LIBRARY 
 
 THE UNIVERSITY 
 OF CALIFORNIA 
 
 SANTA BARBARA 
 
 FROM THE LIBRARY 
 OF F. VON BOSCHAN
 
 UCSB LIBRARY
 
 KI S S I N G E N. MINERAL WATERS. 
 Kissengen is situated in the picturesque and beautiful 
 valley of the Saalgrund, one day distant by Post, or one and a 
 half days by Voituro, from Frankfort-on-the-Maine. Steam- 
 boats convey travellers by the Maine from Mayence or Frank- 
 fort to Lohr, where carriages are always to be found for Kis- 
 singen. His Majesty the King of Bavaria, assisted by the in- 
 habitants, has made such great improvements in Kissingen 
 since last season as cannot fail materially ,to contribute to the 
 comfort and pleasure ef the visitors. The drives about Kis- 
 singen are numerous ; the walks over the hills an ' through the 
 forests are as varied as they are beautiful ; there is good shoot- 
 ing during the season, and two excellent trout streams at the 
 distance of six English miles. As to the salubrity of its cli- 
 mate, Kissingen is one of the few spots in Germany where fogs 
 are almost unknown. The efficacy of the waters is clearly 
 proved, as well by the vast and every year increasing numbsr of 
 invalids who visit and receive beneht from them, as by the fact 
 that those who are interested in recommending other mineral 
 waters boast of their resembling those of Kissingen. It is, 
 however, but a boast, as no mineral waters have yet been dis- 
 covered which contain so many valuable properties in such a 
 good proportion as those of Kissingen. BOLZANO Brothers, 
 Lessees and Sole Agents of the Royal Mineral Springs of Kis- 
 singen, respectfully inform the nobility and gentry that their 
 vast establishment, the ROYAL KURHAUS, continues to 
 afford every possible comfort and accommodation. English is 
 in a great measure the language of the house. Invalids and 
 Ladies will there find all the care, attention, and, if desired, 
 the privacy of a home. English dinners are served at all hours, 
 auda liberal and elegant Table d'Hote at one o'clock.
 
 JOURNAL 
 
 OF 
 
 A TOUR IN GERMANY, 
 
 THROUGH 
 
 THE TYROL, SALZKAMMERGUT, THE 
 DANUBE, HUNGARY, &c. &c. &c. 
 
 DURING 
 
 THE MONTHS OF AUGUST, SEPTEMBER, AND OCTOBER, 
 MDCCCXXXIX. 
 
 ' If any of our neighbour nations should think their own the 
 richest, the pleasantest, the fruitfullest country in the world, I 
 should ^t no means think it fit to dispute it with them." Fide PBK- 
 FACB TO "T W,INGFI.EBT'S ORIGINES BRITANNICJE, page v. 
 
 NOT PUBLISHED. 
 
 PRINTED BY W. H. DALTOV, COCKSPCB STREET, CHARING CROSS.
 
 JOURNAL, &c. 
 
 Tuesday, Aug. 13. 1839. Again upon 
 the waters. We embarked in the " Royal 
 George," on a bright and calm morning, 
 and two hours and fifty minutes landed us at 
 Calais. The usual tribute to the ocean was 
 omitted on this occasion both by my compa- 
 nion M and myself; which enabled us 
 
 duly to relish the good things of Monsieur 
 Dessin's cuisine. Our late Turkish am- 
 bassador, Rescind Pacha, whose mission was 
 transferred to Paris, embarked at the same 
 time with us from Dover, bound for Bou- 
 
 B
 
 logne, in the " Water Witch." We start 
 for Belgium and the Tyrol to-morrow. 
 
 Wednesday, Aug. 14, 1839. We left 
 Calais on a bright sunny morning at seven. 
 The crops on each side of the long and 
 dreary road to St. Omer look clean and pro- 
 mising, in spite of the very imperfect culti- 
 vation to which they are subjected ; making 
 one wish they were in the abler hands of 
 some Yorkshire or Lincolnshire farmer, 
 who would turn the natural advantages of 
 the rich soil to greater profit. 
 
 Bowling past every cart, wagon, and 
 lumbering diligence, on what would be con- 
 sidered in England the wrong side of the 
 way, we approached Ardres, where the 
 church, tower, and fortifications, rising out 
 of a grove of poplars, gave some relief to the 
 otherwise monotonous prospect. These 
 poplars and alder trees are nourished by a 
 large swamp or reedy piece of water, by 
 whose banks wooden huts have been con- 
 structed, and on the surface of which float 
 rafts laden with large stacks of fire- wood. 
 Beyond St. Omer the road is less desolate
 
 from being lined with very flourishing 
 witch elms, and on rising the hill of Cas- 
 sel a luxuriant panoramic prospect of vast 
 extent stretches on every side with the 
 white sand-hills, which bound the ocean in 
 the northern distance. It would have been 
 a miracle to have come even thus far with- 
 out being assailed by a host of beggars, and 
 we now found them posted as usual on 
 the bases and summits of every ascent and 
 descent, where the custom of the relay re- 
 quired the horse and his rider to walk. 
 Your foreign beggar is a most hypocritical 
 varlet. In England he tells you some 
 piteous tale of his losses, the distance he 
 has walked, and the long period of forcible 
 abstinence which he has endured, while 
 the ruddy child he drags after him asks you 
 point blank to give him a halfpenny. In 
 France, on the contrary, religion is the in- 
 variable plea, and you are supplicated in 
 the name of the Virgin or St. Antony ; 
 while the chubby urchin, tumbling head 
 over heels in the mud or sand beside your 
 
 B 2
 
 carriage, concludes his somerset with " Cha- 
 rite, pour 1'amour de Dieu !" 
 
 Not even the cheerfulness of the harvest 
 could throw animation into the lifeless tract 
 of country which lies from hence to Tour- 
 nay. A spirit of listlessness seems to per- 
 vade the population. They cut the corn as 
 if with a penknife, and, binding a few dozen 
 stalks together, form them into little bun- 
 dles, and lay them side by side to make 
 an ordinary sized sheaf. Men, women, and 
 children unite in this herculean labour, 
 which drags its " slow length along," where 
 the unpartitioned fields never echoed to 
 the joyous shout of an English harvest 
 home. Rape is cultivated here to a great 
 extent, and piled in small stacks, scattered 
 over the plain in every direction. A few 
 minutes sufficed to pass us through the 
 custom-house, and in half an hour after we 
 reached the old city of Tournay. 
 
 Thursday, Aug. 15, 1839. The cathedral 
 of Tournay is more remarkable for its ac- 
 tual age than its appearance. Two apses,
 
 however, are curious, and have a good effect. 
 The groining of the east end of the choir is 
 very bad ; being so constructed as to inter- 
 sect the lines of the pointed windows. It 
 was founded by the emperor Childeric, 
 whose tomb, however, is in the church of 
 St. Brice, and which, on being opened by 
 Napoleon, was found to contain his sceptre 
 covered with golden bees, a device which 
 he thenceforth adopted as the Imperial in- 
 signia. It is said that the cannon used at 
 the battle of Cressy were made here. The 
 road from hence to Mons, whether by land 
 or water, seems channelled through a coal 
 mine : the mud or dust of the one being 
 black and grimy, and the liquid filling the 
 canal seeming to consist only of its washings. 
 The Hotel de Ville here is remarkable as a 
 specimen of very pure and admirable 
 gothic. We passed through the old town 
 of Binche, once walled and fortified, but its 
 defences are now altogether dismantled, and 
 only seem to give a certain degree of pic- 
 turesqueness to what is easily so distin- 
 guished in this dreary country. To-day
 
 was the fete of the assumption of the Vir- 
 gin. All the peasantry were dressed in 
 their gala garbs; the black streets were 
 strewed with flowers ; and small altars, 
 beautifully decorated, were placed at various 
 intervals against the houses. At Charleroi 
 we were delayed a few minutes for horses, 
 and then proceeded towards Sombref. 
 By way of a short cut, the postilion drove 
 us across the country, over a rough sandy 
 road, and when we reached the poste, the 
 horses proved to have been ordered to meet 
 us at Quatrebras. This lies upon the regu- 
 lar road which we ought to have followed, 
 and we now had to proceed to it about 
 two miles further. Here no horses were 
 arrived, and we therefore had to await 
 their return from Namur. This took place 
 in about half an hour, and, after a twilight 
 drive over a tedious and interminable road, 
 we reached ISamur. . 
 
 Friday, Aug. 16, 1839. The Meuse is 
 crossed immediately on leaving Namur, and 
 the way to Luxemburg rises over an accli- 
 vity, from which is a good view of the city
 
 and its forts. The whole of the road we 
 were now following cuts the country, as it 
 were, against the grain ; traversing, nearly 
 at right angles, ridges of hills, and deep 
 valleys, which run east and west. It has 
 the appearance of a vast plain, here and 
 there covered with large forests, chiefly of 
 dwarf oak. There are few fine trees, as the oak 
 is felled for charcoal as soon as it has at- 
 tained sufficient size. We had intended to 
 have reached Luxemburg, but the hilly 
 nature of the road having prevented us 
 from getting on as fast as we had hoped, 
 and not knowing the hour at which the 
 gates of the fortress were closed, we de- 
 cided to stop at Arlon. This little town is 
 said to contain five thousand inhabitants ; but, 
 from its squalid and miserable appearance, 
 it does not seem to contain half the number. 
 The inn, likewise, has no superfluous ac- 
 commodations, though tolerably clean. We 
 asked for some warm water, to wash the 
 dust and dirt from our faces : after some 
 time it was brought, one portion in a break- 
 fast milk-jug, and the other in a cream-pot !
 
 8 
 
 Our attention was shortly attracted by a 
 confused sound in the street : it proceeded 
 from the " swine general " and his troop, 
 who came rushing, grunting, and shoving 
 on, as detachments severed themselves from 
 the mass, and took their ways to their re- 
 spective homes. 
 
 Saturday, Aug. 17, 1839. The fortress of 
 Luxemburg is totally invisible from the 
 Belgian approach, although the summits of 
 two church towers give some indication of 
 the proximity of a town. The place is en- 
 tered by strong, but ordinary defences : 
 nor whilst in the heart of the city is there 
 any appearance of its extraordinary posi- 
 tion. On passing, however, through an 
 archway to the Trieves Gate, you come upon 
 a drawbridge, the view from which causes 
 a thrill of alarmed surprise. It is suspended 
 over no ordinary fosse, but a deep chasm of 
 several hundred feet. The town is seen in 
 a succession of terraces, one over the other, 
 climbing an escarped amphitheatre of rock, 
 buttressed and guarded by long lines of 
 fortification. At the bottom of the gorge
 
 9 
 
 winds the stream of the Alzet, forced out of 
 his course by a narrow promontory of rock, 
 whose perpendicular sides are excavated for 
 defences, and whose contracted summit is 
 covered by a succession of forts, connected 
 with drawbridges over the chasms which 
 intersect it. The opposite heights of the 
 ravine are crested with forts in every quar- 
 ter from which the place might be com- 
 manded ; while these triumphs of art are 
 beautifully grouped with natural rock, trees, 
 and underwood. The best general view of 
 the place is from the approach on the Prus- 
 sian side ; but its extreme irregularity ren- 
 ders every part of it most picturesque, whe- 
 ther taken in detail or as a whole. After 
 this inspection, we returned to the Hotel de 
 Cologne, where we had some luncheon 
 served by a fat, good-natured landlady, 
 whose face and form clearly proved her to 
 be of no irritable disposition. We were 
 fortunate in having arrived on a day ap- 
 pointed for a review of the artillery by 
 Prince Augustus of Prussia, who came over 
 from Trieves for the purpose. Although
 
 10 
 
 the three Powers have confirmed the King 
 of Holland as Grand Duke of Luxemburg, 
 the fortress is under the protection of the 
 Germanic Confederation, and is garrisoned 
 by Prussian troops. Those selected for to- 
 day's review were soldier-like looking men, 
 and far superior to the Belgian military. 
 The Prince and his staff passed us on their 
 way to the ground, and the review ended 
 very shortly, probably from the great heat, 
 wind, and dust, which rendered it very un- 
 pleasant. Having satisfied our curiosity as 
 far as our limited time would permit, we left 
 Luxemburg, and continued our way over 
 the same kind of country as yesterday, till 
 we reached the banks of the Moselle at 
 Grevenmachern. The scenery now becomes 
 very pretty ; and the low banks of the river 
 are covered with vines. The Prussian cus- 
 tom-house, which is situated about a third 
 of the way in this stage, was unusually 
 vexatious. They searched everything on 
 the carriage, in a pouring rain, which de- 
 tained us above half an hour. We stopped 
 a few minutes to examine the much dis-
 
 11 
 
 puted Roman monument at Igel, and 
 shortly after reached Trieves. 
 
 Sunday, Aug. 18, 1839. Trieves is like 
 the faint memory of a pleasant dream. Its 
 motto should be " Fui." But for its Ro- 
 man remains, it would be forgotten, and 
 they themselves, with one exception, are 
 worth little more than as themes to exercise 
 antiquarian ingenuity. The Porta Martis, 
 or black gate, is a magnificent monument of 
 pride and power, and only the more ex- 
 cites admiration, from having successfully 
 resisted the rude hand of barbaric violence, 
 by the wonderful solidity of its construc- 
 tion. The other Roman fragments which 
 remain of doubtful edifices are only remark- 
 able from the extreme tenacity of the mor- 
 tar employed, which is harder and more 
 compact than even the bricks which it 
 unites. In the evening we walked round 
 the city. Its situation on the Moselle is 
 beautiful. Its verdant valley is enclosed 
 by wooded rocks of the red sandstone form- 
 ation ; the slopes are covered with vines, 
 orchards, and walnuts, and the river sweeps
 
 12 
 
 onwards through its green pastures, to 
 merge its quiet waters in the rapid torrent of 
 the Rhine. On the following day, 
 
 Monday, Aug. 19, 1839, we proceeded 
 by the Valley of the Nahe towards Mann- 
 heim. The road follows the banks of the 
 Moselle for about three miles and a half, 
 to beyond the village of Reuwer, when it 
 strikes across the country to the south-east. 
 It has been recently made, and is excel- 
 lently macadamised, and planted on each 
 side with mountain ash. It passes over hills 
 from which are fine and extensive pros- 
 pects of deep-wooded valleys. The sides 
 of these hills are somewhat remarkable, 
 being levelled abruptly down like artificial 
 cuttings. After a few miles of open down, 
 scantily cultivated, on a shaly soil, the way 
 proceeds through a picturesque forest of 
 oak, beech, and birch ; on emerging from 
 which, the first " relay " of Hermeisekeil 
 is seen, situated in the midst of a large 
 open, undulating plain, surrounded by fo- 
 rests. It is a long straggling village, with a 
 church at one end, and contains nothing
 
 13 
 
 remarkable. The road from here alternates 
 between bleak moor and enclosed forest 
 scenery. About seven miles from Birken- 
 feld we entered the territory of Oldenburg, 
 of which it is the principal town of this part 
 of the duchy. This small town lies nestled 
 in a valley surrounded by hills of an iso- 
 lated character, on one ofwhich, to the south, 
 are the remains of an old walled town. 
 Birkenfeld contains a plain, whitewashed 
 chateau of the Grand Duke, but nothing of 
 interest. The road, still excellent, traverses 
 the same kind of scenery, till it plunges by 
 a circuitous and rapid descent into the 
 picturesque Valley of the Nahe, about a 
 mile and a half from Oberstein. Quartz, 
 agate, calcedony, &c., are found in this val- 
 ley, and afford employment to the inhabi- 
 tants of the upper end, who are exten- 
 sively occupied in cutting and polishing 
 them into seals, beads, boxes, vases, &c. &c. 
 Oberstein itself is most romantically placed 
 under lofty rocks, on which are perched a 
 gothic church and ruined castle. The vil- 
 lage is ill paved, and the streets dirty and
 
 14 
 
 dangerously narrow ; all of which adds to 
 its picturesqueness, but not to its comfort. 
 The stage from here to Kirn is over rough 
 unmacadamised road, and through scenery, 
 which, though pretty, is not very striking. 
 Kirn itself is well situated, but the interior 
 of it is dirty and miserable. The streets are 
 winding and narrow, and about the middle 
 of the town is an old bridge over the Nahe, 
 guarded by two gateways, which, from its 
 contractedness and steepness, is dangerous 
 for any large vehicle. Almost every house 
 in this place is an inn, so that it might be 
 called, without impropriety, a " city of pub- 
 licans." That at the post-house appeared 
 clean, and might be stopped at. The 
 scenery now improves ; in one part, the 
 valley becomes a mere gorge, and shortly 
 after opens into a richly cultivated plain, 
 abounding in pastures, vines, and tobacco. 
 The doors and windows of many of the 
 houses are very ancient. They are curi- 
 ously carved, and many bear dates about 
 1590 and 1601. Upon the front of one of 
 them was the following inscription : " Die
 
 15 
 
 Gemeinder ihrer kindern." We changed 
 horses at Soberheim, and drove into Kreuz- 
 nach in the dusk of evening. Hungry and 
 tired, we had anticipated a comfortable 
 lodging, but unluckily it was the eve of a 
 great fair, which had attracted parties from 
 every quarter, so that not an hotel was va- 
 cant. After remaining for some time, how- 
 ever, in the streets, contemplating, with as 
 little irritation as could be expected under 
 such circumstances, a host of comfortable 
 faces, engaged most agreeably at the table 
 d'hote, we obtained shelter in a decent 
 " auberge," and were served with a cold 
 and scanty meal from the hotel. Com- 
 fortable beds, however, soon made up for 
 these inconveniences, and the following 
 morning they were forgotten. 
 
 Tuesday, Aug. 20, 1839. The situation 
 of Kreuznach is most pleasing. There are 
 saline baths here, and salt-works a short 
 distance from the town. Its bridge and 
 ruined castle are picturesque objects ; and 
 it has altogether a clean and cheerful ap- 
 pearance. We hurried on to Mannheim.
 
 16 
 
 The road is very hilly, passing over a vast 
 cultivated plain, undivided by hedges or 
 any other boundary. The road is excellent, 
 except through the villages, where it is exe- 
 crable. From a hill above Alzei there is 
 a fine view of the Rhine to the left, and of 
 the towers of Worms cathedral to the right. 
 The windings of the road to this latter 
 place are so capricious and arbitrary, that 
 the nearer it is actually approached, the 
 farther it seems off. The views, however, 
 are some compensation, as they are most 
 extensive and magnificent. To the south 
 rises Mont Tonnere and the range of the 
 Voges mountains : to the east the winding 
 Neckar flows by the low wooded chain of 
 Heidelberg and Baden-Baden. The vine- 
 clad hills of Mayence and the Lower Rhine 
 close the view towards the north ; while 
 the towers of Spires, Mannheim, Worms, 
 and many other cities, lie studded over the 
 gorgeous middle distance, intersected, as it 
 is, by the bright silver waters of the Rhine. 
 On entering Worms we passed the cathe- 
 dral, which we stayed a moment to ex-
 
 17 
 
 amine. The exterior is large and imposing ; 
 the interior almost totally plain, and what 
 little ornament there is makes one wish 
 that it was so altogether. The choir has 
 been newly done, in the gaudiest and worst 
 style of Louis XIV., all tinsel and gild- 
 ing ; and in the chancel are hung cut glass 
 chandeliers, similar to those used at a 
 country ball. All this contrasts strangely 
 with the rude massive piers which form the 
 two aisles, and the totally undecorated walls. 
 This cathedral is remarkable for having 
 two choirs, one at each end : that at the 
 west end is quite plain. In the baptistery 
 are some curious stone carvings, recently 
 restored. They are in a lateral chapel, which 
 is of florid gothic, while the body of the 
 church is in the round-arch style. The rest 
 of the way to Mannheim is quite flat and 
 uninteresting. 
 
 Wednesday, Aug. 21, 1839. We esta- 
 blished ourselves at the Pfalzer Hof, an ex- 
 cellent hotel in the great square of the 
 Rathhause. Mannheim is a new, clean 
 town, for fire and sword have not left even a
 
 18 
 
 wreck behind of the old city, which might 
 date its birth from about 1600. The pre- 
 sent town has not existed above a century ; 
 and the streets are all built in straight lines, 
 with others intersecting them at right 
 angles. The effect is monotonous and un- 
 pleasing ; and, although the population is 
 estimated at about twenty thousand inhabi- 
 tants, it has an air of mourning and of desola- 
 tion. This, too, is increased by the presence 
 of several handsome fountains, all without 
 water, and the roofless and gutted state of 
 one wing of its huge palace. This building, 
 which is of vast extent, somewhat resembles 
 Versailles. It was built by the Elector 
 Palatine Karl Philip, in 1720, and is now 
 partly inhabited by the Dowager Grand 
 Duchess of Baden, Stephanie, who is much 
 beloved. The gardens, which are very 
 agreeable, terminate in a terrace-walk over- 
 looking the Rhine. They are open at all 
 times to the public, and notices are placed 
 about them, confiding their preservation 
 and neatness to the guardianship of the 
 people themselves, who seem in no way
 
 19 
 
 to have abused the trust : a plan, alike 
 honourable to those who confer and those 
 who enjoy the privilege. 
 
 We drove to the summer palace of 
 Schwetzingen, the gardens of which are not 
 unjustly celebrated. They are of consider- 
 able extent, containing fountains, lakes, 
 vases, statues, temples, artificial ruins, and 
 a Turkish mosque. From the specimens 
 ordinarily seen in France, &c., of gardens 
 containing a similar catalogue of objects, 
 the idea which would be preconceived of 
 these, would probably be one of ridicule. 
 In this, however, we were most agreeably 
 mistaken. Each imitation is so well placed, 
 and done in such really good taste, as to 
 produce very pleasing effects ; and the 
 solidity of the material employed, they be- 
 ing chiefly of stone, gives a feeling of reality 
 and of permanence not usually experienced 
 in such attempts. Two things deserve to 
 be especially mentioned : one is a small 
 Greek temple of most admirable propor- 
 tions and excellent taste ; the ornaments are 
 all appropriate and judicious, and the situ- 
 
 c 2
 
 20 
 
 ation well chosen. The other was a Greek 
 theatre, or something of that character. 
 On the summit of a rock was erected a cir- 
 cular Ionic Monopteros, in the centre of 
 which, on a round marble pedestal, stood a 
 statue of Apollo. From the rock gushed a 
 copious stream of water, which was re- 
 ceived into a succession of basins, descend- 
 ing to the level of the garden : rocky steps 
 lead up to the statue on each side, from a 
 semicircular grassy mound, which formed 
 the sides of the amphitheatre. The corners 
 were decorated with architectural designs, 
 executed in trellis-work, partly of iron and 
 partly wood, and covered with creepers. 
 The effect altogether was very striking and 
 good. The Turkish mosque was also large 
 and well executed, as was a ruined temple 
 near it. There was, besides, a conceit of an 
 aviary, with birds perched all round, who 
 spouted water, and was the only ridiculous 
 thing in the place. Altogether, some hours 
 may be very pleasantly spent in the gardens 
 of Schwetzingen. The palace is in nowise 
 remarkable.
 
 21 
 
 Thursday, Aug. 22, 1839. The worst of 
 the journey was now passed. Our way lay 
 nearly due south, and hourly brought us 
 into a more beautiful and interesting coun- 
 try. Our course again took us to Schwet- 
 zingen, where we were detained for above 
 an hour by the unjustifiable extortion of 
 the postmaster. An application to the 
 police having failed, we were obliged to 
 submit for the time ; but I made a repre- 
 sentation of the case to Sir G. Shee, our 
 minister at Stuttgard, who, though not ac- 
 credited at the court of Baden, has kindly 
 undertaken to seek that redress as a matter 
 of courtesy, which he is unable to claim 
 in an official capacity. The road for some 
 distance is very rough and bad, but passes 
 through extremely pretty wooded scenery. 
 Stuttgard is very remarkably situated, be- 
 ing hemmed in on every side by hills, partly 
 wooded and partly cultivated with vines; it 
 is very pleasing, and the town itself is 
 agreeable. The royal palace is a large and 
 handsome structure at one end of a spacious 
 Place d'Armes. It has extensive gardens,
 
 22 
 
 which are noted for the size and age of their 
 orange trees, of which there is a great num- 
 ber. Near it stands the ancient Schlos or Pa- 
 lace, the inner court of which is surrounded 
 by a colonnade, curiously carved, and which 
 reminded me of the Stadthause at Liege. 
 The cathedral is, in its exterior, a beautiful 
 specimen of elaborate florid gothic. The 
 interior contains some brasses and fine 
 monuments of Dukes of Wurtemberg. It 
 is undergoing some very judicious altera- 
 tions, and the exterior also is being 
 thoroughly repaired. In a small square 
 beside it, has just been erected a splendid 
 bronze statue of Schiller by Thorwaldseri, 
 whose name alone is sufficient to guarantee 
 its being a fine work of art. We had seen 
 the cast of it last year in his studio at 
 Rome. The hotel, the Kb'nig von Eng- 
 land, is clean and good. We had, however, 
 some rotten eggs for breakfast, which the 
 waiter said must be impossible, as "they 
 kept poultry on purpose !" The weather 
 was remarkably cold and disagreeable, 
 threatening rain which did not come down.
 
 23 
 
 Friday, Aug. 23, 1839." Bubble, bub- 
 ble, toil and trouble !" The road has not 
 a particle of level ground ; incessant up and 
 down. The scenery, however, is pretty. 
 The horizon is bounded by singular square- 
 headed mountains ; stepping out, as it were, 
 from which, stand two very remarkable 
 conical hills, crowned with ruined castles. 
 After passing Neckar-Thailfinger, the way, 
 though still hilly, is rather more level in 
 parts, and the country like a vast garden 
 rich and beautiful. 
 
 Great quantities of hemp are grown in this 
 district, and cloth manufactured in many of 
 its picturesque villages. The houses are 
 very large, with enormous projecting roofs. 
 The lower part of them is built of stone, 
 and used as stables and cellars : the rest of 
 the walls are constructed of a framework 
 of timber, the intermediate parts of which 
 are filled up with rough stone and plaster ; 
 the wood-work is left exposed, and painted 
 black or red. The " wirtshafts " are no- 
 ticeable from their large and elaborate 
 signs, which are painted and gilt so as
 
 24 
 
 to be very showy. The population appear 
 healthy and well looking. The men are 
 handsomer than the women, which probably 
 arises, in part, from the latter being en- 
 gaged in all the more laborious works at 
 home and abroad. Sowing, reaping, and 
 even ploughing, are done by them, not to 
 mention the ordinary duties of tending the 
 cattle, milking, washing, preparing the 
 hemp, &c. &c. They are also in the con- 
 stant habit of carrying great weights upon 
 their heads, which is highly injurious to 
 beauty. The sole occupation of the men 
 seems to be as carters, and even then they 
 are mostly to be found riding on the shafts 
 or in their wagons. All their other busi- 
 ness is smoking and lounging, both of which 
 they carry on most assiduously. The cos- 
 tume about here is not very remarkable. 
 That of the women is chiefly characterised 
 by their plaiting their hair in two long tails, 
 which hang down their backs. The men 
 occasionally wear black three-cornered hats, 
 and all, young and old, have black leather 
 knee breeches, which, from their appear-
 
 25 
 
 ance, must be heirlooms in their respective 
 families. The streams were bright and 
 rapid, and are often diverted to form ponds, 
 in which are placed large stones at intervals, 
 to soak and beat hemp upon. The scenery 
 improves rapidly : perpendicular crags de- 
 scend like buttresses from the hill sides, 
 which are clothed with luxuriant woods, 
 and the narrow valley abounds in orchards 
 of cherry, plum, pear, and walnut trees. 
 We changed horses at the beautiful village 
 of Urach, with its rich gothic fountains, and 
 then proceeded up a gorge of great pictu- 
 resqueness, by the side of a mountain stream, 
 one of the feeders of the Neckar. The 
 summit of the pass, for such it may be called, 
 was soon reached : from one side of it the 
 waters all flow into the Rhine, and from the 
 other swell the waters of the Danube. 
 This latter river we shortly crossed, already 
 grown to be a wide and rapid stream. The 
 road from Elringen winds through an open 
 but richly cultivated country, and, before 
 we descended into the valley of Biberach, 
 the full moon had " taken up her wondrous
 
 26 
 
 tale," and threw her soft silvery hue on the 
 rocks, woods, and waters, by which we 
 drove. It was late before we reached 
 Biberach. The butcher was gone to bed, 
 but we soon roused him from his lair, while 
 he revenged himself for the disturbance 
 by giving us only some scraggy bits of 
 tough veal, from which even our vora- 
 cious appetites were unable to get a meal. 
 The beds, however, were excellent, and a 
 sound sleep and excellent breakfast the 
 next morning fully restored our compla- 
 cency. 
 
 Saturday, Aug. 24, 1839. I know not 
 that Biberach contains anything particularly 
 worthy of note. We left it early, the road 
 still retaining the undulating character it 
 had borne for many days. The fields were 
 dotted with poles about eight feet high, 
 having cross bars, like perches for poultry. 
 These are to pile the hay upon ; and at a 
 short distance, when so covered, they have 
 the appearance of so many motionless hu- 
 man figures. At Oxenhausen is a huge 
 monastery, which " predominates " ostenta-
 
 27 
 
 tiously over the small, straggling hamlet at 
 its feet. On the roadside are frequent cru- 
 cifixes covered with emblems, and disgust- 
 ingly coloured. Before reaching Mem 
 mingen, we came in sight of the glorious 
 chain of the Tyrol Alps. My heart bounded 
 at the view, for I love their dark valleys, 
 their crystal lakes, their leaping 'fountains, 
 and their glacier heights. After passing 
 the town of Kempten we rapidly approached 
 them. This place is large, clean, and hand- 
 some, situated on the Iller, and is as pre- 
 possessing a city as I have seen in this part 
 of Bavaria. Beautiful and bright is the 
 drive from here to Fussen. It is like some 
 fine park in the most favoured spots of our 
 own country, backed, however, with the 
 important addition of a range of lofty and 
 majestic mountains. The approach to Fus- 
 sen is especially attractive. It lies at the 
 entrance of the valley from which issues the 
 river Lech, and in the centre of it rises an 
 old chateau, which overlooks the open 
 plain, studded with small purple lakes. The 
 evening on which we arrived was that
 
 28 
 
 of St. Louis, the patron saint of Bavaria, 
 and the birthday of her present king. The 
 grey twilight had just begun to take the 
 place of the gorgeous sun, as he sank to 
 rest behind the western hills, when sud- 
 denly, on every towering knoll round us, 
 blazed up glowing bonfires, which gleamed 
 like beacons round the illuminated horizon. 
 On entering the town we met a band of 
 music, lighted with pine torches, and playing 
 the joyous national airs of Tyrol and Ba- 
 varia. The hotel, which is very clean and 
 comfortable, was all in commotion, prepara- 
 tory to a fete and concert to be given on 
 the morrow to Max, the crown prince of 
 Bavaria, who has a beautiful castle in the 
 neighbourhood. 
 
