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+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 40889 ***
+
+Transcriber's Note:
+
+  Inconsistent hyphenation and spelling in the original document have
+  been preserved. Anglicized, archaic, or otherwise unusual spellings
+  of proper nouns were retained as printed. Examples include "Botzen",
+  "Kapuzingerberg", "Schonberg" and "Wencelaus". Inconsistent use of
+  diacritics was also retained as printed. Obvious typographical
+  errors were corrected.
+
+  Italic text is denoted by _underscores_.
+
+
+
+
+  [Illustration:
+   A MAP TO
+   ILLUSTRATE
+   TYROL
+   AND ITS
+   PEOPLE]
+
+
+
+
+TYROL AND ITS PEOPLE
+
+
+
+
+  [Illustration: THE GOAT HERD, KASTELRUTH, NEAR BOZEN]
+
+
+
+
+     TYROL
+     AND ITS PEOPLE
+
+     BY
+     CLIVE HOLLAND
+
+     WITH SIXTEEN ILLUSTRATIONS IN COLOUR BY
+     ADRIAN STOKES
+
+     THIRTY-ONE OTHER ILLUSTRATIONS
+     AND A MAP
+
+     METHUEN AND CO.
+     36 ESSEX STREET W.C.
+     LONDON
+
+
+
+
+     _First Published in 1909_
+
+
+
+
+PREFACE
+
+
+In the following pages, which in addition to being a record of travel
+in a delightful and too little known portion of the great
+Austro-Hungarian Empire, are also an attempt to present within a
+reasonable compass an account of the national history of a singularly
+interesting people, the author has sought to deal more fully than is
+usually the case in books of the kind, with the romance and legend
+which is closely interwoven with the past of "the land within the
+mountains," as Tyrol has not inaptly been described.
+
+It is truly a land of mountains, valleys, lakes, and rushing torrents
+that may well have bred the race of romance-loving, poetic, and hardy
+people who dwell in it. In the minds of those who know it there arises
+almost inevitably a comparison with the nowadays overcrowded and
+over-exploited Switzerland--and the comparison is, both as regards
+scenery and general interest, greatly in favour of Tyrol. The tourist
+and holiday-maker who frequent Pontresina or St. Moritz will find in
+this comparatively new "playground for Europe" beautiful counterparts
+of those places in Innsbruck, Meran, Botzen, Kitzbühel, and other
+delightful towns; whilst the more strenuously inclined who delight in
+mountain ascents will find the Dolomite region especially attractive,
+and in many other districts also interesting climbs. By the shores of
+the placid, translucent lakes, and in many a happy, secluded valley,
+those in search of rest and quietude will find their desire fully
+satisfied. And in such old-world towns as Innsbruck (of many
+historical memories), beautiful Salzburg, charming Bregenz, Botzen,
+and Meran the traveller with more artistic, literary, or antiquarian
+tastes will delight.
+
+That Tyrol deserves to be better known few who have once come under
+the spell of its charms of scenery, and the frank hospitality and
+friendliness of its people, or have wandered amidst its lovely valleys
+and mountains, will deny.
+
+The early history of this interesting country is shrouded in much
+mystery, and to place accurately and date many events is a matter of
+very considerable difficulty, and in some cases of well-nigh
+impossibility, owing to the fragmentary nature of many of the existing
+records, and the contradictory nature of the accounts and evidence
+afforded by these. The greatest care, however, has been taken to make
+the dates given as accurate as possible, and the best authorities and
+descriptions of events have been consulted. Amongst others the works
+of Dr. Franz Wieser, Hans Semper, Von Alpenburg ("Mythen und Sagen
+Tirols"), Perini ("Castles of Tyrol"), Weber ("The Land of Tyrol"), an
+excellent and interesting anonymous guide to Salzburg, Scherer, Albert
+Wolff, V. Zingerle, Steub ("Die Verfassung Tirols"), Miller, and the
+excellent publications of the Tirol and Salzburg Landesverbaende für
+Fremdenverkehr, and other organizations.
+
+The spelling of names has presented much the same difficulty as the
+correct dating of events. There are several, and in some cases many,
+ways of spelling a large number of these. That of the latest edition
+of Baedeker has been adopted where this has been the case and doubt
+has existed.
+
+The author's especial thanks are due to Herr L. Sigmund, the Secretary
+of the Austrian Travel and Information Bureau, not only for much
+valuable information, but also for practical assistance whilst
+travelling in Tyrol, facilities afforded for research, and the use of
+some excellent photographs.
+
+To W. Baillie Grohman, Esq., of Schloss Matzen, Brixlegg, the
+well-known authority upon Tyrol, for the settlement of several
+disputed dates and accounts of historical events. Also for permission
+to make use of information (not otherwise easily procurable) contained
+in his exhaustive work "Tyrol, the Land in the Mountains," and for the
+beautiful photograph of Schloss Matzen reproduced as one of the
+illustrations in this present volume.
+
+To Dr. Richard Muendl, Imperial Councillor, Chief Inspector of the
+Imperial Southern Railway, and a member of the German and Austrian
+Alpine Society, for many valuable notes upon the Dolomite Region
+incorporated in Chapter X.
+
+To Dr. Otto Rosenheim the author's thanks are given for permission to
+reproduce some beautiful photographs of Tyrol scenery and Tyrolese
+subjects in place of less pictorial work by the author himself.
+
+To many others, who gave information to the author during his travels
+in Tyrol, relating to many interesting matters, acknowledgment is also
+here gratefully made.
+
+     C. H.
+     _June, 1909_
+
+
+
+
+CONTENTS
+
+
+                                                                  PAGE
+
+     CHAPTER I
+
+     THE ROMANCE AND HISTORY OF TYROL FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES
+     DOWN TO THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY                                 1
+
+
+     CHAPTER II
+
+     TYROL FROM ITS INCORPORATION BY AUSTRIA AS A PART OF THE
+     EMPIRE TO THE PRESENT TIME                                     33
+
+
+     CHAPTER III
+
+     SOME CHARACTERISTIC LEGENDS, CUSTOMS, AND SPORTS               52
+
+
+     CHAPTER IV
+
+     INNSBRUCK, ITS HISTORY, PEOPLE AND TREASURES                   71
+
+
+     CHAPTER V
+
+     THE ENVIRONS OF INNSBRUCK--CASTLE AMBRAS AND ITS
+     TREASURES--IGLS: A QUAINT LEGEND CONCERNING ITS CHURCH--THE
+     STUBAI VALLEY, AND SOME VILLAGES--HALL AND ITS SALT
+     MINES--SPECKBACHER'S OLD HOME--ST. MICHAEL                    113
+
+
+     CHAPTER VI
+
+     SALZBURG, ITS HISTORY AND ROMANCE                             147
+
+
+     CHAPTER VII
+
+     THE ENVIRONS OF SALZBURG--HELLBRUNN, ITS UNIQUE FOUNTAINS
+     AND GARDENS--THE CASTLE OF ANIF--THE GAISBERG--THE
+     KAPUZINGERBERG--THE MOZART-HÄUSCHEN--THE MÖNCHSBERG
+     --SALZBURG CHURCHES                                           176
+
+
+     CHAPTER VIII
+
+     SOME TOWNS AND VILLAGES OF SOUTH TYROL--MERAN, BOZEN,
+     KLAUSEN, BRIXEN, SPINGES, STERZING, MATREI      192
+
+
+     CHAPTER IX
+
+     SOME TOWNS AND VILLAGES OF WALSCH-TYROL: TRENT, ITS HISTORY,
+     COUNCIL, AND BUILDINGS--ROVEREDO AND DANTE--ARCO--RIVA        233
+
+
+     CHAPTER X
+
+     AMONG THE DOLOMITES, WITH NOTES UPON SOME TOURS AND
+     ASCENTS                                                       254
+
+
+     CHAPTER XI
+
+     THROUGH THE UNTER-INNTHAL: KUFSTEIN--KUNDL--RATTENBERG,
+     AND THE STORY OF WILHELM BIENER--BRIXLEGG, AND ITS
+     PEASANT DRAMAS--THE FAMOUS CASTLE OF MATZEN--ST.
+     GEORGENBERG, AND ITS PILGRIMAGE CHURCH--CASTLE TRATZBERG
+     --SCHWAZ                                                      281
+
+
+     CHAPTER XII
+
+     THROUGH THE OBER-INNTHAL: ZIRL, ITS CHURCH, LEGENDS, AND
+     PAINTED HOUSES--THE MARTINSWAND AND MAXIMILIAN--SCHARNITZ
+     --LANDECK--BLUDENZ--BREGENZ AND ITS LEGEND OF THE MAID        311
+
+
+     INDEX                                                         329
+
+
+
+
+LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+
+                                                           FACING PAGE
+
+     IN COLOUR
+
+
+     THE GOAT HERD, KASTELRUTH, NEAR BOZEN              _Frontispiece_
+
+     VIEW FROM THE RITTEN, LOOKING SOUTH-WEST                       28
+
+     THE SCHWARZHORN, SOUTH TYROL                                   40
+
+     A VIEW OF THE TYROL ALPS                                       54
+
+     THE ORTLER FROM THE MALSER HEIDE                               68
+
+     MOONRISE IN TYROL                                              94
+
+     A PINE WOOD NEAR INNSBRUCK                                    108
+
+     MOUNTAIN POOL ON THE RITTEN                                   128
+
+     A QUIET PASTURE                                               166
+
+     WINTER NEAR MERAN                                             192
+
+     A SOUTH TYROL FARMSTEAD                                       208
+
+     SUMMER-TIME NEAR ST. ULRICH, GRÖDENERTHAL                     226
+
+     ALPENWIESE, ON THE SEISER ALP                                 256
+
+     MOUNT LATEMAR                                                 276
+
+     A WAYSIDE SHRINE IN A PINE WOOD                               298
+
+     AUTUMN IN SOUTH TYROL                                         314
+
+
+     IN MONOTONE
+
+     A VILLAGE ON THE BRENNER                                       10
+     _From a Photograph by Dr. Otto Rosenheim_
+
+     YOUNG TYROL                                                    18
+     _From a Photograph by Dr. Otto Rosenheim_
+
+     A WAYSIDE SHRINE, TYROL                                        24
+     _From a Photograph by Dr. Otto Rosenheim_
+
+     ABOVE THE ARLBERG TUNNEL                                       32
+
+     SUNSET ON A TYROLESE LAKE                                      36
+     _From a Photograph by Clive Holland_
+
+     A TYPICAL TYROLESE LANDSCAPE                                   36
+     _From a Photograph by Clive Holland_
+
+     THE TRISANNA VIADUCT AND CASTLE WIESBERG                       72
+
+     A PEEP OF THE ZILLERTHAL                                       72
+
+     THE FAMOUS "GOLDEN ROOF," INNSBRUCK                            78
+
+     A TYPICAL INNSBRUCKER                                          88
+
+     VIADUCT ON STUBAI RAILWAY                                     130
+
+     VIEW OF THE GROSSGLOCKNER                                     130
+
+     THE MARKET PLACE, HALL                                        134
+
+     THE HALL VALLEY--WINTER                                       142
+
+     MOZART'S HOUSE IN THE MAKART PLATZ, SALZBURG                  152
+     _From a Photograph by Clive Holland_
+
+     ONE OF THE FINEST DOORS OF THE STATE APARTMENTS IN THE
+     FORTRESS, SALZBURG                                            164
+     _From a Photograph by Clive Holland_
+
+     MOUNTAIN PASTURES                                             178
+     _From a Photograph by Dr. Otto Rosenheim_
+
+     HOHEN-SALZBURG AND THE NONNBERG                               182
+     _From a Photograph by Clive Holland_
+
+     SALZBURG MARKETWOMEN                                          190
+     _From a Photograph by Clive Holland_
+
+     MERAN                                                         198
+
+     SCHLOSS TYROL, NEAR MERAN                                     202
+
+     A STREET IN BOZEN                                             206
+
+     ST. CYPRIAN AND THE PEAKS OF THE ROSENGARTEN                  212
+
+     MISURINA LAKE                                                 262
+     _From a Photograph by Dr. Otto Rosenheim_
+
+     A ROAD THROUGH THE DOLOMITES                                  264
+
+     A PEEP OF THE DOLOMITES                                       270
+     _From a Photograph by Clive Holland_
+
+     THE LANGKOFEL                                                 272
+     _From a Photograph by Dr. Otto Rosenheim_
+
+     A PEEP OF KITZBUHEL                                           286
+
+     SCHLOSS MATZEN                                                294
+     _By kind permission of W. A. Baillie Grohman, Esq._
+
+     LANDECK AND ITS ANCIENT FORTRESS                              320
+
+     CHURCH INTERIOR, TYROL                                        324
+     _From a Photograph by Clive Holland_
+
+
+
+
+TYROL AND ITS PEOPLE
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER I
+
+     THE ROMANCE AND HISTORY OF TYROL FROM THE EARLIEST TIMES
+     DOWN TO THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY
+
+
+As early as the eighth century Tyrol received a name which could not
+be bettered as descriptive of its scenery and institutions--"das Land
+im Gebirge," the Land in the Mountains. Fascinating alike is the
+scenery of Tyrol and its history. When one crosses the Swiss frontier
+by the Arlberg route one at once enters upon a land of mountains,
+rivers, and pleasant valleys. And with equal truth it may be said that
+when one crosses the frontier of Tyrolese history one is at once
+plunged in the midst of stirring, romantic, and gallant deeds enacted
+throughout the centuries from that far-off age, when the Cimbri
+penetrated and traversed the country and swept into north-eastern
+Italy, down almost to our own time.
+
+That Tyrol should have proved the battle-ground of nations is, of
+course, largely due to its geographical position. In early days it
+formed a "buffer state" between the Roman empire and the territory of
+the Cimbri and Alemanni.
+
+The question of the original inhabitants of Tyrol is still a much
+debated one, and appears to be as far off final settlement as ever;
+and this notwithstanding the enormous amount of interest which has
+been manifested in the subject by scientists, archæologists, and
+students during the last two centuries. Whether they were Cimbri,
+Etruscans, or Celts is still doubtful, although many learned
+authorities--more especially linguists--incline to the view that the
+earliest inhabitants were mainly of the Ligurian race, who were
+followed by Illyrians and Etruscans.
+
+And also regarding the manners, customs, and general characteristics
+of these early inhabitants, whoever they may have been, very little
+conclusive evidence is yet available. By both Greek and Roman writers
+they were referred to as Rhætians, in common with the inhabitants of
+Eastern Switzerland; and Horace himself speaks of "The Alpine Rhæti,
+long unmatched in battle." Thus it is that the most ancient name by
+which Tyrol is known is that of Rhætia.
+
+[Sidenote: INVASION OF THE CIMBRI]
+
+To the Romans, however, all-conquering though they were, little was
+known of the country until the Cimbri penetrated its mountains and
+traversed its valleys and passed on their way to the north-eastern
+frontier of Italy about 102 B.C.
+
+By what route these barbarians crossed the Alps on their march to
+invade north-eastern Italy there has been as much discussion as over
+the question of the original inhabitants of Tyrol. And, although the
+event to which we refer occurred scarcely a century prior to the
+conquest of Tyrol by the Romans there is little information other than
+of a speculative character to throw light upon the question at issue.
+For many years the weight of opinion was in favour of the contention
+that the Cimbri entered Southern Tyrol and eventually reached the
+Venetian plains by the Reschen Scheideck and the Vintschgau, but the
+later researches of Mommsen have served to give additional, if not
+absolutely conclusive, weight to the view that the Brenner was the
+route taken by the Cimbri[1] on their way southward from their
+Germanic fastnesses, just as it was undoubtedly the route, but, of
+course, reversed, chosen by the Romans under Drusus by which to enter
+Tyrol on their march of conquest.
+
+One piece of evidence which would appear to be of considerable weight,
+and as conclusively favouring Mommsen's view, is the fact that the
+Brenner route forms not only the one of lowest altitude, but also the
+only one by which the whole Alpine system and its parallel chains can
+be crossed by passing over one chain alone, and in no other spot in
+the range do two valleys on either side cut so far into the centre of
+the principal chain of the Alps.
+
+Moreover, from Plutarch's "Marius" one learns the spot where the Roman
+general, Quintus Lutatius Catullus, and his legions, which were sent
+from panic-stricken Rome to check the advance of the invaders, first
+encountered the Cimbri on the banks of the River Adige between Verona
+and near the foot of the Brenner. The encounter ended in the triumph
+of the host of skin-clad invaders who descended the snow-slopes of the
+mountains with an onslaught so terrible that even the trained and
+well-armed hosts of Rome had to give way before them. But the power of
+Rome was not easily shaken, and the triumph of the Cimbri was but
+brief. Their southward march was destined very soon to meet with so
+severe a check that further advance on Rome, or into the heart of
+Italy, was rendered impossible. In 101 B.C., the year following their
+appearance in the beautiful province of Venetia, where they created,
+so historians tell us, a terrible panic, the Roman arms triumphed at
+Vercelli, when the invaders, led by Bojorich, suffered a crushing
+defeat in one of the bloodiest battles ever fought, in which it is
+said 320,000 were slain, and were driven out of Italy.
+
+The moral effect of this invasion upon the Rhætians, through whose
+territory the Cimbri had passed, bore fruit a few years later, when
+they attempted the same tactics, making frequent raids into Roman
+territory. Some sixty years after the incursion of the Cimbri they
+were defeated and driven back into their valleys and mountains by the
+Roman general, Munatius Plancus; and a few years later, in 36 B.C.,
+not only was a fresh raid repulsed, but the invaders were followed
+home, and a considerable portion of the district in the neighbourhood
+of what is now known as Trent was taken possession of by the Roman
+forces.
+
+[Sidenote: ROMAN CONQUEST OF TYROL]
+
+The Rhætians, however, were a hardy, valorous, and pugnacious tribe,
+and so frequent were their attacks upon the Roman forces left to hold
+the conquered country that the Emperor Augustus, about twenty years
+after the subjection of the Trent district, decided as a measure of
+self-protection on the conquest of the whole of Rhætia, as far as the
+River Danube.
+
+And for this work he deputed his two stepsons, Drusus and Tiberius.
+The campaign, historians are agreed, was planned with great skill, and
+probably by the Emperor himself. The Roman forces were divided, one
+portion, under Drusus, entering Tyrol from the south, having Tridentum
+(Trent) as its base; and the other, under Tiberius, delivering its
+attack from the west across what is now Switzerland. Tiberius took
+this route (the most direct, though a difficult one) because at that
+time he was absent from Italy, in Gaul, as governor. Drusus had a more
+easy task, and pushed his way up the wide valley of the River Adige[2]
+to the present site of Bozen. His objective was the Pass of the
+Brenner, which, once seized, would give him the command of the
+country. His advance was not, however, made without opposition, for
+the Breones and Genones, who dwelt in the vicinity of the Brenner,
+attacked the Roman forces, and a fierce battle and series of
+skirmishes ensued. Horace, in Book IV., Ode 14 and 4, gives a vivid
+if, possibly, highly coloured account of the struggle which took place
+in the gorge near Bozen. The river Icarous ran red with the blood of
+both conquerors and conquered. And--as has been the case on many
+subsequent occasions when fighting has had to be done by the
+Tyrolese--the women played a valorous part, even, according to the
+historian, Florus, throwing their infant children into the faces of
+the Roman soldiery when other weapons failed.
+
+The campaign of the two stepsons of Augustus resulted in the complete
+and final conquest of Tyrol. The victory, won in the narrow gorge of
+the Eisack, was commemorated in the name of the bridge _Pons Drusi_
+spanning the river, hard by which now stands the interesting mediæval
+town of Bozen.
+
+Successful as Drusus' forces were, none the less so were those of
+Tiberius. There, however, is less record of his battles, and the
+actual ground on which they were fought forms still matter for
+conjecture. And equally uncertain is the exact spot where the two
+victorious generals ultimately met. It is, however, thought by several
+reliable authorities to have been somewhere in the valley of the Inn,
+and probably not far distant from the present site of Innsbruck. This
+view is made the more probable from the circumstance that a Roman post
+was established at Wilten (now a suburb of Innsbruck) then known as
+Veldidena.
+
+Here probably both armies rested after a campaign of great fatigue and
+severity owing to the nature of the ground over which it was fought
+and the stubborn resistance offered by the inhabitants.
+
+Soon Veldidena, from a halting-place of armies, became a town with
+houses of considerable size, temples, baths, and surrounding _vallæ_,
+or earthen fortifications formed to defend the inhabitants from sudden
+attack. Although precautions of the nature we have indicated were
+taken wherever a Roman post or station was placed, there is no
+historical data to show that the Breones and other adjacent tribes who
+were thus brought under the Roman sway did not very speedily
+accommodate themselves to the new condition of things and become good
+and peaceful citizens of Rome. It appears probable, however, that the
+Rhæti did not adapt themselves to the altered conditions as speedily
+as did their northern neighbours, the inhabitants of Noricum, with
+whom certain Roman habits and customs (including the system of
+municipal government) already obtained.
+
+From the evidence adduced by several diligent historians and from that
+of one comparatively modern writer[3] in particular it is almost
+certain that after the sanguinary and decisive battle on the banks of
+the Eisack Tiberius set his face once again westward to resume his
+governorship of Gaul, leaving his brother, Drusus, to continue the
+subjection of Tyrol, and ultimately to found the important settlement
+of Augusta Vindelicorum, now known as Augsburg. Here the Roman general
+not only threw up a fortified camp, but also built a forum to
+encourage commerce; and soon the settlement became the most important
+Roman station to the north of the Central Alps.
+
+Some writers, doubtless bearing in mind the hardihood and bravery of
+the native inhabitants and the mountainous and thus easily defended
+nature of the ground the Roman legions had to traverse and fight over,
+have expressed some surprise at the comparative ease with which Drusus
+and Tiberius appear to have accomplished the conquest of the country.
+More perfect discipline and arms of greater effectiveness will not,
+however, we think, altogether account for this, for history has over
+and over again proved that knowledge of the ground by the defenders
+and mountainous regions count heavily against successful attacks on
+the part of an invader. It can only therefore be supposed that the
+various tribes who formed the inhabitants of Rhætia were either
+antagonistic to one another or at least were not welded together in a
+common cause against the invading Roman hosts, and thus the country
+was conquered and kept in subjection with greater ease than would
+otherwise have been the case.
+
+As a result of the invasion by Drusus and Tiberius and the Roman
+legions the tract of country then and for some considerable time
+afterwards known as Rhætia, but now known as Tyrol and the Vorarlberg,
+ultimately became Romanized, and by the making of the Brenner Post
+Road, which was constructed by the direction of the Emperor Augustus
+between Verona and Augsburg (Augusta Vindelicorum), communication
+between the Germanic Empire and Italy was opened up. Thus was the
+lowest and most accessible of the passes over the mountains which
+separated Italy from the barbaric regions beyond crossed by one of
+those splendid military roads, which has endured nearly two thousand
+years until the present day.
+
+[Sidenote: ROMAN OCCUPATION]
+
+The Roman occupation of Rhætia lasted for five centuries. Under the
+rule of Rome the inhabitants learned much of those arts which remained
+the heritage of conquered races long after the sway of the great Roman
+Empire had come to an end. And traces of that rule, in the form of
+weapons, ornaments, articles of jewelry and the toilet, and other
+relics have from time to time come to light throughout the portions of
+Tyrol settled by the Romans.
+
+Soon along the great Brenner Road, which formed a highway from Italy
+to the northern lands beyond Tyrol, activity evinced itself. One of
+the most important of the early stations upon it was Veldidena
+(Wilten), where the road after crossing the main range of mountains
+emerges from the Alpine gorge on the northern side into a wide and
+pleasant valley. From this point--close to which, later on, the
+capital of Tyrol was destined to be founded--the great Brenner Post
+Road branched. One fork led by two divergent ways to the same
+objective--Augsburg. The other led in a north-westerly direction by
+way of Masciacum (Matzen) and Albianum (Kufstein) to Pons Aeni, which
+in all probability closely approximates to the present-day site of
+Rosenheim. This road ran down the wide Inn valley, nowadays known as
+the Unter Innthal to differentiate it from the valley of the Upper Inn
+which runs from the frontier of Switzerland to Innsbruck.
+
+It was along the great military road leading from Verona to Augsburg
+that the chief Rhæto-Roman stations were placed. Amongst these were
+Tridentum (Trent), Pons Drusi (Bozen), Vilpetenum (Sterzing), Matrejum
+(Matrei), Scarbio (Scharnitz), Veldidena (Wilten).
+
+At first, doubtless, these outposts of Roman civilization were little
+more than isolated fortresses, or even perhaps merely _speculæ_ or
+watch towers, and of these many examples still remain, from which not
+only could the road and its approaches be reconnoitred, but also
+signals both by day and by night could be made. In the first case by
+means of smoke or semaphores, and in the second by bonfires kindled in
+cressets or on the hillside itself.
+
+[Sidenote: THE BRENNER PASS]
+
+Another highway into Tyrol through the Vintschgau came to be known as
+the Via Claudia Augusta, which name was also improperly applied to a
+portion of the Brenner Road. After much contention we think it is now
+generally accepted that Mommsen, who has investigated and weighed the
+evidence with astonishing care, is correct in assuming that the only
+portion of the road via the Reschen-Scheideck Pass which should be
+called the Via Claudia Augusta is that traversing the Vintschgau
+Valley. The road was constructed not in the reign of Augustus, who
+initiated the Brenner Road, but in that of his grandson, the Emperor
+Claudius, about A.D. 46-47. It was intended to connect up the River Po
+with the River Danube by the Reschen-Scheideck route, and along it at
+various times since the middle of the sixteenth century milestones of
+Roman origin have been discovered. Though from the fact that little
+reference is made to it by the better-known Roman writers of the
+period, one may assume that the Via Claudia was of quite secondary
+importance to the Brenner Road. But nevertheless it seems probable
+that it was the route used for the transportation of stores for the
+Roman forces of occupation during the fifth century not long prior to
+the evacuation of the country. The Brenner Road for a considerable
+period after its construction appears to have been rather a highway
+for commerce than a military road in the usual sense of the term.
+
+The chief article exported from Tyrol was salt from the still famous
+salt mines at Hall, near Innsbruck, on the northern bank of the Inn.
+There were also sent southward into Italy raw hides, timber, Alpine
+herbs used in the preparation of medicines, liqueurs, and the purposes
+of the toilet; and dairy produce of various kinds, of which cheese was
+probably (according to Pliny) one of the chief articles. In those
+far-off days, too, much excellent wine was grown far further north in
+Tyrol than nowadays when the vine is not cultivated, for vintage
+purposes at all events, further north than the southern slope of the
+Brenner.
+
+In Roman times the Brenner also formed a link between Aquileia, one of
+the most flourishing and important seaport cities on the Adriatic, and
+Noricum. As did also another, then important but nowadays almost
+deserted route, that of the Plöcken Pass, of which it is believed
+Cæsar made frequent use. Along this several important stations were
+founded, amongst them Tricesimum, Julium Carnicum (Zuglio), Aguntum
+(Innichen), Lonicum (Lienz) and Sebatum (Schabs). Time, however, was
+destined to divert the trade from the Plöcken Pass route to that of
+the Brenner, and the settlements along the former gradually declined
+in importance.
+
+As we have before stated, the Brenner Pass was not originally used so
+much for military purposes as was afterwards the case. And it is not
+until the latter half of the second century of the Christian Era that
+we find it assuming importance as a military highway. Then the
+frequent incursions southward of various Germanic tribes caused the
+Romans to fully comprehend the strategical value of northern Rhætia.
+
+Two decades at least were occupied in the reconstruction of the
+surface and bridges along the road which had owed its origin to the
+Emperor Augustus, and the result was the building of a highway
+suitable for the speedy passage and massing of large bodies of troops.
+Of the stations which were founded along it we have already spoken, it
+only remains to say that these were supplemented by "posts" which were
+dotted here and there as they were along most other roads made by
+Roman builders. They were, however, chiefly used for military and
+state rather than for ordinary purposes.
+
+An interesting writer,[4] who has made the history of the Brenner a
+special study, has thrown considerable light upon the inns and
+hostelries which little by little sprang up to meet the requirements
+of the travelling public of those days, who were not, as a rule,
+permitted to make use of the official posts. Apparently, these refuges
+from the other alternative of spending a night upon the road were by
+no means luxurious. In fact, they were probably far otherwise, and
+their chief redeeming feature was the undoubted cheapness of the
+accommodation they offered. It could not be considered an extravagant
+charge for a night's lodging with food of sorts when the bill amounted
+to rather less than the equivalent of an English halfpenny! a sum
+which would nowadays surprise the modern _oste_ or innkeeper of the
+Italian Tyrol as much as his own charges would the Roman wayfarer of
+long ago.
+
+  [Illustration: A VILLAGE ON THE BRENNER]
+
+[Sidenote: ROMAN REMAINS]
+
+On the heels of Roman civilization, represented by commerce and
+travel, which was destined not only to permeate conquered Rhætia, but
+to penetrate the regions beyond, in course of time there sprang into
+existence a fortress here and a castle there which not only served to
+hold the land, but also to encourage and initiate civilization and
+bring security to those residing in its immediate vicinity. Of
+these, happily for the historian and antiquarian, many traces yet
+remain. All along the Brenner the Romans found and were not slow to
+seize upon natural coigns of vantage where their unexampled skill as
+military builders and engineers permitted them to speedily convert not
+easily accessible spurs of the mountains into impregnable fortresses.
+Upon some of the castles, the ruins of which nowadays serve to render
+these rocky crags of undying interest, the stars must have looked down
+ere the dawn of the Christian Era.
+
+Of the occupation of Rhætia by the Romans, unfortunately comparatively
+few authentic details have come down to us. But long ere the power of
+Rome had waned, never to reassume its pristine greatness, the problem
+of resistance to the invasion from the Teutonic tribes to the north
+and north-east had become a very real one. Towards the end of the
+third century A.D. the Alemanni crossed the Danube and threatened
+Rhætia, and through it Italy. They were, it is true, defeated by the
+Emperor Maximianus, but the check inflicted was but temporary. About
+A.D. 260 Rhætia was invaded several times by the same barbarian tribe,
+and on one occasion, at least, Tyrol was ravaged from end to end, and
+the invaders afterwards entered Italy, which they penetrated as far
+south as Ravenna, having first plundered and destroyed Verona. In the
+reign of Claudius (about 269) there was yet another invasion, and
+although the forces of Rome ultimately proved victorious in the
+struggle with the Teutonic hordes in a battle fought at Naïssus on the
+borderland of Tyrol and Italy, when 320,000 are said to have been
+slain, there was no lasting peace.
+
+The inroads of the Goths vexed many a quickly succeeding Emperor in
+the days when reigns were scarcely to be reckoned as frequently by
+years as by months, and it was not until the reign of Aurelianus that
+the Goths were driven out of Rhætia and Vindelicia.
+
+Under succeeding Roman rulers there were other raids by the Goths,
+and then at last along the roads of Rhætia and over the passes of the
+Brenner and the Plöcken poured the invading hosts which were destined
+to bring about the eclipse of the powerful Empire which had for so
+many centuries controlled the destinies of the greater part of the
+then known world.
+
+Just as in our own land, history is almost silent for the period
+immediately following the departure of the Roman legions, drawn off to
+save Rome, if possible, from the invading hosts of the Goths and Huns,
+so was it in Tyrol. Of the years of devastation by fire and sword
+which succeeded the withdrawal of the Roman forces from Rhætia there
+have come down to us but very scanty details. During this period much
+of Roman art and civilization was undoubtedly blotted out by the
+barbarian hordes; and, indeed, so far as can be ascertained, little of
+either was ultimately left in Rhætia.
+
+Theodoric, the Ostrogothic leader, who had conquered Italy in about
+489, planned Rhætia and the Brenner as a barrier against the attacks
+of northern invaders, a tribe of whom (the Baiovarii) ultimately
+possessed themselves of Vindelicia and Rhætia as far as the southern
+slope of the Brenner Pass. About this same period--the middle half of
+the sixth century--a very considerable portion of north-eastern Italy
+and that part of Rhætia in the vicinity of Tridentum (Trent) was
+seized by the Longobards or Lombards. Their Italian Empire lasted for
+two centuries, and eventually included the larger portion of what is
+nowadays known as the Italian Tyrol.
+
+Meantime, the Baiovarii or Bavarians had conquered the upper part of
+Rhætia, and in the beginning of the seventh century their Duke,
+Garibaldi II., succeeded in checking the frequent inroads of the
+Slavs, although he did not succeed in entirely excluding them from the
+country; in the eastern portion of which they remained for a
+considerable period. Towards the end of the eighth century (about 789)
+the whole of what is now known as Tyrol came under the sovereignty of
+Charlemagne, who crushed the Lombards, and a few years later succeeded
+in also subduing the Baiovarii.
+
+During the centuries of internecine warfare, with its concomitants of
+rapine and chaos, which succeeded the evacuation of Rhætia by the
+Roman forces, most of the original inhabitants or peaceably disposed
+Romanized Rhætians fled with other fugitives from the southern or
+northern plains to the valleys and byways amid the mountains which
+hitherto probably had been almost if not entirely unpopulated. Here
+they settled, leaving the main routes open to the passage of the
+Teutonic invaders bent on the plunder of the Italian cities and
+plains, who, we may imagine, did not greatly trouble themselves
+regarding the byways or waste time in conquering those who had thus
+hidden themselves amid the higher Alpine valleys and fastnesses.
+
+The result of this is seen in the circumstance that whilst in many
+cases the out-of-the-way places and villages to this day preserve
+their original Romanized Rhætian names, those upon the main routes of
+travel have in many instances a purely Teutonic nomenclature.
+
+[Sidenote: "THE LAND IN THE MOUNTAINS"]
+
+The great Empire which Charlemagne created had strangely enough no
+natural delimitations, and when it was divided, in A.D. 806, into
+three portions amongst his sons, the division was not made upon any
+usually recognized system or plan. Tyrol still was unknown by that
+name, the country about that time being known as "Das Land im
+Gebirge," or "The Land in the Mountains." The immediate successors to
+the divided empire of Charlemagne were far less able than he to cope
+with the anarchy which so frequently overwhelmed south-eastern and
+north-eastern Europe in those days. There was practically no such
+unity as now prevails, and, owing to this, the powerful nobles and
+ecclesiastics gradually succeeded in dividing up the land amongst
+themselves according to the almost universal custom of the Middle
+Ages.
+
+The records of Tyrolese history of the period are, however, so
+wretchedly meagre that few positive and uncontrovertible facts have
+come down to us regarding the events which immediately followed the
+partition of Charlemagne's Empire amongst his sons. That the Brenner
+Pass and Tyrol formed a sort of highway for successive invaders of
+Italy, who swarmed across it from the East and North, there is,
+however, little reason for doubt. As has been very truly said, "What
+these vast expeditions, consisting of more or less disorderly masses
+of curiously mixed races, all in the panoply of war, all eager for
+booty, even if bent on a peaceable mission, meant for the countries
+through which they slowly ate and robbed their way, it is not quite
+easy to picture to one's self in these civilized days, when, even in
+the fiercest war, the non-combatant has no reason to go in fear of a
+violent death or having his women outraged before his eyes, and his
+house razed to the ground." That such things took place in Tyrol is
+made almost certain from the statements of contemporary writers,
+amongst others, Gottfried von Viterbo, Vincenz von Prague, and Otho
+von Freising.
+
+[Sidenote: OLD-TIME TRAVELLERS]
+
+It is the custom for most people to imagine that the "extras" for
+lights, tips to servants, and attendance which so often makes the
+present-day hotel bill exasperating, are a modern institution. This
+is, however, not the case, for some most interesting and illuminating
+diaries of early travel which were discovered in 1874 amongst the
+archives of the monastery of Cividate show that at the commencement of
+the thirteenth century there were a succession of inns already
+existing along the Brenner route, where travellers could not only
+obtain lodgment and entertainment, but even purchase necessary
+medicines. There are also entries for lights, attendance, and
+gratuities, which probably vexed the soul of the ecclesiastical
+diarist we have referred to as much as they do modern travellers.
+
+Of the types who tramped or rode along the great Tyrol highway and
+lodged at the inns, we have fortunately a fairly detailed and
+accurate picture handed down to us. If only there had been a Tyrolese
+Chaucer what a record might have been preserved! From the diaries of
+the Bishop of Passau (whose notes we have quoted), however, we
+gratefully gather that in addition to the ordinary itinerant merchants
+and countryfolk there were bard musicians of both sexes, conjurers
+(more or less skilful, and many of them charlatans), singers,
+mendicant friars (some of little holiness), and the far-famed
+minnesingers who for a considerable period had a great vogue at Courts
+and castles. Along this famous high-road of the Brenner and through
+Tyrol passed, during the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, many of the
+pilgrims and Crusaders bound for or returning from Palestine or some
+distant shrine of peculiar merit or holiness.
+
+[Sidenote: EARLY TYROLESE RULERS]
+
+One of the chief amongst the many changes and reforms instituted by
+Charlemagne was the sub-division of the countries he had conquered and
+welded together to form his Empire into margravates or departments
+which he placed under the rule of his nobles and other officials whom
+he appointed for the purpose. Although this system undoubtedly worked
+well during his powerful sway, after his death and during the anarchy
+and dissension which distinguished the reigns of his immediate
+successors what might have been expected happened. The more powerful
+of the nobles and officials and their descendants soon commenced to
+regard their offices as of the nature of hereditary appointments, and
+in consequence with the development of this idea small dynasties were
+gradually founded, and towards the close of the tenth century three of
+these had sprung into existence in Tyrol. These three Countships or
+_Grafschaften_ were of Andechs, Eppan, and Tyrol, and the country was
+eventually divided up amongst them and the great ecclesiastical lords
+of the Sees of Trent, Brixen, and Coire.
+
+As is the case with so much of early Tyrol history and events, very
+scanty information of a reliable character has come down to us
+regarding the origin of these three great families of nobles who held
+sway in the country. Nor is it for the purpose of this book necessary
+to enquire closely into the evidence we have. The origin of the family
+of Andechs is almost entirely unknown, although for a considerable
+period they were the most powerful of the three families we have
+named. The Eppans are believed to have been descendants of a natural
+son of a Duke of Bavaria, and their long and bloody feud with the
+Bishops of Brixen on account of lands taken from them and given to the
+See is enshrined in Tyrol history and legend.
+
+The third family, the Counts of Tyrol, though originally by no means
+the most important, was destined to outlast the other two, and
+eventually to become possessed of most of the country and give its
+name to ancient Rhætia. Although even in the days of the Roman
+occupation there appears to have been a Castle Tyrol, which was the
+residence of a centurion, the family, as it is generally known, is
+supposed to have taken its origin from Count Hunfried who lived in the
+reign of Charlemagne, and was also Count of Vintschgau. This noble
+came into prominence on the division of Charlemagne's Empire amongst
+his three sons; but it appears to be probable that it was not until
+the middle part of the thirteenth century that one of the owners of
+Castle Tyrol or Teriolis first took the title of Counts of Tyrol.[5]
+
+The earliest reference to the three Counts of Tyrol appears in the
+archives about the year 1140, and we find the family dwelling in the
+Castle Tyrol or Teriolis, near Meran. It was from this fortress, now
+in a ruinous condition except for the chapel and fine porch dating
+from the twelfth century, that not only the family took its name but
+eventually the whole country came to be known. Gradually one by one
+the possessions of the other nobles in Tyrol were taken from them or
+became absorbed by marriage in that of the Counts of Tyrol. Until
+about 1240 the then reigning Count Albert was able to style himself
+Prince Count (or gefürsteter Graf) of Tyrol so widespread and rich
+were his possessions.
+
+The Principality thus formed remained a fief of the German Empire
+until the reign of Maximilian I. (1493) when it was incorporated with
+the other possessions of the Crown.
+
+The first of the Prince Counts of Tyrol was successful, in 1248, in
+obtaining from the Counts of Andechs the district of the Inn Valley,
+once the site of Roman Veldidena, which place tradition asserts was
+destroyed about A.D. 452 by the Huns under the leadership of Attila on
+their return through Tyrol after their defeat by Aëtius at the battle
+of Chalons.
+
+During the early Middle Ages the Premonstratensian Abbey of Wilten had
+been built on the site of the ancient town, and later on the Counts of
+Andechs, who had become possessed of land in the neighbourhood on the
+banks of the Inn, became the most powerful and influential nobles in
+the district. Under them a trading post or centre of commerce was
+founded near the bridge over the Inn, the importance of which can be
+easily understood when its proximity to the Brenner high-road, a then
+busy thoroughfare, is borne in mind. From this bridge over the Inn was
+derived the name of the town Innsbruck--afterwards destined to become
+the capital of Tyrol--a mention of which appears for the first time in
+archives of the year 1327. It was to the foresight and enterprise of
+Otto of Andechs that the town owed the walls, towers, and
+fortifications which were to stand it in good stead. Count Otto also
+built himself a palace, which still is known as Ottoburg.
+
+Concerning the various princes who reigned over Tyrol in succession to
+Count Albert down to Henry, the youngest son of Meinhard II., who, by
+marrying the daughter of the King of Bohemia, claimed the throne on
+the death of his father-in-law and took the title of king, although
+forced to surrender his claims to Bohemia, and rest content with Tyrol
+and Carinthia, it is not necessary to say much. This Henry was a
+good-natured, easily influenced ruler, who by reason of these
+characteristics fell almost entirely into the hands of the more
+powerful of his nobles, who by flattery and supplies of money to meet
+his spendthrift habits were able to acquire not only influence over
+him, but also gain great possessions from and unchecked by him. Under
+this ruler Meran became the capital of Tyrol; and Hall, Sterzing, and
+other places were raised to the dignity of towns.
+
+Though easily led, Henry was not without his virtues, for he granted
+several privileges which were in the interests of commerce, and under
+his rule the hard lots of the villein and working classes were
+lightened, and a heritable system of land tenure for the peasant class
+devised and established. The effect of this was destined to be
+beneficial not only to those it was primarily intended to assist, but
+also to the nobles, and Henry himself. For as the nobles seldom or
+never paid taxes it followed that, with increased prosperity, the
+lower orders (who bore the greater part of the burden of taxation)
+could be taxed to a higher degree without suffering in proportion.
+
+Many stories are current concerning the difficulties into which
+Henry's wastrel habits got him. One of them is that he was unable at
+Innsbruck to settle the bill of a fish and wine merchant, and as a
+last resort gave this man, one Eberhard, the bridge toll, which it is
+unnecessary to say formed a valuable consideration.
+
+  [Illustration: YOUNG TYROL]
+
+[Sidenote: "POCKET MOUTHED MEG"]
+
+At his death in 1335 he left no male heir, the succession falling to
+his daughter Margaret, known to history as "wide (or Pocket) Mouthed
+Meg" on account of her remarkably ill-formed mouth. How her mouth
+became so ugly is not exactly known. One story states the name was
+derived from the word _Maultasche_, in consequence of her having had
+her ears (or side of face) boxed or struck. The explanation gains
+some weight from the fact that the blow was said to have been struck
+her by one of her Bavarian relatives, and the circumstance that she
+ultimately left her heritage to her Austrian cousins and not to the
+Bavarian branch of the family, thus causing Tyrol to become a part of
+the Austrian Empire.
+
+Eventually, after many abortive attempts to arrange a marriage with
+the numerous suitors who were willing to become allied to perhaps the
+richest though the ugliest heiress in Europe of that time, for her
+inheritance comprised the dukedoms of Goricia, Croatia and Carinthia,
+as well as the beautiful land Tyrol, Margaret was married, in A.D.
+1330, to the youthful Prince John of Bohemia, the bridegroom being
+nine years of age and the bride several years older. The latter was
+destined to have a troublous career, ugly as her mouth in some of its
+details; and the young couple, when (a few years after the formal
+marriage) they came to live together, were almost from the first at
+variance.
+
+John was feeble and of weak intellect, and Margaret as determined and
+shameless as were many other women rulers in those times. Plots and
+intrigues were rife, the former between the two parties who espoused
+the German or Luxembourg (Bohemian) claims, the latter between
+Margaret and her courtier and even peasant lovers, some of whom were
+given privileges and even lands and patents of nobility by the amorous
+princess of the "Pocket Mouth," who made several unsuccessful attempts
+to get rid of her husband, until she frightened him into returning to
+his own country. This desire accomplished, Margaret commenced to put
+in operation her further plans. John was a fugitive, going from castle
+to castle in search of shelter or sanctuary, awaiting assistance from
+his father or the Luxembourg party, which was favourable to the
+Bohemian side of the question. Soon the Emperor Louis, who was the
+ruler of the Holy Roman Empire and a deadly enemy of the Bohemians,
+saw an opportunity for accomplishing a long-cherished desire, that of
+the acquisition of Tyrol.
+
+He found a ready accomplice in his good-looking, attractive son, who
+appeared willing enough to marry another man's wife, however
+ill-tempered and ugly, even before the first marriage was formally
+declared null and void by the Pope, provided wealth and possessions
+were acquired with her. However, when the Pope--who himself had cast
+longing eyes on Margaret's possessions--heard of the proposed union,
+he not only declined to annul the marriage between John and Margaret,
+but threatened the latter with excommunication if she espoused the son
+of Louis, who was his implacable foe. There were also reasons of
+consanguinity which made the marriage impossible without the Pope's
+sanction. Louis, however, not to be thwarted in his desire, set about
+to find a bishop willing to defy the Pontiff and bold enough to
+solemnize the marriage. Soon he succeeded in persuading the Bishop of
+Freisingen both to annul the first marriage and celebrate the second.
+Accordingly the Emperor, in whose train were numbers of nobles, set
+forth with the bishop mentioned, and also the bishops of Augsburg and
+Regensburg, for Tyrol.
+
+But whilst on the journey and crossing a pass (the Jaufen), which
+afforded the quickest route from Sterzing to Margaret's home near
+Meran, the Bishop of Freisingen's horse stumbled and threw its rider,
+killing him on the spot. This accident so sapped the courage of the
+other two bishops (who doubtless considered the event as a direct
+message of wrath from Heaven) that they refused to go on with the
+scheme upon which they had embarked.
+
+This did not, however, weaken the determination of either the Emperor
+or Louis, who, on his arrival at Castle Tyrol, forced the terrified
+resident chaplain to celebrate the marriage, although we are told the
+people protested loudly, anticipating terrible punishments for
+breaking the laws of the Church and defying the commands of the Pope.
+
+Nevertheless the event was celebrated with great festivities, and, so
+far as one can gather, no immediate wrath from Heaven was experienced
+by the evildoers.
