PROVINCES: The kingdom of the Netherlands is divided into II Provinces. Their names, with the chief towns in each, are:

AMSTERDAM1 (557) is the largest city of the Netherlands, and the great seat of its foreign trade. It stands at the junction of the River Amstel and the Y (an inlet of the Zuyder Zee), which forms a safe and extensive harbour, which is connected with the North Sea by two ship-canals--the North Holland Canal, or the Canal of the Y, which runs north to the Helder; and the North Sea Canal, which joins Amsterdam directly with the North Sea.

Haarlem (69) is to the west, Leyden and the Hague to the south-west of Amsterdam. Leyden (58) has a university of great repute, and is celebrated in history for the siege it underwent in the latter part of the 16th century (1573-74). The Hague, or Gravenhage (242), is a large and well-built city, the seat of government, and the political capital of the kingdom. Rotterdam (379), on the River Meuse (the channel of which forms the principal entrance to the Rhine), is the second city of the Netherlands in size and population. Utrecht (114), Nimeguen, Breda, Hertogensbosch (Bois-le-Duc), and many other of the Cities of Holland, are important seats of trade. In the 16th and 17th centuries, Delft was famous for its manufacture of pottery and porcelain, and its ancient industry has been recently revived. At Zutphen, Sir Philip Sydney was mortally wounded in a skirmish under its walls in 1586. At Breda, a treaty of peace was concluded between England, France, and Holland in 1667.

COLONIES: The Colonial Empire of Holland is extensive and important. The Dutch East and West Indies have a total area of 766,000 square miles, or 61 times that of Holland itself, and a population of nearly 354 millions, or 7 times that of the mothercountry.

The chief foreign possessions of Holland are in the East Indies, where the Dutch are masters of Java, Sumatra, and part of Borneo, and of Western New Ginea, besides Celebes, and many of the smaller islands of that region. In the New World, part of Guiana, on the South American mainland, and some of the smaller islands of the West Indies, belong to the Dutch. Of the latter, the principal is Curaçao, near the coast of Venezuela.

The Dutch colonial possessions in the East Indies have an area of 718,000 square miles, and a population of 35 millions, of which over 281⁄2 millions live in Java. The Dutch West Indies have an area of 436 square miles, and a population of 52,000. Dutch Guiana has an area of 46,060 square miles, and a population of 82,oco. Total area of the Dutch colonial possessions, 766,137 square miles; population 35,194,000.

1 A terdam is, like Stockholm, Euilt up n; bankment '; Amsterdam the dam of the Am pies; the termination dam means an "em. Iste'.

SWITZERLAND.

SWITZERLAND,' the Helvetia of the Romans, is an entirely inland country, and is bounded on the north by Germany, on the east by Austria, on the south by Italy, and on the west by France.

The course of the River Rhine marks the chief part of the frontier on the side of Germany; the highest portion of the Alpine system divides Switzerland from Italy, and the chain of the Jura forms part of the boundary on the side of France.

EXTENT.-The greatest length from east to west is 208 miles, and the extreme breadth from north to south, 156 miles. The area is nearly 16,000 square miles, or considerably less than one-third of the size of England and Wales.

MOUNTAINS.-Switzerland is a mountainous country. Twothirds of its surface consist of high mountains and intervening valleys, the other third is an elevated plain.

The mountain land embraces the southern and eastern divisions of the country; the northern and western portions belong to the upland plain, which stretches across the country in the direction of north-east and south-west, between the Lakes of Constance and Geneva. Mont Blanc, the highest summit of the Alps, is within the French border, and beyond the limits of Switzerland. But many of the principal Alpine summits are either within Switzerland or on its borders, and the most extensive of the glaciers or ice-streams (of which there are over 400, some of them 20 miles in length) are within its limits. The snow-line on the northern side of the Alps is at an elevation of 8,000 feet, and on the southern side about 900 feet higher. But many of the glaciers descend far below the general limit of perpetual snow, and form a striking contrast to the rich meadows and leafy orchards which seem to nestle up to their very edge.

The Alps of Switzerland are not only the most magnificent, but also the most complicated, of European mountain-systems, and the southern and eastern parts of the country present a bewildering succession of lofty ranges, crowned by snow-covered peaks.

The great ranges of the Alps radiate from the central ridge of the St. Gothard: the Leportine Alps and the Pennine Alps to the south-west; the Rhætian Alps to the east; the Bernese Alps to the west; the Vierwaldstadten Alps to the north; and the Todi Chain or Swiss Alps to the north-east.

The Pennine Alps contain the loftiest of the Alpine summits. Mont Blanc, the highest of all, lies within the French border, but Monte Rosa (15,200 feet), and Mont Cervin or the Matterhorn (14,700 feet), are in Swiss territory. This great Alpine range is crossed by the famous pass of the Great St. Bernard, which leads from the Upper Rhone Valley to that of the River Dora Baltea, a tributary of the Po.