 Sunday, Aug. 25, 1839. The sun and 
 the inhabitants of Fussen rose together. 
 The weather was all that could be desired, 
 and everything promised a day of real en- 
 joyment. At half-past nine there was to be 
 a grand mass in the Abbey Church, at 
 which Prince Max was expected to be pre- 
 sent. We resolved to take advantage of
 
 29 
 
 this circumstance, to see the whole of his 
 castle of Hohenschwangau. The streets 
 up to the church were lined by military. 
 A kind of burgher guard, whose evolutions, 
 which we witnessed in the evening, did not 
 bespeak them very able champions of the 
 liberties of " Hebe Bayern ;" however, they 
 made a " demonstration" which was, doubt- 
 less, all that was now, or probably ever will 
 be, required of them. We met the prince, 
 who was in a long open phaeton, and one 
 outrider. He is a handsome likeness of 
 his father, whom he strongly resembles. 
 About half an hour's drive brought us to 
 Hohenschwangau. This restored specimen 
 of a feudal stronghold was once the resi- 
 dence of the celebrated Conrade of Swabia, 
 and has also attached to it a legend of 
 a Magic Swan, from which tale the castle 
 takes its name. It is situated on a narrow 
 wooded promontory, which runs out from a 
 semicircular bend in the mountains, in a 
 direction parallel to their main line. On 
 the north side the rock descends almost 
 precipitously into the level plain, in the
 
 30 
 
 western corner of which lies a small lake 
 called the Schwausee, and is the site of the 
 events related in the legend. To reach the 
 castle, however, it is necessary to wind 
 round to the south side of this neck of land. 
 Passing over a gentle rise, we were asto- 
 nished to find ourselves by the borders of a 
 most beautiful lake, completely buried in 
 the mountains, with luxuriant woods bend- 
 ing down to its very margin. Calm and 
 clear, without a ripple, it lay in the sunshine 
 under the deep blue of a cloudless heaven, 
 like " a mirror and a bath for Beauty's 
 youngest daughter." A little boat was 
 floating upon its bosom, and wild fowl and 
 several swans were sailing over it. A water- 
 fall, a few picturesque cottages, some tim- 
 ber stacks, and a wooden alpine boat-house, 
 added to the picture. From its rocky emi- 
 nence, the windows of the principal rooms 
 of the castle look out upon this lovely scene. 
 Leaving the carriage at the village, we 
 walked up to the entrance. The road is 
 good to the gateway, but might be improved 
 in parts, so as to make it much easier of
 
 31 
 
 ascent. After passing under an arch, we 
 reached a vaulted gateway leading into a 
 small courtyard, on the left of which is a 
 marble fountain, surmounted by a fresco 
 painting of the Madonna. Before us were 
 the stables, and on our right led up a flight 
 of handsome stone steps to the castle door, 
 which stood wide open as if to welcome us. 
 As yet we had not seen a single person. All 
 was still and solitary as the grave ! The 
 tales of childhood and of former days rose 
 upon the mind ! Where was the charmed 
 horn ? Where the attendant spirits of the 
 enchanted castle ? Were we to wander un- 
 challenged through its frescoed halls ? Were 
 its flowers blooming and its fountains play- 
 ing for us alone ; and did the banner which 
 gently floated in the breeze over its towers 
 wave for us, the long expected champions 
 who were to burst the spell which had for 
 centuries bound virtue, innocence, and 
 beauty in its unhallowed thraldom ? We 
 entered the antechamber of the building. 
 Silent still! but the walls gave us a wel- 
 come. A German verse was inscribed upon
 
 32 
 
 them, commencing with " Willkommen, 
 wand'rer," &c. Thus encouraged, we boldly 
 advanced into the hall. The spell was in- 
 deed broken by the act. A dirty frau, with 
 a stable besom, was engaged in brooming 
 the flagstones at the kitchen door, and, in 
 answer to our inquiries, directed us through 
 a glass screen door, up the staircase con- 
 ducting to the principal floor. The hall in 
 which we stood appears to be the most 
 ancient and least modernised part of the 
 building. It is low and dark, with a groined 
 ceiling supported on two rows of short 
 columns. On the right hand open doors 
 leading to the offices, and on the left runs 
 the glass screen before mentioned, leading 
 to the great staircase. Ascending this, we 
 found ourselves in an antehall, full of visi- 
 ters, and with an ample complement of 
 ciceroni. Another gothic glazed screen 
 separated one end from the dining-room; 
 the other opens upon a terrace, from which 
 is a good view of the plain towards the 
 north. The dining-room, also called the 
 Schwanrittersaal, is decorated by frescoes on
 
 33 
 
 the walls, illustrative of the legend of 
 the Knights of the Swan. All the rooms 
 are painted in a similar manner, some from 
 the same subject, others from the history of 
 Conrade of Swabia. One room, however, 
 is commemorative of the prince's visit to 
 Constantinople. The style of the decora- 
 tions is oriental. The furniture is made of 
 rich stuffs, presented to him at the time by 
 the late sultan ; and on the walls are well 
 executed views of some of the principal 
 cities of Turkey and Asia Minor. From 
 the balconies and windows of these delight- 
 ful rooms the view is exquisite. It looks 
 immediately down upon a rich flower gar- 
 den, in the centre of which is a handsome 
 fountain with a copious supply of water, 
 and from this variegated foreground the eye 
 wanders over the fir-clad and craggy moun- 
 tains, and then rests with sweet repose on 
 the green banks and unruffled surface of the 
 Alpsee. Above this suite of rooms is an- 
 other nearly similar, also painted in fresco. 
 All the decorations are studiously in har- 
 mony with the place. Among the rest is a 
 
 D
 
 34 
 
 very handsome silver chandelier composed 
 of crowned swans, the crowns bearing the 
 lights. The effect is good. We were not 
 suffered to enter the private study of the 
 prince, but only to look at it through the 
 open door. It differs in nothing from the 
 others. The table was covered with papers, 
 books, and maps, and in a recess formed by 
 one of the towers were a sofa and writing 
 table, with an open desk upon it. The 
 northern windows command the approach 
 for some distance, and we now saw the 
 prince on his return ; we therefore hastened 
 into the garden. There is a bath in it 
 against the rock, covered with a skylight of 
 red glass, and containing a movable niche 
 with a statue of a Venus. She is much too 
 well draped to require this proviso for the 
 modesty of the most prudish. We now 
 left the castle, and descended to the village 
 by a steep path leading past a new conser- 
 vatory not yet quite completed ; and, after 
 spending about two hours in taking a sketch, 
 we returned to Fussen. The church is a 
 gaudy Italian structure, full of bad taste.
 
 35 
 
 As the evening approached, the preparations 
 for the fete advanced. On each side of the 
 inn door were posts containing, in an iron 
 dish at the top, materials for making a 
 blazing bonfire. The windows of almost 
 every house in the street were filled with 
 candles, especially those of the hotel, our 
 own rooms included, which were brilliantly 
 illuminated. The landlord, who is also 
 " maitre de poste," was dressed in full 
 regimentals ; and the same " corp d'armee " 
 which exhibited in the morning, were drawn 
 up in double file, on the left of the door, 
 headed by the band and a drum-major, who 
 stood as tall, and looked as fierce, as if he 
 had belonged to the band of our Grenadier 
 Guards. One by one, or in twos and threes, 
 at various intervals, these volunteer soldiers 
 fell into the line, as the hour approached at 
 which the prince was expected. A croAvd 
 of the population, especially women and 
 children, were gathered round the hotel 
 door. The troops were ordered to march. 
 Part of the line advanced while the rest 
 hung back, and running to recover the 
 
 D2
 
 36 
 
 parallel, advanced too far, thus alternately 
 keeping the line always upon that beautiful 
 curve so admired by Hogarth. Some fat 
 fellows, in laced coats and epaulettes, kept 
 running first before and then behind them, 
 in the vain hope of preserving something 
 like a parallel, and occasionally their suc- 
 cess was astonishing. The appearance of 
 the prince's outrider at the top of the street, 
 however, had more effect than all their ex- 
 ertions. Starch and stiff as statues, they 
 stood erect. The drum-major became still 
 taller; his awful staff was waved. The 
 brazen band struck up " alta voce." The 
 throng of anxious gazers fell back in a 
 semicircle across the street, while a loud 
 and hearty huzza burst at once from their 
 lips. This warm welcome was nearly pro- 
 ductive of a catastrophe. The horse of the 
 outrider, startled by the shout, plunged and 
 reared, and fell back upon the horses of 
 the prince's open carriage. The man, how- 
 ever, rode well, and the terrified animal, 
 urged forward by whip and spur, dashed 
 under the archway, and permitted the royal
 
 37 
 
 cortege to disappear in the same quarter. 
 The concert-room had been prettily decorated 
 with flowers, and opposite the seat appropri- 
 ated to the prince was a picture of his father 
 similarly ornamented. The concert com- 
 menced, to our surprise, with our own " God 
 save the King," a tribute to its superiority 
 decidedly gratifying to our national vanity. 
 I walked into the street during part of the 
 performance. The military were gone ; the 
 candles put out in every window except those 
 of the hotel, and the two bonfires emitted a 
 smouldering lurid light, with volumes of 
 pitchy smoke. Ye London tradesmen, take a 
 lesson of economy in this from the people of 
 Fussen ! You can put out your oil and gas 
 during the festivities on the next birthday of 
 her Majesty. The troops were getting royally 
 drunk in an adjoining public-house, while 
 the officers were regaling themselves in the 
 " Salle" of the hotel. The concert, however, 
 drew to a close. The guard of honour 
 rolled into their double file. The candles 
 again blazed in every window, and bright,
 
 38 
 
 and clear the meteor light of the sentry 
 torches kindled up afresh. The spirited 
 horse of the outrider again snorted uneasily 
 at this unwonted disturbance of his quiet. 
 The prince, with much kindness, walked up 
 to him, patted him, and spoke to the groom. 
 After a short pause, the carriage drew out 
 of the archway, and the prince, bareheaded, 
 drove away amidst the hearty cheers of the 
 assembled people. The excitement over, it 
 was impossible to review this scene without 
 great satisfaction. The Crown Prince Max 
 is much beloved in this neighbourhood, and 
 through the whole of the humble rejoicings 
 and festivities of this little village there 
 was exhibited a respectful and affectionate 
 anxiety to gratify him, highly honourable 
 to the hearts and dispositions of the people 
 of Fussen. The prince might have been 
 received in the marble and frescoed halls of 
 his father's capital with more splendour and 
 ostentation, but he could not have been 
 received with more heartfelt respect, or 
 probably with half the sincerity which
 
 39 
 
 the village shout and the wild garlands, 
 which greeted him here, must have conveyed 
 to his mind. 
 
 Monday, Aug. 26, 1839. We now pro- 
 ceeded onwards to the valley of the Inn, 
 following the stream of the Lech during 
 the first stage to Reutte. The Austrian 
 custom-house, which is about a quarter of an 
 hour's drive from Fussen, allowed us to pass 
 without examination, after a few ordinary 
 questions about tea, tobacco, &c. This road 
 is but little frequented by the English, 
 though its great beauty will quite justify a 
 detour for the purpose. The mountains 
 about Lermoos contain lead mines, which 
 are worked, and probably other minerals. 
 Beyond here the road winds about, thread- 
 ing the mazes of the mountains, and passing 
 some remarkably beautiful lakes, or rather 
 deep rocky basins, filled with water of the 
 brightest and most varying hues. The ap- 
 proach to Nassereit is down an abrupt and 
 very steep declivity, along the side of a 
 gorge, in which dashes one of the early 
 tributaries of the Inn. Towards the bottom
 
 40 
 
 it spreads itself into several lakes, whose 
 peculiar colour attracted the notice of Sir H. 
 Davy, when he came this road, first in 
 March 1815, and afterwards in August and 
 September 1827. (Vide Salmonia, page 
 320.) On a fir-clad knoll projecting into 
 one of them, stand the extensive ruins of 
 a castle, known by the name of Schlos Si- 
 gismond, which, with an archway, command- 
 ing the narrow road, called Fern stein, forms 
 a most picturesque object. Another half 
 hour brought us to Nassereit, where we re- 
 solved to stop for the evening. This place 
 is on the great road from Insbruck to 
 Milan by the Stelvio, or to Italy by the 
 Finstermunz and Meran. We found Lord 
 Sligo and a large suite, including Lord 
 Altamont, changing horses, and with diffi- 
 culty passed the ex-governor of Jamaica, 
 whom we encountered on the narrow stair- 
 case of the inn. We strolled out in the 
 evening, but met with no adventures. The 
 weather continued fine and intensely hot, 
 taking great liberties with the delicacy of 
 our noses and complexions. The little inn
 
 41 
 
 here is clean, the people civil, and, though 
 not a first-rate hotel, it may boast of afford- 
 ing as good accommodation as can reason- 
 ably be expected at a country place. 
 
 Tuesday, Aug. 27, 1839. In travelling 
 through a country remarkable for its ex- 
 treme and ever-varying beauty, it is an 
 almost insuperable difficulty to avoid a 
 wearisome tautology in any attempt to de- 
 scribe it. The epithets of splendid, sublime, 
 majestic, gorgeous, magnificent, grand, beau- 
 tiful, lovely, brilliant, gay, sombre, smiling, 
 cheerful, " riant," and others, are constantly 
 recurring ; and, even if used with the ut- 
 most skill and propriety, convey no real 
 idea of the peculiarities of the scene. Nor 
 does the recital of the component parts of 
 the landscape succeed much better. A rock, 
 a wood, a gorge, a mountain, a waterfall, 
 &c., with each appropriate adjective, even 
 when they really do picture something to 
 the imagination, generally convey an image 
 very different to the reality. This arises, 
 not from any incorrectness in the descrip- 
 tion, the strict fidelity of which might be
 
 42 
 
 recognised on the spot, but from the inade- 
 quacy of any words to embody an idea which 
 can be alone conveyed to the understand- 
 ing by sight. I have never felt this more 
 forcibly than in the whole of our journey 
 from Nassereit to Salzburg. The scenery 
 is throughout most beautiful ; but its beauty 
 is constantly varying, and each scene ap- 
 pears the loveliest till you come upon an- 
 other. On leaving ISTassereit to proceed to 
 Insbruck, the road rises over a hill covered 
 with luxuriant wood, and interspersed with 
 patches of verdant meadow. The valley, 
 enclosed by lofty mountains, with summits 
 of irregular and jagged form, is chiefly 
 characterised by a sort of sloping table-land, 
 which fills up the space between the hills 
 and the river, and whose plateau is covered 
 with pastures and villages, while its sides 
 are clothed with the richest foliage. In 
 one place the Inn rushed through deep and 
 narrow gorges ; in another it would flow 
 calmly, though rapidly, through the widened 
 plain. Peculiarly towering and majestic, 
 rose on our right the vast rock of the
 
 43 
 
 Hohe Mundi Berg, near the relay of Telfs ; 
 and shortly after passing Zirl, the perpen- 
 dicular cliff of the Martin's Wand rises im- 
 pending over the road. The approach to 
 Insbruck in this direction is not one of the 
 best, the city being nearly concealed by 
 trees. We observed preparations for the 
 formation of a very handsome stone bridge. 
 The blocks, which are quarried of great 
 size, are being worked upon the spot ; but, 
 in all probability, the bridge is intended to 
 be erected on the Halle road, on the east 
 side of Insbruck, in lieu of an old wooden 
 one which has existed for many years. 
 
 Wednesday, Aug. 28, 1839. The wea- 
 ther, which had been hitherto most favour- 
 able, now changed, and the whole of to-day 
 rained heavily. We remained here till 
 
 Thursday, Aug. 29, 1839. The rain had 
 continued to fall during the night, and the 
 rocks, which overhang Insbruck, were 
 sprinkled with snow. The weather, though 
 cloudy, was not unpleasant, and the vary- 
 ing lights and shades upon the mountains 
 only increased the beauty of the scenery.
 
 44 
 
 We stopped for a moment at Volders to look 
 into a curious church, connected to a mo- 
 nastery by an archway under which the road 
 passes. It is dedicated to St. Carlo Boro- 
 meo, and contains some very pleasing 
 frescos. It was originally built in 1620, 
 but its present decorations are within the 
 last century. Near the town of Strass, at 
 the entrance of the Zillerthal, we passed 
 through the village of Rotholz, remarkable 
 for its mills, and the picturesque ruins of 
 a castle, planted on a wooded knoll, in a ra- 
 vine of the mountain. Mills, mines, (cop- 
 per,) and ruins, abound in this part of the 
 valley, and the castle of Rattenberg, with 
 the town, and sweep of the river, form a 
 fine picture from the Insbruck approach. 
 On reaching Wb'rgl we altogether quitted 
 the course of the Inn, which flows north- 
 ward into Bavaria, while our route con- 
 tinued due east. The extreme attractive- 
 ness of the scenery, however, by no means 
 diminishes. Indeed, it keeps rather con- 
 tinually increasing ; the larch and pine 
 woods on the mountain sides being varied
 
 46 
 
 and enriched by the luxuriant foliage of the 
 deciduous trees with which they are grouped. 
 The hamlet of St. Johann, where we were 
 obliged to sleep, contains a miserable inn, 
 where, however, emperors, kings, and 
 princes always stop. Its situation is good, 
 being placed where three valleys meet, 
 each rivalling the other, in the promise of 
 the beauties it would disclose if thoroughly 
 examined. 
 
 Friday, Aug. 30, 1839. The valley which 
 we had now to pursue, was in a northerly di- 
 rection, till, gradually contracting more and 
 more, it forced us to wind again eastward. In 
 my own opinion, the scenery which we now en- 
 tered, and which continues to Reichenhall, is 
 the finest of the whole, and, of its character, 
 is unequalled by any I have seen in the 
 whole chain of the Alps. Immediately after 
 passing the village of Waidring, we entered 
 the pass Strub. The road runs through 
 a narrow gorge, beside the stream of the 
 Haslach, which dashes over rocks in a con- 
 tinual succession of rapids, till close upon 
 the town of Lofer, where the valley sud-
 
 46 
 
 denly opens upon the river of the Saal. 
 The irregular forms of the mountains, the 
 peculiar manner in which they are grouped 
 together, the woods and meadows, and the 
 picturesque cottages, mills, and fletchers, al- 
 together forma scene of unparalleled beauty. 
 The road is very hilly ; in parts, almost pre- 
 cipitously steep, but well made. A short 
 distance before reaching Unken, the valley 
 seems totally closed in, and denying all 
 exit to either the river or the road. Hav- 
 ing passed this barrier, we found ourselves 
 in another valley equally interesting, but 
 quite different from those which we had just 
 quitted. At Unken is the Austrian custom- 
 house where the luggage is " plombe " to 
 pass through the Bavarian territory, which 
 here descends by Reichenhall and Berch- 
 tesgaden into Salzburg. From this valley 
 another pass must be traversed, called the 
 " Steinpass." After a very severe ascent, 
 and as abrupt a descent, another rise 
 brought us upon the Munich road by Traun- 
 stein, and we reached the pipes which con- 
 vey the brine from Reichenhall for a dis-
 
 47 
 
 tance of nearly sixty miles. A most 
 picturesque descent from here conducts, af- 
 ter passing a small lake, to the magnificent 
 ruin of the castle of Karlstein, which forms 
 the key of these valleys. We now de- 
 scended into the plain, and soon reached 
 Reichenhall. This town, like all which be- 
 long to the king of Bavaria, is rapidly rising 
 from being a heap of mud and wooden cottages 
 into a handsome place, full of large and archi- 
 tectural buildings. We had not time fully 
 to inspect all the salt-works, but from what 
 we did examine, they seem to be precisely 
 similar in principle to those of Ischl, Mou- 
 tier, &c., and other salt-springs. Leaving 
 the majestic Untersberg to the right, and 
 the valley which leads to Berchtesgaden, 
 we proceeded along the rich and level plain 
 ofJSalzburg. At the custom-house, about 
 half-way, the " plombs " were removed, and 
 shortly after the castle is seen rising ab- 
 ruptly from the vale. There is no indica- 
 tion whatever of the city, which is concealed 
 behind the ledge of rock, passing through 
 which, by the archway or tunnel formed by
 
 48 
 
 the Archbishop Sigmund in 1767, we en- 
 tered the town. 
 
 Saturday, Aug. 31, 1839. We lost no 
 time in getting on to Ischl. We passed the 
 quiet lake of Fuschl, and descended upon 
 that of Wolfgang, by St. Gingal. The rest 
 of the drive, though long, is like a rich park, 
 till the opening woods disclosed to us the 
 town of Ischl, with the rushing Traun, and 
 all its picturesque valleys. The weather 
 was beautiful, and we are comfortably lodged 
 at the Hotel de la Poste, Mons. Koch. 
 
 Sunday, Sept. 1, 1839. We strolled out 
 yesterday afternoon to look about, and ob- 
 tain some general notions of the place. 
 Ischl is situated at the confluence of the 
 rivers Ischl and Traun, at the northern ex- 
 tremity of a valley, about twelve miles in 
 length, lying nearly due north-east and 
 south-west. It is terminated towards the 
 south by the lake of Halstadt, and lies 
 nearly in the centre of that district of Aus- 
 tria Proper which is known by the name 
 of the Salzkammergut. The valleys by which 
 it is surrounded are of extreme beauty. The
 
 49 
 
 sides of the mountains are covered with 
 pine, beech, and sycamore, interspersed with 
 patches of verdure, on which stand brown- 
 roofed and whitewashed cottages, with orch- 
 ard trees, and small gardens. The major 
 part of the town consists of isolated white 
 houses, each with its little garden ; which 
 are let during the season as lodging-houses. 
 There are three principal buildings here, 
 independent of the salt-works, which appear 
 to be very excellent residences that of 
 Count Sickingen, of Count Kolowrat, the 
 Austrian home secretary of state, and of 
 Dr. Elz. These houses are never let, ex- 
 cept that of Dr. Elz, which has been let to 
 royalty or persons of great distinction. The 
 salt-works (Pffannhause) are situated by the 
 bank of the river Traun, and the brine is 
 conducted to them from the various mines of 
 Ischl, Halstadt, &c., by wooden pipes, for 
 very great distances, some exceeding twen- 
 ty-six miles. Vast timber-yards are kept 
 constantly supplied from the surrounding- 
 forests to meet the consumption of the boil- 
 ; ng-liouses, and the contrivances for the 
 

 
 50 
 
 economization of labour, in making the 
 rivers the medium of its conveyance, are in- 
 genious in their construction, and pictu- 
 resque in their effect upon the landscape. 
 These erections are called " rechens," and 
 consist of wooden gratings, with flood-gates, 
 formed between very solid stone piers. 
 They are placed at various angles, and dif- 
 fer slightly in their construction and forms, 
 being adapted to the particular situation in 
 which it may have been considered desirable 
 to arrest the logs in their descent. There is 
 one of these in the town of Ischl, upon the 
 river of the same name, and another at a 
 ten minutes' walk from it, at the mouth of 
 the Rettenbach, where it falls into the Traun. 
 The baths adjoin the boiling-house. They 
 are of wood, to. resist the action of the salt, 
 and may be used at any hour from five in 
 the morning till eight o'clock at night. 
 The rooms are extremely clean and light, 
 but without fire-places, which are deemed 
 here quite superfluities. Attached to the 
 Badhause is a colonnade, where a very 
 tolerable band performs of a morning ; and
 
 where whey is served to those who choose 
 to submit to a " molken cur," or " whey 
 course." The church is a large and most 
 conspicuous building. Its exterior is plain 
 and unsightly, except as regards the spire, 
 which everywhere forms a beautiful object. 
 The interior is in wretched taste, and dis- 
 figured by all that Roman Catholic mum- 
 mery can devise. The organ, however, is 
 very good ; and there are occasionally some 
 good masses performed. The immediate 
 environs of Ischl are delightful ; and the 
 more distant excursions which can be made 
 from it, as interesting as any in the whole 
 circle of the Alps. Among the former, which 
 the showery and unsettled state of the wea- 
 ther permitted us to take during a whole 
 week, was that to the " Ruine Wildenstein," 
 the remains of a castle, at about an hour's 
 walk from the town. The morning had 
 poured, but the weather having improved 
 in the evening, we walked out. The situa- 
 tion of the ruin is most deceiving ; and on 
 reaching the wood in which it is placed, we 
 walked on under the dripping trees, con- 
 
 E 2
 
 52 
 
 vinced that a few minutes more must bring 
 us upon the desired spot. Like some ideal 
 vision, however, it still continued to recede 
 from us. We climbed and climbed, de- 
 scended into one gorge, and rose over its 
 rocky and wooded sides only to find our- 
 selves still separated from the object of our 
 search. But these difficulties only incited 
 us to proceed, and we at length attained the 
 summit. It stands upon a rocky knoll, 
 isolated from the mountain which, however, 
 is hardly visible from the rich woods which 
 clothe it on every side. It bears the cha- 
 racter of a keep, being circular, with a cen- 
 tral tower ; the walls are tolerably perfect, 
 especially on the side towards the moun- 
 tain, and from a breach on the east is a 
 most beautiful prospect of Ischl and the 
 Traunstein. On our return home, we saw 
 a disgusting reptile of the lizard species. 
 It was about eight or nine inches in length? 
 (including the tail,) and of a black colour, 
 spotted with large bright orange blotches ; 
 its motions were laboured and slow like 
 those of the toad, and very unlike the ac-
 
 53 
 
 tive little green and gold lizard of Italy. 
 Behind the house of Dr. Elz is a garden^ 
 from whence an excellent view is obtained 
 of the town and mountains, including that of 
 the Torstein. We met here the Arch- 
 duchess Maria Louisa, who is very fond of 
 Ischl, and generally comes here every 
 year. The Rechen at the mouth of the 
 Rettenbach is also a very interesting walk. 
 The Rettenthal is one of the most pictu- 
 resque valleys of the immediate neighbour- 
 hood. The stream which flows through it 
 forms some cascades of great beauty, and 
 the ravine is terminated by craggy and pre- 
 dipitous rocks. Every spot near Ischl 
 from which a view can be obtained has its 
 well-kept walk and seat, which is desig- 
 nated by the name of some individual of 
 note. The only object which is injurious 
 to the varied beauties of the place, is a 
 round wooded hill, which rises abruptly in 
 front of the town, totally obstructing the 
 view up the Traun. It is called the Sy- 
 rius-Kogl, and contains two " summer- 
 houses," one about halfway, the " Wirer's
 
 54 
 
 Hain," the other at the top, named Henri- 
 etten's Hbhe. The whole of this excres- 
 cence would be better removed, if such were 
 practicable. Another delightful walk is 
 along the road to Lindau, and through the 
 Kalvarienberg ; from the latter is probably 
 the best general view of Isehl which can 
 be obtained. There are a great variety of 
 other walks in the neighbourhood, and, in- 
 deed, it is scarcely possible to stir out with- 
 out meeting some agreeable surprise in the 
 way of an unexpected view or beautiful 
 spot of ground. The weather had now 
 greatly improved, and appeared sufficiently 
 settled for us to extend our excursions ; we 
 therefore started for Aussee. 
 
 Monday, Sept. 9, 1839. The road lies 
 along the bank of the Traun for some miles, 
 and the first village is that of Lauffen. 
 
 C3 
 
 This is situated in a part of the valley where 
 it is so contracted as only to allow of the 
 passage of the river, which indeed it does 
 reluctantly, forcing its waters by rapids in a 
 descent of about fifteen feet. It rushes 
 over the rocks in a dark black flood, across
 
 55 
 
 which has been thrown a fragile wooden 
 bridge. The road is carried through the 
 town, and rises over the base of the wooded 
 hill on which it is built. A little further 
 we came upon a timber rachen at the end of 
 the Weissenbach, terminating the valley of 
 the Chorinsky Klause, of which more here- 
 after. We next reached the town of Goi 
 sern, a cheerful and beautiful place, said to 
 be remarkable for the amiable character of 
 its inhabitants, the majority of which are 
 Protestants. There is a Temple here, very 
 plain in its exterior, without any tower or 
 distinctive mark to designate its purpose, 
 and closely resembling the majority of our 
 English meeting-houses. After passing the 
 village of St. Agatha, we commenced the 
 ascent of a long and steep mountain, on the 
 summit of which is the boundary of Styria. 
 The geological formation of this district is 
 very remarkable. It is a transition between 
 the chalk and tertiary formation, with occa- 
 sional deposits of silt with boulders. The 
 road is very ill constructed, so far as regards 
 the line of country through which it is car-
 
 56 
 
 ried, there being another way through the 
 valleys, where the ascents are not severe, 
 but which is now only practicable for pietons. 
 The carriage way, however, is probably the 
 line originally taken by the Romans, these 
 roads having as yet been little modernised. 
 During the ascent, views are obtained of 
 the northern part of the lake of Halstadt, 
 and of the rich valley of the Traun. A 
 series of bare serrated ridges mark the out- 
 line of Styria, rising out of mountains 
 thickly covered with pine and larch, and in 
 their lower part with sycamores of very un- 
 usual size and beauty. One of these moun- 
 tains, an isolated cone, was covered with 
 these woods in 1833, when the late Emperor 
 Francis took it into his head to have a 
 bonfire worthy of the Alps, and accord- 
 ingly had it lighted. The vast pine forest 
 blazed like a volcano, and the rude rocks 
 and mountain solitudes reflected back its 
 lurid glare, for above three months, during 
 which period it continued to burn. It now 
 stands a scathed and blasted monument of 
 imperial caprice. The view about here is
 
 57 
 
 very magnificent. One seems hemmed in 
 by a wild wilderness of mountain. In 
 every direction peak towers over peak, ridge 
 upon ridge, and forest over forest; and a 
 short distance from Aussee the deep gorge, 
 through which the Traun forces its way 
 into the lake of Halstadt, is closed in by the 
 gigantic glacier bed of the Torstein. A 
 very steep pitch plunges you into what is not 
 inaptly called by the Germans the " Kettel " 
 of Aussee, a picturesque village, buried in 
 the hills, and bisected by the rushing Traun. 
 At the entrance of the town is a notice that 
 begging is forbidden ; but there is this ad- 
 dition, that poor travellers will be relieved 
 on applying at a particular house, which is 
 indicated. " Vagrants will be apprehended" 
 is frequently enough to be seen at the en- 
 trance of our towns in England, but I do 
 not remember to have ever noticed the 
 charitable addition of the Aussee warning. 
 We dined at the Ertzhertzog Franz Karl, and, 
 upon the recommendation of Sir H. Davy^ 
 ordered some char. The German practice 
 of smoking and spitting is so general as.
 
 58 
 
 seldom to become remarkable ; but there 
 was a solitary traveller in the salle who 
 never ceased hawking and spitting in an 
 unusually disgusting manner ; as he evi- 
 dently did it from habit, perhaps increased 
 by a cold in his throat, and not with any 
 intention to insult, one could not have the 
 satisfaction of getting into a passion with 
 him, but he deserved committal more than 
 any " unlicensed hawker " I ever met with. 
 After our meal, we drove to the Grundel 
 See, a very striking lake, the upper part of 
 which is celebrated from its geological pe- 
 culiarities. Its banks are clothed with 
 pastures of the most emerald green, fringed 
 with luxuriant woods, while the Todbergen 
 or Dead Mountains, which hem in its eastern 
 extremity, look down upon them and the 
 glassy waters which ripple at their feet, like 
 so many grim and ghastly remnants of mor- 
 tality. I was anxious to have landed at 
 this extremity and penetrated to another 
 lake some distance beyond ; but the evening 
 was rapidly advancing, and the drive to 
 Ischl takes nearly four hours. This plan
 
 59 
 
 was therefore given up, as was also a visit 
 to the lake of Alt Aussee in the same 
 neighbourhood. These lakes and valleys 
 cannot be properly investigated without 
 staying one or two nights at least at Aussee, 
 which we were not then prepared to do. 
 On our return we observed ripe strawber- 
 ries, cotton grass, and a great profusion of 
 blue, pink, and other gentians. The wea- 
 ther, during the whole day, was most de- 
 lightful ; but the pleasure of the excursion 
 received a great drawback from the evident 
 
 indisposition of my companion, M , 
 
 which increasing as the evening advanced, 
 made me very glad when we again reached 
 our comfortable quarters at Ischl. 
 