+
+[Sidenote: ERA OF CIVIL WAR]
+
+During the weak rule of John, the various nobles in Tyrol had gained
+great ascendency; had extended their possessions and rights; and had
+in fact seriously weakened the sovereign power of their ruler. Louis
+proved of very different metal to his precursor. He at once attacked
+the nobles, who had aggregated to themselves unlawful or dangerous
+authority, devastating their estates, burning and dismantling their
+castles and fortresses, and exiling those who did not submit. Civil
+war of the most bloodthirsty kind ran riot in Tyrol, and other
+disasters in the shape of fire, which destroyed some of the most
+important towns, including Meran the capital; swarms of locusts,
+plague and earthquake, all afflicted the unhappy and unfortunate land.
+It is needless to say that these terrible calamities were esteemed by
+many Tyrolese as the direct expression by Heaven of anger at
+Margaret's bigamous marriage and defiance of the power of the Church.
+
+The ravages of the Black Death were not less severe than in other
+parts of Southern Europe, and, according to one chronicler, scarcely a
+sixth of the population of Tyrol were left alive. As was so often the
+case in the Middle Ages, some human scapegoat was sought for and
+found; and the very common one was fixed upon--the Jews. The
+persecution of this unfortunate race which ensued was of so ruthless a
+character that neither women, children, nor the aged were spared, with
+the result, we are told, that very few were left alive.
+
+Then succeeded a period of war. The supporters of the discarded
+husband of Margaret--John of Bohemia--were not slow to seek to revenge
+themselves upon her, and Tyrol was subsequently invaded by the King of
+Bohemia, who was joined by the militant Bishop of Trent with
+considerable forces. An active campaign followed, characterized by
+great cruelty on the part of the invaders, during which the two chief
+towns, Meran and Bozen, were captured and destroyed, and ultimately
+Margaret was besieged in her own Castle of Tyrol. It was so admirably
+situated for defence that in her husband's absence Margaret, who, with
+all her vices and failings, was no coward, was able to defend it
+successfully from all assaults, and did so until her husband was able
+to return by forced marches, and surprising the besiegers, succeeded
+in defeating them and forcing them to retire. The country, however,
+suffered terribly during the enemy's retreat, as, in revenge for being
+baulked of their prey, they burned and ravaged in every direction, and
+spared no man from the sword. Indeed, the history of the campaign
+exhibits in the most lurid light the underlying and primitive savagery
+of all warfare in the Middle Ages.
+
+It was to meet the heavy charges arising from the prolonged campaign
+and defence of his territory that Louis had to sell or pawn many of
+his richest personal possessions, with the result that many nobles
+(who provided him with money or other support) gained or regained
+valuable privileges and a considerable accession of power and
+influence.
+
+[Sidenote: STORIES ABOUT "MEG"]
+
+Into the whole course of this war and the history of
+Tyrol--interesting and even fascinating though it be--it is impossible
+for us to enter. Margaret ultimately (it may be noted) made her peace
+with Rome, owing to the influence exercised over the Pope by her
+Austrian cousins of the House of Habsburg, the condition of their
+mediation being that she should leave to them and not to her Bavarian
+cousins her heritage should her son and heir Meinhard pre-decease her,
+and die without issue.
+
+Fate favoured the schemes of the Habsburgs, for both Margaret's
+husband Louis and her son died before her, the latter at the early age
+of twenty. As an example of the old saw, "Give a dog a bad name and
+hang him," popular opinion laid both deaths at Margaret's door. Her
+husband died in 1361-2 whilst on a journey to Munich in her company.
+This supposed murder was, according to then common report, a _crime
+passionel_ arising from Margaret's fear that Louis was about to
+compass the death of Conrad of Frauenberg, a noble with whom she had
+carried on an intrigue that had been common talk and a scandal for
+years. On the death of his father, Meinhard assumed the responsibility
+of government; in doing this he appears to have placed, or attempted
+to place, some sort of check upon the shameless conduct and intrigues
+of his mother, and when he died in January, 1363, his death, like that
+of Louis, was laid at his mother's door. Popular opinion, however, has
+been proved to have been in error by historians who do not favour the
+supposition that she was really guilty of either death; and although
+no explanation of the actual cause of Louis's death is forthcoming,
+there would appear some evidence for supposing that Meinhard's
+untimely end was unromantic and free from mystery, and, in fact, was
+the result of drinking cold water whilst overheated from exertion.
+
+In those days, although news travelled but slowly according to modern
+ideas, it was less than a fortnight ere it had reached Vienna, and
+Rudolph IV. of Habsburg, by travelling "day and night," was at Bozen
+eager to make certain his position as the eldest of the three brothers
+to whom his cousin Margaret had agreed to cede Tyrol and her other
+wide possessions.
+
+Around the picturesque, though licentious and uninviting, figure of
+"Pocket-Mouthed Meg" has gathered an accretion of traditions and tales
+unequalled by those attached to any other Tyrol ruler. But, although
+she was for many years so outstanding a figure in the history of her
+country and indeed of South-Eastern Europe, strangely few authentic
+records or documentary corroboration of these stories have been
+discoverable.
+
+Thus, by the death of Meinhard in 1363, the country became a portion
+of Austria under the rule of Rudolph IV., who, though young, was wise
+and far-seeing. However, he was not destined to long enjoy the
+possessions he had acquired chiefly by skilful diplomacy, and on his
+death, two years after his accession, Tyrol was governed jointly by
+his two brothers--Leopold and Albert.
+
+During this dual control the Bavarian relations of Margaret made
+frequent incursions into the country, especially in the neighbourhood
+of the Unter-Innthal, and in 1369 succeeded in obtaining a large sum
+from the Habsburgs at a temporary peace made at Schärding. Ten years
+later the dual sovereignty came to an end, the two brothers dividing
+the inheritance, Leopold taking Tyrol as his share. He was killed at
+the Battle of Sempach on July 9th, 1386, where the Swiss gained so
+signal a victory under the leadership of Arnold Von Winkelried.
+
+[Sidenote: DUKE FREDERICK'S REIGN]
+
+In 1406 Frederick, Leopold's youngest son, succeeded to the
+sovereignty, which during his minority had been held by his elder
+brothers and his Uncle Albert, who had ruled the country in so lax a
+manner that the nobles gained a great ascendency.
+
+It was, indeed, no easy task to which Duke Frederick was called. The
+nickname bestowed upon him, that of "the Empty Purse," was by no means
+an exact description of his financial condition, save during a
+comparatively short period of his reign of thirty years. It was given
+him at the time he was an outlaw by reason of the ban of the Church,
+and was obliged to fly for his life and take refuge amid the
+mountains. His was a stormy reign. In the early portion of it he was
+at variance with many of the most powerful of his nobles, who resisted
+his attempts to curtail the power which they had acquired during his
+minority. After the anxieties and hardships which ensued, when the
+country was over-run by the Bavarians, and even the capital
+threatened, Frederick was destined to have still greater trouble by
+reason of his action at the Council of Constance, which was summoned
+to settle the momentous questions as to who was the rightful head of
+the Church, and who the ruler of the Empire. There were three
+claimants for each position, nominated and supported by the rival
+factions. The spiritual claimants were John XXIII., Benedict XIII.,
+Gregory XII.; and the temporal Kings Sigismund of Hungary, Jost of
+Moravia, and Wencelaus of Bohemia.
+
+  [Illustration: A WAYSIDE SHRINE, TYROL]
+
+Of the Ecclesiastical claimants John had Frederick's support, and when
+the former, failing to get elected by the Council, had not only to
+renounce his claims but flee for his life, Frederick assisted him to
+escape from Constance. This act of loyalty to a friend almost cost
+Frederick his life, as Sigismund (who of the three candidates had been
+elected Emperor) was his enemy, and not only succeeded in persuading
+the assembly to declare Frederick's throne forfeited, but also him and
+his chief supporters and followers outlaws, to shelter any of whom was
+a crime punishable with death.
+
+Frederick's evil case was made worse and his difficulties immeasurably
+increased by the secession to the ranks of his enemies of his brother
+Ernest, who had taken the Dukedom of Styria as his portion of the
+inheritance.
+
+Duke Ernest took up the reins of Government of Tyrol, and there ensued
+a period of bloodshed and disastrous Civil War in which the peasants
+and the lower classes remained firm and loyal supporters of their
+ruler Frederick, and the greater number of the nobility espoused the
+cause of the usurper Ernest. At length a peace was brought about
+between the two brothers, chiefly through the mediation of the
+Archbishop Eberhard of Salzburg, and the Duke Louis of Bavaria. The
+reconciliation of Frederick and Duke Ernest, whose estrangement had
+been brought about by Frederick's action in relation to Pope John at
+Constance which had brought him under the powerful ban of the Church,
+took place at the castle of the Archbishop at Kropfsberg.
+
+The remaining portion of Frederick's life appears to have been
+peaceable, and notwithstanding his _sobriquet_ of "Empty Purse" he
+left a huge fortune in treasure, which some authorities assert was the
+greatest amassed by any ruler of those times. He was undoubtedly one
+of the most able, and with the peasants and townsfolk most popular,
+rulers Tyrol has ever had as a separate principality. He carried on a
+struggle throughout his reign against the encroachments of the
+nobility upon the lands and liberties of the people, which in itself
+was a thing sufficient to gain him the love and loyalty of the great
+masses of his subjects, which his affable manners, generosity, and
+kindliness served to cement. To him belongs the credit of summoning
+the first Tyrolean Landtag of any use or importance, held at Meran in
+1423. Subsequently the Landtag was convened at Innsbruck, which town
+in consequence gradually came to be regarded as the capital of Tyrol.
+
+On the death of Frederick he was succeeded by his son Sigismund, then
+a mere lad of eleven or twelve years of age. The latter lived for some
+seven years at the Court of Vienna under the control of his guardian
+the Emperor Frederick III. Whilst in Vienna he became acquainted with
+one Æneas Silvius de Piccolomini, afterwards Pope Pius II., a widely
+travelled, able but licentious man who had journeyed so far afield as
+Scotland, and who poured such glowing descriptions of the beauty of
+the ladies of the Scottish Court into the young Duke Sigismund's ears
+that he became possessed with a desire to marry a Scotch bride. Thus
+it happened that when the daughter of Charles VII., King of France,
+died (whom it had been intended by his father he should marry) the
+young Duke Sigismund wooed and won Eleanor, daughter of ill-fated
+James I. of Scotland, to whom as dowry the Duke gave the historic
+castles of Ambras, Imst, and Hörtenburg for life. This gifted princess
+lived in Tyrol for a period of more than thirty years, and by her
+gentle manners, love of sport, especially hawking and hunting, and
+social accomplishments made herself much beloved by her husband's
+subjects. Her Court, for the size of the principality over which her
+husband ruled, was very large and luxurious.
+
+During the reign of Sigismund the vast mineral wealth of the
+Unter-Innthal district especially became opened up, and this enabled
+the Duke to spend lavish sums upon pleasures, entertainments, arts,
+and science, which soon caused his Court at Innsbruck to be spoken of
+as one of the most refined, gay, and interesting in Eastern Europe. At
+the same time Tyrol owed much to Sigismund, as he was a generous
+patron of art and employer of artists of all kinds.
+
+[Sidenote: THE WAR WITH VENICE]
+
+On the death of his consort Eleanor he married, in 1484, the Princess
+Catherine of Saxony, who was both young and beautiful. A man of great
+judgment, he yet committed the grave error of provoking a war with the
+Venetians, whose trade with Tyrol was an important and valuable asset
+in the country's commerce and material prosperity. It arose from the
+seizure of some rich silver mines the property of the Venetians in the
+Valsugana, and the tense situation arising from this act was
+aggravated shortly after, in April 1487, by the forcible seizure of
+the goods of Venetian merchants who had come (as was their wont) to
+the great fair held at Bozen. Over a hundred and twenty Venetian
+merchants were also thrown into prison. In the war which ensued the
+Tyrolese were ultimately victorious; but the victory was a Pyrrhic one
+as Tyrol lost much by this struggle with the great commercial power of
+those remote times. The Venetians took a speedy revenge, "boycotting"
+Tyrolese trade, absenting themselves from the fairs and markets, and
+avoiding using the Brenner Route which had very materially added to
+the wealth of the country.
+
+Sigismund, as had other rulers of the Mountain Kingdom, fell out of
+favour with the Church, owing to a quarrel with the Cardinal Bishop of
+Brixen, Nicholas of Cusa, chiefly on account of the latter's
+persistent endeavour to exalt the power of the Church at the expense
+of the former's temporal authority, and it was only Sigismund's
+indifference to religious matters and power in his own country which
+enabled him to treat with unconcern if not positive contempt the ban
+placed upon him by the Church of Rome. He even went the length of
+making war upon the Bishop, and of besieging him in his castle at
+Brunneck; and as a consequence was excommunicated by both Pope
+Calixtus III. the Courageous and Pius II.
+
+In Sigismund's declining years he applied himself "to the task of
+purchasing salvation in the manner approved by the Church he had
+defied, and whose bulls, bans, and mandates he had scorned." He set
+about founding monasteries, gave largely to charitable endowments, and
+was generous in other ways to a Church which was anxious to pardon the
+sinner who was willing to purchase absolution on satisfactory monetary
+or other terms. One effect of this great expenditure was to impoverish
+the country, which had already been much "drained" by the demands made
+upon it by Sigismund's patronage of art, love of women, and lavish
+entertainments.
+
+  [Illustration: VIEW FROM THE RITTEN LOOKING S.W.]
+
+[Sidenote: MAXIMILIAN I]
+
+Maximilian, his cousin (afterwards the famous Emperor Maximilian I.),
+succeeded him on his abdication in 1493. He was in a great measure an
+ideal ruler for Tyrol, whose brave, independent people were touched by
+the spirit, frankness, and great personal bravery of their new prince.
+Fond of war, he was equally devoted to the chivalric jousts and games
+of the period, and, if one may believe historians, to these sterner
+qualities was united a kindly and approachable disposition which
+further endeared him to his people. It was only in the latter portion
+of his reign that he lost touch with and hold upon them, and, owing to
+the heavy drain that incessant wars and military operations had placed
+upon the country, necessitating heavy taxation, became in a measure
+unpopular.
+
+From his biographers one gathers that the Emperor was deeply affected
+by the change of attitude of the populace towards him, and he referred
+to it bitterly on several occasions. During some considerable time
+before his death he always went about accompanied by his coffin, which
+he is stated to have described as "the one narrow palace which
+architects can design at small cost, and the making of which does not
+bring ruin upon princes."
+
+During the reign of Maximilian to Tyrol was added other and
+considerable new territory, including the Ampezzo district; Rovereto;
+the three lordships of Rattenberg, Kitzbühel, and Kufstein; the towns
+of Riva and Arco; a portion of the present Vorarlberg; and a portion
+of the Pusterthal. Maximilian also did something for education in his
+capital of Innsbruck, where he built a new palace which was first used
+at the time of his second marriage with Maria Bianca Sforza of Milan
+in 1494.
+
+He was succeeded by his two grandsons, the Emperor Charles V. and the
+Archduke Ferdinand. The former, however, found his dominions so vast
+that he soon resigned his Austrian possessions (including Tyrol) to
+his brother Ferdinand, who afterwards became Emperor. The reign of the
+latter, though long, was not a happy or prosperous one. The religious
+disturbances brought about by the Reformation, which Ferdinand
+severely suppressed, and risings of the peasants in consequence, made
+his name detested in Tyrol, so that in the War of the Schmalkald the
+inhabitants supported Charles V. It was at Innsbruck (after two
+unsuccessful attempts to leave Tyrol) that he was surprised by his
+treacherous friend Maurice of Saxony, who had marched his army rapidly
+into Tyrol intent upon capturing Charles. The latter, who had no army
+with him, having arrived at Innsbruck on his way to the Council of
+Trent, in order to escape had to leave his palace at dead of night in
+torrents of rain in May 1552--a man broken in health and tired of
+life.
+
+It was this Ferdinand who founded the famous Franciscan Church at
+Innsbruck with its world-renowned tomb in memory of his grandfather
+Maximilian I.
+
+On the death of Ferdinand, in 1564, he was succeeded on the throne of
+Tyrol by his second son who bore his name. A romantic interest
+attaches to this Archduke, who after much opposition on the part of
+his family married the beautiful daughter of an Augsburg merchant,
+Philippina Welser, who ultimately succeeded in winning the Emperor's
+sanction to the marriage.[6]
+
+The thirty-one years' reign of Archduke Ferdinand was chiefly notable
+for the encouragement given by him to Art. Indeed, during this period
+the country reached its highest culture. The world-famous art
+collection now in Vienna, concerning which most authorities are in
+agreement that it was the most extensive and beautiful formed up to
+that period, owes its existence almost entirely to him. In his Castle
+of Ambras, near Innsbruck, he gathered together art treasures that are
+now, as regards many examples, almost if not quite unique; and by so
+doing ensured his position with posterity as one of the first, most
+learned, and most discriminating of art collectors and connoisseurs
+the world has known.
+
+[Sidenote: A ROYAL ROMANCE]
+
+Ferdinand and his beautiful spouse remained throughout their married
+life devoted to each other, although when the former's father, in
+1563, recognized the marriage it was agreed that any children born to
+the pair should not be recognized as of Royal birth, the alliance
+being regarded as morganatic. The story that Philippina died a violent
+death seems to have no basis upon fact.
+
+Ferdinand after the death of his first wife married Anna Katharina
+Gonzaga of Mantua, to whose devout tendencies and influence over him
+Innsbruck and the neighbourhood owed many of its religious houses and
+institutions.
+
+On the death of Ferdinand, as his and Philippina's children could not
+succeed to their father's possessions and title for the reason we have
+mentioned, and as there were no children of the marriage with Anna
+Katharina, Tyrol reverted in 1595 to the Emperor Rudolph II., who soon
+appointed his brother the Archduke Maximilian as Regent. This prince
+was the head of the Teutonic Order, and bore the title of
+Deutschmeister. After his death Tyrol reverted to the Emperor
+Ferdinand II., who in 1622 celebrated his second marriage with
+Eleanora Vincenzo of Mantua at Innsbruck. The event was celebrated
+with great magnificence even for a period when entertainments of the
+kind were veritable triumphs of splendour and art, and the wedding
+feast was served by Tyrolese noblemen.
+
+Ferdinand soon appointed his brother the Archduke Leopold as Regent,
+and on his death in 1632 the latter was succeeded by his widow, the
+wise and beautiful Archduchess Claudia Felicitas of Medici, who
+governed Tyrol during the minority of her two sons. Her chief
+counsellor was the brilliant and distinguished Chancellor Wilhelm
+Biener. The Archduke Ferdinand Charles came of age (and succeeded to
+his estates) in 1646, and in default of male heirs was succeeded by
+his brother Francis Sigismund in 1662. The reign of the last named
+lasted only three years, and came to a sudden and tragic close on the
+very eve of his marriage. Popular opinion ascribed his death to
+poison, given to the Archduke by his physician Agricola, the latter,
+at the time, being supposed to have been instigated to the crime by
+some Italian nobles whom the Archduke had banished from his Court. On
+the death of Sigismund the second Tyrolese-Habsburg line of rulers
+came to an end.
+
+  [Illustration: ABOVE THE ARLBERG TUNNEL]
+
+It was then that Tyrol finally came into the possession of the
+Emperors of Austria, by whom the ancient title of Prince-Count of
+Tyrol and other subsidiary titles are still borne.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[1] Several well-known authorities still refuse to accept this theory.
+
+[2] Also called the Eisack.
+
+[3] Mommsen in his "Corpus Inscriptionum Latinarum."
+
+[4] W. Von Rodlow.
+
+[5] This view of the origin of the country's name is, we would add,
+disputed by some authorities.--C. H.
+
+[6] This is disputed by some authorities, but would appear to have
+been the case.--C. H.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER II
+
+     TYROL FROM ITS INCORPORATION BY AUSTRIA AS A PART OF THE
+     EMPIRE TO THE PRESENT TIME
+
+
+During the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) between the Catholics and
+Protestants of Germany, which was renowned for the victories of
+Wallenstein and Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden, Tyrol did not altogether
+escape its influence though playing no very important part in the
+struggle. One result was, however, of considerable importance to a
+family of great note in Tyrol. It brought about the ruin of the
+Fuggers, whose financial assistance to various rulers of Tyrol and
+Eastern Europe had been generally forthcoming when required. Owing to
+their possession of the two famous castle-fortresses of Tratzberg and
+Matzen their prosperity or otherwise was of considerable importance to
+Tyrol.
+
+From the date (1665) when the country became completely incorporated
+as a part of the Austrian Empire it did homage to the Emperor Leopold
+I., sole heir of the joint Austro-German possessions. It was during
+his reign and on account of this circumstance that Tyrol became deeply
+involved in the War of the Spanish Succession, and was the object of
+attack on the part of both French and Bavarians, Leopold being the
+Austrian claimant to the Spanish throne, and Philip of Anjou, grandson
+of Louis XIV., the French aspirant.
+
+In 1703 the French troops, under General Vendome, entered Tyrol from
+the South and unsuccessfully besieged Trent on their way northward to
+Austria; and at the same time the Bavarians overran the country by
+routes which they had traversed from almost time immemorial when
+making their periodic raids upon the Tyrolese. For a considerable
+period the invaders were successful, and many villages and castles of
+the Unter-Innthal and contiguous districts were destroyed. The capture
+of the capital was the cause of the uprising of the Landsturm, or
+general levy of the peasants; and during 1703 a number of fierce
+engagements were fought between these ill-armed but brave Tyrolese and
+the Bavarian and French troops. One of the most noted battles was that
+which took place immediately after the Tyrolese had destroyed the
+Pontlatz Bridge which spanned the River Inn, by which the Bavarians
+were about to cross. In this engagement the latter, under the
+leadership of the Elector Maximilian Emmanuel, were utterly routed by
+a much inferior force of the Landsturm, and driven back from North
+Tyrol. Following up this success the Tyrolese concentrated their
+energies upon the French force under General Vendome which they
+compelled to retire into Italy.
+
+The Emperor Leopold I., not wishing to reside for any length of time
+at Innsbruck, had created the office of Statthalter or Governor of
+Tyrol and Vorarlberg, an office which has been filled ever since till
+the present day, with the exception of the period of the French and
+Bavarian wars with Austria in the early part of the last century.
+
+The Emperor did not live to see the ultimate triumph of his forces. He
+died in 1705, and was succeeded by his sons Joseph I. and Charles VI.
+On the death of the latter in 1740, owing to the fact that with him
+the Austrian male line became extinct, the Empress Maria Theresa ruled
+in his stead. During her long reign the Vorarlberg became an integral
+part of Tyrol owing to the fact that it was an Imperial fief which
+reverted to the Crown by natural process on the extinction of the line
+of feoffees. Maria Theresa and her husband the Emperor Francis I.
+came to Innsbruck in 1765 for the wedding of their son Leopold, Grand
+Duke of Tuscany (afterwards the Emperor Leopold II.), with Maria
+Ludovica, daughter of Charles III., King of Spain. The Tyrolese and
+the Innsbruckers gave a warm welcome to their sovereigns, and the
+festivities were upon a most magnificent scale. The gaiety was
+destined, however, to be clouded and put an end to by the sudden death
+of the Emperor (husband of Maria Theresa), who expired at the palace
+immediately after his return from the Italian Opera. It was he,
+Francis Stephen of Lorraine, also Grand Duke of Tuscany, who founded
+the House of Habsburg-Lorraine, which still rules over the
+Austro-Hungarian Empire.
+
+[Sidenote: REFORMS OF JOSEPH II.]
+
+On the death of Maria Theresa in 1780 she was succeeded by her son
+Joseph II., upon whose accession many innovations were introduced in
+Tyrol as well as other portions of his wide empire. His salutary and
+liberally conceived reforms, more especially as regarded the Church,
+were brought about by a desire to adjust political and religious
+affairs and do away with anomalies.
+
+Inasmuch as Joseph's scheme embraced the suppression or abolition of
+numerous priories, monasteries, churches, and other religious
+institutions, it is little to be wondered at that his action met with
+the most strenuous opposition from the Church whose property was
+threatened. One act, the closing of the University of Innsbruck, which
+had been founded by Leopold I. in 1677, it is not easy for any one at
+the present day to understand. The Emperor Joseph II.'s scheme of
+reform was not successful, although it had arisen from honourable
+motives and a sincere desire to redress some very crying grievances.
+
+He was succeeded in 1790 by his brother, the Emperor Leopold II., who
+reopened the University, and undid much of the work his predecessor
+had accomplished with regard to the suppression of religious houses.
+He, however, reigned but two years, and was followed by his son
+Francis II. of Germany and Francis I. of Austria. This ruler came to
+the throne at a great and unhappy crisis in European history. The
+French Revolution was at its height and the ensuing period of the
+"blood lustful" Napoleonic Wars made of Europe a vast camp and battle
+ground. It was also a period destined, as events proved, to make Tyrol
+famous for all time, to develop the best instincts of her people, and
+to exhibit the race in a heroic and romantic light.
+
+To understand the position of Tyrol at this epoch it is necessary to
+briefly sketch the events which led up to the struggle as it affected
+the "land in the Mountains." Mantua, an Austro-Italian possession,
+fell before Napoleon in 1797, and immediately the young general sent
+an army under Joubert into Tyrol, the routes into the country being
+left almost undefended by the retreat of the Austrian forces towards
+Carinthia, after their defeat at Lodi on May 10, 1796.
+
+[Sidenote: FRENCH INVASION]
+
+Once more the Landsturm was raised in South Tyrol, and again the
+peasant forces (to whom the name of "ragged coats" had been
+contemptuously given) engaged in a terrific struggle for their beloved
+land with the not only better armed but more numerous detachments of
+French and Bavarian invaders. Even the well-tried legions of Napoleon
+were destined, however, to find them as redoubtable as had formerly
+Maximilian.
+
+Under the gallant von Worndle the Inn Valley Landsturm was led down
+into the Pusterthal, where it was joined by the Austrian forces under
+Generals Laudon and Kerpen. Napoleon's troops, although well led, and
+possessing all the advantages that experience and a knowledge of
+strategy could give them, nevertheless could not withstand the
+terrific onslaught and heroic bravery shown by the Tyrolese. A fierce
+and bloody engagement was fought at Spinges which resulted in the
+triumph of the peasant forces and the utter rout of the invaders, who
+were compelled to evacuate the country. About the same time
+
+another smaller engagement took place near Bozen, where a mere handful
+of peasants engaged a much superior force and defeated it. This
+otherwise comparatively unimportant event has gained fame and
+significance from the fact that this small body of Passeyer peasantry
+was led by a tall, broad-shouldered man with a long brown beard, named
+Andreas Hofer, who was destined afterwards to play so great and
+remarkable a part in the history of his beloved country.
+
+  [Illustration: SUNSET ON A TYROLESE LAKE]
+
+  [Illustration: A TYPICAL TYROLESE LANDSCAPE]
+
+After the Battle of Spinges hostilities were ended for a time by the
+Treaty of Campo Formio, October 17, 1797.
+
+During this preliminary struggle against the French it is estimated by
+several authorities that upwards of 100,000 peasants took up arms in
+defence of their country, amongst whom were many women and young
+maidens. The total population of Tyrol at that period did not probably
+much exceed three quarters of a million.
+
+The peace secured by the Treaty of Campo Formio did not, however,
+endure very long, for early in 1799 the war broke out again, and the
+French under General Massena entered Tyrol, on this occasion by way of
+Switzerland through the mountain passes, the Bavarians supporting the
+invaders by incursions over the frontier in the direction of Salzburg.
+In an engagement near Feldkirch in Vorarlberg General Massena was
+defeated; and upon making a fresh attack the French, hearing all the
+church bells of the district ringing on Easter Eve and mistaking them
+for the alarm bells summoning the Landsturm, hastily abandoned their
+intentions and retreated across the frontier into Swiss territory. The
+victories of Marengo and Hohenlinden on June 14 and December 3 of the
+next year, brought about the Treaty of Luneville on February 9, 1801,
+by which the Bishoprics of Brixen and Trent (already in a sense
+belonging to Tyrol) were made integral parts of the country.
+
+Hostilities were continued, however, in other parts of Europe, and
+the long war dragged on, Napoleon over-running the Continent and more
+especially South-Eastern Europe almost unchecked, till Ulm, where the
+Austrians were defeated October 17-20, 1805. The French army under
+Marshal Ney afterwards entered and occupied Innsbruck. Then came the
+disastrous Battle of Austerlitz on December 2, where Napoleon defeated
+the combined Russian and Austrian forces. The power of the latter was
+shattered, and by the Treaty of Pressburg, December 26, 1805, Tyrol,
+which now for upwards of four hundred years had been one of the chief
+possessions of the house of Habsburg, was ceded to the victors. The
+Bavarians took the northern, and the French the southern portion. Not
+only was the country for a time lost to Austria, but even its name was
+taken from it. The new owners promptly divided it into three
+departments known by the names of the three chief rivers--the Inn,
+Eisack, and Adige.
+
+In the beginning of the year following the Treaty the Bavarians took
+formal possession of their new territory. During a period of some
+three years the Tyrolese fretted under the rule of their conquerors.
+But the time was not spent merely in idle murmurings or in servile
+acceptance of the conqueror's yoke. The peasants who had fought so
+bravely for their land and liberty in ancient times, and in 1797 and
+1799, were eager once more to take the field to recover their lost
+freedom, and to drive the usurpers of their beautiful Tyrol for ever
+beyond its frontiers.
+
+[Sidenote: RISE OF ANDREAS HOFER]
+
+Day by day, week by week, month by month a general rising of the
+community was being gradually organized by three men more
+particularly, who were each of them destined to become famous, and to
+go down to posterity as the saviours of their country. Of these
+Andreas Hofer, born of Inn-keeping parents at Sandyland in the
+Passeyer Valley in 1765, was destined to outshine both in his life and
+death his two companions, named Speckbacher, born at Rinn, and
+Haspinger, the tall, red-bearded Capucin monk, known respectively as
+"the fire-devil" and "the red beard."
+
+The task that Hofer and his companions set themselves was no easy one.
+The country swarmed not only with the soldiers of the Bavarian
+occupation force, but with spies who seem always to spring up whenever
+the price of treachery is worth earning. The punishment for men taking
+part in any such schemes as that in which Hofer, Speckbacher, and
+Haspinger and their faithful companions were engaged in was death.
+Death not only for the principals, but death for the humblest
+participant. Nevertheless the plan prospered. It is interesting to
+remember the very large and important part which was played in the
+organization of the peasants' uprising by the Tyrolese innkeepers, or
+_wirthe_, who were very dissimilar to the ordinary conception which
+English people have of men of their class. They were usually the most
+wealthy as well as the most solid members of the village communities
+in which they dwelt and kept their _Wirthshaus_, around which, indeed,
+much of the social as well as the municipal life of the village
+centred. They were better informed than many of their neighbours, for
+whatever travellers came to the villages found their way to their
+hospitable roofs; and what echoes of the outer world ever reached the
+secluded villages filtered its way, as it were, through them. It was
+in these men that Hofer found his greatest allies and ablest
+assistants. During the three years which succeeded the Bavarian
+occupation and the peasant rising, the innkeepers of Tyrol were busy
+gathering round them small bodies of trusted men, who, fired by a
+common desire to free their country, would, indeed, have suffered
+death rather than betray a single word of the secret arrangements of
+which they gradually became cognizant.
+
+When many of the preparations were completed Andreas Hofer commenced a
+correspondence with the Government in Vienna--which seemed so
+incapable and unwilling to assist the brave people it had seemingly
+abandoned in their struggle for freedom--in the person of the
+Archduke John. But although Hofer and his companions do not seem to
+have received very much definite or material encouragement from the
+Emperor or his advisers, they proceeded to Vienna, had several
+interviews with the Archduke, who appeared to be most favourably
+inclined to their scheme, and at these interviews the plan of campaign
+was definitely formulated. In the end Hofer returned to St. Leonard
+raised to the dignity of Commander-in-Chief of the national forces,
+and with full powers to do what he deemed best in the interests of the
+country.
+
+What he did not, however, secure was any support from Vienna in the
+form of arms or disciplined troops with which to leaven his "ragged
+coats." The courage of the men who entered upon a campaign against
+trained and tried soldiers armed with the most up-to-date weapons of
+those times can scarcely be estimated just as it most certainly cannot
+be over-praised. Owing to the rigorous search for arms which the
+Bavarians and French had instituted in almost every dwelling in the
+land, during the two or three years which intervened between the
+Treaty of Pressburg and the uprising of the peasants under Hofer, it
+was not possible to obtain and store new weapons in any quantity even
+if to do so had not been rendered difficult from the hosts of spies
+which overran Tyrol and seemed to lurk beneath almost every rock. Thus
+it was that out-of-date weapons--most of which had seen service in the
+war of a century before--billhooks, scythes, clubs and pitchforks,
+with whatever other arms their own ingenuity could devise or the
+village blacksmiths make, were pitted against the arms of some
+precision of the French and Bavarian troops. All that the peasant
+forces had to sustain them in the struggle against well-armed and
+disciplined veterans, superior as regards knowledge of warfare, was
+dauntless courage and a greater acquaintance with the country and of
+hill fighting.
+
+  [Illustration: THE SCHWARZHORN, S. TYROL]
+
+Upon Hofer's return with his companions from Vienna his Inn became
+the resort--more or less secretly--of all who were truly desirous of
+joining the popular movement and of freeing the country. Many, we are
+told, blamed him for trusting so implicitly all who came. But to
+objectors he made the same answer: "There are no traitors amongst my
+countrymen." That his confidence was not misplaced was abundantly
+shown by the fact that the secret of a conspiracy so vast that it may
+be said to have extended north, south, east, and west almost
+throughout Tyrol was unrevealed until the ever-memorable night of
+April 10, 1809, when the time fixed for the uprising arrived.
+
+[Sidenote: THE SUMMONS TO ARMS]
+
+On the evening of that day the peasants of the Passeyer and other
+valleys were called to arms by means of great fires which blazed out
+in the darkness of the clear April sky in long, ruddy banners of
+flame. Every hill crest in the vicinity of the Passeyer Valley had its
+signal fire, and these were answered by others on the mountains
+overshadowing the distant valleys. On the morrow Andreas Hofer found
+himself at daybreak at the head of nearly 5000 men who had one and all
+"confessed" and received the Sacrament ere taking up arms in their
+sacred cause of liberty.
+
+The Bavarians were at once hotly attacked and routed; and on the 12th,
+soon after dawn, upwards of 15,000 peasants had rallied to Hofer's
+standard and appeared before Innsbruck. With indomitable bravery they
+captured the bridge over the Inn, carried the heights by assault, and
+entering the town engaged in a fierce hand-to-hand conflict with the
+troops of General Bisson (who was in command of the joint French and
+Bavarian forces) and compelled him to surrender.
+
+In the deadly conflict of the streets, which ran red with blood, and
+into whose mire peasants, French and Bavarian soldiers and officers
+alike were trampled by the on-press of the Tyrolese, the ruder weapons
+of the latter, consisting of heavily butted fire-locks, broad knives
+used in husbandry, scythe blades attached to staves, and bludgeons
+cut from the thickets of the mountain side, were as deadly and even
+perhaps more so than the weapons of their enemies.
+
+Down the ancient streets, overshadowed by the everlasting snow-clad
+mountains; into the narrow byways and courtyards of the ancient town;
+along under the arcades of the old-time Herzog Freidrich Strasse,
+swept the Tyrolese, slaying as they went, until the invaders, driven
+from cranny to cranny, struck down in the open, compelled many of them
+to retreat along the Inn banks till they fell back into the swiftly
+flowing river, cried for quarter and surrendered.
+
+At Wilten, on the outskirts of Innsbruck itself, the fiery Speckbacher
+surrounded a Bavarian force of nearly 5000 men and took them prisoners
+of war. Thus after less than four days' fighting the Tyrolese had
+defeated the Bavarians, captured Innsbruck, and compelled the French
+commander to sue for quarter. And in their hands they held two
+generals, 132 officers, nearly 6000 men, three standards, five pieces
+of cannon, and 800 horses.
+
+By the end of April, Tyrol was again free of invaders with the sole
+exception that the Bavarians still held the castle of Kufstein.
+
+It was now that the Government in Vienna made one of the many serious
+mistakes which throughout its dealings marked the policy pursued in
+relation to Tyrol's struggle for freedom. General Chasteler, of whom
+it was said that "he always came too late and went too soon," was
+given the supreme command. And from that moment the advantages gained
+by Hofer, his brave companions-in-arms Speckbacher and Haspinger, and
+the peasant troops, were lost. In an almost incredibly short space of
+time Chasteler succeeded in losing all that had been won. At length
+his failure to hold what had been committed to his charge became so
+obvious that he retreated beyond the Brenner, leaving Andreas Hofer to
+do the best he could in defence of the portion of Tyrol not then
+reconquered by the enemy. In little more than a month from the time
+the French and Bavarians had been driven from Innsbruck they entered
+it again in triumph; and thus, on the 20th of May, Tyrol was once more
+to all intents and purposes conquered.
+
+The brave leader of the peasants, however, was determined to make one
+more supreme effort to free his country from the French and Bavarian
+yoke, and after summoning to his standard all who were capable of
+bearing arms, he had the satisfaction of once more driving the
+invaders from Innsbruck, and freeing for the second time the country
+he loved so well.
+
+[Sidenote: THE CRUSHING OF AUSTRIA]
+
+This triumph was not, however, destined to endure, for the Austrian
+forces under the Archduke Charles suffered a crushing defeat from
+Napoleon's troops at Wagram on July 5 and 6, 1809, and were forced to
+sue for peace or at least an armistice at Znaim, in which Tyrol was
+ignored. Amongst other things, by the subsequent Treaty, Austria ceded
+all her sea coast to France, as well as considerable territory to
+Saxony and Bavaria. But it was not until the French, Bavarian, and
+Saxon troops, straight from their victory at Wagram, to the number of
+some 50,000 men, entered Tyrol under the command of Marshal Lefèbre,
+and the Austrian army marched away out of Innsbruck in full retreat
+before the advancing enemy, that Hofer realized that he and his cause
+once more were abandoned by the Emperor and his advisers.
+
+Again Hofer came to the rescue; and, though in a measure a fugitive,
+in one of the little-known gorges, he managed to send forth from
+valley to valley his summons to the people to gather once more round
+his standard. That none should certainly know from these summonses
+where he lay concealed it was his wont to sign them "Andreas Hofer,
+from where I am "; whilst in return those communicating with him
+addressed theirs "To Andreas Hofer wherever he may be."
+
+He once more succeeded in inspiring his fellow-countrymen with his own
+undying, unyielding patriotism. Gathering his forces together in a
+gorge of the Mittewald he awaited the enemy's advance. We cannot do
+better than draw in part, for a description of what followed, from the
+stirring and vivid narrative of Albert Wolff. The vanguard of Marshal
+Lefèbre under the command of General Rouyer advanced to Sterzing; and
+then a column of Saxon troops to the number of about 4000 was thrown
+out beyond the village towards the gorge of Stilfes with orders to
+sweep away the insurgents. The idea that the untrained, ill-armed, and
+heterogeneous peasant forces could successfully resist the victors of
+Wagram appeared ridiculous to the Marshal and his officers, even if
+the Tyrolese were so foolhardy as to make the attempt. For some
+distance the Saxons advanced without either meeting with opposition or
+discovering an enemy; and then, when the whole column, had fully
+entered the defile from the mountain sides above them there resounded
+a sudden, terrifying cry of "To the attack, and no quarter."
+
+The cry was followed by a starting up of thousands of peasants, men,
+women, and children, the aged and the young, from behind the boulders
+on the hillside, from out the hollows. Down the steep mountain gorge
+crashed rocks, tree trunks, baulks of timber, earth and stones loosed
+from the restraining ropes by the Tyrolese, sweeping every obstruction
+before them, and falling upon the penned-up Saxons like an avalanche.
+Then, as the latter were vainly and fiercely struggling to extricate
+themselves from the debris and entanglements, the peasants rushed down
+the mountain side and hurled themselves upon their bewildered foes,
+shouting Hofer's battlecry, "For God and our Country."
+
+The enemy, utterly routed, turned and fled--what remained of
+them--towards Innsbruck, pursued by the Tyrolese led by Hofer,
+Speckbacher, and by the red-bearded Capuchin Haspinger, who held in
+one hand a crucifix, and in the other a bloodstained sword. Upon the
+Saxons the Tyrolese had no mercy, and hundreds were cut down as they
+fled along the road back to Innsbruck.
+
+[Sidenote: TRIUMPH OF HOFER]
+
+In little more than a week Hofer, by a vigorous following up of his
+victory in the Pass of Stilfes, had once more repulsed the invader,
+retaken the position on Berg Isel, and established his headquarters at
+Schönberg. These historic eight days of fighting and victory are known
+in Tyrolese history as "the great week."
+
+Innsbruck still, however, remained in the occupation of the enemy. To
+take the town was a task that might have given pause to any less brave
+and venturous a commander than Hofer. But he was not the man to hold
+back from a complete freeing of his beloved land from those who had
+invaded it. The plans were laid, the day fixed, and the advance
+ordered. On the morning of the attack, at five o'clock, Haspinger the
+militant Capuchin, a commanding figure upon whom the light of early
+dawn threw an almost uncanny refulgence, celebrated Mass before the
+assembled peasant host, who knelt in serried ranks, ragged, unkempt,
+but inspired to great deeds by memories of their past victories. After
+this solemn observance Haspinger once more became a captain of troops
+rather than a priest; and springing into his saddle he drew his sword
+and led on the left wing. Andreas Hofer himself was in the centre, and
+led the attack there, marching right on to Innsbruck.
+
+A contemporary account describes the hero as being "transfigured with
+a grandeur scarcely earthly, as, burning with patriotism, he urged his
+horse forward into battle." With his long beard, which had gained him
+the nickname of General Barbonne amongst the French, flowing in the
+wind, and his war cry of "Onward for your country and your Emperor!
+God will protect the right!" he led his forces so irresistibly that
+the troops of Marshal Lefèbre gave way and evacuated the town. On the
+following day, August 15th, which was the fête of the Blessed Virgin,
+Hofer, at the head of his victorious peasants, made his third entry as
+victor into the capital.
+
+Around him thronged the citizens, overcome with transports of joy,
+pressing him so closely that many were trampled beneath his horse's
+feet. In the enthusiasm, relief, and triumph of victory, Hofer was
+named with one voice dictator of Tyrol. But there was that strange
+analogy which links Hofer's attitude in the hour of triumph so closely
+(notwithstanding the differentiations of sex) with that of Joan of Arc
+and with Cromwell. Turning to the thronging multitude, which filled
+the narrow streets to overflowing, he cried out, with a gentle and
+almost pitiful glance at their upturned faces, "Do not shout in
+triumph; but offer thanks to God and pray." At the door of the church
+of the Franciscans he dismounted, and entered the building to return
+thanks to God, and remained there in prayer, unmoved by the cheers and
+"Hochs" of the great assembly of his troopers and fellow-countrymen
+outside, the sounds of which, as they came in through the constantly
+open doors of the church at that hour, bore no personal significance
+to him.
+
+On leaving the building he was waited upon by the chief citizens, who
+expressed their undying gratitude to their deliverer. But in response
+he said, "By my beard and St. George, God himself and not I has been
+the Saviour of our country."
+
+Andreas Hofer was destined to show that he was not only a warrior, but
+also an administrator, actuated by the most lofty desires for his
+country's good. In every act of his government could be detected the
+truly religious and patriotic character of the man. And during the
+short time that he reigned in the palace at Innsbruck, waiting
+anxiously for the approval and the help from his Emperor in Vienna,
+his conduct was marked by dignity, kindliness, and strength. But alas,
+his triumph was but brief. In less than two months after the retaking
+of Innsbruck, a fresh Bavarian army was entering Tyrol by way of the
+Unter-Innthal, and taking Speckbacher unawares the invaders gained a
+partial victory; and ere the disaster of October 10th could be
+retrieved, the Treaty of Vienna was agreed upon (October 14, 1809), by
+which the hand of one of the Habsburg princesses was promised to
+Napoleon as the price of peace.
+
+Tyrol by this new arrangement remained Bavarian, and the Archduke John
+himself called upon Andreas Hofer to lay down his arms. The latter did
+not obey. He persuaded himself that the Treaty of Vienna was without
+substance, or merely a trick to enable the invaders to make good their
+fresh hold upon the country, and he decided to continue the struggle.
+His followers, however, were discouraged by the callous way in which
+the Austrian Government had invariably left them to fight their own
+battles alone.
+
+Speckbacher, too, was deserted by all save a mere handful of men, and
+after remaining in hiding for some time and escaping capture by a
+miracle he succeeded in getting to Vienna. The Capuchin Haspinger
+afterwards joined him there, and was ultimately made curate of
+Hietzing, near Schönbrunn. It then became clear to Hofer that to
+continue the struggle for freedom just then was useless and, indeed,
+impossible; so he dispersed his own handful of faithful friends and
+supporters, telling them, "We shall meet again before long, for Tyrol
+will not perish."
+
+[Sidenote: HOFER AN OUTLAW]
+
+With these prophetic words, which were destined never to be realized
+so far as the meeting with his faithful comrades in arms was
+concerned, Hofer took farewell of his companions and fled a fugitive
+into the mountains of the Passeyer Valley.
+
+A price was put upon his head by the Bavarians and French, who
+recognized that their peaceful occupation of the conquered and ceded
+territory depended very greatly upon the capture and imprisonment or
+death of Hofer, who, as a popular hero, held so high a place in the
+hearts of his countrymen; and that for him to remain at large would
+constitute a perpetual menace.
+
+For a long while Hofer was able to elude the vigilance and discovery
+of his would-be captors. Technically, and owing to his abandonment by
+the Austrian Government, he was a rebel on account of his refusal to
+lay down his arms when commanded by the Archduke John to do so. In the
+end, as so often happens, there was one found base and treacherous
+enough to betray the fugitive for blood money. Guided by such an one,
+named Raffl, some Italian gendarmes, supported by a small detachment
+of French soldiers, made their way amid the intricate mountain paths
+to the chalet where--near St. Leonard, but far from other
+habitations--Andreas Hofer had for some months lived with his family,
+now broken down by despair for his country, anxiety and privation.
+
+He made no resistance, and was immediately taken to Mantua, escorted
+(such was his fame and the fear lest he should escape or be rescued)
+by four French officers, a battalion of infantry, and a detachment of
+cavalry. No effort appears to have been made by the Austrian
+authorities to save the hero to whom they owed so much, and Hofer was
+tried by court-martial under the presidency of General Bisson, and
+condemned to be shot.
+
+[Sidenote: THE DEATH OF HOFER]
+
+On the morning of February 20th, 1810, Andreas Hofer, who lay in
+prison but a short time after condemnation, was awakened early and led
+forth to die. At the gates were gathered a handful of his friends and
+companions in arms who had been captured and brought to Mantua, or had
+followed him there, and these knelt and entreated his blessing as he
+passed by them; this he gave calmly, remaining far less outwardly
+moved than they who received it.
