ETJEOPE SUMMER-TIME, / (MIAli LES D. POSTOX 4-lnntcb bn request, for rchitibcs ;iub jjcrsoir.il fvicniJs. riy Ou U WA.SIIINGTOX, D. C. : >i"r;ii,i. i wniiEUow, rniNTKiw am) sikiieotvi 18G.S. ^<^ ^'^ At ii social gathi-ring of neighbors and friends, at tlie residence of Hon. Samuel Ilaycraft, in Elizabelhtown, Kentucky, on Monday evening, 30tb December, ISfJT, the following notes of a European tour were read. Laiuks and Gentlemen: Many of my relations uml friends liave manifestod a desire to hear something of my recent visit to Europe, and in order to gratify their wishes, I have written out some of my reeolleelions. As I am not a professional leeturei', and only make this effort tor the entertainment of my old friends and neigh- bors, I hn\y.' you will not expeet too mneli. pu ROPE. ' Better fifty years of Euroi^e than a C3^cle in Cathay. A DESIRE to see the Old World is the laudable ambition of evciy American. To visit the source of our lineage, our language, aud our literature, forms the hopeful wish of youth, and will yield in- tense gratification to the maturit}^ of riper years. The facilities of travel have increased with the progress of the age, and the cockle-shells in which Columbus adven- tured upon unknown seas, are superseded by magnificent steam palaces, which daily plough the Atlantic, affording all the ac- commodation of a modern hotel. More than a hundred steamships are now engaged in the fast-growing com- merce between the Old and the New World, and modern science adds many safeguards O LIVERPOOL. to ocean navigation. In a fog, the steam whistle gives its lonesome notes of warning for a circumference of five or six miles, and the iron structures of the present steam marine almost insure them against the terrible calamity of fire. The Atlantic is a cluck pond, with the white- winged sailors spreading their can- vass in every direction, whilst here and there a black drake scuds along at the rate of sixteen miles an hour. My companion for the voyage was Professor Blake, Commissioner from California to the Paris Exposition, and on board we found Col. Peale and family, with whom we had both travelled by sea and land in many wanderings over the wide plains and along the Pacific shore. In eight days from New York you may roach the bright shores of the emerald isle, and in a few hours more the chalky cliffs of Holyhead, on a promontory of North Wales, bring you in sight of ancient towers and castles remote in origin as the period of the Roman conquest. Landing at Liverpool, you find con- LIVERPOOL. 9 fronting j'ou a stone sea wall, sonic seven miles in length, saj'ing to the sea, " thns far shalt thou come, and no farther ;" and after passing some friendl}^ portal you are ensconsed in a safe harbor beyond the swell of the tide or the storms of the ocean. Liverpool has been built up since the discovery of the New World, principally upon the lucrative trade of America — commencing with slaves, and culminating with King Cotton. It has a population of half a million of souls as much dependent upon the prosperity of America as our own countrymen. The great wonder of Liverpool is her gigantic docks, covering an area of seven hundred acres, filled with the fleets of of nations. After visiting .the magnificent public buildings in Liverpool, constructed with a liberality worthy of her princely mer- chants, we left her busy marts of commerce for the antiquities of old England, and in three hours were in the ancient city of Chester, ii; the county of Cheshire, boast- 10 CHESTER. ing an antiquity beyond histoiy, and bearing evidences on its stone monuments of having been occupied by the twentieth legion of Rome, sixty-one years before the birtli of Christ. This quaint old city carried us back to the feudal ages, when every town was walled, and portcullis gate, and warded tower guarded against a foray. The massive stone wall surrounding the city forms an irregular circle, affording a pleasant promenade and giving a fine view of the fat meadow lands which make the Cheshire cheese so famous. The houses are peculiarly built ; having their gable ends to the streets, projecting over the side walks, forming a covering for foot passengers in sun and rain. The cathedral of Chester was built upon the ruins of a Pagan temple sometime in the second century, and may be considered one of the oldest places of Christian w^or- ship in England. It is now a grand old Gothic church, with stained glass windows and ivy-covered walls, containing many relics of great interest and antiquity. EATON HALL. 11 The green graveyard adjoining lias bloomed and faded over the tombstones of Chester for more than two thousand years, and here repose her honored dead — " Eac4i in his narrow cell for ever laid The rude forefathers of the hamlet sleep." The next morning, after breakfast at the Grosvenor Hotel, we started on a visit to Eaton Hall, the country scat of the Marquis of Westminster, the richest peer of Great Britain, enjoying an annual in- come from landed estates of over two million dollars in gold. A ride of five miles along tlie river Dee, the. boundary between England and Wales, brought us to the porter's lodge, and entering its guarded gates we rolled through a magnificent park shaded with English oaks and enlivened b}' hundreds of deer. The founder of the family of Grosvenor was a companion and nephew of William the Conc|uei-er, called in Normandy Gros- Venir, (the great hunter,) and the present Marquis is the twenty-second in lineal descent. 12 EATON HALL. His lady is a daughter of the Duke and Duchess of Sutherland, so that in every respect they form one of the most noble families of England. The grand old Hall was ornamented with statuary representing the Conquest and the Crusades, and the armorial bear- ings illustrating the history of this ancient and honorable family. The old fashioned fire places on each side of the Hall were filled with wood ready to be set in a blaze upon the arrival of the noble ov/ner and his guests ; but they spend onl}^ about six weeks in the year at their paUitial countr}^ seat. The parlors, the drawing rooms, the picture gallery, and the chambers were politely thrown open to our inspection, and formed our first impressions of an English nobleman's countrj^ seat. A handsome chapel adjoins the palace, where landlord and tenant, mistress and maid, meet on common ground and cele- brate the beautiful service of the Church of England. The stone stables were fine and com- EATON HALL. 13 modious, where his lordship's horses take their oats from marble troughs, and their lia}' from iron ricks. The conservatory is considered one of the finest in England, having cost about $260,000, including besides, a great variety of (lowers, grapes, peaches, pine- apples, strawberries, figs, oranges, lemons, and nectarines, from which the mansion house in London is daily supplied. AVe were delighted with this insight of English country life, and felt quite com- jjliniented by the exhibition of some California trees in which the gardener manifested great pride on account of their symmetrical beauty and rapid growth. They were brought from California by Lord Ricliard Grosvenor, the second son of the Marquis, who had spent some time in the golden land, on his tour around the world. Leaving Eaton Hall at four o'clock in the afternoon, wo walked back to Chester by a f(Jot-path along the shad}^ banks of Dee, and, taking the railway, were whisked off to London at the rate of sixty miles per hour. 2 11 LONDON. The countiy through which we passed was like a garden — every acre under fence and in a high state of cultivation and im- provement — nothing like the ruin and dilapidation of an old country, but neat, thrifty, and displaying taste. We were never out of sight of villages, and the smoke of manufactui'ing industry rose from every hill and valley to testify to the good policy of free trade which has made England the mart and manufacturing agent for the greater part of the world. The, first thing that impresses one in London is its immensity. Occupying a space on both sides of the river Thames, eighteen miles long by seven miles wide, and containing a popu- lation of four millions of people, it has become the commercial metropolis of the world. Its history rises into prominence with the arrival of William the Conqueror and the consolidation of England into one government. To enter upon an examina- tion of the principal objects of interest in London was a herculean task. LONDON. 