The government of Bavaria is monarchical; the prevailing religion is Roman Catholic, under a discipline more rigid than is found elsewhere in Germany.

HANOVER.

This kingdom is chiefly situated in the basins of the Elbe and Weser, between Prussia and Holland.

It contains 14,000 square miles, with a population of upwards of a million and a half.

Hanover is a flat country; the part nearest the sea is marshy, other portions consist of sandy and barren plains. The fertile regions are not well cultivated. Its manufac

tures are inconsiderable.

The capital of the kingdom of Hanover is the city of the same name. The chief sea-port is Embden. Gottingen is the seat of its only university, which at present is in a flourishing state.

The political constitution of Hanover resembles that of England, the crown is hereditary, but is restricted to the male line; the present king is Ernest Augustus, Duke of Cumberland.

Lutheranism is the established religion of Hanover, but complete toleration is enjoyed.

WIRTEMBURG.

Wirtemburg is situated in the S.W. of Germany. It is watered principally by the Danube and the Neckar.

Its soil is fertile, the high grounds are covered with wood, and the Black Forest mountains yield valuable ores. Towns.-Stutgard, the capital, is only inferior to Leipsic and Berlin in the book trade.

Ulm, a fortified town on the Danube, has a considerable transit trade: is celebrated in modern history for the capture of General Mack and his army of 30,000 Austrians, by Napoleon, in 1805.

The government is a limited monarchy; the prevailing religion is Lutheranism.

BADEN.

Baden consists of a long narrow strip of country, em

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braced by the Rhine on its southern and western frontier. The general aspect of the country is mountainous. The Black Forest comprises one-third of it. Its numerous rivers add to its picturesque beauty. It is often denominated, on account of its romantic scenery, the paradise of Germany. Towns.-Carlsruhe (Charles's Rest) the capital of the state; a fine city. Baden-Baden, celebrated for its mineral waters, is frequented by thousands of strangers.

Freyburg; its cathedral is celebrated; S. E. of Freyburg is the Hollenthal (infernal valley) through which General Moreau effected his celebrated retreat in 1796.

OTHER GERMAN STATES AND FREE CITIES.

Several other minor states are scattered over Germany: most of them are of small extent, and few have a population equal to that of second rate English towns.

There are four free cities; Frankfort on the Maine, Hamburg, Bremen, and Lubeck. These cities are independent of the surrounding states, each having a separate government, of the republican form, and possessing a vote in the German Diet.

Hamburg, Bremen, and Lubeck, are Hanse towns.

The Hanseatic league was an association of the principal cities of the north of Europe for the protection of commerce; it arose in the twelfth century, when every sea was infested with pirates. Before the end of the thirteenth century 60 or 80 cities had joined the league, and their fleets and armies were too powerful for the neighbouring princes to resist. The affairs of the league were managed by a congress, which met every three years, generally at Lubeck. From the middle of the fifteenth century it declined, when the civilization which it had promoted rendered its continuance unnecessary. The three towns named are the only ones now in the league.

The chief commercial city of Germany, and perhaps of the continent, is Hamburg, which was founded by Charlemagne in the ninth century. Its situation gives it the trade of the vast country traversed by the Elbe; it has also communication, by means of a canal, with the river Trave, and consequently with Lubeck and the Baltic.

The immense trade of this city is chiefly in the hands of the British,

and it is the grand inlet by which British manufactures find their way into some of the richest and most extensive European countries.

The government of Hamburgh is vested in a senate chosen by the citizens.

Hamburg owes its liberty to the mutual jealousy of its neighbours, the kings of Denmark and Prussia, neither of whom will consent to the other getting possession of so rich a prize, though both covet it. The population of Hamburg is 128,000.

SPAIN.

BOUNDARIES.

N. by the Bay of Biscay and the Pyrenees.-E. and S. by the Mediterranean.-W. by Portugal and the Atlantic.

EXTENT.

It is situated between 36° and 4310 N. lat., and 9o W. and 3o. E. long. Its length is 600 miles, and breadth 500; it contains about 190,000 square miles.

CAPES, BAYS, AND ISLANDS.

The capes are, Cape Ortegal, the most northerly point; Cape Finisterre, the most westerly; Cape Trafalgar, near Gibraltar; Cape Gata and Cape Palos, on the south-east; Cape St. Martin and St. Sebastian, on the east.

