From Bruxelles to LiÉge—A priest's declamation against the French Revolution—Maastricht—Aix-la-Chapelle—Imperial relics—Napoleon regretted—Klingmann's "Faust"—A Tyrolese beauty—Cologne—Difficulties about a passport—The Cathedral—King-craft and priest-craft—The Rhine—Bonn and Godesberg—Goethe's "GÖtz von Berlichingen"—The Seven Mountains—German women—Andernach—Ehrenbreitstein—German hatred against France—Coblentz—Intrigues of the Bourbon princes in Coblentz—Mayence— Bieberich—Conduct of the Allies towards Napoleon—Frankfort on the Mayn—An anecdote about Lord Stewart and Lafayette—German poetry—The question of Alsace and Lorraine—Return to Bruxelles—Napoleon's surrender.

LIÉGE, June 26.

Mr L. and myself started together in the diligence from Bruxelles at seven o'clock in the evening of the 24th inst. and arrived here yesterday morning at twelve o'clock. I experienced considerable difficulty in procuring a passport to quit Bruxelles, my name having been included in that of General Wilson, which he carried back with him to England. Our Ambassador was absent, and I was bandied about from bureau to bureau without success; so that I began at last to think that I should be necessitated to remain at Bruxelles all my life, when fortunately it occurred to Mr L. that he was intimately acquainted with the English Consul, and he kindly undertook to procure me one and succeeded. On arrival here we put up at the Pommelette d'Or. The price of a place in the diligence from Bruxelles to LiÉge is fifteen franks. We passed thro' Louvain, but too late to see anything. The country about LiÉge is extremely striking and picturesque; the river Meuse flows thro' the city, and the banks of the river outside the town are very riants and agreeable. LiÉge is a large, well-built city, but rather gloomy as to its appearance, and lies in a hollow completely surrounded by lofty hills. The remains of its ancient citadel stand on a height which completely commands the city; on another height stands a monastery, a magnificent building. There are a great many coal-pits in the vicinity of LiÉge, and a great commerce of coals is carried on between this city and Holland by the treckschuyte on the Meuse. We visited the ancient Episcopal palace and the Churches. The Palace is completely dismantled. This city suffered much during the revolt of the Belgian provinces against the Emperor Joseph II, and having distinguished itself by the obstinacy of its defence, it was treated with great rigour by the Austrian Government. The fortifications were blown up, and nothing now remains on the site of the old citadel but a large barrack. I remained two whole hours on this height to contemplate the beauties of the expanse below. The banks of the river, which meanders much in these parts, and the numerous maisons de campagne with the public promenades and allÉes lined with trees, exhilarate the scene of the environs, for the city itself is dull enough. Several pretty villas are situated also on the heights, and were I to dwell here I should choose one of them and seldom descend into the valley and city below,

Where narrow cares and strife and envy dwell.

LiÉge, however sombre in its appearance, is a place of much opulence and commerce. A Belgian garrison does duty here. At the inn, after dinner, I fell into conversation with a Belgian priest, and as I was dressed in black he fancied I was one of the cloth, and he asked me if I were a Belgian, for that I spoke French with a Belgian accent; "Apparemment Monsieur est ecclÉsiastique?—Monsieur, je suis nÉ Anglais et protestant." He then began to talk about and declaim against the French Revolution, for that is the doctrine now constantly dinned into the ears of all those who take orders; and he concluded by saying that things would never go on well in Europe until they restored to God the things they had taken from Him. I told him that I differed from him very much, for that the sale of the Church domains and of the lands and funds belonging to the suppressed ecclesiastical establishments had contributed much to the improvement of agriculture and to the comfort of the peasantry, whose situation was thereby much ameliorated; and that they were now in a state of affluence compared with what they were before the French Revolution. I added: "Enfin, Monsieur, Dieu n'a pas besoin des choses terrestres." On my saying this he did not chuse to continue the conversation, but calling for a bottle of wine drank it all himself with the zest of a Tartuffe. I believe that he was surprised to find that an Englishman should not coincide with his sentiments, for I observe all the adherents of the ancient rÉgime of feudality and superstition have an idea that we are anxious for the re-establishment of all those abuses as they themselves are, and it must be confessed that the conduct of our Government has been such as to authorize them fully in forming such conjectures, and that we shall be their staunch auxiliaries in endeavouring to arrest and retrograde the progress of the human mind. In fact, I soon perceived that my friend was not overloaded with wit and that he was one of those priests so well described by Metastasio:

Il di cui sapere
Sta nel nostro ignorar….

MAASTRICHT, 27th June.

This morning, after a promenade on the banks of the Meuse—for I am fond of rivers and woods (flumina amo silvasque inglorius)—we embarked on a treckschuyt and arrived here after a passage of four hours. The scenery on the banks of the Meuse all the way from LiÉge to Maastricht is highly diversified and extremely romantic; but here at Maastricht this ceases and the dull uniformity of the Dutch landscape begins. When on the ramparts of the city to the North and West an immense plain as far as the eye can reach presents itself to view; a few trees and sandhills form the only relief to the picture. The town itself is neat, clean and dull, like all Dutch towns. The fortifications are strong and well worth inspection. The most remarkable thing in the neighbourhood of Maastricht is the Montagne de St Pierre, which from having been much excavated for the purpose of procuring stone, forms a labyrinth of a most intricate nature. I advise every traveller to visit it, and if he has a classical imagination he may fancy himself in the labyrinth of Crete.

AIX-LA-CHAPELLE, 29th June.