15 Of course, the first object to visit was the Tower — a pahice, a prison, and a tomb. It was intensely interesting from its historical associations reaching back through the greatest incidents of English histor}'. The old warder of the Tower, who explained its wonders, performed his dut}^ well. The traitors' gate, where prisoners of State were formerly received, is on the bank of the river, convenient for the reception of some doomed traitor who entering here might leave all hope behind. The drawbridge and portcullis gate are guarded as vigilantly now as if the city of London were besieged. The armories, where coats of mail for horse and man are preserved, from the time of the Crusades- until a period when gunpowder made them useless, are exhibited in all their burnished glory, as if kept ready for tilt or tourna- ment. The State prisons, where Raleigh, Queen Mary, Lady Jane Gray, Essex, Cromwell, Devereux, and others were confined are but little changed. The exe- cutioner's block upon a plat of greensward in the yard is shown you as the veritable 16 LONDON. block where prisoner's heads rolled from their bodies, and, as a convincing proof, the guide points to the very gashes in the block as an evidence that the executioner did his work too well. The stairs under which the children princes were buried after their murder bj Richard III, and hun- dreds of other interesting reHcs of olden and barbarous times are here. The regalia of the Queen, and the Crown jewels of England, offered a pleaaant relief from these scenes of destruction and torture. They rest upon velvet cushions, and are valued at millions of pounds. The prin- cipal are St. Edward's crown of gold, set with diamonds, rubies, pearls, emeralds, and sapphires ; a staff of gold, four feet seven inches long, surmounted by an orb containing a piece of the true cross ; a gold baptismal font for the ro^^al children ; the Koh-i-noor diamond, the largest and finest of which we have any knowledge — a trophy from India presented to Queen Victoria. The next place of interest above the Tower is St. Paul's- Catliedral, the greatest LONDON. 17 Protestant cliurch in the world. It was built by the proceeds of a tax levied on all the coals imported into London during its erection, and has cost over a million and a half pounds sterling. On a foggy day in London the dome can be seen when the lower part of the structure is obscured by the fog : — "That sacred pile, so vast, so high, That whether its part of earth or sky Uncertain seems, and may be thought a prond Aspiring mountain, or descending cloud." Li the '*rypt are monuments to Nelson, Cornwallis, Packenham, Wellington, and many of the most illustrious of England's heroes. The great bell weighs 12,000 pounds, and is only tolled on the death of some member of the royal family. The Thames is spanned by a dozen bridges, over which the traffic of London surges in continual streams, whilst the river below is covered by a multitude of steamboats and river craft, carrying pas- sengers in every direction. There is a railroad from Charing Cross to what is called the " City," or old part of 18 LONDON. London, with trains leaving every ten minutes. This metropolitan railroad is built entirely upon arches, raising its bed over the chimneys and house tops of Surrey, Another railway, less aspiring, carries passengers underground around the city, shooting them up at convenient stations and dragging others into its cavernous maw. For those afraid to venture over the water, the Thames Tunnel, that wonder of moderii engineering, has been constructed under the river, affording a passage as dry and quite as safe as the Israelites had through the Red Sea. The tunnel is twelve hundred feet long, is lighted with gas, and is well worth a visit as a curiosit3',but as an enterprise it has been a failure, and will so'on be converted into a transit for the city railways, which will then run under the streets and under the flowing water. The Houses of Parliament are on the immediate bank of the Thames, about five miles above London Bridge, which is the head of ship navigation. Massive, grand. LONDON. 19 and gorgeous they rise from the swelling tides of commerce, fitting monuments of England's greatness. The building is not yet completed, although some ten millions of dollars have been expended upon the structure. The river front is nine hundred feet long. The A^ictoria tower looms up three hundred and sixty four feet in the air, sup- porting a large clock to notify the citizens of London of the flight of time. The House of Lords is richly furnished, but is heav}'- and dark. The peers sit on benches with their hats on, and speak in a rambling discursive style, without any attempt at orator3^ The House of Commons is ver}^ plain ; little or no accommodations are provided for spec- tators, and the trouble of procuring tickets of admission prevents a large attendance. The crypt is used as a chapel for the in- mates and is elaborately decorated wi'th gilding, mosaic, and frescos. You will excuse me for not attempting any descrijD- tion of the Houses of Parliament when you learn that they contain eleven hundred rooms. Opnosite this great theatre of England's 20 LONDON. illustrious statesmen is the resting place of England's most illustrious dead — West- minster Abbey. In this venerable pile — itself defying time — repose the members of the royal family, the statesmen, the heroes, the poets of England, and in no other place is encompassed so much fame. Queen Elizabeth and her royal victim Mary Queen of Scots sleep peacefully side by side 5 and, of the two, the victim has the finest tomb, erected by her son James I. The eloquence of Pitt and Fox is hushed in eternal sleep : — " The mighty chiefs sleep side by side." A bust of Shakespeare makes the great master conspicuous by his absence. He chose rather to rest by the gentle Avon, in the shade of his native village church- yard, than in this crowded mausoleum. The Poets' Corner is thronged by these mighty spirits who, though dead, yet live in immortal song, and you stand in their presence with awe. Buckingham Palace, the town residence of the sovereigns of England, adjoins the LONDON. 