1. Fr. La Suisse; Ger. Schweiz. So called from | be found in Philips' Geographical Reader, No. 5 the forest canton of Schwyz, the chief town of pp. 68-89. which was probably founded, at a very early period, by a Swedish colony.

2. A vivid description of the glaciers, avalanches, and other marvels of the "Switzer's Land will

3. The portions of the Pennine and Lepontine Alps, which form the southern and eastern boun dar es of the canton of Valais, are frequently called the Valais Aips.

The Lepontine Alps rise, in Monte Leone, to 11,700 feet, and are crossed by the passes of the Simplon (6,595 feet), traversed by Napoleon's splendid military road, constructed in 1802-6; and the St. Gothard (6,936 feet), between Altorf and Bellinzona.

The Rhætian Alps rise, in their highest point, Ortler Spitz, to a height of nearly 13,000 feet, and are crossed by the passes of the Splügen (6,946 feet), between Chur, in the Grisons, and Chiavenna in Lombardy; and the Stelvio (9,172 feet), between the valleys of the Adige and the Adda.

The Bernese Alps are separated by the deep valley of the Upper Rhone from the Pennine and Lepontine Alps, and contain the well-known summits of the Aletschhorn (13,770 feet), Finsteraarhorn (14,000 feet), and the Jungfrau (13,670 feet), and are traversed by the Furka Pass, the Gemmi, the Grimsel, and other passes.

RIVERS.-The Rhine and the Rhone are the two most important of the Swiss rivers, and, with their numerous tributary streams, water by far the greater part of the country.

The Rhine is formed by the junction of the Vorder Rhine, which rises in Mont St. Gothard, and the Hinter Rhine, which rises in the Adula Group, and runs north to Lake Constance, whence it flows west to Basle. The celebrated Falls of the Rhine," below Schaffhausen, are much admired. Halfway between these falls and Basle it is joined by the Aar, the principal river entirely within Switzerland.

The Rhone, "that bluest, brightest, swiftest, most joyous of rivers," rises in the Rhone Glacier, on Mont St. Gothard, and runs west through a valley flanked by the Bernese Alps on the north and the Pennine Alps on the south. Near Martigny it turns north-west and enters the Lake of Geneva, whence it flows south through France to the Gulf of Lions. The rapidity of its current is due to the elevation of its source, which lies about 4,000 feet above the surface of the Lake of Geneva.

The Aar is a considerable affluent of the Rhine, and is joined by the Reuss, the Limmat, and other streams. The Inn, which waters the easternmost part of Switzerland, is a tributary of the Danube. The Tessin (or Ticino), which waters the only one of the Swiss cantons that lies south of the Alps, is an affluent of the Po, the great river of northern Italy.

Waterfalls.-Numerous waterfalls occur in Switzerland, and are among the most attractive features of its scenery. The highest of them is the Staubbach, formed by a mountain-torrent (an affluent of Lake Brienz, in the southern part of the canton of Berne) which falls 800 feet. The Falls of the Rhine, below Schaffhausen, are also much admired.

LAKES. Switzerland abounds in beautiful lakes, some of them surrounded by the most magnificent and picturesque scenery in Europe.

The principal are Geneva (230 square miles), drained by the Rhone, Constance (183), drained by the Rhine, Neufchatel (93), Lucerne (40), Zurich, Thun, Brienz, Zug, and Wallenstadt-all lying to the north of the Alps and drained by the Rhine and its tributaries; Lugano,' and Maggiore, to the south of the mountains, drained by the Ticino, a tributary of the Po.

1. Lake Lugano is entirely within the Swiss | Lake Maggiore, only the northern part of which border, and is drained by the River Tresa into is in Switzerland.

The Lake of Lucerne, in the heart of the mountain country, is enclosed by the cantons of Schwyz, Uri, Unterwalden, and Lucerne-known as the Vierwaldstadten or the " Four Forest Cantons," the cradle of Swiss independence and the centre of Roman Catholic Switzerland. The well known summit of the Rigi (5,900 feet) rises above the north-eastern shores of the lake. A "grip" railway runs to the top of the Rigi; and Mount Pilatus (7,000 feet), at the opposite end of the lake, may also be ascended by rail.

The lakes and rivers, mountains and valleys, snowy peaks and glaciers of Switzerland, annually attract thousands of visitors from all parts, and have made this picturesque country the veritable "playground of Europe."

CLIMATE: The elevation of the country renders the climate of Switzerland cold on the whole, though in particular localities (and especially in the narrow mountain-valleys) considerable heat is experienced.