We started in the morning of the 28th from Maastricht in the diligence for Aix-la-Chapelle and arrived here at twelve o'clock, putting up at Van GÜlpen's Hotel, Zum PfÄlzischen Hofe (À la Cour palatine), which I recommend as an excellent inn and the hosts as very good people. The price of our journey from LiÉge to Maastricht in the water-diligence was 2-1/2 franks, and from Maastricht to Aix-la-Chapelle by land was 7 franks the person. The road from Maastricht to this place is not very good, but the country at a short distance from Maastricht becomes picturesque, much diversified by hill and dale and well wooded. As the Meuse forms the boundary between the Belgic and Prussian territory, we enter the latter sooner after leaving Maastricht. I find my friend L. a most agreeable travelling companion; travelling seems to be his passion, as it is mine; and fortune has so far favoured me in this particular, that my professional duties and private affairs have led me to visit the four quarters of the globe. After dinner, on the first day of our arrival here, we went to visit the HÔtel de Ville, before which stands on a pedestal in a bason an ancient bronze statue of Charlemagne. It has nothing to recommend it but its antiquity. The HÔtel de Ville is similar to other Gothic buildings used for the same purpose. In the great hall thereof there is a large picture representing the ambassadors of all the powers who assisted at the signing of the treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1742; and a full length portrait of the present King of Prussia, as master of the city, occupies the place where once stood that of Napoleon, its late lord. We next went to see the Cathedral and sat down on the throne on which the German Caesars used to be crowned. We viewed likewise the various costly articles of plate, the gifts of pious princes. The most remarkable things among them are several superb dresses of gold and silver embroidery, so thickly laid on that they are of exceeding weight. These dresses form part of the wardrobe of the Virgin Mary. Next to be seen is a case or chest of massy silver, adorned with innumerable precious stones of great value; which case contains the bones or ashes of Charlemagne. His right arm bone is however preserved separate in a glass case. The sword of this prince too, and the Imperial crown is to be seen here. The sacristan next proceeded to show to us the other relics, but having begun with the exhibition of a rag dipped in the sweat of Jesus Christ and a nail of the Holy Cross, we began to think we had seen enough and went away perfectly satisfied. There is no other monument in honour of Charlemagne, but a plain stone on the floor of the Church with the simple inscription "Carolo Magno." On going out of the city thro' one of the gates, and at a short distance from it, we ascended the mountain or rather hill called the Louisberg on which are built a Ridotto and CafÉ, as also a Column erected in honour of Napoleon with a suitable inscription; the inscription is effaced and is about to be replaced by another in the German language in commemoration of the downfall of the Tyrant, as the Coalition are pleased to call him. This Tyrant is however extremely regretted by the inhabitants of Aix-la-Chapelle and not without reason, for he was a great benefactor to them and continually embellished the city, confirming and increasing its privileges. The inhabitants are not at all pleased with their new masters; for the behaviour of the Prussian military has been so insulting and overbearing towards the burghers and students that it is, I am told, a common exclamation among the latter, alluding to the Prussians having stiled themselves their deliverers: De nostris liberatoribus, Domine, libera nos. Indeed, I can evidently discern that they are not particularly pleased at the result of the battle of Waterloo.

In the evening I went to the theatre, which has the most inconvenient form imaginable, being a rectangle. As anti-Gallicanism is the order of the day, only German dramas are allowed to be performed and this night it was the tragedy of Faust, or Dr Faustus as we term him in England, not the Faust of Goethe, which is not meant for nor at all adapted to the stage, but a drama of that name written by Klingmann.[18] It is a strange wild piece, quite in the German style and full of horrors and diableries. In this piece the sublime and terrible border close on the ridiculous; for instance the Devil and Faust come to drink in a beer-schenk or ale-house. 'Tis true the Devil is incognito at the time and is called "der Fremde" or "the Stranger"; it is only towards the conclusion of the piece that he discovers himself to be Satan…. The actor who played the part of the Stranger had something in his physiognomy very terrific and awe-inspiring. In another scene, which to us would appear laughable and absurd, but which pleases a German audience, three women in masks come on the stage to meet Faust, in a churchyard, and on unmasking display three skeleton heads.

Poor Faust had stipulated to give his soul to the Devil for aiding him in the attainment of his desires; the Devil on his part agrees to allow him to commit four deadly sins before he shall call on him to fulfil his contract. Faust, in the sequel, kills his wife and his father-in-law. Satan then claims him. Faust pleads in arrest of judgement, that he has only committed two crimes out of the four for which he had agreed; and that there consequently remained two others for him to commit before he could be claimed. The Devil in rejoinder informs him that his wife was with child at the time he killed her, which constituted the third crime, and that the very act of making a contract with the Devil for his soul forms the fourth. Faust, overwhelmed with confusion, has not a word to say; and Satan seizing him by the hair of his head, carries him off in triumph. This piece is written in iambics of ten syllables and the versification appeared to me correct and harmonious, and the sentiments forcible and poetical; this fully compensated for the bizarrerie of the story itself, which, by the bye, with all the reproach thrown by the adherents of the classic taste on those of the romantic, is scarcely more outrÉ than the introduction of Death ([Greek: thanatos]) as a dramatic personage in the Alcestis of Euripides.

There is at Aix-la-Chapelle at one of the hotels a Faro Bank; it is open like the gates of Hell noctes atque dies and gaming goes forward without intermission; this seems, indeed, to be the only occupation of the strangers who visit these baths. There is near this hotel a sort of Place or Quadrangle with arcades under which are shops and stalls. At one of these shops I met with the most beautiful girl I ever beheld, a Tyrolese by birth and the daughter of a print-seller. She was from the Italian Tyrol; Roveredo, I think she said, was her birthplace. She united much grace and manner with her beauty, on account of which I could not avoid complimenting her in her native tongue, which she seemed pleased to hear. Her eyes and eyebrows brought to my recollection the description of those of Alcina:

Sotto due negri e sottilissimi archi,
Son due neri occhi, anzi, due chiari soli,
Pietosi a riguardare, a mover parchi,
Intorno a cui par che Amor scherzi e volÍ.[19]

Two black and slender arches rise above
Two clear black eyes, say suns of radiant light;
Which ever softly beam and slowly move;
Round these appears to sport in frolic flight,
Hence scattering all his shafts, the little Love.

—Trans. W.S. ROSE.

