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The Project Gutenberg eBook of Journal of a
Tour in the Years 1828-1829, through Styria,
Carniola, and Italy, whilst Accompanying the
Late Sir Humphry Davy
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Title: Journal of a Tour in the Years 1828-1829, through Styria,

Carniola, and Italy, whilst Accompanying the Late Sir
Humphry Davy

Author: J. J. Tobin

Release date: November 9, 2017 [eBook #55920]

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*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK JOURNAL OF A

TOUR IN THE YEARS 1828-1829, THROUGH STYRIA, CARNIOLA,
AND ITALY, WHILST ACCOMPANYING THE LATE SIR HUMPHRY
DAVY ***
From nature by J. J. Tobin - TRAUN LAKE Upper Austria
JOURNAL OF A TOUR
MADE
IN THE YEARS 1828-1829,
THROUGH

STYRIA, CARNIOLA, AND ITALY,

WHILST ACCOMPANYING

THE LATE SIR HUMPHRY DAVY.

BY J. J. TOBIN, M.D.

LONDON:
W. S. ORR, 14, PATERNOSTER ROW.
1832.

LONDON:
BRADBURY AND EVANS, PRINTERS,
BOUVERIE STREET.
 PREFACE.

The following pages were originally intended for the perusal only of
my own family and immediate friends. Some of these now persuade
me to lay them before the public, believing that, to it, a detail of
circumstances connected, as my Journal necessarily is, with the last
recreations and pursuits of the late Sir Humphry Davy, must be
interesting. To have been in any degree a partaker of the hours of
this great man, whose name must shed a lustre over his native land,
so long as genius and science shall be admired, I cannot be
supposed to imagine otherwise than highly gratifying; and aware
that my Journal through him bears an interest it could not otherwise
pretend to, I do not hesitate to comply with their request.
The state of Sir Humphry's health inducing him to seek its
restoration in a tour on the Continent, he wrote to my mother, who
was residing on my account and that of my brothers at Heidelberg,
stating his plan to her, and naming his wish to have a son of his
"warmly-loved and sincerely-lamented friend," as the assistant and
companion of his journey. My mother did not hesitate to suspend my
studies during the period of the proposed tour, conscious that in the
society of such a mind and acquirements as those of Sir Humphry,
mine must advance. And to have been the companion of his latter
days, clouded as they often were by the sufferings which I beheld
him endure, will be my last pride and advantage; and though the
hand of death has laid low many a hope which gilded the future, it
cannot deprive me of the recollection of those hours, when I marked
his spirit still radiant and glowing (to use his own words)
"With the undying energy of strength divine."
Sir Humphry's health was in so shattered a state, that it often
rendered his inclinations and feelings sensitive and variable to a
painful degree. Frequently he preferred being left alone at his meals;
and in his rides, or fishing and shooting excursions, to be attended
only by his servant. Sometimes he would pass hours together, when
travelling, without exchanging a word, and often appeared
exhausted by his mental exertions. When he passed through
Heidelberg to see my mother, he named all this to her, and with
evident feeling thanked her for her request, that he would on all
occasions consider me as alone desirous to contribute to his ease
and comfort. I mention this to account for my having so seldom
spoken of his passing remarks, and for any apparent change which
occurred in our arrangements, named in the Journal.
To give any adequate idea of the beauty and grandeur of the scenes
I beheld, must be well known to be impossible by those who have
visited these parts of Europe, or been accustomed to view the
changing tints and hues of the fine sky that encircles them; but if I
have imparted only a faint reflection of the pleasure such scenes
bestow, even in recollection, or have given enjoyment to any of my
readers, my object will be fully attained, nor shall I then regret
having listened to the voice of my perhaps too partial friends.
J. J. T.
Heidelberg,
March 14, 1831.
 JOURNAL,
&c. &c.

On my arrival in London (26th March, 1827) I found Sir Humphry

better than I had expected, but evidently very weak. He appeared to
have altered much during the four years which had elapsed since I
last saw him, and it was evident that although his mind was still
vigorous and full of energy, his bodily infirmities pressed heavily
upon him, and I could not but perceive that he was keenly alive to
his altered state. I had hoped to have remained some little time in
London, but finding that everything was ready for our departure, I
contented myself with calling upon a few old friends, and taking my
seat by Sir Humphry's side, his servant George being on the dicky
with his master's favourite pointers, we drove from Park Street on
the morning of the 29th of March. We slept that night at Dover,
which we left the next morning at half-past nine o'clock, and arrived
at Calais about twelve, after a beautiful and calm passage. Sir
Humphry wishing to be left to repose quietly on his bed in the cabin,
I took my favourite seat on the prow, and sat musing on times past
and to come, looking upon the curling waves which were glittering
with a thousand golden colours in the bright beams of the morning
sun. The weather formed a strong contrast with that of the day
before, when the only change had been from sleet and snow to hail
and rain. The difference between the English and French coasts is
very striking; and the contrast between the lofty white chalk cliffs of
the one, and the gay and verdant hills of the opposite shore, seems
almost emblematical of the national peculiarities of the two
countries.
Sir Humphry was provided with a letter from Prince Polignac, the
French Ambassador at London, to the Director of the Douane, which
greatly facilitated our passing the Custom house, where otherwise
we should have had much difficulty from the variety of the luggage;
among which, to say nothing of scientific instruments, and upwards
of eighty volumes of books, were numerous implements for fishing
and shooting, and the two pointers. We went to the Hôtel Rignolle, a
large and excellent inn, where Sir Humphry's travelling carriage
awaited us, and we found it in every respect easy and commodious.
After dinner I prepared and arranged every thing for our departure
on the morrow, for the servant could on such occasions render me
but little assistance, he not speaking a word of any language but
English; and then took a walk through the town and bought a pack
of cards, which Sir Humphry had begged me to bring that he might
teach me the game of ecarté. During my walk I was amused by
seeing both old and young dressed in their holiday clothes, playing
at battledore and shuttlecock in the open streets. I soon returned;
and after we had played a game together, I read aloud some of the
"Tales of the Genii," and we then retired to rest.
31st. This morning I arose with thoughts of Heidelberg, it being dear
F***'s birthday, which I knew would therefore be one of pleasure in
the happy home I had left. After breakfast we set off for Dunkirk.
