SCHERZER, Karl yon, German explorer, born in Vienna, Austria, 1 May, 1821. He became a printer, but was left an independent fortune, and travelled extensively. During the revolution of 1848 he took an active part in the discussion of social and economical reforms, and in 1850 he was exiled to Italy. He made there the acquaintance of Dr. Moritz Wagner, and they resolved to explore North America. Landing in New York in June, 1852, they visited all the principal states, Central America, and the West Indies. On returning to Vienna toward the middle of 1855, he was appointed, through the influence of the Archduke Maximilian, afterward emperor of Mexico, a member of a scientific commission that was destined to sail on the frigate "Novara" in 1857 for a voyage round the world. After his return in 1859 he was a councillor of the board of trade, held an office in the bureau of foreign relations, and was intrusted with compiling the commercial statistics of the empire. His works procured him letters of nobility and the title of knight of the empire in 1866. In 1869 he was placed at the head of an expedition to explore eastern Asia, and he was afterward Austrian consul-general in various places, but retired toward the close of 1886. His works include Reisen in Nordamerika (Leipsic, 1854); "Die Republik Costa Rica," with Moritz Wagner'(1854) ; "Wanderungen durch die mittelamerik. Freistaaten Nicaragua, Honduras, und San Salvador" (Brunswick, 1857) ; "Las historias del origen de los Indios de la provineia de Guatemala" (Vienna, 1857)'; "Beschreibende Theile der Reise der oesterreichischen Fregatte 'Novara' um die Erde" (3 vols., with illustrations, 1861-'2); " Aus dem Naturund VSlkerleben im tropischen Amerika " (Leipsic, 1864); "Statistisch commerzieller Theil der Novara-Expedition" (2 vols., Vienna, 1864); "Statistisch commerzielle Ergebnisse einer Reise um die Erde" (Leipsic, 1867); "Fachmannische Berichte tiber die oesterreichisch-ungarische Expedition nach Siam, China, und Japan" (2 vols., Stuttgart, 1871-'2) ; "Smyrna" (Vienna, 1873) ; and "Das wirthschaftliche Leben der VSlker" (Leipsic, 1885).