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Form of the Oath taken by the Inhabitants of Zurich on the 22d

February.

WE E fwear to establish for ourfelves a conftitution without the intervention of foreign powers, which fhall have for its bafis religion and virtue, and which fhall lay the foundation of liberty and equality upon the rights of the ftate and of citizens, and confequently the fovereignty of the people, by which we fhall be able to remain Swifs confederated and independent, and which shall guarantee to us the obfervance of the laws, the fecurity of perfons and property, public and private.

Decree published on the 2d of March by the Sovereign Council of the State of Soleure.

WE, E, the avoyer, great and little councils and deputies of the towns and country of the republic of Soleure, make known by these prefents, that the reprefentatives of the people affembled in our prefence, according to the tenour of their inftructions, have infifted that the ancient form of government fhould be maintained in all its parts; nevertheless, after maturely reflecting on the circumftances of the prefent crifis, and from paternal folicitude for the welfare and tranquillity of the ftate, we have come to the refolution of effecting fuch alterations in the prefent form of our government as fhall introduce an equality of rights between the inhabitants of the towns and those of the communes.

I. Above all, we have taken, in the prefence of Almighty God, a folemn oath to maintain inviolate our holy religion, as it has been tranfmitted to us by our forefathers; to defend it at the risk of our property and life, and to live and die faithful to its principles.

II. That we will defend, to the laft man, against all enemies whatsoever, that precious jewel of liberty and independence which our ancestors purchafed for us with their blood; and that, acting in the character of free Swifs, we will never separate ourfelves from the Helvetie confederacy; but, on the contrary, we will religioufly fulfil all the duties which we have contracted in virtue of exifting alliances.

III. We will decree and ordain, that henceforth every citizen fhall enjoy the right of being eligible to all the offices of government and public adminiftration; and that the diftinction which hitherto prevailed among the burgeffés of the commune of this town fhall henceforth cease.

IV. We further ordain, that a perfect equality fhall take place between the citizens of the towns and country, in refpect

to the government and the right of representation; that, confequently, the government fhall be in clofe union with the people; and that the burgeffes of the commune of this town and thofe of the country communes fhall participate equally in the legislative power, by means of reprefentatives freely chofen by themfelves.

V. That it fhall exclufively belong to the legislative power fo conftituted, to declare war, make peace, enter into treaties or alliances, enact laws civil or criminal, impofe general contributions, determine the conftitution and form of government, and to confer, or confirm, all appointments to public offices.

VI. Our conftitution will thus be founded on the bafis of equality, and form a democratic reprefentation. A commiffion specially appointed for the purpose, in concert with the reprefentatives of the towns and communes, will forthwith enter on the task of digefting and perfecting the new conftitution.

VII. Nevertheless, we ordain that, in the interval, the government hitherto established shall continue to exift provisionally; that it fhall be every where refpected, and remain in force until the formal acceptance and establishment of the new conftitution. Finally, that perfons and property, public and pri, vate, that of the ftate and of the communes, fhall be placed, under the protection of the laws, declared inviolable, and held facred.

To the High and Mighty Lords, the Avoyer and Privy Council of the City and Republic of Berne.

High and Mighty Lords, Franckfort, Nov. 22d, 1797. A LTHOUGH your Lordships gave me no notification of the

demand which the Executive Directory of France have made to you, relative to my miffion, I could not be ignorant of what was notorious throughout Switzerland, and I thought it my duty to communicate it to my court, informing it, at the fame time, of the infulting manner in which it was tranfmitted to you.

The King fees, in all this proceeding, which attacks equally the rights of nations and your ancient dignity and independence, the treacherous intention of breaking the ties which have at all times attached him to your states, and the project formed to sap the very foundations of the Helvetic union.

Perfuaded of this truth, his Majefty, who, by fending his minifter to Switzerland, meant to give a proof of his good-will and friendship towards your ftates, will not permit the continua tion of his refidence in your dominions to afford a pretext to the hoftile projects of a neighbour, whofe ambition refpects neither juice nor the rights of fovereignty, and who are only endeavouring to extend to your happy countries a deftructive fyftem, VOL. VII.

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from

from which, by the affiftance of Divine Providence, you have been able, hitherto, to protect yourselves. The King has, in confequence, ordered his whole embaffy to withdraw from the Helvetic territery without delay.

In communicating this refolution to your Lord/hips, the King orders me to affure you that it is dictated only by his extreme folicitude, for the preservation of your tranquillity, and that your Lordships may depend upon the continuation of the good-will and friendship which have always directed his Majefty in his intercourfe with your state.

I feize eagerly this opportunity, high and mighty Lords, to exprefs my own full fenfe of the gracious manner in which I have been treated by your Lordships, and my regret at being no longer the organ of my fovereign's fentiments to you.

Permit me, high and mighty Lords, to exprefs to your government in particular my fincere acknowledgments for all the goodness you have heaped upon me during my refidence in your city.

Wherever I may be, I fhall never cease praying for your profperity, and that, by the affiftance of the Almighty, your nation may continue to enjoy, under your wife government, the ineftimable advantages you have hitherto been able to give it.

I have the honour to be, &c.

