The county of Schwarzenberg, north-west of Nurnberg, and in the interior of the circle, is about 20 miles long and 5 broad. It contains 24.000 inhabitants ; and its principal towns are, Markt-Schainfeld, Geisel wind, Markt-Brait, &c.
The county of Wertheim is situated between the terri tories of Mentz and the bishopric of Wurtzburg, and is traversed by the river Mayne. It yields a considerable produce of wine ; and its chief places are, Wertheim, Rem lingen, Freudenberg, Hochst, Helbach, and Branberg, for merly celebrated for its aqueducts, which were destroyed by Turenne in 1675.
The county of Erbach, nearly surrounded by the territo ries of the Lower Rhine, is about 20 miles in length and 16 in breadth ; mountainous, but well cultivated, provided with quarries of stone and marble, and several good mines of iron. Its chief towns are, Erbach, an old town with a cita del and wall ; Michelstadt, which has an iron foundery in its vicinity ; Freienstein, Furstenau, &c.
The county of Henneberg, in the northern part of the cir cle, is about 40 miles from cast to west, and from 20 to 30 from north to south, and is traversed by the river Werra. There are several forests and mountains, mines of iron, salt, and mineral springs, in the country. Grain and tobac co are raised in the more level districts. It is divided into several portions, belonging to the electoral houses of Saxo ny, Saxe-Weimar, Saxe-Gotha, Hesse-Cassel, &c. Its principal places are, Scnleusinger, near the forest of Thu ringia, containing 2200 people ; Suhla, a manufacturing town three leagues farther north, containing 6000 inhabi tants ; Ilmenan, on the eastern border, with several mines of copper and silver ; Meinungen, in the centre, seven leagues west from the last mentioned, containing 3500 peo ple ; Salzungen, near the north border, celebrated for its salt springs ; Schmalkalden, a considerable manufacturing town, three leagues northward from Meinungen, and famed in history for the league of the Protestant princes in 1531.
The principality of Hohenloe, of a very irregular figure, is about 40 miles from east to west, and 25 from north to south. It is watered in the western part by the Kocher, and in the eastern by the Tauber and Wornitz. Its moun tains afford various kinds of timber ; its vallies are covered w;th excellent pastures ; and its southern hills are clothed wit'. vineyards. It contains 80,000 inhabitants. Its prin cipal towns are, Oehringen, in the south-west corner, con taining 3900 people ; Frunkenau, a considerable manufac turing place near the source of the Wornitz ; Kunselsau, situated in a hilly quarter, and containing 2160 inhabitants, Ingelfingen, Kirchberg, &c.
Besides these, are the counties of Reineck and Castell, and the lordships of Hauser:, Welsheim, Seinsheim, Rel.
chelsberg, and Wesentheid, which are of very little extent, each containing only a small town, or a few villages.
The imperial cities are Rothenburg, an old and well-built town in the county of Anspach, containing 8000 inhabitants, surrounded by walls and strong towers ; \Vindsheim, a small fortified place in the same county, containing 2500 people ; Scheinfurt, a small fortified town on the Mayne ; Weissenburg, a small place in the bishopric of Aichstadt ; and Nurnberg, or Nuremberg, which will form the subject of a separate article. The more remarkable also of the towns here mentioned, will be found under their respective titles.
The districts of Bamberg and Wurtzburg, contain some of the best land in Germany, and abound in all the necessa ries of life. The inhabitants are skilful in agriculture; but in manufactures, are very far behind their more northern neighbours. In the vicinity of Bamberg, the art of garden ing is practised to a great extent ; and immense quantities of small pickled girkins, the best onions in Germany, and es pecially liquorice roots, are carried as far as Holland as ar ticles of trade. The common people believe that there is no liquorice in any other part of the world, and that the possession of this root was given to them as an exclusive privilege by St Cunigunda, who is interred in their cathe dral. Notwithstanding, however, of the excellence of the soil, and the gentleness of their ecclesiastical rulers, the people in these two rich bishoprics are in general extreme ly poor ; and more beggars are to be seen among them than in many of the less favoured districts. This has been ascribed partly to the dissipated and luxurious manners of the inhabitants, and to the numerous acts and institutions of charity, which the Roman Catholic system (the prevailing religion of the country) is supposed to produce.
In the territories of Bareuth and Anspach, the bounties of nature are less liberally bestowed; but a greater spirit of industry prevails among the people ; and the inhabitants, though loaded with taxes, are in much better circum stances than in the fertile districts of the southern states. In the smaller principalities, the people in general are sub ject. to great oppression, especially those whose masters re side in the greater courts. They are not only thus depri ved of the advantages which would arise from the rents and revenues being expended on the spot, but are also subject ed to the tyranny and exactions of despotic deputies. See Playfair's Geography, vol. iv. and Reisbeck's Travels through Germany, vol. iii. (7)