The victory of the so-called democrats at Berne now brought the whole matter to the touch.  They appealed to the people in the first Swiss plebiscite, the precursor of the famous referendum.  It could now be decided without the interference of French troops; for the First Consul had privately declared to the new Landamman, Dolder, that he left it to his Government to decide whether the foreign soldiery should remain as a support or should evacuate Switzerland.[222] After many searchings of heart, the new authorities decided to try their fortunes alone—­a response which must have been expected at Paris, where Stapfer had for months been urging the removal of the French forces.  For the first time since the year 1798 Switzerland was therefore free to declare her will.  The result of the plebiscite was decisive enough, 72,453 votes being cast in favour of the latest constitution, and 92,423 against it.  Nothing daunted by this rebuff, and, adopting a device which the First Consul had invented for the benefit of Dutch liberty, the Bernese leaders declared that the 167,172 adult voters who had not voted at all must reckon as approving the new order of things.  The flimsiness of this pretext was soon disclosed.  The Swiss had had enough of electioneering tricks, hole-and-corner revolutions, and paper compacts.  They rushed to arms; and if ever Carlyle’s appeal away from ballot-boxes and parliamentary tongue-fencers to the primaeval mights of man can be justified, it was in the sharp and decisive conflicts of the early autumn of 1802 in Switzerland.  The troops of the central authorities, marching forth from Berne to quell the rising ferment, sustained a repulse at the foot of Mont Pilatus, as also before the walls of Zuerich; and, the revolt of the federals ever gathering force, the Helvetic authorities were driven from Berne to Lausanne.  There they were planning flight across the Lake of Geneva to Savoy, when, on October 15th, the arrival of Napoleon’s aide-de-camp, General Rapp, with an imperious proclamation dismayed the federals and promised to the discomfited unionists the mediation of the First Consul for which they had humbly pleaded.[223]

Napoleon had apparently viewed the late proceedings in Switzerland with mingled feelings of irritation and amused contempt.  “Well, there you are once more in a Revolution” was his hasty comment to Stapfer at a diplomatic reception shortly after Easter; “try and get tired of all that.”  It is difficult, however, to believe that so keen-sighted a statesman could look forward to anything but commotions for a land that was being saddled with an impracticable constitution, and whence the controlling French forces were withdrawn at that very crisis.  He was certainly prepared for the events of September:  many times he had quizzingly asked Stapfer how the constitution was faring, and he must have received with quiet amusement the solemn reply that there could be no doubt as to