 Tuesday, Sept. 10, 1839. M 's illness 
 
 continued so as to confine him to his bed. 
 I therefore only went sketching as far as 
 Lauffen in the morning, and took a view of 
 Ischl from the Klavierberg in the afternoon. 
 The sky was cloudless. 
 
 Wednesday, Sept. 11, 1839. Though still 
 
 confined to his bed, M was sufficiently 
 
 better to-day to enable me to visit the lake
 
 60 
 
 of Halstadt without anxiety. The road is 
 the same as that to Aussee till within about 
 a mile of St. Agatha, when it turns off to 
 the village of Steg ; a boat with an awning 
 and table, sufficiently commodious, was 
 " manned" or rather " womanned," by two 
 women and a boy, and landed me in half 
 an hour at the Gosaumiihle. These mills 
 are for sawing the wood which is sent down 
 from the timber slides into the lake by the 
 Gosaubach and other streams, and is also 
 employed in making the wooden tiles with 
 which almost all the buildings in this dis- 
 trict are roofed. The dams and fletchers 
 by which the streams are distorted from 
 their natural course for these purposes, are 
 strikingly picturesque, and form both natu- 
 ral and artificial cascades in countless direc- 
 tions. The most interesting object, however, 
 at this spot, is the Gosauschwang, a slender 
 aqueduct, which has been thrown across the 
 entrance of the valley of the Gosaubach, 
 in order to carry the brine pipes, which 
 come from the Halstadt salt mine, to the 
 boiling-houses at Ischl. Its dimensions are
 
 61 
 
 about 450 English feet in length and 120 
 feet in height from the surface of the river ; 
 it is supported by five stone piers, of un- 
 equal lengths, and diminishing from their 
 bases : their average size is about ten feet 
 square. The following is on a tablet let 
 into one of them : 
 
 MICHAEL RAMSAUER, AMTSZIMERM 
 
 HAT ANNO 1812, U. 1836 DIESE 
 REPARATIONSARBEITIER UNTER NOHMEN 
 
 GRAV. JAKOB. RAMSAUEG. 
 The bridge between the piers is constructed 
 entirely of wood, and although the whole 
 aqueduct is very large and solid, it seems, 
 from the vast scenery in which it is placed, 
 like some fairy structure formed by the 
 Berggeists, to facilitate their communica- 
 tions with the opposite mountains, far above 
 the haunts of man, and the din of the 
 harsh mills and wheels, for whose operation 
 their pure streams have been diverted and 
 polluted by the invaders of their cherished 
 recesses. Again taking boat, I proceeded 
 to Halstadt. Colours, green, purple, and 
 gray, of every hue and varying gradation,
 
 62 
 
 tinge these beautiful waters. The richly 
 wooded banks are broken into numerous 
 small rocky bays, where the spotted trout 
 and the orange char may be seen sporting 
 in the dark shadows, or gliding about in 
 the cool clear depths of the crystal lake. 
 The southern end is much the finest, and is 
 entirely blocked up by a vast wall of moun- 
 tain, while two valleys, right and left, are 
 spread out, giving the appearance of a cross. 
 The town of Halstadt lies (a cluster of 
 wooden cottages with whitewashed sides) 
 along the base of the mountain, which is 
 entirely covered with the most luxuriant 
 wood. The church is remarkably curious 
 and ancient, and built upon an artificial 
 terrace, the view from which is of surpassing 
 beauty. This building is said to bear the 
 date of 1320, and contains a strange speci- 
 men of elaborate carving in the high altar ; 
 beyond a question, of very high antiquity. 
 The architectural details of the church, 
 which are admirable, are as much disfigured 
 by miserably painted galleries, pews, and 
 pageantry, as the worst of Roman Catholic
 
 63 
 
 mummery could devise. In the centre of 
 the town a stream descends from the Salz- 
 berg, behind which it lies invisible, till it 
 falls in a succession of cascades, chiefly 
 formed by the mills which it is employed to 
 work in its course. I walked up to the head 
 of the western valley (called the valley of 
 Lahn) to see the Fall of the Waldbach Strub. 
 It is seldom worth a hot and somewhat 
 fatiguing walk to see any waterfall, but in 
 this instance, independent of its passing 
 through a most beautiful gorge, the cascade 
 itself is well worthy of a visit. Of its class, 
 which is that of the Swiss Reichenbach 
 and Giesbach, it may rank as quite equal to 
 them, and is far superior to many which are 
 not considered despicable. This excursion 
 takes two good hours, to go from and return 
 to Halstadt, not including any time which 
 may be spent at the fall. The inn at which 
 I put up is kept by Herr Stadtler, and no- 
 thing can exceed his attention and anxiety 
 to please. His house is clean, cheerful, and 
 looking upon the lake, and his fish, and 
 especially his BEER, incomparable. One of
 
 64 
 
 the first objects which strikes the eye on 
 approaching Halstadt is a large white man- 
 sion, bearing an aspect of importance, quite 
 different to the lowly houses by which it is 
 surrounded. It is situated at Lahn, a suburb 
 of Halstadt, and long low warehouses and 
 large timber stacks mark it to be the resi- 
 dence of the chief director of the Salines. 
 But on casting the eye far upwards, a square, 
 tall, white building is seen rising out of the 
 thick woods, and a long narrow line may be 
 marked going in that direction, skirting 
 the mountain side, like a girdle encircling 
 its bosom. This line is the course of the 
 brine pipes, and the building is the tower of 
 Rudolf, erected by the Emperor Albert, in 
 1284, to guard his saline treasures from the 
 rapacity of the archbishops of Salzberg. 
 It is now tenanted by the manager of the 
 mine, and the situation must be delightful 
 when once the task of reaching it has been 
 surmounted. The descending sun had left 
 the lake in gloom before I was again upon 
 its surface, but the valley of the Traun was 
 still gladdened by his beams as I crossed it,
 
 65 
 
 and was yet gilding the spire of Ischl when 
 I returned. I stopped a moment to visit a 
 very copious spring just across the bridge 
 over the Traun, called Dr. Wirer's well. 
 The water is said to contain sulphates, &c., 
 but it is perfectly tasteless and colourless. 
 
 Thursday, Sept. 12, 1839. Yesterday so 
 fully engaged me in examination that I had 
 no time to sketch, so I returned again to 
 Halstadt, and took some views, rowed over 
 to Obertraun, a small village near the em- 
 bouchure of the river into the lake, and re- 
 turned to Ischl in the evening. 
 
 Friday, Sept. 13, 1839. M was now 
 
 considered sufficiently recovered to venture 
 to the beautiful lake and the Gosauschwang, 
 and we therefore started about half-past 
 eight o'clock. For my own part, though 
 this was my third visit to it, I felt that I 
 could never get wearied by such scenery, 
 and I was besides anxious to obtain an in- 
 terview with Herr Conradt Ludwig von 
 Sattler, the Protestant pastor of Halstadt. 
 In this we succeeded, but were in some 
 amusing difficulties with regard to a Ian-
 
 66 
 
 guage in which to converse. Of German 
 we hardly knew enough, and Mr. Sattler 
 knew about as much of Italian and French, 
 with which alone we were conversant. He 
 proposed Latin, but this was equally alarm- 
 ing ; however, by the aid of all these lan- 
 guages, we contrived to make ourselves 
 understood. At my request he has drawn 
 up a paper, containing an account of the 
 Protestants of the district ; which is to be 
 submitted to the " Societe Evangelique." 
 After a most agreeable day, and my getting 
 a sketch of Halstadt, we returned home. 
 
 Saturday, Sept. 14, 1839. We went to- 
 day to see the Chorinsky Klause. This is 
 merely a stone causeway, with one large 
 and two lesser archways, closed at pleasure 
 by flood-gates, which then dam up the 
 waters of the milky Weisenbach. It is 
 built near the head of the valley, which is 
 backed by mountains of the same rugged 
 and picturesque character as those at the 
 head of the lake of Halstadt, and, indeed, 
 throughout this district. The drive to it is 
 most delightful, through luxuriant woods,
 
 67 
 
 resembling a fine English park. The road 
 is very steep in parts, and runs, for the most 
 part, very high above the torrent, which, often 
 unseen, may be heard murmuring far below. 
 It is practicable to proceed on foot from 
 the Chorinsky Klause, over the mountains 
 into the valley above Gosau, descending not 
 far from Abtenau. 
 
 Sunday, Sept. 15, 1839. The day of rest. 
 
 Monday, Sept. 16, 1839. We had ar- 
 ranged yesterday evening to start this 
 morning early for the valley of Gosau and 
 the Torstein, but, on rising, we found it 
 pouring torrents of rain ; the mountains 
 totally enveloped in cloud, and no reason- 
 able appearance of its clearing. The plan 
 was therefore given up. Before eleven, 
 however, the clouds broke, the rain ceased, 
 and it became so fine that we decided to 
 take the shorter excursion of the Schwartz 
 See and St. Wolfgang. The road for some 
 little distance is the same as that to Salz- 
 burg, and then turns off at a pillar sur- 
 mounted by a winged globe. The drive is 
 extremely pleasant, and through pine and 
 
 F 2
 
 68 
 
 sycamore woods by the side of rocks, with 
 several cascades, some of considerable size. 
 On reaching the limits of the carriage road 
 we found that the Schwartz See would 
 require a fatiguing walk of two hours, 
 (there and back;} and being decidedly of 
 
 opinion that M 's strength was not yet 
 
 sufficiently restored for such an attempt, I 
 declined to go, and we proceeded to St. 
 Wolfgang. The same delightful scenery 
 accompanied us. We found the chief 
 object of interest (if not indeed the only 
 one) to be the church, which is of great 
 antiquity, and contains a high altar of the 
 same curious and elaborate carving and 
 painting as the one at Halstadt. This, 
 however, is superior to it, both in design 
 and execution ; and, indeed, the paintings, 
 which are in excellent preservation, are 
 said to be the work of Wohlgemuth, the 
 master of Albert Durer. The carving is by 
 Mic. Pacher, and the date about 1481. 
 There is also a curious chapel built upon the 
 solid rock, which protrudes through the 
 floor of the church. It is said to be the
 
 69 
 
 chapel originally built by St. Wolfgang 
 when bishop of Ratisbon, upon whose 
 canonization a church was erected over it. 
 The present church has been painted in 
 every part, but the frescoes are faded, and 
 give a very gloomy effect to the interior. 
 In the court-yard adjoining it, is an antique 
 bronze fountain, the workmanship of which 
 is good, though the style is somewhat gro- 
 tesque. Having fully satisfied our curiosity, 
 we were anxious to return to Ischl ; but this 
 not being the pleasure of the postboy, he 
 could not be induced to harness the horses, 
 under the plea that they had not yet done 
 eating. The probabilities are, that he had not 
 done drinking ; but we were forced to sit in 
 the carriage, and amuse ourselves with the 
 games of some children, who were playing 
 before the door of the inn. Their recrea- 
 tion had a very West Indian character, for 
 it consisted in blowing a feather armed with 
 a spike, from a long perforated rod, into a 
 mark on an opposite door. A parish school 
 also broke up, and disgorged a singular 
 pack of half-naked ragamuffins of all ages,
 
 70 
 
 most of whom were barefoot, and many 
 wore little knee-breeches and no hats. 
 The breeches having no braces, (an unheard 
 of superfluity,) the admired " Wetherell 
 hiatus " was visible ; the jacket was out at 
 elbows, and these and other deficiencies 
 showed that, however well the intellectual 
 man might be furnished, the physical one 
 was not overburdened. The schoolmaster 
 came out with the herd, a young and sen- 
 timental looking man, sufficiently well 
 dressed, who, after his pupils had dispersed, 
 walked up and down with the air of one 
 writing a tragedy, or composing a " sonnet 
 to his mistress's eyebrow." But at length 
 both horse and man were satisfied, and we 
 returned home. 
 
 Tuesday, Sept. 17, 1839. We were most 
 anxious to visit the valley of Gosau before 
 leaving this part of the country ; and as our 
 arrangements were imperatively made for 
 a final departure to Vienna for to-morrow, 
 we started on our expedition in spite of a 
 lowering and gloomy sky. Soon after pass- 
 ing Lauffen the rain began to fall, the
 
 71 
 
 clouds descended lower, and the whole of 
 the scenery, except such as was immedi- 
 ately beside us, was veiled from our view. 
 To this we were indifferent, as far as the 
 Gosauschwang, being perfectly acquainted 
 with the road, and we trusted that the wea- 
 ther would clear as it had done yesterday. 
 In this expectation, however, we were 
 doomed to be disappointed. Still and steady 
 " the big drops came dancing to the earth," 
 and, enclosed in the leather curtains of the 
 caleche, we could only observe that the 
 Gosaubach, on the bank of which the road 
 runs, was an unbroken succession of rocky 
 rapids, with sweeps of extreme beauty. 
 Still buoyed by hope, we passed the village 
 of Gosau, and proceeded to the termination 
 of the carriage road on the way to Gosausee., 
 This is at a water-mill forge for making 
 nails, &c., and is situated at the entrance of 
 a dark pine forest, through which about an 
 hour's walk conducts to the borders of the 
 lake. The dim and spectral appearance of 
 some vast giant peaks showed themselves 
 fitfully through the mist and heavy rain, so
 
 72 
 
 that, convinced that even if we did take our 
 dripping walk through the wood we should 
 see nothing, we reluctantly returned to the 
 little inn at Gosau. Here we experienced 
 every civility from the hands of Franz 
 Bosch, mine host of " Der Gruner Baum," 
 and a very eatable dinner. It is true that 
 we had brought the meat (some beef) with 
 us, but the soup, fish, and batter-pudding 
 were excellent, with as good beer as that at 
 Halstadt. Bread, however, should be 
 brought on these excursions, for they have 
 only a close brown loaf, which is sour and 
 unpalatable, We suffered here from an ab- 
 solute plague of flies, which swarmed in 
 myriads, and attack both man and his 
 food with most voracious rapacity. Dur- 
 ing our dinner a delightful change, had 
 taken place in the weather. The rain 
 ceased, and the clouds now began to roll 
 away in fine scrolly volumes, disclosing by 
 degrees the whole of the Gosauthal, and 
 finally leaving clear and bright the wild 
 and desolate crags of the Torstein chain. 
 The magnificent rocks which close this val-
 
 73 
 
 ley, as seen from the village of Gosau, are 
 a part of the N. E. chain of the glacier 
 mountains of the Torstein, and known by 
 the name of Der Donner Kogel. They 
 rise bleak and drear perpendicularly out of 
 a dark base of pines, which in their turn 
 rest on the green and glowing pastures of 
 the valley. Gosau is a long straggling suc- 
 cession of isolated cottages, extending for 
 about three miles, with the Roman Catholic 
 church standing on a knoll nearly in the 
 centre. It contains many Protestants, a 
 resident pastor, and a Bethhause, or " house 
 of prayer," as the Protestant places of wor- 
 ship are appropriately termed. It is diffi- 
 cult not to apply in one's heart the " den of 
 thieves " to the towering edifice whose spire 
 
 " pointing to the skies, 
 
 Like some tall bully, lifts its head and lies." 
 
 I got a very satisfactory sketch, and we started 
 on our return home. Beautiful and bright 
 the sparkling waters now bounded on before 
 us, and the foliage bent lower towards its coy 
 waves, weighed down by the crystal gems 
 which hung on every branch and leaf, or
 
 74 
 
 shaking them like showers of pearls upon 
 its disdainful bosom. The declining sun 
 lit up the gorge, and flung a halo and ani- 
 mation on what had been but a few hours 
 before cold and lifeless. The scene was 
 redolent with beauty, and was some reward 
 for the morning's disappointment, while it 
 added another reminiscence of lovely scenery 
 to those which we already possessed of the 
 neighbourhood of Ischl. Just before reach- 
 ing the Gosauschwang, we stopped to ob- 
 serve a timber slide in operation. The 
 heavy logs descended the inclined plane 
 with the velocity of a cannon-ball, and 
 sprang, as if endowed with volition, from 
 the end of the slide into the river, clearing 
 the road by a leap of above thirty feet. It 
 is most exciting to see them bound one 
 after the other, their huge, lumbering forms 
 whizzing like an arrow through the air, and 
 then crashing into the rocky gulf below. 
 The sky was cloudless when we reached 
 Ischl, and the last rays of the sunlight had 
 just faded from its spire. 
 
 Wednesday, Sept. 18, 1839. The morning
 
 75 
 
 was clear and cloudless, and at six we left 
 Ischl for Lambach, on our way to Vienna. 
 We crossed the lake of Gemiind in the 
 steamer " the Sophia," commanded by Mr. 
 Andrews, an Englishman, who has obtained 
 a patent from the emperor for the exclusive 
 navigation of that lake for fifteen years. 
 There were four carriages on board and six 
 horses, besides a large number of passengers. 
 We proceeded, without a moment's delay, 
 from Gemiind to the falls of the Traun. 
 These have been much too highly eulogised 
 by Sir H. Davy, being very small and low, 
 and the water so distributed by fletchers, 
 &c., that no fulness of the river could give 
 them any character of grandeur. They are, 
 however, pretty objects, but unfitted for a 
 picture. I tried in vain to get a good point 
 of view. Along the whole line of road the 
 Styrian Alps form a magnificent horizon. 
 The Traunstein towered most majestically, 
 and in this direction the glacier basis of the 
 Torstein is conspicuous immediately to the 
 right of it. We crossed the Gemiind and 
 
 O 
 
 Linz iron tram-road at Wells, and on our
 
 76 
 
 arrival at Linz we found that the town was so 
 filled with passengers for the steamer on the 
 Danube, and the Duchess of Berry and her 
 suite, that we could only get lodged at a 
 very inferior hotel. 
 
 Thursday, Sept. 19, 1839. We were up 
 by the dawn, and hurried to the packet to 
 take our first voyage on the Danube. The 
 celebrity of this river, the tales of its whirl- 
 pools and its robbers, but, chief of all, its 
 historical and authentic records of the deeds 
 of deep interest to the fates of nations which 
 have been acted upon its shores, rendered it 
 a moment of agreeable excitement. Nor 
 was this feeling disturbed by any of those 
 untoward events which sometimes force them- 
 selves upon the attention in a way to destroy 
 the slightest approximation to enthusiasm. 
 The morning was beautiful, though cold, 
 the vessel herself a picture of neatness and 
 cleanliness, and at the moment that the 
 bell from the numerous steeples of Linz 
 gave note of the hour of six, a cannon thrice 
 discharged on deck announced that we were 
 actually under weigh. The river was dark
 
 77 
 
 and muddy, but its rapid current swept us 
 swiftly onward, and in a few minutes an 
 abrupt turn in the river hid the city from 
 our view. We marked where the green 
 Traun flows into the Danube without ming- 
 ling, till his rude eddies merge her pure 
 waters in the oblivion of his dark torrent. 
 The steamer stopped a few minutes at the 
 small village of Mauthausen, situated oppo- 
 site to the embouchure of the river Enns, 
 which runs on the east side of the town of 
 that name. Enns is upon the post-road to 
 Vienna, and stands conspicuous from being 
 built upon a rising ground, while beyond it 
 rise the towers of the monastery of St. 
 Florian, embosomed in trees, and further 
 still, the long range of the Styrian Alps. 
 There is a flying bridge at Mauthausen, and 
 the town is backed by limestone rocks, ex- 
 tensively quarried. The river is broken 
 into a great variety of islands of vari- 
 ous sizes, all richly clothed with woods, 
 which come drooping gracefully into the 
 water. Large sand-banks also impede 
 the navigation, on which we observed he-
 
 78 
 
 rons wading and dipping their long lanky 
 necks into the stream, or heavily looming 
 over it, as they floated in the air, with their 
 huge wings extended, and their legs stuck 
 out behind them. The extreme tortuousness 
 of the river greatly increases the difficulties 
 of its navigation, and the constantly shifting 
 sand-banks require repeated soundings in 
 the course of the passage. These soundings 
 are simply done by the incessant plunging 
 of a long rod into it, till the doubtful spot 
 is passed ; and as we watched the measure, it 
 would often become less and less, till, ignorant 
 of the draft of the vessel, we fancied she must 
 graze the bottom every moment; at once, 
 however, perhaps, the rod would plunge 
 several feet deeper, and, after a few variations, 
 refuse to find the bottom. The navigation 
 of the river is, however, now so well known 
 in this part, that no accidents ever occur 
 from these shallows. We stopped a mo- 
 ment to take in passengers at Grein. 
 The gorge is now becoming rapidly more 
 beautiful. The banks are grouped with 
 birch, beech, and rock, and the passage be-
 
 79 
 
 comes more and more contracted as we ap- 
 proach the rapids of the Strudel and Wirbel. 
 The former of these is the least dangerous 
 of the two to the barges of the country, for 
 it consists of an inclined sheet of water, 
 rushing at the rate of fifteen feet per second, 
 and not so much torn by conflicting eddies 
 as the latter. It is entered beside an island 
 rock, on which is placed a large crucifix. 
 The steamer shot by it, and gliding with 
 extreme rapidity down the Strudel, we found 
 ourselves tossed about in the whirlpool of 
 the Wirbel. This is in a great measure oc- 
 casioned by the Haustein, a large rock with 
 an old square tower, which stands immedi- 
 ately at the foot of the descent of the 
 Strudel. The waters are suddenly arrested 
 in their most headlong career, and, being 
 turned thus abruptly from their course, they 
 toss and whirl in a thousand conflicting di- 
 rections, which, while it made even the 
 powerful steamer quiver and heave as if 
 upon the ocean, would seriously endanger 
 the swamping of any light or fragile vessel. 
 But long before this or any description of
 
 80 
 
 them could be given, we were past, and 
 gliding again in smooth water. The first 
 object which next attracted attention, was 
 the picturesque village of St. Nicolai, with a 
 stream running through it out of a wooded 
 ravine, in which were several mills. The 
 banks of the Danube are, here, especially 
 beautiful. The hills are clothed with woods 
 glowing in numerous varieties of green of 
 the most brilliant hues, and intersected by 
 rocky ravines. The strong though now 
 quiet current only marked its great ra- 
 pidity by countless circlets on its mottled 
 surface, and we glided swiftly onwards to 
 the termination of the gorge. Here stands 
 the castle of Persenburg, one of the most 
 ancient in Austria, and in perfect repair, 
 having been a favourite residence of the 
 late emperor, Francis the First. Just op- 
 posite to it is the village of Ips ; and now 
 the hills recede, the line of the Styrian Alps 
 is again seen ; and a sweep of the river 
 soon brought us to the magnificent mo- 
 nastery of Mb'lk. This vast edifice is, 
 perhaps, still finer from the water than on
 
 81 
 
 land. The town lies crouching at its feet, 
 and the long line and irregular buildings of 
 the river front are seen blended with the 
 crags of the rock on which it stands, and 
 the trees of its terraced garden. Again the 
 rocks close upon us, and the shadows of the 
 mountains cover us. Perched on a pinnacle 
 of rock, like an eagle's nest, are the ruins 
 of the robber-hold of Aggstein, of which, 
 and of whose celebrated owner, Hadmar 
 von Kuenring, so many romantic tales are 
 current. But a little further, we come upon 
 the still more interesting castle of Diirren- 
 stein, long the prison of Richard the First. 
 This remarkable fortress also belonged to 
 Hadmar, to whose custody Leopold of Aus- 
 tria had consigned him. It is built on a 
 rugged ridge of jagged rocks, which run in 
 a steep incline into the river. It is now a 
 heap of ruins, having been blown up by the 
 Swedes in 1645. We now came upon the 
 town of Stein, a place of size and considera- 
 tion, where the vessel halted for a short 
 time. Near here we passed the Vienna 
 steamer, the " Marianna," on her way to 
 
 G
 
 82 
 
 Linz. We had now passed through almost 
 all the beautiful part of our day's voyage, 
 till just before reaching Vienna. The only 
 object which attracts any attention over 
 the dreary flat which the river traverses, is 
 the enormous convent of Gottwich, which, 
 considering the distance from where it is 
 seen, appears even bigger than that of Molk. 
 We had time, therefore, to turn our atten- 
 tion to the vessel which was conveying us 
 and those on board. At an early period of 
 the day we had consoled ourselves with 
 some excellent soup and veal cutlets, which 
 we ate in the carriage, in order, at the same 
 time, to enjoy the views. The vessel is the 
 " Sophia ;" she is an iron boat, the only one 
 now upon the Danube, and commanded by 
 Captain Rau. This gentleman is a Dutch- 
 man; he speaks English perfectly, and gave 
 us much information with the greatest rea- 
 diness. The number of steamers noAv in 
 the hands of the company is found to be 
 quite insufficient, and six new ones are in 
 progress at various places. They are to be 
 of iron, and the engines, which are all ma-
 
 83 
 
 nufactured at Bolton's factory, near Bir- 
 mingham, will be sent by water to Trieste. 
 One of the new packets is now building at 
 Marseilles, and will be fetched by Captain 
 Rau in the course of next May. Among 
 the passengers was Herr Benvenuti, an 
 opulent merchant of Vienna, and one of the 
 principal directors of the Steam Navigation 
 Company. This gentleman was most kind 
 and civil ; he enlightened us on many points 
 relative to the navigation of the Danube, 
 and took us over the vessel in which we 
 then were, which had three most commodi- 
 ous and excellent private cabins, furnished 
 with beds and sofas. Passing the village of 
 Tulln, where the armies of John Sobieski 
 and the Prince of Lorraine united to rescue 
 the Emperor Leopold and Vienna from the 
 Turks in 1683, we reached the castle of 
 Griefenstein. Here the hills again descend 
 to the river, the woods clothe its banks, and 
 the imposing towers of Klosterneuberg 
 shortly open upon the view. A few mi- 
 nutes longer, and the vessel was safely 
 moored at the villae of Neusdorf. The
 
 84 
 
 shore was crowded. The agitation on board 
 the steamer became tenfold increased. 
 Handkerchiefs waved to handkerchiefs, 
 hats to hats ; screams of recognition rent 
 the air, mingled with the cries and curses 
 of porters, drivers, hostlers, and hackney 
 coachmen, shouts of laughter, roaring of 
 the steam-engine, cracking of whips, hol- 
 looing, and the neighing of horses. Amidst 
 this confusion, the passengers were received 
 into a temporary tent, guarded by Austrian 
 soldiers, where the passports were given up, 
 and some of the luggage examined. This 
 latter operation we escaped; and, after a 
 considerable delay, four horses were fastened, 
 I cannot say harnessed, to the carriage, and 
 we started for the city. A ragged, roguish 
 looking fellow, like an Irishman, climbed 
 upon the trunk to drive, while a semi-naked 
 ragamuffin sprang upon the back of one of 
 the leaders. We started off whooping and 
 yelling through the mob, at a rapid and ir- 
 regular trot, our two postilions keeping up 
 an incessant conversation with each other, 
 and, without any detention at the gates,
 
 85 
 
 were safely driven by our strange con- 
 ductors to the hotel of the Ertzhertzog 
 Karl, where rooms, which we had previously 
 ordered, were prepared for us. We were 
 glad to get a good wash, for the little drive 
 from Neusdorf had covered us with as 
 thick a coating of dust as though we had 
 performed the whole of our journey by land. 
 Thus a passage which, two years ago, had 
 taken us, by land, twenty-three long and 
 fatiguing hours, was performed, by water, 
 with perfect ease and comfort, in only 
 eleven ! The weather had been cold and 
 gloomy in the morning, but cleared about 
 mid-day, and continued lovely during the 
 remainder. 
 
 Friday, Sept. 20, 1839. I remained at 
 home all day. 
 
 Saturday, Sept. 21, 1839. We went this 
 morning to the Royal Imperial Treasury. 
 The crown jewels are fine. There are three 
 or four diamonds of great size, beside two 
 pink ones, of considerable magnitude and 
 beauty. There are also some good silver 
 bas-reliefs, and a small room with dishes of
 
 86 
 
 Raphael china, set in compartments in the 
 ceiling. The rest consists of clocks, pieces 
 of mechanism, agate vases, &c. &c., of a very 
 ordinary kind. We went to some shops, 
 and paid some visits. Among the latter, 
 we called at the English ambassador's. 
 He was ill in bed with the gout, and saw 
 nobody, and the business was transacted by 
 the charge d'affaires, Mr. Milbank. Hav- 
 ing made up our minds for a tour in Hun- 
 gary, I was anxious to obtain every sort of 
 information and assistance, and Prince 
 Metternich being unfortunately absent, I saw 
 Mr. Milbank. This gentleman was not ab- 
 solutely uncivil, but he was far from cour- 
 teous; his manners are indifferent and 
 repugnant. He treated me with the utmost 
 nonchalance, and neither gave me assistance 
 nor information. I understand that this is 
 his usual style, and that he gives as much 
 dissatisfaction to all parties as his master, 
 Lord Beauvale, does the contrary. Fortu- 
 nately, however, we did not want his aid ; 
 
 M had a letter of introduction to Mr. 
 
 Schwarz, No. 1122, Graben, of whose kind-
 
 87 
 
 ness and cordiality to us it is impossible to 
 speak in too high terms. He is the consul 
 general for the United States of America ; 
 and, besides giving us much valuable infor- 
 mation, he furnished us with letters to par- 
 ties at Pesth, which were of great service. 
 From Mr. Benvenutie, the director of the 
 Steam Navigation Company, we also re- 
 ceived the greatest kindness ; he furnished 
 us with four letters, one addressed to all the 
 captains on the line between Vienna and 
 Orsova, and the others to the resident di- 
 rectors at Semlin, Drenkova, and Alt Or- 
 sova, to pay us every possible attention, and 
 to enable us to see all that was worthy of 
 observation. In the evening we went to 
 the theatre, in the Josephstadt, to see May- 
 erbeer's Opera of the Hugonots ; the story 
 of which was singularly altered, and the 
 name changed to " The Ghibbelines in 
 Pisa." 
 
 Sunday, Sept. 22, 1839. At home. 
 
 Monday, Sept. 23. 1839. To-day was 
 taken up in final preparations for our jour- 
 ney. We had intended to have gone by
 
 88 
 
 the steamer to Presburg, and thence to 
 Pesth, but the waters of the Danube were 
 so low that the vessels could not come 
 higher than the former place. We there- 
 fore decided to go a portion of the way by 
 the Brunn railroad, and the remainder in 
 a carriage to Presburg. We bought maps 
 and guide-books at Artaria's, the former of 
 which are most excellent, but there are 
 none good of the latter. In the evening 
 we saw Spohr's Opera of Jesonda, which is 
 very good, and was most admirably sung 
 and acted by Madame Van Hassellt, the 
 prima donna. 
 
