And a brave, courageous, and
industrious people grew up there. No pauper-house among the Alps, for
every able-bodied person worked, and no body tried to rob his neighbor
of his honest earnings. They were a strong athletic race, and the
monarchs of the surrounding countries were glad to secure Swiss
soldiers, for it was said that the Swiss never deserted. In 1298,
while Wallace was struggling for freedom in Scotland, Albert of
Austria, the second of the house of Hapsburg, resolved to get
possession of the free forest cantons. He observed great secrecy in
carrying out his designs, and it was not until a tax-gatherer or
bailiff was permanently established in the country, supported by
Austrian soldiers, that the people awakened to their danger. The story
that follows is one that all true Swiss delight to believe, and,
though it may not be true in regard to names and details, yet as a
record of the main incidents of history it is substantially correct.
3. The first Austrian bailiff was Hermann Gessler, who built a strong
fortress at Kuessnacht, in Uri. At first he professed great love for
the people, but when he became firmly established he threw off the
mask, and showed himself to be a cruel, cowardly, mean-spirited
tyrant. He was both vain and greedy, and he exacted both homage and
tribute from the surrounding peasantry. Property was seized by the
soldiers, and, should the owner venture to remonstrate, he was
mercilessly beaten or killed on the spot.
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