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Show I Very Tine Letter I C. Elmer Barrett; Missionary, Writes Most I Interestingly of a Trip Down the Rhine. I DARMSTADT, Germany, Dec. 2, I 1000. Editou IIki'uiilican: I am herewith sending jou a partial ac-I ac-I count of my trip from here to Cologne I which 1 made last month. Time will H permit me to only give an account of the trip as far as Loreley. In my nest H letter I will take your readers further down the historic Rhino. 1 am well H and enjoying my laborers here immen-H immen-H scly. I can truly say that Tin: Ri:-H Ri:-H PuiiLiCAN Is a welcome visitor In the H far off land. B With best regaids to Tim Ruruiiu can and all my frlcuds and college chums I am, Yours for success, m C. Klmku Hauuktt. Darmstadt, Ifh, Muhl Str. 20 Gcr-many. Gcr-many. B Leaving Darmstadt, the city in Kwhlch 1 am now working, wc soon Und ourselves being carried rapidly Rrcr a more or less wooded country BHjwards the city of Main. Tor as the English prefer to call it, Maycnce, at whlch point wo arc to follow the ilhinc. During the first part of the stretch from Darmstadt to Mayencc the scenery Is quite monotonous, but as w approach the latter town, there is more activity and wc sec factories and other evidence of a prosperous and healthy trade. Here we sec train load after train load of sugar beets Hbclng drawn to factories not far (list-Hant. (list-Hant. H Wo soon arrive at Maycnce, a city of about 00,000 inhabitants. It Is very strongly fortified and Is Hie scat of a bishop of the Catholic church. It is LHvery pleasantly situated on the left bank of the Rhine opposite and below tln inllux of the Main River. Maycnce His one of the headquarters of the trade in wine, and now manufactures large quantities of the sparkling wine; It is also well known for Its leather goods and artistic furniture. Leaving May-ence May-ence we begin our trip down the beautiful and historic Rhino valley. M The scenery along the Rhino Is almost H ideal, the lofty banks and the ancient B river come so close together that they H siiuec.e the little villages on the m water's edge Into a slncle row of K houses whlcli winds wormlike between UAa towering hills and the rippling yfT&ilnc. Above these little strings of Tfli)rTan habitations, rising terrace i above terrace are the trellises of grape M vines, at this time of the year bending B low under the weight of their luscious B fruit. Here and there in marked con-H con-H trast to the quiet peace of the grape H vines resting snugly on nature's vlr-H vlr-H gin soil are frowning castles and rugged H ruins of towers and palaces lingering H In the last stages of decay but not H oblivion. National Monument. One of the Urst objects to attract I our attention as we go down the river, H other than tho natural beauties of H tho scenery Is the National Monu-I Monu-I ment.to commemorate tho unanimous uprising of the German people and I the formation of tho new German Em-I Em-I plro in 1870-71. It stands upon a spur of th-3 skirting hills, 740 feet above the I Rhine, round which tho stream makes a broad curve, and Is consplclous far up and down the river. It was begun In 1877 from the designs of Johannes I Schilling and was Inaugurated with I pompous ceremony In 1883. Tho huge I baso Is 82 feet high, while on this tho 5v noblo flguro of "Germanla11 with the I A Imperial crown and laural-wrcathcd 'f Sword, an enblem of tho unity and strength of the German Empire, rises :il feet. To tho right and tho left and below stand tho allegorical figures of Peaco and War. The total cost of this magnlflcant monument amounted amount-ed to over 1,100,000 marks ($215,000). On tho opposite side of tho river lies Ulngcn, a small town In which are situated several technical and Industrial Indus-trial schools. It causes quite an extensive shipping trade with the ports of tho Rhine. Interesting Tradition. Below Illngcn and out In tho midst of tho river, on a quartz rock, Is situated situ-ated tho "Mausetum" (Mouse Tower) which Is popularly said to derive its namo from the well known legend of tho crtiol Archbishop Ilatto of May-enco. May-enco. Having caused a number of poor people whom ho compared to h,l i,At. on devouring his coin, to bo burned In a basin