The country through which we passed is exceedingly flat and
uninteresting. On arriving at Gravelines, a strongly fortified little
town, we found that the carriage had sunk, the leathers being new,
so that we were obliged to send for a smith and a saddler, who
detained us nearly two hours. We then proceeded through the same
uninteresting flat to Dunkirk. After dinner we walked out to see the
town, which is very clean, and has good broad streets. Near the
market place is the episcopal church of Cambrai, the diocese of the
celebrated Fenelon. The portico is chaste and beautiful, consisting of
ten lofty corinthian pillars supporting a frieze. The interior of the
church is simple and elegant. The harbour of Dunkirk is large, but
nearly choked up with mud; on one side of it is a large basin newly
made, which is kept full at low water by means of flood gates.
April 1st. We started after breakfast for Ghent, and passed first
through Bergues, a little town with very strong fortifications. At
Rousbrugge, three postes and a half from Dunkirk, we entered the
territory of the King of the Netherlands. We passed the custom
house without having any part of our baggage examined, Sir
Humphry's passport being signed by the Dutch Ambassador at
London, who had added to his signature a request to the officers on
the boundary to treat ce celebre sçavant with all possible attention
and respect.
The country beyond Rousbrugge becomes rather more diversified;
the hedges, which are formed of small trees, are often very prettily
interwoven, forming a fence at once useful and elegant; and we
passed the first hill, a very low one, which we had seen since we left
Calais. We drove on through Ypres and Menin, and spent the night
at Courtrai. All these towns are strongly fortified, chiefly I believe
under the direction of the celebrated Vauban, and are called the iron
boundary of Holland. They are kept very clean and neat. Ypres has a
fine large gothic town-house, with an immense number of windows
in it. I read in the evening to Sir Humphry part of the "Bravo of
Venice," and he dictated a few pages on the existence of a greater
quantity of carbon in the primary world, and on some of the
phenomena of the Lago di Solfatara, near Rome. His clear reasoning,
and the proofs and facts which he adduces in support of his
theories, still show the quick and powerful mind of his former days,
when his bodily faculties were in the fulness of their vigour, and not,
as now, a weight and oppression upon his mental powers.
2nd. The first poste after leaving Courtrai was Vive St. Eloi, an
assemblage of a few shabby houses, hardly worthy the name of a
village; thence to Peteghen and to Ghent. The country is flat, and
anything but picturesque, and almost every field has a windmill in it.
We only stopped to dine at Ghent, and then immediately started for
Antwerp, where we arrived at about seven in the evening, passing
through Lakesen and St. Nicholas. We were ferried over the Scheldt,
and afterwards transported to the inn in a very novel manner. On
arriving at the ferry opposite the town, the post-horses were taken
out of the carriage, which was pushed into the ferry-boat by four
men, who with some difficulty dragged it out when on the other side
of the river, and then drew it with us in it through the town to the
inn, more than half a mile distant from the landing place. After tea I
continued the "Bravo of Venice," and read Voltaire's "Bababec et les
Faquirs" to Sir Humphry.
3rd. We did not breakfast till late, and afterwards drove out to see
the town in spite of hail and snow. Our first visit was to the
cathedral, which much disappointed us both as to its internal and
external appearance. It strongly reminded me of that of Strasbourg,
which it resembles in its minuteness of architecture, and even in the
circumstance of its having its left tower in an unfinished state. The
right tower, which is complete, is neither so light, or airy, nor by any
means so beautifully sculptured as that of Strasbourg; nor does the
building, as a whole, bear any comparison with the latter in beauty
and effect. The interior is beautiful from its simplicity; and its having
been newly white-washed gave it a light and cheerful appearance. It
contains some fine pictures; the chief of which are the "Crucifixion,"
and the "Descent from the Cross," by Reubens. The pulpit, the
largest and most beautiful specimen of carved wood I ever saw,
represents Adam and Eve in the garden of Eden. We afterwards
went into many of the various churches, some of which are adorned
with very fine paintings. In that of St. Barbara are some very curious
and beautifully carved wooden confessionals, in a style similar to
that of the pulpit in the cathedral. Near this church is a celebrated
Calvary,[A] which also includes a representation of Purgatory and of
Heaven, being an assemblage of demons and saints in the most
wretched taste. On one side, through a grating, the mortal remains
of our Saviour in the tomb are presented to view; on the opposite
side the Virgin Mary appears decked out with flowers and gold lace,
surrounded by a choir of angels and saints; and on looking through
a third grating one gets a peep at purgatory, where the wicked are
seen swimming about among waves of flame in the strangest
confusion imaginable. The whole of this representation appeared to
us most ridiculous; yet not so to many good Catholics, whom we
saw silently kneeling before the gratings, and apparently devoutly
praying for those souls who had been dear to them whilst upon
earth. The devotion of many, however, was not so abstract as to
render them indifferent to the presence of Sir Humphry, whose
appearance, it is true, was likely to abstract attention, even though
unknown, wrapped up as he was in a large mantle lined with white
fur.
In all the churches which we visited, the priests and attendants were
busied in preparing them for the next day, (Good Friday.) Though
the subject represented, the Tomb of Christ, with its surrounding
scenery, attendants, and guards, was the same in every church, it
was much more beautifully executed in some than in others. A part
of the church was in general nearly encircled and darkened by
hangings of black cloth, and a recess was thus formed, in which, in
some of the churches, a stage of considerable depth was erected, on
which was painted the scene of the tomb, with its figures, side
scenes, and distant views, very skilfully managed. The perspective
was well kept; and the whole being very well illuminated by unseen
lamps, the effect was quite theatrical.
Leaving these scenes of papal devotion, we drove to the harbour, a
work of Napoleon's, which, like most of his other works, is
remarkable for its strength and durability. Its size is not very striking;
but it was tolerably well filled with shipping of all nations, amongst
which I observed many English, and some North-American vessels.
From thence we drove through the town; and Sir Humphry could not
omit paying a visit to the fish-market, which, luckily for his white
mantle, was not Billingsgate. The market did not appear to be very
well stocked, and he could find nothing remarkable or new to satisfy
his ever active curiosity. The town appears clean, and has some
large open streets, the principal of which is called the Mere, in which
our hotel, Le Grand Laboureur, is situated; it possesses no very
remarkable buildings; and the town house and the celebrated
exchange, make, at least externally, a very poor show. The picture
gallery, which is said to be very excellent, was unfortunately closed,
it being a fête day. Our visits to the churches and the different parts
of the town had fully occupied our morning, and in the evening after
dinner I read to Sir Humphry Voltaire's "Histoire de la Voyage de la
Raison," and finished the "Bravo," which he much admired.