+
+Then onwards to the Ceresa Gate, where the firing party halted. Hofer
+declined to have his eyes bandaged; neither would he kneel. But
+standing erect with unwavering courage he faced the file of soldiers,
+who with loaded muskets were to do him to death. Giving his last
+remaining piece of money to the corporal, he said to him, "Aim
+straight." Then he calmly gave the signal to fire.
+
+The muskets rang out, the bullets sped to their mark, and one of the
+noblest of patriots Europe had ever seen fell without a groan.
+
+At his own last request his body was buried at Mantua in the garden of
+his friend and father confessor, Manifesti. There it lay for fifteen
+years, until one night three officers of a Tyrol Chasseur regiment
+stealthily removed the remains, distressed that the hero of Tyrol
+should lie buried in foreign soil. The body was first taken to Bozen,
+and shortly afterwards to the Abbey of Wilten.
+
+When later a funeral worthy of his fame was accorded him, deputations
+came from all parts of Tyrol to pay their tribute to the greatest hero
+in its history; and amid a throng which was perhaps never before
+equalled in the streets of Innsbruck, the remains of Andreas Hofer
+were with great appropriateness borne to their last resting-place in
+the church of the Franciscans by twelve innkeepers. On the coffin lay
+his hat, sword, and decorations, and upon it were the armorial
+bearings of his family, which had been ennobled by the Emperor Francis
+I. in 1819. And thus, in a tomb cut from the marble of the Tyrol he
+loved, his body was laid to rest.
+
+In the same year that Hofer died, Tyrol was divided into three parts.
+Italy took the southern, Bavaria retained the northern, and Illyria
+the south-eastern or Pusterthal district. So it remained for three
+years, until 1813, when the power of Napoleon was once and for ever
+broken in eastern Europe, when he was defeated at the fierce battle of
+Leipsic on October 16-18, by the allied forces of Austria, Russia and
+Prussia. In this battle (known as "the battle of the nations") upwards
+of 400,000 men were engaged; a fifth of the number were slain. The
+allies were helped at a critical point of the fighting by the
+defection from Napoleon of a large force of Saxons.
+
+In the following year Tyrol was reunited to Austria with the addition
+of the Ziller and Brixen valleys and Windisch-Matrei. On May 27, 1816,
+the Emperor Francis I. (who in 1806 had resigned the title of Emperor
+of Germany, retaining only that of Austria) entered Innsbruck to
+receive the allegiance of the people. His reception was most
+enthusiastic, the people rejoicing unrestrainedly at once more gaining
+their freedom, and being reunited to the Austrian Empire.
+
+During the revolutionary excitement which pervaded Europe in 1848 the
+then Emperor of Austria, Ferdinand, and his Empress took refuge in
+Tyrol; and in the Austro-Italian War of 1848 the Tyrolese greatly
+distinguished themselves by their bravery and good marksmanship.
+
+There remains little more to add concerning Tyrol's history. On
+December 2, 1848, the Emperor Francis Joseph I. succeeded his uncle
+Ferdinand, who abdicated after ruling the country for thirteen years
+under the guidance of the powerful Prince Metternich whose reactionary
+policy provoked the Revolution of 1848.
+
+In 1859 the Austro-Italian provinces, with the exception of Venice,
+were absorbed by the Kingdom of Sardinia, previous to the formation of
+the Kingdom of Italy. In consequence Tyrol became the frontier of
+Austria to Italy, and of increased importance. In 1866, during the war
+between Austria and Prussia, the latter supported the Italians in a
+scheme to seize Southern Tyrol. The Tyrolese Jager and Schutzen forces
+took a prominent part in the campaign, and were engaged with great
+credit at the Battle of Custozza, where the Austrians with 70,000 men
+defeated the army of Victor Emmanuel, nearly twice as strong.
+Afterwards, when the Prussians defeated the Austrians at the Battle of
+Sadowa or Koniggratz on July 3, 1866, and a fresh attempt was made to
+seize South Tyrol, the inhabitants once more showed that their
+old-time courage and resource was not diminished.
+
+[Sidenote: TYROL OF TO-DAY]
+
+Since then Tyrol has been happily both peaceful and prosperous;
+advancing in the arts, and with a system of education which is bearing
+good fruit.
+
+What the future of this favoured and beautiful land may be, who can
+tell? Perhaps the secret is already locked up in the chancelleries of
+Eastern Europe.
+
+But the wise and beneficent ruler who now guards the destinies of the
+many-sided Austrian Empire is old, and when the end comes it does not
+need the keen observer to possess much gift of anticipating events to
+predict that Tyrol may be the scene of yet further struggles when
+Germany's desire for a seaport on the Mediterranean via the Adriatic
+has possibilities of accomplishment.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER III
+
+     SOME CHARACTERISTIC LEGENDS, CUSTOMS, AND SPORTS
+
+
+Just as is the case with Switzerland so in Tyrol the land itself, its
+history, even its geological evolution, seem in a measure reflected in
+the character and disposition of its people. One cannot indeed be any
+long time in Tyrol without becoming aware of and appreciating this
+fact. In the kindliness and hospitality of the Tyrolese one has
+reflected the characteristics of aloofness from the outer world, and
+dependence upon one another, which the position of their "land within
+the mountains" typifies--characteristics which have grown (and
+fortunately have not yet become, at least in the more remote parts, to
+any large extent tainted by considerations of self-interest) from the
+circumstances of former days, when individual hospitality had to serve
+for the absence of inns and commercial conveniences of the kind. So,
+too, in the rugged, patriotic, and sturdy natures of the people one
+can trace a parallel with the configuration of their beloved land; as
+one can also trace in their single-heartedness, piety, poetic traits,
+and simplicity, the frugal and laborious lives which the majority
+lead, unvexed in former times by the fret of small things, and through
+succeeding ages strengthened by the great needs of patriotism and
+self-sacrifice which the political crises outside their own borders
+often brought home to them by invasion and attempted subjection.
+
+[Sidenote: A DELIGHTFUL LAND]
+
+It is not at all wonderful, then, that a people dwelling in a land of
+such surpassing beauty, where flower-bedecked upper pastures melt away
+into rocky peaks, glaciers, and snow-clad heights; where the music of
+tinkling brooks trickling down the mountain side and the roar of
+greater torrents are ever with them; with the eternal silence of great
+heights surrounding them and, as it were, shutting them in from the
+outer world, should be gifted with an appreciation of romantic beauty,
+legend, and poetry beyond the common run of mortals.
+
+As we have already shown, much history and many stirring events have
+been enacted within the mountain-girdled borders of Tyrol. And,
+nowadays, when the country is coming slowly but surely to her own as a
+delightful holiday ground for weary dwellers in Western cities, many
+of her valleys bring to the minds of those who know something of the
+country's story dramatic and romantic memories of the stirring events
+and legends which have through past ages become associated with their
+names.
+
+Scarcely a valley, village, or townlet, whether set high or low in
+this enticing land, but has its own legend or story. And in almost all
+of the less travelled corners one finds strange, and to most
+travellers incomprehensible, dialects still lingering amongst the
+peasantry, notwithstanding the fact that gradually the Germanization
+of even the southern portion of Tyrol is being brought about. In one
+or other of these dialects which so survive, scholars and philologists
+of former times have thought the key to the ancient language of
+Etruria might be discovered; and in more modern days there has been
+the same hope expressed, but as yet it is unfulfilled. Müller,[7] for
+one, thought that in some secluded valley of the Tyrol or Grisons the
+key to the riddle in the form of "a remnant of the old Rhætian dialect
+might be discovered." Müller's hope has since then in a measure been
+realized through the efforts and researches of Steub, who, whilst
+travelling in Tyrol in Alpine districts in 1842, found some
+fragmentary remains of a dialect approaching very nearly Etruscan,
+though not sufficiently full to form any very important or extended
+key to the tongue. His book[8] contains the results of the inquiries,
+tests, and deductions which he was at first led to undertake by the
+strange names of the towns and villages which he came across in his
+travels. Then he collected these, and we are told set to work "testing
+them with Celtic, but discovering no analogy he tried other tests, and
+with the Etruscan met with some considerable success," which was
+chiefly valuable, however, as confirming the theory and ancient
+traditions of a Rhæto-Etruria. Many of his conclusions, however, have
+never been accepted by philologists either of his own day or of later
+times; and some of the word examples he gives as having analogies are
+quite incomprehensible to the ordinary student.
+
+[Sidenote: THE LANGUAGE]
+
+To all intents and purposes German and Italian are the languages
+spoken throughout Tyrol, a knowledge of which will be sufficient for
+all ordinary purposes of travel. The former prevailing in the
+Vorarlberg and North Tyrol; the latter in South Tyrol and Wälsch
+Tyrol, though German is found in both of these districts, and in South
+Tyrol very considerably.
+
+In the Vorarlberg, however, one comes across numerous words and
+expressions which are undoubtedly of Italian origin, and are remaining
+evidences of the periods when the Venetian Republic ruled over a
+district now a part of Tyrol. The Italian word _gútto_, a can or
+feeding-bottle, for example, has its counterpart in _guttera_; whilst
+from _fazzolétto_, a handkerchief, one has _fazanedle_; and from
+_gaudio_, joy, we have _gaude_; and from _cappéllo_, a hat, has
+probably come _schapel_.
+
+  [Illustration: A VIEW OF THE TYROL ALPS]
+
+A very considerable number of words of French origin or of marked
+similarity to French words are found in parts of the Vorarlberg.
+_Gespousa_, a bride, has a distinct philological affinity to
+_épouse_; and _au_, water, pronounced very similarly, can be traced to
+_eau_, and is found common to both North Tyrol and the Vorarlberg.
+_Shesa_, a trap or gig, bears a marked resemblance to the French
+_chaise_.
+
+Even England appears to have contributed a considerable number of
+words to the vocabulary of certain districts of Tyrol, though perhaps
+they are, more strictly speaking, words similarly derived from German
+or Norman French which have become common to both. In _gulla_, a
+gulley; _gompa_, to jump; _datti_, daddy; _witsch_, witch; and many
+others this is traceable. It will be gathered from these few examples
+that the language and dialects of Tyrol are composite of several
+tongues, as is almost always the case in countries which have seen
+many vicissitudes of occupation and development.
+
+[Sidenote: FOLK TALES]
+
+In Tyrol, which has experienced these and possesses such a large share
+of romantic beauty, and even nowadays some "solitary places," there
+need be little wonder that legends, superstitions, and myths are found
+nearly everywhere. Almost every village has its own, whose origin has
+been lost in the mists of antiquity, and whose date can only be traced
+uncertainly by its analogy to some other similar, more widely known,
+and more easily dated legend, tale, or superstition. Many of them
+enshrine actual events recorded and re-recorded with poetic license
+and varying accuracy, so that at last what was originally founded upon
+fact has in process of time become overlaid with much poetic imagery
+and fiction. To most of these tales and accounts of events each teller
+added something of himself suggested by his knowledge, imagination, or
+art; and thus ultimately what had once been facts became legends
+common to all throughout the length and breadth of the land till some
+one set them down in permanent form by writing or printing. Then the
+variations in a measure ceased.
+
+Tyrol is full of these legendary tales, superstitions, and myths, to
+which, indeed, the geological situation of the land and the simple
+habits of the people conduce. When we remember that in ancient times
+it was the universal custom to ascribe all manifestations of Nature's
+laws which could not be easily traced and understood to the
+supernatural, it is little wonder that the simple, unsophisticated,
+and uneducated Tyrolese should have so attributed many of the wonders
+amid which they lived. One very noticeable feature of the Tyrolese
+character is demonstrated by the fact that, notwithstanding the
+centuries of evolution during which superstition played so important a
+part in the life of the people, and the existence of an unreflecting
+belief in the supernatural, their many virtues, especially those of
+patriotism, industry, frugality of living, morality, hospitality, and
+religion, have not, as with some other nations, become impaired.
+
+Amongst the many legends of a startling and supernatural character
+which are found throughout Tyrol, is one connected with the pretty
+little village of Taur in the Innthal. It has to do with a hermit who
+lived in the seventeenth century in a cell overlooking the Wildbach.
+He is often said by the countryfolk to have been St. Romedius himself,
+though this, of course, could not be the case. One night, whilst the
+holy man was engaged in his usual meditation and prayer, a tapping was
+heard against the little window of his retreat. Upon opening the door,
+what was his amazement to see, not the benighted traveller he expected
+to find craving his hospitality and shelter, but the spirit of his
+friend the priest of Taur who had recently died. The latter entreated
+the holy man to have compassion upon him, saying, "Have pity upon me,
+Father, for my sufferings are terrible. Once when three Masses had
+been ordered and the fees paid I forgot to say them, and now for this
+sin I am being punished more than I can bear."
+
+Then the legend goes on to say that he laid his hand upon the
+low-pitched roof of the little porch outside the hermit's cell, and
+the holy man afterwards found that the wood was charred and the
+impression of the tortured priest's hand was left indelibly in the
+wood. The poor suppliant begged his old friend the hermit to say the
+Masses, and to pray and fast for him. This the holy man promised
+faithfully to do; and keeping his promise, a year and a day afterwards
+the spirit once more rapped upon the casement and told him that he was
+now free of purgatory. In the chapel there hung at least a few years
+ago, and we believe now hangs, the tile with the mark of the priest's
+hand branded into it, beneath which is written an account of the
+miracle, with the date February, 1660.
+
+In Wälsch Tyrol, especially, there are many folk-lore tales having a
+distinctly Biblical origin or suggestion. Possibly they are oral
+versions of Bible incidents handed down from generation to generation
+in the early years of Christianity and during the Middle Ages, until
+they have gradually in process of time and varied repetition lost
+their strictly Biblical character. One of the most usually met with
+(it is told by most Wälsch Tyrol mothers to their children, and is a
+favourite on account of its dramatic end, and because virtue triumphs)
+bears a very strong resemblance to the story of Joseph and his
+Brethren. The story runs thus: "Once long ago there lived a king who
+had three sons. Two were quite grown up, but the third was a child,
+and was his father's joy and favourite. One day the king, who had been
+out upon a hunting expedition, returned home from the chase of the
+bear and chamois fatigued, and dispirited because of the loss of a
+favourite feather[9] which he was accustomed to wear in his cap. There
+was a hue and cry raised, but no one could find the lost article. At
+length little (Joseph) came to his father and urged him to grieve no
+more but to refresh himself and then rest, "for," said the child,
+"either I myself or one of my brothers will find the feather."
+
+Then the king, pleased with the child, and doubtless hopeful that he
+would be the one to find the missing plume, said, "To whomsoever finds
+the feather will I leave my kingdom."
+
+The three brothers set out on their search, and after much trouble the
+youngest suddenly espied the object for which they were looking. But
+the two elder men, consumed by jealousy at the thought of Joseph's
+inheriting the kingdom, led him away into a wood and killed him, and,
+taking the feather to their father the king, told him that they both
+found it and thus jointly claimed the reward. Regarding the missing
+(Joseph) they said that whilst searching for the feather they missed
+him, and suddenly looked up to see him being borne away by a bear into
+the recesses of the woods, and as they were unarmed it was impossible
+for them to attempt to rescue him. The king was consumed by grief;
+search was made, but the body was not discovered; and it was not until
+the proverbial year and a day afterwards that a shepherd boy came
+across (Joseph's) bones, and, taking one of them, fashioned it into a
+primitive flute or shepherd's pipe. The wonderful part of the story is
+still to come. No sooner had the shepherd commenced to play upon the
+pipe than it told, in the voice of the poor child victim of jealousy,
+the whole story. The shepherd took the pipe to the king and played
+upon it before him. The king listened, and, accepting the miraculous
+tale it told, ordered his two sons, who were present and struck with
+amazement and fear, to be instantly put to death.
+
+There are scores of other stories of a similar character told during
+the winter evenings around the fire in Tyrolese huts and houses. Some
+have a family likeness to tales of our own land, such as Cinderella,
+Puss in Boots, Jack and the Beanstalk (only the giant is often
+replaced by an immense toad who guards fabulous wealth, that is only
+to be obtained by killing the toad in single combat, which feat is, of
+course, performed by the poor boy who wishes to marry the Princess),
+Red Riding Hood, etc. An account of these, however, rightly belongs to
+a volume of comparative folk-lore, and for detailed description we
+have no space in the present one.
+
+[Sidenote: SOME QUAINT CUSTOMS]
+
+Of the many quaint customs which still prevail in different parts of
+Tyrol, those relating to Christmas and to All Souls are amongst the
+most tender and picturesque. In North Tyrol, more especially perhaps
+in the district of the Unter-Innthal, Christmas, which is called
+Christnacht and Weihnacht, is celebrated by the gift of _Klaubabrod_,
+a strange cake-like compound made of dough, almonds, slices of pears,
+and other preserved fruits and nuts, which, at least with the
+generality of foreigners, must, we think from personal experience, be
+"an acquired taste." The Zillerthal maidens are specially
+well-instructed in the making of _Klaubabrod_, and the one prepared
+for the family consumption, if the maker be engaged, must have the
+first slice cut out of it by her betrothed, who then kisses her and at
+the same time gives her some little present as a mark of his
+affection. In former days it was the custom of the Bishops of Brixen
+to make presents of fish to members of their household and to all in
+their employ. The fish came from Lake Garda, and was allowed by custom
+to pass through the dominions of the reigning Count of Tyrol and the
+Prince Bishop of Trent exempt from the toll which would otherwise have
+been levied.
+
+In Wälsch Tyrol there is a curious Christmas custom still to be met
+with which consists of the arrangement, by the father of the family,
+of a number of heaps of flour upon a table or shelf. In these are
+hidden various little presents, and when the children and other
+members of the household have been admitted they take their heap
+according to the drawing of lots, or the result of some contest or
+competition.
+
+The belief that animals have the gift of speech, which has during past
+ages been prevalent throughout Christendom, still prevails in some
+parts of the more remote districts and valleys of Tyrol; and strange
+stories are told of things said by beasts and over-heard by human
+beings which have come true, so that animals evidently are accredited
+also with the gift of prophecy.
+
+At Epiphany, in many parts of Tyrol, performances very similar in
+character to the English old-time "mummers" are given. Generally three
+of the village boys dressed up to represent kings, one having his face
+blacked, go from house to house singing. Sometimes a Herod will appear
+at the window of the house and reply to their songs in rhyming
+couplets. After which the singers stand in turn and sing, and end with
+a chorus which contains broad hints that they would not refuse some
+refreshment were it offered them! They seldom or never fail to receive
+this, as usually some provision has been made by the hospitable
+village folk for the purpose.
+
+The blessing of cattle on the Eve of Epiphany was at one time an
+almost universal practice with the Tyrolese. This, however, has been
+largely discontinued, although still extant in some hamlets of the
+remote valleys.
+
+As showing the almost universal prevalence of certain ideas underlying
+customs, though often varying in details, one may quote the observance
+of All Souls in Wälsch Tyrol, which bears a marked resemblance to the
+beautiful and even more pathetic ceremonials connected with the Feast
+of Bon Matsuri in far-off Japan. In parts of Wälsch Tyrol, although
+the graves of the departed are not decorated nowadays, as is so much
+the practice in Germany, the parish priests gather their parishioners
+together in the churchyards and recite the Rosary whilst kneeling
+amidst the graves. In many parts loaves, called _cuzza_, are given to
+the poor with small doles of money, and sometimes bean soup. In
+former times, however, these doles, which are for the refreshment of
+the souls of the departed, were actually laid upon the graves
+themselves, apparently in the belief that the souls would come forth
+and partake of the food so lovingly provided. Pitchers, cups, and
+other vessels containing fresh water were also placed so that the
+souls might slake their purgatorial thirst. It is in this latter and
+ancient, and not in the less symbolic modern observance that the
+analogy to the Bon Matsuri of Japan is so distinctly traceable.
+
+[Sidenote: MARRIAGE IN TYROL]
+
+Of the curious customs which once prevailed very widely, and are even
+now to be found in the more remote districts, those relating to
+marriage are amongst the most quaint. The month of May is, strangely
+enough, unpopular; with us the opposite appears to be the case. The
+favourite day is a Thursday. In fact, one writer ventures to say,
+"throughout Tyrol a Thursday is chosen." Monday, however, is the
+favourite in one of the smaller valleys of the Windisch-Matrei
+district.
+
+On the night before the wedding there is usually a great dance given,
+and in towns often a hall is hired for the purpose, where the
+contracting parties are well known, in a good position, and have a
+large circle of friends and acquaintances; and in villages where the
+same circumstances occur an elaborately decorated barn is often used
+for the merry-making.
+
+From the time the wedding is announced or the "banns" published the
+betrothed maiden is known as the "Pulpit Bride" or _Kansel-Braut_.
+These village wedding festivities are often rendered picturesque and
+even mediæval in effect, as the peasants frequently wear the costumes
+of former times, and the barn is lighted by pine torches or equally
+primitive methods. The dancing is kept up till early morning, in fact
+often until sunrise; and not till then do the guests disperse, some of
+the more favoured going on to the bride's house for a substantial
+breakfast, or, as it is called, _Morgensuppe_. Whilst this is in
+progress the bride is usually attired by her girl friends (quite a
+number of them frequently sharing in this interesting and even
+exciting ceremony), and those who have not come in to breakfast may
+continue the dancing. One of the special adornments worn by brides is
+a knot of long ribbons or scarlet leather worked with gold thread,
+whilst blue bands, worn round the arm, and the hat ribbons are of the
+same colour. These were anciently thought, and are indeed still so, to
+have special powers to preserve the wearer from goitre and other
+complaints.
+
+The bride's procession, which forms usually at about ten or eleven in
+the morning, is headed by musicians. But before starting the guests
+assemble round the table in the living room and drink the good health
+of the happy couple out of a large bowl from which the latter
+themselves have drunk first. The nearest relatives and friends of the
+bride usually form a kind of guard of honour, being known as "train
+bearers," although we fancy a "train" is seldom worn by a peasant, or
+by one of the lower middle class. These "train bearers" surround the
+bride, and, except in inclement weather, walk with their hats in their
+hand, and sometimes bear garlands of flowers. In some districts it is
+the custom for the priest to accompany the bride to church, not as
+with us to await her arrival there, walking on one side of her whilst
+the parents walk on the other. Orange blossom is seldom worn, save by
+the rich; peasant girls wearing as a substitute a spray or wreath of
+Rosemary, which it is also a common practice for them to do in Italy
+and Spain. The plant is considered emblematic of the purity of the
+Virgin, and for that reason highly valued.
+
+[Sidenote: COSTUMES]
+
+Very frequently a Tyrolese bride wears no special bridal dress, but
+her holiday or _fête_ dress, which has perhaps been retrimmed or
+additionally embellished for the occasion. This was the case at a
+wedding at which we were present in the Unter-Innthal, where the
+bridesmaids also wore their picturesque festal attire, with
+broad-brimmed velvet hats, elaborately embroidered bolero-shaped
+bodices, snowy linen sleeves, short velvet skirts, and handsome
+aprons. Their shoes were mostly of black leather, some of those worn
+by the well-to-do girls being adorned by huge silver buckles.
+
+On this occasion the bridegroom was scarcely less gay in attire than
+the bride. Clad in short black velvet knee-breeches, and wearing a
+green velvet double-fronted waistcoat, a black jacket, thick brown
+knitted woollen hose, a crown or head ornament of silver filigree
+work, and a massive silver belt with heavy bosses, he was not only a
+conspicuous, but also an almost theatrical figure of the procession. A
+priest also accompanied him, followed by the village innkeeper, who is
+not seldom the richest man of the community, owner of the largest
+amount of land, and the holder of a position somewhat analogous to
+that of a mayor. It is generally agreed that the Tyrolese village
+innkeeper is a man of superior calibre to his English counterpart.
+Usually he is a man of upright character, and superior intelligence to
+the average villager; and carrying on, as he frequently does, several
+other businesses besides that of innkeeper, he is less interested than
+in some other countries in the excessive consumption of drink.
+
+At many weddings singers from neighbouring villages and hamlets will
+come into the bride's native place to assist with the singing and
+music which form a prominent feature of the ceremony. Lighted tapers
+are sometimes carried by the bridal party in church; and candles that
+will not burn well are always avoided and thrown aside by the younger
+and unmarried members of the company on account of the belief
+prevailing that to hold such is a sure sign that the bearers will not
+be married within the year. At the conclusion of the ceremony a cup of
+spiced wine mixed with water is sometimes handed round by the priest
+after he has blessed it, out of which the guests all drink to the
+health of the bride and bridegroom to be. In the old name given to
+this _Johannis segen_ (literally John's blessing) some authorities are
+inclined to trace a symbolism having its origin in the miracle
+performed at the wedding feast in Cana of Galilee.
+
+After the ceremony has been performed the wedding-party leaves the
+church, and, as is the case on similar occasions in Brittany and other
+countries, dancing almost immediately commences. It is sometimes,
+indeed, started almost at the church door, and thus the wedding-party
+proceeds to the village inn accompanied by musicians. In former times
+it was the almost universal custom in several valleys of Tyrol to
+proceed in turn to every inn within a radius of some miles after
+refreshments had been partaken of at the first. A very fatiguing
+custom one would imagine. Refreshments, we were told, generally marked
+each visit, and yet the real business of the day, the wedding feast,
+was still to come!
+
+In ancient times--the custom has now fallen into disuse so far as we
+have been able to discover--it was also the practice to slaughter a
+fatted calf, which had been reserved for that particular purpose.
+Every possible joint and portion of the animal was served up in turn
+even to the head and feet.
+
+[Sidenote: A TYROLESE WEDDING]
+
+At the end of a feast which even nowadays lasts hours, and formerly,
+so one old writer says, "consumed much time so that the whole day was
+frequently given over to feasting till few who sat down to the board
+were capable of much exertion," the best man or some prominent
+groomsman rises and asks the guests whether they are satisfied with
+the fare provided. It is needless to say that such a question is
+invariably received with rounds of appreciative applause. Then, in
+former times more frequently than nowadays, the speaker proceeded to
+preach a little sermonette which generally ran something in the
+following style, and was little varied from occasion to occasion, or
+even from one generation to another. "The good gifts of which we have
+partaken are from the hand of God. Therefore should thanks be given to
+Him. And yet more should this be done for His mercy in making us in
+His image and reasonable beings, and not as the wild beasts of the
+field or crawling things, or unbelievers. We have but to thank Him and
+turn ourselves to Him in the spirit of humbleness and gratitude, and
+He will abide and go with us as with those at the marriage feast in
+Cana of Galilee."
+
+Other duties in life and aspirations were usually touched upon, and
+coming from one of themselves we can well believe the speech was
+listened to with additional attention by a race of people
+distinguished for simple piety and homely religion. The exhortation
+was usually followed by a loud saying of a Paternoster and a "Hail
+Mary" by all present.
+
+Often this address is followed by other refreshments of a lighter kind
+than those of the feast proper. Some are of special design, and in
+their shapes and decorations have symbolic meaning, as is sometimes
+the case of wedding dishes and decorations in other countries. After
+this the guests bring forth the gifts they have for the young couple.
+Coming from a naturally generous and warm-hearted people these are
+often not only useful but valuable, and prove a great help to the
+newly established housekeepers.
+
+Then, when the most exigent appetites have been more than satisfied,
+the musicians, who have played at intervals throughout the
+proceedings, strike up dance tunes, and the younger--and often older,
+too--members of the party indulge in their favourite indoor
+pastime--dancing.
+
+Tyrolese peasant dances are many of them exceedingly picturesque and
+quaint, if somewhat boisterous and lively in their performance. Both
+the men and the girls in one or two of them beat time not only with
+their feet but also by means of resounding thwacks on their thighs and
+hips. And whilst the young men, clad in gay waistcoats, black velvet
+or leather knee-breeches and high-crowned hats often of a delightful
+shade of green felt, are getting more energetic, their partner's
+short, full skirts during their top-like revolutions often ascend
+waistward until the extent of shapely and sturdy limbs displayed
+almost rivals that of a conventional ballet girl. Other dances of the
+waltz, _dreher_, and _allemande_ type are more graceful, and less
+"romping" in character. Dancing is carried on far into the night, and
+it is a notable circumstance that although there is a good deal of
+eating there is not often excessive drinking on these occasions, and
+cases of actual drunkenness are very few and far between.
+
+Several of the valleys--the Zillerthal, Iselthal, and Grödenerthal in
+particular--have their own peculiar wedding customs. And in several,
+as in parts of Germany, the old custom of stealing one of the garters
+of the bride whilst she is seated at the wedding feast for the purpose
+of cutting it up into mascots or souvenirs still obtains.
+
+[Sidenote: TYROLESE SPORTS]
+
+A love of sport of all kinds seems inherent to the Tyrolese nature;
+and this in conjunction with the pure air and bracing climate in which
+the people live, the strenuous struggle for existence with the forces
+of Nature which is always going on amidst the higher valleys, not only
+serves to keep the Tyrolese a hardy and vigorous race, but has much to
+do with the special qualities of industry, religiousness, morality,
+frugality, and straight-forwardness for which they have long been
+distinguished.
+
+Their athletic festivals parallel those of Westmorland, Cumberland,
+and the Highland gatherings of our own land and the sports are to a
+considerable extent similar in character. The most popular, however,
+are undoubtedly shooting at a mark, or _Scheibenschiessen_ as they are
+called, and wrestling.
+
+The Tyrolese gun, usually a short-barrelled rifle, known as _stutz_,
+has played an important part not only in the history of the nation,
+but also in the domestic life of the people. In many of the more
+remote valleys, in the past at least, it has deserved its name of the
+bread-winner, for upon the game shot with it many a household has
+largely subsisted; whilst from the skins of the deer, chamois and
+other animals killed, articles of clothing are made. To the constant
+use of the gun in all its evolutionary stages, from the flint-lock
+musket down to the more modern rifle of to-day, the Tyrolese owe their
+renown as being amongst the finest marksmen in Europe, a
+characteristic which has counted so tremendously in their various
+struggles with the invaders of their country.
+
+Wrestling is popular throughout the Tyrolese valleys, but nowhere more
+so than in the picturesque and romantic Zillerthal. The champion
+wrestler of a village, as used to be the village "bruiser" with us, is
+a person of importance who would not barter the distinction for love
+nor money. The wrestlers are divided into three kinds, the "Roblar,"
+"Mairraffer," and "Haggler," who follow the rules of different schools
+of wrestling. In former times this love of the sport, or perhaps one
+should say supremacy in it, frequently led to scenes of crime and
+bloodshed. Often in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries noted
+robbers and freebooters were those who had acquired great physical
+powers as wrestlers, and in consequence took to brigandage as a means
+of livelihood. Indeed, there are stories told of fair maidens in past
+ages having been carried off from their betrothed by force, when the
+rejected suitor (or perhaps the unknown rival who had set his heart on
+a particular girl) had killed his rival in a wrestling bout. To prove
+murderous intent under such circumstances was not only extremely
+difficult but also somewhat against the "sporting" instinct of the
+race, and the primeval idea that the woman should fall to the
+strongest.
+
+Bowling and the game of skittles are also favourite pastimes, and to
+the latter especially several romantic stories attach. Indeed, even at
+the present day one can find traces of the belief that the game is
+also popular with the elves, gnomes, goblins, and "little folk" who
+are supposed to dwell in or haunt certain mountains, woods, and
+streams, only these supernatural folk mostly play with gold and silver
+balls and skulls in the legends and folk tales one hears around the
+firesides in Tyrolese chalets.
+
+[Sidenote: A GHOSTLY LEGEND]
+
+There is a strange story in connection with this game and the spirit
+players attached to the now ruined and once strong and famous castle
+of Starkenberg, which was destroyed by Frederick with the Empty Purse
+in the fifteenth century.
+
+Once, so the story goes, a pedlar was overtaken by darkness upon the
+mountain side, and losing his way, he came to the ancient _schloss_,
+in which he decided to take shelter for the night. He lay down on the
+grassy floor of the ruined hall, and placing his pack beneath his head
+went off to sleep. He slept for some hours and then was awakened by
+the clock of a neighbouring village striking midnight. As the last
+stroke reverberated amongst the rocks of the hillside he was
+astonished to see twelve spectral figures clad in complete armour file
+into the hall, and set to work to play a game of bowls, using skulls
+in place of balls.
+
+  [Illustration: THE ORTLER FROM THE MALSER HEIDE]
+
+Now it happened that the pedlar was not only a fine wrestler and a man
+of great physical strength and courage (otherwise he would scarcely
+perhaps have chosen a haunted ruin in which to pass the night), but
+was the champion bowler of his native village. So he offered to pit
+his skill against that of the spectral knights. His challenge was
+accepted, and in the end he beat them all, and to his astonishment,
+instead of disgust being shown at his victory, his prowess was hailed
+with shouts of joy, and one of the spirits speaking to him said that
+now they were released from purgatory, and then they all vanished.
+Much mystified, the pedlar turned to see where they had disappeared
+to, when his eyes were greeted by the sight of ten more men in armour,
+who entered the hall by separate doors. After having carefully locked
+the latter they all brought the keys to the pedlar, and entreated him
+to try and discover the right one for each door. Nothing abashed he
+undertook the task which was a difficult one owing to the fact that
+each key, door, and ghostly visitant were exactly alike. He managed,
+however, to accomplish his task successfully, and was overwhelmed by
+the thanks of the spirits, who told him, as had their bowl-playing
+counterparts, that he had by this feat released them from torment.
+
+As was to be quite expected, it was now the devil's turn to appear
+upon the scene, which he immediately did, roundly upbraiding the
+pedlar for having thus robbed him of some of his victims, and
+declaring that he (the devil) would now inevitably manage to gain the
+pedlar's soul instead. The latter was not to be so easily disposed of,
+however, and he offered to stake his soul upon a game of bowls to be
+played between himself and the Evil One. Needless to say that the
+latter was beaten, and when dawn came at length he fled away with a
+horrible rushing of his bat-like wings, and his hot sulphurous breath
+tainting the air, so that the grass was withered in places.
+
+The pedlar was not likely to keep such an interesting experience to
+himself, and so when in due course he came to the village, towards
+which he was making his way when overtaken by nightfall, he told the
+tale. The villagers amazed went to the ruined castle, and lo and
+behold there was the scorched grass as the pedlar had declared.
+
+It would be easy to quote other equally quaint and romantic stories
+which are told in connection with the sports and pastimes of Tyrol,
+but that of the pedlar and the ghostly knights or men-at-arms must
+suffice. It will, at all events, serve to demonstrate how inextricably
+interwoven are the threads of legendary lore and romance, even with
+the commonplace daily life and amusements of this interesting people.
+
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[7] In "Etrusker," Einl. 3, 10 _et seq._
+
+[8] "Über die Urbewohner Rätiens und ihren Zusammenhang mit den
+Etruskern."
+
+[9] Or ornament.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IV
+
+     INNSBRUCK, ITS HISTORY, PEOPLE AND TREASURES
+
+
+The approach to Innsbruck, whether one come to it by railway or by
+road from the west, north, east or south, is picturesque and even
+wonderfully beautiful. Most English and American travellers, however,
+we imagine, come to the old-time capital of Tyrol via Zurich and the
+Arlberg railway, with its marvellous tunnel all but six and a half
+miles in length, above which tower snow-clad peaks and glaciers. This
+route provides a wonder-world of delight, a succession of deep gorges
+lying at the foot of towering mountains covered on their summits with
+a mantle of spotless and eternal snow. At one moment the train
+traverses a steep gradient climbing slowly along the hillside as
+though the line were laid upon a shelf of rock from which nothing but
+a miracle can keep it from tumbling into the foaming torrent below;
+the next plunging into the darkness of one of the many tunnels, to
+emerge a moment or two later into a blaze of light and vistas of still
+greater beauty. The Arlberg railway is not alone an engineering
+triumph; it is also an artistic one. Few lines in Europe present
+greater charm or variety of scenery in so comparatively short a
+distance. To enter Tyrol by it is to see the country as it is, largely
+unaltered from the days when Napoleon's armies entered it also from
+the Swiss frontier with the same objective, Innsbruck.
+
+Soon after leaving Feldkirch the valley commences to contract as the
+line climbs upwards from Bludenz and passes through the beautiful
+Kloster Thal; and at Langen one suddenly comes into the region of
+Alpine pastures, and from the valley below one can hear the musical
+tinkle of cow-bells, and discover on the hill-slopes picturesque
+groups of peasants minding their flocks. Then comes the ascent through
+the famous Arlberg tunnel, which is 26 feet in width and 23 feet in
+height, with its six and a half miles of gloom succeeded by
+magnificent scenery as St. Anton is passed, and the line proceeds
+through the narrow Stanzer valley, between towering mountains, many of
+whose peaks are snow-covered. Soon it crosses the wonderful Trisanna
+Viaduct which, in one arch of nearly 150 yards in length, spans the
+gorge of the Patznaum valley, at the bottom of which, nearly 200 feet
+below the line, rushes the glacial stream, and thence past the ancient
+Castle of Wiesberg onwards to Landeck, which is set in a wide valley
+with its commanding castle.
+
+From Landeck by taking a carriage one can reach Innsbruck in a
+leisurely way along the Finstermunz high-road via Sulden and Trafoi,
+and thence along the Stilfserjoch, the highest carriage road in
+Europe, which climbs to the height of 9055 feet above sea level. This
+was constructed between the years 1820-25 by the Austrian Government,
+and traverses a wonderful variety of exquisite scenery, from the
+region of the eternal snow on the Ortler and Monte Cristallo to the
+vine-clad slopes of the Val Tellina. The most impressive scenery is,
+however, found on the Tyrol side of the pass.
+
+From Landeck the line passes many another picturesque village;
+castles, whose history would fill volumes, seem to stand stark and
+stern almost on every mountain spur, some now mere ruins, others
+wonderful survivals of a past age, sometimes environed by pine-clad
+slopes, at others half-encircled by rushing torrents washing the bases
+of the rocky promontories upon which they stand, whilst above one
+towers on either hand the illimitable glaciers and snow slopes of the
+Eastern Alps. Thus through ever interesting and beautiful scenery one
+at last approaches Innsbruck.
+
+  [Illustration: THE TRISANNA VIADUCT AND CASTLE WIESBERG]
+
+  [Illustration: A PEEP OF THE ZILLERTHAL]
+
+[Sidenote: INNSBRUCK]
+
+Innsbruck is not only the capital of Tyrol, a town of upwards of
+50,000 inhabitants, renowned historically and climaterically, but it
+is also the junction of two important lines of railway by means of
+which one can get eastward to Vienna and the East, and southward into
+Italy.
+
+It has been said that of all Tyrolese towns Innsbruck is the least
+national. Such a statement, although tinctured with truth, needs some
+qualification. In the season it certainly puts on a cosmopolitan air,
+and one meets numbers of English, Austrians, Germans, French,
+Americans, Italians, and Anglo-Indians in its streets; and games and
+entertainments make up a social round of considerable gaiety. But the
+town nevertheless retains its native charm, bred of historic memories,
+ancient buildings, and the hospitality of its people.
+
+To the northward, sheltering it from the cold winds from off the
+Bavarian plains, stands the bulwark of the eternal heights which
+literally wall in Tyrol. There rise the magnificent groups of
+limestone mountains towering above the fertile Inn Valley, the
+Frauhitt and Martinswand with their romantic traditions and memories,
+the Seegrubenspitzen, and Rumerjoch and Brandjoch. In fine weather
+they appear but a stone's throw from the bottom of the
+Maria-Theresien-Strasse, or from the Ferdinands Allée which runs along
+the south bank of the Inn, with its maples and poplars graceful and
+shady.
+
+Situated amid so much beauty of scenery, favoured by an equable
+climate and much sunshine, it is little wonder that the town has
+become a popular resort, more especially during the winter months. The
+valley is at its broadest where the city stands, allowing a wide
+prospect and charming views from the slopes of St. Nicolaus and
+Mariahilf across the river to the Berg Isel, and the wooded sides of
+the Mittelgebirge, with here and there a tiny village with outstanding
+spire perched high on the mountain side, or set amid the plain. The
+valley lies east and west of Innsbruck with the river flowing eastward
+like a silver ribbon, amid cultivated fields of fertile alluvial soil,
+threading its way through the gradually narrowing valley to Kufstein
+and thence through Bavaria to the Danube.
+
+This Alpine city, pregnant with so many historical memories, deeds of
+blood and chivalry, engirdled by the everlasting hills, is, with the
+possible exception of Salzburg, the most picturesque and interesting
+of all German Alpine towns.
+
+The character of Innsbruck of to-day differs very materially in some
+respects from what it was two decades ago. The modern element, which
+always comes to such places with greater notoriety and prosperity
+brought by travellers and tourists, has become developed, but happily
+as yet not greatly to the detriment of the old-time air which still
+permeates its narrow, ancient streets, and by-ways, courts, and
+buildings. In some of the former, the Maria-Theresien-Strasse at the
+south end of which stands the Triumphal Arch and Gate, and the
+Herzog-Friedrich-Strasse, for example, the old and the new are
+strangely mingled. It is not a little owing to this distinguishing
+feature as well as to its beautiful environment that Innsbruck owes
+its charm. With much of the convenience, it possesses less of the
+vexing artificiality of ancient places vulgarized by the exigencies of
+modern travel than do many similar towns. In some parts one might
+almost imagine one's self in one of the larger mountain villages, in
+another at Pontresina, or St. Moritz, minus, however, some of the more
+artificial gaiety of these resorts.
+
+[Sidenote: INNSBRUCK TYPES]
+
+During the season--more especially the summer--there are numbers of
+German tourists as well as Austrian to be seen in the streets, and in
+their almost boisterous enjoyment of their sight-seeing and holiday
+amusements they form a very marked contrast to the quieter and perhaps
+somewhat restrained English and American visitors, who as a general
+rule set about exploring the place and its treasures with a much more
+preoccupied and business-like air.
+
+From the higher and more distant valleys, too, many mountaineers and
+peasants come down to enjoy a few hours' marketing or the pleasures of
+the town. They form not the least interesting feature of the summer
+crowd which throngs the new as well as the old streets of Innsbruck.
+The women, many of them, wear picturesque costumes, consisting of
+velvet bodices, skirts of often beautiful shades of green and brown;
+aprons elaborately worked, or of lace; and sailor-shaped hats of black
+or green felt, often ornamented by gold embroidery under the brims and
+with two long ribbons (frequently also of velvet) hanging down or
+fluttering in the wind at the back. These hats are singularly like
+those of the Breton peasants, only they are worn more by the women
+than the men, whilst in Brittany women seldom wear them.
+
+The fact that Innsbruck is a garrison town accounts for the presence
+of a large number of soldiers about the streets; green plays a
+prominent part in many of the uniforms--more especially of Tyrolese
+regiments--whilst the officers of several wear a particularly smart
+shade of blue-grey, or "pastel" blue cloth with trimmings of cerise,
+scarlet, or green, which seldom fail to arouse the admiration of the
+ladies. The countryfolk, too, crowd the streets on market days with
+feathers in their hats which are often of beautifully "weathered"
+golden green or bright green felt.
+
+The history of Innsbruck from the tenth century onwards is indeed
+largely that of Tyrol itself. The name as a town appears first to have
+occurred in a document of the year 1027 which was a grant to the
+chapel of St. James' in the Field (St. Jacob in der Au), which most
+probably occupied the site on which the stately church of the same
+name erected in 1717 now stands. Long before this date, however, a
+settlement of people--small at first--had taken place at this crossing
+or ford of the Inn, brought into existence by the growing and
+profitable commerce between Germany and Italy by way of the Brenner.
+Both the travelling merchants and the Tyrolese themselves soon found
+the place a convenient depôt for the heavier goods and articles of
+merchandise, such as skins, wines, cloths, and metal ware; and as the
+years went by it gradually grew to be more than a convenient
+halting-place for the merchants and their pack trains on their
+journeys. Houses fit to accommodate the well-to-do were erected, and
+Innsbruck as a flourishing town came into being. Towards the end of
+the twelfth century certain rights over the town were acquired by a
+von Andechs, Berthold II., from the monks of Wilten to whom it
+belonged; and in consequence of these rights, Otto I., his successor,
+encircled it with walls, fortifications, and watch-towers, and also
+built himself a palace.
+
+The rise of Innsbruck was from the middle of the thirteenth century a
+steady one. At that period it was made the sole depôt for the storage
+of goods between the Zillerthal and the Melach; and as the years went
+by other privileges were granted to the steadily growing town, which
+not only served to maintain but also to increase its importance.
+
+In 1279, Bruno, Bishop of Brixen, consecrated another church in the
+Ottoburg, which was called the Moritzkapelle. The town's lords,
+spiritual as well as temporal, appear to have done what they could to
+foster and encourage its growth, and there are records of festivities
+and princely entertainments on a lavish scale within the precincts of
+the Ottoburg in those far-off times. It was not, however, until after
+the cession of Tyrol to Austria by the Duchess Margaret, known as
+"Pocket-mouthed Meg," that the admirable situation of Innsbruck was
+fully realized. Ultimately, the convenience of its water communication
+by the Inn and Danube with other distant and flourishing towns of the
+Empire seems largely to have brought about its adoption as the seat of
+government for Tyrol.
+
+[Sidenote: INNSBRUCK'S RULERS]
+
+Innsbruck throughout the centuries, so far as its rulers are
+concerned, appears to have been "fortune's child." Many privileges
+were granted to it from time to time, and the staunch fidelity of the
+citizens to Duke Rudolph IV. of Habsburg at the time of one of the
+periodic Bavarian invasions resulted in further concessions being
+granted which served to place Innsbruck in the unassailable position
+of being both the capital and the most prosperous town in the Tyrol.
+
+Duke Frederick of the Empty Pocket (_Mit der leeren Tasche_) made
+Innsbruck his home and base of operations whilst endeavouring to put
+down the Rottenburgers and other of the powerful nobles, who were
+attempting to set him at defiance and continue the oppression of the
+countryfolk which they had commenced and carried on during the
+unstable and weak government of Frederick's immediate predecessors.
+
+The Innsbruckers gave him loyal and very material support in his
+endeavours, and reaped a substantial reward in the favours and
+privileges which Frederick afterwards granted to them.
+
+It was this prince who gained, by contact with his people when a
+fugitive amongst the mountains and valleys of Tyrol, a knowledge of
+them (and thereby earned their affection) that made it possible for
+him ultimately to call the peasantry to arms, and to defy the power of
+the Emperor Sigismund, Ernest the Iron Duke of Styria, and his other
+enemies.
