In the meanwhile a revolution of far more serious proportions had broken Spread of the revolution out at Paris. Successful from the start, the contagion of its example had spread from France to most of the various principalities of Germany, to Austria, Bohemia and Hungary, and thence to almost every quarter in Europe. Few other events afford so striking an illustration of the modern cosmopolitan spirit that had arisen in Europe during the first half of the Nineteenth Century. The great revolutions of England, of America and of France, in previous times, affected the rest of humanity only long after their occurrence. The overthrow of Charles X. in 1830 gave rise to more or less abortive revolutions in Belgium, Italy and Poland, as well as some of the smaller German States. But the French February revolution of 1848 Democratic governments spared spread instantly to all the civilized communities of the world, except Switzerland, Great Britain, and the United States of North America. The exemption of these three countries, where alone true democratic forms of government prevailed, was in itself a revelation of the general discontent of European peoples. Other explanations in plenty have been given, every one of which contained its measure of truth. To Polish refugees the upheavals of this year have been in part attributed. The rise of the new national spirit in literature was revealed in Italy and Germany as well as among the Magyars, Slavs and Greeks. The apparently epidemic character of the movement found another explanation in the improved means of transit and communication, and the great development of the public press.
In the countries untouched by revolution internal progress kept pace with the continued spread of civilization. In Switzerland, the expulsion of the Jesuits resulted in the attempted secession of the seven Catholic cantons. Changes in Switzerland This was frustrated by General Dufour's prompt occupation of Freibourg and Luzerne. The so-called Sonderbund of the seceding cantons was dissolved. In place of the former union of sovereign cantons, the Swiss republic was now reconstituted after the model of the United States of North America, as a union of States with a central federal government at Berne. The Swiss army, postal system and finances were put under federal control and a national coinage was established. The separate interest of the cantons found representation in the Stænderat, while the Swiss people at large were represented in the Nationalrath, the members of which were elected from districts apportioned among the cantons according to equal numbers of population.
The people of England, though the stirring events on the Continent were England unaffected brought home to them by so many eminent refugees seeking shelter in their land, held the issues at stake too well settled by their own great revolution of 1649 to find a sufficient incentive for another such movement. The popularity of the young Queen doubtless contributed its share to the stability of the government. The renewed demonstrations of the Chartists in London were merely co-incident with the revolutionary demonstrations abroad. Still the influence of contemporaneous events in Insurrection in Tipperary Europe was strong enough to frighten Parliament into passing an act which made the utterance of seditious speeches a felony. A popular insurrection in Tipperary, Ireland, was made the pretext for once more suspending the habeas corpus act in Ireland. By the end of July the revolt was put down. Its leaders, John Mitchell, O'Brien and others were apprehended and tried in court for high treason. They were sentenced to death, but the Queen mitigated their sentences to transportation. A calming effect on Ireland Queen Victoria in Ireland was produced by the personal visit of the young Queen and her royal consort to Ireland. When she held her court at Dublin in midsummer, the most poignant causes for discontent were lost sight of amid wild demonstrations of apparently universal loyalty. A constitution on home rule principles was proclaimed in West Australia. In South Africa, Sir Harry Smith, the Orange River territory annexed to England Governor of Cape Colony, after his successful termination of a fourth war with the Kaffirs, proclaimed the authority of Great Britain over the Orange River territory. The Boer settlers there under the leadership of Pretorius found themselves unable to maintain their independence. The adjoining lands of the Basutos were declared under British protectorate.
Early in the year, Lord Dalhousie had relieved Lord Hardinge as Governor-General of India. Up to that time the British occupation of the Punjab had continued without material change. Now a new fiscal system was to be introduced there to settle up the arrears of Viceroy Mulraj of Multan. In April, Vance Agnew, a British commissioner, with a military escort of three hundred men, arrived at Multan to occupy the citadel as Massacre of Multan surety for these arrears. The British officers were admitted to the city, but as they emerged from the citadel they were attacked, and all the Englishmen were massacred. Mulraj called upon the Sikhs to rise against the English. A force of seven thousand British troops were sent against Multan. When they reached the city all the native troops turned against them. The Punjab up in arms whole of the Punjab revolted and a holy war was proclaimed against England. Lord Dalhousie rose to the occasion. As he left Bengal to go to the front he delivered a characteristic speech containing the historic declaration: "Unwarned by precedent, uninfluenced by example, the Sikh nation have called for war. On my word, sirs, they shall have it with vengeance!" The Sikhs and Afghans join revolt Sikh garrisons of Peshawar joined in the revolt, which was quickly taken up by the Afghans. George Lawrence, the British Resident there, was carried off as a prisoner. In the fort of Attock, Captain Herbert held out for a while, but in the end was forced to succumb. The first general engagement between Lord Gough and Sagr Singh at Ramluggar, late in the year, resulted in a drawn battle. On both sides reinforcements were hurried up wherewith to wage the coming year's campaign.