4th. Left Antwerp in the morning, and passing through Coutegle,
Malines, or Mechlin, we arrived at Brussels about one o'clock. The
road runs nearly the whole of the way on the bank of a large canal,
and is often bordered by a row of fine beech trees. The appearance
of this capital from a distance is rather imposing; the handsomer and
more modern part of it being situated upon a hill, at the bottom of
which lies the old town, on the banks of the river Senne. The gate
through which we entered is remarkably handsome, and the style of
architecture light and elegant. We drove to the Hôtel de Flandres, on
the Place Royale, where we were very well accommodated. Before
dinner I took a hasty run through the town, just to see the fine old
gothic town-house, with its light and lofty spire, surmounted by a
colossal statue of St. Michael and the dragon, which acts as a vane;
and the parks, palaces, and fine public walks, which latter were
crowded with English. English equipages and servants are also
continually passing in the streets; and so many of the shops are
completely English, that it is difficult to believe that one is in the
capital of a foreign nation. The number of English generally in
Brussels is said to exceed twenty thousand. At one of the English
circulating libraries I procured the "Legend of Montrose," which
amused Sir Humphry for the evening.
5th. At nine in the evening we left Brussels by the Porte de
Louvaine, and drove on to Tervueren, through a fine forest of beech
trees; at the extremity of which is situated the summer chateau of
the Prince of Orange, which, in external appearance, hardly equals
the country residence of an English gentleman. From thence we
proceeded to Louvaine, or Löwen; where we only stopped to change
horses. The Hôtel de Ville is one of the finest specimens of gothic
architecture in the Netherlands; but we could only catch a hasty
view of it as we drove by and went on to Thirlemont, where we
dined, and after dinner proceeded to St. Troud, which we made our
resting-place for the night.
6th. We quitted St. Troud after breakfast, in the midst of rain and
snow, for Liege, or Lüttich, where we made no stay, but passed on
to Battices. Between this last place and Aix-la-Chapelle, we crossed
the boundary of the Netherlands, and entered upon the Prussian
territory. The custom-house officers were very civil; and Count
Bülow's besonders empfohlen, (particularly recommended), written
in his own hand on Sir Humphry's passport, was of great utility. We
entered Aix-la-Chapelle in the evening; and passing by the new
theatre and the bath rooms, which are pretty, but small buildings,
we drove to the grand hotel, which was neither grand nor
comfortable. Our book for this evening was Swift's "Tale of a Tub."
7th. Left Aachen, (the German name for Aix), and passed on to
Jülich, the first Prussian fortress. From thence we proceeded to
Bergheim: after which we passed over a wide sandy flat, rendered in
many parts almost impassable, by the previous heavy rains. A
league or two before we reached Cologne, the many and gloomy
steeples of the once holy city rose to view; amongst which, the
colossal mass of its splendid but unfinished cathedral stood
prominent. The fortifications before the town are thickly planted with
shrubs, so that from a distance they have more the appearance of
sloping green hills, than walls of defence. Passing over numerous
drawbridges, and under one of the ancient gateways, we drove
through many dark and narrow streets to the Cour Imperiale.
8th. In the morning we left Cologne to the protection of its eleven
thousand virgins, and started for Coblentz. At Bonn, we merely
changed horses, and drove on to the little post-town of Remagen,
leaving the summits of the celebrated seven mountains, the castled
crag of Drachenfels, Rolandseck, and the towers of the convent of
Nonnenwerth, as yet surrounded only by bare and leafless trees,
behind us. Here we dined; and then continued our route along the
banks of the Rhine, which was very turbid and swollen, to
Andernach, and from thence to Coblentz. The scenery, which I had
formerly beheld in all its summer glory, as well as in its rich
autumnal tints, was now not only shorn of its beauty, but enveloped
in mist and cloud.
9th. We quitted Coblentz at about eight o'clock in the morning, in
the midst of a thick fog, which in a short time cleared away, and
afforded us a most magnificent spectacle; for it came rolling down
the hills on each bank of the river like immense waves, through
which the sunbeams broke in from every side, till it was at last quite
dispersed, and unveiled to our view the numberless little towns and
villages on the banks, leaving the Rhine glittering in the rays of the
sun, like a stream of burnished gold, rushing along between its dark
and rocky mountains. We changed horses at Boppart, and from
thence drove on to St. Goar, where Sir Humphry has determined to
stop till to-morrow. After dinner he took a ride along the banks of
the river, followed by his servant. In the mean while I strolled up the
hills, and amused myself by sketching the old ruins of the castle of
Rheinfels, and the river below me in the distance. On our return, Sir
Humphry told me that he had decided to include Heidelberg in his
route, which he had not at first intended to do, passing through
Mayence and Mannheim, so that I shall in a day or two again see my
home. After having read the "Old English Baron" to Sir Humphry, we
retired for the night; he to rest, and I to my chamber, where I could
not but admire the scene around me. It was a beautiful starry night,
and the lofty rocks opposite my window rose as it were from the
rolling river beneath, awful and gigantic amid the shades of night, till
their dark outlines, mingling with the more distant mountains, were
lost in the clear sky. Every sound in the village was hushed, and it
seemed as if even the air itself was lulled to rest by the stillness of
night.
"All Heaven and Earth are still—though not in sleep,
But breathless, as we grow when feeling most;
And silent, as we stand in thoughts too deep:—
All Heaven and Earth are still: from the high host
Of stars, to the lull'd lake and mountain-coast,
All is concenter'd in a life intense,
Where not a beam, nor air, nor leaf is lost,
But hath a part of being, and a sense
Of that which is of all Creator and defence."
10th. Our drive this morning from St. Goar to Bingen was cold and
rainy, and the Lurley rocks, and the wild and rugged banks of the
Rhine between St. Goar and Oberwesel, looked more than usually
dreary, the few vines and the little vegetation that appear upon them
in summer not having yet begun to shoot. We quitted the banks of
the Rhine at Bingen, and struck across the country through a fine
rich plain stretching almost as far as the eye can reach, and every
here and there diversified by low hills, to Mayence. Ingelheim, one
of the numerous residences of Charlemagne, and where that
monarch once had a magnificent palace, is now a little insignificant
borough, and the palace with its hundred columns from Rome or
Ravenna, has vanished, or nearly so, for the slight remains that are
still standing, shew but little of former grandeur.