+
+The circumstances of Frederick's call of the people to arms was
+romantic in the extreme. Indeed, his doings in the early years of his
+outlawry by the Church and State read like pages of the most stirring
+romance. Perhaps some of the deeds recorded are more or less
+legendary, but enough remains to fill to overflowing with stirring
+incidents the pages of any historical romance. Briefly the story of
+the event is as follows. Assured during his many wanderings of the
+people's devotion to him, for when pursued they had sheltered him, and
+when discovered they had boldly refused to surrender his person to his
+enemies, Frederick devised a plan by which he should appear as the
+principal actor in an heroic peasant comedy at the great fair at
+Landeck. This play set forth in stirring scenes the fortunes or rather
+misfortunes of an exiled prince driven from his throne by his enemies,
+compelled to wander destitute, and with a price upon his head amongst
+his people, whom he eventually calls to arms and leads to victory and
+thus recovers his inheritance.
+
+He must have played his part remarkably well if one may judge by the
+results. The people, who had come to the fair from all parts of the
+country roundabout were stirred to the very depths by his acting, and
+by his pourtrayal of the imaginary prince's misfortunes. We are told
+the audience were many of them moved to tears and that when Frederick
+came to sing of the people following their ruler's call to arms the
+enthusiasm became uncontrollable.
+
+Then, so the tale goes, Frederick threw off all disguise, and made a
+direct appeal to them. The vast audience vowed to support his cause,
+and the enthusiasm which swayed the Landeckers was not long spreading
+through the whole country with the result that shortly afterwards the
+Emperor Sigismund and Frederick's brother concluded a truce with him
+and he was allowed to become ruler.
+
+  [Illustration: THE FAMOUS "GOLDEN ROOF," INNSBRUCK]
+
+During his reign he did much to show his gratitude to his loyal
+friends and people by curbing the oppressive power of the nobles, and
+granting many privileges which were on the whole more for the
+benefit of the poor than of the rich.
+
+[Sidenote: THE "GOLDEN ROOF"]
+
+But to many who come to Innsbruck we fancy Frederick's fame rests not
+upon his wisdom as a ruler so much as upon his extravagance in
+building the world-famous "Goldne Dachl" to the elegant late-Gothic
+balcony of his palace at the foot of the Herzog-Friedrich-strasse. The
+nickname of "Empty Purse" or "Pocket" had been bestowed upon him by
+his enemies, who sought to belittle him when he attained to power. It
+was not certainly his by common consent. The Tyrolese account rather
+points to the fact that Frederick at one time had impoverished himself
+in his endeavours to relieve his subjects from the burdens of
+taxation, and in consequence the nobles who were no believers in his
+system of government in this respect bestowed upon him this somewhat
+approbrious _sobriquet_. Frederick saw in this a reproach not perhaps
+so much directed against himself as against his people in general. It
+seemed to him to indicate that his enemies thought those for whom he
+had undoubtedly done much kept him poor and would do nothing to keep
+up a state in character with his position as ruler. He therefore built
+the famous roof.[10] Outside the house which was then the Furstenburg
+or princely dwelling, now very ordinary looking and far less imposing
+and ornate in character than say the Heblinghaus hard by, he in 1425
+erected over the two-storied balcony the "Goldne Dachl," on which
+piece of mediæval display of wealth he is stated to have expended
+30,000 ducats or about £14,000. In it there are 3450 gilt upon copper
+tiles, which have several times since Frederick's day been regilded.
+The last occasion on which this was done is upwards of twenty years
+ago.
+
+It is necessary, however, for us to say that considerable doubt exists
+whether Frederick--who is now supposed not even to have built the
+house--did construct the roof which has done so much to immortalize
+his nickname. Loth though one is to destroy a romantic story, truth
+compels us to state that the most reliable evidence points to the
+Emperor Maximilian as the originator of the roof and probably the
+balcony also in 1500, after his second marriage with Maria Bianca
+Sforza of Milan.
+
+The house has long ago descended from its high position as a royal
+palace, even at times of recent years having been let to private
+families or in apartments, but the famous "Goldne Dachl" over the
+beautiful oriel window, with its Gothic balconies, the balustrades of
+which are decorated with carved armorial bearings and shields in
+marble, has been preserved as a beloved relic almost in its original
+state. Within the house itself is a curious old fresco, the subject of
+which has been the cause of much dispute. On the second floor is an
+interesting sculptured bas-relief, depicting Maximilian and his two
+wives, Mary of Burgundy and Maria Bianca Sforza, with the seven
+coats-of-arms belonging to the seven provinces over which the Emperor
+held sway.
+
+Frederick's son Sigismund succeeded him, and for a time kept a
+brilliant and gay Court at Innsbruck, but being without direct heirs
+he in 1490 gave up Tyrol to his cousin who, three years later, became
+the Emperor Maximilian I. Maximilian in turn did much for the town
+which he adopted as his Tyrol home, and by his residence in Innsbruck,
+after he had become the Emperor of a wide dominion, he did much to
+increase its importance and prosperity. He it was who built a new
+palace in the Rennplatz, called the Burg, which scarcely forty years
+later was burned down. The Great Hall, called the Goldene Saal, and
+the state bedroom, the decorations and furniture of which were so
+beautiful and magnificent that it was known as _das Paradies_, were
+eventually totally destroyed, many of the occupants of the palace,
+including the children of the Emperor Ferdinand of that time, escaping
+with their lives with difficulty.
+
+Maximilian, who became familiar to his Innsbruckers as the "Kaiser
+Max," especially endeared himself to them by reason of his frank
+manners and love of the chase and mountaineering.
+
+[Sidenote: ANCIENT INNS]
+
+Amongst the many interesting mediæval buildings which have happily
+survived in Innsbruck there are several in the immediate neighbourhood
+of the famous "Goldne Dachl." One of the oldest, if not the oldest, is
+the Ottoburg of Otto I. standing at the end of the
+Herzog-Friedrich-strasse close to the River Inn; and, indeed, only
+separated from it by the Herzog-Otto-strasse. This, the residence of
+the Andechs, was built in 1234, and was the reputed birthplace of Otto
+III. A quaint motto concerning it remains, which, roughly translated,
+runs--
+
+     "Here the Ottoburg firmly stands,
+     A house upheld by God's own hands."
+
+In this ancient building many dramatic scenes of Tyrolese history took
+place.
+
+Close by is the oldest Inn, the famous and deeply interesting Goldener
+Adler (Golden Eagle) to which, in former times, before modern hotels
+and conveniences were esteemed indispensable, every visitor of
+distinction to Innsbruck came. The "visitors' list" of the Goldener
+Adler is one long entry of nobles and celebrities.
+
+Indeed, during the time it was the acknowledged resort of the nobility
+and even monarchs who came to Innsbruck, it sheltered amongst its many
+distinguished guests and travellers the Emperor Joseph II.; Ludwig I.,
+King of Bavaria; Gustave III. of Sweden; Heinrich Heine, the gifted
+though melancholy poet; and Goethe, who came to Innsbruck with the
+Dowager Duchess Amalie of Saxe-Weimar in 1790. In commemoration of
+this visit a bust of the poet adorns the room which he occupied. And
+last, but by no means least, the Goldener Adler housed the patriot
+Andreas Hofer. It was regarding the portraits of the latter, of his
+enemy Napoleon Bonaparte, and of Ludwig of Bavaria that Heine remarked
+on seeing them hanging side by side in the dining-room of the Inn that
+it was strange to see such enemies grouped together even though merely
+portraits. Tradition has it that it was from the middle window of the
+famous Goldener Adler that Hofer made his speech to the surging crowd
+in the narrow street below on August 15, 1809, when he entered the
+town in triumph after the third battle on Berg Isel. A copy of the
+speech, which was a modest though stirring oration, has been preserved
+at the Inn.
+
+One of the most delightful vistas of the old town is to be obtained
+from the corner where stand the three well-known Inns, the Goldener
+Hirsch, Rother Adler, and Goldener Löwe; whilst from the balcony of
+the old Stadtthurm or belfry a fine view over the town and of the
+environing mountain summits rewards the adventurous climber.
+
+The old-fashioned "lauben" or arcades of the Herzog-Friedrich-strasse
+in particular, under which are set out tiny stalls often kept by
+picturesquely attired girls and women, seldom fail to attract the
+attention of visitors.
+
+On either side of the street these "lauben" stretch under the low
+arcaded roofs, providing not only a cool promenade in the heat of
+summer, but a shelter which on wet days can be fully appreciated, for,
+to speak frankly, Innsbruck in wet weather strikes one if one wanders
+in the byways as a somewhat muddy though intensely interesting town.
+In these "lauben" one frequently sees types of the older Tyrolese in
+the national costume, which in the towns of Tyrol (as in those of
+other countries) show signs of dying out. Old women in the short
+skirts, and picturesque aprons, quaint hats and bodices, of the
+mountain districts and villages, and the old men, wrapped (if the
+weather be cold) in long, flowing, cloaks of green or russet cloth,
+smoking their long pipes with painted porcelain bowls, on which are
+often as not stirring scenes in miniature from the life of Hofer.
+
+[Sidenote: MARKET TYPES]
+
+By way of these covered promenades one gradually reaches the busier
+centre of the town where the old-world aspect of
+Herzog-Friedrich-strasse gives place to the more modern Maria
+Theresien-strasse, and the Burggraben joins the Marktgraben. There are
+few more deeply interesting and picturesque places of its kind than
+Innsbruck Marktgraben on a festival or market day. Here, indeed, is a
+spot not alone for the artist and amateur photographer, but for the
+student also, who may see many quaint local customs and costumes, and
+occasionally even the boyishly attired girl cowherds of the upper
+pastures in their cloth or velvet knee breeches, short jackets,
+"sailor"-shaped hats decorated with feathers, edelweiss or gentians,
+and worsted stockings. Here, too, perhaps, one can better realize from
+the cosmopolitan throng of market people, than from anything else, the
+fact that for many generations Innsbruck has been the business highway
+for Italians, Slavonians, Hungarians, Austrians, and Germans. One can
+often, indeed, see representatives of Northern, Southern, and Eastern
+nations gathered together at one and the same time in the Marktgraben,
+with a sprinkling of tourists to represent the more Western peoples.
+
+If we were asked to pick out the two streets which in different ways
+would probably most deeply impress the newcomer to Innsbruck, we
+should without hesitation chose the old-world
+Herzog-Friedrich-strasse, on either side of whose narrow roadway are
+so many interesting ancient houses, low-ceiled rooms, and picturesque
+courtyards, as one; and the Maria Theresien-strasse with its more
+modern air, exquisite view of the snow-capped Bavarian Alps as the
+other. But this latter fine commercial street with its up-to-date
+shops, upon the windows of many of which frequently appears that
+comfort-bringing (but alas! sometimes delusive) legend, "English
+Spoken," is not without its old and historical buildings. In the
+Spitalkirche or Church of the Holy Ghost one has an early eighteenth
+century Rococo building of considerable interest. And almost opposite
+stands the house in which Hermann von Gilm, the well-known Tyrolese
+poet, died in 1864. A little further along is the Rathaus or Town Hall
+of Innsbruck, which was formerly the Oesterreichischer Hof, a large
+hotel. In the courtyard is a noticeably fine marble staircase, and
+there are some interesting and effective frescoes on the walls from
+the brush of Ferdinand Wagner.
+
+Few visitors but are attracted by the column of red native marble
+which occupies a prominent position in the middle of and almost
+exactly midway down Maria Theresien-strasse. Surmounted by a statuette
+of the Virgin Mary, and with those of St. Anna, St. George, St.
+Vigilius, and St. Cassian grouped round the base, it was erected as a
+memorial of the retreat of the Bavarian troops on St. Anna's Day (July
+26), 1703.
+
+At the corner of Maria Theresien-strasse and Landhaus-strasse is the
+Landhaus of Anton Gump completed in 1728, and in the Rococo style of
+architecture then prevalent. Here are held the sittings of the
+Tyrolean Landtag which was formerly held at Meran, and on its
+transference to Innsbruck was one of the main causes of the town
+becoming the capital of Tyrol.
+
+Close by is the church of the Sevites, with its famous dome decorated
+by the paintings of the well-known Tyrolean artist, Joseph Schöpf,
+depicting the death of St. Joseph and his entry into paradise.
+
+The University, which stands in the street of that name, has undergone
+some considerable vicissitudes. Founded by the Emperor Leopold I. in
+1677, it was, by the Emperor Joseph II., reduced to the standing of a
+Lycée, but was once more accorded the dignity of a University in 1826.
+In the valuable library of upwards of 75,000 volumes there are many
+illuminated MSS. of great beauty and value, as well as a number of
+early fifteenth-century books. The adjoining Botanical Garden, which
+contains an unrivalled collection of Alpine flora, and was constructed
+by Professor von Kerner, belongs to the University, and here during
+the summer months those who wish to study Alpine flowers will find
+grouped and gathered together specimens which it would take many
+months and perhaps even years to study and discover on one's own
+initiative in their native habitats. The University is, however, about
+to be transferred to a more convenient home on the Fürstenweg near the
+Inn, and the old building will, alas! probably be pulled down and the
+site used for modern houses.
+
+[Sidenote: MAXIMILIAN'S CELL]
+
+Quite close to the latter stands the Jesuit Church attached to it,
+which is chiefly interesting because of its being the burial place of
+the Tyrolese Prince Regents, and on account of the paintings by
+Albrecht Durer which adorn the sacristy. The Capuchin Church and
+Convent dating from the latter end of the sixteenth century are worth
+a visit, for in the latter one sees an interesting and historical
+survival in the retreat of the Archduke Maximilian, known as the
+"Deutsch-Meister," who here devoted a week in every year to prayer,
+fasting, and penance.
+
+In his simple cell, which is panelled in plain wood, and has for
+furniture but a bedstead and chair of the most ordinary make, one can
+realize exactly the kind of "retreat" which was so often in those
+far-off days used by the highest nobles and rulers to free them for a
+time from the cares and vanities of State. The inkstand and other
+small articles of necessity, which still remain memorials of
+Maximilian's occupation, are supposed to have been his own handiwork.
+How complete this ruler's retirement from the world and whilst he was
+in retreat can be judged by the fact that he not only followed with
+exactitude the rules of the brotherhood, rising early and also
+attending the night offices, but in addition he engaged in the manual
+labour of the garden, and field, and workshop like as one of them. The
+cell has a little window high up and opening on the chancel of the
+chapel to enable the noble recluse to take part in the services.
+
+This cell has been in a sense a pilgrim place ever since, and has been
+visited at various times by many distinguished people. In 1765 the
+Empress Maria Theresa came to the Convent, and upon entering
+Maximilian's retreat sat herself in the wooden chair.
+
+She was little used to so hard a resting-place, and after a minute or
+two she expressed her astonishment, exclaiming, "Heavens! What men of
+iron our forefathers were!"
+
+There are (so far as we know) no relics of the Empress Maria Theresa's
+visit, not even an autograph; but another illustrious visitor, St.
+Lorenzo of Brindisi, who came to Innsbruck on his way to found a
+religious house in Austria, somewhat strangely one is forced to think,
+left behind him his staff, breviary, and copy of the Hebrew Bible,
+which are treasured as carefully as the relics of the Archduke
+Maximilian himself. During the reign of the latter the religious
+houses and Churches of Innsbruck all benefited by his generosity and
+prospered from his devotion to the Church. The effect of his example
+upon the townsfolk themselves was so marked that after the terrible
+plague of the year 1611 the burghers founded and built the
+Dreiheiligen Kirche (Holy Trinity) for the Jesuits as a thank-offering
+that the ravages of the plague were stayed. It was probably owing to
+the fact that, during this particular outbreak of the scourge of the
+Middle Ages, when the old hospital or Siechenhaus was all too small to
+hold all the victims, two Jesuits, Kaspar von Kostlan of Brixen, and
+the Professor of Theology at the University, assisted by a lay
+brother, tended the sick with indefatigable self-sacrifice, that the
+Jesuits were destined to chiefly benefit by the Innsbruckers' desire
+to commemorate their gratitude to God, that the pestilence at last had
+been overcome. They readily subscribed the necessary funds (we are
+told), and the then Burgomaster took a vow to see that the building
+was erected. From the time of which vow, tradition tells us, "the
+pestilence at once began to abate."
+
+An altar-piece, the artist of which was Stötzl, was given by
+Maximilian himself. It represented the three patron saints against
+sickness: St. Sebastian, who stayed a plague in Rome by his
+intercession; St. Martha, who according to tradition founded a
+hospital and spent the rest of her life attending to the sick; and St.
+Rocchus, who devoted his life and strength to the care of those
+suffering from the pestilence.
+
+[Sidenote: THE NEWER TOWN]
+
+Some of the most beautiful roads and modern houses of the newer
+Innsbruck, which is increasing in area year by year, lie close at hand
+to this votive church, and to the northward, in the part of the town
+which is best reached by the Universitats-strasse and Saggengasse,
+alongside of which is the vast Exercier Platz, and at the back of that
+and nearer the river the beautiful Hofgarten. These never fail to
+charm the rambler on the outskirts of the town.
+
+[Sidenote: MUSEUM TREASURES]
+
+But there yet remain many other interesting objects, which the lover
+of Innsbruck and the visitor who stays for any considerable period of
+time are sure to gradually discover and enjoy. One of these is the
+National Museum, known as the Ferdinandeum, in which are gathered
+together objects, pictures, and relics forming, so it is claimed for
+them, an almost complete historical record of Tyrol, its people and
+its products.
+
+The Museum, which is the resort of students from all parts of Europe,
+and is for even the casual visitor an object of the greatest interest,
+bears the name of its founder and patron Ferdinand I. Originally
+intended to illustrate in a vivid and practical way the history and
+national customs of the country in the various domains of art,
+science, and industry, the collections have gradually been enlarged
+and expanded so as to contain examples of art by members of well known
+foreign schools. The present museum is a comparatively modern
+building, with a façade in the Italian Renaissance style. The ground
+floor was commenced in 1842, and the upper story added in 1886.
+
+On the ground floor are some most interesting archæological remains,
+including several ancient Roman milestones from the Brenner road and
+elsewhere; burial urns from Matrei; bronze statuettes of Roman days
+from Brixen and Innicherberg; many ornaments of the Roman period from
+Meran, Moritzing, Zedlach and other places. From Salurn, in the valley
+of the Eisack, there are some Roman tombs, with the ornaments of the
+dead, and household and toilet utensils and articles of great value
+and interest. One of the most important objects in the archæological
+section of the Museum is the sarcophagus, arms and ornaments of a
+Lombardian prince disinterred at Civezzano, near Trent. The coffin was
+richly ornamented by gold bands, and in it was found a gold cross.
+
+Zoology, Geognosy, Palæology, and Mineralogy are represented with
+remarkable fulness, and in the last-named section of the Museum is to
+be found almost every Tyrolese mineral discovered up to the present
+time. Some of the specimens are of great beauty and value.
+
+In the Armoury, which so far as the general visitor is concerned,
+appears to be one of the most popular sections, there are many fine
+examples of the weapons of bygone days, including poignards, inlaid
+pistols, guns, powder-horns and flasks, helmets, breastplates, etc.
+
+  [Illustration: A TYPICAL INNSBRUCKER]
+
+In the Topographical section few fail to notice with interest the many
+early maps of Tyrol, bearing on their faces the history of the country
+as is shown by the partitions of it which from time to time took
+place; and the homemade globes of the self-educated shepherd boy,
+Peter Anich, who became a famous geographer. In the same room are
+some fine specimens of peasant costumes, musical instruments
+(including some Strads, Amatis, and Stainers of great value), the
+jewel case of the famous Philippine Welser (wife of Ferdinand II.) who
+lived with her royal and devoted husband at Castle Ambras for many
+years.
+
+There are also in the Museum some deeply interesting relics,
+portraits, busts, autographs, etc., of Tyrolese patriots and
+distinguished citizens of Innsbruck. Those relating to Andreas Hofer,
+and his two loyal comrades, Joachim Haspinger and Joseph Speckbacher,
+include many of their personal belongings, and are regarded by the
+Tyrolese visitors with almost religious veneration--a feeling which
+the life--history of these men quite justifies.
+
+Amongst the sculpture are some fine specimens of old carved woodwork
+and interesting German carvings of an early period brought from
+Tyrolean churches, which were either despoiled during the Napoleonic
+Wars, or have since for one reason or another been pulled down and
+their treasures and fittings dispersed.
+
+On the second floor of this convenient and commodious building is
+chiefly gathered together the Art collection, which so far as native
+work is concerned is, we believe, unrivalled. There is presented for
+the information of the student as well as the ordinary visitor an
+astonishingly complete survey of Tyrolese painting from the earliest
+times, including the work of the schools of Brixen-Neustift, and the
+Pusterthal, with representative work by such masters as Andrä Haller
+and Michael Pacher; and also examples of the old Flemish and German
+masters, including Lucas Cranach, St. Jerome, Altdorfer, Pateiner,
+etc., Innsbruck painters being represented by Sebastian Schel.
+
+Well worth the attention of all interested in painting and its
+development as an Art are the works of the Tyrolese masters covering
+the period from the seventeenth century to the present day, which are
+well represented by pictures of the Unterberger family, Joseph Schöph,
+John Baptist Lampi, Angelica Kaufmann, Gebhard Flatz (Fra Angelico),
+Joseph A. Koch, Mathias Schmidt, E. von Wörndle, Karl Blaas and
+others. Amongst the more notable pictures of the modern school are the
+"Chancellor Wilhelm Biener at the Innsbruck Landtag," of Karl
+Anrathers, and the historical masterpieces of Franz Defregger.
+
+It is impossible for one to study the latter nine in number, which
+depict patriotic events connected with the campaign of 1809, without
+appreciating the vigour of their execution and the charm of their
+colour, at the same time realizing something of the stirring nature
+and significance of the events to which they refer. Three are
+originals, and the remaining six are copies made by pupils of
+Defregger under his own personal supervision, and supposed to have in
+some cases been finished or touched up by him. The following are the
+subjects of the originals:--
+
+(1) The Three Patriots--Andreas Hofer, Joseph Speckbacher, and Joachim
+Haspinger; (2) Speckbacher and his son Anderl at the Bear Inn, St.
+Johann; (3) The Innkeeper's Son. The last named is the son of the
+Tharer Wirth at Olang in the Pusterthal. The copies are of the
+following subjects: (1) Speckbacher's Call to Arms; (2) The Last
+Summons, the original of which is in the Imperial Art-History Museum
+in Vienna; (3) The Mountain Forge, the original of which is in the
+Dresden Gallery; (4) The Return of the Victors, the original of which
+is in Berlin; and (5) Andreas Hofer in the Castle at Innsbruck, the
+original of which belongs to the Emperor Francis Joseph; (6) Andreas
+Hofer being led to Execution, the original of which is in Konigsberg.
+These are all distinguished by beauty of colouring, strength of
+drawing, and dramatic appeal.
+
+There are many other treasures in this Museum, which is national in
+the true sense of the word. And amongst them is the fine and almost
+priceless collection of pictures by Dutch masters which has been
+principally acquired through bequests of wealthy Tyrolese. In it are
+examples of the work of Van Dyck, P. Paul Reubens, Paul Potter, R.
+Ruysch, Adrian von Ostade, A. Cuyp, Rembrandt and others. There is
+also a most comprehensive and valuable Library of works relating to
+Tyrol, and also the archives of both the Austrian and German Alpine
+Clubs.
+
+Each year sees important additions made to the various departments of
+the Ferdinandeum, and so the returning visitors to Innsbruck find an
+ever new interest in the country and its National Museum awaiting
+them.
+
+[Sidenote: THE HOFBURG]
+
+The remaining objects of supreme interest at Innsbruck are the Hofburg
+or Palace; and the Hofkirche or Church of the Franciscans. They are
+easily reached from the Ferdinandeum along Museum-strasse and the
+Burggraben, which may be said to form the boundary line dividing the
+old town from the new. The archway, through which one reaches both the
+Palace and the Church, formed, in mediæval times, one of the city
+gates; and in those far-off times was crowned by a watch-tower upon
+which the many escutcheons of the Habsburgs were emblazoned. It was
+taken down in the time of Maria Theresa, as its condition had become
+too dangerous to permit it to remain standing.
+
+The Hofburg stands at a right angle with the Hofkirche to the
+north-west. Of the original building erected by the Emperor Maximilian
+not very much now remains; for after being seriously damaged it was
+ultimately reconstructed by Maria Theresa. On the exterior are traces
+of the original baroque style favoured at the time it was built; still
+also to be found in several of the larger, older, and more important
+houses in the town. The state apartments are chiefly distinguished for
+the decorative paintings of the well-known artist A. F. Maulbertsch,
+principally in the large salon known as the Riesensaal. It was in the
+chapel, which connects the Palace with the Damenstift or Ladies' Home,
+that the Emperor Francis I. of Germany, husband of Maria Theresa, died
+so tragically on August 18, 1765, while the wedding festivities in
+connection with the marriage of Prince Leopold (afterwards the Emperor
+Leopold II.) with the Infanta Maria Ludovica were in progress.
+
+It is not the Hofburg, however, but the famous Hofkirche--which has by
+several writers and antiquarians been called "The Tyrolean Westminster
+Abbey,"--that attracts most visitors, and has the greatest charm for
+all who are either interested in Tyrolese history or antiquities. This
+church was built during the decade from 1553-63 by the Emperor
+Ferdinand I., then King of Rome, as a memorial to his grandfather the
+Emperor Maximilian I., who was buried underneath the high altar in the
+Castle Chapel of Wiener-Neustadt. Tradition states that the building
+had been contemplated by Maximilian, and was ultimately brought into
+being in accordance with his will. The architect of the church, which
+is in the Italian Renaissance style, was Thuring of Innsbruck,[11] and
+the ground plan follows the lines of a columnar basilica. Lübke,
+however, states that it was the tomb and not the building which
+Maximilian himself planned in collaboration with Gilg Sesselschreiber,
+a Munich artist, who occupied the position of painter to the Court.
+
+The first impression made upon the mind by the famous Hofkirche is one
+of lightness and elegance, wedded to a somewhat flamboyant decorative
+scheme, rather than impressiveness or age. The lofty and
+slender-looking columns which support the roof on either side of the
+nave are of red marble, and the ceiling itself is elaborately
+decorated in rococo. The vista on entering is extremely fine,
+including as it does the wonderful tomb of Maximilian, the organ loft,
+and the huge crucifix in the centre, and the handsome pulpit on the
+left of the tomb. The impression of magnificence and beauty grows upon
+one, thus carrying out what was doubtless the design of the architect
+and the Emperor who was instrumental in its erection.
+
+[Sidenote: MAXIMILIAN'S TOMB]
+
+The tomb in the centre, with its imposing bronze figure of Maximilian
+kneeling with clasped hands on the top of the huge marble sarcophagus,
+at the four corners of which are smaller figures, at once arrests
+attention. The Emperor is in Imperial dress, with crown, armour, and a
+robe, and is surrounded by the twenty-eight huge figures which have
+become world-famous, and all save two of which were once
+torch-bearers, and are now seen with their right hands extended as
+though holding torches. The two exceptions are King Arthur of England,
+and the Emperor Theodoric the Goth. All of the statues surrounding the
+tomb are thought to have had some real or legendary connection with
+the House of Habsburg, and it is believed that Maximilian himself
+chose the characters who were to be represented. They may be grouped
+into two series. One consisting of his five favourite heroes of
+antiquity; the other of twenty-three ancestors, contemporary relatives
+or members of his house, both men and women.
+
+The figures differ very greatly both in style and merit. It was
+perhaps only natural that this result should have been arrived at when
+one remembers that several generations were occupied upon the
+construction of this marvellous example of German Renaissance
+monumental work erected during the sixteenth century, and that it was
+necessarily the work of several designers as well as many different
+hands. The tomb is a wonderful, perhaps even unequalled, example of
+the German art of a period which marked the blending of the mediæval
+and the modern. To the Imperial designer of the tomb the chivalric
+figures he chose to surround it were no mere abstractions but living,
+breathing entities; just as the old feudal Empires of south-eastern
+Europe were real. He was unable to realize that even then the old
+order was about to pass away, to be replaced by a new which was so
+divergent from that he had known, and of which he himself had been so
+prominent a figure.
+
+The bronze figures, which twenty years or so ago attracted the notice
+of but few foreign visitors, but are now objects of keenest interest
+to all comers to the capital of Tyrol, are by several hands. The two
+of surpassing beauty of design and execution are those of King Arthur
+of England, and King Theodoric. They are nowadays pretty generally
+supposed to have been the work of Peter Vischer of Nüremberg.
+
+These two statues have a particularly interesting history which has
+been brought to light of recent years. Though cast at Nüremberg in
+1513, and costing no less than one thousand florins, it was not until
+nearly twenty years had elapsed that they reached Innsbruck. In the
+meantime, owing to Maximilian's need of ready money, they had been in
+the possession of Bishop Christopher of Augsburg, to whom they had
+been pawned by the Emperor. The Bishop placed them in the chapel at
+St. Lorenz, where they remained until the year 1532. Ferdinand I. then
+sent to redeem them, and they were delivered up on payment to the
+steward of the then Bishop of the amount which originally had been
+advanced upon them.
+
+  [Illustration: MOONRISE IN TYROL]
+
+[Sidenote: KING ARTHUR AND THEODORIC]
+
+The statue of King Arthur is especially impressive and fine. Standing
+erect, the tall, chivalrous-looking figure has an alertness of pose
+which is astonishingly lifelike and commanding. It is impossible not
+to recognize the representation of a true ideal of knighthood "sans
+peur et sans raproche," and that without any suggestion of aggressive
+valour. The helmet worn is of the close-fitting type with the visor,
+which is enriched with ornamentation, raised so that the face of a
+somewhat Teutonic mould is plainly seen. The breastplate, worn over a
+coat of mail, is magnificently worked; but the rest of the suit is
+plain. Arthur supports by his right hand a shield bearing the arms of
+England, and at his left side is a long sword.
+
+The statue of King Theodoric, although fine in execution, does not
+possess the same impressiveness and commanding merit as that of King
+Arthur to which we have just referred. It appears probable that the
+same model may have been used for both. But, whereas King Arthur is a
+commanding figure, the pose of King Theodoric is rather a dejected and
+wearied one. His breastplate is not nearly so richly ornamented, and
+his helm is also plainer, with the visor of a quite different shape.
+As is the case with King Arthur, the breastplate is worn over a coat
+of chain mail, and the greaves worn are plain.
+
+The remaining twenty-six figures according to some authorities were
+designed by Gilg Sesselschreiber; although opinion is still somewhat
+divided regarding this point. It may, however, we think be accepted
+that Sesselschreiber was, at least in part, responsible for the
+greater number.
+
+The relationship which existed between the Emperor Maximilian and the
+Munich artist Sesselschreiber, who had been engaged as Court painter
+in 1502, was not untinctured by an element of romance, which is doubly
+interesting as showing the relative positions of artist and patron in
+those stirring and disturbed times.
+
+Happily for lovers of art and antiquities the original designs for the
+statues surrounding the tomb of Maximilian which Sesselschreiber made
+have been preserved, and can be seen in the Imperial Library, Vienna.
+Exquisite pen-and-ink drawings delicately tinted, upon some of which
+the Emperor himself made corrections and suggestions in his own hand.
+These are distinctly traceable on some from the unskilled nature of
+the pen-and-ink alterations.
+
+[Sidenote: THE FAMOUS STATUES]
+
+A curious fact is also brought to light by these sketches. It would
+seem from them beyond question that Maximilian fully intended being
+modelled for the figure of himself, which was to grace the memorial,
+in the suit of exquisite silver armour which he had worn on the
+occasion of his marriage at Ghent with Mary of Burgundy.[12] Several
+sketches were made, one, apparently from the notes and alterations
+upon it, displeased the Emperor from a technical point; in another the
+face was not as he wished with the result that Sesselschreiber
+altogether made four or more drawings.
+
+The care which had been taken over this most important figure was,
+however, never destined to be utilized to the full, for the statue was
+not even modelled at the time of Maximilian's death in 1519, and the
+figure clad in coronation robes (instead, as was evidently intended,
+entirely in armour) which kneels on the top of the cenotaph was the
+work of Abraham Colin, who had never seen the Emperor in life, the
+cast not having been made until more than sixty years after
+Maximilian's death.
+
+How slowly the great work of this magnificent tomb proceeded can be
+gathered from the dates we have quoted. The delay arose from several
+causes; amongst others, from the Emperor's shortness of money, owing
+to the vast schemes of conquest, science, and other matters in which
+he was engaged; and from the circumstance that Gilg Sesselschreiber
+appears to have become lazy, intemperate, and dissolute. In the end he
+took flight to Augsburg in fear of Maximilian's anger. The Emperor,
+however, was not prepared to yield up possession of his Court painter
+without a struggle, so the latter was captured and thrown into prison,
+from which he appears to have been released in 1516 on promise of
+reform. So that he might be freed from the temptations which Innsbruck
+afforded in the way of wine, women, and boon companions he was
+compelled by the Emperor to take up his residence at Natters on the
+western side of the Sill Gorge above Innsbruck.
+
+The casting of the statues was largely done by the famous Gregor
+Löffler, who established a bronze foundry near Innsbruck, and also
+built the Castle of Büchsenhausen, although some of the statues were
+undoubtedly cast by Stephen and Melchior Godl and Hans Lendenstreich
+who worked at the Mühlau foundry on the outskirts of Innsbruck.
+Although the designing and casting of the statues is now generally
+accepted as being the work of the men we have named, it is more than
+possible that the idea of the whole complete piece of mediæval and
+historical symbolism was that of some comparatively unknown brother of
+the Franciscan order. Originally the scheme was designed to include,
+in addition to the figures we have mentioned, twenty-three others of
+saints which were to be placed on raised pedestals or in niches, and
+were for this reason of much smaller size. They are now to be seen in
+the Silver Chapel. The following is a list of the large statues
+grouped around the tomb.
+
+     (1) Clovis, the first Christian King of France.
+
+     (2) Philip the Handsome, of the Netherlands, Maximilian's
+     son. (1495.)
+
+     (3) The Emperor, Rudolf of Habsburg.
+
+     (4) Albert II. the Wise, Maximilian's great-grandfather.
+
+     (5) Theodoric, King of the Ostrogoths. (455-526.)
+
+     (6) Ernest der Eiserne, Duke of Austria and Styria.
+     (1377-1424.)
+
+     (7) Theodebert, Duke of Burgundy. (640.)
+
+     (8) King Arthur of England.
+
+     (9) Sigismund der Munzreiche, Count of Tyrol. (1427-96.)
+
+     (10) Maria Bianca Sforza, Maximilian's second wife. Died
+     1510.
+
+     (11) The Archduchess Margaret, Maximilian's daughter.
+
+     (12) Cymburgis of Massovica, wife of Ernest der Eiserne.
+     Died 1433.
+
+     (13) Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, father of Mary of
+     Burgundy, Maximilian's first wife.
+
+     (14) Philip the Good, father of Charles the Bold. Founder of
+     the Order of the Golden Fleece. (1419.) Married Margaret of
+     York, sister of Edward IV., in 1468. (1467-77.)
+
+     (15) Albert II., Duke of Austria, and Emperor of Germany.
+     (1397-1439.)
+
+     (16) Emperor Frederick III., Maximilian's father.
+     (1457-93.)
+
+     (17) Leopold III., Margrave of Austria; since 1506 the
+     patron saint of Austria. (1096-1136.)
+
+     (18) Rudolf, Count of Habsburg. (1273.)
+
+     (19) Leopold III. the Pious, Duke of Austria, Maximilian's
+     great-grandfather; slain at Sempach. July 9, 1386.
+
+     (20) Frederick IV. of Austria, Count of Tyrol, surnamed "mit
+     der leeren Tasche."
+
+     (21) Albert I., Duke and Emperor of Austria. Born 1248,
+     assassinated by his nephew John of Swabia, 1308.
+
+     (22) Godfrey de Bouillon, King of Jerusalem in 1099, wearing
+     a crown of thorns.
+
+     (23) Elizabeth of Hungary, wife of the Emperor Albert II.
+     Born 1396.
+
+     (24) Mary of Burgundy, Maximilian's first wife. (1457-82.)
+
+     (25) Eleonora of Portugal, wife of the Emperor Frederick
+     III., Maximilian's mother.
+
+     (26) Cunigunda, Maximilian's sister, wife of Duke Albert IV.
+     of Bavaria.
+
+     (27) Ferdinand II., of Aragon, surnamed "the Catholic."
+     (1479.)
+
+     (27) Johanna, daughter of Ferdinand and Isabella, and wife
+     of Maximilian's son, Philip I., of Spain.
+
+[Sidenote: HISTORY IN MARBLE]
+
+The cenotaph itself, placed upon three steps of red marble, is about
+fourteen feet long and six feet high, and is constructed of different
+coloured marbles. The figure of the Emperor on top with its face
+directed towards the altar, is a fine bronze casting by a Sicilian
+named Luigi del Duca made in 1584.[13] Slender columns divide the ends
+and sides of the cenotaph into twenty-four panels or compartments of
+white marble in which are scenes in relief (depicting the chief events
+and achievements of Maximilian's life). These are really marvellous
+works of art, not alone for their execution but from the care with
+which accuracy has been attained in the costumes, the architectural
+and other details introduced, and from the extraordinary finish which
+marks the whole of the work. Many of the faces are undoubted portraits
+of the greatest historical and antiquarian value, those of the Emperor
+at various periods of his life being remarkable for their differing
+likeness. The variations of the national types depicted are rendered
+with the most painstaking care. The first four of the panels are
+filled by the work of Albert and Bernard Abel of Cologne, who began
+their task in 1561, after a visit to Genoa to choose the marble. They,
+however, both died two years later, leaving their work to be taken up
+by Alexander Colin, of Malines, in Flanders, who lived at Innsbruck
+for forty years, and died in 1612. Aided by a large number of other
+artists he completed the work of the Abels in a period of about three
+and a half years. Even the least learned of visitors will recognize
+the beauty of craftsmanship which so great a master as Thorwaldsen
+pronounced "the most admirable and perfect of its kind."
+
+The delicacy of execution is, indeed, rather that of ivory than of
+marble, and it is not without good cause that these exquisite reliefs
+are nowadays protected by glass and surrounded by a railing in iron
+work of very beautiful design.
+
+[Sidenote: SOME HISTORIC EVENTS]
+
+The subjects, a brief description of which may be of interest, are as
+follows:--(1) The marriage of Maximilian (then aged eighteen) with
+Mary of Burgundy at Ghent, August 19, 1477. She was killed whilst
+hunting by the stumbling of her horse, and was buried at Bruges, 1482.
+(2) Maximilian's victory over the French at Guinegate, in 1479. (3)
+The taking of Arras, 1482; the fighting men and the fortifications in
+this are worthy of special note, not alone for historical accuracy of
+detail but also for the marvellously fine execution; one woman in
+particular should be noticed, who is bringing provisions to the camp.
+This figure is a masterpiece in itself. (4) Maximilian is crowned King
+of the Romans at Aix-la-Chapelle in 1486. The scene is the interior of
+the Cathedral, Maximilian is seated on the stone chair of Charlemagne
+(a sort of throne) before the altar surrounded by his courtiers, whose
+dresses and those of the ladies high above in their gallery are a
+perfect record of the fashions of the period, so minute is their
+accuracy of detail. (5) The Battle of Castel della Pietra, or Stein am
+Calliano, situated between Trent and Rovereto in 1487. The landscape
+background of this panel is excellent, and the Tyrolese are seen
+driving the Venetians with great fury before them across the Adige.
+(6) Maximilian's entry into Vienna, 1490, after it had been evacuated
+by the Hungarians, an incident in the course of the fight for the
+crown of Hungary after the death of Matthias Coryinus who had held
+Vienna for several years. The figure of Maximilian on his horse is
+very beautifully carved. (7) The siege of Stuhlweissenburg, the city
+in which the Kings of Hungary were crowned; Maximilian captured it in
+1490. The horses in this tablet are worthy of particular notice. (8)
+The return of Margaret, daughter of Maximilian. This episode, which it
+must have required some courage to record among the acts of so
+glorious a reign, shows Maximilian meeting his daughter Margaret on
+her return in 1493, after Charles VIII. had rejected her hand for that
+of Anne of Brittany, whom Maximilian himself had intended to marry as
+his second wife. The French envoys hand to the Emperor two keys,
+symbols of the suzerainty of Burgundy and Artois, the price to be paid
+for the double affront of sending back his daughter and depriving him
+of his bride, Anne. (9) Maximilian's campaign against the Turks in
+Croatia. (10) The Alliance between Maximilian and Pope Alexander VI.,
+the Doge of Venice, and the Duke of Milan, against Charles VIII. of
+France; the four allies are shown standing in the hall of a palace in
+the act of joining hands, whilst the French are seen in full flight in
+the background. (11) The Investiture at Worms of Ludovico Sforza with
+the Duchy of Milan. The portraits of Maximilian are well preserved and
+finely executed on each occasion that he is introduced, but in none
+better than on this one. The Empress Maria Bianca is seated on the
+left of the Emperor, Ludovico Sforza kneels before the throne; on the
+waving standard, the symbol or investiture, the ducal arms are
+plainly discernible. (12) The marriage at Brussels, in 1496, of Philip
+der Schöne, Maximilian's eldest son, with Johanna, daughter of
+Ferdinand and Isabella of Spain, by the Archbishop of Cambrai.
+
+The remaining panels show (13) The campaign in Bohemia, and victory of
+Maximilian at Regensburg in 1504. (14) The siege of Kufstein, 1504.
+(15) The capture of Guelders and submission of Charles d'Egmont to
+Maximilian, 1505. The Duke is standing with uncovered head, and the
+battered walls of the city are seen in the background. (16) The League
+of Cambrai, 1508. The scene is a handsome tent in the camp near
+Cambrai; Maximilian, Julius II., Charles VIII., and Ferdinand V. are
+meeting to enter into an alliance against Venice. (17) The siege of
+Padua, 1509, the first result of this league. (18) The expulsion of
+the French from Milan in 1512. (19) The second battle of Guinegate;
+known also as the Battle of Spurs, so called from the fact that the
+French were said to have used their spurs rather than their swords on
+that occasion, with Henry VIII. of England in command of the allied
+infantry, August 16, 1513. (20) The meeting of Maximilian and Henry
+VIII. before Tournai, 1513. Maximilian and Henry are seen both on
+foot. (21) The battle of Vicenza, 1513. (22) The siege of Murano, on
+the Venetian coast, 1514. (23) Maximilian treating with Vladislaw,
+King of Hungary, for the double marriage of Anna and Ludwig, children
+of Vladislaw, with Ferdinand and Maria, grandchildren of Maximilian,
+which event had as one of its consequences the subsequent joining of
+Hungary with the Empire. (24) The defence of Verona, made by
+Maximilian's forces, against the French and Venetians, 1516.
+
+Maximilian's splendid memorial is well-placed so that its beauty and
+impressiveness is given full effect, and the spectator is able to
+consider it not only in detail but as a whole. As an example of
+sepulchral art of its kind it is unrivalled.
+
+Of a very different character to this magnificent cenotaph is the tomb
+of Andreas Hofer at the entrance to the left aisle, wrought in
+Tyrolese marble by Schaller, of Vienna, and with a bas-relief by
+Joseph Klieber, of Innsbruck, depicting six Tyrolese taking the oath
+of allegiance to the National flag and cause. On either side of the
+great patriot lie his comrades, Joseph Speckbacher and Joachim
+Haspinger. Near them is a tablet inscribed, "From a grateful
+Fatherland to the sons who perished in the Patriotic Wars," with the
+date (1838) of erection, and the motto, "Death is swallowed up in
+Victory."
+
+[Sidenote: STATUETTES IN SILVER CHAPEL]
+
+In the opposite aisle and reached by a flight of steps is the Silberne
+Kapelle (Silver Chapel), so known because of the silver statuette of
+the Virgin, presented by the Archduke Ferdinand of Austria, who was
+Regent of Tyrol from 1563-1595, and the embossed representations of
+the Lauretanian Litany, also in silver, which adorn the altar.
+Underneath the marble steps by which the chapel is reached is a
+notable tomb, the work of Alexander Colin, with a reclining figure of
+Katharina von Loxen, aunt of Philippine Welser. In the chapel itself
+are the beautiful tombs of the Archduke Ferdinand, and his first wife
+Philippine Welser in marble, with effigies which are ascribed to
+Alexander Colin. The first named tomb is adorned with four scenes of
+events in the Archduke's life in relief; and the latter with two
+reliefs. There is also a notable life-size bronze figure of the
+Archduke kneeling, clad in full armour, with his face turned towards
+the altar, and his hands folded in prayer. These monuments in
+themselves are sufficient to ensure a degree of fame for the Silberne
+Kapelle with all who are either interested in art or historical
+memorials.
+
+The twenty-three statuettes, originally intended as part of the scheme
+of Maximilian's cenotaph, to which reference has already been made,
+have been placed in the chapel without following any particular design
+or order of arrangement. They have a considerable interest from the
+fact that they represent saints of royal or noble birth whose
+destinies, legendary or real, have been bound up with those of the
+House of Habsburg. They are frequently overlooked by visitors to
+Innsbruck and by even those who enter the Hofkirche; but, irrespective
+of their individual merits, they should be studied on account of
+having originally formed part of the scheme for the magnificent
+memorial to Maximilian.
+
+(1) St. Adelgunda, daughter of Walbert, Count of Hainault. (2) St.
+Adelbert, Count of Brabant. (3) St. Doda, wife of St. Arnulf, Duke of
+the Moselle. (4) St. Hermelinda, daughter of Witger, Count of Brabant.
+(5) St. Guy, Duke of Lotharingia. (6) St. Simpert, Bishop of Augsburg,
+son of Charlemagne's sister Symporiana, who rebuilt the monastery of
+St. Magnus at Füssen. (7) St. Jodok, son of a king of Great Britain,
+wearing a Palmer's dress. (8) St. Landerich, Bishop of Metz, son of
+St. Vincent, Count of Hainault, and St. Waltruda. (9) St. Clovis. (10)
+St. Oda, wife of Duke Conrad. (11) St. Pharaild, daughter of Witger,
+Count of Brabant. (12) St. Reinbert, her brother. (13) St. Ronald,
+brother of St. Simpert, Bishop of Augsburg. (14) St. Stephen, King of
+Hungary. (15) St. Venantius, martyr, son of Theodoric, Duke of
+Lotharingia. (16) St. Waltruda, mother of St. Landerich. (17) St.
+Arnulf, husband of St. Doda, afterwards Bishop of Metz. (18) St.
+Chlodulf, son of St. Waltruda. (19) St. Gudula, sister of St. Albert,
+Count of Brabant. (20) St. Pepin Teuto, Duke of Brabant. (21) St.
+Trudo, priest, son of St. Adela. (22) St. Vincent, monk. (23) Richard
+Coeur-de-Lion. All of whom were more or less closely related or
+associated with the royal house of Habsburg.