 Tuesday, Sept. 24, 1839. The train was 
 to start at two o'clock. The whole morning 
 was taken up in packing and arranging, for 
 the carriage was left at Vienna, and our 
 stock of luggage reduced to what we con- 
 ceived to be the smallest possible quantity. 
 Our estimate, however, was regulated by 
 the requisition that that quantity should 
 contain every luxury we could want, and we 
 started, therefore, as if for the Pampas. 
 Provisions of all sorts, teapot, kettle, warm-
 
 89 
 
 ing-pan, sheets, cloaks, plate, and the medi- 
 cine chest, &c. &c. To what extent all this is 
 necessary, time will show. A little before 
 the appointed time, we arrived in a fiacre at 
 the railway station, at the entrance of the 
 Prater. It is a handsome and commodious 
 building, with a staircase leading up to the 
 waiting-rooms, which open upon the plat- 
 form for the carriages. These are, like our 
 own, of various classes, (and also take pri- 
 vate carriages,) the first class being close, 
 and the others open. They are divided into 
 stalls, like ours, of which they are, evidently, 
 an inferior imitation. The engines are all 
 English or Belgian, and managed by Eng- 
 lish engineers. The one which conveyed us 
 was made by Cockerel of Liege. Precisely 
 at the hour of two the train started. We 
 soon came upon the first bridge, which is 
 thrown over an arm of the Danube, and a 
 few seconds more brought us to the second, 
 Avhich traverses the main river. Towards 
 the south, the stream is enlivened by water 
 mills moored in the river ; and northward is 
 a good view of a portion of the city and the
 
 90 
 
 Leopoldsberg. The line now opens upon a 
 vast dreary plain, whose scanty soil is well 
 cultivated, without any enclosures to mark 
 the boundaries of property. In various di- 
 rections isolated towns appear, with white 
 church towers grouped among a few poplars, 
 cutting the line of the horizon. Towards 
 the north, low, vine-clad hills rise from the 
 plain, while the extreme distance is bounded 
 by the irregular outline of the lesser Car- 
 pathian mountains. The train travelled at 
 a rapid pace, and was remarkably easy. 
 The first pause is at the celebrated village of 
 Wagram. Here we remained eight mi- 
 nutes, and then proceeded with the same 
 rapidity. This railway is intended to have 
 two lines of rails, but both of them are as 
 yet only laid as far as Wagram ; as, how- 
 ever, we passed several workmen employed 
 in fixing them, it is probable that both will 
 shortly be completed. They are laid on 
 horizontal sleepers of wood. After passing 
 under two brick bridges, we reached the 
 termination of our railroad trip, at the 
 station of Gausendorf, which is its spot
 
 91 
 
 nearest to Presburg. Several public car- 
 riages were here waiting for the passengers 
 to take them to that city, and tickets were 
 even given at the office in Vienna for 
 securing places. We soon, however, dis- 
 covered that possession was nine points of 
 the law in Germany, for a general rush was 
 made towards them by the crowd, who, like 
 ourselves, had been disappointed of the 
 Danube packet, and every vehicle was filled 
 before we had time to look round us. We 
 were not, however, singular in this disap- 
 pointment ; numbers still remained to be 
 accommodated; but while we waited pa- 
 tiently for the arrival of more conveyances, 
 we resolved to profit by what we had just 
 witnessed, and seize, t( vi et armis," on the 
 first carriage that came. Two shortly ar- 
 rived, and we succeeded in our appropria- 
 tion. It was a light caleche, driven with 
 three horses abreast, the off-horse being 
 clumsily attached by a bar fastened to a rod 
 of iron, which was secured to the axle of the 
 hind wheel. The road is for many miles 
 over the dreary plain, without a human
 
 92 
 
 habitation in view, and itself a mere turf 
 track, formed by the agricultural carts of 
 the peasantry. We passed three miserable 
 looking villages, a pond, and a herd of 
 swine, at full trot to their homes, and then 
 reached the fine stream of the March, which 
 is the boundary in this direction between 
 Austria and Hungary. We crossed it by a 
 long wooden bridge, and immediately after 
 reached a village, Avhere we were surprised 
 to find all the carriages which had left the 
 railroad long before us, drawn up in melan- 
 choly array before a custom-house. A 
 heavy shower had been falling for some 
 time, and had not entirely ceased, when the 
 custom-house officer, with all the insolence 
 of office, apparently augmented by the na- 
 tural ill-temper of his disposition, if one 
 might judge by his sour-crout visage, or- 
 dered everything to be undone. In the 
 drizzling rain, on the muddy road, was every 
 single thing opened and carefully examined 
 by him, accompanied with many an oath 
 and ill-humoured remark ; and the old sheets 
 which we had brought were compelled to
 
 93 
 
 be paid for, because, the officer said, there 
 were sheets in Hungary, and that we did 
 not want them. I never knew a custom- 
 house where so much insolence and trouble 
 were given. I am informed by parties who 
 have come to Presburg, both by the ordinary 
 post-road on the south side of the river, and 
 also by the steam-packet, that there is no 
 Hungarian custom-house whatever. We 
 were at length suffered to proceed, with 
 everything in such confusion, that we were 
 obliged to carry some things loose on our 
 knees, among which were the two pairs of 
 sheets which had given such offence. We 
 had now got upon a chaussee, which, how- 
 ever, was more rough and uneven than the 
 track across the plain. The road crosses a 
 low part of the mountains, towards which 
 we had been making direct ; and we reached 
 Presburg under the light of a full, clear, 
 harvest moon. We put up at the hotel of 
 the " Drei Linden," where we had taken 
 the precaution previously to order rooms. 
 As the packet by which we intend to pro- 
 ceed starts punctually at five o'clock to-
 
 94 
 
 morrow morning, we can form no opinion 
 of the beauties of Presburg, which looked 
 large and deserted beneath the rays of the 
 cold moon. 
 
 Wednesday, Sept. 25, 1839. Personal 
 experience of the difficulty of moving a Ger- 
 man was the probable cause of the hotel 
 being in a state of the utmost confusion a 
 full hour before there was any necessity to 
 be stirring, and also occasioned my being 
 beset with the most urgent messages to be 
 off, as the packet was in the very act of 
 starting, and in a moment more would be 
 gone. Aware that we were within one 
 minute's w r alk to the vessel, and that it 
 wanted a full half hour to five o'clock, I 
 paid no attention to these needless importu- 
 nities, and, after all, we were on deck 
 twenty minutes before the steamer was in 
 motion. A vast concourse were assembled, 
 in all about one hundred and eighty-four 
 passengers. These were divided into groups, 
 conversing in German, Magyar, or Latin, or 
 walking about the deck, waiting for the 
 " moving of the waters." The moon hung
 
 95 
 
 high in the western heavens, and a golden 
 hue began gradually to spread itself over 
 the eastern horizon. By degrees the light 
 extended over the peaks of the Carpathian 
 hills, and the silver line on which we were 
 floating reflected back the increasing glow 
 upon the whitewashed houses and square 
 castle of Presburg. This building is now 
 in ruins, having been accidentally destroyed 
 by fire, as far as regards the interior, in 
 1811, in which condition it has been suf- 
 fered to remain. It is, however, a spot of 
 much interest, from having been the scene 
 of the celebrated appeal of Maria Theresa 
 in 1741 to her Hungarian nobles. As an 
 object it is most unsightly, except at a dis- 
 tance, being a mere square block, with four 
 towers at the corners. The various steeples 
 of the city were sounding the hour of five 
 as the vessel slowly moved from her moor- 
 ings, and, wheeling round, glided down the 
 rapid flood. The banks are lined with 
 woods of the same kind as those on the 
 islands and flat parts of the shore between 
 Linz and Vienna, which, though almost eri-
 
 96 
 
 tirely consisting of willow, are yet very 
 beautiful. We passed along the side of a 
 remarkable rapid, giving the effect of the 
 river being elevated above its natural level. 
 The sun now rose over the horizon, and the 
 city, which was still visible, appeared to much 
 greater advantage, its castle-crowned out- 
 line being good, and the deficiency being in 
 its details. The difficulties of the naviga- 
 tion commence about half an hour from 
 Presburg. The sand-banks multiply on every 
 side, and the proper channel becomes more 
 shallow and uncertain. Large flights of 
 wild ducks, roused from their haunts among 
 the brushwood, wheeled over our heads, 
 and on a bare sand-bank lay the half de- 
 cayed body of a horse, which had probably 
 expired there when towing some barge up 
 the powerful current. Nothing disturbs 
 the vast solitudes of this mighty river, yet 
 its magnitude, the rapidity of the stream, 
 and variety of its islands and wooded shores, 
 never suffer it to become tedious for a mo- 
 ment. We now followed the multitude to 
 breakfast. It consisted of chocolate in large
 
 97 
 
 glass tumblers, and some brown rye bread, 
 which is not unpalatable. When we again 
 got on deck, we were passing a succession 
 of those picturesque mills, with their huge 
 water-wheels, in which this river abounds. 
 But our attention was soon directed towards 
 a group of about forty horses, ridden by 
 men in bundas, with three-cornered hats, 
 who were wading through the water, nearly 
 in the middle of the channel, and towing 
 two large barges, which seemed constructed 
 after the fashion of Noah's ark. While 
 thus occupied, our vessel suddenly struck; a 
 few backward strokes of the engine released 
 her ; but the captain was a fool, and knew 
 not how to take advantage of this circum- 
 stance, so that in a few moments the force 
 of the current again drove her onwards, and 
 fixed us firmly upon a concealed sandbank. 
 This would, in any case, have been provok- 
 ing, but the conduct, of the captain ren- 
 dered it still more irritating. He seemed 
 neither surprised nor concerned, but kept 
 calmly walking up and down, curling his 
 mustachios. As something, however, must 
 
 H
 
 98 
 
 be done, poles were put into the river, and 
 it was attempted, but in vain, to shove us 
 off. The same operation was tried with a 
 pulley and rope in various parts of the ship, 
 but with the same result : we were per- 
 fectly fast ; and, what rendered this still 
 more provoking was, that another and a 
 smaller steamer was waiting for us at a 
 short distance down the river, for the ex- 
 press purpose of conveying us to Pesth 
 over worse shallows. After four hours and 
 a half spent in this useless and ignorant 
 manner, it was determined to land all the 
 passengers in boats upon the bank, and see 
 if this would sufficiently lighten the vessel. 
 The shore, at this time, presented a very 
 animated sight; it was covered with Hun- 
 garian peasants, dressed in leather jackets, 
 or in bundas, with huge coarse linen trou- 
 sers, of such a size as to resemble petticoats, 
 and large circular hats round at the top. 
 and with the broad brim turned up like a 
 saucer, or three-cornered ones, like those in 
 Baden and that district. Fifty or sixty 
 horses, employed to tow the barges, stood
 
 99 
 
 among this group. Some of the men lay 
 basking in the hot sun, while others, 
 mounted on their steeds, galloped about the 
 plain, shouting and cracking their whips, or 
 performing equestrian evolutions, the exact 
 object of which we were at a loss to dis- 
 cover. Three large boats, like punts, were 
 put in requisition, and we began slowly to 
 discharge our live lumber. We remained 
 perfectly quiet, resolved to be the last to go, 
 if such became absolutely necessary, but 
 hoping that when we were disburdened of 
 about one hundred and eighty persons, we 
 might escape the trouble of this supernu- 
 merary disembarkation. In this piece of 
 diplomacy we had the good fortune to suc- 
 ceed, and ourselves and six other persons 
 remained on board. We now amused our- 
 selves by going to dinner, and while quietly 
 discuss. rig the boullie, we had the great 
 satisfaction to feel the steamer swinging 
 round, and once again floating in deep 
 water, A very considerable time, however, 
 had again to elapse before the passengers 
 could be reshipped ; and what was, perhaps, 
 
 H 2
 
 100 
 
 as vexatious as any part of this stupid busi- 
 ness, was, that in half an hour we reached 
 the Arpad steamer, which had been waiting 
 to convey us to Pesth since five o'clock in 
 the morning. The whole of the previous 
 operation had again to be renewed, and we 
 had cause to rejoice that we ourselves were 
 not among the number. The moment also 
 was unfortunate. Those who had remained 
 on board had dined at their ease ; but the 
 soup was in the mouths of the others, when 
 the signal to leave the Nador and her din- 
 ner was given. From all these circum- 
 stances, it was half past four o'clock, while 
 we were still about twenty miles from Pres- 
 burg, and all hope or possibility of reaching 
 Ofen that evening was totally at an end. 
 It therefore became necessury to think 
 a little about our night's lodging, and 
 as there were so many ladies on board, 
 I did not like to monopolise more of the 
 accommodations of the vessel than was ab- 
 solutely necessary ; we therefore secured 
 one of the cabins, in which we could lie 
 down and sleep without exposure to the
 
 101 
 
 night air. The sunset was glorious, and 
 the moon shortly rose with her accustomed 
 beauty. We stopped a few minutes at 
 Gonyo, and there being no difficulties in 
 the navigation, proceeded all night. The 
 scene now on board was curious. All the 
 cabins were quite full. Sofas, tables, and 
 floors, strewed with men, women, and chil- 
 dren, disposed asleep in all directions. In 
 various parts of the deck, matresses were 
 distributed, on which many a snoring occu- 
 pant lay wrapped in his cloak or bunda. 
 Before midnight the silence was unbroken, 
 except by the splash of the paddles, and the 
 deep breathing of the sleepers. On the 
 shore we passed many watch-fires gleaming 
 through the gloom of the forest, and the 
 houses and spires of the churches in the 
 villages by which we were gliding, shone 
 in bright relief against the starry firma- 
 ment. I remained for some time upon deck, 
 and frequently during the night started 
 from my slumbers on the cabin hammock 
 to see the dim outline of some place of in- 
 terest. We proceeded rapidly, without in-
 
 102 
 
 terruption, till we reached the town of Ko- 
 morn, where is a bridge of boats. It was not 
 yet half past eight o'clock, but the bridge 
 authorities refused for some reason to let us 
 pass till the morning dawn ; and it was not 
 till after much angry expostulation from the 
 captain, and annoying delay, that we got it 
 opened. About midnight we reached Gran. 
 The outline of its situation is fine, and we 
 were again among the hills ; but all detail 
 was invisible, and I therefore, ensconced 
 myself in the cabin till the three reports 
 from our signal-gun proclaimed that we 
 had reached Pesth. 
 
 Thursday, Sept. 26, 1839. The dawn 
 was breaking upon the heights of Ofen be- 
 fore we left the steamer. I therefore con- 
 tented myself with washing and dressing in 
 iny room at the hotel of the " Roi d'Hon- 
 grie;" and, a little before seven o'clock, 
 walked out to take a look at the city. Its 
 massive outline had looked imposing even 
 in the dim moonlight, and did not now in 
 any degree disappoint the expectations 
 which might be thus formed of it. Pesth
 
 103 
 
 and Ofen (or Buda, as it is called in Mag- 
 yar) are situated on the two opposite sides 
 of the Danube, the former on the left, and 
 the latter on the right bank. They are at 
 present only united by a bridge of boats ; 
 which the ice, in the winter season, com- 
 pelling to be removed, totally destroys for 
 a time all communication between them. 
 A chain-bridge is, therefore, in contempla- 
 tion. The plans have been approved of, 
 and the work will be commenced next 
 spring. The architect, Mr. Clark, is now 
 at Pesth. Independent of the commercial 
 and social advantages of this bridge, its 
 erection is a matter of great national im- 
 portance, from its being the instrument 
 whereby a great moral and political preju- 
 dice has been overcome. The feudal dis- 
 tinctions of lord and serf prevail with such 
 force in Hungary, and some of the adjoining 
 countries, as to amount almost to the sepa- 
 ration of caste. The Hungarian noble is 
 subject to no kind of tax or impost, all of 
 which are levied on the wretched cultivators 
 of the soil. There is a toll leviable for pass-
 
 104 
 
 ing the bridge at Ofen, but no well-dressed 
 person can be asked for it, from the chance 
 of his proving to be a noble ; whereas the 
 wretch whose loose sheepskin, matted locks, 
 sparkling eye, and swarthy complexion, 
 mark him for a serf, must pay the pittance 
 which may deprive him of a day's meal, but 
 which may on no account be made to di- 
 minish the gambling fund of his imperious 
 lord. The chain-bridge has established a 
 new principle. All who cross it, without 
 any distinction, are to pay a toll : and the 
 noble and the slave are, for the first time 
 in Hungary, placed upon an equality. The 
 quay on which it is to be placed, is a very 
 fine architectural street, having an im- 
 posing effect from every point of view, 
 and especially from the river. Its facade, 
 however, is as yet its only recommendation. 
 The road is not paved, and, except a con- 
 venient trottoir for the foot-passengers, is 
 one mass of dust and filth. The market had 
 commenced. There was a profusion of 
 fruit and vegetables, and a row of twelve or 
 fourteen carts filled with live poultry of all
 
 105 
 
 kinds, which kept up an incessant noise, and 
 amply saved the vender from the trouble of 
 drawing attention to his goods. Strings of 
 small Hungarian horses stood also ready 
 for sale. They are small, slender-limbed 
 animals, but active, and capable of en- 
 during much fatigue, and some of them are 
 sufficiently handsome. The shore was 
 crowded with barges, containing corn and 
 flour in sacks, which are brought from the 
 mills upon the river, and the millers were 
 busied in stowing them in carts upon the 
 quay. Many groups of peasants were 
 standing about, idling or conversing, or 
 hurrying to and fro on errands ; and, alto- 
 gether, the barges on the water, the active 
 population on the land, the ringing of the 
 church bells, and the beauty of the bright 
 sunny morning, made it a scene of great 
 animation. It was necessary, for the pro- 
 secution of our plan, which embraced an 
 overland journey from Alt Orsova across 
 the Pusztas to this place again, that we 
 should procure a carriage of the country, 
 and also a servant who could talk the Mag-
 
 106 
 
 yar and Sclavonic languages. Having break- 
 fasted, therefore, we proceeded to deliver 
 the letters of introduction which had been 
 so obligingly given us by Mr. Schwarz at 
 Vienna. The first was to Herr Ebner, a 
 wholesale fur-merchant, who received us 
 with great kindness, and engaged to provide 
 us with a native guide in whom we might 
 confide. This matter, and the purchase of 
 a carriage, being settled, we proceeded to 
 deliver the second letter of introduction, 
 which was addressed to Mons. Joseph von 
 Horvath Szent - Gyorgy K. K. Wirke 
 Kammerer, &c. &c. This imperial grand- 
 chamberlain was, however, far away at his 
 country residence, and not expected to re- 
 turn to Pesth before November. We then 
 made up our minds to introduce ourselves 
 to the patriotic Count Szechenyi, whose 
 kindness and cordiality to the English are 
 almost proverbial ; but he was unfortunately 
 also absent at Presburg, and would not re- 
 turn for about a week. Without more de- 
 lay, therefore, we proceeded to see as much 
 of the city as the time would allow. We
 
 107 
 
 visited a huge building, now used as a 
 cavalry barrack, which was commenced by 
 the Emperor Joseph II., for what purpose 
 is not exactly known. Its plan is singular, 
 consisting of a large interior square, at the 
 angles of which are square buildings. The 
 present military force quartered at Pesth 
 and Ofen is about six thousand, who are 
 changed every two months. We now 
 crossed the river by the bridge of boats, and 
 drove to the hot sulphureous spring called 
 the Kaiser Bad. It is very warm, and 
 taken both internally and by baths. Close 
 to it is a building having four round towers, 
 with conical roofs, once a Turkish fort, but 
 now used as a water-mill. It bears so little 
 resemblance to its original purpose, that it 
 would be passed by without notice, if not 
 especially pointed out. On a rising ground 
 near here stands the tomb of a Turkish 
 Santon, which is still so much venerated, 
 that parties yet make pilgrimages to it from 
 the East. It is a small octagonal building, 
 built of stone, and service is constantly per- 
 formed in it by a resident Mohammedan
 
 108 
 
 priest. The view from it is exquisitely 
 beautiful, looking either up or down the 
 river, especially the former. We proceeded 
 on to the citadel of Buda. This is no 
 longer a place of defence, but the fortifica- 
 tions have been converted into a terrace 
 walk, high above the river, and the valley 
 which lies to the west of the town. The 
 situation of Buda is remarkable. An iso- 
 lated hill rises abruptly from the bank of 
 the Danube, surrounded on every side by a 
 deep valley. This valley, on the side 
 farthest from the river, is hemmed in by an 
 amphitheatre of hills, chiefly covered with 
 the vineyards which produce the Ofner 
 wines, and abruptly terminated by the 
 rocky mountain of the Bloxberg. The 
 most conspicuous object here is the Palace 
 of the Palatine, a vast structure of Italian 
 architecture, with rich hanging gardens 
 descending to the river. From it is a 
 splendid prospect of the whole city of Pesth, 
 and the windings of the Danube ; and per- 
 haps the fine buildings of the quay look no- 
 where to greater advantage than from this
 
 109 
 
 spot. We now descended into the gorge 
 which separates this part of Ofen from the 
 Bloxberg, and visited the old Turkish baths 
 which lie at its base. The most singular of 
 the two which exist in this quarter is called 
 the Hidasfordo. It is in perfect repair, 
 and used indiscriminately by the common 
 people, men and women, who bathe here to- 
 gether " in puris naturalibus." We tra- 
 versed a narrow court, and passing through 
 a small porch or vestibule, entered, by an 
 unfastened swing-door, into a gloomy apart- 
 ment. The outer walls of this room are 
 square, having large semicircular niches at 
 the corners, in which the bathers can sit. 
 The bath itself is rectangular, surmounted 
 by a domed ceiling, which is supported by 
 eight massive stone columns placed at the 
 angles. The centre of the dome has a 
 small round opening to let out the vapour, 
 which is very considerable, the water being 
 of a great heat. There are square windows 
 in the outer walls, which, however, from the 
 accumulation of dirt upon them, give very
 
 110 
 
 little light. By the yellow gloom, however, 
 we could distinguish the singular scene. 
 About a dozen persons of both sexes were 
 assembled, stark naked, some wading about 
 in the water, others sitting on the stone 
 edge of the reservoir, or lying asleep on the 
 brink, with only a portion of their limbs 
 immersed in it, while t some of the women 
 were standing up in the bath, employed in 
 combing their long greasy locks, or per- 
 forming the friendly office of critically ex- 
 amining the capillary wilderness of her 
 neighbour, in order to rid it of any of its 
 wonted but unwelcome inhabitants. The 
 heat from the volumes of vapour, which 
 have no sufficient means of escape, is very 
 great, and made our return to the fresh air 
 peculiarly delightful. Although what we 
 just witnessed had not been of the most in- 
 viting description, our curiosity induced us 
 to proceed a little further to the Sarosfordo, 
 where the scene was precisely similar, ex- 
 cept that here there was some slight regard 
 to decency, the bathers being all clothed
 
 Ill 
 
 round the loins. The water here is still 
 hotter, and the steam consequently more 
 oppressive. The bathers lay about on the 
 brink of the bath, in various attitudes, like 
 so many dead bodies, and the yellow dingy 
 light cast over them its cadaverous hue, so 
 as to remind me of the celebrated models of 
 the Plague in the Anatomical Museum at 
 Florence. The building differs slightly 
 from the other bath, being a sexagon. We 
 now returned to the hotel. In conse- 
 quence of a change of masters it was in the 
 utmost confusion, and unable to give us a 
 dinner, for which we went to the hotel of 
 "Le Corne de Chasse," a badly situated inn, 
 but where we had an excellent feast. After 
 dinner we bought some bundas, and then 
 drove to the observatory on the top of the 
 Bloxberg. The view towards the south is 
 only more extensive than that from the cita- 
 del, where the eye ranges over the bound- 
 less plain through which the Danube sweeps 
 its tortuous course, until the prospect is 
 lost in undefinable distance. It was dusk 
 before we regained the hotel, promising to
 
 112 
 
 ourselves to complete the investigation of 
 Pesth on our return from our Hungarian tour. 
 Friday, Sept. 27, 1839. We were on 
 board the " Francis the First " by five 
 o'clock, the hour fixed for our departure, 
 but at that moment the bridge opened and 
 let through several large unwieldy barges, 
 which compelled us to wait a quarter of an 
 hour, by which time they had passed. The 
 city looked magnificent in the beams of the 
 rising sun. On passing the Bloxberg, we 
 came upon a succession of mills, situated 
 where the river throws out two arms of 
 nearly the same width. We chose the left 
 hand branch, the other being extremely 
 shallow, and were soon fairly launched into 
 the plain which we had observed the even- 
 ing before from the Bloxberg. Although 
 the hills had now totally vanished, the scene 
 is not in the least monotonous or tiresome. 
 The banks are skirted with trees, and I ob- 
 served a mixture of oak on some of the 
 islands, among the alder and willow. They 
 also vary in height, amounting sometimes 
 almost to cliffs, and the rising grounds are
 
 113 
 
 chequered with vines. The towns and vil- 
 lages become more frequent, and their white 
 glistening church towers relieve the sense 
 of depopulation, which is one of the chief 
 characteristics of this river. The shores, 
 however, became flatter and flatter, and 
 vast forests spread on both sides of us. We 
 stopped at the pretty town of Duna Fbld- 
 var, (to take in some merchandise,) a place 
 prettily situated in the recess of a sandy 
 rock. In a voyage on board a steamer, 
 where parties must remain together some 
 days and nights, it becomes a subject of in- 
 terest to investigate the company with 
 whom one is doomed to associate. In this 
 instance we were particularly fortunate. 
 The principal persons on board were a 
 Walachian nobleman and his wife, Ottele 
 Tshan by name, and the Austrian Secretary 
 of Legation at Jassy in Moldavia, Mons. 
 Schweger Durnstein. There was a lady of 
 much consideration at Baja, the Baroness 
 Lepanowich, a widow, whose son was in a 
 military command there, in the Austrian 
 service. We found, likewise, a very quiet 
 
 i
 
 114 
 
 and agreeable lady, Madame Hoffman, the 
 wife of an opulent gentleman of Sclavonia, 
 possessed of extensive copper mines in the 
 neighbourhood of Moldava, where she sub- 
 
 O 7 
 
 sequently went on shore. There were 
 others on board, but not worth remember- 
 ing, with the exception of a long-bearded 
 Greek Papa, who could only speak Ro- 
 maic, and a very little bad Italian. From 
 the Boyard and Mr. Diirnstein we received 
 very interesting information relative to 
 Hungary, Servia, and the adjacent states of 
 Walachia, Transylvania, and Moldavia. All 
 these provinces are far more under Russian 
 than Austrian influence, Hungary and Tran- 
 sylvania excepted. Upon the successful revo- 
 lution which emancipated the Servians from 
 the yoke of Turkey, a trifling tribute be- 
 came payable to the Porte, while the for- 
 tresses of Belgrade, Semendria, and Neu 
 Orsova, were handed over to them for 
 Turkish garrisons. As places of offence 
 or defence, they are absolutely valueless ; 
 but as one fondly clings to the memory 
 of an object once possessed and loved, even
 
 115 
 
 when its intrinsic value is no more, so the 
 Turks still prize these wrecks of their for- 
 mer dominion in these parts, and have ren- 
 dered them seats of pashas, and pageants of 
 departed power. But, in reality, the Servi- 
 ans have only transferred themselves to 
 Russia, while they flatter themselves that 
 they are free. The Walachians are, to a 
 certain extent, similarly situated. They 
 have always been independent, constitu- 
 tionally speaking ; but, in matters of per- 
 sonal protection, are now indebted to Rus- 
 sia. The navigation of the Danube, below 
 Orsova, not ten years ago, was dangerous, 
 from the constant piracies committed by 
 the Turks ; but since the interference of 
 Russia, and the protection she has afforded, 
 the river is now at all times secure. The 
 population of Hungary is estimated at about 
 nine millions, that of Transylvania at two 
 millions, Walachia the same, and Moldavia 
 about one million. Walachia and Moldavia 
 have long had a free constitution of their 
 own. Their monarchy is elective, which 
 election is by the Boyards, or nobles, and 
 
 i 2
 
 116 
 
 their sons, and its duration for life. The 
 present sovereign is Prince Ghika. This 
 election, however, requires to go through 
 the form of confirmation from the Porte ; and 
 though this was never refused, in case of the 
 individual proving hostile to Turkish in- 
 terests, he was invited to Constantinople, 
 and consigned to the tender mercies of the 
 keeper of the bowstring, By the treaty of 
 Adrianople, in 1826, Russia was constituted 
 protectress of these states ; and since that 
 period such proceedings are at an end. 
 The constitution of Moldavia is precisely 
 similar, and Prince Stourzo is the present 
 governor. Of the inhabitants of Transyl- 
 vania, above half are Protestants ; while in 
 the other provinces which I have mentioned, 
 the majority profess the Greek church. 
 Mons. Tshan has some theories about the 
 advantages of a union of Walachia and 
 Moldavia into one really independent mo- 
 narchy, which are chiefly founded on the 
 aggregate amount of thir population. He 
 had not, however, taken sufficiently into his 
 calculation their internal resources, and I
 
 117 
 
 think his views were substantially erroneous. 
 He is a man well informed about his own 
 country, and very desirous of information 
 about others. The kingdom of Hungary is 
 remarkable for the number of distinct races 
 and religions which it contains. The chief 
 of these are the Magyar, who are about 
 three millions and a half in number ; the 
 Sclavonic four millions ; the Walacks above 
 one million ; the Germans half a million ; 
 the Jews two hundred thousand. The 
 Sclavonic may be subdivided into no less 
 than eleven dialects, namely, Sclavonians 
 Proper, Sklaves, Slovaks, Szotaki,Ruthenen, 
 Bohemians, Poles, Wends, Croats, Raitzen, 
 and Bulgarians. Among the five hundred 
 thousand Germans also are twelve different 
 patois, each totally different from the other. 
 As may be supposed, their religious profes- 
 sions are likewise extremely various. There 
 are five millions of Roman Catholics, two 
 millions one hundred and fifty thousand Pro- 
 testants, who are of two sects, the Lutheran 
 and evangelical ; one million seven hundred 
 thousand ununited Greeks, and six hundred
 
 118 
 
 and thirty thousand of the Greek church, of 
 which the former is alone recognised by the 
 government, and about one thousand Ar- 
 menians. Hungary has four mining dis- 
 tricts ; three of these are wholly situated in 
 its northern quarter, along the district of 
 the Tatra Mountains, and on the border of 
 Transylvania ; namely, Upper Hungary, of 
 which the chief town is Schemnitz ; Lower 
 Hungary, having Szomolnok, near Kaschau, 
 for its capital; and the district of Nagy 
 Banya. The fourth, called the Banat, lies 
 on the Danube, in the south-eastern corner, 
 blending with the mountains of Walachia, 
 and has Temesvar for the chief city. Gold, 
 silver, copper, lead, and coal, are the chief 
 minerals ; such of the last as is procured in 
 the Banat is very good, and similar to our 
 Derbyshire coal. Hungary is also cele- 
 brated for its breed of horses, for which 
 purpose it possesses several breeding studs 
 on an enormous scale. But one of the 
 greatest of its peculiarities is the cele- 
 brated military frontier. This cordon ex- 
 tends for a distance of about one thousand
 
 119 
 
 one hundred miles, severing the whole of 
 the Austrian from the Turkish dominions. 
 It commences on the Adriatic, and passing 
 through Dalmatia, Croatia, Sclavonia, the 
 Banat and Transylvania, terminates on the 
 borders of Poland. It was originally 
 founded as a protection against the Turks, 
 and now serves as an impenetrable barrier 
 against the plague, and a standing army of 
 eighty thousand men, ready for active ser- 
 vice at any moment, upon twelve hours' 
 notice. It is not exactly known by whom 
 this military organisation was commenced ; 
 but the Emperor Ferdinand the First, in 
 1560, granted, for defence and cultivation, a 
 part of Croatia to some Catholic Croats and 
 Raitzen, a Sclavonic people, driven out 
 of Illyria and Servia, and who have now 
 spread themselves throughout Hungary and 
 Transylvania. " The leading principle of 
 the existing system is, that every male in- 
 habitant of the military frontier is a soldier, 
 as well as citizen and peasant ; not merely 
 that he be ready to serve on occasions, but 
 to pass his whole life, from his eighteenth
 
 120 
 
 to his sixtieth year, in almost uninterrupted 
 military service. Reckoning the days passed 
 on duty with those occupied in going to and 
 fro from his watch-post, which is often two 
 days' journey from his home, the Grenzer, or 
 borderer, has not more than one-third of the 
 year at his own disposal." As these trades 
 of soldier and labourer agree together but 
 badly, an agricultural officer is attached to 
 each company, to attend to its interests. 
 An uninterrupted chain of guard-houses, at 
 intervals not exceeding two miles, extends 
 from one end of the line to the other. By 
 day, a sentinel is ever on the look-out, and 
 by night the communication is maintained 
 by patrols. Each station-house contains 
 six or eight men, in a coarse brown kind of 
 uniform, well armed ; and during the con- 
 tinuance of the plague, any one not stopping 
 when challenged is instantly shot. The 
 daily duty in ordinary times, along the line, 
 requires five thousand. If the plague is 
 raging in Turkey, the force is augmented to 
 eight thousand ; and if it be known to be 
 approaching, the number of men is doubled,
 
 121 
 
 that is, raised to one-third of the entire male 
 population. The total population of the 
 military frontier amounted, in 1834, to one 
 million one hundred and twenty-four thou- 
 sand, who are divided into seventeen infantry 
 and one hussar regiment, each under the 
 command of a colonel, the whole being 
 again grouped into four larger divisions, 
 severally under the command of a general. 
 There is, besides, an aquatic battalion 
 of nine hundred men, called Kaighisten, 
 (from the Turkish word kaigh, a boat,) 
 who cruise up and down the Danube, Save, 
 and Theiss, in small galleys carrying how- 
 itzers. This flotilla is furnished by the dis- 
 trict on the left bank of the Danube, between 
 Neusatz and the Theiss, and their head- 
 quarters are at Tittel on that river. 
 
