By Way Of Shewing How Fond The Bernois Are Of Old Institutions And Customs,
They Have Been At The Trouble To Catch Three Or Four Bears And Keep Them In
A Walled Pit In The City, Where They Are Well Fed And Taken Care Of.
The
popular superstition is that the bears entertained in this manner
contribute to the safety of the commonwealth; and
This establishment
continued ever in full force, until the dissolution of the old Confederacy
took place and the establishment in its place of the Helvetic Republic
under the influence of the French directorial government. The custom, then,
appearing absurd and useless, was abolished, and the bears were sold. But
since the peace of 1814 other bears have been caught and are nourishd, as
the former ones were, at the expence of the state.
Bern derives its name from Bueren, the German word for Bears (plural
number). Only the French spell Berne, with an e at the end of it.
There are no theatrical amusements going forward here. Cards and now and
then a little music form the evening recreations.
In the inn at Bern I became acquainted with a most delightful Milanese lady
and her son. Her name is L - - - ; she is the widow of an opulent banker at
Milan and has a large family of children. She was about thirty-eight years
of age and is still a remarkably handsome woman. Time has made very little
impression on her and she unites very pleasing manners with a great taste
for litterature.
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