21 parks in the west end of London. The eastern front of this grand pile is 360 feet long, the interior is gorgeously furnished, and ornamented with paintings illustrating the glory of England. The royal stables, or mews as they are called here, contain the carriages of state and horses of the Queen and royal family. Some of which are only used on occasions of great ceremony, such as the opening of Parliament. The principal parks are St. James's, Hyde, and Regent's ; but none of them equal in extent and beauty the pride of America, the Central Park of New York. In the vicinity of London are many de- lightful countr}^ places which must be visited to obtain an intelligent understand- ing of English life and customs. Windsor Palace, the summer residence of the Queen, is first in importance, and amply repays one for the day which is required for the visit. Here the members of the royal family spend the most of their time ; and the taste manifested in everything pertain- ing to the royal household is worthy of 22 WINDSOR. the family which should be, and is, an example to the people of England. The Prince Consort was considered a model man, and a pattern for all good husbands, and the only objection now made to the Queen is that she prolongs her period of mourning to the injury of trade in dry goods and ball costumes, as the festivities of the Court have been suspended since the death of Prince Albert. The people of England are erecting a noble monument to the departed husband of their Queen in Hyde Park as an evidence that no other man could have performed such difficult and delicate duties so well. A German by birth he sleeps quietly among the English people, remembered as a leader of every en- lightened enterprize and liberal movement. After examining the royal residence, chapel, and mews we had a drive of five miles through shady avenues of oak to Virginia Water, a silvery lake of magical beauty on the confines of the rojal demesne, and one of the most charming places in England. The stones of an ancient temple of Greece were transported to a remote spot RICHMOND. 23 in this forest, and the temple was re-erected there under the immediate direction of George IV. A Chinese boat-house on the borders of the hike forms a rare rendez- vous for the royal children when bound on a boating or fishing excursion. The stump of Heme's oak remains to warn all who remember Falstaff to beware of the " Merry Wives of Windsor." A dinner at the " Wheatsheaf Inn," on the borders of the lake, with a pot of good English ale, brewed especiall}^ for the host, prepares you for a comfortable ride to London by midnight, which can now be made - without any danger of being- robbed by those rollicking knights of the road, Prince Hal, Falstaff, Bardolph, or Prim. Pvichmond Park, on the Thames, forms another delightful excursion, and by time- honored custom no one has a right to stay in England a week without going there and indulging in a dinner at the famous "Star and Garter Inn," the finest and most expensive public-house in England. The view up the Thames from the flower- 24 HAMPTON COURT. covered terraces of the grounds adjoining this establishment surpasses all others. It is a landscape of ornamental villas, of gardens blooming with flowers, with the bright waters of the upper Thames mean- dering through green meadows, and bear- ing on its silvery bosom gaily decorated boats filled with happy pic-nic parties, joyous with the sound of music and merri- ment. Richmond Park, near by, has some lodges or country seats on its bor- ders ; among others, those of the Prince of Wales and Lord John Eussell. It is a royal demesne, and right royally kept, with its fine old oaks and herds of deer. Another place of surpassing interest is Hampton Court Palace, situated near the Thames, about twenty-five miles above London. This majestic palace was the creation of Cardinal Woolsey, when in the height of his pride and power, but is now a royal palace devoted to the accommoda- tion of decayed gentility who live here as pensioners on the Queen. This palace, at the time of its erection was the finest in England, and aroused the envy of the EN'GLAXB. 2d courtiers and the jealousy of the King, who enquired of the great prelate the cause of so much magnificence, but the wily cardinal answered that he was only attempting to build a palace worthy of the acceptance of his royal master. Woolsey lived here in regal magnificence, maintain- ing a retinue of eight hundred servants, and gave audience to kings. He died at a remote cathedral in the north of England, saying : — "Au old man broken with the storms of state Is corns to lay his weaiy bones among you, Give him a little earth for charity." The vinery here contains a grape-vine nearly a hundred years old, yielding some- times 3,000 bunches of grapes. Bushy Park, adjoining the palace, is planted with horse chestnuts in regular rows for a mile scjuare, and v/hen they blopm in the spring all London conies to see tliem. In this park also, are fountains and statuary, and about seven hundred deer. Sydenham, the palace of the London Exhibition of 1851, yet remains in all its grandeur, but its glories have faded before 26 ENGLAND. the great Exposition, and all hie on to Paris. It was, however, sufhciently inter- estin , to attract twenty thousand people on the day of my visit, and contains objects ofinterest worthy of a week's investigation. The courts are divided into Egyptian, As- syrian, Greek, Roman, German, Italian, Byzantine, Alhambran, Pompeian, English and French, all filled with the wonders of different epochs. The gardens are most delightful, and the scener}^ surrounding the palace is unsurpassed in beaut}^ The evening was closed with a grand concert, the atmosphere was cooled with the play of fountains, and night illuminated by a brilliant display of fireworks. Greenwich Park and observatory de- mand a visit if but to see the snug harbor in which the limping old sailors of England are sheltered from the storms of life and the storms of the ocean. The observatory here regulates the time for the British marine, and in the remotest part of the South Sea or the frozen regions of tie j>3"orth Pole the faithful chronometer ticks in harmony with Greenwich time. A ENGLAND. 27 white-bait dinner on the banks of the Tliames is a luxmy to be enjoj'ed but once in a lifetime, and after [)artaking of a dozen courses, all of the finnj^ tribe, one feels quite inclined to swiin back to London. Mr. George Wilkes, of the New York Spirit of the Times, did the hospitalities of the whitebait dinner in his usual generous style. Spurgeon's Tabernacle, on the Surrey side of the Thames, is generally visited by Americans, and one fine Sunda}^ with a part}^ of ladies and gentlemen from Cali- fornia, we attended service there. The building is the best arranged piece of architecture in London, having all the modern improvements ; it is somewhat theatrical in its interior appearance on account of the tiers of galleries around the sides and the stage or platform from which Mr. Spurgeon speaks. About five thou- sand persons can be comfortably seated, and there is standing room for at least two thousand more. A dozen or more doors for ingress and egress prevents any con fusion in admitting so large a congregation, 28 ENGLAND. and in case of fire or panic would ensure their safety. The congregation seemed of the middle clnss of people, but had earnest, honest-looking faces, and were generally well clad and very decorous in deportment. Another Sunday, at the invitation of Mr. Gerald Ralston, Consul-General of Liberia in London, we went in company with Col. Forney, of Washington, and other friends, to visit some curious places in the oldest part of London. Leaving the Langham Hotel early in the morning we were carried by the underground railway to the vicinity of Houndsditch, the Jew quarter of Lon- don. Here the ragged fair is held every Sunday — men, women, and children of the scattered tribes of Israel are engaged in buying and selling old clothes and all manner of rubbish, and fortunate is the Gentile who passes through this throng of wretches without losing some part of his wardrobe. An enterprising young Israelite offered me an entire suit of clothes for a sixpence, but as they looked like they had been worn by all the descendants of Abra- ham, and I suspected they were already tenanted by Jerusalem travellers, the en- terprising young Israelite failed to make a sale. In the same vicinity we visited the Greek church, v>'here the young king of Greece was attending service. Near by, was a Quaker meeting-house, which a comely Quakeress exhibited to us, and also gave us some tracts. The Langham Hotel, on Portland Place, near Regent's Park, is one of the largest and finest hotels in London. It is kept