 To return, however, to the packet. We 
 proceeded onwards, between banks which 
 became gradually less interesting from their 
 increasing flatness ; large timber-yards lined 
 the shores, stored from the surrounding 
 forests, from which, as I was informed, the 
 robber was not yet entirely driven. Having
 
 122 
 
 passed the town of Paks, we left the deck 
 for the important operation of dinner, which 
 was really very good. The incessant chat- 
 ter, however, of the great Baroness Le- 
 panowich, who was blessed with a peculiarly 
 harsh and grating voice, was far from agree- 
 able. It was one of that exclusive quality 
 which refuses to blend with any other 
 sounds, and though not noisy, the sharpen- 
 ing of a saw would not have been more dis- 
 tinctly audible. Towards the middle of 
 our repast, the vessel suddenly stopped. 
 The engineer, George Atkins, who was at 
 table, sprang from his seat with such pre- 
 cipitation, that he knocked over the iron 
 chimney pipe belonging to the stove in the 
 cabin, and rushed upon deck. It is amusing 
 to see how, in such circumstances as ours, 
 the merest trifle becomes a matter of im- 
 portance. Conjecture was alive on every 
 face, and, for the first time, there was a 
 moment's silence, even from the Baroness, 
 while each looked at his neighbour with the 
 evident desire to inquire " what could be 
 the matter." In a minute, however, the
 
 123 
 
 paddle-wheels again revolved, the vessel 
 glided onward as before, and Mr. Atkins 
 quietly resumed the discussion of the un- 
 tasled morsel he had so abruptly left upon 
 his plate. We stopped a moment at Tolna. 
 On and onwards still floated the steamer at 
 her wonted steady pace, and the sun had 
 long sunk beneath the horizon before we 
 drew up to the landing-place of the city of 
 Baja. The scene which here awaited us 
 was exquisitely beautiful and delightful. 
 The moon had not yet risen, but the stars 
 were bright and clear in the unclouded fir- 
 mament. The broad silver sheet of the 
 Danube rolled its vast volume beside us, 
 while the shore was crowded by the wild 
 forms of the Magyars. The voluble Ba- 
 roness was here to leave us, and while a 
 comfortable barge had been prepared for her 
 reception, the military band of the regiment 
 greeted her with national airs and waltzes 
 of Beethoven, and songs of Rossini ; watch- 
 fires blazed around, and their strong glare 
 was reflected upon the dark moving shadows 
 which hurried to and fro among them, or
 
 124 
 
 stood gazing on the vessel, which had not 
 yet lost its interest and its novelty. As if 
 in contrast to the luscious harmony of the 
 band, between each pause the note of a 
 solitary bagpipe was heard ; and though it 
 sounded in harsh and monotonous discord 
 with the choicest melodies of Italy and Ger- 
 many, yet its association with Britain made 
 it sound not ungrateful to the ear, and me- 
 mory lent it a charm at Baja, which it would 
 not have had in my own native land. But 
 the bustle of disembarkation is over the 
 Baroness and her friends gone. The band 
 departed. The passengers and crew, too, 
 had retired to their respective berths. On 
 the bank, a small group of about half a 
 dozen men were squatted round a fire which 
 they had kindled in the midst, two of them 
 holding a stick, to which was suspended a 
 caldron with their evening meal. The 
 broad ruddy blaze fell full on their swarthy 
 features, forming a wild and interesting pic- 
 ture. At the entrance of the vessel, where it 
 was united to the land by a platform, lay 
 one of our crew as sentinel, wrapped in his
 
 125 
 
 bunda, and stretched upon a sheepskin. 
 All was still, but I lingered yet a mo- 
 ment on the silent deck. The evening 
 was warm and delicious, not a vapour dim- 
 med the jewelled and sparkling canopy over 
 our heads; and the long red line of the 
 lights of Baja extended before us across the 
 little island of Gogany, which intervenes 
 between the Danube and the main land. 
 The town of Baja is not situated on the 
 chief branch of the river. It contains about 
 fifteen thousand inhabitants, and is a mili- 
 tary station of the Austrians, though not in 
 the military frontier. 
 
 It was decided that we should remain 
 stationary till the moon rose, and I now 
 retired to my little comfortable cabin, and 
 was soon sound asleep. 
 
 Saturday, Sept. 28. I was awakened at 
 half an hour past midnight by the action 
 of the engine, and found that we were 
 again in motion. It was not light when 
 we reached Mohacs, a place celebrated for 
 the Turkish conquest gained by Solyman 
 the Magnificent in 1526, so fatal to the in-
 
 126 
 
 dependence of Hungary, and the equally 
 decisive counter victory gained against them 
 on the same spot in 1686 by the Austrians, 
 under the command of Charles of Lorraine 
 and Prince Eugene, which emancipated the 
 country from their dominion. The town is 
 very prettily situated among poplars, and 
 the moon lighted up the two church towers 
 which rise out of them. On the shore were 
 women with baskets of fruit, clothed in 
 coarse blue petticoats, short leather jackets 
 lined with black sheepskins, and handker- 
 chiefs tied close round their head and face. 
 The costume of the men consisted in a large 
 round hat, with a huge brim turned up, 
 much resembling a soup plate with an ap- 
 ple dumpling in the middle. They had lea- 
 ther jackets and vast linen trousers, each 
 leg of which was as loose and large as an 
 ordinary petticoat. By the time we had 
 unloaded all the cargo for this place, a thick 
 fog had come on, and the navigation of the 
 Danube being unsafe under such circum- 
 stances, we remained till it cleared. This 
 occurred about two hours after sunrise, when
 
 127 
 
 we proceeded. The scenery presents nothing 
 remarkable low shores, with forests of 
 willow and alder. We stopped ten minutes 
 at Apatin, and the first object of any inte- 
 rest was the ruined castle of Erdod, imme- 
 diately after passing the spot where the 
 Danube receives the copious waters of the 
 Drave. We had now entered Sclavonia, of 
 which that river forms the boundary. The 
 banks now became rather more varied and 
 picturesque, and we soon reached the pretty 
 town of Vukovar, where is a handsome 
 stone bridge over the river Vuka, and a 
 chateau, with some pleasantly situated gar- 
 dens. I went on shore, but saw nothing 
 peculiar. We again proceeded. The sun 
 had set, and we were all enjoying the lovely 
 scene of the stars, as they gradually deve- 
 loped themselves one by one in the deepen- 
 ing ether. Suddenly there was a crash, and 
 we knew that we had struck upon a sand- 
 bank. The engine was instantly stopped, and 
 a little judicious management got us off into 
 deep water in a few minutes. The warning, 
 however, was not to be neglected, arid,
 
 128 
 
 throwing out two anchors, we waited for the 
 rising of the moon. The vessel now draws 
 only four feet and a half of water. Passen- 
 gers and crew once again betook themselves 
 to rest, and I, ensconced in my cabin, fol- 
 lowed their example. 
 
 Sunday, Sept. 29, 1839. By about the 
 same hour as the preceding night, the light 
 was sufficient for us to proceed. After a 
 few minutes' delay at Illok, we reached 
 Neusatz, opposite to the important fortress 
 of Peterwardine. This latter is a place of 
 some strength, built on a low rock which 
 rises abruptly from the river. It did not 
 strike me as picturesque, though it has been 
 most inappropriately called the Ehrenbreit- 
 stein of the Danube. We did not leave 
 Neusatz till the morning dawn was break- 
 ing, when we proceeded to Karlowitz. This 
 town, containing about 5,500 inhabitants, is 
 chiefly noted as being the scene of the con- 
 ference held in 1699, under the mediation 
 of England and Holland, for the restora- 
 tion of peace between Germany and the 
 Turks. It is situated within the military
 
 129 
 
 frontier which we entered at Peterwardine, 
 but is especially exempted from the regula- 
 tions of that district. Just beyond here the 
 river Theiss falls into the Danube. The 
 evening had been remarkably warm, and in- 
 deed sultry, and I could not help fearing 
 that it portended some change of weather, 
 which had hitherto been most favourable. 
 The morning broke without the least appear- 
 ance of fog upon the waters, but a fresh 
 breeze sprang up with the sun, and blew 
 directly against us. I had retired to my 
 cabin, when a cry of " Belgrade" made me 
 rush anxiously upon deck. I was now with- 
 in view of the first Turkish city I had ever 
 beheld. The crescent was to wave over its 
 battlements, and the tall needle-like minaret 
 was to take the place of the tower and stee- 
 ple of the cross. To a certain extent, these 
 expectations were realised. The fortress 
 of Belgrade is situated upon an isolated 
 rock, which rises out of the plain, in the 
 angle of a peninsula formed by the Save 
 and the Danube. On the right or south- 
 western side of it lies, by the Save, the 
 
 K
 
 130 
 
 Christian portion of the town, while the 
 Turkish city conies feathering down to the 
 banks of the Danube. We remained some 
 time at Semlin, part of which we occupied 
 in its examination. It is a miserable look- 
 ing village, surrounded by a wooden pali- 
 sade, and the cleanest looking house in it is 
 the residence of the agent of the Steam 
 Navigation Company. Few of the streets 
 are paved. Such as are so, are rough and 
 uneven, and the others are mere sandy lanes. 
 We bought some very fine grapes, to the 
 amount of thirty-six pounds for one swanzig ! 
 on our way to visit the " Contumatz." We 
 could not enter one of the dens, as the per- 
 son who had the key was absent, and would 
 not return till after the packet had sailed. 
 We saw enough, however, to congratulate 
 ourselves that we were not inmates of it. 
 The houses are separated by wooden pales 
 and high walls ; and if it keep off the 
 plague, I should think it must substitute the 
 blue devils. Having returned to the steamer, 
 I took a sketch of Belgrade, which I much 
 regretted that time would not allow us to
 
 131 
 
 visit an excursion which takes about four 
 hours, and may be made in company with a 
 quarantine officer from Semlin, " for a con- 
 sideration." But we were again steaming 
 onwards with a violent wind in our teeth, 
 and are now gliding close by the domes and 
 minarets of Belgrade. This city contains a 
 population of about 20,000 inhabitants, and 
 belongs to Servia, though the fort is con- 
 firmed to the Turks by the treaty of Adria- 
 nople. From this quarter it is seen, prettily 
 grouped with trees, out of which rise eleven 
 minarets, and the domed roofs of their re- 
 spective mosques. The hills which rise 
 behind and around it are almost totally bar- 
 ren, and have a wild and desolate appear- 
 ance. But the aspect of the place is altoge- 
 ther striking, and its interest is increased by 
 its true orientalism. We passed some Turk- 
 ish fishermen in boats, whose turbaned 
 heads and lagune-sailed barks were very 
 picturesque. One flag attracted our atten- 
 tion in Belgrade, which proved to be the 
 residence of the Russian consul. That of 
 the English consul, Colonel Hodges, was 
 
 K 2
 
 132 
 
 not flying, we having passed him yesterday 
 on the " Zerini," on his way to Vienna. 
 The weather continued extremely disagree- 
 able from the violence of the wind, which 
 also much retarded our progress. But we 
 were doomed to a much more important 
 delay, for we had only left Semlin about an 
 hour and twenty minutes when we again 
 struck upon a shallow. The ropes were 
 immediately put into judicious requisition, 
 and every effort used to disengage us, but 
 in vain. The boat was lowered, and the 
 sailors who endeavoured to haul us off the 
 sand-bank were in great danger of being 
 swamped, from the violence of the wind. 
 The steamer remained firm as a rock, and 
 hour after hour rolled on, while the evening 
 began rapidly to draw to a close. The 
 seven hours we had lost on a similar occa- 
 sion, before reaching Pesth, seemed on the 
 point of being again realised, when, to our 
 surprise and delight, we saw a large steamer 
 rise, as it were, from the bosom of the 
 waters, and come at a rapid pace up the 
 river towards us. This was the more sur-
 
 133 
 
 prising, as no such vessel was appointed to 
 start from any point whereby she could have 
 met us that time. She was recognised, 
 however, as " The Eros," and I could not 
 but feel how providential was her arrival 
 at such a moment. The Eros is a very 
 powerful steamer of 140 horse power, and 
 is used to tow up the barges of merchandise 
 to Pesth, which thereby accomplish, in ten 
 or twelve days, what generally exceeded 
 three weeks. She had then in tow three 
 huge barges, laden with cattle, &c. On 
 being hailed by the Franz, she disengaged 
 herself from them, and came instantly to 
 our assistance. The ropes were attached, 
 first to the prow, and then to the stern ; 
 and as they fortunately did not break under 
 the extreme tension to which they were 
 subjected, we successfully got again into 
 deep water, and parted, most grateful, 
 from the friendly " Eros." We had, how- 
 ever, been delayed near three hours, and 
 therefore decided, after this occurrence, 
 and the navigation of the river becoming 
 every moment more difficult, not to proceed
 
 134 
 
 till daylight on the following morning. 
 We, therefore, moored near the town of 
 Panesova, a place of about 10,000 inhabi- 
 tants, and total silence once again resumed 
 her reign over our floating residence. 
 
 Monday, Sept, 3Qth, 1839. The wind 
 did not abate during the night, and rain 
 began to fall. The sun rose a lurid orange 
 colour, canopied with cloud ; and shortly 
 after a beautiful rainbow stretched its un- 
 broken arch over the scene, one end of 
 which was merged in the broad and foam- 
 ing expanse of water, which is here 
 nearly a mile and a half in width, and 
 shortly becomes even still more extended. 
 We now came upon some more interesting 
 scenery, the wooded hills gradually ap- 
 proaching the Danube. At this point there 
 is at all periods a certain draft of wind, 
 which, however, was now greatly augmented 
 by the gale continuing to blow with una- 
 bated vigour. We passed the very remark- 
 able Turkish fortress of Semendria, of which 
 I contrived to get a sketch, in spite of the 
 wind and rain. Passing a Turkish ruin.
 
 135 
 
 called the Castle of Kulich, we wound by 
 a large wooded island on our left, and 
 round a promontory formed by this ever- 
 bending river, and at length reached the 
 prettily situated village of Alt Moldava. 
 Here we parted from Mrs. Hofmann, whose 
 residence lay in the mining district of the 
 Banat, which we had now entered. The 
 violence of the wind rendered her disem- 
 barkation an unpleasant operation, as the 
 shallowness of the water prevented the 
 steamer from approaching the shore in this 
 part. It was accomplished, however, with- 
 out any disaster; and the Captain, Sig. 
 Ferro, being of opinion that there was a 
 sufficiency of water, decided to proceed to 
 Drenkova. This passage is the most diffi- 
 cult which the steamers pass. In the other 
 parts of the river the bed is only of sand 
 and debris, and the worst which can happen 
 is to stick fast, as had before occurred to us ; 
 but the mountains, beautifully clothed with 
 rock and wood, were now the picturesque 
 barriers of the stream, and its bed was 
 jagged rocks, just concealed by the waves,
 
 136 
 
 which would not have fixed us, but rendered 
 the vessel, if entangled amongst them, liable 
 to be battered to pieces by the force of the 
 current. These difficulties, and the proxi- 
 mity of the mountains, were points not 
 neglected by the robber chieftains of former 
 days. The most beautiful specimen which 
 remains of their strongholds, is that of the 
 Servian Castle of Golumbaczes, consisting 
 of several towers clustered together, and 
 united by battlemented walls, on a pinnacle 
 of rock above the river, so as to form a re- 
 markably picturesque object. Above it is 
 a large cavern, which, of course, we were 
 unable to visit, even had it been worth the 
 trouble. In the midst of the river rises 
 abruptly a singular shaped rock, called 
 Babakay, which, from the eddies formed by 
 it, is a source of much alarm to the native 
 boatmen. We safely passed through all 
 these difficulties, and shortly reached Dren- 
 kova, the termination of our sojourn in the 
 packet. The defile of Kazan, which we 
 had now to penetrate before reaching Or- 
 sova, and the rocks and rapids of the famous
 
 137 
 
 " iron gate," have placed a hitherto insur- 
 mountable barrier to the passage of these large 
 vessels ; and light and commodious boats, 
 calculated to hold within their cabin nearly 
 twenty-six persons, have been built expressly 
 for the purpose. The luggage and carriages 
 are conveyed in other barges, but there are 
 periods when even these vessels are unable 
 to make the passage, or at least when the dan- 
 ger would render it objectionable to be at- 
 tempted. To remedy this, a road has been 
 constructed by the side of the river, (in some 
 places blasted through the rocks, which here 
 descend abruptly into it,) and which, though 
 not yet entirely finished, is sufficiently so 
 to be passable. It runs from Moldava to 
 Skella, on the northern bank of the Danube, 
 terminating below the iron gate, opposite 
 Gladova, a town on the Servian territory. 
 The violence of the wind had much abated, 
 and the sunset made it probable that the 
 morrow would be fine. It was, therefore, 
 decided to continue our route by water, as 
 there would be neither danger nor difficulty 
 in the passage. Drenkova is a place which
 
 138 
 
 had no existence till called into being by 
 the Steam Navigation Company. As yet, 
 it consists of one solitary house, totally un- 
 furnished, but intended for an hotel, some 
 warehouses, and one of the guard-houses of 
 the Militariche Grenze. The situation, 
 however, is beautiful, being placed in a 
 sheltered bay, surrounded by wooded moun- 
 tains, with the broad bosom of the silent 
 flood sweeping onwards to the Black Sea. 
 I had now become accustomed to the com- 
 forts of my narrow cabin, and the delicious 
 ease of water-travelling ; and it was not, 
 therefore, without regret that I looked for- 
 ward to the termination of our outward 
 boundary, and the long land journey which 
 awaited us on our return. 
 
 Tuesday, Oct. 1st, 1839. On endeavour- 
 ing last night to reach the door of my cabin, 
 I found it surrounded by bales of goods of 
 all sizes and descriptions, and in the midst 
 one of the million Edelmann, who, wrapped 
 in embroidered cap and bunda, was engaged 
 in registering the goods which were to be 
 shifted from the vessel to the barges going
 
 139 
 
 to Skella. Captain Ferro was obliged to 
 do this immediately, without waiting for 
 the morning ; and a watch was kept all 
 night by him upon the sinking of the water, 
 which, if it had occurred rapidly during the 
 night, would have materially endangered his 
 return to Moldava. The steamer was, 
 therefore, put in a state to start without 
 inconvenience at any moment's notice, which, 
 however, has not been rendered necessary. 
 
 The morning, though cloudy, was quiet, 
 and all things being prepared, we bade fare- 
 well to Captain Ferro and his crew, and 
 entered the boats built for the rapids of 
 Kazan. We were still accompanied by M. 
 and Madame Tshan, M. S. Diirnstein, the 
 Greek Papa, and some others, and the 
 carriage was promised by the evening, or 
 early the next morning. The defile of 
 Kazan, which we now entered, though in- 
 teresting from the beauty of its scenery, is 
 still more so from being the site of one of 
 those astonishing works of the Romans, 
 which still excite our wonder and admira- 
 tion. The rocks on both sides descend per-
 
 140 
 
 pendicularly into the river, and a road was 
 constructed against them, overhanging the 
 water, along the Servian bank, for many 
 miles. Square holes, cut in the rock just 
 below the high-water mark of the Danube, 
 indicate where this balcony was carried. 
 These marks render it probable that the 
 platform of the road was supported by 
 wooden beams, the ends of which were 
 secured triangularly into the rock. 
 
 It is also probable that the average level 
 of the Danube has risen since that period, 
 as the interstices are now all just below 
 the mark, whereas they might reasonably 
 be expected to be found just above it. We 
 did not find the rapids so alarming as they 
 had been represented, and we glided down 
 them without danger or difficulty. The 
 boats are piloted by two men, with oars, 
 placed fore and aft, and a momentary alarm 
 was occasioned, in one part, by one of the 
 steersmen losing his oar. We soon, how- 
 ever, regained it, though the race for it was 
 amusing, as the force of the current caused 
 it often to outstrip the boat, and shoot past
 
 141 
 
 us. The stratification of the rocks is here 
 very remarkable, being extremely distorted. 
 We passed close by several Servian villages. 
 The roofs are of rich brown red tiles, very 
 Hat, and reminding of Italian villages. The 
 chimneys are all white ; and also many of 
 the fronts of the cottages, which altogether 
 give a very brilliant appearance. Most of 
 the towns have a detached wooded frame- 
 work, containing one bell, probably common 
 to the community, and used as an alarm- 
 bell, in case of fire or other disaster. About 
 the middle of the gorge we reached a cele- 
 brated cavern, known by the name of 
 " Veterani's Hohle," from the circumstance 
 of that gallant general having successfully 
 defended it, with only about four hundred 
 men against a very superior body of Turks, 
 in 1692. This cave lies only a few feet 
 above the road, on the Hungarian side, and 
 we stopped for the quarter of an hour it 
 takes to visit it. It has no stalactites, and 
 is in no way remarkable from any other 
 large hole in a mountain. Towards the 
 termination of the defile, the rocks become
 
 142 
 
 even more and more beautiful, rising like a 
 cluster of pinnacles out of a mass of beech 
 wood. Near here is an ancient Roman in- 
 scription, relative to the formation of the 
 road. Though not near enough to distin- 
 guish the characters, we could see it p'ainly, 
 and the disgrace it had sustained from the 
 smoke of the Servian shepherds' fires, who, 
 from its being situated in an arched cavity 
 of the rock, have long found it a convenient 
 place of shelter. It is an inscription of Tra- 
 jan's, probably about 103, A. D. As we ap- 
 proached Orsova, a Servian boat glided by 
 us, with a large bough of a tree stuck in the 
 prow as a sail. A few minutes more, and 
 we were moored at the last Austrian town 
 upon the Danube. The well-known boat 
 of the Steam Navigation Company had at- 
 tracted most of the little population to the 
 shore, and we found a group of persons in 
 Turkish dresses, and a black Arab servant 
 boy, besides Walacks and officials in abun- 
 dance. In the midst was Mons. Dumar- 
 theray, the agent of the company, to whom 
 I had a letter from Monsieur Benvenuti.
 
 143 
 
 From him we received, during our whole 
 stay at Orsova, the utmost kindness, 
 attention, and civility, which I am sure 
 arose less from the letter of the director, 
 than from his own disposition to oblige all 
 who apply to him. Leaving the group at 
 the landing place, we hastened to the inn, 
 knowing that, if we were not active in se- 
 curing rooms, we had a chance of remain- 
 ing in the street. It is a long straggling 
 building, one story high, and containing 
 only one good bed-room. Beyond this are 
 three or four rooms, or rather pens, the 
 walls of which are only deal boards, nailed 
 together, with intervals of at least a quarter 
 of an inch between each, admitting a most 
 refreshing quantity of air, and affording no 
 impediment to the curiosity of yourself or 
 your next neighbour. I took possession of 
 
 the habitable room, and M got one in 
 
 an inn at a short distance, leaving our 
 poor friends, the Walach, Austrian, and 
 Greek, to contrive as they could. After 
 wandering about the place for some time,
 
 144 
 
 the two former got rooms at private houses, 
 while the Papa contented himself with one 
 of the pens. Our dinner was better than 
 our lodging. The veal cutlets, beef, &c., 
 were excellent, or at least quite palatable, 
 to any hungry mortals ; and the wine was 
 very good. We dined all together in the 
 salle, and were rather astonished to find 
 that the individuals whom we had seen in 
 Turkish dresses at our landing, were but 
 " daws in borrowed feathers." They were 
 three Englishmen, who were just returned 
 from Egypt. They had also in their com- 
 pany two Prussians, officers in the service 
 of the sultan, and who had been at the 
 battle of Nezib, and the Arab boy. It was 
 asserted that the latter was a woman in dis- 
 guise, but this was probably a piece of scan- 
 dal. Under the superintendence of Mr. 
 Dumartheray we arranged to visit the 
 Pacha of the fortress of New Orsova to- 
 morrow, and the Iron Gate the next day, 
 previous to our leaving Orsova for the baths 
 of Mehadia. We retired to rest full of
 
 145 
 
 pleasing anticipations, and dreaming of 
 Turks, infidels, and heretics, till the morn- 
 ing dawn. 
 
 Wednesday, Oct. 2, 1839. Everything at 
 Orsova is military. The innkeeper can 
 only charge for his accommodation the 
 sums authorised in a tariff drawn up and 
 signed by the commandant. By his per- 
 mission we fixed two o'clock for our visit to 
 the Pacha, and we employed the morning 
 in examining the town, and taking a sketch' 
 On going out in the morning, we found our 
 friends, the Boyard, Madame Tschan, and 
 Mons. S. Diirnstein on the point of enter- 
 ing the galley which was to convey them 
 down the really perilous passage of the 
 Iron Gate, to proceed to Crajova, Bukarest, 
 and Jassy. We saw them safely off, and 
 then walked on to the Parlatorium. This is 
 the place where the mercantile transac- 
 tions of the three nations, the Austrians, 
 Walachians, and Servians, are carried on. 
 The quarantine regulations, rigidly en- 
 forced in these frontiers, prevent all con- 
 tact between the inhabitants ; and the skella, 
 
 L
 
 146 
 
 or market, is therefore conducted in a pe- 
 culiar manner. The Parlatorium is a long 
 oblong shed, open all round, but roofed in. 
 It is divided into three parts by wooden 
 palings, and in the centre is .another place 
 partitioned, with a table in it for the qua- 
 rantine and custom-house officers, who are 
 on these occasions attended by an armed 
 guard. The side nearest the river, on the 
 brink of which the building stands, is for 
 the Servians ; the eastern division is occu- 
 pied by the Walachians ; and the Austrians 
 appropriate the remainder. Every bargain 
 is carried on through the quarantine officers. 
 The money and articles to be exchanged 
 are received by them with sundry personal 
 precautions, and washed in vinegar, or fumi- 
 gated, according to its nature, before the 
 transfer is permitted to take place. Not far 
 from here is a building in the nature of a 
 quarantine, where dealings with the Turks 
 are conducted, but I did not see the interior. 
 The little town of Orsova has a cheerful 
 appearance, and its situation is extremely 
 beautiful. The river sweeps majestically
 
 147 
 
 through its wooded hills, and the Servian 
 bank sparkles with its white houses and 
 rich brown, tiled roofs. To the north-east 
 rises a mountain, called the hill of Allioni, 
 which, from its position at an elbow of the 
 Danube, commands a fine and extensive 
 prospect, up and down the river, and over 
 the moun tains of Transylvania, Walachia, 
 and Servia. The fortress of Neu Orsova 
 sits brooding in the midst of the broad 
 waters, reminding one of the Boromean 
 Islands ; and to the north lies the valley 
 leading to the baths of Mehadia. No per- 
 son can cross the frontier for a moment, or 
 touch anything belonging to the surround- 
 ing countries, without being subjected to a 
 ten days' " contumatz " at the least, unless 
 he be accompanied by an officer of the 
 quarantine, and another of the customs 
 which are granted by the authority of the 
 military commandant. Our visit, therefore 
 to the Pacha at Neu Orsova, being duly 
 authorised by that functionary, was attended 
 by these two officials; and it being an- 
 nounced by them that the boat was ready, 
 
 L 2
 
 148 
 
 we embarked with our Pesth servant in the 
 capacity of interpreter. Notice had been 
 previously sent to the pacha, who intimated 
 his pleasure to receive us. On reaching the 
 shore of the island, we were received at the 
 gate of the fortress by the dragoman and 
 two Turkish soldiers, of a ludicrously fa- 
 rouche appearance. One of them remained 
 at the Pacha's, while the other proceeded 
 with us during the whole of our inspection. 
 He was a thin, tall, aged, scarecrow look- 
 ing fellow, with a dress faded and ragged, 
 and a musket which seemed more for orna- 
 ment than use, though it was little enough 
 of the former : he had long sandy mousta- 
 chios, and a comical expression of feature, 
 such as, were it not for his oriental head- 
 dress, one might imagine to have suited 
 Don Quixote, had he ever indulged in a fit 
 of laughter. A low salaam from the drago- 
 man welcomed us to Neu Orsova, with a 
 speech expressive of the satisfaction the 
 Pacha would derive from our visit. This 
 preliminary being ended, we formed into a 
 sort of procession; the dragoman, supported
 
 149 
 
 by his two guards of honour, led the way, 
 and we followed, flanked by the quarantine 
 and douane officers, with a rear-guard of two 
 other soldiers. Being duly warned to touch 
 nothing but what they should permit, we pass- 
 ed through the gate of the fort, and entered 
 a large court, or " Place," in which stood the 
 house of the Pacha. This building consists 
 of a quadrangle, surrounded on three sides 
 by a circular arched colonnade, raised on a 
 balcony, which we reached up a rough in- 
 clined plain and some irregular steps. At 
 the right hand corner of this is situated the 
 hall of audience, a square room without 
 any furniture, having windows the whole of 
 two sides of it, which, from being at an angle 
 of the building, commands a view of the 
 entrance gate, and all round the island. 
 Under these windows is a step, about a foot 
 from the floor, covered with cushions, and 
 in a sort of recess is a fireplace, the top of 
 which is curiously ornamented in a Turkish 
 pattern. In the middle of the room was a 
 mat, with a row of wooden chairs prepared 
 for our reception, on which we were in-
 
 150 
 
 formed we might seat ourselves, and partake 
 of such refreshments as would be offered to 
 us. We were directed to keep on our hats 
 during the interview, such being Turkish 
 etiquette. On our entrance, I perceived a 
 Turk seated cross-legged on the cushioned 
 dais in the window, with his pipe in hand, 
 and whom I concluded to be none other 
 than the Pacha himself, whom we had 
 observed peeping at us on our entrance into 
 the court below. I soon, however, found that 
 I was mistaken, and that he was the Imaum, 
 or priest. I had hardly recovered from my 
 blunder, when the real Pacha entered, and 
 squatted himself on the cushion in the oppo- 
 site corner, and in front of us. He was 
 accompanied by his son, a very handsome 
 and intelligent looking boy, about twelve 
 years old, who stood beside him, attentively 
 examining us. I opened the conversation 
 by saying, " that having taken a journey to 
 Orsova, we could not leave the country 
 without paying our respects to him." He 
 replied, " that our presence was a pleasure 
 to him, and that he was always happy to see
 
 151 
 
 any travellers." The attendants now ad- 
 vanced towards us, and kneeling down pre- 
 sented each of us with an amber-mouthed 
 pipe. After a few silent whiffs we resumed, 
 by an inquiry after the health of the young 
 sultan . The Pacha said he had heard from 
 him twenty-three days before, and that he 
 and all the royal family were well. The 
 dragoman now descended from the dais on 
 which he had been standing, and having 
 carefully wrapped his flowing robe round 
 him, so that it could not possibly touch us, 
 advanced to a small circular table before us, 
 on which an attendant had placed a tray 
 containing a compotiere full of some un- 
 known but delicious sweetmeats, and some 
 glasses of water. These he presented to 
 each of us, and we ate and drank. Again 
 we whiffed our pipes and whispered to each 
 other that it was now the Pacha's turn to 
 speak first. He did so, by inquiring after 
 Colonel Hodges, and if he had returned to 
 Belgrade; upon which we informed him that 
 we had passed him in the steamer, on his 
 way to Vienna. We were not then aware
 
 152 
 
 that he had been appointed to Alexandria in 
 the room of Colonel Campbell. There was 
 again a pause; but the interval was not to be 
 regretted, for it was employed in drinking 
 some of the most delicious coffee I ever 
 tasted, certainly far superior to any I have 
 met with in England or elsewhere. We 
 sipped this nectarous beverage, and puffed 
 our pipes like any Turks. After due inter- 
 val, we informed our host that we had left 
 England with Rechid Pacha, our late Turk- 
 ish ambassador. This produced a very long 
 reply, which, being duly interpreted, proved 
 to be an accurate account of the recent 
 changes among the Turkish ambassadors, 
 showing him to be far better politically in- 
 formed than was to have been expected. 
 We had now been with the Pacha above 
 twenty minutes, and thought it time to bring 
 our curious interview to a close. We there- 
 fore asked his permission to examine the 
 island and its contents, which he granted 
 with a smile, enumerating the objects which 
 we might inspect. Unfortunately he omitted 
 to name the mosque, probably from the
 
 153 
 
 presence of the Imaum. This, however, I 
 did not regret, as it had formerly been a 
 Christian church, and bore neither the form 
 nor characteristics of a true mosque. The 
 Turkish token of assent or refusal is remark- 
 able from being exactly the reverse of the 
 European one. A nod of the head is a 
 negation, while a solemn shake is a sign 
 of consent and approbation. A person ig- 
 norant of this, and unable to understand the 
 language, will often think his request re- 
 jected when it is agreed to, and the reverse.* 
 We now rose, made our salaam by laying 
 the right hand upon the heart and bending 
 the body forwards, and quitted " the pre- 
 sence," after a warning from the quarantine 
 officer not to step off the mat upon the floor 
 of the room ; a precaution perfectly absurd, 
 after having sat on their chairs, and held 
 the cherry-stick pipes in our hands, &c. 
 