+
+The monuments which we have referred to, gathered within the walls of
+the Hofkirche, serve to conjure up for those versed in Tyrolese
+history many stirring, romantic, and tragic episodes. To this historic
+building was the beautiful Philippine Welser borne from Castle Ambras
+to her last resting-place. And here knelt the Archduke Leopold V. at
+his marriage with the lovely Claudia Felicitas de Medici, whilst all
+the while there rolled the thunder and tumult of the Thirty Years' War
+beyond the frontier of Tyrol. And a few years later came Queen
+Christian of Sweden to make her abjuration of the Protestant faith on
+October 28, 1655. We read in one account of this imposing and
+impressive ceremony that the Queen was attired in a plain black silk
+gown, and wore no other jewels than a cross on her breast in which
+flashed five great diamonds of wonderful beauty symbolical of the five
+wounds of Christ. Her repetition of the Latin profession of faith
+after the Papal nuncio, we are told, was so clear and emphasized as to
+attract general comment. Not only was the Ambrosian hymn sung after
+the ceremony, but "the Innsbruckers celebrated the event of her
+conversion to the true faith by the firing of cannon and the ringing
+of the church bells." An ever popular ceremony which marked her stay
+in the town was the procession of the favourite picture of Tyrol,
+Cranach's Madonna brought to the country by Leopold V. Mystery plays,
+which are still popular in Tyrol, were also performed, and the event
+was made the excuse or occasion for much general rejoicing.
+
+The historic Hofkirche has seen more joyful scenes and sadder than the
+renunciation of Queen Christian, for in it was held a solemn
+thanksgiving service on behalf of yet another Claudia de Medici, the
+Tyrolese princess who was chosen for his bride by the Emperor Leopold
+I. And here in more modern times knelt Andreas Hofer to receive the
+gifts of his Emperor, the medal and chain which were hung around his
+neck when he was made Regent or Governor of Tyrol.
+
+Into this Hofkirche, which was destined to provide him ultimately with
+a fit resting-place, he also came to return thanks after his greatest
+triumph over the invaders of his country, on Berg Isel, whilst outside
+the church the brave citizens of Innsbruck were acclaiming him
+Dictator, and cheering in a delirium of joy.
+
+[Sidenote: ABBEY OF WILTEN]
+
+No description of Innsbruck, however brief, could be deemed complete
+without at least a passing reference to the famous Abbey of Wilten
+which stands on the outskirts of the south-western portion of the
+town. The present Abbey belonging to the Praemonstratensian Order was
+founded in the eleventh century upon the site where stood the Roman
+settlement of Veldidena. The Abbey and Church of that day, however,
+have been so frequently damaged by fire that during the centuries it
+has been practically reconstructed. The story of its foundation forms
+one of the most remarkable of Tyrolese legends, and exhibits in its
+incidents with extraordinary clearness the conflict taking place in
+those times between the doctrines of Christianity and Heathendom.
+
+[Sidenote: HAIMON AND THE DRAGON]
+
+Certain authorities state that the Romans, when they entered the
+country, found a town already existing, which they adopted as one of
+their most important stations, and re-named Veldidena. This
+settlement, however, was, according to tradition, destroyed by Attila
+on his way back through the country after the desperate Battle of
+Chalons; but it nevertheless continued to be a largely frequented
+station in the stretch of country lying between the Po and the Rhine
+owing to the convenience of its situation and the existence of the
+famous Brenner Road. Afterwards came the expedition of Theodoric of
+Verona against Chriemhild's Garden of Roses at Worms; and we are told
+amongst those who enlisted in Theodoric's service and distinguished
+themselves at the taking of the famous Rose Garden was one Haimo or
+Haimon (now believed to be the Heime of "the Heldenbuch") who, after
+the expedition, came through Tyrol in his master's victorious train.
+This Haimon was a giant, taller and more powerful even than Goliath
+himself; and as he approached Veldidena he found barring his progress
+another giant named Thyrsus (now identified as Schrudan) living near
+Zirl. This latter giant having heard of Haimon's prowess, and as his
+own supremacy had hitherto remained unchallenged, determined to force
+Haimon to fight him.
+
+Theodoric's giant proved willing enough for the encounter, and
+scarcely, indeed, waited to be challenged. Thyrsus, although the
+bigger and more terrible of aspect, with a skin bronzed by the
+open-air life he had led, and his muscles developed and kept in
+condition by constant exercise, was not so skilful and wily as his
+opponent, whose every movement showed him to be a master in both the
+arts of attack and defence.
+
+We are told that Thyrsus grasped in his hand a pine tree which he had
+torn up by the roots to serve as a weapon, and that at every movement
+of his the ground shook under his tread, which made a noise like
+thunder. Rushing impetuously to attack Haimon he found the latter cool
+and collected, watchful of his antagonist's every movement, and
+waiting patiently for the opportunity of striking a decisive blow. As
+the Titanic struggle went on, Haimon merely acting on the defensive,
+Thyrsus became weary, and then Haimon gathering all his force together
+fell upon him and slew him.
+
+The story goes on to tell how a Benedictine monk of Tegernsee, passing
+whilst Haimon was still flushed with victory, stopped to reason with
+him on the worthlessness of mere brutal strength and all that he had
+hitherto deemed of value, and succeeded so well in painting the
+attractions of a better life that the giant was converted on the spot,
+and thenceforth abandoned his life of battle and bloodshed, and
+devoted his time and strength to the service of God. One of his first
+acts was to start building with his own hands a church and monastery
+on the site of ruined Veldidena on the banks of the Sill.
+
+The legend tells us that he quarried the stone necessary for this
+undertaking with his own hands, and at last the day came when he had
+sufficient to lay the foundations of the church. He found, however,
+that the work he did in the day was always undone at night, so that he
+made no progress. This, though he did not know it, was the work of the
+devil; who, in the form of a huge dragon, had hidden himself in a cave
+with the express purpose of thwarting Haimon's pious intentions.
+
+At last the latter realized that he must watch and discover what
+happened. This he did, and after a little time one evening the dragon
+emerged from his cave, lashing the ground with his tail in his fury,
+and filling the air with the sulphurous smoke and flame which he
+breathed out. Great as was his strength, Haimon at once realized that
+he could not overcome so terrible an enemy easily; so commending his
+soul to God he waited with a brave heart. Soon dawn began to break
+over the mountains, and at the first glimpse of light the dragon
+turned and fled back to his lair. Haimon, taking courage at the sight,
+set off in pursuit, and by-and-by they both arrived at the cave in
+which the dragon was accustomed to hide during the day. The entrance
+was so narrow that when the monster had got partly in it was
+impossible for him to turn, and so Haimon, seeing his opportunity,
+raised his sword, and calling on God to strengthen him, cut off the
+dragon's head with a single blow. Then he cut out the tongue or sting
+of the monster as a trophy, and eventually hung it up in the sanctuary
+of the church. Nowadays one is shown at Wilten a representation of
+this dragon's tongue, which we are told was above two feet in length.
+
+The dragon once dead the building progressed rapidly, and when it was
+finished Haimon, no doubt in an ebullition of joy, seized a huge rock,
+which he had quarried, but did not need to use for the foundations,
+and threw it with all his might into the valley. It was a good throw,
+for the rock, after nearly two miles of flight, struck against the
+hill of Ambras and fell into the valley, where it may yet be seen!
+Haimon endowed the Abbey with all the land which stretched between
+its site and the stone at the foot of the hill of Ambras.
+
+Now it only remained to colonize the monastery, and ultimately the
+Benedictines came to inhabit it, and here the giant lived amongst them
+a life of penance and good works, dying in the year 878. His body, so
+tradition states, was buried on the right-hand side of the high altar
+in the church. But although many searches have been made for his
+remains during the period which elapsed between his death and the
+middle of the seventeenth century, they have never been discovered.
+But the last search in 1644 was disastrous as well as unsuccessful,
+because it undermined a great part of the wall of the church, which
+collapsed. The popular belief in the two giants is kept alive by the
+huge wooden statues representing them, which are placed at the
+entrance of the church. The interior of the building is in the form of
+a basilica, and contains not only frescoes by Caspar Waldmann, but
+also some good pictures by Grasmayr, Busjäger, Andersag, Egid Schor,
+and other artists.
+
+The Abbey of Wilten in those days was one of the three most important
+in Tyrol, and was not only the centre of religious, but also of the
+artistic life of the country, and it nowadays possesses some very
+interesting and valuable pictures.
+
+One of the most famous of the old-time inmates of the Abbey was
+Petermann, once a lover of the licentious Margaret of Tyrol, yclept
+"Pocket-Mouthed Meg." After her abdication in 1367, Petermann entered
+the monastery to expiate the sins and follies of his youth. He endowed
+the Abbey with an estate, but he showed his business capacity by
+having an agreement drawn up with the Abbot setting forth the terms
+upon which he joined the brotherhood. Amongst other things he was,
+firstly, to derive benefit from all the masses said by the monks, and
+the good works performed by them; secondly, was to have two servants
+to wait upon him, who were to share the meals of the brethren;
+thirdly, he, himself, was to have food similar to that served to the
+Abbot and wines from the monastic cellar. Apparently the arrangement
+did not, after all, fit in with the views of Petermann, for we find he
+afterwards insisted upon an increase in his food allowance to the
+extent of a capon, four fowls, forty eggs, and four pounds of butter,
+with sufficient hay for the feeding of his three horses.
+
+  [Illustration: A PINE WOOD NEAR INNSBRUCK]
+
+[Sidenote: A LEGEND OF WILTEN]
+
+The other church at Wilten (the Parish Church), which stands on the
+opposite side of Leopold-Strasse, dates only from the latter part of
+the eighteenth century, and was built as a secular church in
+conformity with the decree of the Emperor Joseph II., by Franz Penz of
+Telfs, in the Rococo style of architecture. On the high altar of the
+church is a very ancient and quaint Madonna known as "Mutter Gottes
+unter den vier Saülen" carved in sandstone, the legend relating to
+which is as follows: The "Thundering Legion" of Marcus Aurelius, when
+stationed at Veldidena about the year 137, brought this image with
+them, which they are stated to have worshipped, and on one occasion,
+when departing for an expedition to a distant part of the country,
+they buried it under four trees, and as they did not return had no
+opportunity of resurrecting it. There it lay for many years, until
+one, Rathold Von Aiblingen, after making a pilgrimage to Rome, where
+he heard the story of its burying and the place of its concealment,
+dug it up and set it upon the altar in a _baldachino_, which was
+supported by four pillars, where it has always been an object of much
+veneration. Amongst its many famous devotees was Frederick of the
+Empty Purse, who, during his wanderings through Tyrol with his trusty
+Hans Von Müllinen, when under the ban of the church, came and knelt
+before the shrine and prayed for a blessing. Afterwards, when he had
+regained his possessions, he attributed his success to the
+intervention of the Madonna at Wilten and caused a picture to be
+painted of himself and his esquire, in which they are shown kneeling
+at the shrine under the protective mantle of the Virgin. This quaint
+picture is now hung in the church amongst many other curious and often
+pathetic votive offerings.
+
+In the mortuary chapel is a rudely carved and painted wooden statue of
+Haimon holding the dragon's tongue in his hand. There are also some of
+Grasmayr's paintings to be seen in the church, and in the adjoining
+churchyard, from which one can obtain a most beautiful view of the
+valley and surrounding mountains, is the modern Calvary by the
+Tyrolean sculptor, Professor Fuss. In this quiet spot, crowded with
+memories of the dead past, one is able in a measure to conjure up
+pictures of the times when the Etruscan, Roman, and Gothic invaders
+poured into the valley by the Brenner Pass and overran Tyrol, and left
+upon the country and the people enduring traces of their occupation.
+
+The Wilten Churches are both of simple architectural style, but
+nevertheless are effective and even impressive when seen amidst the
+environment of a beautiful landscape, with their picturesque,
+red-capped towers lit by the Alpine sunlight, and with their
+buff-coloured walls beautified by the stains of weather and of time.
+
+[Sidenote: WINTER SPORTS]
+
+Numerous as are the undoubted attractions of Innsbruck in early
+spring, summer, and autumn, when the encircling fields and mountain
+slopes are gay with Alpine flowers, and beautiful with the varied
+tints of the foliage of trees and shrubs, the town is yearly becoming
+more widely known and more largely frequented as a winter holiday
+resort, where what are generally known as "winter sports" can be
+indulged in to one's heart's content. Indeed, Innsbruck, which
+possesses one of the largest and most beautiful ice rinks in Europe,
+takes a very leading part in the Tyrolean winter sports. One of the
+town's most remarkable features is its climate, which, notwithstanding
+the proximity of huge masses of ice and snow, not only upon the
+summits of the towering mountains of the Karwendel, but also on the
+lower slopes, and in the valley of the Inn itself, is a mild one, and
+the sunny days are many.
+
+One of the most delightful Alpine experiences possible, for those who
+do not take part in the more active sports of ski running, skating, or
+tobogganing, is a sleigh ride on the Brenner Road to Matrei or even
+further, returning on the other side of the gorge of the Sill by way
+of Igls and Patsch. Expert ski runners find many opportunities for
+exercising their skill, the more adventurous and hardy making
+excursions far afield in the valley of the Inn. A very favourite
+ground for this pastime of ski-ing is on the farther side of the Sill
+near Natters and Mutters, where are to be found those immense plateaux
+of smooth-surfaced snow beloved of good runners, and a beautiful
+landscape forming a charming background. Expert runners, however,
+frequently extend their field of operations into the Karwendel
+mountains, or as far as the Kalkkogel in the beautiful Stubai valley.
+
+Tobogganing has become not only a fashionable pastime amongst
+visitors, but also with the better class inhabitants of Innsbruck. And
+thus every evening when the snow is sufficient and in good condition,
+hundreds of tobogganers make their way of the heights of Igls and
+Mutters, where the best tracks are prepared.
+
+Sunday is, however, the great day; and then the long runs near Hall
+and Oberperfutz are crowded with hundreds of bob-sleighs and
+tobogganers. The Hall run is famous throughout Tyrol. A road extends
+from Salzberg far into the Karwendel mountains, passing through
+beautiful Alpine scenery to Hall itself, forming a natural run or
+track some five kilometres (just over three miles) in length, with a
+drop of nearly 3000 feet in that distance. The Innsbruck Club, by
+means of a snow plough, keeps a run about fifteen feet wide clear.
+This track is to be soon further lengthened to the extent of two
+kilometres by carrying it as far as Lafatscherjoch, where several
+important races are arranged and held every year.
+
+Winter sports are indulged in on all sides. Along the valley of the
+swiftly flowing Inn from Schwaz, past Jenbach and Brixlegg on to
+Kufstein, one finds facilities for those most invigorating of pastimes
+tobogganing, ski-ing, and skating. Even the children have their little
+home-made and often ornamented toboggans, and on the mountain roads
+and by-paths one meets with scores of youngsters emulating their
+elders and foreign visitors; whilst the frozen tributary streams which
+fall into the Inn provide fine skating grounds and curling links
+without stint set amid the delightful scenery, which had so much to do
+with the popularity of the valley of the Inn and Innsbruck as winter
+holiday resorts.
+
+It is not without reason that many who come to the capital of Tyrol
+return again and again, finding in its life and movement, its historic
+buildings, associations, and art treasures material for study; in its
+climate renewed health and vigour.
+
+The circle of snow-capped environing hills, upon which effects of
+cloud and sunlight ceaselessly pass, never palls; and in the ancient
+byways and secluded courtyards ears and minds attuned to the historic
+past seem to catch the echoes and see visions of stirring scenes, and
+the pageantry of long ago when knights and ladies and serving-men, and
+burghers in quaint old-time costumes trod the rough-paved streets.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[10] See Zoller's "Geschichte der Stadt Innsbruck."
+
+[11] By some authorities the work is stated to have been carried out
+by Andrea Crivelli of Trent.
+
+[12] See Klöppel's "Maximilian."
+
+[13] This is as stated in Baedeker, and is the view of several
+authorities, though by no means certain.-C. H.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER V
+
+     THE ENVIRONS OF INNSBRUCK--CASTLE AMBRAS AND ITS
+     TREASURES--IGLS: A QUAINT LEGEND CONCERNING ITS CHURCH--THE
+     STUBAI VALLEY, AND SOME VILLAGES--HALL AND ITS SALT
+     MINES--SPECKBACHER'S OLD HOME--ST. MICHAEL
+
+
+Distant from Innsbruck about three miles by a shady road running
+eastward from Berg Isel, which forms a charming walk of a summer
+afternoon, stands the famous Castle Ambras on a well-wooded spur of
+the Mittelgebirge overlooking the wide Inn Valley, and with a fine
+view of the slopes and peaked summits of the limestone mountains which
+shut in the valley. It is a conspicuous and commanding feature of the
+landscape when seen from the latter, its yellow-grey walls pierced
+with many windows showing up against a background of dark-green
+forest. But on a fine summer day Castle Ambras is too bare-looking and
+insistent in colour to be entirely picturesque.
+
+Long back, when the Romans held sway in Tyrol, on the site where the
+castle now stands was placed a fort--one of those outposts of
+civilization which that world-conquering power dotted so plentifully
+amid the hills and valleys of Tyrol. Ancient as this fortress was, it
+is considered by many authorities that even it replaced, or was
+erected upon the foundations of, a far earlier building dating from
+Etruscan times. The first castle, as is generally understood by the
+term, was that built by the Andechs, who towards the end of the tenth
+century were one of the three chief ruling families in Tyrol. Indeed,
+until the Terriolis became Counts of Tyrol they were the most powerful
+of the three great temporal territorial lords, and previous to their
+extinction in the male line in the middle half of the thirteenth
+century had acquired vast possessions. They were a typical mediæval
+and feudal family, distinguished alike in the council and upon the
+stricken field. In turn it provided officers of the Roman Empire,
+pilgrims to sacred shrines, and to Rome itself, crusaders and
+religious enthusiasts who founded important and wealthy monastical
+institutions.
+
+The history of the builders of the Castle of Ambras would fill many
+volumes with incidents of brave and noble (and sometimes cruel and
+ignoble) deeds; romantic episodes, which supplied the travelling
+minnesingers with themes for their songs; and records of stirring
+events, in which national as well as family history became entwined.
+Of them one historian has written, "they were esteemed upon earth,
+more particularly by the wandering minstrels who were always and at
+all times welcome to their hospitable roof and table, and beloved in
+Heaven to which they contributed several saintly souls."
+
+On the death of the last of the male line of the Andechs, Duke Otto
+II., in 1248, the castle and the family estates passed into the
+possession of the Counts of Tyrol. Ultimately the former was purchased
+from the then owners by the Emperor Ferdinand I., and was given to his
+son, afterwards Ferdinand II., when the latter was appointed Regent of
+Tyrol. It always remained his favourite home, even when he became
+Emperor, and it was to this castle that he brought his beautiful bride
+Philippine Welser in 1567.
+
+[Sidenote: AN ARCHDUCAL ROMANCE]
+
+The true story of the love of the Archduke Ferdinand, son of the
+German Emperor Ferdinand I., will probably never be accurately known.
+But the event is indissolubly bound up with Tyrolese history. Not
+unnaturally the idyllic and romantic circumstances surrounding the
+marriage have been much overlaid by tradition and the possible desire
+of historians to make this Royal mésalliance yet more astonishing.
+Therefore it is impossible to vouch for the entire accuracy of the
+story that has come down to us, which we give as it may be gathered
+from contemporary and more modern writers.
+
+[Sidenote: STORY OF PHILIPPINE WELSER]
+
+The meeting of the Archduke Ferdinand and his future wife--who was the
+daughter of one Franz Welser, a wealthy merchant prince of Augsburg in
+the middle of the sixteenth century--took place when the Archduke
+accompanied his father on the occasion of the latter's state entry
+into the city. It was whilst passing along the principal street that
+the former noticed at a window of one of the larger and more important
+houses the face of a most beautiful young girl, who, after having
+thrown flowers down in the street, on seeing that she had attracted
+his attention, blushingly disappeared within the house. It was
+apparently, so far as Ferdinand was concerned, a case of love at first
+sight; for, charmed by her beautiful face, he lost no time in
+discovering who she was, and, according to some authorities, saw her
+on several occasions whilst in the city. Afterwards he paid court to
+her whilst she was at Bresnic, in Bohemia, on a visit to an aunt.
+
+Philippine was already betrothed by her father to the heir of the
+great and wealthy Fugger family; but fortunately for her and the young
+prince, Philippine's mother was a woman of much influence with her
+husband as well as the confidante and friend of her daughter. However,
+it was not an easy task to win his consent to the betrothal to Prince
+Ferdinand or for the proposed alliance with the Fuggers to be broken
+off.
+
+Both the fathers were anxious for it, and Welser had never been known
+to go back upon his word or a bargain. But whilst the older men were
+engaged in counting their wealth, and congratulating themselves upon
+the marriage which had been arranged with little or no thought of
+affection between those most concerned, Ferdinand had evolved a plan
+by which, with the assistance and connivance of Frau Welser, he was
+able to accomplish his design of carrying off her daughter.
+
+On a day arranged, and at the hour agreed upon, the young prince, who
+was two years Philippine's junior, appeared beneath the turret from
+which he had first seen her leaning. A little distance down the street
+his horse was waiting. Philippine, after receiving her mother's
+blessing, and comforted by her approval, joined her lover, and fled
+with him to the chapel where the latter's own confessor, one Joann
+Cavallerus, was waiting to solemnize the marriage, with an old and
+trusted servant as witness. Another account states that the ceremony
+was performed at Bresnic by the same priest.
+
+Ultimately, Franz Welser, to whom doubtless a properly carried out
+marriage with a prince had some attractions, gave his consent and
+benediction. It is difficult, perhaps, in these more materialistic
+days, to quite sympathize with the attitude which this wealthy and
+worthy burgher of Augsburg at first assumed towards his daughter's
+marriage. Then, with reputable merchants, not only was their word
+their bond, but in them was a strong element of pride which would not
+readily brook that they should be looked down upon even by princes.
+And doubtless it was this pride which was principally at the back of
+old Welser's opposition to Prince Ferdinand's suit. But the
+magnificent dowry that Philippine's father was rich enough to give her
+was one of which no prince need have been ashamed.
+
+At the time of his marriage the Archduke was twenty-eight and
+Philippine two years older. The Emperor, of course, refused to
+acknowledge the marriage when he ultimately, some years after its
+celebration, became aware of it. And although we are bound to admit
+the story of Philippine's personal appeal to him to forgive his son
+and her rests on a very shadowy basis, and is, indeed, rather
+traditional than historical, we give it for what it is worth.
+
+The story goes that Philippine, distressed not only for her own
+position but for the trouble she had brought upon her husband by
+estranging him from his father the Emperor, journeyed to Vienna with
+her little children to gain an audience with her royal father-in-law
+in person. To do this was a matter of great difficulty, and though she
+ultimately succeeded, it was only by reason of her great beauty and
+her gentleness, and the fact that she had assumed another name. Then,
+after entering the audience chamber, she fell upon her knees and told
+the Emperor her own story in the guise of an allegory, saying that she
+was the happy and beloved wife of a gallant nobleman of great position
+whose father would not recognize her because she was herself not nobly
+born; adding that, hearing how just and good the Emperor was, she had
+come to him to implore him to intercede for her and her sons with her
+obdurate father-in-law. Having listened to her tale the Emperor,
+delighted with the grace, eloquence, and beauty of Philippine and with
+her two sons, told her that he would grant her request and would
+appeal to her father-in-law to not only forgive his son, but to
+recognize the marriage, adding that it passed his comprehension how
+any one could refuse to receive so charming and beautiful a woman into
+his family. Then, as was to be expected, he asked the name of her
+husband's father. And she, throwing herself once more upon her knees,
+told the Emperor that it was he himself to whom she had referred, and
+that she was the wife of his son Ferdinand.
+
+The Emperor could scarcely go back upon his word nor could he stultify
+himself by denying the charm and beauty of Philippine now that he
+discovered who she really was; and won over by the courage and
+persistency which had inspired her journey to Vienna to seek to
+approach him in person, he not only forgave his son but also
+recognized her as a daughter-in-law. Some accounts, although this is
+probably not so, state that he wished the marriage still to remain a
+secret, and appointed Ferdinand Regent of Tyrol, sending him and his
+wife to reside at Innsbruck.[14]
+
+The Emperor's wishes were carried out, and it is said that it was not
+until her death generally known that Philippine was actually married
+to the Archduke. After her decease, however, the circumstance was made
+public and the Archduke was always accustomed to refer to Philippine
+as his wife. Of course the marriage was a morganatic one, and
+therefore neither of her two surviving children, Andreas and Charles,
+inherited the Archducal titles.
+
+Four years previous to the Archduke Ferdinand's coming to take up his
+residence at Innsbruck as Regent of Tyrol he had acquired the
+picturesque and finely situated Castle of Ambras, and by many
+alterations and additions to the then existing building soon made it
+one of the most noted as well as one of the most beautiful residences
+in the whole country. He furnished it with great magnificence, and
+when all was completed presented it to his wife Philippine. Here they
+usually spent the summer months in a happiness which was not only
+proverbial but undoubted.
+
+As have been several other rulers of Tyrol, the Archduke Ferdinand was
+not only greatly interested himself in art, science, and literature,
+but he sought as the patron of these to gather around his person and
+to attach to his Court learned professors, artists, and scientists
+from all parts of Europe. As a result the court of Ferdinand and
+Philippine grew from an artistic, musical, and intellectual standpoint
+to be a particularly brilliant one.
+
+[Sidenote: CHARACTER OF PHILIPPINE]
+
+The character of Philippine seems to have been as pleasing as was her
+physical appearance. She is said to have had a fine, clear, though
+somewhat pale, complexion, blue eyes, and golden hair, although it
+must be added that existing portraits of her do not do her justice in
+the latter regard, unless her beauty was greatly exaggerated. In most
+of them she appears with a slightly oval, and more Italian than
+Teutonic type of face, with well-marked and well-bowed eyebrows, soft,
+but intelligent eyes, a straight nose, and a very sweet, and even in
+some portraits "roguish," mouth; but as a whole her face is not one of
+striking beauty, judging it by the standards of more modern times.
+
+Philippine, when settled at Ambras, greatly interested herself in good
+works of all kinds, but more especially in the visiting and care of
+the sick, and the memory of her good deeds in this respect is still
+cherished in Tyrol. Her chief physician has set down the large number
+of sick who were at various times under her immediate care, and in the
+record one finds mention of ailing folk of many nationalities, showing
+her Catholic spirit in the relief of suffering. She even had her own
+dispensary at Ambras in the charge of one Guranta, who was a
+celebrated chemist of that time. Concerning her one of her biographers
+says, "She, herself delicate in health from early life, had a strong
+and ever ready sympathy for sufferers, especially those who were
+distressed in mind or circumstance as well as in body."
+
+During the years she lived at Ambras she gained such a knowledge of
+disease and the remedies usually employed in those days that she wrote
+a book of prescriptions herself, which is now to be seen in the Court
+Library, Vienna. It is a most interesting volume, as it contains a
+considerable record of the effects of the remedies used; sometimes
+written by Philippine's own hand with remarks added as comments upon
+the success or failure of the treatment.
+
+Philippine was in other ways also of a philanthropic and kindly
+disposition, and on many occasions girls in her service, or who were
+known to her, received the pleasant surprise on their marriage of a
+wedding dress from her; and there is still to be seen at Innsbruck a
+dressmaker's bill, the total amount of which is largely comprised of
+wedding dresses given in the way we have mentioned.
+
+Although the burgomaster's daughter, according to her own confession,
+would rather have led a less exalted and more retiring life than that
+incumbent upon her by reason of her marriage with the Archduke
+Ferdinand, all writers are agreed that she ably and well adorned the
+position to which she had been called. Of her husband's great
+affection for her there can be little doubt. Indeed, it was so
+notorious that the Venetian Ambassador Michiele, when on a visit to
+the Archduke, reported to his Government that Ferdinand was never so
+happy as when with his wife, and in fact was never an hour away from
+her.
+
+Philippine, in spite of her many social duties and exalted position,
+was an excellent and even an ideal German _haus-frau_. She was a
+clever needlewoman, skilled especially in embroidery; and quite an
+expert and practical cook. She might, indeed, be said to have rivalled
+the famous Mrs. Glass, as she wrote an exhaustive cookery book which
+displays a great and practical knowledge of the culinary art, and is,
+happily for the curious, preserved with her book of prescriptions in
+the Court Library at Vienna.
+
+Nothing was too good for Philippine in the estimation of the Archduke.
+Not only did he give her the magnificent Schloss Ambras, Stubai
+Valley, and all it contained, several villages, and vast sums of
+money, but also the estates of Königsberg, Salurn, and Hörtenberg.
+
+[Sidenote: COURT AT CASTLE AMBRAS]
+
+The Court at Innsbruck and at Castle Ambras was a gay one, and
+numerous brilliant entertainments were given during the married life
+of Ferdinand and Philippine. Amongst the many _fêtes_ which took place
+at various times one finds a record of one in the diary of James von
+Payersberg bearing the date of July 13, 1570, in which there is a
+record of Philippine having won the first prize, which was a silver
+gilt cup of great value, for shooting with a crossbow; whilst her
+aunt, Madame De Loxan, who on Philippine's marriage had been appointed
+as her Mistress of the Robes, won the second. An interesting
+circumstance in connection with this _fête_ is that the gentlemen and
+ladies competed together in the shooting match, with the result that
+the former were defeated in the manner we have stated.
+
+At Castle Ambras not only were there collected together scientists,
+artists, musicians, and many learned men, but also, as was the custom
+of those days, jesters, and "freaks" of various types, whose curious
+divergences from the normal have many of them been preserved in
+portraits hung in the Castle. Of ordinary servants, retainers, pages,
+etc., there was always a huge retinue entailing an enormous
+expenditure and a commissariat department of considerable magnitude.
+Philippine, although her natural tastes were so divergent from those
+of her husband who loved gaiety, sport, and the pomp of circumstance,
+by her gentleness, affectionate study of his wishes and great
+tactfulness, succeeded in not only gaining but keeping his affection
+throughout their married life. It is said that Philippine, whether the
+story of her captivation of her royal father-in-law's heart be true or
+not, was gladly and very generally received by the Tyrol nobles, who
+were distinguished not only by their chivalrous but also by their
+generally haughty disposition. Very friendly relations also appear to
+have existed with neighbouring courts, whilst Pope Gregory XIII. had
+so high an opinion of Philippine's religious sincerity and virtues
+that he sent her by special ambassador a beautiful and very valuable
+rosary.
+
+Philippine died in 1580, surrounded by members of her family, and in
+the presence of the Archduke Ferdinand and the Dukes Ferdinand of
+Bavaria and Henry of Brunswick, after a married life lasting
+twenty-three years, and an illness of only a few days' duration. So
+beloved was she throughout Tyrol that general mourning was observed
+for some months, and masses were said in all the churches of the land
+for the repose of her soul. How great the affection borne her by the
+people amongst whom she came to live really was, is well shown by the
+fact that in many a cottage home in Tyrol portraits of her even
+nowadays are found.
+
+In death as in life she was mindful of her people and of the poor; and
+when she had been laid to rest in the Silver Chapel of the Franciscan
+Church at Innsbruck, where her beautiful though unostentatious tomb,
+with its recumbent figure lying within a semi-circular arch and with a
+crucifix hanging from her crossed hands, is placed, it was found that
+in her will few of her household had been forgotten, whether their
+positions were high or menial.
+
+The death of Philippine was a heavy blow to the Archduke, and for some
+months after the event he lived in complete retirement, seeing no one
+but his two sons, his Father Confessor, and his most intimate personal
+friends.
+
+However, after his grief had somewhat spent itself, he set out on a
+tour, accompanied by his two surviving children; one of whom, Karl,
+became Bishop of Brixen and a Cardinal (died 1600); the other,
+Andreas, Markgrave of Burgau (died 1618), and the owner of Castle
+Ambras by the will of his father. This bequest was made on condition
+that Andreas maintained and kept the building in repair, and preserved
+the magnificent collection of rare MSS., books, pictures, coins,
+armour, and other _objets d'art_, and curiosities which Ferdinand and
+Philippine had delighted to gather, and in the possession of which
+they had taken such pride.
+
+Eventually, in 1606, so that this wish of his father might be
+adequately carried out, Andreas disposed of the Castle and grounds to
+the Emperor Rudolf II., and by this means Ambras and its unrivalled
+collection came into the possession of the Imperial Austrian family.
+
+[Sidenote: TREASURES OF CASTLE AMBRAS]
+
+Just two centuries later, owing to fear lest the priceless treasures
+should fall into the hands of the French and Bavarian invaders, the
+greater portion of the Ambras collection was removed to Vienna, and at
+first lodged in the Belvidere Palace from whence it has of recent
+years been transferred to the Imperial Art History Museum of which it
+forms a most interesting and valuable part. Thus was Tyrol robbed of
+one of its chief glories, and although at various times promises of
+restitution have been made they have never been fulfilled.
+
+There are still, however, some interesting things left at Castle
+Ambras, including the valuable collection of Weapons lodged in the
+Unterschloss, dating from the fifteenth century to the present day
+(formerly, in the sixteenth century, it is said that the Armoury
+contained no less than five hundred complete suits of mail); the eight
+Roman milestones in the outer court, found along the road from Wilten
+to Schonberg, and dating from the time of Septimus Severus about 193
+to 211 A.D.; and the collection of furniture, ivories, glass, and
+portraits, which latter include several of the Archduke Ferdinand and
+Philippine Welser, etc.
+
+On the ground floor of the Hoch Schloss or "upper castle" is an
+interesting and well-restored fifteenth-century Gothic chapel, with
+some frescoes by Wörndle; and a bathroom, said to be that of
+Philippine, is on the same floor. It was around this little room that
+tradition wove the tragic story (since disproved and altogether
+discredited) of Philippine having committed suicide by opening one of
+her veins in order that her husband might re-marry with some one whose
+rank was more in conformity with his own. For many years, for several
+generations, in fact, this tale was given credence, and was accepted
+by at least the common folk as exemplifying the domestic virtues for
+which Philippine was justly famed. But although Ferdinand's mother
+appears never to have accepted the position or to have become
+reconciled to Philippine, the rest of the members of his family appear
+to have treated her well, and, so far as history can show, there never
+was any reason for the sacrifice of her life she was for so long
+supposed to have made, in the interests of her husband's happiness and
+position.
+
+The fame of Philippine Welser has outlived the centuries which have
+elapsed since she died; and the burgher of Augsburg's daughter was
+destined to become one of the most popular of Tyrolese heroines; and
+there is in consequence many a peasant home in Tyrol to-day where her
+portrait in some form of reproduction or other has a place with that
+of some favourite saint or even the Virgin herself.
+
+There are several other traditions connected with this beautifully
+situated Castle of Ambras. One is that Wallenstein, whilst a lad and a
+page in Ferdinand's service, fell out of the window in the corridor
+which leads to the dining-hall and received no hurt, owing to the fact
+that during the terrible moment when he lost his balance he vowed to
+the Virgin Mary if spared he would lead a more serious and better
+life.
+
+The castle, as did so many historic fortress-dwellings in Tyrol,
+gradually fell into decay; but when the Archduke Karl Ludwig, who was
+Governor of Tyrol during a short period in the middle of the last
+century, decided to take up his residence here it was thoroughly
+repaired and restored. The Art treasures, which remained after the
+removal of the main collections to Vienna, have been supplemented from
+time to time by contributions from the Imperial collections in Vienna,
+and in 1882 the Emperor threw open the castle to the public as a
+Museum.
+
+Of the many interesting rooms at Ambras two never fail to arouse the
+admiration and curiosity of visitors. The first is the Waffensaal, in
+which there is a collection of armour and arms, which has a
+sixteenth-century ceiling painted by G. B. Fontana, of Meran, with
+astronomical and mythological designs; the second, the famous and
+magnificently proportioned Spanish salon, with its exquisitely
+panelled wood ceiling and walls adorned with frescoes of the rulers of
+Tyrol, from 1221-1600.
+
+The view from the terrace, with its trellis of passion flowers and
+vines, across the Inn valley on a clear summer's day is one of great
+charm and beauty, and as one gazes across the fertile valley to the
+wonderful range of mountains that towers above it, the colours of
+which seem to change with every passing cloud, one can realize
+something of the affection Ferdinand, art lover and artist as he
+undoubtedly was, always had for Castle Ambras.
+
+[Sidenote: THE TOURNEY GROUND]
+
+None who come to the castle should fail to visit the picturesque and
+secluded Tummel-platz or Tourney ground, which overhangs as it were
+the village of Ambras, with its ancient church and quaint frescoes of
+the Last Judgment. On this spot during Ferdinand and Philippine's
+occupation of the Castle many jousts and knightly encounters are said
+to have taken place. From the gay and chivalrous use of those and
+previous times the Tummel-platz has passed to a melancholy one as the
+burial-ground of patriots and heroes. It was first put to this purpose
+when the Castle was turned into a military hospital--which for a short
+time it remained--and afterwards as the burial-place of some seven or
+eight thousand of Hofer's soldiers who fell in the wars with France
+and Bavaria, from 1809 to 1810. Indeed, it actually formed part of the
+battle-ground of 1809.
+
+As is perfectly natural, and in accord with the patriotic and
+religious spirit of the people, they have adorned the quiet and
+beautiful burial-ground with chapels, shrines, votive pictures, and
+memorials which confer upon it a distinctive and impressive interest,
+and sentiment which few such places can show. As a poet sings--
+
+     "Near Ambras, on the upland,
+     In fair Tyrolean land,
+     Within a cool green forest
+     Full thick the crosses stand.
+
+     "There gallant knights in armour
+     Once met with spear and shield,
+     And from those olden combats
+     'Tis called the 'Tourney Field.'
+
+     "Long rusted are the lances,
+     But, as the breezes blow,
+     Old, half-forgotten stories
+     Like spirits come and go."
+
+From Castle Ambras it is but a short journey by tramway to Igls, which
+is situated nearly a thousand feet above Innsbruck, but cannot be seen
+from the town. There are also two roads by which one may reach this
+little mountain village; one leading past Ambras, which is favoured by
+the less energetic of walkers, and the other, by which we ascended,
+much steeper, more picturesque and shorter. From Wilten it passes over
+the Sill Bridge and then ascends the Paschberg and winds along the
+edge of the fine Sill Gorge. When the little village of Vill is
+reached one seems suddenly to step into a fresh region of experience;
+one singularly different from that of Innsbruck, which, after all,
+lies but a mile or two away in the valley down below. Here as one
+comes in sight of the elegantly tapering red spire of the church one
+obtains an insight into the life of the upper valleys, and soon
+notices the Tyrolese custom of adorning the outside walls of the house
+with paintings, which, generally religious in subject, are many of
+them of a striking and even meritorious character as regards
+execution. In Vill none should fail to notice the painting of the
+Angel of Peace, which is over the doorway of a house in the main
+street.
+
+[Sidenote: BEAUTIFUL IGLS]
+
+One of the most beautiful walks hereabouts is that by the path which
+leads down through the woods to Gärberbach inn on the great Brenner
+High Road, from which point Berg Isel can be reached on foot in less
+than half an hour.
+
+Still climbing upwards from Vill and leaving the sights and sounds of
+the valley behind us we gradually approach Igls. Innsbruck and every
+trace of the wide valley and environing hills across it have suddenly
+vanished, and one finds one's self in the midst of wide extending and
+restfully green upland pastures, with a vista of the charmingly
+situated little villages of Natters and Mutters, across the Sill Gorge
+(which here is almost imperceptible) with their church steeples, green
+tinged and red turreted, shining in the clear Alpine air, and giving
+to the scene just that touch of colour which an artist loves.
+
+It is possible in Alpine valleys such as that in which Igls nestles to
+more truly estimate the factors which make the Tyrolese such a
+home-loving and patriotic people; and to realize how the chief human
+as well as religious associations even nowadays--as they did in the
+past--cluster round the village churches which rear their slender
+spires Heavenwards almost wherever half a dozen houses are grouped
+together.
+
+There are many splendid peaks towering above the picturesque valley in
+which Igls lies; amongst them the Habicht, more than 10,700 feet,
+Saile-Spitze, and the rugged Waldraster-Spitze, 8920 feet; and the
+lower slopes are well-wooded and beautiful at all seasons in their
+varied tints of green.
+
+Igls has altered considerably since we first visited it, and it now
+has the aspect of a mountain health "resort" of a modest and
+unassuming type, with some good hotels, a post office, telephone and
+telegraph. It is little wonder, then, that this favoured spot should
+have lately attracted to it many visitors in search of quietude and
+fresh air. The clean air and pure breezes off the glaciers and
+snow-fields above, which, filtering down across the pine woods of the
+lower slopes, come to one in the open valley not less fresh and
+invigorating but somewhat softened and perfumed, give it one of its
+chief charms.
+
+The little church is of considerable interest, not only from its
+picturesque situation, but also by reason of the pastoral scenes which
+are painted upon its organ loft, and the many quaint relics and votive
+offerings to be seen in it, which are a feature of so many Tyrolese
+village churches. The mural paintings on the houses in the village are
+numerous and curious, some of the most interesting relating to the
+legendary story of the Heilig Wasser. In connection with this there is
+a pilgrimage chapel picturesquely situated, in almost absolute
+solitude save for the Inn, on the mountain side more than two thousand
+feet above the valley.
+
+[Sidenote: A MIRACULOUS TALE]
+
+The church is built upon the site of the alleged miracle, the story
+concerning which is as follows:--Three centuries ago two cowherds were
+tending their flocks upon the upper pasture above Igls, when they were
+unfortunate enough to lose two young calves; and although they sought
+for them far and wide along the paths and amid the woods they failed
+to find them. At length, quite wearied out, and frightened lest they
+should be severely punished for their carelessness by their father,
+they fell on their knees and supplicated the Virgin and Saints to help
+them. Almost as soon as they commenced to pray a bright light fell
+upon them and round about, and the Virgin appearing beside them bade
+them be of good cheer, and told them to trouble no more as the lost
+cattle had gone home to their byre. Then she bade them drink, for
+their throats were parched with their wanderings. But the two lads,
+knowing there was no water near, exclaimed, "You tell us to drink, but
+where shall we find water? There is none here."
+
+  [Illustration: MOUNTAIN POOL ON THE RITTEN]
+
+The Virgin made no reply but vanished; and as she disappeared from
+their vision there welled up, where she had stood, a spring of clear
+water from out the rocks, which has never ceased to flow since.
+
+On their return home the boys refrained from saying anything about the
+vision or the miraculous spring, perhaps lest, notwithstanding the
+calves had been found in the cowshed as the Virgin had promised, they
+should be blamed for careless herding. But they never failed, when
+passing by the spring, to offer up a prayer of gratitude.
+
+Many years passed and the two cowherds not only grew to man's estate
+but became old and infirm, needing the assistance of others to look
+after their flocks. One of the two was aided by the deaf and dumb son
+of a neighbour, and one day, as the old man and boy were passing the
+spring, the former knelt down and prayed and drank of the water. The
+boy seeing him do this did likewise, and lo and behold he found his
+tongue miraculously loosened, and afterwards spoke as clearly as any
+other.
+
+The fame of the miracle spread abroad, and was readily believed by the
+people of the valley. Then the two old men told their own experience,
+and soon a chapel was built on the spot to which through the centuries
+many devout pilgrims as well as many curious visitors have journeyed.
+
+Amid the woods by which Igls is surrounded, and along the fertile
+valley in which the village stands, are many charming walks, and
+yearly the place is becoming more resorted to by those who appreciate
+the lovely and bracing mountain air, and a very pleasant form of what
+has become known as the "simple life."
+
+To the south-west of Igls and south of Innsbruck across the Sill is
+the lovely Stubai Valley, the beauty of which almost challenges that
+of the Oetzthal. Like the latter this valley is also verily the gate
+to the land of snow-fields and glaciers, of which there are upwards of
+eighty within its confines and hard by. The Stubai Thal is a
+combination of scenery of widely different character. Within a radius
+of a few miles, towering above its green and peaceful pastures, at
+least two score of magnificent peaks rear their heads skyward, none of
+which fall far short of (whilst many exceed) 10,000 feet in altitude.
+The lower portion of the valley is reminiscent of the far-famed,
+music-loving Zillerthal, with its dark-green pine forests, fertile
+meadows, and villages perched here and there on the slopes of the
+mountains, or nestling in the valley itself around the white-walled
+churches. This kind of scenery extends some little way beyond the
+village of Neustift, which is the last in the valley having a church,
+and then one seems to at once pass into a mysterious, wonderful, and
+fascinating region, where the legendary gnomes and ice-maidens of
+Tyrolean folk-tales and lore must surely dwell in caverns and
+habitations of perpetual ice and snow.
+
+Though there is a good mountain road winding up the hillside above
+Wilten, which in former times served the picturesque villages Natters,
+Mutters, Kreith, and Telfes, most travellers nowadays use the electric
+railway (the first made in Tyrol) for the journey to Fulpmes, which
+lies about half-way to Neustift and is rapidly becoming a favourite
+excursion resort for Innsbruck people.
+
+The railway (although it has been called a "toy" one) presents
+considerable features of interest to the engineer, and elements of
+apparent--but not actual--danger to the timorous. At least, one lady
+we know who had made the upward journey, had been across the slender
+viaduct supported on tapering piers, and had been whirled round curves
+of astonishing "sharpness," refused--until the distance by road had
+been pointed out to her--to return the same way. But there is in
+reality no risk on the Stubai Bahn, only an element of pleasant
+excitement, and the charm of wonderful scenery; and the latter is so
+beautiful and the little saloon cars so well adapted for viewing that
+few will, after all, we think, regret travelling to Fulpmes by
+train instead of a-foot or by carriage. The place was formerly
+celebrated for its iron and steel works; the articles made finding
+their way not only to Austria, but also to Germany and Italy; and
+although of late years the trade appears to have somewhat declined, it
+is still considerable and of interest to the curious who can watch the
+skilful artisans at work. The village is most picturesquely situated,
+and in the church there are some paintings by a local peasant girl
+quite worth seeing. Fulpmes forms an excellent centre from which to
+make excursions in the upper portions of the lovely valley, and amid
+the wooded slopes of the environing mountains. In summer there is the
+additional charm of the wealth of beautiful wild flowers which gem the
+fields, and spread like a many-coloured carpet of glowing tints
+beneath the shadow-casting and sombre pines.