by Col. Sanderson, an American, who has had much experience in Philadelphia and New York hotels. The building and fur- nishing of this" hotel cost about a million and a half dollars in gold, and it contains all the comforts of any European hotel. On account of the popularity of its Ameri- can proprietor a large number of our countrymen patronize it, and one feels as much at home as it is possible to do in any hotel kept on this plan. A very comfort- able room can be procured for about a dolhir a day, without involving the least obligation to take any of your meals in the house. You are perfectly free to eat where 30 FRANCE. you please, and only have to pay for what you get. The living in London is excel- lent, and you generally get the worth of 3'our money. The roast beef of old England was fairly tested and found equal to its reputation. Mutton chops, fish, and vegetables are served to perfection. I passed a month in London vainly en- deavouring to fathom its greatness ; a year w^ould scarcely suffice. We cannot linger any longer in the , great metropolis, but must hurry on to Paris, the gay, brilliant, fascinating French capital. The Emperor has spread a feast worthy of kings and invited the monarchs of Europe and Asia and the sovereigns of America to pay homage to the genius of the great enchanter of the nineteenth cen- tury, Napoleon III. The great Exposition of 1867 is in full blast, and the hurrying millions arc flocking to Paris. The South- eastern train carries us to Dover at the rate of sixty miles an hour, and in a hundred minutes we cross the English Channel and stand upon the classic soil of France. The crucifix and image of the FRANCE. 31 Saviour erected on both sides of the en- trance to the harbor remind us that we are now entering a Catholic countrj^, and the peasantry iu wooden shoes and women in neat white caps form a pleasing con- trast to the sturdy yeomanry of England. Our route lay through Normandy, the most romantic province of France. In the ancient city of Rouen are a great many curious things. The cathedral contains the heart of Ricliard Coeur-de-Lion, which he bequeathed to the jN"ormans for the great love he bore them. In the museum you can see the -f of William the Con- queror. He could not write his name. The spot where Joan of Arc was burned at the stake is covered by a monument erected to her memory — it is also a monu- ment of infamy to those who sacrificed to a blind superstition one of the most enthusi- astic heroines of histor3^ A lover of antiquity and romance miglit linger for months amidst the fine old cities and grey ruined castles of Xor- mandy ; among the sturdy peasantry, with wooden shoes and flannel blouses, and 32 1>ARIS. the charming brunettes with such nice white caps and winning manners; but we could remain only a few hours — we are bound for Paris — everybody is going to Paris. The journey from London to Paris now occupies no more than ten hours and a half — about the same time as a rail- way ride from New York to Washington ; but once arrived in gay and magnificent Paris, who shall describe its enchanting beauty. At the conquest of Caesar it was an insignificant hamlet on an island in the Seine, inhabited by a fierce and obstinate tribe of Gauls, called the Parisii. Now it is beyond comparison the finest city on the habitable globe, containing a population of three millions and a half, and assumes to be the capital of the civilized world. We stopped at the grand hotel on the princi- pal boidevart (des Italiens), a magnificent building forming a city in miniature, with a public square in the interior for a court- yard, and streets and avenues in its in- terior named to correspond with those on the outside. The apartments number six hundred, regulated in price by the altitude, PARIS. 33 which gave us a very elevated location. The moving panoi-ama of arriving and de- parting guests and visitors affords an en- livening scene for those who lounge under the glass canopy of the central court, sip- ping their coffee and absinthe by the fragrance of orange trees and the soft strains of music. We lost no time in visiting the Inter- national Exposition, which has brought all the world to Paris ; but the bewildering mazes of its great j^lan, filled with all that is curious in nature, wonderful in art, and exalted in science, can never be described. All that government, wealth, art, science, and magic could produce had been brought together for inspection. A space of one hundred and three acres had been enclosed with a vast coliseum of iron covered with glass ; it occupied the Champ de Mars, which had been surrendered by the Em- peror for the purpose, thus giving up for a time the exercises of war for the peaceful arts of industry, in proof to the world that the "empire is peace." The Expo- sition was made accessible by steamboat, 34 PARIS. railroad, omnibus, carriage, cab, and every conceivable and inconceivable conve3''ance ever used for the transportation of men, women, and children. The outside circle was appropriated to gardens, fountains, light-houses, aquariums, conservatories, models of pyramids, plans of isthmus- canals, and different designs of architec- ture. The first inner circle consisted en- tirely of specimens of steam machinery. Ascending a staircase about twenty feet high you could make the entire circuit of the Exposition amid the whirl and buzz and confusion of every species of machi- nery invented by every nation, engaged in every kind of manufacture, from a steam engine to a cambric needle. In making the circuit of this grand display of human ingenuity, taking a yard at a stride, you would have to make fifteen thousand steps. Inside this circle of buzzing industry were ten other circles intersected by transverse galleries di- viding the nations, so that by taking any circle and following it around 3^ou could inspect any particular class of exhibition,. PARIS. 35 or by taking a transverse galleiy from the outer circle to the inner courtj^ard you could inspect the variet)- of exhi- bitions of any nation. In simply trav- ersing the circles and galleries of the Ex- position, without wandering in the mazes of curious things, a distance of fifty-four miles would have to be walked to obtain even a superficial view of the wonder. As I have said, the outer circle was intended to exhibit material progress in the economy of human labor ; the inner circle, — b}^ that perfect taste and exact judgment which made the Exposition such a grand success, — was set apart for the display of works of art and genius more akin to the soul. In this department, a refined taste could enjoy the greatest delight, and long and late did I linger before the inspirations of genius exhibited in painting and sculpture. Here was collected the masterpieces of art from Italy, France, Spain, Germany, England, Holland, Portugal, Russia, Norway, and not least of all, America, which contributed her grand mountains by Bierstadt, and majestic Niagara by Church, to give the 36 PARIS, Old World an idea of the magnitude of the New. In this brief hour it would be im- possible to attempt any description of the Universal Exposition- — it was the world in miniature — Solomon in all his glory could have produced nothing worthy of a place in its aisles. The barbaric S[)lendor of ancient Rome would afford no gratification to the refined taste of the nineteenth cen- tury. The Exposition is over, the magic- lantern is closed, but the impression it made upon the minds of its millions of in- telligent visitors will illuminate the mellow memor}' as long as life shall last. Let us hurry out of the crowd and noise and confusion of this modern Babel and walk in the gardens of the Tuilleries ; they are fragrant with flowers and cool with the jets of fountains. The Emperor and the Empress wdth the Prince