 On reaching the gallery, the sum of two 
 florins was laid on the ground by the do- 
 ganiere at the feet of the dragoman, who, 
 crossing his hands upon his breast, made a 
 
 * So I was informed, but I doubt the fact. It wants cor- 
 roboration.
 
 154 
 
 profound salaam, and placed the money in 
 his pouch. We then descended into the 
 court, and the secretary and the scarecrow 
 soldier marshalling the way, we entered the 
 narrow streets of the town. The houses arc 
 wretched huts of wood or mud ; those which 
 are shops have a board which lets down in 
 front to display their wares, and forms a 
 shutter at night. The people whom we met 
 seemed to have quite as great a dread of 
 coming in contact with us as we had of them , 
 running away where that was possible, or 
 squeezing themselves into a corner to give 
 us forty times more room to pass than was 
 necessary. The Servian women, who are 
 Christians, gazed at us as we passed ; 
 but the few Turkish women whom we en- 
 countered either vanished in an instant into 
 some house or enclosure, or hurried by, as if 
 ashamed to be seen abroad. Their faces 
 were quite concealed, the forehead and 
 lower part of it being covered with a white 
 handkerchief, leaving only the nose and 
 eyes exposed. The shops contained nothing 
 in the slightest degree attractive, which was 
 fortunate, for it could not have been ob-
 
 155 
 
 tained except at the price of a ten days' qua- 
 rantine. The cemetery is curious ; the tomb- 
 stones are surmounted with turbans, or the 
 fez, and at a little distance seem like the 
 statues of so many Turks. We had nearly 
 completed our survey, and had just passed 
 a cafe where some Turks were smoking and 
 playing at backgammon, when our custom- 
 house officer paused before a small shop, 
 where sat a man at his " receipt of custom." 
 He sprang from his seat with a smile at the 
 sight of the rubicund visage before him, and 
 with a mere " ah !" of recognition, poured a 
 quantity of tobacco into a wooden bowl, 
 which he handed to him. Wood and to- 
 bacco, it seems, do not convey the plague to 
 custom-house officers ; probably because 
 the latter is most strictly prohibited by the 
 Austrian government ; but however this 
 was, the tobacco found its way into the 
 pocket of the officer, and a piece of money 
 into the wooden bowl of the Turk, which 
 forthwith disappeared behind the counter. 
 A laugh completed this precious specimen of 
 official honesty, and we all passed on to the
 
 156 
 
 place of embarkation. The dragoman here 
 commenced a long speech : he said he was 
 directed by the Pacha to express the satis- 
 faction he felt from our visit that had he 
 had a longer notice of our intention, he 
 would have put on his best dress, and him- 
 self have accompanied us over the fortress. 
 As it was, he trusted that we were gratified, 
 requested that I would not forget him, but 
 write down his name, and that if we re- 
 turned to these parts of the world, we would 
 again do him the honour of a visit. To this 
 we of course made a suitable reply, and I 
 wrote down the name of the courteous 
 " Mahmood Bessim Pacha." With many 
 profound salaams we then took our leave, 
 and I could see that the Pacha had watched 
 the whole of this proceeding from the win- 
 dow that commanded the gate by which we 
 were standing. He is an intelligent looking 
 young man about five-and- thirty, and of a 
 pleasing expression and manners. As we 
 slowly rowed back against the stream, the 
 irregular buildings and dilapidated bastions 
 glowed most picturesquely in the setting sun.
 
 157 
 
 We made direct for the Servian shore, where 
 our crew landed and towed us by a rope till 
 opposite Orsova. I made them wait while I 
 took a sketch of the island ; and thus ended 
 our interesting visit to a Turkish Pacha. 
 
 Thursday, Oct. 3, 1839. This morning, 
 at seven o'clock, we started in the carriage 
 we had bought at Pesth, for the Iron Gate, 
 accompanied, as before, by our government 
 smuggler, and his brother of the Contumatz. 
 We shortly reached the bridge over the 
 river Cernitz, and were much surprised by 
 being stopped by the officer at the guard- 
 house, as we were duly provided with a per- 
 mission from the commandant, which we 
 had presented. It appeared, however, that 
 the name of our native coachman was not 
 included, and these rigid disciplinarians re- 
 fused to let him pass without an express 
 order. All expostulation was useless, and 
 wetherefore sent our man,Nicholaus Mika- 
 sinovits, to Orsova for his passport. He 
 obtained it instantly, and we proceeded after 
 a delay of half an hour. The road at first 
 passes through a low marshy ground covered
 
 158 
 
 with alders, and is very bad, and afterwards 
 runs close by the brink of the Danube, till 
 past the fortress of Neu Orsova. We now 
 reached a wooden yellow post, marking the 
 boundary between Hungary and Walachia. 
 On the side facing the former, it bears the 
 Austrian spread eagle; the other is blank. 
 A moment more, and we reached the stream 
 which descends the gorge, forming the real 
 and natural boundary between those coun- 
 tries. Having jolted through it, we passed a 
 rude palisade, and drew up at a Walachian 
 guard-house, at the entrance of a village. 
 It is impossible to give an adequate idea of 
 the wild, squalid wretchedness of this place. 
 A figure, resembling one's notion of one of 
 the Red Indians of America, was walking 
 up and down, with a shouldered musket, 
 before the door. He had no kind of uni- 
 form, but was wrapped in a huge rough 
 sheepskin. His long and matted locks 
 fell straggling over his greasy shoulders, 
 and his deeply furrowed features bore 
 the marks of labour and unwholesome 
 diet. Beside him stood some young men
 
 159 
 
 in military undress, who seemed exqui- 
 sites beside him, and indeed might any- 
 where have been considered of the dandy 
 species. One of them also was facetious, 
 greeting our quarantine officer by offering 
 to shake hands with him a deed which 
 would have consigned the poor official to a 
 five days' experience of his own prison-house. 
 A few words suffered us to proceed, and we 
 passed on through the village, if indeed it 
 deserves the name. It consists of a few 
 huts constructed of wattles, daubed with 
 mud, and thatched with the leaves and 
 stalk of the Indian corn, standing in every 
 position but the perpendicular. They were 
 all separate, with heaps of filth strewed 
 around, and pigs, ducks, geese, &c., wallow- 
 ing in every direction. The people looked 
 as wretched as their habitations, but I am 
 far from believing this to be a sample of any 
 but the very lowest class of Walach villages. 
 The river by whose brink, we journeyed, now 
 expands itself. The hills gradually recede, 
 and we stood at the " Iron Gate." The very 
 reverse of this might be imagined by the
 
 160 
 
 name, and one entertains the idea of a most 
 contracted and rocky gorge, through which 
 the river can barely force its volume of 
 waters. The barrier, however, which is here 
 presented to the navigation, is of a very 
 different description. It consists of a broad 
 belt of low bristled rocks, like a vast harrow 
 with the spikes upwards, which tears the 
 shallow stream into countless adverse eddies, 
 aud would rend to atoms any boat so un- 
 happy as to be dragged by the current upon 
 its teeth. A difficult and devious channel, 
 however, does exist through this apparently 
 insurmountable barrier. This, however, 
 must be varied according to the level of the 
 river, and it is never practicable but by the 
 aid of experienced pilots devoted to that 
 purpose. While we were gazing at it, a 
 barge laden with merchandise appeared in 
 sight, about to try the perilous adventure, 
 which we afterwards found had been most 
 kindly and considerately despatched at that 
 hour by Mons. Dumartheray, in order that 
 we might witness its passage of the rapid. 
 Swift as an arrow it shot onwards, rushing
 
 161 
 
 apparently on certain destruction, and now 
 it enters the reef of rocks. Will it hold 
 straight its onward course ? See, every oar 
 is in rapid and forcible action, every nerve 
 is strained. The vessel wheels right round, 
 and is rushing now upon a still more formi- 
 dable barrier. She strikes ! No ; she again 
 swings round, and dashes freely and gallantly 
 over the breakers, which seem to rage the 
 more fiercely as they see their prey bound 
 over their bosom, and now launch in safety 
 on the calm glassy waters which flow below. 
 The passage scarcely exceeds five minutes, 
 and the breathless interest with which it is 
 viewed from the shore, makes it seem but 
 a moment. At the place where we drew 
 up, some fishermen were exercising their 
 craft, and had secured two sturgeons of enor- 
 mous size, one of them being to all appear- 
 ance from seven to eight feet in length. 
 The sturgeon fisheries of the Danube are 
 let to the fishermen at very large rates, and 
 are found to be highly profitable. We now 
 returned to Orsova, as time would not allow 
 of our penetrating further into Walachia. 
 
 M
 
 162 
 
 While in the carriage I found something 
 at my feet, and stooping down to remove it, 
 my hand came in contact with a cold clammy 
 substance, which made me start back with an 
 exclamation, It proved to be a bundle of 
 fresh young sturgeons, which our quarantine 
 officer had purchased of the fishermen, while 
 we were engrossed by the terrors of " the 
 Iron Gate." We again drove through the 
 wretched village, and having entered the 
 military frontier, I stopped to take a sketch. 
 The scene is very lovely. Immediately 
 before us lay the island fort, with its single 
 minaret. On the Servian shore, to the left, 
 is an outwork, surmounted by a tower on the 
 rock above it, called Fort Elizabeth, while the 
 wooded Carpathians closed in the view with 
 the rich foliage of their extensive forests. 
 We had now to commence our return to Pesth, 
 over the Pusztas of Hungary. An establish- 
 ed post is professed to exist through this 
 line, but this is practically a deception, as 
 would be found to his cost by any one rely- 
 ing upon it. The only mode of travelling 
 through these parts is by virtue of a docu-
 
 163 
 
 ment called a Vorspann, which compels 
 certain of the peasants, at the relays named 
 upon it, to provide you with their own 
 agricultural horses, and convey you from 
 place to place. This paper must be taken 
 the utmost care of, for on its preservation 
 mainly depends the question whether you 
 you shall get to your destination, or remain 
 planted at some village in the centre of the 
 country. This Vorspann may be procured 
 from the authorities ; but even when you 
 have got it, there is another article, with 
 which it is absolutely necessary for your 
 comfort that you should be amply provided, 
 namely, " patience." The law prescribes 
 no limit to the time which you may be kept 
 waiting for the horses at the posthouse. 
 It says nothing as to the pace at which you 
 shall be driven. It offers you neither relief 
 nor consolation at the total derangement, 
 from these causes, of any plans you may 
 have vainly formed as to reaching a parti- 
 cular place at a particular time, nor guards 
 you against being jolted to death over 
 wretched roads, or, what is much better, no 
 
 M 2
 
 164 
 
 road at all. All this must be endured with 
 philosophical coolness, or you will only suc- 
 ceed in adding to your inconveniences by 
 fretting yourself into a fever. This lesson 
 was very early taught us. The required 
 Vorspann was kindly given us by the com- 
 mandant of Orsova to the boundary of the 
 military frontier, beyond which his j urisdic- 
 tion does not extend. Upon the force of it we 
 ordered the horses at one o'clock to take 
 us to the baths of Mehadia. The hour 
 came, but not the horses. After waiting a 
 considerable time, we applied to our constant 
 friend, Mons. Dumartheray, to aid us, and 
 lie proposed that the four horses which had 
 taken us to the Iron Gate in the morning 
 should now convey us to Mehadia, and an 
 order was given to the owner of them ac- 
 cordingly : he agreed, and went into the 
 stable. Time, however, rolled on, and the 
 horses did not appear. We found, on in- 
 vestigation, that the rascally fellow had 
 employed himself, not in harnessing his 
 horses, but in taking off all their shoes, and 
 thus effectually prevented our use of them.
 
 165 
 
 Mons. Dumartheray said we had no re- 
 dress. The horses were the man's own 
 property, and he was not one over whom 
 the Vorspann had authority. At length, 
 however, the proper horses arrived, and, 
 after returning our sincere thanks to Mons. 
 Dumartheray for his unvarying kindness 
 and attention to all our wants and wishes, 
 we quitted Alt Orsova. The road, which 
 is excellently macadamised, lies through 
 the beautiful valley of the Cernitz, and the 
 horses, which were little bigger than Welsh 
 ponies, bowled us along it at full gallop, the 
 driver whooping and hallooing at them all 
 the way. The valley is extremely rich^ 
 covered with vines, melons, and Indian 
 corn, while the surrounding rocks are 
 clothed with wood. We passed a building 
 of eleven arches, placed against a perpendi- 
 cular rock, which descends to the road, and 
 considered to be the remains of a Turkish 
 aqueduct. The baths of Mehadia are at 
 some distance from the town whose name 
 they bear, and are situated in another 
 valley on the banks of the Cernitz, which
 
 166 
 
 here winds nearer to the frontier of Wala- 
 chia. Crossing an iron bridge of some- 
 what singular construction, we reached the 
 gorge in which stand the long celebrated 
 baths of Hercules. The season was quite 
 over ; the place totally desolate ; and with 
 the exception of an English family just out 
 of the Orsova quarantine, who had come 
 from curiosity, we had the whole place to 
 ourselves. We had dined at Orsova, so we 
 employed the little remaining light in get- 
 ting some general idea of the place, and 
 then retired to our beds. 
 
 Friday, Oct. 4, 1839. My night's re- 
 pose was sound and uninterrupted, and I 
 was therefore surprised on learning from 
 
 my companion M that he had been 
 
 haunted by devils ; that, like Hercules, he 
 had had his twelve labours, and that in fact 
 his night had been anything but one of rest. 
 Blood and dead bodies showed the marks 
 of his prowess ; but the wounds which he 
 had himself sustained sufficiently proved 
 that the enemy were not without means of 
 aggression. Indeed, they had a decided
 
 167 
 
 victory, for they drove him from the field, 
 and he positively refused to again assail the 
 fortress where they had so effectually taken 
 up their quarters. He therefore slept 
 the next night upon a sofa in the sitting- 
 room, wrapped in his bunda, and left the 
 bugs and fleas " alone in their glory." In 
 fact, the house was swarming with these re- 
 pulsive animals, and I could not sufficiently 
 congratulate myself that they produced no 
 annoyance to me. This place, known to 
 and esteemed by the Romans, consists now 
 of about a dozen very large buildings, all 
 of them relating immediately to the baths, 
 and a small church. There is nothing 
 which can be called a village. The 
 hotel is part of a vast long building, which 
 takes up one entire side of the oblong 
 space or wide street which constitutes the 
 whole place ; at one end of it is a bath- 
 house, called the Ludwig's Bad, which is 
 thereby reached under cover. Some Roman 
 inscriptions are here let into the wall, among 
 which are the following :
 
 168 
 
 HERCVLI SANCTO SIMONIVS 
 
 IVLIANVS V. C. PRAESE8 
 
 DACIARVM. 
 
 Herculi invicto epomius cher. praef. coh. iubior. v. s. 
 
 jEsculap. et Hygeiae. pro salute Innae Cjrilla quod a 
 longa infirmitate virtute aquarum num. inis sui. revo. cave- 
 runt t. b. a. eius v. s. 1. m. 
 
 Opposite to this building 4t*a a military 
 hospital, and also the restorateurs of the 
 place. All the apartments at Mehadia are 
 let by the government, at an arbitrary tarif, 
 fixed at the pleasure of the officer appointed 
 for that purpose. About a quarter of a 
 mile higher up the valley is situated the 
 Hercules Spring, a copious stream of hot 
 water, which rises out of a limestone cavity 
 in the mountain, at a temperature of 123 
 Fahrenheit. It loses about one degree in 
 its progress to the baths, which are imme- 
 diately below it. The situation of the Me- 
 hadia Bad is most picturesque : it lies in 
 a narrow gorge, which, with the river Cer- 
 nitz, it completely fills up, while lofty rocks, 
 in parts rising to nearly 2,000 feet above it,
 
 169 
 
 close it in on every side. These rocks, 
 though sometimes so escarped as to prevent 
 any vegetation from resting upon them, are 
 chiefly covered with the most luxuriant 
 woods ; and on their summits the tall form 
 of a single fir or distorted stone pine stands 
 out in strong relief against the sky. The 
 springs, which are very numerous, rise in 
 various parts of the valley, nine of them 
 being medicinally employed. They are all 
 hot, and strongly sulphureous, except the 
 Hercules Spring, which is pure from that 
 odoriferous substance. Just beyond that 
 source, the geological formation of the valley 
 is remarkable. The rocks out of which all 
 the springs issue are of compact primitive 
 limestone, which becomes crystalline in this 
 part, forming a beautiful gray marble. Im- 
 mediately against it rises a layer of granite, 
 which, after continuing a short distance, is 
 followed by slate, or loose shale, when the 
 limestone again reappears. This occurs 
 close by a bridge which crosses the river, 
 leading towards the frontier of Walachia. 
 The hills are cut into delightful walks,
 
 170 
 
 among which is that to the " Robber's Cave," 
 a vast cavern, said by the peasants to have 
 been once tenanted by a bandit of the name 
 of Hercules ! It is curiously separated by 
 nature into chambers, and is certainly more 
 worth visiting than that of Veterani. I 
 took two sketches of Mehadia. The three 
 strongest of its sulphur springs rise together 
 a little below the town, from a rock so close 
 as to be generally flooded by the river. Its 
 temperature to-day was 44 Reau. Having 
 quite satisfied our curiosity, we retired to 
 rest, prepared to encounter our land journey 
 through Hungary on the morrow. 
 
 Saturday, Oct. 5, 1839. No horses 
 being kept at the Badort, it was necessary 
 to obtain them from the town of Mehadia, 
 and we had ordered them to come for us at 
 six o'clock. According to custom, how- 
 ever, they did not arrive, and therefore, after 
 waiting some time, we got a pair, which 
 chanced to be at the baths, to take us as 
 far as the station, a distance of about five 
 English, or one German mile. We started 
 at a merry pace, and had not got far before
 
 171 
 
 we met the Vorspann steeds ; and after va- 
 rious delays, expostulations, and explana- 
 tions, we were fairly off at a quarter before 
 seven o'clock. The market at Mehadia was 
 in full vigour, and the costume of the pea- 
 sants extremely picturesque. It was also 
 much set off by the handsomeness of the 
 wearers, who, both male and female, are the 
 finest race of people I have seen. Some of 
 the latter are extremely beautiful, both as 
 regards the grace and contour of their forms 
 and the expression of their features ; and 
 this not in isolated instances, but so fre- 
 quently as to make it a marked characteristic 
 of these Walachs. The men are also very 
 good looking, and extremely civil, scarcely 
 a man or boy neglecting to take off his hat 
 as we passed. The scenery still continues 
 beautiful, the road not having left the neigh- 
 bourhood of the Transylvanian mountains. 
 On reaching the first poste of Konia, we 
 found another instance of the attention with 
 which everything at Orsovahad been done for 
 us, and which we were only unable to profit 
 by from an unfortunate misunderstanding.
 
 172 
 
 The commandant had sent forward, and or- 
 dered all our horses to be out ready for us 
 on our arrival at the relays. They had 
 been in attendance during the whole of yes- 
 terday, but we lost the benefit of it by the 
 time we spent at Mehadia, which was un- 
 known to the officer. This mistake was of 
 some importance. The three first stations 
 lie at a very considerable distance from the 
 road, nearly a couple of miles, and in a 
 different direction, which compelled us to 
 lose a great deal of time in searching for the 
 horses. This occurred next at Teregova. 
 On driving to the " Chancellerie," as the 
 residence of the military commander is 
 called, we found a small group of people 
 assembled before the door. In the middle 
 of the road was placed a bench or settle, 
 and upon it was laid a soldier, stretched out 
 at full length, with his face downwards, and 
 the reverse, awaiting the flagellation which 
 two military officials, cane in hand, were 
 prepared to administer. The culprit had, 
 however, a defence against the pain, which 
 must have been of no small service to him,
 
 173 
 
 in the shape of an enormously thick pair of 
 woollen trousers, which were not removed. 
 He was not tied, but received the number of 
 blows (I think about twenty-five) with a kick 
 of his leg, and an exclamation between a 
 grunt and a groan. On its conclusion, he rose 
 up, and stood quietly by, while another took 
 the enviable post he had occupied. This 
 man was a dogged, ill-looking fellow, and, 
 from the manner in which he underwent 
 the punishment, it was evidently not for the 
 first time. Previous to his lying down 
 upon the board, he was stripped and care- 
 fully examined as to whether he had got on 
 any defence under his trousers to deaden 
 the force of the blows. These were given 
 alternately by the two soldiers beside him, 
 with regular intervals of a few seconds be- 
 tween each stroke, accompanied with two 
 preliminary flourishes of the cane, which 
 then descended with the full force of the 
 operator's arm. Having received the ap- 
 pointed number, he rose with as much un- 
 concern as if nothing had happened. We 
 understood that his fault had been getting
 
 174 
 
 drunk and fighting. Meanwhile the com- 
 mandant had come out to speak to us. He 
 expressed his regret at the misunder- 
 standing about the day of our journey, 
 as the horses had been waiting for us 
 all yesterday, but said that he would in- 
 stantly send for some. He was an old man, 
 thin and upright, of a pleasing and benevo- 
 lent aspect, and evidently anxious to oblige. 
 The fact that we wanted horses soon tran- 
 spired, and we had shortly more than enough 
 brought from different peasants, and did not 
 make our selection from this " embarras de 
 richesses" without producing some discon- 
 tent among the rejected. We continued to 
 meet numbers of the inhabitants of this Avell- 
 populated district in their picturesque cos- 
 tume. The men all wear the sheepskin 
 bunda ; the dress of the women consists of 
 a linen shirt, stamped or worked down the 
 sleeves, with coloured flowers, over which is 
 worn a leather jacket without sleeves. The 
 petticoat is striped or blue, upon which is 
 placed the most curious part of the dress. 
 This is a species of double apron, coming
 
 175 
 
 down both before and behind. It consists 
 of a very broad belt, from which depends a 
 long fringe formed of threads of all colours, 
 and not unlike those worn by the natives of 
 the Sandwich Islands. This apron and the 
 shirt are both made by the women in their 
 own houses, and are not to be found for 
 sale. The next relay is Szlatina, also at a 
 considerable distance from the road, and 
 where we had again to exercise our patience 
 before the horses could be procured. The 
 road is excellent, and we were well driven, 
 but these long delays made it late before we 
 reached Karansebes. This is the last town 
 within the military frontier on this road, 
 and it was therefore necessary to have the 
 Vorspann authorised by the civil authori- 
 ties for us to procure horses to Temesvar. 
 Anxious to get on as far as we could, in 
 order to make sure of reaching that place 
 to-morrow, we had some dinner, and again 
 mounted our vehicle. We here crossed the 
 river Tenies, the right bank of which we 
 had been for some time following, and along 
 whose course we were still to continue.
 
 176 
 
 The excellence of the road had hitherto 
 made us forget, in a great measure, that we 
 were in a conveyance without any springs 
 whatever, as it was only when crossing the 
 wooden bridges, which are most coarsely 
 constructed, that we were reminded of the 
 circumstance. But the rude treatment which 
 our joints soon experienced, would have in- 
 formed us, had we not otherwise known it, 
 that the military boundary was passed, and 
 that we were on a genuine Hungarian road. 
 There was no moon, but the stars were 
 bright and clear, and we could see that a 
 moor, lined with arbitrary tracks, was on 
 each side of us, while we felt, in addition, 
 that the (so called) road was full of the wavy 
 irregularities of a ploughed field, with the 
 advantage of being newly covered with 
 shingle. With sundry grunts and groans, 
 and, I am sure, with far more suffering than 
 that experienced by the soldier culprits at 
 Teregova, we bumped on to Lugos. Here 
 we decided to stop for the remainder of the 
 night : and, after shouting and knocking for 
 half an hour at the gates of the inn, to the
 
 177 
 
 disturbance of nothing but the dogs and 
 geese, we obtained admittance ; and in- 
 stantly retiring to our beds, slept with all 
 the zest given by fatigue, till the morning 
 sun broke our refreshing slumbers. 
 
 Sunday, Oct. 6, 1 839 The little inn at 
 Lugos is far from bad, and we had an excel- 
 lent breakfast this morning. Here we 
 again cross the Temes, and the view of the 
 Carpathians from the bridge is very fine. 
 The plain through which the road had hi- 
 therto passed strongly reminded me of the 
 best parts of the Campagna, the mountains 
 having much of the character of those from 
 Albano to Palestrina. The road, however, 
 now turns towards the west : and although 
 
 7 c5 
 
 the range of hills long continues in sight, 
 they gradually become lower, and recede 
 from our course. At Kiszeten we came 
 upon the celebrated Bega canal, which tra- 
 verses the heart of the Banat, and commu- 
 nicates with the Danube by the waters of 
 the Theiss. After the usual delay we 
 reached Rekas, and observed that the mode 
 of treading out the corn by oxen was used 
 
 N
 
 178 
 
 in this district. We had intended to have 
 reached Arad this evening, but the road 
 continued to progress from bad to worse, 
 reaching such a climax of infamy on ap- 
 proaching and entering Temesvar, as, joined 
 to the previous day's jolting, to render me 
 absolutely ill, and quite incapable of any 
 longer bearing the staunch solidity of our 
 wagon. From its total want of elasticity, 
 every jolt from the road became immediately 
 communicated in its full intensity to my 
 body, and a little more of the operation 
 would, I feared, have reduced me to the 
 consistency of a jelly or an omelette soufflet. 
 The hotel at Temesvar, " the Trumpeter," is 
 luxurious, and therefore, after a good din- 
 ner, I betook myself to repose. Meanwhile 
 Alexander and Nicholaus commenced a 
 search for a carriage upon springs, in which 
 they were most successful ; and the uneasy 
 manufacture of Buda Pesth was left for the 
 admiration of the inhabitants of Temesvar. 
 This city, the capital of the Banat, is a free 
 town and military station, containing about 
 12,000 inhabitants, not including the garri-
 
 179 
 
 son. From the little which my temporary 
 infirmities would allow me to see of it, it 
 appeared a clean and handsome place, con- 
 taining some good buildings. The popula- 
 tion chiefly consists of Wallachs and Ger- 
 mans, of which the former inhabit a suburb 
 called the Michala Stadt, and the latter the 
 Joseph Stadt. The force and efficacy of our 
 Vorspann here expired, and it was necessary 
 to procure a new one from the commander. 
 He was at the theatre, and his officials said 
 the thing was impossible. On his return, 
 however, he instantly granted it with the 
 utmost civility, and left us free to proceed at 
 our pleasure. 
 
 Monday, Oct. 7, 1839. The horses were 
 at the door at six o'clock, and myself, much 
 refreshed and renovated, ready to start ; but 
 still an unknown something detained us, 
 which I could not, at first, exactly ascertain. 
 The mystery, hoAvever, was soon solved. 
 The rascally landlord had charged more 
 than double what was just for every thing, 
 in many instances also putting down as 
 much again in quantity as we had con-
 
 180 
 
 sumed, especially in the article of candles, 
 when he represented us to have used almost 
 enough to have illuminated the whole of 
 Temesvar. Inch by inch he was made to 
 reduce the account, which remained, after 
 all, grossly exorbitant. I never met with 
 so rascally a landlord, except at Embrun in 
 the High Alps of Dauphine. 
 