From England, during this time, two more expeditions had been sent out in search of Sir John Franklin. The first of these was commanded by Sir James More Arctic expeditions Ross, the famous Antarctic explorer. The second expedition, while discovering no trace of Franklin, claimed that it had discovered the long sought for Northwest Passage. The science of astronomy lost one of its most distinguished representatives in England by the death of Caroline Herschel, the sister of the famous discoverer of Uranus. Besides her the necrology of the year in England included the two authors, Isaac d'Israeli, the father of Lord Beaconsfield, and Captain Frederick Marryat, the romancer of the Death of George Stephenson sea; Lord Alexander Ashburton, the framer of the Canadian boundary treaty that commemorates his name, and George Stephenson, the inventor of the first practicable locomotive. Stephenson began life as a pit-engine boy at twopence a day near Newcastle-on-Tyne. Having risen to the grade of engineman, he was employed in the collieries of Lord Ravensworth improving the wagon way and railway planes under ground. In 1814 he completed a locomotive steam-engine, which was successfully tried on the Killingworth Railway. The locomotive "Rocket," constructed by Stephenson and his son Robert, which won the premium of five hundred pounds in 1829, offered by the Liverpool and Manchester Railway Company, ushered in the greatest mechanical revolution since the invention of the steam-engine by Watt. After this Stephenson became a locomotive builder on a large scale and Stephenson's career acquired enormous wealth. Another invention standing to the credit of Stephenson was one of the earliest safety lamps, but a committee which investigated the subject accorded to Sir Humphry Davy the priority of this invention. During this year Sir Austin Henry Layard published the results of his original researches of Nineveh and its remains. Macaulay printed the first two volumes of his "History of England," while Matthew Arnold brought out his "Strayed Reveller" and other poems. Elizabeth Gaskell published "Mary Barton."
Of the various expeditions undertaken in search of Sir John Franklin, the most noteworthy perhaps was Dr. John Rae's overland journey through the northwestern territory of America from the Mackenzie to the Copper Mine River. This opened up a vast tract of country to adventurous Canadians. Another lasting benefit was conferred upon Upper Canada by the reorganization of the public school system of Ontario.
On the part of the United States the war with Mexico was brought to a Peace with Mexico close. The President of the Mexican Congress assumed provisional authority, and, on February 2, that body at Guadaloupe Hidalgo concluded peace with the United States. With slight amendments the treaty was ratified by the United States Senate on March 10, and by the Mexican Congress at Queratero Treaty of Guadaloupe Hidalgo on the 30th of May. President Polk, on July 4 following, finally proclaimed peace. The Americans under the terms of the treaty evacuated Mexico within three months, paid Mexico $3,000,000 immediately, and $12,000,000 in three annual instalments, and assumed debts of $3,500,000 due from Mexico to American citizens. These payments were made in consideration of new American expansion accessions of territory which gave to the United States not only Texas, but Arizona, New Mexico and California. The war had cost the United States approximately $25,000,000 and 25,000 men.
While these negotiations were under way, Colonel Sutter had begun the erection of a mill at Colonna on the American branch of the Sacramento River. In January one Marshall, who was engaged in digging a race-way for Gold found in California the mill for Colonel Sutter, found a metal which he had not seen before, and, on testing it in the fire, found that it was gold. The "finds" were sent to Sacramento and tested, with the result that they were declared to be pure gold. The mint at Philadelphia also declared the metal to be gold, and the President referred to the fact in his annual message to Congress.
Then the gold seekers poured into California. They arrived in multitudes from all parts of America and other countries—thousands tracking across the plains and mountains with ox-teams and on foot, and other thousands Influx of Gold Seekers crossing the Isthmus with scarcely less difficulty, while around the Horn a steady procession of ships passed up the coast of South America and Mexico to the new El Dorado. In two years the population of California increased 100,000, and still the hordes of gold seekers came.
Wisconsin, the thirtieth State, was admitted May 29. It had been one of the first districts to receive the visits of the fur traders and the French missionaries, who went thither in 1639.