Imperial are frequently in the promenade, and the de- mocracy of France are freely invited to the imperial grounds. A grand and massive pile forming a hollow square, coveringabout sixty acres, affords quarters for the impe- rial household, and here the grand festivi- 1>ARIS. 37 tics of the Court and dignified receptions of embassadors take place. An imperial democracy ma}^ sound in- congruous, but such they seem to have in France, and a more perfect system of government seems impossible to devise : it suits the French people, the}^ are prosper- ous and happy. A compact body of forty millions of homogeneous people who will fight for an idea or a principle ;— their neighbors had better let them alone. One must not omit to visit the Hotel des Iiivalides — it contains the tomb of Xapo- leon the First. After a stormy life he sleeps here, by his own recj[uest, on the banks of the Seine, among the French peo- ple, whom he loved so well. IS^obh^ have the}^ enshrined their idol. You may hunt for the dust of Alexander and Ctesar in vain, but the remains of the great Napo- leon are guarded by the hearts of the French people, and his tomb isthe grandest architectural monument of which the city o? Paris can boast. The country palaces are numerous. We visited Saint Cloud, Fon- tainbleau, and Versailles, but shall speak 4 38 VERSAILLES. onl_y of the latter, — the magical creation of Louis XIV, You may form some concep- tion of its magnificence when you consider that it was built when labor in France was not worth twenty-five cents per clay, and cost the enormous sum of two hundred millions of dollars. The impoverishment of France from these exactions was one of the prime causes which led to the French Revolution. In the palace of Yersailles are stored all the glories of France anterior to its construction, and such a wealth of painting and sculpture can nowhere else be found. To inspect the paintings on the walls requires a walk of sixteen miles, whilst the finest marble statuary adoi-ns every avenue in the forest. The fountains of Versailles are the finest and largest in the world; and at night, when they are illuminated, and the jets from a huudred fountains piny liigh in the air, and fall in glittering spray, sparkling like diamonds in the rays of the electrical light, and mimic naval battles occur on artificial lakes with miniature fleets, it forms a spectacle which brings rounds of applause from PERE LE CHASE. 39 the two hundred thousand spectators gath- ered to witness tlie magnificent fete. The theatres of Pai'is constitute tlie evening entertainment of the Parisian, and the hist sou is spent to witness a theatrical spec- tacle. One nighl at the Porte Pan Mai'tin five live lions were brought upon the stage amidst the huzzas of some thousands of but little less ferocious-looking beasts in the galleries. The balls in summer are held in the open air in the vicinity of the Champs Elysees, and amidst the glare of gaslight, the sound of music, and the abandon of evening, the painted beauties of Paris trip the light fantastic toe for the amusement of its denizens and visitors. I too, had to go and see these dancing beau- ties, merely as a matter of curiosit}^, but seeing a lady stand on one foot and kick a gentleman's hat off with the other, I pulled my Init over my eyes and took my de- parture: it was evident that she was a lady from the agility she displayed. The last place we shall visit is Pere le Chaise, the beautiful resting [ilace of the dead, and tenderly and with good taste 40 SWITZERLAND. tlie}^ put away and honor those tliey loved and cherished in life. The street leading to the cemetery is devoted almost entirely to the manufacture and sale of chaplets and immortelles to beautify the graves of the departed ; for it is a French custom to visit the cemetery on the anniversary of interment and hang fresh garlands upon the graves of their loved and lost. Stran- gers may leave their cards before some great shrine, like Rachel's or Lafayette's, — a curious custom. After a month passed in the excitement of Parisian life, looking through the Ex- position, admiring the paintings of the great masters in the Louvre and Luxem- bourg, riding all about the city on the tops of omnibuses, delving into all kinds of restaurants, smotliering in theatres, sleep- ing only four or five hours a-night, I was surfeited with civilization and so weary of human contact, that I felt like breathing the pure air of Switzerland, and started for Geneva alone, with carpet-bag in hand. At the railroad depot I was fortunate in meeting some young Englishmen who SWITZERLAND. 41 carried their credentials as members of the " Alpine Clab" in the shape of stout sticks made for climbing precipices and holding in the ice. The journey by railway from Paris to Geneva is not interesting, and was consequent!}^ made in the night. Tlie morning, fortunately, was bright and clear, so that as our locomotive thundered along the deep blue waters of the arrowy Rhone and passed the peaks of the Jura, we burst in sight of tlie city of Geneva and lake Leman, with the snow-capped giant Mont Blanc looming up in all his grandeur, the monarch of the mountains. The transition from the gayelies of Paris to the quiet simplicity of Geneva was peculiarly sooth- ing. The deep blue waters of the lake, the quiet sliad}^ islands, and the magnifi- cent mountain scenery are enough to fasci- nate the senses : — " Clear placid Lsinan ! thy contrastocl lake, With the wild world I dwelt in, is a thing Which warns me, with its stillness, to forsake Earth's troubled waters for a purer spring." Geneva has long been famous as a seat of learning and intelligence. Tlie greatest 42 SWITZERLAND. scholars of Europe have sought the in- vigorating atmosphere of this mountain city and the freedom of the Swiss Govern- ment to prepare the doctrines which have spread so much civil and religious liberty in Europe. The pleasant temperature, the grand view of the Alps, the delightful ex- cursions on the lake, the cheap living, and the perfect freedom make the lake of Geneva one of the most desirable spots imaginable. In Montreux, a delightful spot on the north side of the lake, the longevity is greater than at any other place where tables are kept. IMear this place is the castle of Chillon, made famous by Byron's poem of the Prisoner of Chil- lon. The poem had its foundation in the history of Bonnevard, who was imprisoned here by the Count of Savoy, on account of his religious opinions ; and the guide ex- hibits the pillar and chain, and worn path- way in the solid stone pavement. The castle was built on a little island in the lake, a short distance from the main land, and connected vi^ith it by a natural moat, ■crossed by a drawbridge, and formerly SWITZERLAND. 43 coniniaiided the road leading around the hike. "Lake Lsman lies by Chillou's walls : A thousand feet in depth below Its massy waters meet and flow ; Thus much the fathom-line Avas sent From Chillou's snow-white battlement, Which round about the wave iuthrals ; A double dungeon wall and wave Have made — and like a living grave. Below the surface of the lake The dark vault lies wherein we lay, We heard it ripple night and day." The little island which smiled in his face is there as natural as yesterday : "A small green isle, 'it seemed no more, vScarce broader than my dungeon floor. But in it there were three tall trees, And o'er it blew the mountain breeze, And by it there were waters flowing. And on it there were young flowers growing." A Sunday evening never to be forgotten was spent in the Castle of Chillon. After reading Byron's poetical description you will not of course expect to hear anything more from me. From tliis dungeon we sought the free Alps, and the next day started for tlie val- 44 SM'ITZERLAND. ley of Clianiounix. Here I found my old friend the mule, that serviceable, obstinate, unmanageable, docile companion of man ; but of all the mules that ever tried the pa- tience of a Christian, these Alpine mules exceed all others — they are as old as the Alps, and the pilot of a steamboat could not guide one of them, — you would be about as comfortable on a windmill. A travelling companion of mine was once en- raged to blasphemy by a mule, and said, if God had created such a beast he would never worship Him — it was a wicked in- vention of man. In going to Chamounix you have to pass the Mer de Glace, or sea of ice, formed by the melting of the snow from Mont Blanc, and this is sometimes., perilous : — " The glacier's cold and restless mass Moves onward day l)y day." Chamounix is the nearest village to Mont Blanc, and where the preparations are generally made for those who are am- bitious to make the ascent, which simply requires a certain amount of labor, expo- SWITZERLAND. 