests, which are of considerable importance, the prevailing trees are the fir, the pine, and the beech. The industrial productions of the canton are cotton, woollen and flaxen stuffs, leather, watches, and wooden wares of all kinds. Bern is divided into thirty bailiwicks or prefectures, each with a local administrator. The capital is Bern, and the other chief towns are Bienne or Biel, Thun, Burgdorf or Berthoud, Porrentruy or Pruntruit, and Delemont or Delsberg. The highest legislative authority is the Great Council, the members of which are chosen in proportion to the number of the people ; and the executive power is in the hands of a lesser council of nine members, chosen by the Great Council for a space of four years. The educa tional institutions in the canton comprise a university and two gymnasiums in the capital, and progymnasiums and colleges at Biel, Thun, Burgdorf, Neuenstadt, Porrentruy, and Deldmont. There is a deaf and dumb institution at Frienisberg, and a cantonal lunatic asylum at Waldau, about a mile from Bern.

Plan of Bern. , the capital of the above canton, and, since 1848, the permanent seat of the Government and Diet of the Swiss Confederation. It is situated in 46 47 N. lat. and 7 25 E. long., at an elevation of 1710 feet above the sea, on a sandstone peninsula, formed by the windings of the Aar, which is crossed on the south side of the city by an exten sive weir, and further down passes under four bridges connecting the peninsula with the right bank. It is one of the most characteristically Swiss towns; some of the streets are broad and regular, the houses being well built with hewn stone; in others a peculiar effect is pro duced by the presence of lines of arcades down the sides. Prominent among the public buildings is the Federal Council Hall, or Bundes-Rathhaus, a fine structure ia the 