We then proceeded to look at the suburb of this city called Bortscheid, by far the finest part of the city and at some elevation above it. It commands an extensive view. We also visited the various bath establishments; the taste of the water had some resemblance to that of Harrogate, and is good in bilious, scrofulous and cutaneous complaints. On our return to the hotel we learned the news of the capitulation of Paris to the Allied powers. It is said to be purely a military convention by which the French army is to evacuate Paris and retire behind the Loire. There is no talk and no other intelligence about Napoleon, except that he had been compelled by the two Houses of Legislature to abdicate the throne. We are still in the dark as to the intentions of the Allies. I regret much that my friend and fellow traveller L. is obliged to return to Bruxelles and cannot accompany me to Cologne, to which place I am impatient to go and to pay my respects to old father Rhine, so renowned in history.

COLOGNE.

I left Aix-la-Chapelle on the morning of the 2nd of July and arrived at Cologne about six o'clock in the evening, putting up at the Inn Zum heiligen Geist (Holy Ghost), which is situated on the banks of the river. The price of the journey in the diligence is 18 franks. On the road hither lies Juliers, a large and strongly fortified town surrounded by a marsh. It must be very important as a military post. The road after quitting Juliers runs for the most part thro' a forest, and has been much improved and enlarged by the French; before they improved it, it was almost impassable in wet weather. We met on the road several Prussian waggons and reinforcements on their march to Bruxelles. Two of my fellow travellers in the diligence were very intelligent young men belonging to respectable families in Cologne and were returning thither; they likewise complained much of the overbearing demeanour of the Prussian military towards the burghers.

Cologne is a large, but very dull looking city, as dull as LiÉge; it would seem as if all towns and cities under ecclesiastical domination were dull or rendered so by the prohibition of the most innocent amusements. The fortifications are out of repair; but the Prussian Government intend to make Cologne a place of great strength. The name of the village on the opposite of the river is Deutz, and in the time of the French occupation there was a tÊte-de-pont. The next morning I was obliged to appear before the police, and afterwards before the Commandant de la Place, in order to have my passport examined and visÉ. At the bureau of the police it was remarked to me that my passport was not en rÈgle, the features of the bearer not being therein specified. I replied that it was not my fault; that it was given to me in that shape by the English Consul at Bruxelles and that it was not my province to give to the Consul any directions as to its form and tenor. The Commissary of Police then asked me what business I was about in travelling, and the following conversation took place: "Was haben Sie fÜr GeschÄfte?"—"Keine; ich reise nur um VergnÜgen's Willen."—" Sonderbar!"—"Worin liegt das Sonderbare, dass man reist um ein schÖnes Land zu sehen?"[20]—He made no answer to this, but one of his coadjutors standing by him said in a loud whisper, "Ein Herumreiser," which means an adventurer or person who travels about for no good,—in a word, a suspicious character. I then said with the utmost calm and indifference: "Gentlemen, as soon as you shall have finished all your commentaries on the subject of my passport, pray be so good as to inform me what I am to do, whether I may go on to Mayence and Frankfort as is my intention, or return to Bruxelles." The Commissary, after a slight hesitation, signed the visa and I then carried it to the bureau of the Commandant, whose secretary signed it without hesitation, merely asking me if I were a military man.

In the afternoon I went to visit the Dome or Cathedral. It is a fine specimen of Gothic architecture, but singular enough the steeple is not yet finished. In this Cathedral the most remarkable thing is the Chapel of the Three Kings, wherein is deposited a massy gold chest inlaid with precious stones of all sorts and of great value, containing the bones of the identical three Kings (it is said) who came from the East to worship the infant Jesus at Bethlehem. The Scriptures say it was three wise men or Magi. The legend however calls them Kings and gives them Gothic names. Let schoolmen and theologians reconcile this difference: ce n'est point notre affaire. To me it appears that when the German tribes embraced Christianity and enrolled themselves under the banner of St Peter, it was thought but fair to allow them to give vent to a little nationality and to blend their old traditions with the new-fangled doctrine, and no doubt the Sovereign Pontiffs thought that the people could never be made to believe too much; the same policy is practised by the Jesuit missionaries in China, where in order to flatter the national vanity and bend it to their purposes they represent Jesus Christ as being a great personal friend and correspondent of Confucius.

To return to these monarchs, wise men or Magi: their sculls are kept separate to the rest of the bones and each scull bears a crown of gold. But if you are fond of miracles, legends, and details of relics, come with me to the Church of St Ursula in this city, and see the proof positive of the miraculous legend of the eleven thousand Virgins who suffered martyrdom in this city, in the time of Attila; the bones of all of whom are carefully preserved here and adorn the interior walls of the Church in the guise of arms arranged in an armoury. Eleven thousand sculls, each bearing a golden or gilt crown, grin horribly on the spectator from the upper part of the interior walls of the church, where they are placed in a row. What a fine subject this would make for a ballad in the style of BÜrger to suppose that on a particular night in the year, at the midnight hour when mortals in slumbers are bound, the bones all descending from the walls where they are arranged, forming themselves into bodies, clapping on their heads and dancing a skeleton dance round the Ghost of Attila! The people of Cologne, in the time of the ecclesiastical Electorate, had the reputation of being extremely superstitious, and no doubt there were many who implicitly believe this pious tale; indeed, who could refuse their assent to its authenticity, on beholding the proof positive in the sculls and bones?

I recollect that in the History of the CompÈre Mathiew[21] the PÈre Jean rates mightily the natives of Cologne for their bigotry and superstition and for the bad reception they gave to him and to his philosophy. That people are happier from a blind belief, as some pretend, appears to me extremely problematical. For my part, under no circumstances can I think bliss to consist in ignorance; nor have I felt any particular discomfort in having learned at a very early age to put under my feet, as Lucretius expresses it, the strepitum Acherontis avari. On the contrary, it has made me a perfect cosmopolitan, extinguished all absurd national and religious prejudices, and rendered me at home wherever I travel; and I meet the Catholic, the Lutheran, the Moslem, the Jew, the Hindou and the Guebre as a brother. Quo me cunque ferat tempestas, deferor hospes.[22] Let me add one word more to obviate any misrepresentation of my sentiments from some malignant Pharisee, that tho' I am no friend to King-craft and Priest-craft, and cannot endure that religion should ever be blended with politics, yet I am a great admirer of the beautiful and consoling philosophy or theosophy of Jesus Christ which inculcates the equality of Mankind, and represents the Creator of the universe, the Author of all being, as the universal Father of the human race.