The bays are, Corunna, between capes Ortegal and Finisterre; the bay of Cadiz; the gulfs of Carthagena, Alicante, Valencia, and Tarragona.

The islands Majorca, Minorca, Iviza, Formentera, &c., off the eastern coast, belong to Spain, the group is called the Balearic isles, their ancient inhabitants were very expert in the use of the sling.

MOUNTAINS.

Next to Switzerland, Spain is the most mountainous country in Europe. The Pyrenees are continued in a chain denominated the Asturian or Santillanos mountains, along the northern coast.

The whole of the central part of the peninsula consists of an elevated plain, about 1800 feet high; to the east of this table land, between New Castile and Aragon, several chains of mountains rise, which traverse the country from east to west, in a direction nearly parallel to each other. These are, 1st, the Castilian mountains, which are continued through Portugal, under the name of Sierra* Estrella. 2nd, the Sierra de Toledo. 3d, the Sierra Morena. 4th, the Sierra Nevada, or Snowy Mountains.

The summit of the mountain system of Spain is indicated by the southern branches of the Ebro, the springs of the Tagus, Douro, and other rivers, running in different directions.

Mount Mulhacen, in the Nevada chain, is 11,700 feet high.

RIVERS.

Four great valleys are formed by these mountain chains, each having its corresponding channel, along which the water, falling between the ridges, escapes to the sea. The principal rivers are the Douro, the Tagus, the Guadiana, the Guadalquiver, which fall into the Atlantic, and the Ebro, which falls into the Mediterranean.

The Douro passes Toro and Zamora, crosses Portugal, and falls into the sea at Oporto, after a course of 380 miles.

The Tagus rises on the borders of Aragon, it is soon increased by numerous tributaries, into one of which the r. Manzanares, near to which Madrid stands, runs; it passes by Toledo, Alcantara, and Santarem, and after a course of about 500 miles, falls into the ocean below Lisbon, forming a capacious haven.

The Guadiana, flowing between the ranges of Toledo and Sierra Morena, passes by Merida and Badajoz, whence, for some distance, it separates Spain from Portugal; before joining the sea it again forms the boundary between the two countries.

The Gaudalquiver (properly Wad 'el Kebir, the great river) passes by Cordova and Seville, and falls into the Atlantic at St. Lucar.

The Ebro, the ancient Ibērus, rises in the province of Santander, from the southern flank of the Asturian chain; fed by numerous streams descending from the Pyrenees and the eastern declivities of the

* A Spanish word, signifying a saw,-a chain of mountains presenting, at a distance, an appearance resembling a saw.

central plain, it is soon the deepest and most rapid river in Spain; it passes Logrono, Tudela, Saragossa, and Tortosa, and falls into the Mediterranean after a course of about 400 miles. Shoals and rapids render this river of little use in navigation.

CLIMATE.

From the situation of Spain it would be one of the hottest countries in Europe, were it not for the extensive ridges of mountains and the great extent of sea-coast. The elevation of the central region renders that the coldest, whereas it would otherwise be the hottest, region; the orange tree flourishes in other places, but cannot bear the winter of this. The elevated provinces of the north are also exposed to severe cold. In the valleys of the south the heat is often excessive in summer, and the hot winds from the African deserts are sometimes painfully felt. The climate on the whole is salubrious.

The barometer at Madrid is usually two inches lower than at the level of the sea. Its mean annual temperature is 59° of Fahrenheit.

PRODUCE, MANUFACTURES, AND COMMERCE.

Spain is a country highly favoured by nature; the finest fruits grow spontaneously, most of the metals are abundant, and its situation, as well as the number of its ports, is peculiarly favourable to commerce. Its flocks of sheep, too, have always been noted for the fineness of their wool. Notwithstanding these advantages, the commerce of Spain has long been in a declining state. The chief articles of export are the wines of Xeres, (sherry,) brandy, oranges, raisins, and other dried fruits, olive oil, wool, oak, and cork bark, barilla, and quicksilver. The imports are colonial produce from Havannah and Porto Rico, hemp, flax, cotton, and other manufactured goods, dried fish, &c.

The Phoenicians, the Carthaginians, and the Romans resorted to Spain for its metals; the extensive excavations, which yet remain, testify the extent of the trade. Gold dust is still occasionally found in the sand of the rivers. The silver mines are but little wrought, in consequence of the superior richness of the Mexican ore.

Three-fourths of the foreign trade of this country is in the hands of