+
+  [Illustration: VIADUCT ON STUBAI RAILWAY]
+
+  [Illustration: VIEW OF THE GROSSGLOCKNER]
+
+[Sidenote: FULPMES AND SCHONBERG]
+
+At Schonberg, south of Igls, and on the opposite bank of the Sill,
+standing nearly 3500 feet above sea level, one obtains a most
+widely-extended and panoramic view of the Stubai Valley and its
+villages. And as one stands in the Alpine observatory near the
+"Jagerhof," one is able to realize the full beauty of the valley, and
+the wonder of the mountain summits, including the Serles Spitz (also
+known in Innsbruck as the Waldraster Spitz), whose rugged peaks remind
+one of those giants in the Dolomites.
+
+But perhaps one of the most strange and interesting natural phenomena
+in all Tyrol is to be seen from Schonberg when the snow-fields, which
+in winter completely cover the mountain tops on every hand, begin to
+melt. Then gradually there appear in different parts of the upper
+slopes of the mountain ranges dark spots which, framed in unmelted
+snow, at last assume the appearance of silhouettes of gigantic size.
+On the peaks away above Innsbruck are slowly formed the figures of two
+women who appear to be fighting, and whose noses as the snow melts
+become more hooked and longer each day; on the Solstein a priest is
+seen carrying an _aspergillus_ in his hand, whilst on the
+Arzletscharte appears the most complete "picture" of them all, known
+as the "Falconer." This, a silhouette of remarkable vividness, depicts
+a youth dressed in a page's costume, adorned with a hat and plumes,
+and carrying on his left arm a falcon unhooded for flight. As the snow
+melts the figure loses its pristine slimness and assumes the form of a
+corpulent man, until at last it entirely disappears. On the side of
+the Patscherkofel is seen the figure of an old hunter with his dog;
+which, however, owing to the rapid melting of the snow when once a
+thaw commences, is only visible for a short time. Indeed, a few hours
+after we first saw it, for the reason we have given, the change was so
+great that the outline was almost destroyed.
+
+Hall, from time immemorial famous for its salt mines, is well worth a
+visit. Lying on the north or opposite side of the Inn to Igls, and to
+the east of Innsbruck, it can be reached either by the prosaic
+post-road which traverses the Valley, or from Igls by the beautiful
+Ellbögen road--a branch of the Brenner road dating from Roman
+times--passing over the Mittelgebirge and through Igls, Lans, Aldrans,
+Ampass, across the bridge over the Inn to Hall, which is somewhat
+longer. Equally picturesque, perhaps one might say even more so, is
+yet another road (the one we preferred) which skirts the lower slopes
+of the towering peaks of the Bavarian Alps, and passes through the
+villages of Arzl, Rum, and Thaur. There are also the alternatives of
+the Brenner railway, and the tramway for those who are poor walkers or
+are pressed for time.
+
+[Sidenote: SOME PRETTY VILLAGES]
+
+From Mühlau onwards one has most exquisite views of the broad and
+fertile valley, and the magnificent mountains which tower above the
+wooded slopes, swelling gently upward from the Inn, in wild and craggy
+peaks of rugged beauty. This walk is rendered additionally attractive
+and picturesque for all who are interested in folk-lore, or who are
+able to enter into the legend and religion of the people, by the
+pilgrimage chapels which are found along the route. One of the most
+charming of these in all Tyrol is that of Arzl, which, standing on a
+wooded knoll, is brilliant with colour, a gem of its kind in a
+charming setting of dark green. The little church of Maria Loreto
+built by the religiously inclined Anna Katharina Gonzaga, second wife
+of Ferdinand II., was once a famous pilgrimage place, but of late
+years has been much less resorted to than formerly. The interior is,
+however, well worth inspection. The wood carvings and iron work are
+both interesting, as are also the old engravings which hang upon the
+walls, and the curious black Virgin and Child upon the Altar.
+
+Arzl, Rum, and Thaur are all picturesquely situated, nestling as they
+do on the lower slopes of the great limestone peaks, the first named
+standing at the foot of the Burgstall which rises majestically to a
+height of nearly three thousand five hundred feet. Many of the houses
+in these three villages are most elaborately decorated with mural
+paintings; in some instances the whole of the fronts are so adorned,
+and often masses of corn hang on trellis work on the walls. The effect
+of the brilliant tints of the paintings and the coloured window frames
+gives an additionally picturesque air to the little villages. Seen in
+summer the gay effect is perhaps a little neutralized, but in winter,
+when the landscape is more cheerless and there is a background of snow
+and grey-green rocks, the picture formed is a unique and wonderfully
+cheering one.
+
+Concerning Thaur, where so many houses have either a painting or an
+image of a man with a bear upon their fronts, there is a legend of St.
+Romedius, who centuries ago came riding into the village blessed with
+a keen appetite gained by exercise in the invigorating mountain air.
+Whilst the saint was engaged in satisfying his hunger, a wandering
+bear, so the legend goes, was so impressed with the holy man's
+accomplishment in this respect that he promptly (for want of other
+food) emulated it by eating Romedius' horse. On coming out to renew
+his journey the Saint was astounded at the disappearance of his steed.
+He, however, seems to have guessed what had happened, and forthwith
+preached the bear such a sermon upon his iniquitous conduct that he
+was not only moved to penitence, but also sought to make amends by
+offering himself as a substitute for the Saint's former steed.
+
+Although the proposal might appear to us as accompanied with some
+considerable risk when the bear once more became hungry, the Saint
+accepted it, and ultimately set forth on his strange steed to a cave
+in the mountains north of Thaur, where they lived for some
+considerable time without mishap. One day, however, as the holy man
+slept, a troublesome fly came buzzing round his head, and the sleeper
+failed to drive it away, with the result that the bear (who we are
+told had all this time watched over his master with great solicitude)
+came to the rescue and sought to get rid of it; however, without
+success. The fly returned again and again to the charge, and the bear
+in desperation aiming a blow at the fly, alas! struck and killed the
+Saint. This time the grief of the bear was, of course, of no avail, so
+he would eat nothing and gradually pined away, ultimately dying of
+hunger.
+
+This story, though it has its comical side, is not, however, held to
+be disrespectful to the life and character of Romedius, who is one of
+the best esteemed Tyrolese saints. It appears more than probable,
+however, that Romedius (whether killed by his companion the bear or
+not) actually died in the Nonsthal, South Tyrol, where there are,
+strange to say, villages of somewhat similar names to those we have
+mentioned, namely, Torro, Rumo, and Arz.
+
+  [Illustration: THE MARKET PLACE, HALL]
+
+[Sidenote: HALL AND ITS MÜNSTERTURM]
+
+Hall, which is one of the most picturesque, busy, and interesting
+little towns in the neighbourhood of Innsbruck, with some 6000
+inhabitants, dates from the time of the Roman occupation of Tyrol. By
+the well-known historian, Beda Weber, the name is stated to have been
+derived from the Greek word [Greek: halos], salt; the reason for such
+derivation from an unlikely language he does not, however, in any way
+seek to explain. As one enters the town one is at once struck by the
+strange and quaint mingling of the picturesque with the utilitarian,
+the rural with the mediæval. Long before one reaches the town one sees
+in the distance the greenish copper cupolas of the Pfaarkirche or
+Parish Church which has so fine a Gothic portal and interesting
+relics, around whose walls shops are grouped; and rising above the
+other less lofty and less time-mellowed buildings, the massive Gothic
+tower known as the Münsterturm with its red "pepper-box" roof of Roman
+origin, although the present tower was built by Duke Sigismund, the
+famous son of Frederick of the Empty Purse. A steeply ascending street
+leads to the market square, in which the Pfaarkirche and Rathaus stand
+opposite each other. And in this and contiguous streets there are many
+quaint balconies, gabled roofs, and old-time architectural features to
+interest and charm the artist and antiquarian visitor.
+
+Although Hall has somewhat declined as a commercial centre with the
+rise of its big neighbour, Innsbruck, it is still a place of
+considerable activity on account, chiefly, of the famous salt mines.
+In former times these and its position on the banks of the Inn (then
+much more navigable) gave the place importance under the rule of the
+Counts of Tyrol, and the earlier of the Austrian princes; many barges
+and boats from the Danube itself in former times making their way into
+the Inn and thence to the flourishing town of Hall. The salt works
+still remain its principal industry. Hall is, as things go in Tyrol, a
+distinctly smoky town; but it is seldom that the smoke hangs in the
+clear and fresh Alpine air which sweeps along the Inn valley down
+from the environing hills.
+
+The Münsterturm, mint tower, which, as we have said, is so prominent
+an object on approaching the town, is of historical interest from the
+fact that it was built to enable Duke Sigismund, known as the Rich, to
+turn into coin his great store of silver taken from the Tyrol
+mountains. It was from this tower, too, that Andreas Hofer issued his
+Kreuzer and twenty Kreuzer pieces during the period of his brief
+dictatorship.
+
+As was the case with many another Tyrolean town, Hall suffered in the
+past from the calamities which afflicted so many similar places in the
+Middle Ages. It was swept in turn by fire, sword, and pestilence, and
+shaken to its foundations by the earthquake which occurred in 1670. So
+severe was the shock, we are told, that the watchman on the parapet of
+the church tower was thrown off and killed by falling to the ground,
+and the people fled out of their houses to the open fields where their
+priests exhorted them to prepare for the Day of Judgment. That the
+alarm created was very great is borne out by the fact that, although
+the loss of life would appear from contemporary sources of information
+to have been slight, for some time afterwards the services of the
+church were all performed in the open air. Hall, however, chiefly on
+account of its salt mine resources, recovered, and these and the many
+privileges the burghers enjoyed enabled them in time to regain their
+former prosperity.
+
+The town played an important part in the various wars which had Tyrol
+for their battleground during the Middle Ages; and during the
+Patriotic War the people of Hall were not less brave and
+self-sacrificing than those of other places. One gallant deed in
+especial of that long struggle for freedom is directly connected with
+the town. In May, 1809, Joseph Speckbacher (who was born on a
+Gnadenwald farm near Hall in 1767) and his troops attacked the
+Bavarians at Volders, near Hall, and after blowing up the bridge
+behind him he marched to the relief of the latter town, which was held
+by the Bavarian troops. These had artillery, and were also numerically
+stronger and better armed, so that the task set before the patriot
+force was no slight one. Happily, Speckbacher became aware that the
+Bavarians were short of ammunition, and therefore when a truce was
+proposed he refused to agree to it. The Bavarians after, as they
+thought, completely destroying the Hall bridge, which they held as
+well as the town, retreated. Calling upon his men to follow him,
+Speckbacher led them boldly on to the then dangerous and tottering
+structure, entered the town and pursued the Bavarians.
+
+[Sidenote: AN INTERESTING CHURCH]
+
+In the churchyard is an interesting wooden crucifix carved by Joseph
+Stocker in 1691, as well as some monuments of the principal Hall
+families of former times. The church itself should be visited, if only
+for the "Salvator Mundi" by Albrecht Durer painted on a panel, and the
+high altar-piece by a pupil of the master Reubens, named Erasmus
+Quillinus. One of the chapels, the Waldaufische, was built in 1493 by
+Florian von Waldauf, who, originally a peasant boy, entered the
+Imperial Army and ultimately became one of the confidential advisers
+of the Emperor Frederick and his son, afterwards Maximilian I. He was
+also ennobled and given considerable estates. He met with many
+adventures on his journeys into foreign lands, and on one of his
+expeditions was in so terrible a storm as to be threatened with
+shipwreck, and he vowed if his life was spared that he would found a
+chapel in his native land. As events turned out, he lived to reach
+Tyrol once more, and in accordance with his vow founded the chapel in
+the church at Hall, which was also the parish church of Rettenburg
+Castle and estates which Maximilian had granted to him. Upon this
+chapel he bestowed numerous relics which he had acquired during his
+various travels, and nearly 50,000 pilgrims came from all parts of
+Tyrol to the consecration service.
+
+More than one of the chapels and churches of Hall owe their origin to
+special circumstances of a more or less romantic character. That of
+St. Saviour, for example, which stands on the site of some tumbledown
+hovels which existed in the first years of the fifteenth century. The
+story goes that it was to a dying man in one of these that one of the
+priests attached to the village church was summoned to convey the
+Viaticum, and administer extreme unction and the last rites of the
+Church. He came in due course to the hovel, and placing the sacred
+vessels on a rickety table the latter collapsed and the Host was
+thrown on to the floor. This was, of course, a terrible disaster in
+the eyes of the priest and peasants; and a rich burgher, Johann von
+Kripp by name, hearing of the circumstance, purchased the cottages,
+and as a reparation for the sacrilege which had occurred, founded a
+church on the spot, dedicated to the Redeemer.
+
+The Hall records are of great interest, and show that the town was a
+place of much importance in the fifteenth century, when a considerable
+part of the trade between Venice and Germany passed through it. In
+those days, too, the town was somewhat celebrated for its junketings,
+more especially the feasts which were held in connection with the
+opening of the sessions at the Courts of Justice.
+
+The neighbourhood, on account of the good sport provided, was a
+favourite hunting-ground with the Emperor Maximilian, who on several
+occasions was entertained in the town.
+
+Hall declined slowly in importance during the sixteenth and
+seventeenth centuries by reason of the change in the trade routes; but
+in quite modern times has regained some at least of its former
+prosperity by adopting up-to-date methods.
+
+There are numerous excellent and interesting excursions to be made
+from Hall, but nearly every one pays a visit to the famous salt
+mines, which are to the north amid most romantic and beautiful
+scenery. Even by carriage the journey of about eight miles takes the
+greater part of two hours; on foot even good walkers can scarcely hope
+to do it in less than three. The scenery is in places very fine, and
+one enjoys most beautiful views, and nearer glimpses of the
+Bettelwulf, Speckkar and Nisslspitz Alps.
+
+[Sidenote: ABSAM AND JAKOB STAINER]
+
+On the way one passes the quaint village of Absam, at which Jakob
+Stainer, known as the "German father of the violin," was born in 1621.
+As a maker of these instruments he stands high, though it is unknown
+where or how he acquired his knowledge of the craft. It seems
+possible, however, as Absam is but a short distance from Innsbruck,
+where at the period at which Stainer lived musicians--Italians and
+others--were warmly welcomed to the Court of the Archduke Ferdinand
+Karl, he may have made the acquaintance of some of these, or even of a
+maker of distinction. Be it as it may, ere Stainer reached his
+majority he had embarked upon the trade of a violin maker, and was
+often to be seen in the streets of Hall and in the market-place
+selling his productions at a price which we are told did not often
+exceed six florins.
+
+His original model was probably an Amati, but he departed considerably
+from it as he himself acquired skill and knowledge. Stories are still
+told of the great care he took in selecting the wood from which his
+instruments were to be fashioned, and how he would sometimes spend
+days wandering in the backwoods around Hall and Absam in search of a
+good tree, which he would tap with a hammer and note its "tone" ere
+felling. Unfortunately, as has been the case with many another genius,
+he seems to have died in poverty in or about 1683. At one time he was
+violin maker to the Imperial Court, but this appointment, which
+ultimately he lost through inability to pay his way, and owing to
+consequent financial embarrassment, was not sufficiently lucrative to
+ensure him comfort in his declining years, let alone prosperity.
+
+His instruments, of which there are still a number in existence, are
+generally distinguished by having their tops more highly curved than
+those of the chief Italian makers, whilst they possess a more
+flute-like note, which is often more "singing" and sympathetic than
+that of the latter. But none of his make probably equalled, or at all
+events excelled, the works of the Italian masters for brilliance and
+sustained tone, although by some connoisseurs this opinion has been
+disputed. It is said that one of Mozart's favourite instruments was
+the work of Jakob Stainer.
+
+At the present time the chief industry of the Mittenwald, which is
+just over the Bavarian border, is the production of violins and
+guitars, which are exported in considerable numbers to both England
+and the United States as well as to other European countries. This
+flourishing industry owes its origin to a pupil of Stainer's, named
+Klotz, who after his master's death enjoyed a considerable reputation
+as a maker of violins of good quality.
+
+Many of the houses of Absam are gaily painted, and in the numerous
+niches, which are often vine-wreathed, one finds the images of saints,
+and on the bargeboards roughly carved dragons. The villagers tell a
+curious story to account for the presence of these dragons. It tells
+how centuries ago there was in the village a marvellous hen that never
+laid an egg until seven years old, and when this was hatched instead
+of the anticipated chicken there crawled out a dragon, which
+remarkable event the villagers have commemorated ever since by carving
+dragons on the eaves of their houses. But it has been pointed out by
+several writers upon legends and folk-lore that the dragon was an
+animal sacred to the god Wodin, representations of which were
+frequently placed on houses, over the town gates, and on belfries as a
+kind of talisman against evil influences and spirits; and similar
+statements are to be found in several well-known works dealing with
+mythology.
+
+[Sidenote: A WONDERFUL WINDOW]
+
+In connection with this little Tyrol village are several other stories
+and legendary tales of a highly romantic and interesting character.
+Space, however, can only be found for one other. The story of the
+event or circumstance which caused Absam to become a popular
+pilgrimage place at the end of the eighteenth century runs as follows.
+About the middle of January, in the year 1797, the daughter of one of
+the villagers was one evening looking out of a window in her father's
+house to watch for his return from work across the fields, when
+suddenly the light from the fire which played upon the window-pane
+disclosed a figure of the Virgin Mary quite distinctly. The girl was
+so astonished that she fell upon her knees before the miraculous
+picture. The story was not long in spreading throughout the village,
+and the neighbours all came running to see the "miracle." Then the
+news of the marvellous image spread through the district round about,
+and at last created so great a stir that the Dean of Innsbruck himself
+heard of it, and resolved to investigate the story. After he had
+visited the place a committee of inquiry was formed, amongst the
+members of which were two learned professors of chemistry and the
+well-known artist, Joseph Schöpf.
+
+After considerable investigation and the examination of witnesses the
+committee declared that the glass had originally formed part of a
+"picture" window, and that the image had been undoubtedly painted upon
+it. The colours had, however, faded as the years went by (as
+sometimes, indeed, happens), and it was the peculiar character of the
+atmosphere of Absam which had restored them to the extent that the
+image of the Holy Virgin had become once more visible.
+
+It is not to be much wondered at, however, that the simple-minded
+villagers failed to appreciate the arguments of the commissioners and
+refused to accept the explanation. To them it remained a miraculous
+image still, and pilgrims came in crowds to see it. As history tells
+us, it was a period of "Sturm und Drang" in Tyrol. A plague raged
+which afflicted both men and cattle; and the French invaders had
+penetrated right into the heart of the country, had occupied
+Innsbruck, and had brought fire and sword to the hearths of the
+people. The superstitious peasantry, with their natural leaning
+towards belief in the miraculous, and faith in the benefits to be
+derived from the supernatural, accepted the image which had so
+strangely appeared on the window-pane as a token of Divine favour, and
+insisted on its removal and installation upon one of the altars in the
+church. This was promptly done, and the "Gnadenmutter von Absam," or
+"Miraculous Madonna of Absam," became an object of veneration by all
+who were distressed. This feeling was doubtless immensely increased by
+the circumstance that soon after the discovery of the picture and its
+removal to the church the pestilence died down, and the French were
+compelled to withdraw their forces. Both of which events were
+attributed to the virtue of the painting of the Virgin on the
+window-pane which had been discovered in so strange a manner.
+
+The salt mines a little distance beyond Absam, with their crystalline
+grottoes and the subterranean salt lake, provide an interesting and
+unique experience for the enterprising traveller who comes to the
+Salzberg. There is not much difficulty in obtaining admission to the
+mines, a small fee being charged each visitor for guides, torches, and
+the rowers of the boat on the lake. The circumstance that the mines
+were known and worked in the eighth century is not the least
+interesting fact connected with them; but it appears probable that the
+early workers confined their attention chiefly if not entirely to the
+extracting of the salt from a spring that issued from the mountain, by
+means of evaporating pans.
+
+  [Illustration: THE HALL VALLEY, WINTER]
+
+[Sidenote: DISCOVERY OF SALT MINES]
+
+One Nikolas von Rohrbach, who is known by the sobriquet of "the
+pious knight," appears to have been the first discoverer of the salt
+mines. He noticed on his frequent hunting expeditions that the cattle
+and horses were very fond of licking certain rocks in the valley, and
+applied tests which showed that the rocks were strongly saline in
+character. Following up this clue, he discovered the Salzberg itself
+with its practically inexhaustible supply. Ever since Rohrbach's time
+the mountain has been worked for its salt, and until recent years,
+when blasting came into common use, much in the same way as in
+mediæval times, viz. by hewing huge caverns in the rock, which are
+then filled with water and sealed up. After a considerable period has
+elapsed this water is run off into conduits leading down to Hall,
+where it is evaporated in pans. How heavily charged with salt the
+brine is may be judged from the fact that as a general rule it yields
+no less than one-third of its weight in solid salt.
+
+The caverns one is able to enter, when lighted up by the flickering
+torches, present a truly wonderful and beautiful sight.
+
+Those who visit Hall are indeed unfortunate whose time does not permit
+them to put up for a day or two at either of the chief Inns (the "Bar"
+or "Stern"), so that the beautiful Gnadenwald, which lies to the
+north-east of the town on the Bettelwulf, may be visited. That lovely
+Alpine lake, the Achen See, in which the towering snow-capped
+mountains glass themselves, can be easily reached by the little
+railway which runs up to it through the steeply climbing Zillerthal.
+The highest and largest of Tyrolese lakes, the Achen See, lies at an
+altitude of 3000 feet, with its deep-blue, crystal-clear waters
+stretching northwards for a distance of nearly six miles towards
+Bavaria. It is surrounded by the most exquisite mountain scenery,
+craggy precipices and dark-green forests, and has many features of
+interest in addition to providing excellent fishing, boating, and
+numerous pleasant walks and excursions.
+
+In the Gnadenwald, which was a grant of forest land made by Tyrolese
+rulers to their household servants in olden times, there are several
+villages of great picturesqueness. The road from Hall is a truly
+delightful one through pine forests, sweet with aromatic perfume in
+the warm air of summer, and upland fields, which seem to almost hang
+on the sides of the grey, craggy peaks of the Bavarian Alps. And if
+one but turns and gazes back occasionally there are charming vistas to
+be had of the Inn Valley far below, and the great chain of the
+southern mountain range on the further side.
+
+The two picturesquely situated villages of St. Michael and St. Martin
+are to be ranked amongst the chief places of interest in the
+Gnadenwald. As one approaches the former its white church and tower
+with a red-roofed cupola with gilded finial standing out clearly
+defined against a background of dark green at once arrests attention.
+Over the door is a fresco depicting the incident in the life of Saint
+Martin where he bestowed his coat upon a beggar. The visitor whose
+time permits or inclination leads him to enter the church will be
+amply repaid by the beauty of the frescoes, more especially those
+adorning the pulpit, which were painted by one of the priests attached
+to the Augustinian monastery formerly connected with the church, but
+afterwards suppressed by Joseph II. towards the end of the eighteenth
+century.
+
+At a little distance from the church stands the old home of Joseph
+Speckbacher, where once, when pursued by his enemies, he took refuge
+in a pit only deep enough for him to sit upright, whilst the Bavarian
+soldiers in search of him were actually quartered in the house. He was
+only able to leave his place of concealment under the floor when the
+soldiers were absent drilling in the market-place. After a time he was
+able to come out and hide in a more commodious cow-shed, and finally
+to flee (after many narrow escapes) over the border into Austria,
+where he was well received and safe from capture.
+
+The village of St. Michael is also picturesque and well worth seeing.
+Just beyond it is the famous Gungl Inn, a favourite resort with
+excursionists from Innsbruck, Kufstein, Hall and other places, as well
+as with the peasants of the Gnadenwald. Here, on Sundays especially,
+one meets with some of the most interesting and picturesque types, gay
+costumes and rustic scenes of gaiety and amusements which give one a
+far better idea of the Tyrolese peasants as they are than days spent
+in towns, and weeks spent reading books.
+
+[Sidenote: A PILGRIMAGE CHURCH]
+
+But a short distance further on, by a charming road, one reaches the
+famous pilgrimage chapel of Maria Larch, built in honour of a
+mysterious image of the Madonna which was discovered under a larch
+tree. The church, perhaps on account of its poetic legend and secluded
+and beautiful situation, has long been a favourite pilgrimage resort
+with the impressionable and religious peasantry of the upper valleys.
+
+There are many other picturesque places in the neighbourhood of Hall,
+enticing the wanderer from valley to valley and height to height; but
+a small volume would be required in which to adequately describe them
+alone; and almost a lifetime to become thoroughly acquainted with
+their romantic legends, story and beauty. Some weeks of exploration
+leaves one with a keen desire for closer acquaintance with not merely
+the lovely scenery but with the simple-hearted, hospitable people who
+dwell in the more secluded valleys, with whom the great outer world
+with its storm and stress has indeed little to do and for whom even
+has little interest.
+
+"You should return to Innsbruck from Hall in the late afternoon,
+starting just before sunset," was the advice of an artist friend. "You
+will then see what you will not easily forget."
+
+The present writer passes on the advice.
+
+No one who has waited till day's decline to make the return journey at
+any period of the year will have reason to regret it, though in the
+winter months the effects of light and shadow are, of course, far more
+transient--far too much so--than during the spring, summer, and even
+early autumn. Then the snow on the towering peaks of the environing
+mountains glows with at first a golden light, which passes through
+pearly tones to bright rose pink as the sun sinks behind the soaring
+crags. The last gleams of the sun linger upon the highest peak as
+though loth to fade through rose to pale purple, and in turn to change
+to steely blue, and finally to that blue-black which challenges the
+deeper indigo of the Alpine sky. Through the pine woods as one passes
+along the mountain road the golden light filters and slowly dies,
+throwing long shadows, and at last making the tree trunks loom
+enormous and fantastical in the fading light. And then from the tiny
+churches of the mountain side and valley one hears the Angelus ringing
+forth with a peaceful sound; or if one be approaching Innsbruck
+itself, then the mellow tones of the greater bell of Wilten float
+upward from the valley and come to one borne on the still evening air.
+Under such circumstances of beauty and in the impressive solitude of
+the forest ways one must be, indeed, unimpressionable if one fails to
+feel something of the spirit and love of Tyrol, and of restful peace
+which has enslaved so many hearts throughout the country's history.
+
+FOOTNOTE:
+
+[14] By some authorities it is stated that the Emperor was never made
+aware of Ferdinand's marriage.--C. H.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VI
+
+     SALZBURG, ITS HISTORY AND ROMANCE
+
+
+[Sidenote: BEAUTIFUL OLD SALZBURG]
+
+Salzburg, though lying some little distance beyond the north-eastern
+borders of Tyrol, is so historic and delightful a city that many who
+visit the "Land of the Mountains" make a point of visiting it. They
+are wise to do so; for of all ancient towns in the Austrian empire few
+are more picturesque or pleasantly situated, and scarcely any more
+historically interesting. We have never known any one disappointed in
+Salzburg who was capable of appreciating beauty and romantic
+associations.
+
+Many who have roved the world over have yielded to the charm of this
+old-time city, which even with its touch of modernity seems to
+preserve the quaint and the beautiful of long ago, and the atmosphere
+of the days when knights and armed men were the chief passers through
+its streets, and history was in the making.
+
+It lies at the foot of the northern Alps, in an open and fertile
+valley somewhat reminding one of Innsbruck, save for its wonderful
+rock fortress Hohen-Salzburg situated nearly eighteen hundred feet
+above sea-level and completely dominating the town. There is the
+Kapuzingerberg in place of the Innsbruck Weiherberg, and its Rainberg
+in place of Berg Isel. It is by many considered the most interesting
+of all the ancient towns amid the German Alps.
+
+Its beauty has been compared in turn by several well-known travellers
+with that of Venice, Naples, and even Constantinople. But to our
+thinking the parallel is not as exact as it should be to make it of
+value. There is no sea at Salzburg, and from that fact alone its
+approach is of necessity less picturesque. Indeed, the immediate
+approach from Tyrol by way of Innsbruck is somewhat unimpressive and
+gives little or no indication of the beauty and charm of the old town,
+though the line on its way passes some pretty scenery and affords some
+fine peeps of the Bavarian Alps.
+
+Yet Salzburg, through the centre of which flows the silver-hued
+Salzach, is in a way as beautifully situated and as charming as any of
+the towns to which it has from time to time been likened. It lies in a
+delightfully well-watered and fertile plain dotted over with villages,
+ancient castles, and country seats of the Salzburg nobility, and
+encircled by wooded hills, which as they open out in a wider sweep to
+the south become higher and higher until deserving the description of
+mountains. Here they become a magnificent range of towering limestone
+peaks, through which are cleft fertile and delightful valleys leading
+into the neighbouring kingdom of Bavaria. In the valley of the Salzach
+there is no lack of variety as regards scenery. One has widespread
+meadows, almost throughout the year starred and gemmed with many
+coloured and sweet scented flowers, melting away into the woods which
+clothe the lower slopes of the environing hills, where the sombre hued
+pines give a darker note of green to the landscape; whilst yet above
+these in the distance are crags of grey and slate-coloured limestone,
+and crowning the whole vast snow-fields glistering white at noonday
+and taking on a tint of delicate rose colour at sundown.
+
+In the town itself rise two considerable hills which serve to confer
+upon it a distinction of its own. One, the Kapuzingerberg, on the
+eastern side of the river, rises to the height of 800 feet, and the
+second, on the western side, to a height of nearly 450 feet above the
+city. It is between these two that the greater part of the old town
+lies. The steep sides of the Mönchsberg and the Gibraltar-like rock on
+which the old, grey fortress of Hohen-Salzburg stands are ivy-clad,
+and in the crevices and fissures wall-flowers, valerian, stone-crop,
+houseleek, and other flowering and lichen-like plants have taken root,
+whilst from the greater crevices and ledges wave feathery birches, and
+the lower slopes are made beautiful and shady by spreading beeches and
+odorous limes.
+
+After several visits to this delightful city, which has an atmosphere
+entirely its own, and a charm difficult to describe, one is at a loss
+to set down in what it exactly differs from other similar towns. Part
+of the attraction it possesses is doubtless owing to its situation
+amid a stretch of lovely valley, and its romantic and historic past.
+But there yet remains that elusive quality which may be described as
+"the personality of the town," in addition to its geographical and
+historical claims upon one's interest and imagination.
+
+Salzburg is not, however, merely the name of a town, but also of a
+province or "department" of Austria, to which empire it is the last
+added territory.[15] Lying between Tyrol (of which by many it is
+erroneously supposed to form a part) and the Salzkammergut or the lake
+region of Upper Austria, which commences in the near neighbourhood of
+the city, it was an independent episcopal principality until after the
+fall of Napoleon, not having been incorporated with the
+Austro-Hungarian Empire until the year 1816.
+
+[Sidenote: THE SALZACH VALLEY]
+
+The province consists chiefly of the mountainous district of the
+Salzach and its numerous tributaries, which wend their way from their
+sources amid the glaciers and snow-fields of the great peaks of the
+Hohen Tauern and lesser ranges to the plain where the Salzach itself
+ultimately flows into the Inn.
+
+It is the great Hohen Tauern range with its gigantic snow-crowned
+peaks of the Gross Glockner, 12,460 feet; Wiesbachhorn, 11,710 feet;
+and Gross Venediger, 12,010 feet; Hohe Furlegg, 10,750 feet;
+Habachkopf, 9945 feet; and many other almost equally stupendous
+heights, which forms the southern boundary of the ancient
+Principality. The whole range is one of impressive grandeur, and
+possesses a picturesque beauty upon its lower slopes unrivalled by any
+other Alpine district. The foot of the Hohen Tauern is almost
+invariably clad with pine forests, which melt away into the higher
+slopes where blooms the bright pink "alpen rosen," whilst yet higher,
+and just below the line of perpetual snow, on rocky ledges and on
+slopes of coarse grass appear the silver-white, star-like flowers of
+the edelweiss. Above this zone of fresh green patches amid the grey
+and weather-stained rocks one passes into that exhilarating region of
+eternal snow and ice where dwells also eternal silence unbroken by the
+sound of birds, the hum of insects, or murmur of other living things.
+
+Not only is the Hohen Tauern the region of Alpine giants, vast
+glaciers, and untrodden snow-fields, but as a natural consequence of
+these things it is that of many rushing torrents, stupendous
+waterfalls, and tinkling streamlets, all of which contribute to make
+the province it borders one of the best-watered in the
+Austro-Hungarian Empire. Upwards of half a score of large streams flow
+into the Salzach; whilst of fertile valleys there are so many that to
+number them is difficult. Most are beautiful in the extreme; many are
+almost unknown to the ordinary tourist, who usually sticks to the
+well-worn paths and more frequented highways. In the famous Krimml
+Falls the Province of Salzburg possesses by common consent the finest
+waterfalls in the German Alps. They issue from the vast Krimml Glacier
+and descend over the edge of a pine-clad precipice in a cloud of
+drifting spray into the valley beneath, a distance of nearly 1500
+feet, in three stupendous leaps, the highest fall in two leaps from a
+height of more than 450 feet.
+
+Although, as we have before said, almost every valley of the Hohen
+Tauern range is notably beautiful, none excel in interest either
+pictorially or geologically the longest and widest, the Gastein
+Valley, with the fine falls some 500 feet in height near Bockstein,
+where the Gasteiner Ache, after passing through narrow gorges, plunges
+down into the valley, and thence flows through the broad, flat plain
+of Hof-Gastein to join the Salzach, passing on its way delightful
+Bad-Gastein, with its old town of interesting and picturesque wooden
+houses nestling on the eastern slopes of the valley, and the newer,
+with its hotels, churches, villas and other handsome buildings,
+peeping out from amid the pine-clad slopes or lying in the valley
+itself. It is a delightful though nowadays fashionable health resort,
+at which many tastes, both gay and quiet, are consulted.
+
+From Lend at the foot of the Gastein Thal to pretty little St. Johann,
+where the Salzach flows northward, the river has passed without
+opposition quietly onward. But at St. Johann are some towering and
+remarkable limestone peaks, including those of the Tennen and Hagen
+Ranges, some of them attaining an altitude of 8000 feet; with the
+desolate-looking Steinerne Meer, 8800 feet on the western flank, and
+the Dachstein more than a thousand feet higher on the eastern. The
+river flows onward to a point where the two ranges we have mentioned
+coalesce. Here the great ravine known as the Lueg Pass, six miles in
+length and possessing fine scenery, forms a very fitting entrance to
+the beautiful valley of Golling, which gradually opens out from
+Hallein onwards till Salzburg itself is reached.
+
+The valley of the Salzach on its eastern side is bordered by a range
+of pleasant green-clad heights and gentle slopes, with the Gaisberg,
+4290 feet, a short distance to the north-east of Salzburg itself,
+dominating them, from which point the mountains gradually decrease in
+height. From Golling onwards, however, the western side of the valley
+is shut in by great peaks, some of which spread out their lower and
+rounded emerald green slopes towards the river. Of these impressive
+and beautiful mountains the Hohe Göll, 8275 feet, the majestic
+Watzmann, 9050 feet, the chief of the Berchtesgaden group, are the
+most noticeable. The cave-pierced and lofty, dome-shaped Untersberg,
+the highest point of which is the Berchtesgadener Hochtron of 6480
+feet, standing isolated like a sentinel in the plain near the city.
+
+[Sidenote: SALZBURG IN ROMAN TIMES]
+
+Salzburg, beautiful and on occasion even radiant city of the plain as
+it is, ancient though many of its buildings are, is yet of greater
+antiquity than any of them. The town stands upon truly classic ground,
+and is associated with many events which have taken their places in
+European and even world-wide history. Here the Romans came in their
+all-conquering march of empire, and recognizing its fine position and
+the strategic importance of the hills which command the river along
+most of its course, they in due time built upon the plain Juvavum, on
+the road which linked up the Augusta Vindelicorum, modern Augsburg
+with Aquileia near Trieste.
+
+There is little doubt nowadays, from the remains which have been
+discovered from time to time in the shape of implements of stone and
+bronze, weapons, household utensils, and ornaments, that the mines
+near Salzburg, which have since very early days down till
+comparatively recent times been of great commercial importance, were
+not only worked in the days of the Roman occupation, but also even in
+pre-historic times. There is little reason for doubt, indeed, that the
+Celts knew of, and used, the famous salt mines of the Dürnberg and the
+copper mines of the Mitterberg; whilst there is abundant evidence of
+various kinds of the working of the gold and silver mines of the
+Tauern district by the Romans during their occupation of the country.
+
+  [Illustration: MOZART'S HOUSE IN THE MAKART PLATZ]
+
+The exact date when Salzburg as a town or settlement first came
+into existence has not been determined; but it would seem probable
+that there was a settlement existing by the banks of the Salzach
+during, or just prior to, the first century of the Christian Era. The
+Celtic inhabitants of this settlement were not, however, able
+successfully to resist the north-eastern advance which had been made
+across Tyrol by the Roman legions, and thus it was that the Roman
+military station Juvavum was founded on a site which was of great
+convenience owing to its being at the entrance to the mountain passes
+and placed at the junction of the roads which led by various routes to
+all parts of Noricum. Here it was the Roman invader, having driven the
+Celtic owners of the soil after a brave but ineffectual resistance
+into mountain fastnesses of the surrounding country, established a
+military post with a fort which soon became a colony, and grew
+ultimately into the important town of Juvavum.
+
+Of this occupation by the Romans, and of the establishment of the town
+by the banks of the Salzach, there are considerable relics surviving
+in the shape of excavated buildings and foundations, coins, ornaments,
+pottery, tesselated pavements, and portions of the roads which the
+Romans made.
+
+The introduction of Christianity took place at a very early date,
+which would in part account for the ecclesiastical prominence which
+the province had in the Middle Ages, and even in later times. We are
+told that even as early as the year A.D. 472 St. Severinus, whilst
+journeying through Noricum, with which country Salzburg had been
+incorporated by the Romans, found numerous Christian churches and
+minsters established. A relic of these times still exists set in the
+perpendicular walls of the Mönchsberg, where high up, with some of its
+windows overshadowed by creepers and trees, is a very small church
+built into the mountain itself; reached by a dark, steep flight of
+steps cut in the rock, worn by the feet of countless generations, and
+leading to a cavern where stands an altar and a small cross.
+According, at least, to tradition this was the hiding-place to which
+the early Christians amongst the Roman inhabitants retired for
+security when celebrating the offices of the new faith. And it is here
+that St. Maximus is said to have suffered martyrdom.
+
+From the effects of the troublous days which at last came to most
+outposts of Roman civilization Salzburg did not escape. Soon the
+hordes of Huns and Goths and others belonging to various Germanic
+tribes swept across and over the province as they did the land of
+Tyrol, and the town was sacked and burned, and the inhabitants put to
+the sword or led away into captivity. Thus in 477 the flourishing
+Roman settlement was literally wiped out by the Keruli under their
+leader, Odoaker, and of it few traces remained save some tesselated
+pavements, household utensils, and ornaments which ages afterwards
+from time to time have been uncovered.
+
+[Sidenote: THE RISE OF SALZBURG]
+
+The history of the town is obscure for many centuries after its
+destruction by the Teutonic barbarians; and for more than a hundred
+years the place remained waste and deserted, with the ruined buildings
+gradually becoming overgrown by trees and shrubs. Then, at the
+beginning of the sixth century, Theodo I., Duke of the Bojovarii, the
+founder of the Kingdom afterwards known as Bavaria, took possession of
+Salzburg and joined it to his own possessions. One account tells us
+that it was this Duke Theodo of Bavaria who, having become a
+Christian, summoned St. Rupert, after the latter had been driven from
+Worms, to Ratisbon with a view to his introducing Christianity into
+the Duchy. Tradition states that St. Rupert came to Juvavum about the
+year 582, or at the beginning of the seventh century, with the
+determination to make the spot his headquarters for the spread of the
+Christian faith. Duke Theodo appears to have made him a present of the
+ruined and deserted town and the country round about to the extent of
+an area of two miles square. Other estates and property were given
+him, including among many others those of Itzling, Oping (Upper
+Innsbruck), and a third part of the famous Hall Salt Spring. The
+Bishop set to work, and on the ruins of the old Roman settlement he
+soon established a town, building a convent and a church under the
+steep rocks of the Mönchsberg, where now the large Benedictine Convent
+and St. Peter's Church stand, in the latter of which the bones of the
+saint are said to lie buried.
+
+The Convent of Nonnberg had many estates granted to it, and became
+rich. Bishop Rupert appears to have also begun to build new dwellings
+and to have cultivated the land; not neglecting in the meantime the
+object for which he had come, viz. the spread of Christianity. He
+built many churches, and was the means of forming a large number of
+Christian communities throughout the Duchy. He also extended the
+influence of the town of Salzburg over the surrounding district, and
+when he died in 623 he left behind him, where he had found ruins, a
+flourishing town with religious institutions of considerable
+importance. It was from this settlement that the most powerful and
+wealthiest ecclesiastical principality in Southern Germany was
+destined to spring, which, though possessed in turn by various
+nations, lasted as a spiritual Principality until 1802, when it was
+secularized and re-established as a temporal electorate.
+
+After the coming of St. Rupert Salzburg gradually grew to be the chief
+centre of religious life and culture in the eastern region of the
+Alps. By the foundation of the Archbishopric of Bavaria by Charles the
+Great in 788, after the latter territory had been annexed and
+incorporated with his possessions, the city's importance steadily
+increased. But with an increase of status there came a corresponding
+extension and consolidation of the ecclesiastical dominion by which
+the political influence of the Archbishops of Salzburg grew until it
+finally justified them in assuming the title of Primates of Germany.
+Almost without exception during the Middle Ages the archbishops were
+militant priests. "They knew," we are told, "as well how to handle a
+sword as to say a Mass," and they often fought with distinction
+against the many enemies that the German Empire had in those troublous
+times when the various kingdoms of Eastern Europe were being evolved
+out of chaos, and were ever at war one with another. These prelates
+were also distinguished as skilled and astute diplomatists, capable of
+holding their own and adding to the power and privileges of their
+Church whenever an opportunity for so doing presented itself.
+
+Under Bishop Virgil (747 to 784) the power of Salzburg was
+considerably extended eastward. The new Cathedral was built, and
+several other districts were brought under the subjection of the
+bishopric. It was Bishop Virgil's successor, Arno (785 to 821), a
+personal friend of Charlemagne, who, in the last year of the eighth
+century, was invested by Pope Leo III. with the Pallium and installed
+first Archbishop of Salzburg.
+
+To Arno's labours the town and the country owe much, for under his
+skilful and wise guidance not only did the former flourish and grow,
+with the other settlements which had come into existence, but by his
+great power of initiative the life of the principality itself was
+directed into prosperous and progressive channels. His immediate
+successors greatly increased the power and influence of the Church;
+whilst at the same time they did not omit to extend their
+non-spiritual power by the acquisition of other territory, and by
+means of the mining industries they became very rich and powerful.
+
+[Sidenote: EARLY RULERS]
+
+The Archbishops of Salzburg soon by this means gained a great and
+distinguished place amongst the German princes, which they retained
+until the power of the Emperors began to wane in consequence of
+differences with the Popes, to the latter of whom the Archbishops, as
+a rule, gave their support in the disputes that arose. Into these
+matters it is not necessary to enter deeply, but it was in consequence
+of them that Conrad I., Count of Abinberg, took the part of the Pope
+and caused the country to be greatly disturbed. During his reign the
+Abbey of St. Peter was granted as a residence to the Archbishop of
+Salzburg, and a new building was soon afterwards erected close by for
+the purpose. It was in the reign of this same Conrad I. that the
+Cathedral of Salzburg was destroyed by fire on May 4, 828, as was also
+a very large portion of the city. Both the Cathedral and the portion
+of the town which had been burnt down were rebuilt with even greater
+magnificence than before. But they were destined to once more be
+destroyed. Three centuries later, in the year 1167, a quarrel arose
+between Conrad II. and Frederick Barbarossa, because the latter
+refused to invest the former with the temporal power, and pronounced
+against him the ban of the Empire. Barbarossa ordered Salzburg and the
+country round about to be over-run and laid waste by the Counts
+Plain-Mittersill. For some time the city and its strong fortress
+resisted successfully; but on April 5, 1167, it was captured and once
+more burnt to the ground.
+
+The successor of Conrad, Albert III., a son of King Ladislav of
+Bohemia, also came into conflict with the Emperor, and shared a
+similar fate to his predecessors; but during the reigns of the
+immediately succeeding archbishops peace and prosperity were
+established, and under Eberhard II., who was distinguished as a most
+able and brilliant administrator as well as a great churchman, peace
+and tranquillity once more reigned.
+
+During the next century Salzburg was involved in political disputes
+and took part in the Battle of Muhldorf, on September 28, 1322,
+fighting on the side of Frederick the Schöne, Duke of Austria, who was
+taken prisoner. In consequence of which the principality not only
+lost large numbers of its chief nobles and knights, but also was
+involved in heavy monetary loss in the payment of its share of a war
+indemnity.
+
+Immediately following this period of unrest came another distinguished
+by the erection of new and handsome buildings and the enlargement of
+the bounds of the city, and also strengthening of the Castle on the
+Mönchsberg. To Archbishop Leonhard von Keutschach (1495 to 1519) must
+be given the credit of attaining absolute supremacy, and with his
+occupation of the See may be said to have commenced the most
+distinguished period in the history of the city. Leonhard did not
+attain to this position, however, entirely without guile, for to tell
+the truth the Salzburg citizens, who seemed even in those mediæval
+times to have possessed a love of freedom and spirit of independence
+which did them credit, having become restive under the ecclesiastical
+domination and tyranny wished to make the town a free imperial city.
+Leonhard, however, had determined otherwise, and so under pretence of
+inviting the burgomaster and twenty town councillors to his palace to
+give them a state banquet, he promptly arrested them on their arrival
+and threw them into the castle dungeons. He then succeeded in taking
+away the ancient rights of the town, upon the annulment of which he
+had set his mind. But although Archbishop Leonhard ruled his secular
+as well as his ecclesiastical subjects with a rod of iron, he did much
+to improve and beautify the city, adding greatly to the strength and
+size of Hohen-Salzburg, and also improving the method of working the
+mines, particularly those in Gastein and Rauris. This was, of course,
+more directly to his benefit than that of the miners, yet in the end
+was pleasing to the country in general in that the Archbishop drew
+from the mines a revenue sufficient to permit him to erect many
+handsome buildings, to improve the roads, and to encourage art and
+agriculture.
+
+[Sidenote: THE REFORMATION]
+
+During the Archiepiscopate of his successor Mathäus Lang von
+Wellenburg, from 1519 to 1540, many stirring events took place, not
+only in the city of Salzburg but throughout the length and breadth of
+the principality as well. The faith of Luther had been introduced into
+Salzburg and had met with great success among all classes of the
+population, especially that of the miners. Even some of the priests
+and officials of the Cathedral itself were suspected of being
+favourable to, and even of extending, the new doctrines. At first the
+Archbishop tried to combat the heretical tendencies of his subjects by
+kindness and indulgence; but finding these methods fruitless, he
+called in the aid of foreign mercenaries, chiefly from Tyrol,
+garrisoned Hohen-Salzburg strongly with them and with followers upon
+whose loyalty he could depend, and taking the town unawares, forced
+the inhabitants to submit and to surrender their privileges.