Cologne derives its name from Colonia, as it was a Roman Colony planted here to protect the left bank of the Rhine from the incursions of the German hordes. It is here that the grand and original manufactory of the far-famed Eau de Cologne is to be seen. The Eau de Cologne is a sovereign remedy for all kinds of disorders, and if the affiches of the proprietor, Jean-Marie Farina, be worthy of credit, he is as formidable a check to old Pluto as ever Aesculapius was. The sale of this water is immense.

On my return to the inn, I met with a Dutch clergyman who was travelling with his pupils, three very fine boys, the sons of a Dutch lady of rank. He was to conduct them to the University of Neuwied, on the right bank of the Rhine, in order to place them there for their education. The young men seem to have profited much from their studies. Their tutor seemed to be a well-informed man and of liberal ideas; he preferred speaking German to French, as he said he had not much facility in expressing himself in the latter language. He said if I were going his way he would be happy to have the pleasure of my company, to which I very willingly acceded, and we agreed to start the next morning early so as to arrive at Bonn to breakfast, and then to go on to Godesberg, where he proposed to remain a few days.

From the windows of our inn we have a fine view of the river, and I have not omitted doing hommage to old Father Rhine by taking up some of his water in the hollow of my hand to drink. The Rhine of later years has been considered the guardian of Germany against the hostile incursions of the French, and Schiller represents this river as a Swiss vigilant on his post, yet in spite of his vigilance and fidelity unable to prevent his restless neighbour from forcing his safeguard. The following are the lines of Schiller where the river speaks in a distich:

Treu wie dem Schwfeizer gebÜhrt bewach'ich Germaniens Grenze,
Aber der Gallier hÜpft Über den duldenden Strom.

In vain my stream I interpose
To guard Germania's realm from foes;
The nimble Gauls my cares deride
And often leap on t'other side.

GODESBERG, 4th July.

The distance from Cologne to Bonn is 18 miles and Godesberg is three miles further. We stopped to breakfast at Bonn and after breakfast made a promenade thro' the city. Bonn is a handsome, clean, well-built and cheerful looking city and the houses are good and solid.

The Electoral Palace is a superb building, but is not occupied and is falling rapidly to decay. From the terrace in the garden belonging to this Palace, which impends over the Rhine, you have a fine view of this noble river. This Palace was at one time made use of as a barrack by the French, and since the secularization of the Ecclesiastical Electorates it has not been thought worth while to embellish or even repair it. There is a Roman antiquity in this town called the Altar of Victory, erected on the Place St Remi, but remarkable for nothing but its antiquity; it seems to be a common Roman altar.[23] The road from Bonn to Godesberg is three miles in length and thro' a superb avenue of horse-chesnut trees; but before you arrive at Godesberg, there is on the left side of the road a curious specimen of Gothic architecture called Hochkreutz, very like Waltham cross in appearance, but much higher and in better preservation; it was erected by some feudal Baron to expiate a homicide. The castle of Godesberg is situated on an eminence and commands a fine prospect; it is now a mass of rums and the walls only remain. It derives its name of Godesberg or GÖtzenberg from the circumstance of its having been formerly the site of a temple of Minerva built in the time of the Romans, and thence called GÖtzenberg by the Christians, GÖtze in German signifying an idol.

On the plain at the foot of the hill of Godesberg and at the distance of an eighth of a mile from the river, a shelving cornfield intervening, stand three large hotels and a ridotto, all striking edifices. To the south of these is situated a large wood. These hotels are always full of company in the summer and autumn: they come here to drink the mineral waters, a species of Seltzer, the spring of which is about a quarter of a mile distant from the hotels. The hotel at which we put up bears the name of Die schÖne Aussicht (la Belle Vue) and well does it deserve the name; for it commands a fine view of the reaches of the river, north and south. Directly on the opposite bank, abruptly rising, is the superb and magnificent chain of mountains called the Sieben Gebirge or Seven Mountains. On the summit of these mountains tower the remains of Gothic castles or keeps, still majestic, tho' in ruins, and frowning on the plains below; they bring to one's recollection the legends and chronicles of the Middle Ages. They bear terrible awe-inspiring names such as Drachenfels, LÖwenberg; the highest of them is called Drachenfels or the Rock of Dragons and on it stood the Burg or Chateau of a Feudal Count or Raubgraf, who was the terror of the surrounding country, and has given rise to a very interesting romance called The Knights of the Seven Mountains. This feudal tyrant used to commit all sorts of depredations and descend into the plains below, in order to intercept the convoys of merchandize passing between Aix-la-Chapelle and Frankfort. It was to check these abuses and oppressions that was instituted the famous Secret Tribunal Das heimliche Gericht, the various Governments in Germany being then too weak to protect their subjects or to punish these depredations. This secret tribunal, from the summary punishments it inflicted, the mysterious obscurity in which it was enveloped, and the impossibility of escaping from its pursuit, became the terror of all Germany. They had agents and combinations everywhere, and exercised such a system of espionage as to give to their proceedings an appearance of supernatural agency. A simple accusation was sufficient for them to act upon, provided the accuser solemnly swore to the truth of it without reserve, and consented to undergo the same punishment as the accused was subjected to, in case the accusation should be false; till this solemnity was gone through, no pursuit was instituted against the offender. There was scarcely ever an instance of a false accusation, for it was well known that no power could screen the delator from the exemplary punishment that awaited him; and there were no means of escaping from the omniscience and omnipotence of the secret tribunal.

To return to Godesberg, it is a most beautiful spot and much agreeable society is here to be met with. The families of distinction of the environing country come here for the purpose of recreation and drinking the mineral waters. We sit down usually sixty to dinner, and I observe some very fine women among them. On Sunday there is a ball at the ridotto. The promenades in the environs are exceedingly romantic, and this place is the favourite resort of many new married couples who come here to pass the honeymoon. The scenery of the surrounding country is so picturesque and beautiful as to require the pencil of an Ariosto or Wieland to do justice to it:

Ne se tutto cercato avessi il mondo
Vedria di questo un pin gen til paese.[24]

And, had he ranged the universal world,
Would not have seen a lovelier in his round.