At Mayence our passports were demanded at the first of the
numerous draw-bridges, and quickly visé'd. Sir Humphry determined
upon spending the night here, as I knew that the accommodations
at the Roman Emperor were much better than any he would find at
Oppenheim or Worms, which latter town we could not have reached
till the night had set in, and Sir Humphry does not like to travel after
sunset. The streets of this ancient town are for the most part
narrow, dark, and dirty, with the exception of the chief street
running from the upper part of the town towards the Rhine, called
die grosse bleiche, the great bleaching place, and which is a broad
and handsome street. The whole appearance of the town, the old
dom or cathedral, with its heavy towers and light pinnacles of red
stone; its brazen gates, still bearing the marks of the balls of the
celebrated siege in 1792; the many magnificent houses, often
uninhabited or turned into shops and cafés; the vast but ruinous
palace of red sand-stone on the Rhine; the few inhabitants one
meets with in the streets,—the officers and soldiers of the different
regiments in garrison of course excepted,—plainly tell the stranger
that Mayence has no longer any pretension to the splendour it
owned under the rule of the Ecclesiastical Princes, it being then the
second ecclesiastical town in Germany; or even during its occupation
by the French, who, wherever they went, were sure to carry with
them life and spirit. As it has changed for the worse, so may it again
change for the better, and who can say that it may not in a few
lustres more again flourish as a frontier fortress of France.
11th. Quitting Mayence, we drove on along the flat and sandy banks
of the Rhine, through Oppenheim to Worms, from the time of
Charlemagne and the Frankish kings, till the days of Luther, the
scene of brilliant fêtes, princely tourneys, and solemn diets of the
empire,—now a dismal mass of ruin and desolation. The lofty nave
and the four steeples of its ponderous gothic cathedral, when seen
from a distance, rise with an imposing grandeur in the level plain of
the Rhine; but, on a nearer survey, the church itself offers nothing of
interest. We dined at Frankenthal, a neat and clean little town in
Rhenish Bavaria, and then drove on through Oggersheim to
Mannheim, where we crossed the Rhine over a fine bridge of boats.
The streets of this town are remarkably broad and clean; the houses
are lofty, and being built in small compact squares, all the streets
meet at right angles, and generally afford at their openings a very
pretty peep at the distant country, so that one imagines the
surrounding scenery to be finer than it really is. The Planken, or
chief street, traverses the town in a straight line from gate to gate,
and forms a fine wide walk between two rows of acacias, which is
chained in from the carriage road on each side.
The four leagues from Mannheim to Heidelberg are through a
country, not one spot of which is uncultivated; this is backed by the
finely wooded mountains of the Odenwald, on which are still visible
the remains of some of the many castles which formerly crowned
the different heights. We reached Heidelberg towards evening, and
as soon as I had seen Sir Humphry comfortably lodged in the hotel
of the Prince Carl, immediately under the imposing ruins of its far-
famed castle, he begged me to go and see my mother, he being too
fatigued to accompany me; and on my doing so, I found that my
letter, which should have informed her of my approach, had not yet
reached her.
12th. Sir Humphry finding himself too indisposed either to visit the
university, or to receive any of its eminent professors, some of whom
are very desirous to visit him, has determined to remain here only till
tomorrow; for it is painful to him to know that he is surrounded by
scientific men anxious to see and communicate with him, and to feel
that he is no longer able to enjoy their society, or that scientific
discussion, which, as it was formerly a source of the highest
gratification to him, "now," he says, "only serves to make me feel
that I am but the shadow of what I was." It is in vain to combat with
such feelings, but it is impossible not to regret their existence; for
could Sir Humphry be persuaded occasionally to mix more frequently
in such society, it would certainly rather be of service to him than
not, for his fine mind is still full of intellectual power and elasticity,
and he deceives himself in thinking otherwise. In the afternoon, as
he did not feel strong enough to mount the hill to the castle, he took
a short walk over the bridge along the northern banks of the Neckar,
and appeared much to enjoy the beautiful scenery that encircles this
spot, and is indeed every where to be found around Heidelberg.
From this side one sees the ancient ruin with its mouldering towers,
backed by a lofty amphitheatre of finely wooded mountains, with the
town standing immediately under it, and the broad river rushing
through its light and airy bridge, often foaming over many a rugged
rock. The scene at all times is beautiful and imposing, but when
lighted up by the rays of the setting sun, which fall with a
resplendent glow upon the red-stone walls and towers of the castle,
the effect produced is very striking, and at that hour it is impossible
for the most indifferent observer to pass the spot without
admiration. The castle itself is now in a very dilapidated state, for
with the exception of the chapel, which is merely a bare and lofty
hall, there remains scarcely one entire room; but the exterior walls
of the quadrangle are nearly perfect, and much of the sculpture that
every where adorns the ruin is still in high preservation, and some of
the ruined towers, as such, are very beautiful. The gardens too,
which, from their situation, sweeping as they do around the hill on
which the castle stands, and abounding in fine large trees, are at
once commanding and beautiful, afford many a delightful walk and
striking view of the country beneath; and wandering amid their
risings and descents, one feels that here art has been considered as
she really is, the handmaid, not the mistress of nature's works. From
some of the terraces one looks directly down upon the town, having
a fine view beyond of the fertile plain between it and Mannheim,
through which the Neckar is seen winding till it joins the Rhine,
which, with the distant Vogesian mountains, bounds the view in the
west.
Heidelberg contains about 12,000 inhabitants, and has of late years
become a favourite resort of strangers. The university library is
considered to be one of the richest in Europe in ancient manuscripts,
and were the sovereign of the state a more liberal patron than he is
of learning and science, doubtless the museums and public
institutions would be more liberally endowed than they are; there is,
however, an excellent anatomical museum in the school for
medicine, and so long as such names as those of Thibaut,
Tiedemann, Gmelin, Schlosser, and various others whose works
evince their talent, shall be found amongst the list of its professors,
so long must Heidelberg hold a deservedly high rank in the learned
and scientific world, and open a wide field of advantage and
instruction to all young men anxious to avail themselves of such
opportunities; nor will any impartial judge deny, that amongst its
students many highly honourable examples of talent and application
are found.