45 sure, aiul moiie3\ The grand old monarch of the mountains, wliite-headed with the snows of ages, looms up fourteen thousand eight hundred and seven feet above the level of tlie sea. De Saussere, a scientific Swiss, was twenty-seven years engaged in efforts to reach the summit before he finally succeeded. In the Alps he is honored as the discoverer of a new world, and is the deity worshipped by the guides. I had become by contact somewdiat familiar with the mountains in America, and love moun- tain scenery — its inspirations are freedom and its atmosphere is health. The moun- taineer is any day a nobler specimen of humanity than the lowland man — he lives nearer heaven — but this grand old hoary Mont Blanc excited my veneration and admiration to the utmost. I pardon an English member of the " Alpine Club" for coming here every summer to get a view from a different angle. Farewell, Mont Blanc, I have come to greet you from Mount ITood, from the Sierra Nevadas, from the Rocky Mountains, from the Sierra Madre. from your brethren in America — hail and farewell ! 46 SWITZERLAND. I had read in my boyish days of the good monks and faithful dogs of San Bernard, and next started to visit this monastery, or hospice, as it is called, located on the highest habitable part of the Alps, in the most desolate, bleak, and barren pass, sur- rounded by eternal snows. Here for a continuous period of nine hundred years the monks of St. Bernard have served Grod and man, worshipping the one and succor- ing the other. As I arrived alone and on foot at this house of God on the evening of the 3d of July, the impression of the deso- late scene was painful. A kind monk re- ceived me, " As a Santon receives to his dwelling of stone, In silence some pilgrim the midnight may bring ; It may be an angel that weary of wing Hath paused in his flight from some city of doom, Or only a wayfarer strayed in the gloom." A frozen lake in the lap of the mountains furnishes water, but all else has to be transported on mule back up the moun- tain. The genius of Napoleon never achieved a more difficult task than crossing the Alps with the French armj^, and even SWITZERLAND, 47 now, with the road that he built as a monument of iiis greatness, it seems no easy task. When Gen. Desaix fell at the battle of Marengo, and died in Napoleon's arms, he comforted the dying soldier with the assui-ance that he should have the Alps for his monument and be buried at San Bernard. A marble monument in the church attests the performance of Napo- leon's promise. Those who perish in the snows and are found by the keensfcented dogs are brought to the hospice ancl placed in the dead house, (a stone building de- tached from the convent). They remain there in the same position in which they are found, awaiting the recognition of friends. It was not a pleasant sight to look upon the frigid contortions of death and the shrivelled lips exposing the hideous face and sunken eyeballs. After tea, (that is, a substantial meal of meat, vege- tables, pastr3% and wine,) we retired to the drawing-room, and had music on the piano by some ladies who were enjoying the hospitality of this remote region, and after service I'ctired to our rooms and 48 gWlTZfiRLAND warm feather beds both over and under. To sleep between feather beds on the third night in Jul}^ rnay not sound ver}^ refresh- ing, but I can assure 3'ou it was very com- fortable in the Alps. On the morning of the fourth of July I bade adieu to my hospitable friends, and leaving enough money in the contribution box to keep my account even, took my stafi" in hand and descended the Alps. At a little village called Martigny, near the Rhone, at the foot of the Alps, I met at dinner a half dozen Americans, with some ladies, and it w^as about midnight before we had finished dinner, during which time the American Eagle was duly perched upon the highest peak of the Alps screaming liberty to the down-trodden of Europe, &c., &c.— My toast ■was something about the Government lasting as long as the Alps — oblivion prevents further quota- tions. After leaving here I wandered through Switzerland alone, and partly on foot, en- chanted with its beautiful mountains and lakes, its free and independent people, SWITZERLAND. 49 and tlie industry and morality apparent among these hard}'- sons and daugliters of the monntains. A Swiss woman is always knitting;- — ridino-. walkin^j, watchino- o'oats, driving cattle : in every condition in life a Swiss woman knits — from childhood to age it is knit, knit. The}' are the greatest sock knitters ontside of the south- ern confederacy. After leaving Switzer- land I wandered into Bavaria, and spent some days in Munich, its capital cit}'. The [)alacos, the picture galleries, the sculpture, the opera house, the king's brewery, and all the monuments of art which have been gathered in this capital open a, new and unknown world to the American tourist, seldom versed in the mysteries of German mythology. The Ruhmeshalle, or Hall of Glory, is most worthy of note, having been built to receive the monuments erected to the great men of Bavaria. In front of this hall, and looking over a green plain to- wards the city, live miles distant, is the colossal bronze, statue of Bavaria — tlie largest in the world, weighing two hundred and thirty thousand pounds, and standing 50 BAVARTA. sixty-three feet above the pedestal. A very formidable woman to look at. I ascended a staircase through the lady's crinoline, and made my way through her heart to her head, and opening her eye (weighing about ten pounc's) had a fine view of the city. From Munich, which I left with much regret on account of an excellent hotel and the best lager-beer in Europe, I went to Lintz, in Austria, and thence down the dark rolling Danube to Vienna, and a more delightfid day's voyage tlian that down the Danube I can scarcely remember. At every turn of the river some ruined castle or dilapidated convent perched upon a mountain crag ; the vineyards and wheat- fields coming down to the water's edge vouched for an industrious people. The climate had all the softness of the tropics, the soil is not poor, and I fancy that with a good government which is now dawning upon them, the Austrians will rise to some- thing like their former power in the affairs of Europe. They have recently adopted a constitutional government, and the pre- sent Emperor is full of liberal ideas. AUSTRIA. 