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PEACE AND SAFETY TO ALL HIS FRIENDS.

Mengaud, Commiffary of the Executive Directory, to the Inhabitants of all the Countries not yet occupied by the French Republic, Dependencies upon the old Bishopric of Bafle, on the left Bank of the

Rhine.

Citizens,

THE

HE union of a part of the old principality of Porrentruy, equally decided the incorporation of your countries with the French republic.

This proceeding of France is that of a free people, fubftituted to the rights of the government, against nature, which weighs you down. And in as much as the exercise of those rights, become ours, did not take place fooner, by purging them of all that is incompatible with the dignity of man, it does not follow that we have forgotten that you are ftill in chains. We come to break them.

Happier than your fathers, whofe blood flowed in the wars which laid the foundation of the different kinds of government in Switzerland, and which have only bequeathed you a burdenfome

and

and degrading existence, you are at length going to enjoy the bleffings of Providence, who only created men to make them members of one and the fame family.

You knew nothing but tithes, corvées, &c. You had only priests, nobles, and privileged perfons: your trades, your induftry, your arts, in fhort your very fubfiftence, all bore the stamp of the facerdotal defpotifm fo dexterously combined with a no lefs odious tyranny. Now, you are men: liberty and equality will no longer permit among you any other diftinétion than that of merit, talents, and virtue. Called all indifcriminately to the helm of the fociety, in the fupport and fafety of which you are all equally interested, your fubfiftence will, in future, be fecure, the granaries of the French republic being the property of all its children. Your trade, encouraged within, pretected without, will no longer be fhackled. Induftry, the arts, agriculture, will receive encouragements to be expected only from a nation victorious, free, powerful, and generous, enlightened on the nature of rights, and on the manner of exercising them."

Learn to appreciate these advantages, and merit them, by turning a deaf ear to the interefted and treacherous infinuations of the evil-minded and of fools, who endeavour to fink the value of them in your eyes, and to mislead you.

We come among you as friends. We are your brothers. Do not be afraid of any ill treatment. Properties and perfons fhall be protected, as much as the enemies of liberty fhall be made to fuffer. The moft exact and ftrict difcipline thall be obferved by the warriors, who have never had, nor eyer will have, any other enemies than thofe of liberty. Such are the orders of the Executive Directory.

MENGAUD,

Commiffioner of the Executive Directory.

The Deputies of the Bernefe People to their Fellow-citizens. WHEN, fome days ago, we were called by your meetings to fit in the midst of the government, you juftly hoped that great advantages would refult from it, and that the clofer union of the citizens of the state would be the true means of protecting us fuccefsfully against the dangers that were every moment increafing, and more and more threatening our country. Your hope will not be disappointed, dear fellow-citizens; and though in fo short a time it has not yet been poffible for us to remove your fears upon the arrangements without, we have, neverthelefs, taken a great ftep towards the triumph which we fhould defire; that is, by having increased our ftrength by a union moft wife and moft neceffary. As a thousand little streams running by them

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themfelves, and which, by a happy inclination, fall into one channel, form a powerful and majestic river; fo are we going to become a ftriking and formidable mafs, whofe courage and affurance of a good caufe cannot fail to obtain fuccefs.

Man is defigned to improve his flate; it is one of the great bleflings attached to his nature. All the human difpofitions fhould make a progrefs according to circumftances; but the most important of all is the union of men under laws and government, which we call the state.

The edifice of our conftitution, exifting for ages, its very an tiquity would be a refpectable teftimony in its favour, even if we had not a ftill more perfect proof in the general profperity which the nation has enjoyed to the prefent time under its influence. However, as nothing which is the work of man can be perfect,' our government, perhaps, has need of fome reforms; and the fathers of the country have been long occupied in the means of effecting them without fhocks and without agitations; for nothing is more dangerous than to touch, though ever fo flightly, the conflitutional laws of a ftate. It feemed therefore that the prefent moment was not proper for this great work, and furely it might have produced much more valuable advantages had it been poffible to delay it till happier times. Nevertheless, confefs it, dear fellow-citizens, a strong defire of innovation has appeared on your part. This wifh was that of a small number, it is true; but it was imprudent, if it came from yourselves; it was incompatible with that noble pride which ought to animate a free people, if it was the refult of a foreign impulse.

It was to fatisfy your views, that, as foon as we had taken our places in the affembly of the government, alterations were propofed to us which appeared useful to the general good of the country, and fuitable to circumftances. We have fupported those propofitions with firmnefs, as you entrusted to us the care of co-operating as we should judge neceffary for the safety of the

'country.

If it be true that our conftitution was not exempt from abuses, which human weakness renders almoft infeparable from governments, how many have already disappeared through the wisdom and prudence of the adminiftration? Did we not poffefs, in the fulleft extent it could have, the fecurity of perfons and property, the two most precious advantages of civil fociety? Can the administration be accused of a single deviation from justice? Can the members of our government be reproached with the leaft inclination that could look like corruption? Could the treasures of the state be adminiftered with ftricter refponsibility, with greater economy? And if the fertility of a parched and rocky foil, if the profperity of a loyal nation, that has preferved the ancient purity of its manners, be the most certain proofs of the

goodnes

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