+
+This event was followed by various acts of violence directed against
+the adherents of the reformed faith, which so exasperated the
+population that in May, 1525, a rebellion broke out in all parts of
+the principality. The Archbishop seeing that the situation was taking
+a serious turn, addressed an urgent appeal for help to Duke William at
+Munich, which, however, was not answered. Shortly after, thousands of
+miners and peasants, having won several skirmishes in the country
+districts, advanced to Salzburg, where they were joined by many of the
+inhabitants, and promptly set to work to besiege the Archbishop in the
+fortress, which they continued to do (failing to gain an entrance)
+until August 15th, when Ludwig of Bavaria arrived with a strong force,
+and a truce favourable to the peasants was agreed upon. This
+arrangement, however, was not held to, and in consequence a fierce
+rebellion broke out again in the following year, but was successfully
+and cruelly suppressed by forces under the command of the Archduke
+Ferdinand, supplemented by those of the Suabian League.
+
+Although the doctrines of Luther continued to make headway, and
+religious disturbances still occurred, the latter were not of a
+serious character; but some half a century later the famous Archbishop
+Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau, also known for brevity as Wolf Dietrich,
+on returning from Rome, where he had been to receive the pallium, or
+ornamental band of white wool worn around the shoulders, which all
+archbishops at that time had to receive on their appointment before
+they were empowered to carry out the duties of their office, issued
+his famous edict on July 9, 1588, for the extermination of the
+heretics. In consequence of which there was a severe persecution of
+those who had adopted the Lutheran faith, with great confiscations of
+their lands and other property. Other acts of this famous Archbishop,
+including an imposition on salt, the obtaining and making of which
+formed a very important and remunerative industry, brought about
+serious friction between him and some of his subjects, and ultimately
+led on two occasions to his military occupation of the salt district
+by means of mercenaries. On the first these forces were defeated and
+driven out by those of Duke William of Bavaria; and on the second the
+Archbishop's action led to the conquest and occupation of Salzburg by
+the Duke Maximilian himself, and the ultimate imprisonment and
+dethroning of Wolf Dietrich on March 7, 1612. He was never released,
+although efforts were made to obtain freedom and pardon for him, and
+died in his cell in Hohen-Salzburg five years later.
+
+[Sidenote: CATHOLIC PERSECUTIONS]
+
+After the Peace of Westphalia, October 24th, Salzburg was made an
+independent and sovereign principality, and the archbishops, the
+Chapter, and various other authorities, set to work to bring about
+improvements in the Civil and Ecclesiastical offices and organizations
+of the country, and to improve the condition of the inhabitants by
+better regulations of taxes, the criminal law, etc., and to complete
+the building of the city and improvement of the existing portions of
+it by the repaving of the streets and instituting better sanitary
+arrangements. But notwithstanding the undoubted benefits conferred in
+the way we have mentioned upon the inhabitants, the clerical party
+maintained a rigorous persecution of the Protestants, and in
+consequence the years 1684-85 witnessed large emigrations of
+Lutherans, including great numbers of the Hallein miners.
+
+These persecutions were followed half a century later by those of the
+Archbishop Leopold Anton Freiherr von Fermian, who summoned the
+Jesuits into the country to aid in extirpating the Protestants. These
+priests succeeded in stirring up further dissensions between the
+Catholics and the Lutherans, and cruel persecutions, accompanied by
+torture and imprisonment, followed. The Archbishop, finding the
+Jesuits had not succeeded in reducing the country to uniformity of
+religion or a more peaceful state, issued on the last day of October,
+1731, the famous emigration edict by which the Protestants were to be
+deprived of all their property and their rights as citizens, and to be
+driven from the principality. The result was the forming of the
+celebrated Salzbund, by which the followers of the reformed faith
+banded themselves together and swore to defend it, and as a token they
+licked a block of salt placed for the purpose on a table, which is
+still preserved at Schwarzach, where the League was formed.
+
+In the end, in consequence of Archbishop Fermian's edict, upwards of
+30,000 people emigrated, and as was the case with the Huguenots of
+France they formed by far the most able, industrious, and intelligent
+portion of the community, and the consequences of their emigration are
+even felt at the present time. By the expulsion of the Protestants,
+many of whom were miners, we are told "the mining industry of Salzburg
+received its death blow, the prosperity of the country was greatly
+diminished, and the free national and civic life was destroyed." The
+greater number of these emigrants eventually settled in Prussian
+Lithuania, where they were warmly and hospitably received. Others went
+to Bavaria, and Suabia, and a few even to England, some of the latter
+of whom ultimately crossed the Atlantic and settled in Georgia, where
+in the town of Ebenezer there still exists a colony of their
+descendants.
+
+The immediate effect of the emigration of these skilled artisans and
+workers was felt both in the city of Salzburg and the principality.
+Workshops, which had hitherto been busy hives of industry, deserted by
+their former occupants, failed to find new tenants, and fell into
+gradual decay, or were turned to other less remunerative uses. As had
+been the case with the Huguenots so was it with the _émigrés_ of
+Salzburg; their places could not be filled nor their loss replaced.
+
+Salzburg during the wars of Frederick the Great against Bavaria and
+France was frequently occupied by one or other of the contending
+nations, and was reduced to a state of poverty and distress from which
+it was a long time recovering. To such a wretched condition were the
+inhabitants of the city and principality reduced that there was
+serious danger at one time of the latter being secularized. But under
+the firmer and more beneficent rule of Hieronymus, Count of
+Coloredo-Wallsee, the last reigning Archbishop (1772 to 1803), several
+beneficial reforms were brought about in the administration of the
+country relating to its finances, police, agriculture, and other
+departments. But, notwithstanding these changes, ecclesiastical
+domination in Salzburg was destined to come to an end speedily, and at
+the Peace of Campo Formio, October 17, 1797, France by a secret treaty
+agreed to have the Archbishopric of Salzburg transferred to the
+Emperor Francis II.
+
+[Sidenote: NAPOLEONIC WARS]
+
+In the years 1800 to 1802 the principality was once more the scene of
+French invasions, and suffered severely not only from the ravages
+consequent upon the battles fought between the French and the
+Imperialists, but also from the heavy contributions of money and
+stores levied upon the people. The whole country soon became in a
+chaotic condition, and the Archbishop at last fled with his portable
+property and the most valuable treasures, leaving his See to its fate.
+The Imperial forces entered Salzburg under the command of Count
+Meerveldt on August 19, 1802, the General proclaiming that he took
+possession of the country in the name of the Archduke Ferdinand of
+Tuscany.
+
+Thus Salzburg ceased to be an independent spiritual principality and
+became the secular electorate, which it has remained ever since.
+
+On March 11th of the following year the fugitive archbishop resigned
+the secular power. Although there is no doubt that this change was
+welcomed by the people at large, who looked forward to reforms and
+greater stability of government, it was not found possible to effect
+the former at once. The still unsettled and warlike period in which
+Ferdinand I. came to rule over Salzburg was very detrimental to any
+radical reform or change of administration. By the Peace of Pressberg,
+December 26, 1805, Salzburg was transferred to Austria, and four years
+later passed into the possession of Bavaria by the Treaty of Vienna,
+and so remained until 1816.
+
+It was during the Napoleonic Wars that the Salzburgers, like the
+Tyrolese under Andreas Hofer, rose and fought for their country and
+for the Emperor of Austria. Quite a number of serious engagements took
+place, in the Lueg Pass, and the Mendling, and near Unken and Melleck,
+leading naturally enough to great poverty and devastation. Ultimately
+by the Treaty of April 14, 1816, Salzburg passed into the possession
+of Austria, and on May 1, 1816, the Imperial Commissioners entered
+into possession amidst the enthusiastic rejoicing of the whole
+population.
+
+This state of affairs lasted till 1850, when once more Salzburg became
+an independent Austrian Crown land, and eleven years later it was
+granted a separate government and a Diet. Since then the city as well
+as the province has prospered under the wise and enterprising rule of
+its present administration, and has become thoroughly incorporated in
+spirit as well as upon paper with the great Empire of which it forms
+an independent part.
+
+To its Archbishops of the sixteenth century Salzburg owed and still
+owes much. They were nearly all of them great and interesting
+personalities who not only influenced the civil as well as the
+religious life and evolution of the town, but had, in addition, not a
+little to do with the appearance it gradually assumed during the
+period we have mentioned. Under their rule Salzburg was to a large
+extent modernized. Many thirteenth- and fourteenth-century buildings
+were pulled down, to be replaced by much more magnificent if not more
+picturesque and interesting structures. It was then that the spirit of
+the Renaissance swept over the Alps from Italy, and in its train came
+the desire for magnificence in architecture, in entertainments, and in
+the dress and life of the Salzburg nobility.
+
+The Archbishops and ecclesiastical inhabitants also fell willing
+victims to the desire for extravagance and ostentatious display.
+Indeed, the former were, as one authority says, "the true Renaissance
+Sovereigns of the Italian school, who were selfish as regards their
+politics, and not at all particular regarding the means by which they
+attained their ends." It must, however, be allowed that though by no
+means unwilling for worldly enjoyments and pageantry, notwithstanding
+the fact that they professed in their religion the severer doctrines
+of Ignatius Loyola, they were worthy patrons and encouragers of art,
+science, and literature, and were animated by the desire to leave a
+lasting memorial of themselves and their beliefs in splendid
+ecclesiastical buildings. In Salzburg one finds their records on all
+hands, in coats-of-arms and tablets on which are recorded their
+names and deeds, for the benefit and instruction of those who
+succeeded them.
+
+  [Illustration: ONE OF THE FINEST DOORS OF THE STATE APARTMENTS IN THE
+   FORTRESS, SALZBURG]
+
+[Sidenote: REBUILDING THE CITY]
+
+During the period of which we speak the character and appearance of
+the city was almost entirely changed. The ancient mediæval buildings
+were pulled down, and replaced by magnificent palaces in which the
+nobility and ecclesiastical dignitaries dwelt in splendour and ease.
+Churches were erected in such numbers as to be almost unequalled in
+any other city of similar size. Most of these still remain, making
+Salzburg a place of spires and domes and handsome churches strangely
+picturesque and deeply interesting.
+
+Seen either from the ridge of the Mönchsberg, the Kapuzingerberg, or
+from the castle walls, especially at sundown on a summer's evening,
+Salzburg presents a picture of great beauty and colour, and one which
+is not easily forgotten.
+
+As was not unnatural with the secularization of the power ruling the
+Province the capital suffered heavily. For a time both its prosperity
+and its intellectual life underwent eclipse. For almost half a century
+its energies seemed to lie dormant, and it was only when the line
+connecting Munich with Vienna by way of Salzburg was constructed in
+1860 that it woke once more to take an important place amongst the
+towns of north-western Austria. From that period till to-day the place
+has made steady progress.
+
+Till the middle of the last century the city occupied a comparatively
+restricted area within the old walls. And as a direct consequence of
+the numerous churches, convents, and other ecclesiastical buildings
+occupying a great deal of the space available the townsfolk were
+compelled to crowd their dwellings together, and to build the many
+storied houses which one finds in the older portion of the town in the
+neighbourhood of the Herrngasse, Sigmund-Haffnergasse, and
+Getreidegasse. It is in these narrow and gloomy--though undoubtedly
+picturesque--streets, in the architecture of which one can in many
+instances trace Italian influence, that the great part of the
+population dwelt, and much of the trade of the town was done.
+
+With more modern ideas the distaste for such confinement among the
+more ambitious and well-to-do of the commercial and artisan classes
+became manifest, and when at length the old walls were in places
+pulled down a new suburb arose on the other side of the river--as it
+did at Innsbruck--in the neighbourhood of the railway station,
+possessing wide modern streets, finer shops, and palatial villa
+residences, and also smaller houses for the occupation of the
+working-class community.
+
+In this portion of the town one finds not only some of the best
+hotels, but the Kurhaus with its pleasant gardens (closely adjoining
+the Mirabell Garden), the fine Theatre, and the imposing church of St.
+Andreas in the Gothic style. Opposite the railway station, set in a
+recess of foliage in the garden adjoining the Hôtel de l'Europe, is
+the famous statue of the Kaiserin Elizabeth, a pilgrimage shrine for
+most visitors to the town. The statue itself has been described as
+"simple but beautiful." To us it has always seemed by no means an
+adequate or even very skilful representation of a beautiful and
+queenly personality. The pose is not particularly happy, and the whole
+has to our mind a "doll-like" effect.
+
+  [Illustration: A QUIET PASTURE]
+
+As time went by Salzburg reclaimed much ground from the rocky bed of
+the swiftly flowing river by confining the stream within more
+restricted limits. In former times, when the town was enclosed with
+walls, there was no such necessity, and the Salzach took its own
+course, encroaching much upon the lower-lying land along its banks.
+But nowadays on this reclaimed ground shady avenues of trees have been
+planted, which give a charming and distinctive character to this part
+of the city. Here, too, are some fine villas, where not so very many
+years ago was waste or wooded land, set amid trees and made
+pleasant by beautiful gardens, in which there seems to bloom a
+profusion of flowers all the year round.
+
+The position and future prosperity of the town as a tourist resort was
+assured when Salzburg became the starting-point of a second main line
+of railway leading to Innsbruck via Kitzbühel, and the picturesque
+Unter-Inn Thal, and the centre of a number of branch lines.
+
+It is through these modern developments that the life of Salzburg has
+so materially changed even within the memory of those who first
+visited it but, comparatively speaking, a few years ago. From a town
+of ecclesiastical and almost mediæval aloofness from the outside
+world, and from one which had for a considerable period seen its
+growth arrested and its life stagnant, it has sprung into being as a
+favourite summer and winter resort not merely for tourists, but also
+for those to whom the older portion of the town, its many historic
+buildings, castle, and fine churches, proves attractive.
+
+[Sidenote: SALZBURG'S ANCIENT FORTRESS]
+
+The most prominent of all buildings in Salzburg, and the one which has
+for most visitors the greatest attraction, is the fine old fortress of
+Hohen-Salzburg set high above the older town upon a tree-enshrouded
+and rocky spur of the Mönchsberg.
+
+The ancient fortress, which has witnessed so many stirring events
+within its walls, and from which past generations of inhabitants have
+looked down upon almost equally dramatic and stirring doings in the
+town below, that throughout the ages defied capture, and at last came
+to be looked upon as impregnable, was founded nearly eight and a half
+centuries ago by Archbishop Gebhard.
+
+As the centuries went by many additions were made to the original
+buildings, and the present castle dates in its chief portions from the
+last few years of the fifteenth and the first few years of the
+sixteenth centuries. These additions were principally the work of
+Leonard von Keutschach, Archbishop of Salzburg at the close of the
+Middle Ages. He was one of the great "building" archbishops to whose
+energies and enterprise the town at various periods owed so much. Of
+peasant origin he was not ashamed of his humble birth, and, being
+gifted with a sense of humour, chose a turnip as his armorial
+bearings. So frequently, indeed, are representations of this vegetable
+met with on escutcheons in various parts of the town, that the remark
+of one traveller who observed that "the Salzburgers appear to have
+sprung out of the earth" may be held excused.
+
+Severe looking as is the fine old fortress (now given over to the uses
+of barracks), in whose courtyards princes, archbishops, nobles, and
+many famous men of the past centuries have walked, it was, however,
+not merely a strong bulwark of defence, truly "ein feste burg"
+dominating the town and plain, but also a palace. Although the castle
+has been stripped of much of its magnificence there happily still
+remain traces of it in the so-called Fürstenzimmer (state apartments),
+which formerly occupied by the rulers of the Province were furnished
+and decorated with all the splendour which marked the most lavish
+period of Renaissance influence. Chief amongst the relics of the
+latter are the beautiful and delicately carved panelling, the gilt
+work, and the richly carved and moulded ceilings of the principal
+apartments. In wandering through these now almost deserted rooms one
+is tempted to conjure up the scenes of magnificence they must have
+witnessed. Tragedy, comedy, chivalry, hate, joy, sorrow, success, and
+failure, all, the often lurid though magnificent gamut of life in the
+Middle Ages, must have been welded into the very fabric and atmosphere
+of this impressive and deeply interesting building. Among the chief
+relics of bygone splendour and pomp of circumstance there remains the
+beautiful and it is said unique Majolica stove, a truly wonderful
+example of Gothic ceramic art.
+
+There are many interesting and quaint corners within the triple line
+of walls, which shut off access to the castle and proved so useful on
+many an occasion in former times, united with the fortifications of
+the Mönchsberg known as the _Burgerwehr_; but few excel in
+picturesqueness the old courtyard with its shady and famous Linden
+tree, ancient well, and time-worn walls. Here, as one lingers, towards
+sundown one sometimes hears the sweet-toned though halting notes of
+the organ within the tower playing some familiar hymn tune. The
+trembling notes, like those of an old singer whose voice has become
+feeble but has retained much of its sweetness, float out upon the
+still evening air with a mystic appeal which few that have heard them
+can, we think, have failed to have felt. For ourselves it is one of
+the lasting and unforgettable memories of Salzburg as well as of its
+castle.
+
+Nowadays the cable railway takes one to the summit in a few minutes,
+and one is spared the fatigue of the long climb up by the Nonnberg.
+The old Reckturm, in the dungeons of which unlucky prisoners were
+confined, and in the tower itself the terrible instruments of torture
+were kept and the torture chamber was situated, nowadays has a much
+more pleasant office to fulfil as an excellent "look out" place from
+which to view the widely extended prospect of the town and Salzach
+valley towards the north.
+
+[Sidenote: HOHEN-SALZBURG'S SIEGES]
+
+Many an assault was made during the Middle Ages and succeeding eras
+upon the old grey fortress, seldom resulting in anything save disaster
+or disappointment for the attacking force. Even the peasants, who,
+during the terrible rebellion of 1525, made repeated attacks upon the
+castle with the utmost fury and determination, failed to accomplish
+their object of capturing the stronghold, Matthew Land, the then
+Archbishop, and the high ecclesiastics who had taken refuge within its
+unscalable walls, to whom short shrift would have been given by the
+peasant leaders. For ages the Church had trodden the peasantry under
+foot, and in the Peasants' Rebellion there were terrible reprisals.
+But although the insurgents came near capturing Hohen-Salzburg they
+did not succeed. Their appliances were too primitive for successful
+assault, and their shots did little or no damage to the strong thick
+walls or buildings. On a marble column in the castle are to be seen
+the marks left by a cannon ball, which was one of the few that
+succeeded in entering the castle, and in this case it was through a
+window! A century later, during the Thirty Years' War of 1618-1648
+which devastated the whole of the then German Empire, waged between
+the Evangelic Union under the Elector Palatine and the Catholics led
+by Maximilian the Great Duke of Bavaria, Salzburg, doubtless on
+account of the fact that its fortress was esteemed impregnable, was
+one of the few places left at peace and unmolested. We have already
+mentioned the fact that the Archbishops were not only exceedingly
+powerful ecclesiastics but also great diplomatists, and there is
+little doubt but that to their clever policy must also be attributed
+the town's immunity from attack during that troublous and universally
+disturbed period.
+
+Of the many distinguished ecclesiastics who have occupied the See of
+Salzburg as its Archbishops, the most interesting and perhaps the most
+important were two, separated one from the other by but a few years.
+One was Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau (1587-1611?) and the other Paris
+von Lodron.
+
+[Sidenote: BUILDERS OF RENOWN]
+
+Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau, from having received his
+education in Rome, then the centre of Art and culture, came to
+Salzburg steeped not alone in the traditions of Italian Art but
+anxious to impress upon the town his knowledge and taste. He found an
+old Roman and neither handsome nor picturesque Cathedral, dating from
+the eighth century, in place of churches such as he had been
+accustomed to in Italy, ornate and beautiful. He is reputed to have
+been at no pains to conceal his distaste for the building, and when a
+few years before his death it was destroyed during one of the
+destructive fires, there were those who even accused the Archbishop of
+having himself set the church on fire, or at least of having
+instigated others to do so. But there is little truth in this story,
+though the Archbishop's satisfaction at the destruction of the
+ancient, inconvenient, and unornamental structure seems beyond
+question. That he fully intended to erect upon the site one of the
+finest churches north of the Italian frontier there is little doubt,
+but, alas! for human aims, he was not destined even to see the
+foundations laid.
+
+To him, notwithstanding his despotic character, his restless
+disposition, his shameful intrigue with the beautiful Salome Alt, the
+city of Salzburg owes a great deal, for he did much to transform an
+unpicturesque and dirty town with narrow mediæval streets into one of
+the finest cities of Germany. Many of the beautiful buildings,
+including the Gabriel Chapel, the Chapter House, the Neubau, and the
+arcades of the Sebastian Cemetery, owed their existence to his
+artistic taste and desire for improvement.
+
+It was to Paris von Lodron, the founder of the University which was
+dissolved in 1810 during the Bavarian occupation, his second
+successor, fell the task as well as the honour of giving to Salzburg a
+Cathedral worthy of it and of its long line of famous Archbishops and
+many historical memories. The original plan, which historians tell us
+would have resulted in a church of such magnificence that it would
+have been almost unrivalled by that of any in Europe, had to be
+considerably modified for several reasons, chief amongst which were
+considerations of cost and space. The former was rendered obligatory
+from the heavy expense entailed in keeping up the fortifications of
+the city during the time (the Thirty Years' War) the Cathedral was in
+course of construction. However, notwithstanding these circumstances,
+Paris von Lodron's work, which occupies a splendid position in the
+midst of three large squares, was designed chiefly by an Italian
+architect named Santino Solari (possibly from plans by Scamozzi of
+Florence), assisted by others in the late Renaissance style, is one of
+the most magnificent churches in Austria, although the stucco
+ornamentation is of a rather florid character. From the exterior,
+which is rather plain and severe, although it possesses a fine façade
+built of Unterberg marble, it is impossible to gain any conception of
+the charm and even splendour of the building. But immediately upon
+entering it, one is impressed with its beautiful proportions, and the
+resemblance to a marked degree in the general plan to that of St.
+Peter's, Rome. Indeed, there is little doubt as to the source from
+which Solari drew much of his inspiration, although due credit must be
+given to him for original details, the proportions, and general beauty
+of effect.
+
+The treasury of the church is worth seeing, as it is rich in relics of
+bygone ages, including an exquisite seventeenth-century monstrance
+encrusted with 1800 precious stones, rich vestments, and a fine
+crozier set with gems; and none should miss the interesting
+fourteenth-century bronze Romanesque font which stands in one of the
+side chapels to the left of the entrance.
+
+In its Cathedral Salzburg possesses a gem of architectural beauty
+which has been the admiration of generations of architects and
+students, and (as one authority says) "has probably provided more
+inspiration for the artist and the student of architecture than any
+other church north of the Italian Alps."
+
+On the Residenz-Platz, the centre of which is adorned by a beautiful
+fountain nearly fifty feet in height dating from the latter part of
+the seventeenth century, consisting of a colossal figure of Atlas
+surrounded by equally colossal hippopotami, the work of Anton Dario,
+is situated the ancient palace of the Archbishops, formerly known as
+the Residenz, now the Imperial Residence. This fine palace which was
+erected at various dates from the end of the sixteenth down to the
+first two decades of the eighteenth century contains many traces of
+the splendour which characterized the larger buildings which were
+erected by ecclesiastics at the time the influence of the Renaissance
+was at its height. The ceilings and wall of the principal salons and
+halls are especially notable, and in some cases are most elaborately
+decorated. The Government Offices which are opposite the Residenz
+although known as the Neugebäude (possibly because they included the
+Post and Telegraph office), in reality date, at any rate in part, from
+the reign of Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau, although they have
+been modernized, altered, and added to from time to time. In the
+octagonal tower was placed, in the beginning of the eighteenth
+century, a beautiful _carillon_, the work of a watchmaker named Sauter
+at the commencement of the seventeenth century, known as the
+Glockenspiel, which chimes thrice daily at 7 a.m., 11 a.m., and 6 p.m.
+
+The Archbishops of Salzburg were not only in past ages ecclesiastics
+and diplomatists but also sportsmen. Most, indeed, seem to have been
+great lovers of horses. Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau, Salzburg, built
+some magnificent stables adorned with marble on the slopes of the
+Mönchsberg; attached to them were a covered riding school for use in
+winter, and another open-air one for summer use. Though the stables
+themselves are now barracks, the open-air school is still one of the
+sights of the town. In the side of the Mönchsberg were hewn in 1693
+three great galleries for the accommodation of spectators of the
+sports in the summer riding school; they have long ago been overgrown
+with ivy and creepers which add greatly to their picturesqueness, but
+are still occasionally used for the purpose for which they were
+originally constructed.
+
+In the winter riding school there is an interesting ceiling fresco
+depicting a joust or tournament dating from the last decade of the
+seventeenth century.
+
+Several of the Archbishops of Salzburg appear to have had a liking
+for rock excavations, and the Archbishop Sigismund von Schrattenbach
+was one of the number. In the latter half of the eighteenth century,
+in 1767 to be precise, he constructed the Neuthor, a tunnel through
+the solid rock some four hundred and fifty feet in length, which it
+took two years to make. It pierced through the Mönchsberg and thus
+united the suburb of Riedenberg with the rest of the town. At the
+Riedenberg end is a statue to St. Sigismund in commemoration of the
+Archbishop, who placed his own medallion at the town end of the tunnel
+with the Latin inscription "Te saxa loquntur" (The very stones praise
+thee) above it.
+
+[Sidenote: THE SCHLOSS MIRABELL]
+
+To the Archbishop Wolf Dietrich von Raitenau, or rather to his passion
+for the beautiful daughter of a Salzburg merchant whose name was
+perhaps not inappropriately Salome, the charming Schloss Mirabell
+chiefly owes its existence. Here (so the story goes) the beautiful
+Salome Alt was installed as mistress, amid splendour and lavish
+expenditure befitting a King's favourite. For her were constructed and
+laid out delightful gardens, with fine terraces, shady walks, wide
+lawns of exquisitely "velvety" turf, the like of which we have seldom
+seen even in the "grass" counties of England; quaintly shaped
+flower-beds, fountains and ponds, mazes and avenues of fine trees. For
+her, too, were numerous groups of statuary, and single figures of a
+mythological and artistic character installed. Some of these are of
+considerable merit; and few are without distinctive decorative value
+in the surroundings amid which they have been placed.
+
+In the gardens themselves there is a constant succession of delightful
+flowers all the year round. On the occasion of our last visit the
+sweetly scented linden avenue was in full bloom, whilst roses were in
+profusion--we were told they bloom almost all the year round in this
+favoured and beautiful spot--and the jasmine, orange trees, and many
+other beautiful and homely flowers perfumed the summer air, and spread
+out in a riot of colour on every hand. Aloes, palms, Portugal
+laurels, daphne, and other shrubs afford relief to the eye, and in the
+background, towering high above the quietude of this old-fashioned
+garden, looms the vast and commanding Hohen-Salzburg, with its roofs
+and pinnacles shimmering and glancing in the sunshine of the upper
+air.
+
+In the gardens are also the interesting aviary of the Salzburg Society
+for the Protection of Birds, and the former Summer Theatre near the
+French Garden with the grassy stage and wings formed of "trimly"
+clipped hedges.
+
+The mansion itself suffered severely from a fire in 1818, but the
+Marble Hall and staircase which escaped are well worth seeing, as are
+also the decorations of several of the older rooms.
+
+FOOTNOTE:
+
+[15] Bosnia and Herzegovina have been recently annexed.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VII
+
+     THE ENVIRONS OF SALZBURG--HELLBRUNN, ITS UNIQUE FOUNTAINS
+     AND GARDENS--THE CASTLE OF ANIF--THE GAISBERG--THE
+     KAPUZINGERBERG--THE MOZART-HÄUSCHEN--THE
+     MÖNCHSBERG--SALZBURG CHURCHES
+
+
+In the neighbourhood of Salzburg there are several beautiful castles
+erected by various holders of the See. Amongst them the charmingly
+situated Leopoldskron, lying to the south of the Mönchsberg,
+overlooking a lake covered in early summer with a profusion of water
+lilies and other water plants, and embracing a magnificent prospect of
+the environing mountains. The drive to Leopoldskron is one not to be
+missed. As one passes along the magnificent avenue, or _allée_, of
+trees, through flower-bedecked fields, and with the fresh air from off
+the river and mountains perfumed by the carpet of blossoms which lies
+stretched on either side of the road, one is able to realize to the
+full the rural charm which surrounds the historic and busy town just
+left behind.
+
+[Sidenote: HELLBRUNN AND ITS FOUNTAINS]
+
+But a little distance further, on the other side of the Salzach, is
+Hellbrunn, once an Archiepiscopal and now an Imperial possession. It
+is surrounded by a large deer park, and owes its origin to the
+Archbishop Marcus Sittich in 1613. It is pleasantly situated, and was,
+according to tradition, the retreat and pleasure palace of its
+founder, who was of a far more social and lively disposition than
+Archbishops, even in that somewhat lax age, were supposed to be, and
+here he installed his favourites. In the chateau itself there are some
+fine state apartments, in one of which are some interesting frescoes
+by Mascagni, Franz von Sienna, and Solari the younger.
+
+But the gardens and unique fountains and "waterworks," which are laid
+out and planned in the style so popular during the seventeenth and
+eighteenth centuries, are the great attractions of Hellbrunn, not only
+to the foreign visitors, but on Sundays especially to the Salzburg
+folk, and those of the neighbouring villages who flock in thousands to
+the chateau. In the gardens of Hellbrunn one finds the same velvety
+turf that so generally distinguishes those of other castles in this
+fertile valley of the Salzach; whilst in the ponds, lakes, fountains,
+and "trick" waterworks--invented by the Archbishop, so it is said, to
+amuse his favourites during his enforced absences upon his
+ecclesiastical duties and affairs of State--one has something quite
+out of the ordinary.
+
+Indeed, probably in no other garden in the world do unsuspecting
+visitors run such risks of a soaking or impromptu shower baths as at
+Hellbrunn. Jets start suddenly (at the turn of secret taps by the
+custodian, who seems to take a cynical delight, bred of many
+experiences, in the visitor's discomfiture) from rockeries, from the
+corners of plaster columns, from the mouths, finger-tips and eyes of
+statues, from the foliage of trees, from roofs of grottoes, from the
+edges of the very paths along which one is unsuspectingly walking,
+from, it appears, the very ground beneath one's feet. One is lured
+into a grotto to admire a statue or to "see something" which may or
+may not actually exist, only a moment later to find one's exit blocked
+by a curtain of water, which pours down from the outside rocks above
+the entrance. This lifts and one makes a dash for liberty, only to be
+assailed by jets of water converging or spurting across the path one
+has to follow. Visitors seat themselves upon a marble bench a few
+moments later, and a whole battery of jets plays upon the unfortunate
+sitters, or are so arranged that, whilst not actually playing upon
+them, to escape without "running the gauntlet," for the amusement of
+the more discreet or knowing onlookers, is impossible. On fine Sundays
+when there is usually a great crowd of visitors at this favourite
+out-of-town resort, which boasts of an excellent restaurant, there is,
+of course, plenty of fun when the jets begin to play for the lucky
+folk who have "been there before."
+
+Along one path leading from the chateau to the lawns and fish-ponds,
+the latter of which are crowded with huge carp and other fish, some of
+which are reputed to be as old as Hellbrunn itself, there are set in
+niches a number of figures, blacksmiths, armourers, millers, and the
+like with their anvils, forges, and mills worked by a tiny runlet of
+water. And not far from these is the famous mechanical Theatre, also
+worked by water power, with its organ, and some hundred and fifty
+figures in sixteenth- and seventeenth-century costumes, which give
+quaint performances, depicting a busy town, dancers (these latter very
+amusing with their pirouettes and posturings), soldiers, fighting,
+jousts, etc. Of the water grottoes that known as the Neptune--with, it
+is said, five thousand jets--is the largest, and there are also the
+Rainbow, Fairy, and Orpheus grottoes, each one bringing into play some
+fresh piece of mechanical or other ingenuity.
+
+In the deer park is situated the famous Monatsschlösschen upon a
+wooded knoll, from which a fine view is obtainable. This building was
+erected (some say for a bet) within a month's time by Archbishop
+Marcus Sittich. There was at the time a popular belief that he was
+assisted in the accomplishment of what was, at all events in those
+days, a wonderful feat by Satan himself.
+
+  [Illustration: MOUNTAIN PASTURES]
+
+The Stone Theatre near by is also worth seeing. It has a naturally
+formed stage and auditorium, upon the former of which in ancient times
+pastoral and other plays were performed for the amusement of the
+Archbishops and their friends.
+
+[Sidenote: ANIF AND THE GAISBERG]
+
+The Castle of Anif, which is reached by a pleasant road from Hellbrunn
+in about twenty minutes, is well worth a visit. It is a most charming
+chateau dating originally from the second decade of the thirteenth
+century, of late years restored in Gothic style by the owner, one of
+the Counts Arco-Steppberg. It is built in the centre of a lake, and is
+surrounded by a well-wooded and beautiful park, and is of great
+interest as a well-preserved survival of the fortified domestic
+architecture of other days. It is beautifully furnished, and contains
+many finely decorated rooms, and a valuable art collection.
+
+The return to Salzburg through the fields at sunset is a delightful
+experience. To the back and to the left of one are the towering
+mountain summits tinged with the Alpine glow which turns their rocky
+peaks almost blood red, and their snow-fields a deep rose pink. And
+right ahead stands up, mystic-looking as some fairy fortress in the
+waning light, Hohen-Salzburg, its roofs and walls reddened and given
+the tints of nacre, and its windows shining like the open doors of
+furnaces. A never-to-be-forgotten picture.
+
+Both the Gaisberg, up which there is now a funicular railway, and at
+whose foot Aigen, with its interesting Church and Castle acquired by
+the family of Prince Schwarzenberg in 1804, lies, and the
+Kapuzingerberg should be visited by all who have the time, and for
+whom a wide and pleasant prospect of mountain ranges, valleys, and the
+Salzach, threading its silvery way dividing the city and flowing
+northward and southward through the valley, has attractions.
+
+The Gaisberg is ascended from the little village of Parsch, reached by
+tram from the city. The railway takes one through beautiful scenery in
+about an hour to the summit of the mountain, which is so favourite an
+excursion with the well-to-do Salzburgers, and from which such a
+beautiful prospect is spread out at one's feet. To the north one can
+catch glimpses of the undulating foreground of the Alps and shining
+lakes; whilst Salzburg now more than 4000 feet below looks almost
+insignificant, and like a toy town set in the midst of a green plain
+through which winds a thin, silver line, the Salzach. In the far
+distance is the magnificent range of the Alps, in which stand the
+Watzmann, 9050 feet; the Dachstein, 9990 feet, with its rocky
+pinnacles catching the sunshine, and its glaciers and snow-fields
+gleaming white, whilst in the further distance through the deep-cut
+gap formed by the Lueg Pass one sees the fields of eternal snow on the
+Hohen Tauern glinting at one, and on a quite clear day one can catch
+glimpses of the white peaks of the Grossglockner, 12,660 feet and the
+Wiesbachhorn, 11,900 feet, across the desolate-looking Steinerne Meer.
+The prospect has been compared, but somewhat loosely we think, to that
+from the Rigi. But, whether we think it finer or less fine, we can
+agree that in one respect the view and interest of the scene is not
+exceeded by its Swiss rival--the wonderful changes of light and shade
+which come and go over the landscape between the hours of sunrise and
+sunset, during which Nature seems to work with a brush full of the
+most delicate colours and uses them as no human artist could hope to
+do.
+
+From the Kapuzingerberg, which is only half the height of the
+Gaisberg, the view is not so extensive, but it is well worth climbing
+to see. On the way up one obtains most beautiful peeps of the city
+from two distinct points; whilst from the summit one gets a panorama
+which will satisfy all save those who have made the Gaisberg ascent
+first. The way up is, after a long flight of steps about two hundred
+in number, through a most delightful beech wood, where one is tempted
+often to stop to rest or to admire some vista of the valley or town
+seen through a framework of feathery, green branches. There are, too,
+on the Kapuzingerberg several interesting buildings. The first to be
+reached is the Church of the Capuchin Monastery built in the last year
+of the sixteenth century by Archbishop Wolf Dietrich. A beautiful old
+garden is attached to the Monastery, from which one has a fine
+prospect of the town and surroundings. Alas! it is only open to men,
+and thus by monkish custom women are shut out of one more "earthly
+paradise."
+
+[Sidenote: THE MOZART MEMORIAL]
+
+But to music lovers and many others who ascend the Kapuzingerberg the
+Mozart-Häuschen, situated in a charming little garden near the
+Monastery, will be the chief object of interest. This memorial to the
+master was presented to the city by Prince Camillo zu Starhemberg, and
+was completed in June, 1877, being thrown open to the public six weeks
+later, on July 18th, on the occasion of the first musical festival.
+This cottage, which formerly stood in the courtyard of the so-called
+old "Freihaus" in Vienna, has an added interest from the fact that in
+it was composed the opera "Die Zauberflöte."
+
+The furniture, it should be noted, is not the original but a clever
+and exact copy of the articles comprising it. The former is in the
+collection of Prince Starhemberg. The top step of the cottage is,
+however, said to be "veritable." In the cottage are kept a great
+number of wreaths with ribbon streamers, embroideries, etc., which
+have been sent by admirers of Mozart's genius. Also some beautiful
+tablets of embossed metal commemorating the first musical festival
+held in 1877. There is also hung in the cottage the picture "Mozart at
+the Spinet" by the Italian artist Romaco, a photograph of the only
+portrait of the composer painted from life which is known to exist,
+which was the work of Doris Stock of Dresden in 1787; and the pictures
+of the various performers in the operas given at Cassel. The bust,
+which stands outside the cottage, is the work of the well-known
+sculptor Edmund Hellmer, of Vienna, and was the gift of Baron Schwarz.
+
+As one stands in the garden, with its pleasant prospect, quietude, and
+beautiful flowers, one cannot but feel that few more suitable spots
+could have been selected for a memorial to a musical genius of
+Mozart's nature. Far better is it, indeed, than some more pretentious
+place nearer the haunts of men.
+
+[Sidenote: ON THE MÖNCHSBERG]
+
+The Mönchsberg and a walk along its ridge should not be missed by any
+one who has a little time to spare whilst at Salzburg. The explorer
+will be well rewarded for his toil. One is apt to estimate the
+Mönchsberg by its Hohen-Salzburg end, which so dominates the city. It
+is difficult, indeed, from down below in the narrow streets to believe
+that some 300 feet above one lie not only woods and tree-shaded walks,
+but even green, flower-bedecked fields. The most direct and
+interesting way up the Mönchsberg is by the Sigmund Haffnergasse and
+Hofstallgasse bearing to the left of the Fischbrunnen, and thence over
+the Mönchsbergstiege. On reaching the top of the flight of steps the
+way lies in the direction of Hohen-Salzburg as far as the passage
+leading into the Nonnthal and to Leopoldskron, then one climbs to the
+left, and after a little distance reaches the beautiful view point
+known as Konig Ludwig-Fernsicht, or King Ludvig's Lookout.
+
+The prospect from here is wonderfully wide and beautiful, embracing as
+it does the villas on the other side of the town, and the villages and
+farms of the valley with their picturesque background of mountain
+ranges, including nearer in the Göll and Untersberg.
+
+  [Illustration: HOHEN-SALZBURG AND THE NONNBERG]
+
+To the left and on the way along the ridge to the fortress is situated
+the beautiful villa of the famous singer Bianca Bianchi, and from the
+projecting bastion in the same direction one obtains a fine view of
+the town below, and valley of the Salzach. Both in the direction of
+Mülln to the right, and of Hohen-Salzburg to the left, there are
+many fine views as one takes one's way either by shaded paths or
+through the fields which lead to the Bürgerwehrsöller, where there is
+an ancient watch-tower on the slope of the hill from whence one has a
+wonderful panoramic view of the city and its environs. From the
+opposite end of the rampart one obtains a widely extended prospect
+towards Reichenhall, Marzoll, Maxglan, and the Bavarian plain, which
+is not easily surpassed from the neighbourhood of any other town of
+the size in western Austria.
+
+One can then either descend to the Marketenderschlössl through the
+beautiful woods by one of the well-kept paths, and thence reach Mülln,
+or retrace one's steps, and walk right along to the Hohen-Salzburg end
+of the Mönchsberg, from whence by entering the fortress and descending
+by way of the Nonnberg one obtains a fine view of the other portion of
+the Salzach valley in the direction of the Gaisberg, Hellbrunn, and
+Anif.
+
+On the Nonnberg, so called from the Benedictine Convent built upon it,
+stands the fine Gothic Chapel founded in the first year of the
+eleventh century and beautifully restored in the fifteenth. In it is
+much fine stained glass, a winged altar piece of great interest; and
+there are also some interesting frescoes in the old tower.
+Unfortunately the cloisters are seldom if ever shown to visitors; they
+are the oldest now existent in the principality, and it is said even
+in the Austrian empire, dating as they do from the commencement of the
+eleventh century. They are charming and picturesque, and well worth
+the trouble which it is generally necessary to take in order to obtain
+permission to see them.
+
+In Salzburg there is such a wealth of interesting buildings and places
+that to describe all one has seen or can see there is no space.
+Perhaps of those remaining to which reference has not yet been made,
+most people visit the house in which Mozart was born, situated in the
+narrow, picturesque old Getreidegasse; the Franciscan, formerly the
+Parish Church; the Church of St. Peter, with its ancient and
+picturesque burial-ground beneath the shadow of the towering fern- and
+flower-clothed Mönchsberg, and the Caroline Augustus Museum. There
+are, of course, also the Dreifaltigkeits Kirche, with fine frescoes
+and carvings, and the University Church, both worth a visit.
+
+To Mozart's birthplace, along the quaint and narrow Getreidegasse with
+its beautiful old signs of wrought-iron work projecting from the shop
+fronts on either hand, come hundreds of English and American visitors
+annually. Now the house is also a Mozart Museum, with much of interest
+for admirers of the composer, antiquarians and students. In the
+birth-chamber itself one finds a most valuable series of family
+portraits, including some of Mozart's wife, Constance Weber; also
+those of his landlord and his wife, Lorenz Johann and Maria Theresa
+Hagenauer. There are also the "scores" of many of his operas, and
+other compositions, records of the Mozart family; and perhaps most
+interesting of all the small clavichord or spinet, and the grand piano
+or reiseclavier, which was a present from his brother Karl, on which
+he used to play.
+
+In the family sitting-room there are many interesting relics of the
+composer's father, mother, and other relatives, including Mozart's own
+pocket-book-diary, a large number of fragments of compositions, which
+from one cause or another were destined never to be completed, many
+letters of the family, copies of Mozart's three first published pieces
+printed in Paris, and several pictures of the house in the
+Rauhensteingasse, Vienna, where the composer for some years lived and
+ultimately, on January 5, 1791, died. Salzburg has well-honoured her
+famous son's memory by the several memorials of him within her gates,
+including the fine though simply conceived bronze statue in the
+Mozart-Platz which cost nearly £2000, and was erected by voluntary
+subscriptions in 1842. By the foundation of the Mozarteum or "Society
+for the Cultivation of Mozart," not only is the memory of the great
+composer kept green, but the support of the School of Music of the
+same name is ensured. Thus the city of his birth, which did him (as is
+so frequently the case) but little honour during his lifetime, has
+nowadays become the centre of enthusiasm for his works. Festivals of
+his music take place during the summer months, at which not only the
+famous and beautiful Viennese Philharmonic Orchestra takes part, but
+also the most celebrated conductors and artistes.
+
+Although Salzburg had been the residence of other famous musicians and
+composers, it is Mozart and his genius which dominates the ancient
+city's musical life, and proves so attractive an element to musicians
+and music lovers who visit it.
+
+[Sidenote: SALZBURG MUSICIANS]
+
+Michael Haydn, too, composer of much fine church music, was a resident
+in Salzburg and has a rather commonplace monument erected to his
+memory in St. Peter's Church. The latter is in the Romanesque style,
+founded in the middle of the twelfth century, and badly restored in
+the middle of the eighteenth, and is of great interest to the
+antiquarian and student of architecture. The portal consists of seven
+arches which gradually diminish in size, and are inlaid with strips of
+white and red marble. The very remarkable archings which strike one
+directly one has entered the building are portions of the original
+church. On a small altar near the vestry is a well-carved statue of
+the Virgin, said to be the work of one of the Archbishops, of about
+the end of the twelfth century, although there appears little real
+evidence in support of the suggestion.
+
+The frescoes in the nave, representing scenes from the Crucifixion,
+painted in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries, are worth study.
+In Salzburg considerable store is set upon the monuments in the
+church, but few rank high as works of art, although marking the graves
+or being memorials of distinguished and historic persons connected
+with the city's life in the past.
+
+The beautiful though ruinous cemetery of St. Peter, which, with its
+crumbling tombs of the great dead, interesting and quaint mural
+tablets, and arcaded vaults belonging to some of the most important
+and famous Salzburg families, lies at the foot of the Mönchsberg, is,
+as well as the most picturesque, the oldest cemetery in Salzburg. It
+is difficult to exaggerate the interest and charm of the spot; always
+still, although set in the midst of a city, and within a few hundred
+yards of the principal and busiest thoroughfares. That it possesses a
+wonderful and mysterious attraction for tourists we can testify; and,
+indeed, we would almost go as far as to say that one meets more
+English and American visitors in this peaceful corner of the city than
+in any other spot on the southern side of the Salzach.
+
+The celebrated Monastery of St. Peter, founded by St. Rupertus in
+(about) 582, was, until the first decade of the twelfth century, the
+residence of the bishops and archbishops of the diocese. The present
+building was erected during the reign of Archbishop Max Gandolph
+during the period covered by the years 1661-1674. It can be visited,
+and the library is full of the most interesting and valuable MSS.,
+early copper plate engravings, and consists of about 45,000 volumes
+and some 250 illuminated and other MSS., chiefly upon parchment.
+Several of the latter and some of the early printed books are
+practically priceless. The Librarian is always delighted to exhibit
+the treasures under his charge, and in him we found (as doubtless will
+all intelligent bibliophiles) a kindred spirit, and a most interesting
+cicerone.
