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Show WOMAN'S EXPONENT, 190 to grow up in empires and causing new ones A TYPICAL FEUDAL CITY. their stead. reader will turn to the map of Europe and place her finger near the centre of the southern half of the German Empire, it will - indicate almost the exact position of the city of Nuremberg (or Nurnberg), and that name will probably sound familiar, for one or more reasons, to moat of those who peruse this article. Those who are mothers, and hence deal more or less in playthings, will recall the fact that the fame of Nuremberg toys has reached even the valleys of Utah. Some will remember the city as the birthplace, on the 21st of May, 1471, of Albrecht Durer, painter and engraver, the versatility of whose gifts made himaore nearly resemble the immortal Ang0 than anv other artist of history. A very celebrated sculptor, Adam Krafft, was also born here, and during a long life left, in many parts of the town, evidences of his great excellence with and tha chisel; and some noted as well as two or three poets, a historian or two, and other men whose names, if mentioned, would be familiar to the biographical student, first saw light in this city. To those who belong to the large class of human beings who earn their living by the use of the pencil, it will be no news to say that situated here are the factories of the Messrs. Eaber, whose pencils are known and used all over the will not presume to think civilized world. any of my readers know any thing about the quality or reputation of Nuremberg beer; but evreywhere in Europe and in nearly all parts of the United States, it is a favorite for its fine and peculiar flavor, its rich color and its purity. But the city is quite a famous one in Europe, for various other reasons, and in quaint old Germany itself has the reputation of being one of the best preserved of the ancient fortified towns of the empire. Like everything else which makes an mark upon the page of history, Nuremberg is greatly indebted for its existence to a woman in fact a woman, if not the actual founder of the city, was at least the one who gave it the stability and prestige which it has never lost to this day. Something over eight hundred years ago there lived in central Europe an Empress, named Kunigunde, whose career, if all be true that is told about her, was a very interesting one. I am not aware that she has had any accurate biographer, who has taken the pains to search after proofs of her wonder-- , fnl ueeds, and "who has' refrained from giving; credence to- such stories as were at best but the wild superstitions of the peasantry. On the contrary, every writer who has mentioned her at all, seems to havo adopted what previous historians have said, and added a little himself to make his book moro entertaining . Wp all know, from every day experience, how rapidly a tale grows and improves with each successive repetition, and we can each therefore form an idea of how small a foundation, eight hundred years ago, may have existed for the marvelous For exaccounts which we read of is common a tradition nowaquite ample, it this she that came Kunigunde days respecting in a flame of fire, as a from heaven to earth In tho height of beauty,'and perfect woman, possessing all the elements of- immortality. An earlier story is that as she lay in her littlo cradle, flames of fire were seen to dart from; and envelope it, much to the alarm of her parents, whom she, however, reassured by telling them, though ilic was only three months old, that she would not be injured. - And- - a still earlier tradition, and probably one somewhere near correct, recites that as the infant princess was for the first time presented ' to her delighted father, the great chimney, place took fire and tell with a loud crash-- a good omen, so the old nurses said, indicating that the child should become great and mighty, tearing down old die-sinke- rs metal-worker- s, : . J , en-duri- be very wearisonie to relate all the events of her childhood as told by such historians as believe she had a childhood, or to mention the various traditions still held as Jo' the signs o'f heavenly displeasure at the time of her marriage. Suffice it to eay; whether she were a heavenly or an earthly being,' she had a true woman's heart, and Jrielaed to tne wooing of a handsome youn prince, whom Bhe married amid great rejoicings .of the people and with bright prospects of lifelong happiness. She, however, was ambitious and restless, while her husband was indolent and satisfied to pass away his life in ease and the pursuit of pleasure.She therefore assumed the lead of affairs, established herself at the city of Nuremberg (now heard ef for the first time in history), defended it with strong fortifications, made continual inroads upon, the territory of her weaker neighbors, and was able to resist the attacks of her stronger ones. She ruled with severity, , justice always, but mercy, never, fiviog simple or castle, now mostly rebuilt, situated on an elevated sandstone rock, is where she lived, and in the courtyard still grows the old lime tree, planted by her, under which she sat sternly administering her own laws.' Many of the walls and defences, said to have been erected by her orders, and according to her own designs, also remain and attest the true Amazonian character and attributes credited to her. And all this was done in a very short time, for in the prime of life, some say in less than ten years after her marriage, she came to her death under the following painful circumstances. From her last incursion into a neighboring province, she brought, as prisoner, to her strong-nol- d a brave, robber knight, whose manly, proud bearing, during his imprisonment, quite won her; heart, and she made overtures to him promising him liberty, great wealth, and half tier kingdom if he , would join her