13th. We this morning bade adieu to Heidelberg, and set off for
Neckargemünd. Sir Humphry very much admired the winding river
and its picturesque banks, though the woods were yet leafless, and
the rocks rather bare; whilst I could see no spot that did not, in one
way or another, recall to my mind the many social and happy days I
had spent in roving through the green woods, and among the
mouldering castles of the Neckar. From Neckargemünd we struck
across the country to Wiesenbach and Sinsheim, and from thence
through very pretty but not striking scenery to Fürfeld, where we
entered the kingdom of Würtemberg, and on to Heilbronn. This old
town offers nothing interesting save the old square tower in the
walls on the Neckar, formerly the prison of the celebrated Götz of
the Iron Hand, who, it is said, died within its walls. The doughty
champion will probably live in the remembrance of the good people
of Heilbronn, only so long as the old tower which bears the name of
the Götzen Thurm continues to stand; but the fame of Götz von
Berlichingen will never die but with the extinction of German
literature, handed down as it is to posterity by the master-hand of
Göthe. The drive from Heilbronn to Oehringen is very beautiful, over
hill and dale, and from valley to valley through the mountains. The
first little village which we passed was Weinsberg, and above it, on a
hill covered with vineyards, are the remains of the castle of
Weibertreue (Woman's faith.) This spot was the scene of the action
celebrated in Bürger's admired ballad, Die Weiber von Weinsberg—
The Women of Weinsberg.
"Wer sagt mir an wo Weinsberg liegt
Soll seyn ein wack'res Städtchen," &c. &c.
the story of which is founded on the following fact:—During the time
of the deadly feuds between the houses of Hohenstaufen and
Guelph, about the year 1140, Weinsberg was besieged and taken by
the Emperor Conrad. The town and castle had excited his high
displeasure for having afforded an asylum to his enemy Guelph, and
he determined to destroy them with fire and sword, and said he
would only allow the women to depart, and take any treasure with
them.
At dawn of day the gates of the town were opened, and every
woman appeared carrying her husband upon her back. Many of his
officers, indignant at thus seeing the enemy's garrison escape,
endeavoured to persuade the Emperor to evade his promise, but
Conrad replied, "an Emperor's faith once pledged was not to be
broken;" and he granted them a free pardon, and from that time the
castle of Weinsberg has borne the name of Weibertreue.
We did not reach Oehringen till eight o'clock; and then found the
only decent inn in the town in great confusion, owing to the
exhibition of a cabinet of wax-work, which had attracted all the
waiters and chambermaids, so that it was with great difficulty I
could obtain even hot water to make our tea.
14th. We left Oehringen at eight in the morning, and arrived at
Halle, or Schöneshalle, about twelve, passing through some very
pretty mountainous country. In this part of Würtemberg there are
some coal mines, but the coal seems to be of a very inferior quality,
a brown coal.
The female peasantry dress their hair in a very singular manner,
drawing it back from the forehead, and tying it up in a bunch
behind, which gives the head a remarkably naked appearance, and
increases their altogether awkward and uncouth air. The town is
small and very old, and has some considerable remains of ancient
fortifications. From Halle we had a very long drive up-hill and down-
hill for five hours, through a fertile country well wooded and
watered, to Ellwangen, another small town, prettily situated in a
valley: the hills on the one side are surmounted by a modern
chateau, belonging to the King of Würtemberg; and on the top of
those opposite stands a fine large church, to which, at certain
seasons of the year, pilgrims flock in numbers from great distances.
Before tea I strolled round the town, and afterwards read one of the
"Arabian Nights Entertainments" to Sir Humphry, after which we
played our usual game at ecarté.
15th. Leaving Ellwangen, we passed through hilly but barren
country, and over the most abominable roads possible, to
Nördlingen, the first Bavarian post-town. We were every now and
then obliged to get out of the carriage from fear of being
overturned; and the postilion frequently preferred driving over a
newly ploughed field to passing along the road. We however arrived
safely at the post-house; thus accomplishing six short leagues in
about as many hours. On driving into the town we were, as usual,
asked for our passport, which was an English one: the officer took it
for French, and I suppose he had never seen such an one before, for
he copied the printed title into a paper which he gave me, as a
permission to enter Bavaria, as follows:—"Permit to pass, &c. &c.,
Lord Dudley, particulier," and I could hardly make the man believe
that the printed name was not that of the person travelling, but that
of the minister. From Nördlingen we drove to Donauwörth, on the
Donau, or Danube; passing through Haarburg, a small village, but
one of the prettiest spots we had seen since we left the banks of the
Neckar. The church and many of the houses are situated on the top
of a lofty rock, high above the rest of the buildings, and the whole
scene is strikingly picturesque. The Danube at Donauwörth is a small
and unimposing stream. Opposite our inn were two boats ready to
start for Vienna; they were of considerable size, but wholly built of
rough deal planks. Such boats are chiefly filled with merchandize,
and rarely take passengers, as their accommodation is very inferior.
When they arrive at Vienna, they are broken up and sold as old
wood, the current of the Danube being too rapid to admit of boats
ascending. We had good accommodation at the only hotel, the Crab,
which is out of the town, on the banks of the river; and Sir Humphry
determined to remain till tomorrow, to see the fishermen cast their
nets in the morning.
16th. Sir Humphry did not feel well enough to-day to accompany the
fishermen, but desired them to bring him any fish they might catch;
they accordingly brought him a schill, the large perch of the Danube,
(Perca lucioperca, Block,) of which Sir Humphry begged me to take a
drawing. We then dissected it, and afterwards had it dressed for
dinner, and both of us thought it very good, and much resembling
cod in taste. Sir Humphry now generally prefers dining alone, and at
a late hour for this part of the world, (four o'clock); and I, therefore,
where I find a table d'hôte, usually dine at it; for though the
business of eating in this country is not one of hasty dispatch, or of
such trivial importance as to leave all the powers awake to
conversation, yet foreigners who wish to become acquainted with
the people and manners, as well as to see them, will, at all events,
understand them much better by mixing with them, than by keeping,
as is so often the case with English travellers, to their own rooms.
