SPECTATOR'S LIBRARY.
TRAVELS,
A Tour in Switzerland, in 1841. By William Chambers, one of the Editors of
" Chambers's Edinburgh Journal." &c Chambers. Eclialneroh. Scenes and Adventures iu Afghanistan. By William Taylor, late Troop-Sergeant.
Major of the Fourth Light Dragoons Newby. Fzerrow, College Life: or the Proctor's Note-Book. By J. Hewlett, M.A. Late of Worcester College, Oxford; Author of " Peter Priggius," " The Palish Clerk." &c. In three volumes Colburs
CHAMBERS'S TOUR IN SWITZERLAND.
DELIGHTED with his tour in Holland and the couutriea adjoining the Rhine, Mr. CHAMBERS, in 1841, extended his autumnal excur- sion to Switzerland ; passing (for the most part by railways) through Belgium and some of the near-lying watering-places to Basle. From this Swiss town he proceeded, through Zurich, Lucerne, and Berne, to Lausanne and Geneva by the easiest mode, the voiture of a klohnutscher ; who carries you whithersoever you please, in his car- riage and pair, at thirty francs per diem. After visiting the sights in the environs of the lake, Chillon, Ferney, &c., Mr. CHAMBERS determined upon returning through France ; but as he had omitted to have his passport attended to, be was compelled to travel nearly one hundred miles to Berne to get the signature of the French Ambassador ; after which, he proceeded to Paris via Neu- chatel,—a course he advises no one else to follow : " On no account," he says, " attempt reaching or returning from Switzer- land through France. In that country all the available means of locomotion are execrable ; and no redress can be obtained for a stranger for the petty indignities to which he is sometimes exposed on the road. The line of route to be recommended for Switzerland is by the Belgian railways and the Rhine steamers."
In general interest, and perhaps in literary merit, the Tour in Switzerland is somewhat inferior to its predecessor ; and probably for the same reason which, in that predecessor, rendered the ac- count of Belgium, &c. inferior to the description of' Holland—the character of the country is less marked, or at least its character is less adapted to Mr. CEIAMBERS'S style of treatment, and a greater number of pens have been employed upon the subject. It must not be supposed that the present book is deficient either in in- terest or merit : there is much of close observation, and shrewdly sensible remark, especially upon economical matters, with a good deal of striking description, not devoid of a dash of humorous satire where the subject admits of it. As a whole, however, the book wants the striking and racy character which belonged to the sketches in Holland.
But the Tour in Switzerland contains some points of another kind that may have a more solid if a less attractive interest. Scattered through its pages are many notices of Continental in- dustry, so far as it fell under our author's notice, with some re- marks on the character and progress of the great manufacturing establishments, both in Belgium and Switzerland, as well as a sum- mary view of Swiss industry and the comforts of her labouring popu- lation compared with a similar class in Great Britain. From these it appears, that the non-exportation of machinery, a monopoly which the manufacturers have strenuously endeavoured to maintain—I4 indeed, some members of the Anti-Corn-law League are not still in favour of maintaining it—has not produced the intended effect of preventing the growth of manufactures on the Continent, whilst it has lost England the trade of machine-making. The great iron- works of Belgium, Mr. CHAMBERS considers, have chiefly been called into existence to supply the foreign demand for machinery. Forbidding the exportation of machines, we could not prevent the exportation of British operatives, British superintendence, and pro- bably British capital; the result of which is, that not only in ma- chinery but in many other manufactured goods, Belgium produces as good an article as Great Britain, in Mr. CHAMBERS'S judgment, (which is not, perhaps, on such a subject, what may be called a skilled judgment); and in articles where labour predominates or taste is essential, at a much cheaper rate. Here is a passage from his visit to the exhibition of manufactures at Brussels.