51 Up to this time I had been travelling with chance acquaintances, but here had the pleasure of meeting an old fViend from San 1^'rancisco, Jo. Eastland, who, with as jolly a priest as Friar Tuck ever was, and a Calilbruia millionaire, by the appropriate name of Caslnnan, had been to the centen- nial of St. Peters, iu Rome. We now now joined company, and travelled to- gether with great pleasure for nearly a month. In Vienna, we find the races of eastern and western Europe blended with a tinc- ture of northern barbarism. Bounded on the south by the Turk, on the west by Protestant Germany, and on the north by the Russian colossus, the little Austrian has a very difficult role to perform. He is consolidating his empire, and in that acting wisely. He is Emperor of Austria and King of liungai-y and King of Bohemia. His coronation as King of Hungary was one of the most magnificent pageants of wliich history has preserved a record. Near tlie same time, by a strange fatality, his brother Maximilian lost his life in attempting to 52 AUSTRIA. found a djaiasty in Mexico. Of that event it is not our province to speak, except to bear testimony to the shock with which the announcement was received in civilized Europe, and the universal regret of the Austrian and German, and, in fact, the whole European people, for the sad event. It was m}^ good fortune to be in the cathe- dra] of Vienna on that Sabbath-day which was set apart to celebrate mass with all the pompous ceremony of the Roman Church for the repose of the departed soul of the beloved Maximilian ; and as the deep-toned organ pealed forth the solemn service, many a heart bled tears for the unfortunate young prince. The remains of the royal familj^ of the House of Haps- burg for eight centuries repose in the crypt of this cathedral. This is the oldest ruling djmasty in Europe, and the tombs or coffins of many of its members are of silver, gor- geously worked, and others are only of lead. The tomb of Marie Therese is mag- nificent, as was her throne. One of the tombs, of solid silver, is valued at about sixteen thousand dollars. The King of BOnEMIA. 58 Rome (son of Napoleon) reposes in a sim- ple lead coffin, but measures have been taken by his imperial cousin to have his remains removed to Paris to repose b}^ his father, and fill the chasm in the imperial succession of the dead. From Vienna we went to Prague, in Bohemia, over a beautiful and highly-culti- vated country, and there, in a city scarcely known to the western world, we found colleges and eminent seats of learning, which flourished and gave education to Europe before America was discovered. It is filled with old churches, old bridges, and monuments to the early sovereigns. The palace of Wallanstein remains a monument to the taste and elegance of Marie Therese's great captain in the thirty years' war — it was the only palace in which I saw a tour- nament ground preserved as it was" in the days of chivalr}', when the knights met in an enclosure, from which there was no escape, and contended for the prize of beauty. From Prague we went to Dresden, the capital of Saxony, going down the Elbe 54 SAXONY. amidst the beautiful scenery of what is called the Saxon Switzerland. The Koe- nigstone, or King's Stone, is a fortification on one of the most prominent peaks, and although its destruction has been attempted b}^ Napoleon, Frederick the Great, and nearly every other military chieftain who has devastated Europe, it has always re- mained the stronghold and safe deposit for the kings of Saxon}^ and in time of war the crown jewels are sent there for safe keeping. Dresden is considered one of the most delightful places in Europe for a per- manent residence, and many Americans are domesticated there. Economy, educa- tion, amusement, or health are fully con- served by a residence in Dresden. The picture galleries are not second to any in Europe. The opera house is one of the finest; and is well patronized. The lager beer is good ; the music in the gardens is splendid ; the people are kind and sociable. What more could heart desire ? The kings of Saxony formerly had large revenues from the silver mines of Freiberg, and ex- pended their wealth in the purchase of paintings, rare works of ait, diamoiids, and precious stones. The jewelry in one room, called the green vaults, in the palace of the King of Saxony is estimated at fifteen millions of dollars of our money. Leaving the delightful capital of iSaxony we were soon in Berlin, the capital of Prussia, now the seat of Government of of the North-German Cou federation. In coming from southei-n to northern Germany a marked dilTerence is observed in the thrift, comfort, and intelligence of the peo- ple, — whether it is the result of climate, religion, or education we will not under- take to decide. In Berlin, everything hears the sti'ong impress of militar}' disci- pline ; the city looks like a huge bari'ack ; and the soldiers of Prussia, in their stalwart forms, passionless faces, and steel helmets remind one of the iron soldiers of Rome, who stood at their post amid the flowing fiery lava of Mount Vesuvius ; and if war occurs again in Europe the power of uni- fied Germany will descend on southern Europe like that fiery and irresistable ava- lanche. In Berlin, Frederick the Great 56 PRUSSIA. appears to be the presiding genius. His colossal equestrian statue is one of the most magnificent monuments in Europe, standing seventeen feet on a granite pedes- tal of twenty-five feet high, surrounded by thirty-one of his leading generals and statesmen, and ornamented with mytholo- gical groups and has reliefs. His palace is of immense size, having many grand apart- ments filled with sumptuous furniture and fine paintings. On one side of the entrance is a stairway, and on the other a carriage- wa}^ both leading to the upper stories. The two churches exactly alike have a curious history : During the French occu- pation Napoleon caused the erection of a fine Roman Catholic cathedral, and after the Restoration, the Prussian Government, not wishing to commit .the sacrilege of destroying the church,,''built another pre- cisely like it for Protestant worship. Be- tween them is the opera house, a fine building, where the German passion for music is fully gratified by great perform- ances. At the Conservatory of Music we saw all the instruments which German paussFA. 57 talent has iuvciited, closing with a musical man in full uniform, who trumpeted as gaily as if he was as full of life as he was of wind. There is one street in Berlin which attracts universal admiration — " Unier den Linden"' — not from its beautiful name, but for the long avenues of linden trees planted in rows on each side of the carriage way for a mile, giving a grateful shade in this brick-built city. In this brief hour I can attempt no account of the environs of Ber- lin, The Thiergarten, just outside of the Brandenburg gate, forms the park of the city, and here, under the shade of a forest as dense as any in the western world, you may ride or drive for miles amid the beau- ties of nature and creations of art. Potsdam, eighteen miles from Berlin, is the ro3^al residence, and contains within its precincts five or six different palaces. Sans Souci is the creation of Frederick the Great, and contains many mementoes of tliis singular man., interesting to those familiar with his histor}'. A painting of the great king, with his neices, listening to A'^oltaire reading, impressed nie greatly, and 58 PRUSSIA. left an unfading image on my memory. He loved his dogs so well that it is said he en- tertained them at table, and the tombstones erected to their memory are yet visible. The fountains and statuary at Potsdam nearly equal those of Versailles, which were the envy of all the European mon- archs at the time of their erection. Babelsberg is the principal residence of the royal family of Prussia, and a more enchanting- palace could scarcely be imag- ined. The views are all tliat art and nature could combine, and "Every pi'ospect pleases." The domestic simplicity which pervades the royal household is very pleasant, and 3^ou imagine that the eldest daughter of the good Queen Victoria is very happy amidst her children, her birds, her chickens and her flower gardens. The famous wind- mill, in view from the palace, is still pre- served as a monument of Prussian justice. The king desired the ground on which the mill stood as an addition to his royal de- mesne, but the stubborn miller would not gratify this whim of his royal neighbor, PRUSSIA. 