While Sir Humphry dined, I took a walk up the Schellenberg, to look
at the spot from which Marlborough drove the French at the
celebrated battle of Blenheim; and sitting under an old oak, on the
top of the hill, I enjoyed the extensive view beneath me. Hardly
visible in the distance appeared the towers of Blenheim; nearer
stood many a small village, embosomed as it were in the forests;
and the Danube, winding through the woods and verdant meadows,
now hidden by an interposing hill, then again appearing in many a
bending curve, with here and there a small green island, flowed
tranquilly on till it reaches the town of Donauwörth, where it
receives the tributary waters of the Wernitz, a small river which runs
through the town. I hastily took a sketch of the view, the scene of
actions which can never be forgotten by the friend of English glory,
and then returned to Sir Humphry, and in the evening read to him
some of the "Arabian Nights," and Dryden's beautiful poem "The
Flower and the Leaf."
17th. Crossing over to the right bank of the Danube by a small
wooden bridge, our road passed through many pleasant meadows
covered with beautiful anemones, interspersed here and there with
the dark blue gentian, and enlivened by numerous herds of cattle.
The first poste was Bergheim, and from thence to Neuburg and
Ingolstadt. The church steeples of all the villages by which we
passed were covered with tiles glazed with different colours, which
in the sunshine have a very brilliant and Chinese appearance.
Ingolstadt is a small old town, with dilapidated fortifications and
walls. The only inn seemed in a similar condition, and the kitchen
and some of the rooms being in a state of repair, we were obliged to
continue our route. On leaving the town, we crossed over the
Danube again and drove on to Vohburg. In the distance we thought
we saw the Salzburg Alps, but we were unable to determine with
certainty, the clouds having the greatest possible resemblance to
distant snowy mountains. The Danube at Vohburg is by no means so
wide as the Rhine at Mannheim, but is much more rapid. We again
recrossed it, and drove through some marshy land, and a small
forest of firs, beautifully green, to Neustadt, where we remained for
the night at a most wretched inn.
The whole country through which we have passed appears very
populous, but the peasantry look wretchedly squalid and poor, and
an English eye is much struck by seeing the women constantly at
hard work in the fields, and apparently performing a much greater
share of the laborious part of their employment than the men.
18th. We left Neustadt in the morning, and drove on through pretty
and hilly country, chiefly covered with fir wood, to Postsari, where
we came down close upon the Danube, and beheld some most
beautiful rocky scenery, far superior in grandeur to that of the Rhine.
Immense perpendicular masses of grey rock, with dark fir-trees here
and there forcing themselves through the fissures and crevices, form
the right bank of the Danube at Abach, a small village at the foot of
a hill, on the top of which stands an enormous round tower, the only
remaining vestige of a large castle which formerly crowned the
summit. Before entering the village the road is hewn through the
solid rock, and high above the head of the traveller is a gigantic
Latin inscription, cut in the rock, purporting that this work was
undertaken and completed by Charles Theodor, Elector of Bavaria;
two colossal lions on pedestals mark the spot which was once solid
rock. From this little village we passed over the hill to Regensburg,
or Ratisbon, which lies in the valley beneath. The appearance of this
old city from a distance is not more imposing than when in it, for it
has no high towers nor fine prominent buildings. We entered it at
about one o'clock, through an alley of young poplars, on the right of
which stands a small modern temple, dedicated to the memory of
the celebrated astronomer, Keppler. A light pretty gateway leads into
dark and narrow streets, at the end of one of which was our inn, the
Golden Cross, and the good accommodation we here found, was not
rendered the less agreeable from its contrast with that of the
wretched inn at Neustadt. In the afternoon I walked out with Sir
Humphry to see the town. The greatest, or rather only curiosity it
possesses, is the large room in which the celebrated Diet of the
Empire used to be held: the exterior has a miserable appearance,
and Sir Humphry, instead of going in, went to see some fish in a
tank, and wished me to accompany him as interpreter. I went in the
evening again to see the hall of the Diet, but it was shut, and the
man who shows it was not to be found. From the fish-tank we went
to the bridge over the Danube, which is well built of stone, and is
entirely paved with large flag stones. The river, already of
considerable breadth, rushes through it with astonishing rapidity,
and turns a number of mills below it. We then returned and took our
tea, and our evening's book was "Palamon and Arcite."
19th. We quitted Ratisbon at nine in the morning, leaving the banks
of the Danube to our left, and drove on to Eglofsheim, and from
thence generally through or on the borders of a thick and sombre
pine forest, through Birkheim to Ergolshausen. The cottages in this
part of Bavaria are usually built of trunks of trees, laid horizontally
one upon another, like the log-houses of America; and the roofs are
covered with shingles, on which are placed large flat stones, to
prevent their being blown off. The better ones have generally some
picture, the subject of which is taken from the Holy Writings, painted
on the front; and at Ratisbon I saw a "David and Goliath," which
covered the entire front of a large house three or four stories high.
At Ergolshausen we were detained whilst the carriage was mended;
this reparation cost eighteen kreuzers, (about sixpence,) and in
France, for a similar one, we paid five francs.
When all was put to rights we set off for Landshuth, and soon
caught a transient glimpse of the snowy Alps, rising out of the
distant horizon like clouds into the clouds. The Isar, on which
Landshuth is situated, exceeds even the Danube in rapidity, and well
may Campbell call it
"Isar rolling rapidly."
We had hardly entered the inn when we were visited by a heavy
thunderstorm, accompanied by tremendous hail.
20th. Wishing to see something of the town, I took a hasty stroll,
early in the morning before we started, through the streets, but
found little worth seeing. The cathedral is, externally, a fine old
Gothic building, and the principal street is respectable. I was much
struck with the head-dress of the women, which seems to vary
according to their rank. The peasant girls wear large fur caps, whilst
the women of a rather higher class have upon their heads most
extraordinary gauze or muslin appendages, in all sorts of shapes,
some like helmets, some pointed, and others falling in peaks, but all
more or less richly embroidered with gold or silver thread.