" Entering the vestibule, we follow a path through a series of saloons on the ground-floor, all filled with objects of great interest and beauty of execution. One saloon is filled with new-made steam-engines and locomotives, engineering tools, spinning-machines, and printing-presses ; the workmanship of which ap- peared to be equal to any thing of the kind in England. Next we have a saloon occupied with pianofortes, cabinets, and other articles, formed of walnut or other fine woods, and inlaid with ivory or mother-of-pearl : we observe here, also, some elegant gentlemen's coaches and gig!, with harness to match. An- other saloon contains a most extraordinary variety of leather, (a manufacture in which we are greatly excelled by the Belgians,) painted floor-cloths, hair- cloths, furs, perfumery, and periwigs. In ascending the grand staircase, we find the lauding-places occupied with iron safes, stoves, fire-grates for drawing- rooms, all unexceptionable and of first-rate finish. Landing on the upper floor, we walk from room to room, lost in the contemplation of the numerous products of Belgian industry; lace, linen, woollen, cotton, 44 silk goods, threads, cutlery, crystal, paper, fire-arms, musical instruments, philosophical apparatus—in short, every thing that a luxurious people can require. I spent an hour in the closest examination of some of these articles; fur I-felt assured that, as regards excellence of quality, England had here certainlv met her match. The different parcels of cloth and flannels, the manufacture of Francois Biolley and sons at Verviers, and of M. Snoeck at Herve, would not have discredited the cloth -halls of Leeds; while the damasks of Fretigny and Company at Ghent, and Dujardin at Courtrai, gave indication that in this species of fabric the Low Countries maintained their ancient reputation. The threads and laces of Brussels were exhibited in extensive variety. Altogether, the Exposi- tion afforded a decided proof of the prodigious advance made in the useful arts in Belgium of late years; and I believe nothing remains to be done but to find a market for her goods. That, it appears, is no easy matter ; partly in conse- quence of the little influence which the country has abroad, but chiefly from the preference given in most places to English goods. To put the question of price in some measure to the test, I bought a few articles of cutlery ; and found that, though will executed, they cost rather more than they were worth in England. From all I saw and heard, my impression ie, that nearly all factory pods can still be produced cheaper, and on a greater scale, in England than in Belgium ; but that Belgium can now manufacture most articles of as good quality, and only stands in need of due encouragement to he in every respect a most formidable competitor. As regards articles prepared by the exercise of individual taste and skill, we are already far behind Belgiu-r. I have never, for instance, seen iu England any work to compare in point of elegance of de- sign and execution with that displayed on the pianofortes and cabinets at this Exposition. I remarked one pianoforte in particular, marked 800 francs, (32/.); a sum which would not have paid for the mere workmanship of the case in England, where a 321. piano is in appearance little else than a plain veneered box."
We believe, however, that the instrumental action of English pianofortes is superior to that of foreign makes. But in some things, Mr. CHAMBERS says, we are losing trade from the trashiness of the articles: the cheap cottons of Manchester are in bad repute, from the character of their colours, which vanish in the washing. His own facts about Switzerland (for he quotes long passages from BOWItING and SYMONS to comment upon) are not very numerous or conclusive. The apparent anomaly of an inland and mountain- ous country allowing a perfect freedom of trade, and yet excelling her neighbours who have access to the sea, navigable rivers, and good level roads for the conveyance of produce, he does not seem inclined to solve solely by free trade, but by circumstances in the eco- nomical and political condition of Switzerland. The government is very cheap, taxes are very light ; from various causes the people are a sober, moral, and Malthusian race, not marrying till somewhat late in life; the peculiar social circumstances of the country are favour- able to a combination of rural and manufacturing labour; and lastly, the whole of the people work, and work hard—perhaps the hardest in Europe. He might have added, that though the Swiss impose no protective-duties, her neighbours do it for them. The Customhouses of France, Germany, (now the Prussian League,) and Austria, have virtually forbidden any free competition except with their own sickly productions. Yet, notwithstanding all that has been put forward respecting the comfort of the Swiss manufac- turers, Mr. CHAMBERS rates the means of the British artisan higher, if they were not wasted, or worse than wasted. " To compare the condition of Switzerland with that of England would be absurd. There is not the slightest resemblance between them. The Swiss have pitched their standard of happiness at a point which, as far as things, not feelings, are concerned, could with great ease be reached by the bulk of the British population. And here what may be called the unfavourable features of Swiss society become prominent. There is little cumulative capital in Switzerland. It is a country of small farmers and tradesmen, in decent but not wealthy circumstances. An active man among them could not get much, Him and his family wrought Lard they would not starve, and whatever they got would be their own. On all occasions, in speaking to respectable residents, the observation on the people was—' They labour hard, very bard; but, they have plenty of food, and they are happy.' Now it is my opinion, that if any man labour hard in either England or Scotland, exercise a reasonable degree of prudence, and be temperate and economical, he can