| Show f Q noble river rhine special correspondence among the many celebrated celebia ted mere of the world few or none 1 ave at tamed such celebrity as tl e rhine it sums up in its story the history of europe the war arv of nation and the subject of man songs its ver name is synonymous with the ro mance of love and the foil lore of a race in the twilight ages when the baiba nans overran europe and his tor w as silent the thoi gats and dreams and fancies of the people that dwelt in the lands tl roi gh w aich the rhine flows found utterance in fables and tales ard legends that expressed occasionally a fact or a deed of sm or a romance of love the bani s of the rhine aie alive with such tales and to the traveler these tales usurp the throne of history and pre vail in the belief of all whether strangers or natives castle of A rum that has a strange interest is that of the castle of which rises on the left bani of the rhine quite near to Obe resel both legend and history have to do with it and it is difficult to say which of the two tells the more tragic tale the former relates that in the now decayed castle of there lived it old times sev en sisters who w ere 1 now n as mhd seven beautiful fil countesses hearts were hard and while all kinds of offers of marriage they made a mod ery of their lovers sneer ing at tl em with all aad un kindness finally day cime at tey being specially severe they went boating on the rhine whence chev waved their handkerchiefs at their disappointed lovers the crisis the boatman who rows ou out here on the river points out ta 5 ou seven rocks seen at low water and tells ou these are called the seven virgins thac history of the place Is less hum orous but quite as full of fatality it w as the cradle of a mighty family who left a name in many countries of europe here in 1615 was born count frederick herman of schon berg better known to history as mar schomberg his name is known chiefly from his having hired himself out as a sort ot mercenary to the prince of orange william III and fought with him against james II 11 at the battle of the boyne in the vear 1690 tace he was killed the castle thit th it we look on here was sacked by the french in 1689 shortly after warr the whole race perished and in the family became extinct coblentz is an excellent place at which to stop over it Is a bright and flourishing city and the people seem cheerful and contented over across the river is the huge mountain covered with forti fica ions as with a great shell cannon look forth at places and forts lie low as it tor an enemy this broad stone of honor as its would seem to imply is called the gibraltar of the rhine and indeed HI e the fortress in spain that looks over to the african coast and keeps the gate of the this rock fortress presents a formidable appearance e that too it has cost millions of to render it fit for its purpose and facing it on the coblenz side of the river stands another bonu nent indicative of german strength and symbolical of cerman greatness th huge monument to the emperor william I 1 it is a massive work gigantic in its proportions and re spectacle spec table or impressive by its bulk alone standing at the point of june alon of two rivers just where the meanwhile her lover roland saved acost by a m recovered from his wo n Is and instenes Ins to the araci enfer there he learned that ildegonda ha 1 become the bride ol 01 heaven tien he b i it a castle upon the hill top opposite opi osite to the convent of whence sas the legen 1 he hear tl e sacred chants and see occasionally far off aa in the of his be loed ildegonda one day however he is not een among the othet nuns wall ns in chef gai len sadness tool possession of poland the to 1 ing of the convent bells revealed t him that headen ha 1 claimed its bride an then he 1 new that ildegonda was no moie he watched from the height of 1 s castle tl e f fineral pro cession wh ch accompanied the re ma ns of II 11 alegonda to the r last rest mg place day after day he coc tinned gaeng do toward the con derfl and one morning his attendant fo ind him dead the amut consist now of a solitary arch coarsely bu it and now over old ty gate cologne grown with ivy and creeping plants children play around it and loot through the arch over a low parapet down to the island of donnenwerth werth all wooded beneath in the hulne Is a tender story of constant love and has always been one of the great est ta in the group of rhine legends and the story of the drachenfels la another most legend A casern in this dragon rock was in habited by th s monster who had a most frightful figure his mouth which was large enough to swallow several men says the veracious chroni cler of the legend was armed wibb a triple row of teeth and his body armed with scales was of extra ordin ary length and he glittered in the sunshine with a thousand tints this ia the good old dragon the story 0 whose deeds makes one s flesh creep the story tells how this awful mon ster was overcome and destroyed by a weak and delicate maiden armed only with her faith and with the cross in her hand chis symbol of the conquest of paganism by christianity has a new interest and one kemem bers the matter the more by the red wine of the place which bears the name of dragon s blood anc ent houses oberwesel Ober wesel moselle enters the rh ne the site Is calculated to impress the imag nation but when QU come close to it and ex amine it you shudder at the alon and apotheosis it such term may be used ot brute force and gl gantic strength that it expresses bonef the rhine legends one 0 the most beautiful of all the rhine legends Is that connected with rolandseck Roland seck and the island of werth just below in the middle of the rhine roland of angers a nephew of charlemagne a worthy knight and a brave paladin whose name was known for valor in many lands was betrothed to ildegonda daughter of denbert of the drachenfels the lov ers were in bliss seeing each other from time to time until the emperor charles summoned his nephew to go and fight against the moors in spain the parting of roland and ilde gonda was and the maiden counted the days till her lover would return the tidings of him that came to her told that he had fallen at Ronce sailes with his face to the foe for three dais she mourned her lost lover then she en the convent of donnenwerth werth in the little island in the rhine here as an old writer puts it the willows droop in mournful luxuriance along the island and harn inive with the mem cry that through the deser tot a thou sand ea t 1 keeps green and fresh |