On leaving Landshuth we ascended a very long and steep hill, and
on arriving at the top we saw the Austrian Alps, at a distance of
seventy or eighty miles, bounding the whole horizon with a line of
shining white, and here and there broken by a dark shade of grey;
whilst some single perfectly white and shining peaks shone high
above the floating clouds, whose white colour appeared tarnished
when compared with that of the eternal snow. We drove the greater
part of the day through pine forests, up hill and down hill; now
perfectly losing sight of the Alps, then again from the summit of the
next hill catching sight of them, apparently not more than ten miles
off, so distinctly could we trace the vallies between the different
mountains. We stopped to dine at the post-house at Neumarkt, a
small village, where I could get nothing but a pigeon dressed in
garlic, and some sausage. Leaving this village, we descended from
the mountains, amid which we had been travelling, into the plain
which separates them from the Alps, and found ourselves, as it
were, in front of this colossal chain, now brightly illuminated by the
glowing sun. Towards evening I had hoped to have seen the rosy
tinge upon the Alps, caused by the reflection of the sunbeams upon
the snow of the summits, but I was disappointed, for they faded
away into the grey clouds of evening as we drove up a very steep
but short hill into Neu-Ötting, a neat little town, in the streets of
which we saw many pretty women and girls knitting before their
doors; on the whole, the people are much handsomer here than in
the country we have hitherto passed through. About two miles
further on we reached Alt-Ötting, where we were very well lodged at
the post-house. Our hostess, a young lass of only seventeen or
eighteen, spoke very good French, and seemed intelligent and active
in the direction of her household.
21st. In the morning, before Sir Humphry was up, I went to see a
little church on the Platz or square before our inn. The arcades
surrounding it are completely covered with votive pictures, or
pictures returning thanks to some favourite saint for having been
delivered from great danger; some, for example, for having broken
their legs or arms instead of their necks, others that their friends
had been killed and not they, and such like. Many of these pictures
bear dates of two or three hundred years ago, but they are almost
all mere daubs. The interior of the church is also quite covered with
paintings, and gold and silver offerings, some of the latter
apparently of great value. On my return to the inn, I asked our
hostess about this church, and she told me that it had been a
celebrated place of pilgrimage for ages past; that the image of the
virgin in it bears the date of the twelfth century, and that there also
are kept embalmed the hearts of the sovereigns of Bavaria, Charles
Theodore, Maximilian Joseph, and others. She also informed me that
there was a convent of nuns, and a Capuchin monastery in the
town; some of the former I had seen in the church.
On leaving Alt-Ötting, we for the first time this year saw cherry-trees
in blossom, and on the sides of the road there was abundance of the
pretty blue gentian. The next station, and the last in Bavaria, was
Marktl. From thence we drove on to Braunau, already a wide and
very rapid river. The black and yellow striped posts on the wooden
bridge announced to us the dominion of Austria; and on entering the
town, we drove to the custom-house, where, however, the officers
gave us no trouble, for a letter from Prince Esterhazy, with which Sir
Humphry was furnished, seemed to act as a talisman, producing
instantaneous civility, with bows and titles innumerable. The next
poste was Altheim, where we found that every thing was to be paid
for in Austrian money, which at first promised to be no slight trouble,
though we soon found it was an easy matter to reduce it, six
Bavarian kreuzers, or six florins, being equal to five Austrian ones. It
was our intention to have reached Haag this evening, but having a
very long and steep hill to cross, the night overtook us at Ried, a
little village, where we were obliged to put up with the
accommodations of a miserable inn, with bad coffee and wretched
beds, much to the discomfiture of Sir Humphry.
22nd. We left Ried at about nine, and drove through a fine forest of
lofty pines to Haag, and from thence to Lambach. Wood seems so
abundant in this country, that not only the inferior houses are wholly
built of it, but even the fences between the fields are formed of
rough deal planks. Lambach is a small insignificant town on the
Traun, which river we here saw for the first time: its water is
beautifully clear, and of a bluish-green colour. From Lambach we
turned off to Vöcklabrück, along the banks of the Agger, another
clear mountain stream, winding very prettily through a flat valley of
the same name. On our approach to this little place we beheld the
lofty Alps, which form the shores of the Traun Lake, at a short
distance off; and Sir Humphry rejoiced that he had at length arrived
where he might enjoy his favourite amusement of fishing, which, but
for a thunderstorm, he would this very evening have indulged in, at
the expence of the poor fish in the little river Vöckla.
23rd. Early this morning, Sir Humphry begged me in his name to
visit Count E——, who lives at a short distance from Vöcklabrück,
and is proprietor of the fishing right in the Agger and Vöckla, and
request his permission for him to fish in these streams; this the
Count very graciously granted, and Sir Humphry accordingly
mounted a pony, and rode down to the Vöckla, where, however,
during the morning, he caught but little fish. The afternoon was
spent in the same pursuit, and we closed the evening as usual with
reading some of Dryden's poems and the "Arabian Nights."
24th. In the morning Sir Humphry begged me to procure a one-
horse chaise for him, in which, with his servant, he was driven to the
Kammer Lake, about ten miles off. I, in the meanwhile, strolled
about the environs, not finding anything interesting in the town; but
my walk did not prove very agreeable, the weather being so misty
that I could gain no view of the neighbouring Alps, and I was very
glad to see Sir Humphry return in the afternoon, bringing with him a
few fish, which were dressed for his dinner. In the evening we read
Prior's "Alma," but not being pleased with it we soon changed it for
Pope's "Essay on Man."
25th. We quitted Vöcklabrück at about ten in the morning, not at all
to my sorrow; and after a beautiful drive through fine fir woods and
lanes, where the hedges were already quite green, we arrived at
Gmünden, and beheld a scene which surpasses in magnificence any
thing I have ever yet seen. On one side of the hill down which we
drove was a wood of tall beeches, the leaves just bursting from the
bud; on the lower side, meadows of the most beautiful green sloped
down to the town of Gmünden, which seemed to rise out of the
bosom of the lake of the same name, or, as it is more generally
called, the Traun Lake. Alps, whose summits were hidden in the
clouds, and on whose rocky heights nothing was seen but the dark
black pine, form the banks of this large reservoir of water, in some
places descending with precipitous and almost perpendicular
steepness into the clear lake, whilst in others they are lost in fine
meadows and orchards, with neat wooden cottages peeping through
the trees; and on an island in the lake we saw a large chateau and
church, which are joined to the main land by a long wooden bridge.
