In a canton in the valley of the Rhine lived the Hapsburg family,
whose leaders in time grew to be very rich and powerful. They
became dukes of Austria and some of them were elected emperors.
One of the Hapsburgs, Albert I, claimed that the land of the Forest
Cantons belonged to him. He sent a governor and a band of soldiers
to those cantons and made the people submit to his authority.
In one of the Forest Cantons at this time lived a famous mountaineer
named William Tell. He was tall and strong. In all Switzerland no
man had a foot so sure as his on the mountains or a hand so skilled
in the use of a bow. He was determined to resist the Austrians.
Secret meetings of the mountaineers were held and all took a solemn
oath to stand by each other and fight for their freedom; but they
had no arms and were simple shepherds who had never been trained
as soldiers. The first thing to be done was to get arms without
attracting the attention of the Austrians. It took nearly a year
to secure spears, swords, and battle-axes and distribute them among
the mountains. Finally this was done, and everything was ready.
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