The shores of the Lake of Geneva are specially distinguished for their warm and equable temperature. In all the higher regions, however, the winters are long and severe. In some of the deep and narrow valleys many of the inhabitants are afflicted with "cretinism" and "goitre."

PRODUCTIONS: Switzerland is rather a pastoral than an agricultural country, and although wheat and other grains, chiefly rye and oats, are grown, more than half the food-stuffs required is imported from the adjoining countries.

Timber is abundant upon the mountain-sides, and even in the higher valleys there are rich pastures.

The produce of the soil is varied. The vine flourishes in the lower valleys and plains to a height of about 1,700 feet above the sea-level, and various kinds of fruit are largely grown.

All the ordinary domestic animals of Europe are found. The wild animals include the bear, wolf, lynx, chamois; and of the birds the most noted are the eagle and the lammergeier or bearded vulture.

The mineral wealth of the country is small, there being no coal and very little iron, &c. There are numerous mineral springs, especially in the canton of Berne.

INHABITANTS: Switzerland has over 3,314,000 inhabitants, which is a large population for so mountainous a country, being on an average 207 persons to the square mile, about the same density as in France.

The Swiss (as the people are called) are not so much a distinct nation as an offshoot from the peoples of the three neighbouring countries-Germany France, and Italy. There is no Swiss language. In the western cantons the people speak French; in the eastern, the German language is the common tongue. In one of the Swiss cantons-that of Tessin, to the south of the Alps -the people are of Italian origin, and speak the Italian language, while in the more remote villages in the Grisons, a peculiar language, the Romansch, derived like the French and Italian from the Latin, is spoken. I

1. According to the ast cesus, 2,2 00 speak German, 635.000 Irench, 155,000 It dian, and 38,000 Romansch.

EDUCATION: Education is compulsory and highly advanced, especially in the Protestant cantons, where one in five of the population attend school. There are training colleges for teachers in all the cantons. Higher education is given at the universities of Basle, Berne, Geneva, and Zurich. A large number of foreign students attend the Swiss universities, and there are more foreign than Swiss students in the famous Polytechnic School at Zurich.

RELIGION: In religion, Switzerland is divided between the Protestant and the Roman Catholic churches. Rather more than half the population belong to the former, which embraces chiefly the manufacturing cantons of the north and west.

INDUSTRIES: The Swiss are a frugal and industrious people. In agriculture and manufactures, Switzerland takes a high rank, while its commerce, in spite of great natural disadvantages, is extensive.

Within the mountain-region the people are chiefly shepherds and herdsmen. Their cows, sheep, and goats constitute their wealth, and furnish their principal occupation. In summer, the cattle are pastured on the mountain-sides; in winter, they descend to the valleys.

In the more level parts of the country (that is, in the north and west) manufactures are extensively pursued. Silk and cotton goods are made; so also are clocks and watches, musical boxes, and various articles of jewellery. A vast number of watches, the produce of Swiss industry, is annually exported to other countries; Geneva and Neufchâtel are the principal centres of this manufacture.

COMMERCE : The trade with the surrounding countries, and through them with other lands, is very large. The imports are chiefly articles of food, colonial produce, and raw materials for manufacture; and the exports are manufactured goods, principally silk and cotton goods, clocks and watches, machinery, chemicals, and farm produce, chiefly cheese and condensed milk.

The general imports (including direct transit), amount to about 58% millions sterling, and the general exports to about 40 millions sterling a year. About one-third of the imports and two-fifths of the exports represent the transit trade between Germany and Italy, &c. Switzerland can, of course, only trade directly with the four surrounding countries-Germany, France, Italy, and Austria; but the trade with other countries, especially with Great Britain and the United States, is very important. The trade with the United Kingdom is supposed to average not less than 934 millions sterling a year.

The internal and transit trade is facilitated by several magnificent military roads across the Alps, and excellent highroads, nearly 3,000 miles of railway, a complete system of telegraphs, and an admirably conducted Postal Service. The Swiss Railway System is connected with that of Italy by the St. Gothard Tunnel.

1. The completion of the great St. Gothard Bring in the Rhone Valey to Isel'e above Dome Tunnel and the connecting lines placed the rail-d'Ossala, opened in recg, and connects the French wy system of Switzerland in unbroken commu: i- | rai ways ad Geneva with thos> of Italy. It is cation with that of Italy on the south and of Germany (enly 2 26 feet above sea-leve, or 1.120 feet lower on the north. This magnificent work, commenced than the entrance to the St. Gothard Tunne, and in 187, cost £8,120,000 and was opened i 182 is over 12k miles long, the St. Gethard Turel It extends from Geschenen on the north to Airolo tengok iles long, and the Mt. Cenis Tunns on the south The Simplon Tunnel extends from nearly 8 miles.