—Trans. W.S. ROSE.

To the researches of the naturalist and mineralogist the Seven Mountains offer inexhaustible resources. The living and accommodation of the three hotels are very reasonable. For one and a half florins you have an excellent and plentiful dinner at the table d'hÔte, including a bottle of Moselle wine and Seltzer water at discretion; by paying extra you can have the Rhine wines of different growths and crops and French wines of all sorts.

I am much pleased with the little I have seen of the German women. They appear to be extremely well educated. I observe many of them in their morning walks with a book in their hand either of poetry or a novel. Schiller is the favourite poet among them and Augustus Lafontaine the favourite novel writer.[25] He is a very agreeable author were he not so prolix; yet we English have no right to complain of this fault, since there is no novel in all Germany to compare in point of prolixity with Clarissa, Sit Charles Grandison, or Tom Jones. The great fault of Augustus Lafontaine is that of including in one novel the history of two or three generations. A beautiful and very interesting tale of his, however, is entirely free from this defect and is founded on a fact. It is called Dankbarkeit und Liebe (Gratitude and Love). There is more real pathos in this novelette than in the Nouvelle HÉloÏse of Rousseau.

EHRENBREITSTEIN, 8 July.

After a sÈjour of three days at Godesberg, we left that delightful residence and proceeded to Neuwied to deposit the boys. We stopped, however, for an hour or two at Andernach, which is situated in a beautiful valley on the left bank. We viewed the remains of the palace of the Kings of Austrasia and the church where the body of the Emperor Valentinian is preserved embalmed.

Andernach is remarkable for being the exact spot where Julius Caesar first crossed the Rhine to make war on the German nations. Directly opposite Neuwied, which is on the right bank, stands close to the village of Weissenthurm the monument erected to the French General Hoche. We crossed over to Neuwied in a boat. Neuwied is a regular, well-built town, but rather of a sombre melancholy appearance and is only remarkable for its university. Science could not chuse a more tranquil abode. This University has been ameliorated lately by its present sovereign the King of Prussia. It was not the interest of Napoleon to favour any establishment on the right bank at the expence of those on the left, the former being out of his territory. At Neuwied I took leave of my agreeable fellow travellers, as they intended to remain there and I to go on to Ehrenbreitstein. An opportunity presented itself the same afternoon of which I profited. I met with an Austrian Captain of Infantry and his lady at the inn where I stopped who were going to Ehrenbreitstein in their calÈche, and they were so kind as to offer me a place in it. I found them both extremely agreeable; both were from Austria proper. He had left the Austrian service some time ago and had since entered into the Russian service; from that he was lately transferred, together with the battalion to which he belonged, into the service of Prussia and placed on the retired list of the latter with a very small pension. He did not seem at all satisfied with this arrangement. He had served in several campaigns against the French in Germany, Italy and France, and was well conversant in French and Italian litterature.

We stopped en passant at a maison de plaisance and superb English garden belonging to the Duke of Nassau-Weilburg. The house is in the style of a cottage ornÉ, but very roomy and tastefully fitted up; but nothing can be more diversified and picturesque than the manner in which the garden is laid out. The ground being much broken favours this; and in one part of it is a ravine or valley so romantic and savage, that you would fancy yourself in Tinian or Juan Fernandez. We arrived late in the evening in the Thal Ehrenbreitstein, which lies at the foot of the gigantic hill fortress of that name, which frowns over it and seems as if it threatened to fall and crush it. My friends landed me at the inn Zum weissen Pferd (the White Horse), where there is most excellent accommodation. Just opposite Ehrenbreitstein, on the left bank, is Coblentz; a superb flying bridge, which passes in three minutes, keeps up the communication between the two towns.

Early the next morning, I ascended the stupendous rock of Ehrenbreitstein, which has a great resemblance to the hill forts in India, such as Gooty, Nundydroog, etc. It is a place of immense natural strength, but the fortifications were destroyed by the French, who did not chuse to have so formidable a neighbour so close to their frontier, as the Rhine then was. The Prussian Government, however, to whom it now belongs, seem too fully aware of its importance not to reconstruct the fortifications with as little delay as possible. Ehrenbreitstein completely commands all the adjacent country and enfilades the embouchure of the Moselle which flows into the Rhine at Coblentz, where there is an elegant stone bridge across the Moselle. Troops without intermission continue to pass over the flying bridge bound to France, from the different German states, viz., Saxons, Hessians, Prussians, etc., so that one might apply to this scene Anna Comnena's expression relative to the Crusades, and say that all Germany is torn up from its foundation and precipitated upon France. I suppose no less than 70,000 men have passed within these few days. The German papers, particularly the Rheinische Mercur, continue to fulminate against France and the war yell resounds with as much fury as ever. From the number of troops that continue to pass it would seem as if the Allies did not mean to content themselves with the abdication of Napoleon, but will endeavour to dismember France. The Prussian officers seem to speak very confidently that Alsace and Lorraine will be severed from France and reunited to the Germanic body, to which, they say, every country ought to belong where the German language is spoken, and they are continually citing the words of an old song:

Wo ist das deutsche Vaterland?….
Wo man die deutsche Zunge spricht,
Da ist das deutsche Vaterland.[26]

In English: "Where is the country of the Germans? Where the German language is spoken, there is the country of the Germans!"

Coblentz is a clean handsome city, but there is nothing very remarkable in it except a fine and spacious "Place." But in the neighbourhood stands the Chartreuse, situated on an eminence commanding a fine view of the whole Thalweg. This Chartreuse is one English mile distant from the town and my friend the Austrian Captain had the goodness to conduct me thither. It is a fine large building, but is falling rapidly to decay, being appropriated to no purpose whatever. The country is beautiful in the environs of this place, and has repeatedly called forth the admiration and delight of all travellers. Near Coblentz is the monument erected to the French General Marceau, who fell gloriously fighting for the cause of liberty, respected by friend and foe.