 We at length got off, and the new car- 
 riage was perfect luxury after what we had 
 endured in the other. I had every reason 
 to congratulate myself with the change, for 
 there was none in the quality of the road. 
 In very few places was it practicable to go 
 in the middle, and it was necessary to follow 
 the tracks on each side, and sometimes none 
 at all. Extensive forests stretch themselves 
 over the plain far as the eye can reach, and 
 the blue mountains we had left still threaded 
 the line of the far horizon. We were sur- 
 prised, on reaching Orczyfolvar, to find all 
 the horses out and ready for us, and again 
 experienced the kindness of the chief au- 
 thorities, the commandant having sent no- 
 tice of our coming, and ordered the steeds
 
 181 
 
 to be prepared. On our road onwards we 
 passed through a village, where we saw the 
 parish school called to dinner by beat of 
 drum. At the welcome rub-a-dub the little 
 urchins poured out of the school-house, each 
 armed with his bag of books, and, with the 
 joyous shouts of regained liberty, went 
 scampering over the village green to their 
 respective homes. During the whole of our 
 route through Hungary, we did not see any 
 windmills for the purpose of grinding corn. 
 That process is performed by horses. A 
 large horizontal wheel, like those used with 
 our thrashing machines, is placed under an 
 open conical roofed shed, and turns a pair 
 of mill-stones enclosed in a small adjoining 
 building, usually placed in immediate con- 
 tact with a dwelling-house. We observed 
 some few windmills, but they were invari- 
 ably close to brick grounds, and had evident 
 connexion with that manufacture. Almost 
 every cottage had tobacco leaves strung and 
 suspended in festoons along the sunny side 
 of the house. We now reached Arad, a 
 town situated on the Maros. It was made
 
 182 
 
 free by the Diet in 1826, and contains about 
 14,000 inhabitants, chiefly Catholics and 
 Greeks. It is the largest beast market in 
 Hungary, except Ketskeraet. The chief 
 privileges of these free towns are, exemption 
 to the burghers from tolls, and the sending 
 deputies to the Diet. These, however, 
 must be Edelmen, or noble, as none of the 
 " Plebs" can by any means be admitted. 
 This distinction conferred on Arad seems, 
 however, to have only had the effect of 
 making its citizens mad, as they have been 
 in one incessant quarrel with their county 
 since that period, on the subject of their 
 rights and privileges. It seems odd that this 
 dispute should have concerned us, birds of 
 passage, but so it was. On reaching the 
 post-house we presented the Vorspann, but 
 were told that being a free town that docu- 
 ment had no power, and that the county 
 must provide us with horses : this the county 
 refused, alleging it to be the duty of the 
 free city of Arad. We were thus made to 
 verify the old proverb, " and between the 
 two stools fell to the ground." Nothing
 
 183 
 
 could be more provoking. The stable 
 was full of horses, which were all ready, 
 but till the question of whether the town 
 or county was to supply them was 
 decided, we might remain at the door. 
 As this dispute had lasted fourteen years, 
 we had small prospect of getting on ; but 
 again our good fortune prevailed. A gen- 
 tleman suddenly drove up, who proved to 
 be the Vicegespann, Herman Jacobi by 
 name. On being made acquainted with the 
 case, he instantly ordered out the horses, 
 wrote an imperative order to supply us with 
 them in future on the bottom of the Ternesvar 
 Vorspann, which was far more civilly word- 
 ed, and also a list of the relays at which we 
 were to procure them, and dismissed us with 
 the kindest wishes for our successful journey, 
 towards which he had done all in his power. 
 Thus supplied, (by the county,) we proceeded 
 to Batonya through the village of Tornya. 
 Our coachman was a singular looking cha- 
 racter; he appeared to be between seventy 
 and eighty, his garments were tattered and 
 torn, and his long white locks hung on his
 
 184 
 
 shoul lers, but the vigour of his arm and the 
 keenness of his eye seemed undiminished, 
 and he drove us with all the vivacity and 
 spirit of youth. The road continued the 
 same, in parts tolerable, and the little Hun- 
 garian horses seemed to be quite indifferent 
 to its defects and excellencies. The country 
 was a perfect plain, but well cultivated, with 
 here and there patches of trees, sometimes 
 amounting to a wood. In various parts we 
 observed hillocks exactly resembling the 
 tumuli of our own country. These ar- 
 tificial eminences were thrown up by the 
 Hungarians during the Turkish wars, as 
 places of observation, the extreme flatness 
 of the country permitting a very extensive 
 view on all sides from the slightest elevation. 
 The sun was getting low in the heavens, 
 and a very distinct mirage spread itself to 
 our left as we approached Tornya. A large 
 *roop of horses was also gathered to wa- 
 tering, round one of those picturesque 
 wells with which the Pusztas abound. These 
 are circular pits, with a post beside them, 
 across the top of which is swung a long
 
 185 
 
 beam, balanced at one end by a heap of 
 stones, and bearing the bucket and chain at 
 the other. We now reached Batonya, 
 and with it the termination of road, which, 
 wretched as it was, had hitherto borne both 
 the name and somewhat of the appearance 
 of a " chaussee." We therefore determined 
 to stay the night, as I was averse to entering 
 on the boundless " Ebene" by night. The 
 town of Batonya has a most singular ap- 
 pearance, but is precisely similar to all the 
 towns and villages in this district. It is 
 perfectly regular, the unpaved streets lying 
 at right angles to each other ; every house 
 is isolated, being surrounded by a yard and 
 garden, and consists of one gable end, white- 
 washed, and almost invariably turned to- 
 wards the road. This isolation of the 
 dwellings spreads them over a great extent 
 of ground, and the principal street, or ra- 
 ther road, through Batonya, is from two to 
 three miles in length. It contains two 
 churches, one Greek and the other Roman 
 Catholic. The inn is not altogether free 
 from "population" though by no means any-
 
 186 
 
 thing like Mehadia, and has no accommo- 
 dations of any kind as regards eating, ex- 
 cept eggs. We had, however, plenty of pro- 
 visions with us ; and with some portable soup, 
 potted beef, fried ham, and eggs, and a good 
 bottle of wine, we amply contrived to sup- 
 ply any deficiency in the larder of mine 
 host. The bed-rooms and beds were com- 
 fortable, and my repose unbroken till the 
 dawn of day. 
 
 Tuesday, Oct. 8, 1839. The dawn had 
 broken, but the sun was not yet above the 
 horizon, when we entered upon the vast 
 Ebene of the centre of Hungary. Far and 
 wide the eye ranges unobstructed by hedge 
 or tree, and the boundless expanse was 
 rendered only more interminable by a par- 
 tial mist which still rested upon it. The 
 cloudless sky became suffused with a ruddier 
 glow, and slowly and majestically the round 
 orb of day rose out of the earth, which, 
 while it dissipated the veil that surrounded 
 us, revealed the scene in its full and undis- 
 guised desolation. The firm and smooth 
 turf over which we were silently galloping
 
 187 
 
 is intersected by innumerable tracts, exer- 
 cising the skill and discretion of the driver 
 to choose the most level and direct. These 
 extensive prsedia are, however, by no means 
 unproductive wastes. They are divided by 
 ditches and low mounds of earth. Some of 
 these are cultivated, while others are left as 
 vast pastures for the breeding of horses, 
 and countless herds of fine white cattle, 
 with which these plains abound. Their 
 desolation by no means consists in a want 
 of animation. Thousands of horses and 
 beasts throng them in every direction, but 
 they are an unbroken level, save by the 
 form of some herdsman or Csiko standing 
 in strong relief against the sky. A little to 
 the south of our line is the celebrated 
 breeding stud founded, in 1785, by the Em- 
 peror Joseph II. This establishment is on 
 a most imperial scale ; being capable, when 
 full, of accommodating 16,684 horses. 
 The usual complement, however, is 3,500. 
 Among the officers attached to it are 238 
 Csikos and 100 Berese. The former is a 
 sort of horse-herdsman. Well mounted and
 
 188 
 
 armed, he remains in constant attendance 
 on the troops of horses and mares grazing 
 in the extensive prsedia. At times he 
 stands, man and horse, motionless as a 
 statue, at others, dashes in a wild and fear- 
 less gallop after some stragglers from the 
 group. The office of the Berese is in like 
 manner to tend the cattle belonging to the 
 establishment, connected with which are 
 several farms and pastures, endowments 
 from the emperor. A large number of the 
 stud are annually sold off, all of which are 
 celebrated for the beauty and uniformity of 
 their size and shape. Passing one of the 
 farms, we were amused by some singular 
 temporary huts, which we at first took for 
 large haycocks. Just before reaching Kom- 
 los, we saw a boy tending a herd of swine, 
 quietly riding about on the back of one of 
 them, while his bristly steed seemed by no 
 means discomposed, or to consider his rider 
 as any unwonted encumbrance. We were 
 detained some time at Komlos, to arrange 
 one of the wheels of the carriage, which was 
 rather hot. When we did start, however,
 
 189 
 
 it was in good earnest. Our driver put the 
 horses into a rapid gallop, from which he 
 never paused till he drew up at the next 
 posthouse. The track was firm and excel- 
 lent, and was the best stage we had done in 
 Hungary. The traffic along here was very 
 considerable : we met great numbers of carts 
 drawn by white oxen, heavily laden with 
 Indian corn. But one of the most beauti- 
 ful scenes I ever saw was the watering of 
 the cattle. On a slight rise in the plain, 
 stood a Puszta well, at which two herdsmen 
 were engaged in drawing the water. In 
 every direction round us were to be seen 
 long lines of the white cattle slowly wend- 
 ing their way towards the refreshing spot. 
 There were none to drive them, but at 
 their own quiet pace they passed onward, 
 forming a long line against the sky. Those 
 to which we approached nearest, would 
 pause for a moment to gaze at us as we 
 vanished past them, and then, with a vacant 
 look of astonishment, proceed on their way. 
 We also observed a beautiful mirage, the 
 most perfect I have seen. Rivers and lakes
 
 190 
 
 were spread out before us, with all the 
 vividness of reality, proving that even that 
 which one sees with one's own eyes is not 
 an evidence of its truth, and that there may 
 be a fallacy in the saying that " seeing 
 is believing." The dogs about these plains 
 are very numerous, and remarkably savage ; 
 we saw several whose long wolf-like teeth 
 were anything but inviting. Our rapid 
 transit during the last stage soon brought 
 us to Oroshaza. In these villages a man 
 is stationed upon the top of the church 
 towers, where he remains all night, and 
 blows a pitch-pipe at every quarter of an 
 hour. The object is to warn against fire, 
 which if it broke out would be very destruc- 
 tive among houses constructed almost en- 
 tirely of wood and mud. The next stage 
 was a long one, and the plain became 
 slightly undulating. After traversing it 
 for some miles, we were surprised by com- 
 ing suddenly upon a part richly cultivated, 
 and in a manner far superior to any we 
 had before seen. It was also introduced 
 by an extraordinary smell of violets, which
 
 191 
 
 lasted above half a mile, without our being 
 iu any degree able to guess from what it 
 proceeded. On inquiring, we found that 
 this estate belongs to Count Caroly, one of 
 the most opulent of the Hungarian mag- 
 nates. He has a chateau in the neighbour- 
 hood, which we shortly reached. The un- 
 divided fields were planted with tobacco, 
 much of which was left to go to seed, tur- 
 nips, wheat, and Indian corn. The mode 
 of thrashing the corn is singular, and serves 
 a double purpose. Six or eight horses are 
 tied together in couples. A man stands in 
 the middle of a paved circular space and 
 lunges the horses round and round over 
 the sheaves, which ever and anon he 
 strews under their feet. This trains the 
 animal while it thrashes the corn. The 
 chateau of the Count, which he probably 
 never visits, is a common-place house, 
 without anything remarkable. The la- 
 bourers employed upon the estate form of 
 themselves a kind of distinct community, 
 and live in adjoining houses, each iso 
 lated, with its garden, and having the ap-
 
 192 
 
 pearance of a long street. We proceeded 
 towards Szentes, before reaching which it 
 was necessary to cross the river Korogy. 
 On reaching it, we found that the bridge 
 was undergoing extensive repairs, and at 
 present quite impassable for a carriage. 
 The bed of the river, in which there was 
 but a scanty supply of water, seemed a heap 
 of mud, and any attempt to pass it threat- 
 ened to leave us fixtures in the middle. 
 There was, however, no alternative, and 
 while some of the party tried the still more 
 perilous adventure of crossing the bridge 
 by a single plank, I remained in the car- 
 riage, and was happily dragged through 
 without any disaster. The town of Szentes, 
 which we now shortly reached, contains 
 16,000 inhabitants, Magyars and Raizen, all 
 professing the reformed faith. Although 
 containing so large a population, it by no 
 means comes up to our ideas of a town else- 
 where. It is a large straggling village, 
 consisting of only huts or poor cottages, 
 each separate, as I have before mentioned, 
 and consequently stretching over a large
 
 193 
 
 space of ground. The unpaved streets 
 are lined with acacia trees, which gives 
 it a somewhat cheerful appearance, while 
 the only building of note in it is a large 
 school. We had now to cross the river 
 Theiss, which I had been very anxious to 
 accomplish before dusk. After traversing 
 a swampy plain over a well-constructed 
 causeway, we reached the ferry, by which 
 we safely attained to the other side. 
 Leaving to our left a new and more direct 
 road, not yet completed, we reached Czon- 
 gradt, one stage short of Alpar, where we 
 intended to go next, on our way to Kecske- 
 met, at which latter place we hoped to sleep. 
 The inn at Czongradt, where we stayed to 
 dine, is situated at the entrance of the town and 
 outside the gates. It was already late, but the 
 place was not prepossessing to stop at ; and 
 finding some good fresh pork, we decided 
 to dine and proceed on our way. Humours, 
 however, reached us that the road was 
 most extremely bad to Alpar, but we 
 were offered to be taken by a route, much 
 shorter and better, direct to Kecskemet. 
 
 o
 
 194 
 
 To this I at first consented, but it being 
 immediately followed by a demand for the 
 payment of the same sum to this driver, 
 which would have been given to the two by 
 going around through Alpar, my mind 
 misgave me that the whole was a trick, and 
 that the reports of the road were false. I 
 was confirmed in this by the testimony of 
 two soldiers of the town of Alpar, who said 
 that though the road was sandy in parts, it 
 was far from bad, and that we might go with 
 safety. These men were Milanese in the 
 Austrian service, and had been seven years 
 on this station. It was therefore decided to 
 proceed by the usual road, and we started. 
 For some distance all proceeded with per- 
 fect smoothness, but the tract became gradu- 
 ally more and more heavy, till, after various 
 efforts, we stuck quite fast, with the addi- 
 tional comfort of the driver declaring his 
 total inability to find the right tract out of 
 the number with which the plain was in- 
 tersected. The night was still and warm, 
 but yet the prospect of spending it on a 
 sand-bank, far from any visible human habi-
 
 195 
 
 tation, was not agreeable, We therefore 
 put our shoulders to the wheel, and being 
 perfectly acquainted with the points of the 
 compass, and, from most accurate maps, the 
 direction in which we ought to move, we 
 proceeded slowly and doubtfully on our 
 way. Often searching for the most beaten 
 tract by the light of the glowing stars, we 
 continued to advance, doubtful, but believing 
 that we were in the right direction. At 
 length we came in sight of some human 
 habitations, and I insisted on making some 
 inquiries as to our locality. Savage and 
 shrill the watch-dogs barked, startling the 
 stillness of the night around us in every 
 direction, and Nicholaus at first hesitated 
 to disturb the inmates, from a dread of an 
 attack from these savage guardians. The 
 company of Alexander, however, reassured 
 him, and they returned in a few moments 
 with the satisfactory intelligence that we 
 were in the direct road for Alpar, which we 
 could not fail to reach in a few minutes. 
 Here we safely arrived, and found it to be a 
 wretched village, with only a single inn, 
 
 o 2
 
 196 
 
 which contained but one parlour, and no 
 sort of accommodation whatever. We would 
 have proceeded, but there were no horses^ 
 they requiring to be summoned from some 
 distance, and the dawn of morning was the 
 earliest moment at which we could by possi- 
 bility continue our course. " Necessity has 
 no law ;" so we wrapped ourselves in our 
 warm bundas, and, rolled up in the carriage 
 at the door of the hotel, went fast asleep. 
 Long before the eyes of man could discern 
 the slightest indication of light, a confusion 
 of sounds commenced among the animal 
 creation, far beyond anything I ever before 
 heard. Countless watch-dogs kept up an 
 incessant conversation far and near. Cocks, 
 ducks, geese, pigs, &c. &c., joined vociferously 
 in the debate, and our horses came galloping 
 into the village before the jarring hubbub of 
 sounds had sunk to rest. 
 
 Wednesday, Oct. 9, 1839. The road which 
 we now traversed convinced us that it was 
 better to do so by day than night, as it re- 
 quires no small discrimination to choose the 
 right tract out of so many ; and when it is
 
 197 
 
 chosen, to keep out of the ruts and holes 
 with which it abounds. The scene is one of 
 perfect desolation ; here and there a solitary 
 farm-house is passed with its vast unenclosed 
 domain stretching round it, while the herds- 
 man or the " swine-general" stands gazing in 
 astonishment at the unwonted sight of a Vors- 
 pann carriage. We at length reached Kecske- 
 met, which is rather prettily situated on a 
 gentle rise. It is celebrated for its cattle 
 fair, and for the excellence of its wheaten 
 bread, the latter of which we can abundantly 
 vouch for, having enjoyed an excellent 
 breakfast in consequence. It contains about 
 36,000 inhabitants, but has the same un- 
 condensed and straggling appearance as all 
 the other Magyar towns. The inn is large 
 and dirty, and, having had a good wash, and 
 an excellent breakfast, we were anxious to 
 proceed. The town, however, was full of 
 a passing regiment, and about eighty horses 
 had been engaged by them. Being, there- 
 fore, assured that the post-horses which pro- 
 fessed to be kept on this road were so in 
 reality, to Pesth, we pocketed the Vorspann,
 
 198 
 
 and determined to try it. Our road con- 
 tinued to lie over a vast sandy waste, no 
 longer perfectly level, but undulating in 
 various directions. Indeed the whole of the 
 Puszta, on the west of the Theiss, is quite 
 different from that in the other quarter, 
 being a mere sandy desert, abounding in 
 hillocks, which reminded me of the country 
 on the shore about Calais and Gravelline. 
 On reachingthe next relay of Lajos, we found 
 one pair of horses at the imperial post-house, 
 but, after some time, another horse was pro- 
 cured, with which we proceeded. We toiled 
 on, sometimes up to the naves of the wheels 
 in sand, and obliged to get out to relieve 
 the weight. The driver, however, was ex- 
 cessively wrongheaded and disagreeable, 
 and our courier was at length so far pro- 
 voked as to take the rope which served as 
 a rein, and give him a licking. This he re- 
 ceived with a grunt of astonishment, and, 
 without any attempt to return the blow, 
 contented himself by observing, that he 
 should lodge a complaint against him on 
 reaching the relay. As, however, we ap-
 
 199 
 
 preached it, he changed his tone, and ended 
 by entreating that we would not mention 
 the quarrel, to which we assented. On our 
 arrival, there were no horses at the poste ; 
 but a few minutes only elapsed before a 
 ragged urchin came galloping into the yard, 
 driving before him a troop of horses, out of 
 which our steeds were speedily chosen. We 
 now observed, by the increasing number of 
 trees, that we were approaching a more fer- 
 tile tract, which gradually increased as we 
 approached the river. The sandy, roadless 
 way, however, continued the same, and we 
 could not but rejoice when, after reaching 
 Soroksar, we found ourselves on a regular 
 chaussee, and entering Pesth. We had 
 latterly found the scenery much to improve, 
 the villages being neater and more compact, 
 and the woods larger. We were most satis- 
 factorily driven, and took up our abode at 
 the Fogado az Angol Kiralynehoz. 
 
 Thursday, Oct. 10, 1839. I started to 
 the Santon's tomb to take a sketch, and 
 meanwhile M kindly took the tempe- 
 rature of the hot baths for me. That of
 
 200 
 
 Hidasfbrd is 97 Fahrenheit, while the 
 water escaping from the spring in the court- 
 yard was 104. The bath of Sarosforde, 
 which is actually at the chief source, was 
 the same, namely 104, while the tempera- 
 ture of the room in which it was was 97, 
 that of the external air 68, and that of the 
 Danube, near the brink, 64. The hotel 
 at which we are lodged is most admirably 
 situated on the quay, with a beautiful view 
 of Ofen ; and our dinner, though in profu- 
 sion, was not altogether so good as that at 
 the " Corne de Chase," the landlord of whom 
 has now taken the " Roy d'Hongrie." An 
 entirely new hotel on another part of the 
 quay is, however, building, and proposed to 
 be opened next August, which is intended 
 to be the best of all. We called on M. 
 Ebner, but he was gone to Debreczin on 
 business. We, however, saw his intelligent 
 son, and left kind messages for his father. 
 After making a few purchases, I parted with 
 Nikolaus Mikasinovits, with whom we 
 were perfectly satisfied, and retired to our 
 beds, as it was imperative upon us to be
 
 201 
 
 across the bridge before the clock struck 
 five, as at that moment the cannon would 
 be fired to open the bridge, and we might 
 then be detained for an indefinite period. 
 
 Friday, Oct. 11, 1839. We started from 
 the door of the hotel at eight minutes before 
 five o'clock, and the signal-gun went off at 
 the very moment we reached the Ofen ex- 
 tremity. The pavement through this part 
 of the town is execrable, and it was twenty 
 minutes to six before we reached the Bar- 
 riere. The road, which is tolerable, soon 
 leaves the river, and, after passing through 
 a level plain, winds among some sand-hills, 
 at first totally bare, and afterwards some- 
 what wooded, to the first poste of Csaba. 
 The journey by land from Pesth to Vienna 
 is conducted by the Bauer post, (or peasant's 
 post,) which drives admirably, often at ten 
 miles an hour, if the road will admit of such 
 rapid movement. From Csaba the road de- 
 scends into a wide level plain, having the 
 Danube visible on the right, and the rock- 
 built city of Gran rising most magnificently 
 at the entrance of the mountains through
 
 202 
 
 which we had just wound our way. The 
 road frequently follows the bank of the 
 river, and is on the whole tolerably good. 
 At Gonyo we found our friendly " Eros" 
 safely moored, engaged in discharging mer- 
 chandise. At a considerable distance to our 
 left, but most conspicuous from its size and 
 mountain situation, rose the celebrated mo- 
 nastery of the " Mons Sacer Panonise," 
 renewed and endowed by the late Em- 
 peror Francis I. The approach to Raab, 
 situated on the river of the same name, 
 is fine, and its tower, steeples, and shattered 
 fortifications very picturesque. These latter 
 were destroyed by the French in 1809. The 
 road does not pass through the city, but 
 through the adjoining suburbs, and we soon 
 after reached the little town of Hochstrasse, 
 where we established ourselves for the night. 
 The accommodations here are as good as 
 ought to be expected at a mere village inn, 
 and we got a very eatable dinner. 
 
 Saturday, Oct. 12, 1839. We left our 
 quarters by dawn, and traversed an uninte- 
 resting country to Wieselburg. We now
 
 203 
 
 entered upon a vast heath, part of which, 
 however, is cultivated, and belongs to the 
 Archduke Charles. It is intersected by 
 countless tracks, and as they bore no dis- 
 tinctive marks to our uninitiated eyes, it 
 seemed wonderful that the driver knew 
 which to choose. He drove us, however, 
 fearlessly and rapidly, and we speedily ap- 
 proached the end of the relay. Here we 
 were stopped by three ruffianly-looking fel- 
 lows, who demanded some money, for per- 
 mission to go upon the track we were fol- 
 lowing, as they alleged, but which was 
 clearly a mere excuse. This we of course 
 refused, and seeing that there were six of 
 us, they passed on ; but I have little doubt 
 that had it been at night, they would have 
 endeavoured to have robbed us. This part 
 of the heath is close upon the frontier, and, 
 as we were aware, bore no very excellent 
 character for honesty. The assemblage 
 which we found at the inn were also the 
 worst looking fellows we had seen, and it 
 altogether appeared that the Archduke 
 Charles had not the best company on his
 
 204 
 
 estate. They in no way, however, molested 
 us. We got our horses, and, after passing a 
 bit of execrable road, reached the Austrian 
 custom-house, where we had reason to expect 
 a most rigid examination. To our surprise, 
 however, after a few ordinary questions, we 
 were suffered to proceed without anything 
 being examined, and a few more hours saw 
 us once again comfortably settled in the 
 hotel of the E. H. Karl at Vienna. 
 
 Sunday, Oct. 13, 1839. A day of thanks- 
 giving, and of rest. 
 
 Monday, Oct. 14, 1839. We hastened 
 this morning to visit Messrs. Schwartz and 
 Benvenuti, to give them some account of 
 our prosperous tour, and thank them for 
 their efficient kindness. The former is 
 generally at home till twelve o'clock, and 
 the latter, who resides in the " Schule Gasse," 
 after two A.M. We went to the opera in the 
 evening, and again saw Mad. van Hasselt 
 in Mozart's " Enlevement du Serail." 
 
 Tuesday, Oct. 15, 1839. I had several 
 things to wind up preparatory to our depar- 
 ture to-morrow, but I was unfortunately
 
 205 
 
 taken so ill as to be unable to leave the 
 house, which I the more regretted, as it 
 deprived me of the pleasure of spending 
 the evening with Mons. Schwartz and his 
 family. 
 
 Wednesday, Oct. 16, 1839. I felt suffici- 
 ently well this morning to attempt our jour- 
 ney home, and we started from Vienna 
 about seven o'clock. The weather, which 
 for the last two days had been miserably 
 cold, with a north-east wind, was again mild 
 and pleasant. The first stage lies chiefly 
 among the islands of the Danube, and is 
 tolerably pretty, but the rest of the way is 
 almost wholly uninteresting. The situation 
 of Znairn is rather picturesque, and we 
 passed on our left, on entering it, a hand- 
 some chateau, once a convent, but now an 
 imperial tobacco manufactory. The chief 
 characteristic of the towns upon this road is 
 a large open space in the midst, usually sur- 
 rounded by houses of grotesque architecture 
 and large gable ends. The inn at Budwitz 
 is clean and good, but the place contains no- 
 thing remarkable.
 
 206 
 
 Thursday, Oct. 17, 1839. The scenery 
 continued as dreary and uninteresting as 
 yesterday, and, without a single incident 
 worth recording, we reached Czaslau, where 
 we remained the night. The hotel is tole- 
 rable. 
 
 Friday, Oct. 18, 1839. A little to the 
 left of our road lies the ancient mining city 
 of Kuttenberg, containing colleges, &c., and 
 a cathedral remarkable for the beauty of its 
 architecture, which is of florid Gothic. At 
 Kb'llin we came upon the Elbe, as yet a nar- 
 row stream, but the road leaves it immedi- 
 ately, and passes over tedious undulating- 
 hills, till it abruptly descends into the valley 
 of the Moldau, at the gorgeous city of 
 Prague. We took up our abode at the 
 " Drei Linden," which is very good, clean, 
 and comfortable. 
 
 Saturday, Oct. 19, 1839. Our first visit this 
 morning was to the cathedral, which bears 
 sad evidence of the Vandal barbarism of 
 Frederick the Great, who amused himself 
 by sending two hundred and fifteen balls 
 through the roof alone, and above fifteen
 
 207 
 
 hundred against its consecrated walls. The 
 church is rich in saints ; St. Vitus lies un- 
 der the high altar ; St. Maximin, St. Wen- 
 zel, and St. John Nepomucene. The shrine 
 of the latter is of solid silver, and valuable 
 both as a work of art and for its mate- 
 rial. The whole cathedral has been recently 
 re-gilt and beautified, and has a very gor- 
 geous appearance. On leaving here, we 
 repaired to the museum of natural history 
 and the library. The former is interesting 
 from consisting chiefly of native produce; 
 and the fossils from the coal formation are 
 very fine. In the library we were shown a 
 remarkably beautiful illuminated Psalter, 
 with other valuable documents : among 
 these was the original challenge of John 
 Huss, the reformer, in his own handwriting, 
 which he affixed to the door of the univer- 
 sity of which he was a professor. We were 
 also shown an original letter of John Ziska, 
 singularly enough signed under that epithet, 
 which is a nickname, meaning "the one- 
 eyed," whereas his real name was John of 
 Trocznow. The librarian speaks English
 
 208 
 
 well, and is indeed said to be a great lin- 
 guist. We now went to the Hradshin, and 
 visited some of its countless apartments. 
 Those of the ancient council-hall, that 
 used by the deputies at present, and the ball- 
 room, are the only ones very remarkable. 
 The views from the first of these are very 
 splendid in every direction, as its windows 
 overlook the whole of the city and river. 
 On leaving the outer court of the palace, 
 the attention is drawn to the palace of the 
 Prince Schwartzenberg, of antique Moorish 
 looking architecture, and which once stood, 
 a hunting schloss, in the midst of a spacious 
 forest. We drove to the summit of the 
 hill, by the side of a long and lofty battle- 
 mental wall, erected by order of Charles 
 IV. to employ his starving subjects during a 
 famine, and which is best known by the 
 name of the " Bread Wall." The view is not 
 so beautiful as from the Hradshin and be- 
 yond it. Driving through two of the courts 
 of that vast building, we came suddenly 
 upon a bridge thrown over a ravine, which 
 isolates the palace and cathedral towards
 
 209 
 
 the north. The view here is especially pic- 
 turesque, the buildings clustering well to- 
 gether. We descended the hill by the 
 Bruska bastion, from which is the best pros- 
 pect of the whole town on both sides of the 
 river. From here, to reach the bridge, we 
 had to pass through the Waldstein Strasse, 
 where is the palace of the celebrated Wal- 
 lenstein. Preparations are making for the 
 erection of a chain-bridge, just above the 
 magnificent stone one which alone crosses 
 the river at present. The foundations of the 
 piers are already executed. In the after- 
 noon we went to some shops, and to the 
 opera of Massaniello in the evening. 
 
 Sunday, Oct. 20, 1839. We left Prague, 
 on our way to Dresden, early this morning, 
 and crossed the " white hills," where the 
 fete of Protestantism in Bohemia was 
 decided by the victory of the Imperialists 
 under Berquoy and Tilly in 1620. As we 
 approached Saxony, the scene became more 
 interesting from its volcanic character, coni- 
 cal hills, some with the remains of castles 
 upon them, rising up in various directions. 
 
 p
 
 210 
 
 There is another road to Tb'plitz by the for- 
 tress of Theresienstadt, which can be done 
 in rather a shorter time, but the one we now 
 went is the best for seeing the country. 
 
 Monday, Oct. 21, 1839. We walked over 
 the little town of Tb'plitz, which I found 
 improved and enlarged since I was at it ten 
 years ago. I had a bath, and we then pro- 
 ceeded on our way. This traverses the val- 
 ley direct towards the mountains, passing 
 through the village of Kulm. Three monu- 
 ments, all in good taste, have been erected to 
 the memory of those who perished in that 
 important battle, Aug. 30, 1813. The first 
 we reached is that of the Russians, then the 
 Prussians, and lastly that of the Austrians. 
 This last is of cast-iron, and is certainly the 
 best of the three. We now commenced the 
 ascent of the mountains which here form the 
 division between Saxony and the empire of 
 Austria. The views towards the south and 
 west are beautiful, and, on attaining the sum- 
 mit, we opened upon the very singular rocks 
 of the Saxon Switzerland. The road is 
 smooth and well constructed, and soon
 
 211 
 
 wound us through the hills to the Custom- 
 house, where we experienced no detention 
 whatever. We came upon the Elbe at 
 Pirna, and, following the banks of that river, 
 soon reached Dresden. The celebrated 
 Leipsig fair was just over, and had trans- 
 ferred itself to the capital, where the streets 
 were so densely crowded as to render our 
 journey from the gates to the hotel a 
 work of danger and delay the former to 
 the population, and the latter to ourselves. 
 It also occasioned us another inconveni- 
 ence. All the hotels were full. The Ho- 
 tel de France, which has the best cuisine, 
 was the one to which we desired to go; 
 but though we had written the day before 
 for rooms, none could be had. We were 
 therefore compelled to put up at the Hotel 
 de Pologne, formerly very bad, but which 
 however, is very much improved since I 
 knew it in 1829. 
 