during a famine, he was attacked by mice and rats, who , tormented him day and night, lie fled to this castlo In the Rhine and thought hlmrelf safe but his pursuers &, swam tho river and, as tho story goes. grViThoy have whetted their teeth I against tho stones, I uA now they pick the Bishop's I bones. They gnawed the llesh from every limb, For they were sent to do judgment on him. At this point the river grows narrower nar-rower and forms a series of rapids, below be-low whlcli the stream has forced Its war through slate mountains and the. channel Is narrow and rocky. At this place wc notice a slight change of scenery. Tho vineyards do not continue con-tinue to the top but are replaced on tho summit by dense woods, The mat of green of tho forest above and the pretty grape trcllses In even rows of tcrraccs'below form a pretty picture. pict-ure. In a few minutes more we seethe famous and picturesque castlo of "Rhclnstcln" standing over 250 feet above the liver. It Is a very Interesting Interest-ing example of mediaeval castles, with massive battlemented towers, and large and substantial "Schlldmaurn" or protecting walls on the side exposed to attack. The castles of Falkenburg, Sooncck and Hclmburg arc passed as we continue down the river. Castles and Castles. Soon after passing the city of Lorch, a short distance down the river, we came upon two old castles on opposite sides of the river, those of Fursten-burg Fursten-burg and Xollech, tho latter being the most Interesting of the two. It stands upon a rocky eminence nearly 000 feet above the river. On one side of the castle the el III rises almost as a precipice and is known as the "Devil's Ladder"on account of its boldness and the consplcuousness of the" strata which arc nearly horizontal, There Is a legend In the stories of the Rhine that this cliff was once scaled by a knight of Lorch, on horseback, horse-back, with the assistance of some mountain spirits, and thus did the required re-quired act of bravery In order to win the hand of his lady love. A short distance below this stands tho onco famous and stiongly fortified castle of Stahlcch, the extensive ruins of which extend down to the valley. The castle was taken eight different times by the French during the Franco-German war and finally destroyed by them Not far below this castle we see tho "I'fals," a well-preserved hexogonal building on a ledge of rock In tho middle mid-dle of the river. It has a tower covered cov-ered with an unsightly roof, has numerous num-erous loop holes, turrets and project? Ing corners In every direction, and only one entrance, a small door about stx feet above the rock. It was at this point early on New Years' morning 1814, when a Russian corps under York and a division of Russian troops affected the passage of thoRhelno under the direction of the famous general, Ulucher. A short distance further and we pass the town of Caub. Behind the town the pretty square tower of tho castle Gutenfels Is noticed, while not far below stands the picturesque old ruin of Shonberg, erected In the 12th century. This castlo Is now owned by two American gentlemen In New York City. Seven Virgins. Just below this castle, out In the river, rise seven cralgs, known as tho "Seven Virgins." It Is said that these were once seven fair maidens of uchanberg but who wero condemned to this state by the river gods because of their sorcery Wo now see one of tho prettiest natural scenes of the Rhine, that of Lorely. The Imposing rocks of the Lorcly rise almost a precipice 430 feet above tho river and arc extremely rugged and bold, giving a quaint grandeur to tho scene. Tho well-known well-known old song "Lorely" Is a tale of a witch who onco resided In these rocks and by her sweet singing enticed rainy ilshermen to destruction on tho rocks at the baso of the cliff. Nearly every foot of tho Rhino and Its surrounding hills lias a talo to tell, cither of hUtory or mythology or has a remlnlsccnco of somo hero to stato. There are legends attached to almost al-most every ruin or rock along tho stream. Tnov aro so charming that wo are compiled to listen. Indeed, wo cannot but be bonelltcd by a trip down tho Rhine. It Is Instructive and broaderlni; as woll as a sourco of constant pleasure." |