59 eti-ilied trees, stretching out into the sea towards the coast of Scotland. This geological phenomenon has puzzled our scientific friends not a little, and many theories have l>een presented by delvers in science ; but the whole question is easily explained by the traditions of the country, one of which is as follows : "Fin McCoul, a great giant who was champion of Ii-eland, had a quarrel with a Caledonian giant, who told Fin, if it were not for wetting his clothes he would swim over to Ireland and give him a drubbing. Fin, with that gallantry and love of a row IRELAND. 87 wliieli disitinguishes liis coiintrynien, po- litely constructed the causewav to Scot- land, and invited the Scotciinuiii to walk over and knock a chip oil of his lial. Tlie Caledonian came over. ;iiid uftcr a bat- tle according to the rules ol' tlic V. W.. linalh^ threw up tlie sponge Tiic Scotch- man having been fairly vaiKpiished, his Hibernian victor, with the generosity of his race, invited him to leniain on Irish soil, and offered him one (jf his relations in marriage, which the Hiehunlnuui freely consented to, as the Irish girls are the prettiest in the world, and the living in Ireland much better than in Scotland." So this accounts for the (Jiant's Cause- wa}^, and that hardy race oT people known as the Scotch-Irisli. The}^ had happy times in old Ii-eland — " When li!T kiiVL^s, with standard of urci'ii ii!ilurl''d, L--d the rt'd hrancli kniglils lo d;iiii:cr. Ere the enicrald gem of tlie \vcsl:rii w .hM Was phiffd on the l)row oi a -iianiii r."' The origin of the red branch, oi- I'cd hand, is a tradition of th<' firs! hinding of the Celts in Ireland. It had been nuriUMl among tliem that the first to touch the shore should be king. One of the leaders, ambitious for regal honors, cut off his left liand and threw it ashore, and since that time the kings of Ulster have worn the red hand on their escutcheon. Ireland is becoming depopuhited under the dissatisfaction with the British gov- ernment. The difference in race and re- ligion seems irreconcilable, and the late Fenian disturbances bode no good to either country. In ten years the exodus has been fift}' per cent., and now the island con- tains but little more than four millions and a half of people. . The question has occu- pied the attention of the ablest British statesmen, and as yet no remedy has been effectual. The most witty suggestion was, that the island should be submerged for twenty-four hours. The soil is rich, the grazing luxuriant, the climate good ; but the landlord and tenant system, and the church rates to support a religion which they consider a heres}', bears hard upon the Irish people, and the country which formerly teemed with the finest peasantry IRELAND. 89 ill the world is now turned out for grazing pastures. "The liarp that oiu-o throngli Taia"- halls The soul of music slied, Now hangs as mute on Tara's walls As if that soul were fled. " Tara was the ancient cii]tii:il ol' Irehmd. Dublin, the metropolis and lornier capital city of Ireland, is on the eastei-n shore, and }jossesses much of Interest and grandeur. The vice-regal residence is in the castle, where the representative of (Ireat Britain is surrounded by an army, and appears more like a beseiged general than :i rider. The Houses of Parliament, Trinity College, and Saint Patrick's Cathedral, jirc tlie most prominent buildings. In the cathedral we noticed the monuments to Dean Swift and Stella, side by side. Phoenix Park is the park of Duldin, and the Irish people, with their native modesty, think it the finest in the world : tliey have not quite all been to Central Park, New York yet, but they are coming. In driv- ing out in the park, we were, somewhat inquisitive about tlie statuaiy. and our 90 IRELAND. Hiberiuaii driver, not being fully posted in the fine arts, could not satisf}^ our curiosit}- , and finally answered, rather pettishly, "Oh, they are only some of the aristocracy." I replied, " You don't seem to think much of the aristocracy." His answer was ready, " And, be jabers, the}- don't think much of me." Ill going from Dublin to Killarney we passed tlirough " the sweet vale of Avoca" and magnificent Tipperary. In Tippe- rary the landholders can scai-cel}^ collect their rents, the tenants have an insane way of shooting agents when pay day conies around. An auctioneer in 'i'ipperary, in crying off a gun, said, " Here is this illegant gun going for two pound six, and war- ranted to pay a year's rint." We arrived at the Lakes of Killarney on a lovel}^ evening in the autumn, and after stowing away our luggage were start- ing out for a walk, when a jaunty son of the soil, with knee-breeches and a cap hung on his left ear, sidled up to us and introduced himself as " Happy Jack,'" and offered to be our guide, ^philosopher, and IRELAND. 91 fi'icMicl, to take us to the bottom of the hikes or the tops of the mountains, to ball or shindy, to the illicit distilleiT, or Kate Kearney's dairy. In fact, this Jack would have undertaken anything for our happi- ness, at the rate of three shillings per day. He would hire us a jaunting car, or go with us on foot to the world's end. After a little acquaintance, we concluded to test Jack's lo3'alty to his queeu and couutr}^, and I asked, very coididentially, "Jack, are you a Fenian?'' He never blinked, but answered, "No, your honor, I am not; but I think every true-hearted Irishman ought to be." The Lakes of Killarney are so intensely beautiful that no description can do them justice. The scenery around the lakes is lovely. Green sward alternates with a forest of holly, arbutus, and oak, while the ivy clindjs in luxuriant masses over rocks and trees. In the lakes are many beautiful islands, like gems of emer- ald set in silver. In the vicinity are the ruins of the ancient abbey of Saint Finian, founded in GOO, and the more modern Muckross Abbey, founded in 1450. At n2 IRELAND. the time of founding this latter abbey, the monks phxnted a yew-tree in the oourt-vard. The abbey, the work o\' human hands, is in ruins, but the tree blooms in perennial beaut}', stretching its branches over the roof- less walls. The tombs of some of Ireland's greatest chieftains ornament the church- yard. In the vicinity are several fine cas- cades, and the mountain scenery not far distant makes a background for this Ar- cadian picture. We drove to Kate Kearney's cottage, and received a cup of genuine poteen from the hand of her granddaughter, so called ; but whether she was her granddaughter or not, the poteen was very good and bracing in the night air. Afterwards we accom- panied Happy Jack to take dinner in a real Irish cottage ; but as Jack had given notice of our coming, the landlady had prepared a nice dinner of mutton, turnips, and pota- toes, which, with a few mugs of ale drunk by a warm peat fire, made us comfortable. The potatoes in Ireland are better than any- where else, and the skins burst open, too generous to hold the nutritious food within. IRKLAND. 93 One could linger ahva3's amid the lovely scenes of Killarne}', but it would be sad to die and leave the Avorld fi-om such a beau- tiful place. I should prefer to die in Scot- land, as one could leave there with less regret. But our visit is ended, and sad as it will be to part with Hnppy Jack, we must sever the warm chain of friendship which has been woven b}' his wit and humor. " Sweet lunisfillen, fare thee well! May calm and snnsliine long be thine ; How fair thou art let others tell, While but to feel how fan- be inine. "Sweet Innisfillen, lonS!\M,V- ^-r.