 Tuesday, Oct. 22, 1839 I had not yet 
 entirely recovered from the indisposition 
 which attacked me the day before we left 
 
 p 2
 
 212 
 
 Vienna, and therefore now remained at 
 home for rest and the necessary remedies. 
 
 Wednesday, Oct. 23, 1839. We visited 
 the Treasury, known as "the Green Vaults," 
 which, after The Gallery, is the best worth 
 seeing of anything in Dresden, The crown 
 jewels are almost inestimable, and there is, 
 besides, a profusion of rare and valuable 
 articles of " vertu." In the evening we 
 went to the Opera to see Schrb'der-Devrient 
 in Romeo. She is unquestionably the first 
 actress as well as singer of the age. Giuli- 
 etta was played by a young debutante, of the 
 name of Signora Marx, who was extremely 
 good, and being well looking, and with a 
 very fine voice, is likely to become cele- 
 brated. 
 
 Thursday, Oct. ^ 1839. As I wanted some 
 shopping trifles, I went to the house of a Mr. 
 Wolf, a vender of curiosities, who had some 
 beautiful things, but he charged exorbitantly ; 
 so I bought nothing. I went over the ware- 
 house of the Modern Dresden China, and 
 thence hurried to The Gallery. The building
 
 213 
 
 in which they are placed is bad and ill 
 lighted for its purpose, and the pictures, 
 though very recently rearranged, are badly 
 placed. Much enthusiasm has been ex- 
 pended over the " Madonna." I cannot 
 think it so perfect a picture as it is generally 
 considered. The countenance of the Virgin 
 is stern and almost bad-tempered, and that 
 of the Infant Christ is repulsive : the eyes 
 are starting from its head, and it looks on 
 the point of bursting into tears, half from 
 fright and half from vexation. The heads 
 of the two angels at the base are very fine. 
 The whole aspect of the picture would be 
 improved by a slight coat of varnish. The 
 most surprising picture in the whole gallery 
 is, in my opinion, the one known as " The 
 Tribute Money." Craft and mock humility 
 are clearly developed in the features of the 
 Pharisee, while the countenance of our Sa- 
 viour breathes an expression of calm un- 
 earthly superiority, and his searching eye 
 seems reading the very depths of the temp- 
 ter's soul. It is a sublime effort of the art 
 of painting. About two o'clock we left
 
 214 
 
 Dresden by the Leipzig railway. The 
 station is a handsome building, just beyond 
 the Japanese Palace. The distance by the 
 post-road is about 65 English miles, but by 
 the railroad 75. The diligence, however, 
 takes eleven hours by the former, while a 
 little more than four hours is required by 
 the latter. We stopped eight times, and 
 for periods much longer than necessary. 
 Our own carriages were secured upon a 
 truck, and we went in one of the public con- 
 veyances. The rails are on wooden sleepers, 
 and the police have red and white flags. 
 There is one tunnel, just within the rails of 
 which are small bricked holes, sunk in the 
 ground at short intervals, in which are 
 placed red lamps. We crossed the Elbe 
 by a handsome viaduct of considerable 
 length, and reached Leipzig at half-past six, 
 where we found a carriage, &c., ready to 
 convey us to the hotel, at which we had 
 ordered our rooms some time before. 
 
 Friday, Oct. 25, 1839. We proceeded 
 early on our way to Cassel. We were sur- 
 prised, on reaching the first relay of Merse-
 
 215 
 
 burg, to find it a town of great architectural 
 interest. On a rock overhanging the river 
 Saale stands an imposing chateau, connected 
 with a very fine Gothic cathedral. A large 
 number of the doors and windows in the 
 streets through which we drove, were of 
 elaborate tracery, and I have no doubt but 
 that a day at least might have been well 
 spent there among its antiquities. The 
 scenery continued uninteresting and ordi- 
 nary, though not ugly, and the road excel- 
 lent, till we reach Querfurt. From here to 
 Altstat the way is execrable. In fact, the 
 road has never been made; it traverses a 
 wild forest, not unpicturesque in parts, and 
 seems only used by wagons and agricul- 
 tural vehicles. We, however, got safely 
 through it, and from thence to Nordhausen 
 the road cannot be improved. We obser- 
 ved an interesting attention to the comfort 
 of the Burshen who perambulate this part of 
 the country in great numbers. At inter- 
 vals of a few miles, a few trees are planted, 
 under which is a seat surrounded with a 
 flower-bed, decked with roses, daliahs, and 
 other cheerful flowers.
 
 216 
 
 Saturday, Oct. 26, 1839. It was too dark 
 yesterday evening to see much of the town, 
 but it was light before we quitted the com- 
 fortable hotel of the Romisher Kaiser. The 
 place is very picturesque, the houses being 
 built of a timber frame-work, filled up with 
 bricks plastered over, and painted in every 
 variety of colour which the taste and fancy 
 of the respective owners could conceive. 
 The road is excellent. The town of Heile- 
 gestadt is remarkably situated in a wooded 
 dell. Here we were detained a little while, 
 from a dispute which arose out of our courier 
 having struck the postilion on the road. A 
 few swanzigs accommodated it, and we pro- 
 ceeded, winding through beautiful valleys in 
 a coal district, and through several pictu- 
 resque villages, till we reached Cassel, and 
 put up at the Hotel Kb'nig v. Preussen. 
 
 Sunday, Oct. 27, 1839. The weather 
 was intensely cold, foggy, and gloomy, and 
 so uninviting to stir out, that we only took 
 a hurried look at the statue of the Elector 
 Frederick in the Fredricks Platz, and 
 through the not ungraceful gateway into 
 the public gardens at the end of the square.
 
 217 
 
 These are not well kept, at least at this 
 time of the year, but in fine weather must 
 be very agreeable. Cassel is altogether a 
 handsome town, and the society is probably 
 good, from the number of English residents. 
 
 Monday, Oct. 28, 1839. The scenery for 
 some distance is in no way remarkable. It 
 improves, however, on reaching Arolsen, 
 where is the palace of the Count Waldeck, 
 the prince of the little state of which it is 
 the capital. The celebrated Spa of Pyr- 
 mont also belongs to him, and contributes 
 not a little to increase his revenue. The 
 road now becomes much more beautiful, 
 winding through wooded valleys, following 
 thestream of the Ruhr. We entered Prussia 
 at the village of Kanstein. Arensberg in 
 Westphalia was one of the principal seats 
 of the dreaded Vehm Gericht. It is situated 
 on an elevated peninsula, formed by a sweep 
 of the river Ruhr. The inn (Konig v. 
 Preussen) is very good. The place itself 
 is clean and neat, and the ruins of its old 
 castle very picturesque. 
 
 Tuesday, Oct. 29, 1839. The district
 
 218 
 
 which we now traversed is very fine, remind- 
 ing of some of the most beautiful parts of 
 Surrey. It is besides densely populated, 
 being the Sheffield and Birmingham of 
 Prussia. The town of Elberfelt has about 
 58,000 inhabitants, and is most important 
 from its extensive manufactures. It is cele- 
 brated for a dye, called Turkey red, which 
 is prepared here in so superior a manner, 
 that vast quantities of cotton-yarn are sent 
 from Glasgow and other places, and impor- 
 ted dyed. In 1829, the annual produce of 
 the manufacture here was estimated at 
 above three millions sterling. The road is 
 throughout well macadamised, and we reach- 
 ed Dusseldorf before dusk. 
 
 Wednesday, Oct. 30, 1839. Dusseldorf is 
 a dull uninteresting town, and we had not 
 time to visit the admirable school of fresco 
 painting established here by Cornelius. 
 The passage of the Rhine is by a flying 
 bridge, close to the village of Dussel, and at 
 a considerable distance from the city which 
 it names. The road is well made to Juliers, 
 when it falls into the Cologne and Aix-la-
 
 219 
 
 Chapelle road. We proceeded without stop- 
 ping to Liege, and passed the custom-house 
 after only a few minutes' detention. Pavil- 
 ion Anglaise. 
 
 Thursday, Oct. 31, 1839. We had de- 
 cided to take advantage of the railroad to 
 Bruges and Ostend, to reach the former 
 place to-day, and therefore before seven left 
 the hotel for the station. This is situated 
 on the summit of the hill which overlooks 
 the city, and takes full forty minutes to 
 reach, at a good pace, with post-horses. We 
 were in ample time, as the train did not start 
 till half-past eight. The country through 
 which we flew, has not a single object of 
 interest. At Mechlin we changed to ano- 
 ther train, and soon reached Ghent. Here 
 we were told, to our surprise and my indig- 
 nation, that we were to wait four hours, till 
 the Ostend train arrived from Brussels. 
 Not feeling disposed to be thus delayed, I 
 immediately ordered post-horses, and the 
 carriage was clumsily removed from the 
 truck which had conveyed it. I had re- 
 mained in the carriage during the whole
 
 220 
 
 journey, which it is quite safe to do. The 
 line is remarkably easy, and the rails on 
 wooden sleepers. Two lines are intended, 
 but only one is as yet quite completed. 
 The horses soon arrived, and we started 
 from the station, in a manner which showed 
 that the driver had no command over them. 
 He was continually driving upon the car- 
 riage of the courier, which was just before 
 us, and paid no regard to the constant orders 
 to stop which we vociferated. The pace of 
 the horses momentarily increased, and while 
 we expected to be dashed against some huge 
 wagon, we suddenly became the aggressors, 
 by running against and overturning a small 
 cart drawn by two donkeys. The little 
 equipage was whirled round and dashed 
 against a shop-window, which it shivered to 
 atoms. The horses were now stopped, and 
 the good-natured crowd which had collected 
 unharnessed them, and dragged the carriage, 
 with us in it, in sorry triumph to the post- 
 house. The postmaster was exceedingly 
 civil, and stated that the boy was ill, but 
 that he had thought him sufficiently well to
 
 221 
 
 have brought the carriage to the inn from 
 the station without an accident. He gave 
 us fresh horses and postilion, and we pro- 
 ceeded without any more adventures. The 
 hotel at Bruges, " Hotel de Commerce," is 
 excellent. 
 
 Friday, Nov. 1, 1839. The road from 
 here to Calais, through Furnes, is perfectly 
 good. The custom-house was very civil, 
 and only detained us a few minutes for 
 form's sake. We were but badly driven, 
 but arrived before dark at the Hotel Dessin. 
 
 Saturday, Nov. 2, 1839. The weather 
 had been so extremely boisterous for many 
 days, that the English mail-packets were 
 compelled to run to Boulogne, and the 
 French mail alone was to cross to-day. We 
 therefore took our places by it, and had a 
 rapid but extremely rough and rainy pas- 
 sage. Having passed the Dover custom- 
 house, we proceeded home without delay, 
 and reached Gatton again at ten o'clock. 
 
 THE END.
 
 ITINERARY. 
 
 Wednesday, Aug. 14, 1839, 
 
 Calais at 7 ; Ardres at 5 m. past 8 ; La Recousse 20 m. to 9 ; 
 St. Omer 10 ; Cassel 12 ; Bailleul 2 ; Armentiere 5 m. to 
 3 ; Lisle 7 m. past 4 ; Pont Tressin 5 ; Belgian Custom- 
 house half-past 5 ; Tournay 1 m. past 6. 
 
 Thursday, Aug. 15. Left Tournay at 7 ; Bury half-past 
 8 ; Hornu at 10 m. past 10 ; Mons 11 ; Brai 10 m. past 
 12 ; Auderlues half-past 1 ; Charleroi half-past 2 ; Sombref 
 5 ; Quatrebras 20 m. past 5 ; Namur half-past 8. 
 
 N.B. Detained three quarters of an hour at Quatrebras. 
 
 Friday, Aug. 16. Left Namur at 25 m. to 7 ; Vivier 
 PAgneau 10 m. to 8; Emplines 10 m. past 9 ; La Marche 
 quarter past 1 1 ; Champions 5 m. to 1 ; Bastogne quarter 
 to 3 ; Martelange 25 m. past 4 ; Arlon 20 m. past 6. 
 
 Saturday, Aug. 17. Left Arlon quarter to 7 ; Luxem- 
 burg quarter past 9 the gates close at 10 o'clock ; left ditto 
 at 1, baited at Radt a quarter of an hour ; Grevenmachern 
 at 10 m. past 4 ; baited half an hour ; left it at 20 m. past 
 5 , Custom-house 5 m. past 5 ; detained till 25 m. to 6 ; 
 Trieves quarter to 7.
 
 224 
 
 Sunday, Aug. 18. LeftTrieves 10 m. past 6 ; Hermei- 
 sekeil 10 m. to 10 : Birkenfeld 20 m. past 12 ; Oberstein 
 quarter past 2 ; left Oberstein at 10 m. past 3 ; Kirn at 20 
 to 5 ; Soberheim 6 ; Kreuznach quarter to 8. 
 
 Tuesday, Avg. 20. Left Kreuznach at half-past 7 ; 
 Alzey half-past 10 ; Worms 10m. past 1 ; left Worms at 5 
 m. to 2 ; Oggersheim 5m. to 3 ; Mannheim quarter to 4. 
 
 Wednesday, Aug. 21. Left Mannheim for Schwetzingen 
 at 25 m. to 1. The drive took one hour and ten minutes. 
 We spent two hours in the gardens, (which deserve more,) 
 and reached Mannheim at 10 to 5. 
 
 Thursday, Aug. 22. Left Mannheim at 10 m. past 7 ; 
 Schwetzingen at 10m. past 8 ; left it at a quarter past 9 ; 
 Waghausel half-past 10 ; Bruchsal 12 ; Bretten at 20 m. to 
 2 ; Illingen half-past 3 ; Schweibertingen at 25 m. past 5, 
 and Stuttgard at 7. 
 
 Friday, Aug. 23. Left Stuttgard half-past 9 ; Neckar- 
 Thailfinger at 12 ; Urach 10 to 2 ; Miinsingen 10 to 4 ; 
 Ehingen 20 m. past 6 ; Biberach 10m. to 9. 
 
 Saturday, Aug. 24. Left Biberach at 7; Oxnhausen 9 ; 
 Mimmengen 25 m. to 12 ; Wolfartschwendt quarter to 1 ; 
 Kempten 25 m. to 3 ; Nesselwang quarter past 6 ; Fussen 
 at half-past 8. 
 
 Monday, Aug. 26. Left Fussen half-past 7 ; Reutte 9 ; 
 Lermoss 25 m. to 12 ; Nassereit 10m. past 2. 
 
 Tuesday, Aug. 27. Left Nassereit half-past 7 ; Ob. 
 Miemmingen half-past 9 ; Telfs. 23 in. past 10 ; Zirl 10 m. 
 past 12 ; Insbruck 20 m.to 2. 
 
 Wednesday, Aug. 28. Left Insbruck at 10 m. to 7; 
 Volders25 m. to 9 ; Schwatz 10 m. past 10 ; Rattenberg 25 
 m. past 12 ; Wb'rgl 5 m. past 2 ; Soil 25 m. to 4 ; Ellman 
 quarter to 5 ; St. Johann a quarter to 6.
 
 225 
 
 Friday, Aug. 30. Left St. Johnn at 10 m. past 7 ; Waid- 
 ring at 10 m. to 9 ; Unken Custom-house at 10m. past 1 1 ; 
 the Post-house half-past 111 ; Reichenhall 2 ; left Reichen- 
 hall at a quarter to 3 ; reached Salzburg at 5. 
 
 Saturday, Aug. 31. Left Salzburg at 8 ; Hof at 10 m. 
 past 10; St. Gingel20 m.to 1 : Ischl half-past 3. 
 
 Monday, Sept. 2. Left Ischl 10 m. past 8 ; Lauffen 
 quarter to 9 ; Goisern 5 m. past 9; St. Agatha 25 m. past 
 9 ; Summit of the Ascent 5 m. to 11 ; Aussee at 12; left 
 Aussee for the Grundel Lake at 10 m. to 1 ; reached ditto 
 25 m. past 2 ; left Lake 10 m. past 3; back to Aussee at a 
 quarter to 4 ; left Aussee at 4 ; reached the Summit of the 
 Pass at half-past 5 ; St. Agatha quarter past 6 ; Goisem 25 
 m.to 7 ; Lauffern 7 ; Ischl 20 m. to 8. 
 
 Wednesday, Sept. 10. Left Ischl at 20 m. to 9 ; Lauffen 
 10m. past 9 ; Steg 10 m. to 20 ; detained 20 m. for a boat. 
 (N.B. it is best to drive to the Gosau Miihleand take a boat 
 there.) Left Steg at m. past 10 ; Gosau mill at 20 m. to 
 II ; left ditto at 5 m. past 11 ; Halstadt 20 to 12; left Hal- 
 stadt half past 3 ; Gosau mill 4 ; Steg at 25 m. past 4 ; Ischl 
 quarter to 6. 
 
 Thursday, Sept. 12. Left Ischl at half-past 8 ; Steg 10 
 m. to 10 ; Gosauschwang 10 m. past 10 ; left it at 10 m. 
 past 2 ; reached Halstadt at a quarter to 3 ; left ditto at 20 
 m. to 5 ; Obertraun at 5 ; the Gosau mill at a quarter to 6 ; 
 Ischl half-past 7. 
 
 Saturday, Sept. 13. Left Ischl at 9 ; turned off beyond 
 Lauffen 10 m. to 10 ; reached Chorinsky Klause at 10 m. to 
 11 ; left ditto at 20 m. to 12 ; reached the main road at 
 half-past 12 ; Ischl quarter past 1. 
 
 Monday, Sept. 16. Left Ischl at 11 to the turning off 
 
 Q
 
 226 
 
 on foot to the Schwartz Sec quarter past 12 ; Wolfgang at 
 
 1 ; left it 18 m. past 2 ; Ischl 7 m. to 4. 
 
 Tuesday, Sept. 17. Left Ischl at 7 ; Gosauschwang at 9 ; 
 
 Gosau 25 m. to 1 1 ; end of carriage road quarter past 1 1 ; 
 
 the inn quarter past 12 ; left Gosau 5 m. to 3 ; Gosau 
 
 Mill quarter past 4 ; Ischl 6. 
 
 Wednesday, Sept. 18. Left Ischl 10m. past 6 ; Lambach 
 
 at 10 m. to 8 ; left it in steamer Sophia at 20 m. past 8 ; 
 
 reached Gemlind at a quarter past 9 ; left it at a quarter to 
 
 10 ; reached the Falls at 20 m. past 11 ; left them at 12 ; 
 
 Lambach 5 m. past 1 ; Welles 20 m. past 2 ; Neubau at a 
 
 quarter to 4 ; Linz 10m. past 5. 
 
 Thursday, Sept. 19. Left Linz at 6 ; Mauthausen 10 m. 
 
 past 7 ; Grein quarter to 9 ; Ips. 20 m. to 10 ; Gt. Poch- 
 
 larn quarter past 10; Molk at 20 to 11 ; Castle of 
 
 Aggstein 10 m. past 11 ; Stein 12 ; Tully 5 m. past 
 2 ; Neusdorf 22 m. to 4 ; left Neusdorf at a quarter past 
 4, and reached Vienna at 5. 
 
 Tuesday, Sept. 24. Left the Hotel E. H. Karl at 25m. 
 past 1 ; reached the Station in a quarter ; left ditto at 2 ; 
 Wagram at 25 m. to 3, about 13 English miles re- 
 mained 8 m. ; Gausendorf 8 m. past 3 detained till 20 m. 
 past 4 ; Custom-house 5 m. to 7 detained 35 m. ; Pres- 
 burg 10m. past 9. 
 
 Wednesday, Sept. 25. Left Presburg at 5 ; struck on 
 sand bank at 5 m. past 7 ; disembarkation of passengers at 
 20 m. to 12; passengers reboarded, and vessel off at 
 8 ; Kl. Kodak at 25 m. past 2 ; put on board the Ar- 
 pad, out of the Nador ; got fairly off at half-past 4 ; Gonyo 
 quarter to 7 : left ditto at 5 m. past 7 ; Komorn 20 past 
 2; detained till 20 m. past 9 ; Gran quarter past 12 ; Pesth 
 quarter past 4.
 
 Friday, Sept. 27. Left Pesth at quarter past 5 ; Foldva. 
 5 m. to 1 1 ; Paks 5 m. to 1 ; Tolna ] m. to 4 ; Baja quar- 
 ter past 7. 
 
 Saturday, Sept. 28. Left Baja at 25 to 1 A.M. ; reached 
 Mohacs quarter to 3 ; left ditto 20 m. past 8 ; Apatin 10 
 to 2 P.M. ; Castle of Erdod and the Drave 20 m. past 3 ; 
 Vukovar 20 m. past 5 ; struck on sandbank half-past 7. 
 
 Sunday, Sept. 29. Left the sandbank at a quarter past 
 12 A.M. : Illok quarter past 1 ; Neusatz 4 ; left ditto quar- 
 ter past 5 ; Semlin 20 m. to 12 ; left Semlin 5 m. to 2 ; 
 struck at quarter past 3 ; started again at 6 ; Panesova quar- 
 ter past 6 P.M. 
 
 Monday, Sept. 30. Left Panesova at 5 ; Semendria 
 quarter past 7; Moldava half-past 12; left ditto at 10m. 
 to 2 ; Drenkova half-past 4. 
 
 Tuesday, Oct. 1 . Left Drenkova 5 m. to 7 ; entered the 
 rapid at 20 m. to 9 ; Veterani's Cave at 5 to 1 ; left ditto 
 quarter past 1 ; Alt Orsova at 5 m. to 4. 
 
 Wednesday, Oct. 2. Left Orsova at 2 ; reached the island 
 at half-past 2 ; left ditto 25 m. to 4 ; reached the Servian 
 shore quarter to 4 ; sketched till half-past 4 ; reached Orsova 
 at half-past 5. 
 
 Thursday, Oct. 3. Left Orsova for the Iron Gate at 7 ; 
 reached the bridge across the Cernitz quarter past 7 ; de- 
 layed there till quarter to 8 ; entered Walachia at 25 m. 
 past 8 ; stopped at the Iron Gate at 9 ; left ditto at 10 m. 
 to 10 ; stopped to sketch at the boundary post at 25 m. past 
 10 ; left it at 5 m. past 11 ; reached Orsova at 12 ; left Or- 
 sova for the Baths of Mehadia at half-past 2 ; arrived there 
 at 20 m. to 5. 
 
 Saturday, Oct. 4. Left the baths of Mehadia quarter 
 past 6, but not fairly off till quarter past 7 ; town of Me-
 
 228 
 
 hadia quarter past 7 ; Konia 10 m. to 9 ; left ditto 20 m. 
 past 9 ; Teregova 5 m. to 11 ; left ditto half-past 11 ; fur- 
 ther delays for horses ; not fairly off till half-past 12 ; Szla- 
 tina 10m. past 2 ; left ditto at 3 ; Karansebes 20 to 5 ; 
 left ditto at 25 m. past 6 ; Szakul 20 m. past 9 ; left ditto 
 5 m. to 10 ; reached Lugos at half-past 12 (midnight.) 
 
 Sunday, Oct. 6. Left Lugos 25 m. to 8 ; Kiszeten half- 
 past 9 ; left ditto at 10 ; Rekas at 5 past 12 ; left at 25 m. 
 past 12 ; Temesvar quarter to 3. Hotel, the Trumpeter. 
 
 Monday, Oct. 7. Left Temesvar at 25 m. to 7 ; Orczy- 
 folvar at 5 m. past 9 ; Arad 22 m. past 12 ; left ditto at 
 25 m. to 2 ; Batonya at 5. 
 
 Tuesday, Oct. 8. Left Batonya at 6 ; Komlos 20 m. to 
 9 ; left ditto 5 m. past 10 ; Oroshaza 5 m. past 11 ; left 
 ditto 25 m. past 1 2 ; reached the river Korogy at a quarter 
 to 4 ; Szentes at half-past 4 ; left ditto at 5 ; crossed the 
 Theiss quarter to 6 ; reached Csongradt 25 m. to 6 ; left 
 ditto 20 m. p. 8 ; reached Alpar quarter past 1. 
 
 Wednesday, Oct. 9. Left Alpar at half-past 5; reached 
 Kecskemet at 9 ; left ditto at 11 ; Laijos at 2 ; Orkeny 6 
 m. past 8 ; left ditto at half-past 4 ; Inaresat 6 ; OcsalO m. 
 past 7 ; Soroksar at a quarter past 9 ; Pesth quarter past 11. 
 
 Friday, Oct. 10. Left Pesth at 8 m. to 5 ; Csaba 20 m. 
 past 7 ; baited the horses and left ditto at 20 m. to 8 ; Neus- 
 dorf 23 m. to 10 : left ditto quarter to 10 ; Szong 5 m. 
 past 12 ; Gonyo 20 m. to 3 ; Raab 20 m. past 4 ; Hock- 
 strase at 25 to 6. 
 
 Saturday, Oct. 12. Left Hockstrase 10 m. to 6; Wei- 
 selburg half-past 7 ; Parendorf quarter past 10 ; left ditto 
 20 to 1 1 ; Custom-house at Bruck quarter past 1 1 ; Stix 1 
 m. to 12 ; Schweehat 10 to 2 ; Vienna 5 m. to 3. 
 
 Monday, Oct. 13. Left Vienna at 10 m. to 7 ; Enzcrs-
 
 229 
 
 dorf 10 m. to 8 ; Stockerau 20 m. past 9 ; Mallebern 20 m. 
 past 10 ; Hollabnin 20 m. to 12 ; Paffendorf 20 m. to 2 ; 
 Znaim 7 m. to 4 ; Frainersdorf 25 m.past 5; Budwitz 7. 
 
 Thursday, Oct. 17. Left Budwitz at 6 ; Scheletau half- 
 past 7; Staunern 25 m. past 9 ; Iglau 10 m. past 11; 
 Stoken 20 m. to 1 ; Deuutschrod 5 m. past 2 ; Steindorf 25 
 to 4 ; Goltz Jenikau 5 m. past 5 ; Czaslau 10 m. past 6. 
 
 Friday, Oct. 18. Left Czuasla at 7 ; Kollin quarter to 
 9 ; Planian 5 m. past 10 ; Bb'embrod 25 m. to 11 ; Biech- 
 owitz 20 m. past 1 ; Prague, 3. 
 
 Saturday, Oct. 19. Left Prague at a quarter to 7 ; 
 Strzedokluk quarter to 9 : Schlau 20 m. to 1 1 ; Jungfern 
 Teinitz quarter past 12 ; Lann 20 m. past 1 ; Mireschowitz 
 quarter past 3 ; Billin quarter to 4 ; Toplitz 5. 
 
 Monday, Oct. 21. Left Toplitz at a quarter past 9 ; Ar- 
 bersau half-past 10; Peterewald 20 m. past 12; Pirna 25 
 m. to 3, and Dresden at half-past 4. 
 
 Thursday, Oct. 24. Left Dresden at 6 m. past 2 ; tunnel 
 at Oberau 3 ; Pristewitz 18m. past 3 ; crossed the Elbe at 
 8 m. to 4 Oschatz 25 m. past 4 stayed here 12m.; Dali-* 
 len 5 ; Wurtzen half-past 5 stayed 18m.; Leipsig at 
 half-past 6. 
 
 Friday, Oct. 25. Left Leipsig at half-past 6 baited the 
 horses for a quarter at 8 m. to 8 : Merseburg at half-past 9 ; 
 Schaftstadt quarter past 11 ; left ditto at 20 m. to 12 ; Quer- 
 furt quarter to 1 ; Altstoet 5 m. to 3 ; Sangershausen quar- 
 ter to 4 ; Rossla 5 ; Nordhausen 10 m. to 7. 
 
 Saturday, Oct. 26. Left Nordhaussen at a quarter past 6 ; 
 Wulfingerode quarter past 8; Heilegestadt quarter to 11 : 
 Witzenhausen 1 ; Helsa 20 m. to 4; Cassel quarter 
 past 5. 
 
 Monday, Oct. 28. Left Cassel at 6; Westuffeln 8; Folk-
 
 230 
 
 mar 10 ; Arolsen 5 m. past 11; Bred.'kr 10 m past 1 ; 
 Brillon 20 m. to 3 ; Mcschede 5 m. to 5 ; Arensbei"* 7. 
 
 Tuesday, Oct. 29. Left Arensberg at 25 m. p< <t 6 ; 
 Wimbern 8; Iserlohn quarter to 10 : Hagen 25 m. ias 
 11 ; Schwelm 1; Elberfelt 2; Mittman half-past 3 ; L 'S- 
 seldorf 5. Hotel Breitenbacker. 
 
 Wednesday. Oct. 30. Left Dusseldorf quarter past 6 , 
 reached flying bridge at 25 m. to 7 ; across at 10 m. to ; 
 Neusdorf 5 m. past 7 ; Furth half-past 8 ; Juliers quart 
 to 1 1 ; Aix-la-Chapelle 25 m. to 2 ; the Custom-house half- 
 past 3 ; Battice 25 m. past 4 ; Liege 20 m. to 7. 
 
 Thursday., Oct. 31. Left the Pav. Anglaise at 1 8 m. to 7 ; 
 reached the railway station at 22 m. past 7 train started 
 by sound of trumpet at half-past 8 1st stop quarter to 9 ; 
 Varum 9 stayed 8m.; Lauden half-past 9 stayed 8m.' 
 Tirelemont 10 stayed 5 m. ; Vertryk 18 m. past 10 : Lou- 
 vain 25 m. to 11 stayed 10 m. ; Hceght 5 m. past 11 ; 
 Mechlin quarter past 1 1 ; left ditto at 8 m. to 12 ; Maldres 
 24 m. past 12; Dendermonde 22 m. to 1 staid 8 m. ; 
 Bridge at Alost 8m. to 1 ; Wiehlen 5 m. past 1 ; Watre 
 quarter past 1 ; Melle 25 m. past 1 ; Ghent at 20 m. to 2 ; 
 left Ghent with post horses at 3 ; Eccloo 25 m. to 3 
 Bruges quarter past 7. 
 
 Friday, Nov. 2. Left Bruges at half-past 6; Ghistel 
 20 m. past 8 ; Furnes 1 1 ; Dunkerque 25 m. past 1 ; Gra- 
 velline 3 ; Calais half-past 5. 
 
 Saturday, Nov. 2. Left Calais at 20 m. past 7; reached 
 Dover at 20 m. p. 10 ; left Dover at half-past 12 ; Hythe 
 at 2 ; Ashford 20 m. past 3 ; Lenham 25 m. past 4; Maid- 
 stone 25 m. past 5 ; Wrotham half-past 6 ; Riverhead half- 
 past 7 ; Godstone 9, and Gatton Park at 10 o'clock.
 
 UCSB LIBRARY 
 
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