in a conspiracy to get her husband out of the way. g About this time it appears that her lord became a little suspicious, and set spies to watch the maneuvrcs of his cunning better half. At last, just as she had locked the jailor ' in his own room, and was opening the gates to the knight, who was already on his horse, the Defrayed husband with his gaurds rushed in and gave a very unexpected conclusion to the programme. The empress threw the keys of, the fortress down a deep' well, while the knight, knowing that certain death awaited him, resolved to meet it in an attempt to escape. He spurred his horse on to the parapet wall, at a single bound, cleared the moat which encircled the castle, and was free. Cheated of one of his conspirators, the emperor, now thoroughly aroused, resolved to punish tne other at once, and very affection atly threw his wife headlong down the well, ordering her to bring the keys to him before she need expect his forgiveness It is said that she did come once, with the keys hanging at her girdle, but her ghostly appearance was so terrible that the poor conscience-stricke- n man died of fright. In confirmation of these details, the old castallan leads the unbeliever to the well itself (fee six cents), and ' lowers candles into it to show its great depth, while with solemn whispers, he declares that ' by means of a mirror properly arranged, on a dark night, tne' spirit of the restless woman may be seen, groping about for the castle keys,, without which she cannot accompany tehus-band to paradise. As the moat at this point is1' about one hundred and thirty feet wide and! one hundred deep, with perpendicular walled! sides, I was disposed to doubt the equestrian -feat of the robber; but the guide triumphantly led me to a certain part of the castle wall where5 two deep indentations made by the hoofs of the isteedin his grand leap still remain, mute It would If the ; ' ng ; . ease-lovin- , , ' , . ; i : - . ; : , to-da- y. - , ; I witnesses of the truthfulness of the warder's tale. I was : also " amused at hk reply to my assertion that I did not believe his account about the tree tinder which Kunigunde administered justice, because I did not believe that justice ever was administered in Nuremberg at all. 'You may depend the story is true," said he; "you will notice; Herr American, that it is so long since any was administered, the grass has grown up out of and over the stone of the pavement and made a smooth, mossy lawn of it." He was so prompt with his reply that I concluded some other American had made the same objection as myself, having learned from bitter experience that the goddess with the scales was here, not only blindfolded but bound hand and foot- - perfectly powerless. Such is a brief sketch of the earliest history of a city which has withstood the feudal and more modern wars of Europe, and remains today almost as ancient looking and as well preserved as it ever was. Of its authentic history much that is interesting might be mentioned, showing its great1 prosperity in "the sixteenth century, before the discovery of the sea route to the Indies, its subsequent decline, and its restoration again to the position which it now occupies, as the chief city of manufacture and trade in South Germany. But it will perhaps be sufficient to add, by way of conclusion, that it became one of the free towns of the empire in the twelfth century, and received many in portant concessions from successive emperors, to whom it furnished a residence. For the next few hundred years it was one of the leading cities of Europe in the protection offered to art, and in the activity and energy of its business men. But during the Thirty Years' "War it suffered greatly, and during several decades following it, the feeble rule of the patrician families caused it to sink almost into insignificance, until, in 1806, when it became a Bavarian city, life again returned to it, and it became and has since remained a flourishing commercial centre. Since the Reformation it has always been a stronghold of Protestanisra, Melancthon having early introduced his principles, and having received a warm welcome. Certain relics in the museum, however, indicate that the tortures of the Inquisition were not unknown here in early times, for there may be seen the rack, the thumb screw, a sort of heavy pillory, and a hollow cast iron figure filled with spikes, called the Iron Virgin, into which the heretic was thrust and fastened. A picture of the guillotine on the ceiling of one of the old buildings is significant also, showing that that horrible instrument is not, as has been , generally supposed, of modern invention. but The people are quiet and and industrious. The streets are narrow crooked but clean. The houses are irregular and not handsome, though very picturesque, and every few steps may be seen niches in the walls where a little statue of the Virgin or some favorite saint has been placed by the pious inhabitant. In some of the old private residences, in which it is said are fifty rooms and even more, the red tiled roof, which seems to start from the ground, and the eaves of which are so low that a tall person actually has to stoop to get Into the door, runs up to such a high peak and is filled all the way up with such a Bewildering number of the funny little pointed windows, that one cannot question the truth wof the statement The appearance of these houses, whole streets of them, is very odd, especially when ornamented, as most of them are, with medallions in relief and images : : of the most animals with the looking grotesque most whimsical inscriptions. The: main attractions; however,, are still the fortifications, The . which are in almost perfect preservation. old town is surrounded by a heavy rampart, strengthened here and there by towers of various shapes, and was in warlike times entered old-fashion- |