The best inn at Gmünden, the Ship, is close upon the edge of the
water, and commands a magnificent view over the whole extent of
the lake, and every window being provided with a little cushion, one
may enjoy the scene leaning on the window-sill for hours, without
any detriment to one's elbows. Gmünden itself is a pretty clean little
town at the north end of the lake, exactly on the spot where it
empties itself into the river Traun with an impetuous rush, thus
dividing the town into two distinct parts, connected by a strong
wooden bridge built on piles. On the shores of the lake are many
beautiful small villages, now and then seen through the half green
trees, and at about six miles from Gmünden, apparently at the end
of the lake, is the town of Traunkirchen, almost lost in distance and
haziness. The water of the lake is beautifully clear, and of a deep
blue-green colour. After reading to Sir Humphry in the evening, I
spent an hour gazing out upon the lake and its alpine shores,
partially illuminated by the moon; the more distant snowy summits
seemed like detached clouds, resting as it were upon the dark and
gloomy masses beneath, which threw their long broad shadows over
the silvery bosom of the lake; while every here and there on the
surrounding shores, a few twinkling lights, seen between the trees,
marked the situation of a village or country house.
26th. On awaking this morning, I fancied myself on the sea shore,
for the first sound I heard was the surge of the waters of the lake,
which had been agitated into light waves by a fresh morning breeze.
On going to my window the scene formed a striking contrast to that
of yesterday evening; the darkness and deep silence of night had
disappeared; not a cloud was to be seen, and the brilliant beams of
the young sun shone upon numberless boats, flitting with their white
sails over the glittering waves; whilst in the street beneath stood
motley groups of peasants lounging about, or awaiting the arrival of
some boat from the other shore of the lake. Sir Humphry rose early,
and immediately after breakfast we went out to the bridge over the
Traun, he to fish, whilst I sketched; and staid the whole morning
beneath the bridge, on one of the piers close to the rushing stream.
The view from this spot is far more extensive than that from the inn
windows, as from hence you see quite to the opposite end of the
lake, and can discover beyond the promontory, on which stands the
town of Traunkirchen, the houses and spires of Ebensee, as white
specks against the distant grey mountain; and from hence also are
seen to great advantage, far beyond the mountains of the lake, the
distant snow-clad summits of the Schneeberg and other of the
Styrian Alps. On my return home I found Sir Humphry already there,
and that he had caught some fine trout, which proved excellent. In
the evening we had a violent storm, and I read Green's poem on the
Spleen, which Sir Humphry does not admire.
27th. This morning proved rainy, and Sir Humphry was in despair, as
he had ordered a small carriage, intending to go and see the Falls of
the Traun, about ten miles down the river; it cleared up, however,
about eleven o'clock, and turning out very fine, we set off, Sir
Humphry armed with all his fishing-tackle, and I with my sketch-
book. After a fine drive along the top of the precipitous and highly
picturesque banks of the Traun, passing by many smaller falls and
rapids, we reached the inn near the great fall, the roar of which is
heard at a considerable distance. A little below the cataract a lofty
wooden bridge is thrown over the Traun, and from beneath it one
beholds a truly sublime scene. The greater part of the river here
precipitates itself from a height of nearly fifty feet, in one immense
mass of foam over the impeding rocks, which are of considerable
breadth. Thick clouds of mist are continually rising from the boiling
pool, and the spectator standing within a few feet of the descending
river is completely wetted in an instant. In the centre of the river
stands a large rock, from which three smaller falls throw themselves
into the greater pool; and again, higher up on the right is another
large cascade, where the water falls in a perpendicular sheet
between two rocks, which serve as a support to a small wooden
house that has been erected over the fall. Below the bridge the
whole river is one white stream of foam, with dark black rocks here
and there jutting out of it. The banks are formed of lofty rocks
(chiefly pudding-stone,) and are topped with woods of dark black
pine. Boats descending the river avoid the danger of this cataract by
means of a small canal, which has been cut through the right bank
of the river in a sloping direction from the fall, and again joins the
river at some distance below it. This canal is immediately filled with
water by raising a sluice gate close to the fall, and the boat keeping
near the shore is very easily guided into it, and descends quickly and
safely. Sir Humphry finding the fish would not bite, we returned
home, after spending a short hour in this sublime and romantic spot.
The drive back to Gmünden is finer than the drive to the Falls, the
river presenting more beautiful openings and turnings, and the lake
gradually rising into view.
In the evening Sir Humphry determined not to remain at the baths
of Ischl, about twenty miles distant, as he had intended doing, but
to proceed to Laybach, three hundred miles off, as he thought the
snipe-shooting, which he much wished to enjoy, would not yet be
over there.
28th. We left Gmünden at eight, crossing over the lake in a large
boat. The view of Gmünden from the lake is beautiful, and with its
gently sloping green hills and woods in the back ground, and its neat
white houses, rising as it were out of the water, forms a strong
contrast with the rugged mountains which surround the lake on
every other side. Whilst crossing over, the scene continually
changes, the Alps presenting themselves from different sides; and
on turning the promontory on which Traunkirchen is situated, we
entered as it were upon another small lake, and discovered the town
of Ebensee, about three miles off, quite at the end of it. The Traun
here flows into the lake, and often brings with it a considerable
quantity of wood, which is collected by a long cordon, formed of the
trunks of fir-trees joined together, and drawn across the end of the
lake. Ebensee has very large salt-works, which afford employment to
the greater number of its inhabitants. Post-horses were here again
put to the carriage, and we drove on along the banks of the Traun
through most enchanting scenery to Ischl, and from hence to
Aussee, over a very steep mountain, on the sides of which I found,
whilst walking up it, many of our prettiest garden flowers,
cyclamens, anemones, &c. &c. After ascending for an hour and a
half, we entered Styria, passing the boundary of Upper Austria, and
came to the snow, through which we pursued our way for half an
hour more, when we found ourselves on the top of the pass,
between 4000 and 5000 feet above the level of the sea, environed
by Alps clad in deep and for the most part eternal snow. Our road
down was cut through the snow, which was much deeper on this
side than on the other. Aussee is a little town, beautifully situated at
the bottom of a valley, surrounded on all sides by gigantic rocks; it
also has, like Ebensee, extensive saltworks, the salt for which is
furnished from the salt-mines in the adjacent mountains.
29th. We quitted Aussee this morning, and drove on through
Mitterndorf, Steinach, and Liezen, our road lying through beautiful
Alpine country, sometimes hilly, and always at a great elevation.
Between Liezen and Rothenmann we passed the first old feudal
castle that we have seen in this part of Austria; it is called
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