July 10th.

We had a large society this day at the table d'hÔte. The conversation turned on the restoration of the Bourbons, which nobody at table seemed to desire. Several anecdotes were related of the conduct of the Bourbon princes and of the emigration, who held their court at Coblentz when they first emigrated; these anecdotes did not redound much to their honor or credit, and I remark that they are held in great disgust and abhorrence by the inhabitants of these towns, on account of their treacherous and unprincipled conduct. It was from here that "La Cour de Coblentz," as it was called, intrigued by turns with the Jacobins and the Brissotins and, by betraying the latter to the former, were in part the cause of the sanguinary measures adopted by Robespierre.[27] The object of this atrocious policy was that the French people would, by witnessing so many executions, become disgusted at the sanguinary tyranny of Robespierre and recall the Bourbons unconditionally; which, fortunately for France and thanks to the heroism and bravery of the republican armies, did not take place; for had the restoration taken place at that time, a dreadful reaction would have been encouraged and the cruelties of the reign of Terror surpassed. With the same view, emissaries were dispatched from the Court of Coblentz to the South of France in order, under the disguise of patriots, to preach up the most exaggerated corollaries to the theories of liberty and equality.

Among other things at Ehrenbreitstein is a superb pleasure barge belonging to the Dukes of Nassau for water excursions up and down the Rhine. A coche d'eau starts from here daily to Mayence and another to Cologne. The price is ten franks the person. The superb chaussÉe on the left bank of the Rhine, which extends all the way from Cologne to Mayence, was constructed by the direction of Napoleon. In the evening I went to the theatre at Coblentz, where Mozart's opera of Don Giovanni was represented. I recollected my old acquaintance "La ci darem la mano," which I had often heard in England.

MAYENCE, 12th July.

I embarked in the afternoon of the 11th in the coche d'eau bound to Mayence. Except an old "Schiffer," I was the only passenger on board, as few chuse to go up stream on account of the delay. I, however, being master of my own time, and wishing to view the lovely scenery on the banks of the river, preferred this conveyance, and I was highly gratified. After Boppart, the bed of the river narrows much. High rocks on each bank hem in the stream and render it more rapid. Nothing can be more sublime and magnificent than the scenery; at every turn of the river you would suppose its course blocked up by rocks, perceiving no visible outlet. Remains of Gothic castles are to be seen on their summits at a short distance from each other, and where the banks are not abrupt and escarpÉs there are coteaux covered with vines down to the water's edge. The tolling of the bells at the different villages on the banks gives a most aweful solemn religious sound, and the reverberation is prolonged by the high rocks, which seem to shut you out from the rest of the world. There are the walls nearly entire of two castles of the Middle Ages, the one called "Die Katze" (the cat); the other "Die Maus" (the Mouse); each has its tradition, for which and for many other interesting particulars I refer you to Klebe's and Schreiber's description of the banks of the Rhine.

We arrived early in the evening at St Goar, where we stopped and slept. St Goar is a fine old Gothic town, romantically situated, and is famous from having two whirlpools in its neighbourhood. It is completely commanded and protected by Rheinfels, an ancient hill fortress, but the fortification of which no longer exist. It requires half an hour's walk to ascend to the summit of Rheinfels, but the traveller is well repaid for the fatigue of the ascent by the fine view enjoyed from the top. I remained at Rheinfels nearly an hour. What a solemn stillness seems to pervade this part of the river, only interrupted by the occasional splash of the oar, and the tolling of the steeple bell! Bingen on the right bank is the next place of interest, and on an island in the centre of the river facing Bingen stand the ruins of a celebrated tower call'd the "MaÜsethurm" (mouse tower), so named from the circumstance of Bishop Hatto having been devoured therein by rats according to the tradition. This was represented as a punishment from Heaven on the said bishop for his tyranny and oppression towards the poor; but the story was invented by the monks in order to vilify his memory, for it appears he was obnoxious to them on account of his attempts to enforce a rigid discipline among them and to check their licentiousness.

Bieberich, a superb palace belonging to the Dukes of Nassau on the right bank, next presents itself to view on your left ascending; to your right, at a short distance from Bieberich, you catch the first view of Mayence on the left bank, with its towers and steeples rising from the glade. We reached Mayence at 4 o'clock p.m., and I went to put up at the three Crowns (Drei-Kronen). The first news I learned on arriving at Mayence was that Napoleon had surrendered himself to the Captain of an English frigate at OlÉron; but though particulars are not given, Louis XVIII is said to be restored, which I am very sorry to hear. The Allies then have been guilty of the most scandalous infraction of their most solemn promise, since they declared that they made war on Napoleon alone and that they never meant to dictate to the French people the form of government they were to adopt. Napoleon having surrendered and Louis being restored, the war may be considered as ended for the present, unless the Allies should attempt to wrest any provinces from France, and in this case there is no saying what may happen. This has finally ended the career of Napoleon.

There is in Mayence a remarkably fine broad spacious street called "die grosse Bleiche" and in general the buildings are striking and solid, but too much crowded together as is the case in all ancient fortified cities. The Cathedral is well worth seeing and contains many things of value and costly relics. When one views the things of value in the churches here, at Aix-la-Chapelle and at Cologne, what a contradiction does it give to the calumnies spread against the French republicans that they plundered the churches of the towns they occupied! There is an agreeable promenade lined with trees on the banks of the river called L'AllÉe du Rhin. Mayence is strongly fortified and has besides a citadel (a pentagon) of great strength, which is separated from the town by an esplanade. The Place du MarchÉ is striking and in the Place Verte I saw for the first time in my life the Austrian uniform, there being an Austrian garrison as well as troops belonging to the other Germanic states, such as Prussians, Bavarians, Saxons, Hessians, and troops of the Duchy of Berg. This City belongs to the Germanic Confederation and is to be always occupied by a mixed garrison. The Archduke Charles has his head-quarters here at present. I attended an inspection of a battalion of Berg troops on the Place Verte; they had a very military appearance and went thro' their manoeuvres with great precision. From the top of the steeple of the Church of Sanct Stephen you have a fine view of the whole Rheingau. Opposite to Mayence, on the right bank, communicating by an immensely long bridge of boats, is the small town and fort of Castel, which forms a sort of tÊte-de-pont to Mayence. The works of Castel take in flank and enfilade the embouchure of the river Mayn which flows into the Rhine. One of the redoubts of Castel is called the redoubt of Montebello, thus named after Marshal Lannes, Duke of Montebello.