scarcely fail in arriving at the same practical results as the Swiss : nay, I go farther, and will aver that he has an opportunity of reaching a far higher standard of rational comfort than was ever dreamt of by the happiest peasant in Switzerland. The condition of the Swiss is blessed, remotely, no doubt from the simple form of government, but immediately and chiefly from the industry, humble desires, and economic habits of the people. " Switzerland is unquestionably the paradise of the working-man; hot then, it cannot be called a ; aradise for any other; and I doubt if the perfection of the social system—if the ultimate end of creation—is to fix down mankind at peasant and working-man pitch. Both Bowring and Symons are in raptures with the cottage-system of the Swiss artisans: I own it is most attractive, and, as I hare said, is doubtless productive of much happiness. But who prevents English artisans from having equally good houses with the Swiss? With a money wage of acme seven or eight shillings a week, it is said the Swiss ope- rative realizes, by means of his free cottage, bit of ground, and garden, equal to thirty shillings in England. My own conviction is, that fourteen or fifteen shillings would be much nearer the mark ; hut, taking it at a larger sum, let us inquire if English workmen may not attain similar advantages. All perhaps could not, but I feel assured that every skilled artisan could—that is, every man receiving from fifteen to twenty shillings per week, of whom there is no small number. British operatives are taxed to a monstrous degree ; almost every thing they put in their mouths being factitiously raised in price in a manner perfectly shameful. But they possess a freedom known nowhere on the Con- tinent. They can travel from ton n to toe n at all times without begging for passports; they are not called upon for a single day's drill; in short, their time is their own, and they may do with it as they please. Exercising the same scrupulous economy as the Swiss, and in the same manner refrainingfrom marriage till prudence sanctioned such a step, I do not see what is to prevent a skilled and regularly-employed British operative from Lemming the proprietor of a small house and garden, supposing his taste to lie that way. I know several who have realized this kind of property : indeed, a tarp proportion of the bumbler class of tradesmen iu the Scottish country-tonns, villages, and hamlets, are the proprietors of the dwellings in which they reside. Now, if sonic so placed con- trive to realize property, why may not others do so? The answer is, that a vast mass of our working. population think of little beyond present enjoyment. Gin—whisky 1—what mu ry is mend by these demons, every city can bear sorrowful witness. Cruelly taxed, in the first place, by the alit' e, the lower classes tax themselves still more by their appetites. Scotland spends four millions of pounds annually on whisky, and what England disburses for gin and porter is on a scale equally magnificent. Throughout the grand rue of Berne, a mile in length, and densely populated, I did not see a single spirit-shop or tavern ; I observed, certainly, that several of the cellars were used for the sale of wines. In the High Street of Edinburgh, from the Castle to Holyrood House, the same in length as the main street of Berne, and nor unlike it in ap- pearance, there are 150 taverns, shops, or places of one kind or another in which spirituous liquors are sold; and in Rose Street, a much less populous thorough- fare, the number is 41. I did not see a drunken person in Switzerland ; Sheriff Alison speaks of ten thousand persons being in estate of intoxication every
Saturday night in Glasgow. • • •
" I take the liberty of alluding to these practices, not for the purpose of de- preciating the character of the operative orders, but to show at least one pretty conclusive piece of evidence why they do not generally exhibit the same kind of happy homes as the Swiss. In a word, Bowring and Symons, and, I may add, Laing, seem to lead to the inference, that every thing excellent in the Swiss operative and peasants' condition is owing to institutional arrangements; whereas, without undervaluing these, I ascribe fully more, as already stated, to the temperance, humble desires, and extraordinary economic habits of the people. That the practical advantages enjoyed by Swiss artisans are also, somehow, inferior to those of similar classes in Britain, is evident from the fact that Swiss watchmakers emigrate to England for the sake of better wages than they can realise at home; and that some thousands of unskilled labourers leave Switzerland annually to better their condition in foreign lands, is, I be- lieve, a fact which admits of no kind of controversy. Let us, then, conclude with this impartial consideration, that if our working population have griev- ances to complain of, (and I allow these grievances are neither few nor light,) they at the same time enjoy a scope, an outlet for enterprise and skill, a means of enrichment and advancement, which no people in Continental Europe can at all beast of. Switzerland, as has been said, is the paradise of the working- man. It might with equal justice be added, that a similar paradise can be realized in the home of ever)' man who is willing to forego per.oual indul- gences, and make his domestic hearth the principal scene of his pleasures, the sanctuary in which his affections are enshrined."
Attached to Mr. CHAMBERS'S account of his own tour, is the narrative of a " Pedestrian Excursion in Switzerland" by a friend, who most undauntedly climbed mountains and scaled precipices without a guide, and gives a plain and cheerful account of his ad- ventures, though his mind is not so enlarged by intellectual exer- cise as that of' WILLIAM CHAMBERS. The entire work, it should be added, forma part of the " People's Editions," and contains the typographical matter of a large octavo for eighteenpence.
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