The German papers continue their invectives against France. In one of them I read a patriotic song recommending the youth of Germany to go into France to revenge themselves, to drink the wine and live at the cost of the inhabitants, and then is about to recommend their making love to the wives and daughters of the French, when a sudden flash of patriotism comes across him, and he says: "No! for that a German warrior makes love to German girls and German women only!" (Und kÜsst nur Deutsche MÄdchen.) With regard to the women here, those that I have hitherto met with, and those I saw at Ehrenbreitstein, were exceedingly handsome, so that the German warriors, if love is their object, will do well to remain here, as they may go further and fare worse, for I understand the women of Lorraine and Champagne are not very striking for personal beauty. There were some good paintings in the picture gallery here and this and the fortifications are nearly all that need call forth the attention of a traveller who makes but a fleeting visit.

FRANKFORT-ON-THE-MAYN, 14th July.

I arrived here the day before yesterday in the diligence from Mayence, the price of which is two and a half florins the person, and the distance twenty-five English miles; there is likewise a water conveyance by the Mayn for half the money. The road runs thro' the village of Hockheim, which in England gives the name of Hock to all the wines of Rhenish growth. The country is undulating in gentle declivities and vales and is highly cultivated in vines and corn. I put up here at the Hotel Zum Schwan (The Swan), which is a very large and spacious hotel and has excellent accommodation. There is a very excellent table d'hÔte at one o'clock at this hotel, for which the price is one and a half florins the person, including a pint of Moselle wine and a krug or jar of Seltzer water. About four or five o'clock in the afternoon it is the fashion to come and drink old Rhine wine À l'Anglaise. That sort called Rudesheimer I recommend as delicious. There is also a very pleasant wine called the Ingelheimer, which is in fact the "red Hock." At one of these afternoon meetings a gentleman who had just returned from Paris related to us some anecdotes of what passed at the Conference between the French commissioners who were sent after the abdication of Napoleon, by the provisional government, to treat with the Allies; in which it appeared that the British commissioner, Lord S[tewart],[28] brother to the Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, made rather a simple figure by his want of historical knowledge or recollection. He began, it seems, in rather a bullying manner, in the presence of the commissioners, to declaim against what he called the perfidy and mutiny of the French army against their lawful Sovereign; when the venerable Lafayette, who was one of the commissioners and who is ever foremost when his country has need of his assistance, remarked to him that the English revolution in 1688, which the English were accustomed always to stile glorious, and which he (Lafayette) stiled glorious also, was effectuated in a similar manner by the British army abandoning King James and ranging themselves under the standard of the Prince of Orange; that if it was a crime on the part of the French army to join Napoleon, their ancient leader who had led them so often to victory, it was a still greater crime on the part of the English army to go over to the Prince of Orange who was unknown to them and a foreigner in the bargain; and that therefore this blame of the French army, coming from the mouth of an Englishman, surprised him, the more so as the Duke of Marlborough, the boast and pride of the English, set the example of defection from his Sovereign, who had been his greatest benefactor. Lord S[tewart], who did not appear to be at all conscious of this part of our history, was staggered, a smile was visible on the countenances of all the foreign diplomatists assembled there, and Lord S[tewart], to hide his confusion, and with an ill-disguised anger, turned to Lafayette and said that the Allies would not treat until Napoleon should be delivered to them. "Je m'Étonne, my lord, qu'en faisant une proposition si infÂme et si deshonorante, vous vous plaisez de vous adresser au prisonnier d'OlmÜtz," was the dignified answer of that virtuous patriot and ever ardent veteran of liberty.[29]

The main street in Frankfort called the Zeil is very broad and spacious, and can boast of a number of splendid houses belonging to individuals, particularly the house of Schweitzer[30]; and on the Quai, on the banks of the Mayn, there is a noble range of buildings. The bridge across the Mayn is very fine and on the other side of the river is the suburb of Sachsenhansen, which is famous for being the head-quarters of the priestesses of the Venus vulgivaga who abound in this city. There are in Frankfort an immense number of Jews, who have a quarter of the city allotted to them. The gardens that environ the town are very tastefully laid out, and serve as the favourite promenade of the beau monde of Frankfort. The Cathedral will always be a place of interest as the temple wherein in later times the German Caesars were crowned and inaugurated. At the HÔtel de Ville called the RÖmer, which is an ugly Gothic building, but interesting from its being in this edifice that the Emperors were chosen, is to be seen the celebrated Golden Bull which is written on parchment in the Latin language with a golden seal attached to it. In the Hall where the Electors used to sit on the election of an Emperor of the Romans, are to be seen the portraits of several of the Emperors, and a very striking one in particular of the Emperor Joseph II, in full length, in his Imperial robes. There is no table d'hÔte at the Swan for supper, but this meal is served up À la carte, which is very convenient for those who do not require copious meals. At the same table with me at supper sat a very agreeable man with whom I entered into conversation. He was a Hessian and had served in a Hessian battalion in the English service during the American war. He was so kind as to procure me admission to the Casino at the Hotel Rumpf,[31] where there is a literary institution and where they receive newspapers, pamphlets and reviews in the German, French, English and Italian languages. In Frankfort there are several houses of individuals which merit the name of palaces, and there is a great display of opulence and industry in this city. In the environs there is abundance of maisons de plaisance. For commerce it is the most bustling city (inland) in all Germany, besides it being the seat of the present German Diet; and from here, as from a centre, diverge the high roads to all parts of the Empire.

I have been once at the theatre, which is very near the Swan. A German opera, the scene whereof was in India, was given. The scenery and decorations were good, appropriate, and the singing very fair. The theatre itself is dirty and gloomy. The German language appears to me to be better adapted to music than either the French or English. The number of dactylic terminations in the language give to it all the variety that the sdruccioli give to the Italian. As to poetry, no language in the world suits itself better to all the vagaries and phantasies of the Muse, since it possesses so much natural rythm and allows, like the Greek, the combination of compound words and a redundancy of epithets, and it is besides so flexible that it lends itself to all the ancient as well as the modern metres with complete success: indeed it is the only modern language that I know of which does so.

As for political opinions here, the Germans seem neither to wish nor to care about the restoration of the Bourbons; but they talk loudly of the necessity of tearing Alsace and Lorraine from France. In fact, they wish to put it out of the power of the French ever to invade Germany again; a thing however little to be hoped for. For the minor and weaker Germanic states have always hitherto (and will probably again at some future day) invoked the assistance of France against the greater and stronger. I observe that the Austrian Government is not at all popular here, and that its bad faith in financial matters is so notorious and has been so severely felt here, that a merchant told me, alluding to the bankruptcy of the Austrian Government on two occasions when there was no absolute necessity for the measure, that Frankfort had suffered more from the bad faith of the Austrian Government than from all the war contributions levied by the French.

BRUXELLES, 28th July.

On arrival at Coblentz we heard that Napoleon had surrendered himself unconditionally to Capt. Maitland of the Bellerophon. He never should have humiliated himself so far as to surrender himself to the British ministry. He owed to himself, to his brave fellow soldiers, to the French nation whose Sovereign he had been, not to take such a step, but rather die in the field like our Richard III, a glorious death which cast a lustre around his memory in spite of the darker shades of his character; or if he could not fall in the field, he should have died like Hannibal, rather than commit himself into the hands of a government in which generosity is by no means a distinguishing feature, and which on many occasions has shown a petty persecuting and vindictive spirit, and thus I have no hesitation in portraying the characteristics of our Tory party, which, unfortunately for the cause of liberty, rules with undivided sway over England. He will now end his days in captivity, for his destination appears to be already fixed, and St Helena is named as the intended residence; he will, I say, be exposed to all the taunts and persecutions that petty malice can suggest; and this with the most uncomfortable reflections: for had he been more considerate of the spirit of the age, he might have set all the Monarchs, Ultras and Oligarchs and their ministers at defiance. But he wished to ape Charlemagne and the Caesars and to establish an universal Empire: a thing totally impossible in our days and much to be deprecated were it possible.

Consigned to St Helena, Napoleon will furnish to posterity a proverb like that of Dionysius at Corinth. This banishment to St Helena will be very ungenerous and unjust on the part of the English Government, but I suppose their satellites and adherents will term it an act of clemency, and some Church and Kingmen would no doubt recommend hewing him in pieces, as Samuel did to Agag.

I stopped three days at Aix-la-Chapelle to drink the waters and then came straight to this place stopping half a day in LiÉge. I shall start for Paris in a couple of days, as the communication is now open and the public conveyances re-established. My passport is visÉ in the following terms: "Bon pour aller À Paris en suivant la route des armÉes alliÉes." I am quite impatient to visit that celebrated city.

[18] Philipp Klingmann (1762-1824) was better known as an actor than as an author.—ED.

[19] Ariosto, Orlando Furioso, VII, 12, 1.—ED.

[20] "What business have you? None, I travel for amusement. Strange! What is there strange in travelling to see a fine country?"

[21] Le CompÈre Mathieu, a satirical novel by the AbbÉ Henri Joseph Dulaurens, published 1765 and sometimes (though wrongly) attributed to Voltaire. One of the prominent talkers in the dialogues is PÈre Jean de Domfront.—ED.

[22] Horace, Epist., I, i, 15.—ED.

[23] This altar, inscribed Deae Victoriae Sacrum (Corpus inscr. lat. XIII, 8252), was erected by the Roman fleet on the Rhine at the place now called Altsburg near Cologne and, after its discovery, taken to Bonn, where it was set up on the Remigius-Platz (now called Roemer-Platz) on Dec, 3, 1809. It is now in the Provincial Museum.—ED.

[24] Ariosto, Orlando Furioso, vi, 20, 3.—ED.

[25] August Lafontaine (1758-1831), born in Brunswick of a family of French protestants, was the very prolific and now quite forgotten author of many novels and novelettes.—ED.

[26] From Ernst Moritz Arndt's (1779-1860) celebrated poem, Des Deutschen Vaterland.—ED.

[27] There seems to be much truth in this opinion, though the question of the intrigues of Louis XVIII with Robespierre is still shrouded in obscurity. Some pages of General ThiÉbault's memoirs might have cleared it up, but they have been torn out from the manuscript (MÉmoires du GÉnÉral Baron ThiÉbault, vol. I, p. 273). Louis XVIII paid a pension to Robespierre's sister, Charlotte.—ED.

[28] Sir Charles Stewart, created Lord Stewart In 1814; he was a half-brother of Lord Castlereagh.—ED.

[29] The same story is given, with slight differences, by Lafayette himself (MÉmoires, vol. V, p. 472-3; Paris and Leipzig, 1838). See also Souvenirs historiques et parlementaires du Comte de PontÉcoulant, vol. III, p. 428 (Paris, 1863). Major Frye's narrative is by far the oldest and seems the most trustworthy.—ED.

[30] The house in question was built about 1780 by Nicolas de Pigage for the rich merchant, Franz von Schweizer; Pigage was the son of the architect of King Stanislas at Nancy. The Schweizer palace became later on the HÔtel de Russie and was demolished about 1890, the Imperial Post Office having been erected in its place. The Schweizer family is now extinct.—ED.

[31] A Casinogesellschaft, still in existence (1908), was founded at Frankfort in 1805, with the object of uniting the aristocratic elements of the city, admittance being freely allowed to distinguished strangers, in particular to the envoys of the Bundestag. The Gesellschaft or club occupied spacious rooms in the house of the once famous tapissier and decorator Major Rumpf, grandfather of the German sculptor of the same name. That building, situated at the corner of the Rossmarkt, was demolished about 1880.—ED.