+
+[Sidenote: THE MUSEUM]
+
+It is almost impossible in Salzburg, especially if one would really
+know something of the past life of the principality, and the city, to
+follow that excellent rule of avoiding museums. In the Salzburg
+Carolino-Augusteum Museum one finds so much that brings vividly before
+one other times and other customs. Although started but three-quarters
+of a century ago the Museum has already become a repository of the
+deepest interest, much frequented by students of all types, the
+antiquarian and the man of science. It was due to the initiative of
+Vicenza Maria Süss, one of the leading town officials at the period of
+its foundation in 1834. The work which he began was well continued and
+supplemented by that of Jost Schiffmann, the well-known Swiss painter,
+and an enthusiastic committee, largely to whose credit must be placed
+the excellent arrangement of the art and other sections of the
+collection.
+
+One of the most interesting and unique features of the Museum is the
+suite of rooms furnished accurately and entirely in the style of the
+sixteenth and seventeenth centuries; of these one of the most charming
+is the "Hunting Room" with its fine oak presses, pretty recessed
+window, and trophies of the chase. In the Hall of Antiquities are many
+interesting relics of the Roman occupation of the country, and also in
+the Lapidarium. A most excellent idea took shape in the Hall of
+Industry, where are collected together many excellent specimens of
+various "masterworks" of iron, woodcarving, etc.
+
+The Music Room contains some of the most valuable musical instruments
+of the last three centuries, including spinets, violins, and others,
+some of these priceless. In the Armoury are relics of deep interest of
+the terrible Peasants' War, including wooden cannon, crude swords
+beaten from scythes, executioners' swords, curious and cumbersome
+firearms, and some of the lances used by the Landsknechte.
+
+The Costume Room has many attractions for lady visitors, who linger
+not only to admire the fashions of the past, but to inspect the
+embroideries which came from the industrious and skilful fingers of
+past generations of women, "old" with the dignity, grace, and charm
+which the "new" woman so sadly lacks.
+
+On the same floor are the interesting Mediæval Kitchen, with its
+ancient and carefully kept copper and other utensils glinting at one
+from their hooks in the half-gloom of the recesses; the Ladies'
+Chamber, with its charming oriel, stained-glass window, colour of life
+of the period, and air of repose; the study, to show one the
+environment old-time students loved; a fine state-room; and a
+beautiful Renaissance Hall.
+
+After these vivid reconstructions of the past one passes somewhat
+regretfully to the higher floor and prehistoric things. The priceless
+Celtic helmet, found in the Pass of Lueg, interesting though it is,
+seems "lifeless" in comparison with what one has just seen; as do
+somehow Roman statues and arms, and similar objects. And one needs the
+beautiful and richly ornamented panelling, oriels, and similar objects
+of the final room to bring back colour into things.
+
+To visit and study this deeply interesting collection leaves one with
+a very good idea of the evolution of culture, science, and art during
+the last five centuries of the principality's history, one's knowledge
+of native art being easily further extended by a visit to the
+Kunstlerhaus near the Karolinenbrucke. Salzburg has produced at least
+one great artist in Hans Makart, who by common consent is esteemed one
+of the most vivid and brilliant colourists of his day.
+
+In some of the villages near Salzburg, as also during "fair" times and
+festival times in the city itself, one is able to witness some of the
+quaint, picturesque, and dramatic peasant dances for which the valley
+of the Salzach has some reputation.
+
+[Sidenote: A PEASANTS' BALL]
+
+We were especially fortunate whilst recently there in witnessing not
+only peasant dances such as we have referred to, but also a peasant
+ball.
+
+Amongst the dances specially notable was a variety of "Gaillarde," and
+"Allemande," a type of the dance known as "Siebensprung," where the
+male performers make a series of seven different movements with
+hands, elbows, knees, feet; and then almost touch the floor with
+their foreheads whilst their female companions pirouette around them.
+The "Allemande," with its graceful twirling and twisting, and
+interlacing of the arms, and graceful bending of the bodies of the
+dancers, showing off the lines of the women's figures, is especially
+picturesque.
+
+Then came types of other and more local dances, in one of which the
+women pirouetted round and round the room until scarcely able to
+stand, their short skirts gradually seeming to become inflated like
+balloons, and ascending inch by inch until knee high, when suddenly
+the dancers paused, their skirts fell, and with a sharp twirl and
+swish the latter were wound around their lower limbs in plastic folds.
+
+Then there was a pretty dance commencing with a figure of the
+"Allemande," and proceeding to a courtship in pantomime, in which the
+women peered shyly at their partners between the circle formed by the
+interlaced arms, and ending by the men stooping, and whilst continuing
+a waltz step, suddenly seizing their companions round the knees and
+lifting them breast high, all the while continuing to circle the room
+in a "springy" rather than a gliding waltz.
+
+Then followed a still more dramatic dance-play, in which the whole
+story of a peasant courtship from early days until the wedding was
+depicted in pantomime, with half a dozen characters beside the happy
+pair. Most of the performers were not only graceful and finished
+dancers, but were possessed of distinct dramatic gifts. The folk
+songs, accompanied upon rather weird instruments consisting of
+shepherds' pipes, guitars, fiddles, horns, and what, until it was put
+together, appeared to be a collection of short pieces of gas pipe of
+various lengths or strips of metal, were intensely interesting and
+musical.
+
+What struck us perhaps more than anything else, save the actual
+dancing and singing, was the charming manners of the women, and the
+perfect manners of the men. Peasants though they were, there was a
+complete absence of coarseness or roughness in general behaviour, in
+place of which one had perhaps a rather grave courtesy. And when at
+last it occurred to some of the men that perhaps the "foreigners"
+might like to dance, they approached the ladies of the party with a
+striking grace and courtesy of manner. The Salzburg girls, too, in
+their pretty costumes were just as gracious and charming as English
+girls of the upper middle class, when asked to favour some of the
+English men of the party with a dance. The scene was made even more
+kaleidoscopic in effect when at last the sombre evening dress of the
+latter mingled with and formed a foil to gay kerchiefs, snowy white
+bodices worn under a type of bolero jacket of the women, and the green
+and bright brown waistcoats and short knee breeches of the men. Across
+some of the waistcoats, which were many of them fastened with silver
+buttons, jangled quite a collection of coins, exhibiting (so we were
+told) the financial position of the wearer, so that any girl might
+know what a suitor or possible suitor was worth! We hope that no young
+man ever puts upon his waistcoat a single silver krone piece more than
+he is entitled to. But if very much in love to what deception of this
+kind might he not stoop? And mercenary indeed must be the maiden who
+would not in the end pardon his offence, which was so warm a tribute
+to the power of her charms.
+
+  [Illustration: SALZBURG MARKETWOMEN]
+
+[Sidenote: IN THE MARKET]
+
+Even nowadays a good deal of "costume" can at times be found in the
+Market, which, surrounded by old-time building and dominated by
+Hohen-Salzburg, is very picturesque with its tiny stalls--some shaded
+by huge umbrellas--and buxom market women in short skirts, gay
+kerchiefs, and sometimes in types of the peasant costumes prevailing
+in the immediate district. As a general rule the market folk are good
+models both for artists and amateur photographers, though some of
+the younger women coquettishly pretend that they object to be
+photographed, whilst all the while they are desperately anxious to
+come into the picture.
+
+To leave this fascinating old-world town, where so much of the most
+beautiful in modern ideas stands side by side with ancient things,
+without a visit to some of the charming and interesting places in the
+immediate district--lovely lakes rivalling the deep-blue sky above
+them in the tint of their waters; peaceful valleys, where pure air
+invigorates scented by passage through pinewoods and across
+flower-decked Alpine pastures; wonderful peaks covered with that
+eternal weight of glorious snow, and bound about in some cases by the
+immemorial fastnesses of environing glaciers--should be impossible.
+Our only regret is that neither space nor the scope of the present
+volume permits of some description of the beauties which we have
+visited and which lie so close at hand; indeed, almost within call of
+the beautiful city set in a valley, and surrounded with majestic and
+lofty mountains, the lower slopes of whose wilder peaks are softened
+by pine forests, and fertile upper pastures.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER VIII
+
+     SOME TOWNS AND VILLAGES OF SOUTH TYROL--MERAN, BOZEN,
+     KLAUSEN, BRIXEN, SPINGES, STERZING, MATREI
+
+
+[Sidenote: MERAN]
+
+So many pens have described and praised Meran, the ancient capital of
+Tyrol, that there must be few adjectives of appreciation left
+unapplied to it. Many poets have also sung of this beautifully
+situated little town of some 8000 inhabitants which once played so
+important a part in Tyrolese history, and nowadays has developed into
+a fashionable health resort.
+
+It has by turns been called "the Jewel of South Tyrol," "Tyrol's sweet
+Paradise," and in one of the visitor's books "A Paradise of God's
+making and man's improving"! Artists love it, and therefore it goes
+without saying that Meran is both beautiful and picturesque. From
+whatever side one approaches the town, whether by the more usual route
+from the West via Innsbruck, and then by the little branch line of the
+Brenner railway from Bozen; from the south through Verona; from the
+north by way of Munich and Innsbruck,--one is at once struck by its
+wonderfully favoured situation amid vineyards, orchards and rich
+pasture land, set in a wide valley surrounded by beautiful mountain
+ranges, and watered by the Passer River.
+
+It is, indeed, a charming spot in which to either rest--as so many
+do--or from which to make excursions so varied in character, that they
+may suit all tastes.
+
+  [Illustration: WINTER NEAR MERAN]
+
+The first view of the town, with its spires, huge hotels,
+white-walled houses and villas, and the ruins of Castle Tyrol set high
+on the north-western and vine-clad slope of the Kuchelberg, is one of
+great beauty. On the lower hillsides are chestnut groves and pine
+woods; and many of the villas and houses of the town itself appear
+amid them as though embowered in green.
+
+The railway from Bozen traverses the picturesque Etsch Valley, which
+is dotted with orchards, and follows the course of the Etsch to where
+it joins the Passer about three-quarters of a mile from Meran.
+
+The architecture of the town, as is the case with most places of any
+size in South Tyrol, is distinctly Italian in general characteristics.
+In fact, one of the things which makes Tyrol, as a whole, of unusual
+interest to students and artists is the variety of the domestic
+architecture found within its borders. Although there are many quaint
+corners and delightful byways in Meran, there is really only one
+important business thoroughfare, running almost due east and west and
+of considerable length, with arcaded shops known as "Unter den Lauben"
+(in the shade). It is probably because it has this aspect that one of
+the sunniest streets we have ever been in has been so amply provided
+with shady arcades; and in summer the latter can be appreciated to the
+full. In the season the long street is at times crowded with
+foreigners from England, Germany, Italy, and America, and has a busy
+and cosmopolitan air somewhat out of character with its general
+old-world look.
+
+Just off this interesting thoroughfare stands the Burg, or, to give it
+its fuller and ancient name, the Landesfürstliche Burg, in ancient
+times the town residence of the Counts of Tyrol. Retired as it is in
+the courtyard of the Magistrats Gebäude it is often overlooked by the
+passing tourist, although of great antiquarian and historical
+interest. Dating from the fifteenth century, the building has been
+admirably and sympathetically restored, and is a treasure-house of
+fine old furniture and _bric-a-brac_. There are also some interesting
+frescoes and coats-of-arms of former owners and inhabitants. It is,
+perhaps, difficult to realize that amongst the latter in the middle of
+the fifteenth century was a Scottish princess. But it was to the Burg
+that Sigismund, son of Duke Frederick of the Empty Purse, brought his
+bride Eleonora, daughter of James I. of Scotland, over the Brenner and
+via Bozen, to the house and home he had prepared for her reception.
+
+From Bozen onwards, we are told, the young couple's progress was
+marked by rejoicings and enthusiasm as they passed from castle to
+castle, until at last they came, in due time, to the then capital of
+Tyrol. Eleonora's ultimate popularity with the Tyrolese was, perhaps,
+even more owing to her skill in the chase than to her intellectual
+gifts, although the latter were very remarkable for a woman of that
+period. The translator of "The Book of Celebrated Women," by
+Boccaccio, waxes very enthusiastic over her, and he is by no means the
+only writer of the period who has left on record a tribute to the
+Archduchess' high mental and physical qualities. That Eleonora was of
+a scholarly disposition and gifted with "tongues" is proved by her
+translation of a French Romance of the period, "Pontus and Sidoni,"
+into German. It is now a rare book, although copies are occasionally
+found, and it would appear to have had a considerable vogue at the
+time it was published. It was printed at Augsburg. In the preface one
+gathers that the translation was done by the noble authoress to
+"please his Serene Highness and Lord Sigismund, Archduke of Austria,
+her lawful husband."
+
+In this charming old palace, set back from the hum and bustle of the
+street, Sigismund and Eleonora dwelt for some years, happy in the
+pursuit of learning, the enjoyment of sport, and in the affection of
+the townsfolk.
+
+In the Burg it is possible to obtain a very good conception of what a
+mediæval nobleman's house really was like, for not only have many
+interesting specimens of furniture, presses, chairs and other fittings
+been preserved, but also household utensils, and other articles of
+common use.
+
+There are, in the byways and courtyards of the main street, several
+other most interesting houses dating from the sixteenth and
+seventeenth centuries, which will repay the attention of students of
+architecture. And may we add the ubiquitous "Kodaker"?
+
+One of the most enduring impressions Meran leaves upon the mind is
+that of being in the true sense "a garden city." No other place of the
+size in Tyrol possesses so many beautiful and tree-shaded promenades,
+walks and gardens. But the notice "smoking strictly prohibited" which
+stares one in the face in the charming Gisela Promenade with its old
+and feathery poplar trees fringing the bank of the Passer, and in
+other similar resorts, is probably a regulation distasteful to many.
+
+Of "gartens" and cafés there is no lack. On the left bank of the river
+is the pleasant Maria-Valerie Garten, where--as is the case with other
+similar places--an excellent band frequently plays. Of the cafés at
+least the Café Gilf should be visited, on account of its beautiful
+vegetation and fine view of the Passer gorge and surrounding mountain
+slopes which one obtains from the "look out."
+
+[Sidenote: MERAN HERO PLAYS]
+
+To many visitors the Hero Plays, which, for the last fifteen years,
+have been performed annually, in the spring and generally in the
+autumn, with scenes from the lives of the famous son of the Passer
+Valley, Andreas Hofer, and his companions for the chief incidents,
+will prove of great interest. The plays, which include"Tiroler-helden"
+and one produced for the first time in August, 1901, entitled
+"Frederick of the Empty Purse," are acted entirely by peasants.
+
+Many are acquainted with the fine dramatic gifts of the Bavarian
+peasantry which have found expression in the plays at Ober-Ammergau;
+but those of the Tyrolese are less well-known and less widely
+recognized. Any one, however, who has seen one of the Meran "Hofer"
+dramas will probably agree with us that it was well worth seeing, and
+that the dramatic art displayed was not less praiseworthy than that of
+the more famous performances at Ober-Ammergau.
+
+The plays are given outdoors in a large meadow on a huge stage, and
+with natural scenery formed by a large chalet (with a bell turret
+above the central gable) and other smaller buildings on either side,
+with the hill slopes in the background, the stage being the street in
+front of the chalet, and the "wings" the side streets. The field is
+generally--especially for the autumn performances--boarded, and there
+are a limited number of covered-in boxes facing the stage for the use
+of those who prefer to be sheltered from the sun, which on fine days
+is somewhat trying in its intensity, as, of course, no sunshades or
+umbrellas are permitted. The natural beauties of the valley behind
+form an appropriate and altogether charming "back-cloth" for the
+scenery, which represents a portion of a Tyrol village with real
+buildings. The most popular of the plays with the inhabitants of Meran
+and the Tyrolese generally are undoubtedly those dealing with the
+period of national history when their country was engaged in its
+desperate struggle to free itself from the French and Bavarian
+invaders.
+
+The acting is always excellent, and distinguished by that spontaneity
+which seems so frequently to characterize outdoor representations. The
+naturalness which also distinguishes the performances is probably
+largely attributable to the fact that the actors have most of them
+been not only well acquainted with the incidents they pourtray since
+childhood, but are also in the main representing scenes and using
+language of everyday life; and are not engaged in attempting to
+interpret scenes and incidents in which they have no personal
+interest, or of which they have only gained a knowledge by close and
+tiresome study.
+
+[Sidenote: OLD-TIME COSTUMES]
+
+To the artist the stage management, which is remarkably good, and the
+delightful blending of the ancient costumes in charming tableaux and
+schemes of colour will make a special appeal.
+
+The plays not only add an undoubted and additional attraction to the
+quaint and charming town, but also are deserving of the highest praise
+from an artistic and dramatic point of view.
+
+Naturally Meran is over-full at the times of representation, so the
+wise traveller books his rooms in advance, unless he wishes (as many
+have done before now) to "sleep at the hotel of the beautiful star,"
+which in plain English means in the open air, and on the ground.
+
+We have just mentioned the costumes which appear in the plays. At
+Meran the old costumes (though alas! they are being slowly but surely
+superseded) have been preserved to a larger extent than in almost any
+other place we know in Tyrol. The women's dress is undeniably
+picturesque, just as it is markedly German in general character. Hats
+are seldom worn, the hair is plainly and extremely neatly dressed,
+brushed back off the brow, and secured in a simple knot behind by
+means of a silver or silver-headed pin. The bodices are of velvet or
+cloth, of the "corselet" type seen in Switzerland and many parts of
+Germany as well as in Tyrol; and they are worn over a white chemisette
+with puffed sleeves, which end just above the elbow and are generally
+there confined by "ties" of coloured ribbon.
+
+The men's costume is scarcely less picturesque, consisting as it does
+of a high-crowned hat of felt or cloth, bound round with numerous
+bands of thin red or green cord, the first colour denoting a man is
+married (a useful danger signal for unwary spinsters!), and the second
+denoting a bachelor, eligible or otherwise. The jacket is usually of
+brown or blackish brown cloth; cloth knee breeches (we have seen
+buckskin on some of the "granfers") with wide red or green braces, and
+sometimes an embroidered waistcoat, completes the costume. One other
+feature is almost sure to strike the observer, the white aprons which
+so many of the men wear when engaged in work. On festive occasions
+silver belts are worn by some of the men in the surrounding valleys,
+though we fancy these are considerably less common now than they were
+even ten years ago.
+
+The variations of dress in the different valleys of Tyrol have been
+ascribed by a well-known writer upon the subject as rising from the
+circumstance that peasant costumes are very largely belated fashions
+of the town; which, obtained perhaps three or even four generations or
+longer ago, have in time come, by all save students of the subject, to
+be looked upon erroneously as a mode of dress evolved by the peasant
+wearers themselves. What in all probability really happened in many
+cases was, some visitors to the towns when in need of fresh clothes
+bought town-made and then fashionable garments which were copied by
+neighbours (as do villagers in England at the present time), and thus
+perpetuated from generation to generation, and not discarded until
+some fresh sartorial idea percolated its way slowly and in much the
+same manner to the often remote regions of these Tyrolese valleys and
+upper pastures.
+
+On the occasion of the "Hofer" celebrations or "Hero" plays one even
+nowadays sees a most interesting variety of costumes in Meran,
+although the differences are not so marked as in former times, and
+appear rather in small details than in immediately apparent
+variations.
+
+  [Illustration: MERAN]
+
+[Sidenote: IN THE VINEYARDS]
+
+Amongst the many "Cures" of the Continental Spas and invalid resorts
+Meran possesses a unique one in the "Grape Cure." Nowhere in Tyrol can
+the interesting harvesting of the grapes be better seen than at Meran.
+The vineyards, for one thing, are more picturesque than in many
+places, by reason of the practice of largely training the vines over
+trellis work or rustic pergolas. In some vineyards these form perfect
+covered walks or arcades of delightful green, through which the sun
+filters to glint upon the purple and green-gold bunches of grapes
+hanging in profusion on either hand and above one's head. But, as may
+be imagined, the casual visitor does not have the freedom of the
+vineyards on the hillsides when once the grapes are ripening off. Then
+the gates, some of them adorned with rows of formidable-looking spikes
+and hooks with a great and persistent affinity for clothing, are
+closely shut against all intruders, and, in addition, that curious
+individual the Saltner, whose name is probably derived from the Latin
+word meaning forester, and hence guardian of lands of all kinds, is
+placed on guard. His costume is such as to bring alarm not only to the
+birds but even to human beings. Tyrolese children we believe have been
+brought up to regard the Saltner as a type of "Bogey Man" of a very
+efficient character. Usually he wears buckskin breeches or leggings, a
+broad belt in which there shines a whole armoury of weapons of a
+miscellaneous character comprising old pattern pistols, knives, and
+sometimes a "horse" pistol of dimensions almost entitling it to be
+spoken of as a gun. In his cap, which is of an uncommon shape, are
+such a collection of feathers, martens' tails, plumes, and odds and
+ends of ribbon as to cause it to resemble nothing so much as the
+head-dress of a Sioux Indian.
+
+Notwithstanding this "terrific" personage, it is not very difficult
+with the expenditure of a few kreutzers to obtain permission to enter
+a vineyard in process of harvesting. The labour employed is chiefly
+that of women and girls, who, armed with sharp sickles or large knives
+with heavy and curved blades, stand beneath the trellises and hold a
+wooden tray in one hand beneath the bunch to be severed. One skilled
+sweep of the sickle and the latter falls into the tray with a minimum
+of damage to the luscious fruit.
+
+Here and there along the paths are wooden tubs into which the trays
+are emptied from time to time. And these tubs again are borne away by
+men to the huge vats or tubs bound with iron, which are slung to a
+framework or trolley on wheels to which oxen are harnessed, and by
+them brought to the nearest convenient point in the vineyard. Then
+when the vats are full almost to the brim, two men take up their
+positions beside them, and proceed to crush and pound the grapes,
+stems and all, into a dark-red, uninviting-looking mess with
+long-handled, heavy wooden hammers. In many Italian vineyards it is
+still the custom to "tread" the juice out, a practice which is far
+less cleanly and hygienic (though it is said more thorough and
+economical) than the Meran method. After the juice is all expressed it
+is set aside to ferment, and the other processes of wine making are
+afterwards gone through.
+
+The famous grape cure consists apparently of eating as much of the
+fruit as one possibly can. Many doctors affirm that no particular
+benefit is derived or can be hoped for unless upwards of two pounds of
+fruit is consumed daily, the maximum quantity desirable being nine
+pounds! Immense as this may seem, we have been assured that some
+"patients" have considerably exceeded this amount.
+
+Perhaps the grape cure is so popular because, for one thing, to eat a
+reasonable quantity of fully ripe and freshly gathered fruit is by no
+means a disagreeable task for most people, and because it can be taken
+anywhere.
+
+In the cafés one sees crowds undergoing the cure; on the numerous and
+shady seats of the Gisela Promenade one sees folks eating grapes. And
+practically in every street and alley, and along the mountain paths in
+the vicinity of Meran one meets people with brown-paper bags, or if
+taking the cure very seriously with little baskets, all eating grapes
+as though their future well-being depended upon the quantity they
+could consume in a given time. The "old stagers" generally divide
+their daily quantity into two or three portions; taking one early in
+the morning before "Halbmittag," the second about mid-day, and the
+third at sundown.
+
+To its many other attractions Meran has added for the holiday maker
+that of a good band, which performs during the season really most
+excellent music in front of the Kurhaus, or in one or other of the
+public gardens at Obermais. The Kurhaus, with its sheltered
+Wandelhalle or promenade, naturally forms the pivot upon which the
+more social side of the daily life of Meran turns. Here one meets not
+only the invalid, but the traveller from all parts of the Continent;
+and in the Kurhaus gardens one finds also those "birds of passage,"
+who alight for a time on their way further north or south.
+
+[Sidenote: SPORTS AND PASTIMES]
+
+The Sports Platz is one of the best in Tyrol. On it are held tennis
+tournaments, cycle races (less than formerly), trotting events, and
+horse races; whilst in the winter months the centre is converted into
+an excellent skating lake. The races are largely attended by Italians
+as well as natives, and at the larger meetings there is generally some
+event of interest and importance from a sportsman's point of view.
+
+A big race day at Meran has many of the social and picturesque
+elements of the smaller events at Chantilly. The ladies don their best
+toilettes, and the beautiful surroundings and brilliant sunshine all
+go to make a picture of great charm and animation.
+
+On the outskirts and in the immediate neighbourhood of Meran are so
+many ancient castles that the town might well be called the "city of
+castles." Just outside the Papist Gate is the half-ruined Schloss
+Zenoburg, standing on a precipitous rock; whilst prettily situated at
+Obermais stands Schloss Rubein with a famous avenue of cypresses.
+Along the picturesque Bozen road is Schloss Katzenstein; which, seen
+across the fields from the hillside, looks like a grim outpost
+guarding the valley.
+
+Then there are also the Schloss Gojen, with its environment of shady
+and odorous pine forests, and background of snow-capped mountains;
+Schloss Vorst, but half an hour's drive from Meran, and finely
+situated upon a rocky eminence overlooking the valley, and several
+others of which could be told stories of romantic and historic
+interest.
+
+And last, but greatest of them all, there is Schloss Tyrol which was
+destined to give its name to the whole of the country. As it is one of
+the most famous it is probably also the best known of all castles to
+the average tourist and traveller in Tyrol. So ancient is it that
+historians have been able to discover a mention of it at so early a
+period as the last decade of the fourth century A.D. But,
+notwithstanding this fact, the records relating to its earlier days
+are neither full nor reliable. Of the life that went on within it and
+the fate that possibly overtook it during the period covered by the
+years (about) A.D. 400 to A.D. 1000 little, indeed, is discoverable.
+Its present ruinous condition arose partly from neglect during the
+troublous period of the wars at the end of the eighteenth and
+commencement of the nineteenth century, and partly from the fact that
+during the Bavarian occupation of the country in 1808-9, the then
+Government sold the castle for the ridiculous sum of a couple of
+hundred pounds for the purpose of destruction so that the stones could
+be used as building material![16]
+
+  [Illustration: SCHLOSS TYROL, NEAR MERAN]
+
+[Sidenote: ANCIENT CASTLES]
+
+Castle Tyrol stands a relic of past glories, feats of arms, strenuous
+living, and chivalry on a rocky ridge or spur of the mountains above
+the vineyards, which climb upwards towards the white and imposing
+castle walls. Behind and above rise the pine forests running upwards
+to meet the rocky slopes of the Kückelberg and Vintschgau range.
+The most ancient portions of the present building are some of the
+walls, a porch, and two marble doorways dating from about the twelfth
+century, and the chapel. In the latter there is a fine representation
+of the Fall of Man, and interesting carvings. From its commanding
+position it is only to be expected that a magnificent prospect is to
+be had of the Adige Valley, the chain of the Ulten-Thal and Mendel
+mountains, and the vineyards upon the slopes which swell upwards from
+the valley. Seen either soon after sunrise (which few people, we
+imagine, do) or just at sunset, the views from the castle, more
+especially that from the Kaisersaal, are of wonderful pictorial beauty
+and charm.
+
+Though we have too little space to devote to the many delightful
+places in the Meran valley which invite exploration, or to mention the
+numerous walks which tempt the pedestrian, we must give a passing word
+or two to the Château or Castle of Schönna, which lies nearly two
+thousand feet above sea-level like a hoary and time-worn sentinel at
+the entrance to the Passeier Valley. It is easily reached from
+Obermais by an excellent road suitable even for cyclists, and is well
+worth a visit owing to the representative collection of old weapons
+gathered within it, and its picturesque situation. Dating from the
+early years of the twelfth century, it is an excellent example of the
+ancient feudal fortress-residence of those far-off times. A mention of
+the Château Lebenberg, distant about an hour and a half's walk from
+Meran, is justified--although it is now a pension--by reason of its
+excellent state of preservation, and the historical paintings in
+several of the most interesting rooms. The walk, too, along the side
+of the mountains by way of Marling and picturesque St. Anton is one to
+be enjoyed and remembered.
+
+Some ten miles northward in the Passeier Valley, just a little
+distance beyond the village of St. Martin, where one sees many
+examples of the wall paintings which are more especially numerous in
+the towns and villages of Southern Tyrol, stands the most famous
+national pilgrimage place and historic shrine, Hofer's Inn, called
+_Wirth am Sand_ or the "Sandy Inn," literally the "Inn by the Sand."
+It is quite an unpretentious building standing by the roadside, and
+would scarcely attract the notice of passing travellers. It is entered
+by a gallery reached up a short flight of steps. The interior is
+scrupulously clean, and although it is plainly furnished one is rather
+the more impressed by this circumstance which leaves the famous Inn,
+where Hofer was born on November 22, 1767, much as we are told it was
+in his time. From the pleasant dining-room on the first floor, with
+curtains of spotless muslin to keep out the almost blinding sunshine
+of the valley, there are fine views towards Meran, and of the towering
+mountains across the stony bed of the Passer.
+
+At the Inn there are some interesting relics of the patriot, and
+pictures of him. One shows him as a big, strongly built man of not
+much above average height, with a short nose, a fine and lofty
+forehead, dark eyes, and a rather ruddy face, well-marked eyebrows,
+and the famous long beard.
+
+At one time Hofer wore no beard, and the story goes that his growing
+one--which ultimately was declared to be the longest in the
+valley--arose from the chaff of his companions, who asserted that his
+wife forbade him to wear one. Whether the tale be true or not it has
+very general acceptance, and we all know that Hofer's beard was
+ultimately one of his distinguishing features during the campaigns in
+which he was engaged. There is a very pleasant balcony on the outside
+of the house which, tradition asserts, was often used by Hofer and his
+companions when holding their meetings or councils of war to devise
+some scheme by which their beloved country could be freed from a
+foreign yoke.
+
+[Sidenote: HOFER RELICS]
+
+Hofer's last letter, which is one of the most treasured of the
+relics, even exceeding in interest the clothes which he wore when shot
+at Mantua, is a splendid testimony to the dignity and greatness of the
+man, which surmounted all troubles and disasters and was not lessened
+or alloyed by triumphs. In it he speaks of his old home, of the
+rushing Passer, of the beautiful mountains he would see never again,
+and then goes on to say, "It is the great God's good will that I die
+at Mantua," and then, "Farewell, beautiful world," adding, "but at the
+thought of quitting it my eyes scarcely even moisten." Then follow the
+words, "I am writing this at five in the morning; at nine I shall pass
+into the presence of God," with the date "20th February, 1810."
+
+Far up the mountain side above his old home is the spot where Hofer
+hid with his wife from November, 1809, till five o'clock on the
+morning of January 18, 1810, when he was captured and taken under
+strong escort first to Meran, and ultimately to Mantua. He had refused
+to fly to Vienna or take refuge on Austrian territory. He wished to
+remain amongst his people, perhaps with a vain hope of once more
+attempting to accomplish Tyrol's freedom.
+
+It is with regret that most travellers leave Hofer's old dwelling. The
+whole Passeier Valley is, of course, teeming with historic memories,
+of the gallant doings of the patriot and his companions. Near Schloss
+Tyrol itself was fought one of the most notable engagements, and a
+victory won when the French, driven from their position on the
+Küchelberg, were surrounded by the peasant forces; whilst just outside
+Meran another skirmish took place, as a result of which the French
+troops were forced to evacuate the town.
+
+[Sidenote: SUNNY BOZEN]
+
+From Meran to Bozen by rail is rather less than twenty miles, and
+about the same distance by the road, which runs through the valley of
+the Etsch, or Adige, and in places along the lower slopes of the
+hills. It is a picturesque journey by either, and for cycling quite
+delightful. One crosses the Talfer just before reaching Bozen, which
+lies in a wide basin at the junction of the valley of the Etsch, with
+the smaller but picturesque Sarnthal, surrounded by great reddish
+brown crags and precipices of the porphyry mountains on which the
+semi-tropical cactus grows, and one gets sombre groups of cypresses,
+and here and there vineyards, and pine-clad crags. The town is a
+strange mixture of the German elements of Tyrol and the Italian. Its
+architecture, too, is "an admixture of that of north Italy and South
+Germany, here and there transfused so that it preserves
+characteristics of both." It is perhaps for this very reason a town of
+great charm, and one of considerable beauty. Its surroundings, which
+include the famous Rosengarten, and many beautiful little valleys and
+gorges present attractions for a longer stay than one at first
+contemplates.
+
+It is, moreover, one of the busiest (Bozen people claim that it is
+_the_ busiest) towns in Tyrol, with a population going on towards
+20,000, including its outskirts, yet it possesses some most delightful
+gardens.
+
+Seen from almost any point of the lower slopes of the surrounding
+hills, cactus, and vine-clad, and resembling in general luxuriance of
+vegetation Italy rather than the Tyrol of but a little further north,
+Bozen is charming. Below one is spread out a garden-like city, which
+with all its bustling life yet looks more like a holiday resort than a
+commercial town, with numbers of white-walled villas dotted amidst
+green fields, vineyards and gardens, in the latter of which blossom
+all the flowers one knows and loves, and many less common in England.
+
+  [Illustration: A STREET IN BOZEN]
+
+One of the oldest towns in Tyrol, it stands practically on the site of
+the Pons Drusi of Roman times. It has for "time out of mind" stood at
+the cross roads where the Brenner and the Vintsgau routes divide. In
+the past, Roman armies have passed through it, have crossed the
+Talfer, or have lain encamped in the fields of its basin-like site.
+And after them came the Merchants of the Middle Ages, trading
+between civilized Italy and barbarian northern lands. Still later came
+Emperors and pilgrims travelling to the "Eternal City," Crusaders
+outward and homeward bound, roving singers, and hordes of free lances
+and mercenaries. In a word, Bozen's past must have been a stirring
+one, and the lives led by her citizens full of the colour of life and
+gallant deeds.
+
+Anciently, too, the town was fought for and tossed hither and thither
+by those powerful civil lords the Terriolis, Counts of Tyrol, and the
+militant spiritual lords the Prince Bishops of Trent. For this reason,
+and on account of many fires and "grievous o'erflowings of the Talfer
+in past times," of the most ancient of all Bozens there are
+comparatively few traces, though within the old town there are yet
+traceable some interesting relics of the Middle Ages.
+
+In those long back times Bozen was a place of even greater commercial
+importance than now. To its four annual markets or fairs people from
+many lands came, and it became the depôt and centre of the great
+transport trade by the two chief passes leading from Italy into Tyrol
+and thence to Germany and Austria. As was not unnatural Bozen
+merchants had a standing of their own, and were, according to one
+authority, "not a little purse proud and exclusive in their dealings,
+save when the latter meant that financial advantage would thereby
+accrue to them."
+
+Although Bozen does not commend itself to most tourists from higher
+latitudes for a lengthy stay, at least not in summer, as the basin in
+which it lies, though making it delightfully sheltered in winter,
+causes the town in the months of July and August to be decidedly hot
+and rather enervating, there are several places in the immediate
+neighbourhood to which one can flee for fresher air and cooler days.
+The town has somewhat declined commercially from the high position it
+once held, when the trade which flowed into Tyrol through it and
+northwards out of it was chiefly along the high-roads and over the
+passes; and thus through Bozen a very appreciable percentage of the
+whole southern and Italian trade passed. But nevertheless it is still
+a most flourishing and interesting town.
+
+A native writer says, on this subject, "Bozen ... has during the last
+decade largely recovered the ground it had temporarily lost through
+the making of railways, and the decline of transport along the
+high-roads of the passes owing chiefly to the increased facilities
+that have arisen for conveyance of merchandize by sea." Certainly one
+is soon able, when in the town, to realize that in two branches of
+trade at least Bozen occupies an undoubtedly high position in the
+commercial world, those of wine, and fruit growing and exporting. The
+hillsides are literally studded with vineyards and orchards, and Bozen
+fruit has gained for itself an almost world-wide reputation.
+
+From the artistic side, too, Bozen claims the attention of all who are
+interested in legendary lore, architecture, and antiquarian matters.
+As one passes along its chief streets, or explores its byways in the
+older part of it, one is delighted on almost every hand by vistas of
+fine houses, shady and charming courtyards, buildings with strangely
+constructed roofs, and fantastic gable ends, quaintly shaped bay
+windows, vaulted colonnades, and here and there, stowed away where
+least one would expect to find them, smaller courtyards with trellises
+covered with vines, and perhaps an ancient well of rust-red marble to
+give a finishing touch to the charming picture.
+
+  [Illustration: A SOUTH TYROL FARMSTEAD]
+
+Numbers of artists pause at Bozen yearly on their way south into Italy
+via Verona to study the rich treasures in the galleries of the cities
+of Northern Italy, or to rest awhile on their return journey
+northwards. In Bozen is plenty to paint and plenty to admire, and the
+townsfolk are noted for the hospitality which still (notwithstanding
+the great influx of tourists of late years) distinguishes the frank
+and warm-hearted people of Tyrol in general.
+
+[Sidenote: BOZEN PARISH CHURCH]
+
+Chief amongst the buildings which will attract one's attention stands
+the Pfarrkirche or Parish Church, which with its elegant tower and
+open spire, over two hundred feet in height, forms a monument to the
+artistic and constructive skill of its Swabian builder Johann Lutz in
+the first years of the sixteenth century. The church is splendidly
+situated at one corner of the fine open Waltherplatz, which is planted
+with shady horse-chestnut trees, and, its roof of copper-green tiles
+set in a pattern, contrasts admirably with its walls and spire of red
+sandstone. In ancient times the building possessed two spires, both of
+which were destroyed or so injured as to necessitate their pulling
+down long before Lutz built his elegant structure. The church itself,
+which contains a fine altar-piece by a pupil of Titian, and a
+remarkable stone pulpit dating about the first decade of the sixteenth
+century, is, in the main, fourteenth-century work, although it was not
+actually finished until the third decade of the fifteenth, so some
+authorities state.
+
+In the centre of the Johann Platz stands a fine though simply
+conceived statue to Walther von der Vogelweide who was born about 1160
+at Lajen, near Waidbruck, in which the poet is shown standing clad in
+a loose robe, with a biretta-like cap on his head and his hands
+crossed whilst holding a lute. The statue is the work of the late
+Heinrich Natter, one of the most famous of native sculptors, who was
+also the artist of the famous Berg Isel Hofer Monument, of the very
+finely conceived and well-executed statue of Ulrich Zwingli at Zurich,
+and many other works.
+
+One of the most charming of Bozen streets is undoubtedly the
+Laubengasse, which greatly resembles the main street of Meran, with
+its shady arcades on either side under which the shops are situated,
+and where one can promenade and do one's shopping protected from the
+sun in summer and the rain in winter. The Karnergasse and Silbergasse
+are interesting streets, as is also the Goethestrasse leading to the
+fruit market, where one finds during market hours many interesting
+types of peasants from the neighbouring villages as well as of the
+townsfolk themselves. We saw some of the most gorgeous of kerchiefs
+worn over the shoulders and crossed over the breasts of Bozen or Gries
+fruit-sellers, which gave an air of quite southern colour and
+brightness to the little Platz, in which oranges, almonds, melons,
+figs, and even prickly pears were displayed for sale with all the
+other fruits one might expect to find, including magnificent cherries
+in the earlier part of the fruit season.
+
+The costumes of the Sarnthal with the big, broad-brimmed felt hats
+worn by both men and women, and the gay "Kummerbunds" of the men worn
+under short "Eton"-shaped jackets, are also seen in Bozen on festive
+occasions.
+
+The Museum, in which there are many interesting exhibits, including
+some old peasant costumes well worth the attention of artists, is an
+imposing building or "block" in the Königin Elizabethstrasse, with
+corner turrets and an imposing central tower.
+
+Of the more picturesque and older buildings none excels in charm the
+Franciscan Monastery and Church in the Franziskanergasse. The
+courtyard, shaded by trees which throw a diaper of shadow and sunlight
+on the paving stones, with the delicately pretty porch leading into
+the church, is a spot of sheer delight for the artist and the dreamer
+of dreams; who there, amid the quietude of ancient things, can the
+better conjure up visions of other days when Bozen streets rang to the
+passing of armies, and men at arms, and in them were heard the cries
+of mediæval merchants selling their wares drawn from north and south.
+In the Franciscan Church there is a fine altar, and belonging to the
+Monastery there are some beautiful cloisters. The library, too, should
+not be overlooked by those interested in early books and similar
+treasures.
+
+On the outskirts of pleasant Bozen, a fine view of which is obtained
+from the Calvarienberg, there are many charming excursions. Towards
+the west lies the finely situated Castle of Sigmundskron on a hill
+between mountains overlooking the river in which there is good
+fishing: the Mendel Pass, 4500 feet, ascended either on foot, by
+carriage or by the mountain railway; Tisenser Mittelgebirge, studded
+with most interesting ruins, and from whence one obtains extensive and
+beautiful views of the surrounding mountain chains and of Meran.
+
+[Sidenote: CASTLE OF RUNKELSTEIN]
+
+Towards the north lies the deeply interesting Imperial Castle of
+Runkelstein, which, dating from the middle half of the thirteenth
+century, was extensively restored in 1884-88, and finally presented by
+the Emperor of Austria to the town of Bozen. Situated upon and almost
+entirely covering a huge mass of rock, it overlooks a bend of the
+swiftly flowing Talfer, and occupies one of those commanding and
+almost inaccessible positions beloved of builders in the Middle Ages.
+The Castle, irrespective of its interests as an architectural survival
+of a long past age, is much visited on account of the famous frescoes
+which are contained in a building now known as the Summer House. As
+one climbs up the steep and narrow path to the castle drawbridge one
+can the better realize how safe the ancient owners (who were not above
+raiding the neighbourhood, and of engaging in predatory warfare with
+their neighbours) must have felt when they had once heard their
+iron-studded door clang behind them, and seen the ancient drawbridge
+swung up by its chains.
+
+Till the introduction of artillery, indeed, such a fastness would have
+been practically impregnable.
+
+The frescoes to which we have referred are especially interesting from
+the fact that they undoubtedly exhibit a very primitive art. At the
+time they are supposed to have been painted, that is to say towards
+the end of the fourteenth century, art even in its home, Italy, was
+in a comparatively elementary and even grotesque stage of evolution.
+The figures, which are black with a pea-green background, are, as an
+American girl said, "Noah's arkical and too funny for words," though
+we are bound to confess that the irreverence of the remark deeply
+offended a worshipper of mediæval art who was of the party. The
+paintings in the first room depict a German version of the story of
+Tristan and Isolde, which would appear to diverge materially from the
+one of Sir Thomas Malory, as set out in the "Morte d'Arthur." The main
+story can, however, be easily followed.
+
+In the second chamber the frescoes, which were a very common form of
+decoration at the period at which they were done and should not be
+considered in the light of being of especial significance, depict a
+complete version of the legendary story of Garel, following the
+version of a Styrian[17] thirteenth century poet named Pleier. It is
+generally considered that this Garel was founded upon or was identical
+with the character of the Gareth or Beaumains of the "Morte d'Arthur,"
+although the evidence is not absolutely conclusive. To English people
+the fine fresco of the famous Knights of the Round Table sitting in
+company with King Arthur and Queen Guinevere will naturally be of the
+greatest interest, although each of the quaint drawings to illustrate
+the mediæval legend has an abiding fascination for all to whom the
+past is of moment.
+
+Nor are the outside walls of this quaint pavilion left unadorned. On
+them are single figures and others in groups of two and three
+depicting well-known mediæval personages of historical and legendary
+note: Tristan and Isolde; William of Orleans and Amelie; William, Duke
+of Austria, and Aglei; pairs of lovers whose fame has outlived the
+centuries; the three hero kings of ancient Christendom, Arthur of
+England, the Emperor Charlemagne, and Godfrey de Bouillon. Amongst the
+large number of figures here depicted may also be seen other groups
+of three comprising celebrated knights, dwarfs, giants, and other
+real, mythical, or legendary characters; a gallery of portraits which
+has probably no equal in any other castle in the world. The story of
+the deeds of the characters thus immortalized would fill many volumes,
+and provide some of the most romantic and interesting reading
+imaginable.
+
+  [Illustration: ST. CYPRIAN AND THE PEAKS OF THE ROSENGARTEN]
+
+One quits the historic spot with a sense of the greatness of the past
+as well as with a lingering regret that nothing after all can
+adequately conjure up for one the stirring scenes, strenuous and
+vividly "coloured" life, romance and chivalry, that the walls and
+rooms of Runkelstein must have witnessed.
+
+In an easterly direction from Bozen lies the Eggenthal and its famous
+waterfall. The road through the former is one of great picturesqueness
+and grandeur--along the hillsides, across high bridges, and through
+gorge-like rock cuttings, which to be fully appreciated cannot be
+travelled better than a-foot. In the same direction, too, lies the
+beautiful Karrersee, surrounded by its belt of sombre pines above
+whose feathery tops shine the rocky peaks and snow-clad summits of the
+Dolomite giants.
+
+[Sidenote: THE ROSENGARTEN]
+
+From Bozen, too, the famous Rosengarten, which lies to the east of the
+town, should be visited. But it is not a garden of roses after all,
+but a collection of stupendous and rocky peaks which blush red at
+sunset. Those who expect flowers other than alpen rosen, gentian, and
+the like, will be disappointed, as was the young lady who undertook
+the excursion in the hope of seeing roses galore such as one may find
+in the "attar" districts of the Balkan Provinces and especially in
+Bulgaria.
+
+But if from Bozen one looks merely for the rosy hue to tint the
+skyward-piercing pinnacles of rock, which have been poetically called
+the "Rosengarten," or rambles in the picturesque and beautiful valleys
+and tiny defiles at their feet, one will not be disappointed. And the
+"roses," like other similar phenomena, are in a sense a weather glass;
+the deeper the red they glow the finer the ensuing day. At first a
+plum-hued twilight, such as one gets in the Maloja valley, seems to
+fall down out of the sky, and then the mountain peaks commence to
+receive their baptism of crimson. Then at last, as the sun sinks
+behind the interposing Guntschna Berg, only the highest peaks continue
+for a short time longer to glow with increasing, and then fading,
+depth of colour, till at length the plum-bloom shadows conquer the
+"roses" and the cool twilight comes.
+
+The origin of the descriptive phrase "the Rosengarten" is (so far as
+we have been able to discover) lost in the mists of antiquity. But
+there is a rather pretty legend concerning the Garden itself. Long ago
+(the story tells us), when men were perhaps happier and certainly less
+sophisticated and cynical than they are now, and believed in fairies,
+gnomes, and magic, there lived a dwarf named Laurin or Laurenz
+reigning over the other dwarfs, who inhabited a country in the centre
+of the Schlern. By some means or other this dwarf managed to see and
+fall in love with the beautiful, golden-haired sister of a retainer of
+Dietrich of Bern, in Switzerland. After having seized her he bore her
+to his palace of crystal in the interior of the mountains, and there
+kept her prisoner. Soon, however, the brave and gallant knight
+Dietrich, and his squire, who was named Dietlieb, determined to rescue
+the abducted maiden, and for this purpose they came up from Italy
+where they were at the time, and finding an opening entered the
+Schlern, and after a fierce fight succeeded in conquering the dwarf,
+notwithstanding the fact that of course the latter was assisted by a
+magician. Laurin was not, however, killed, but spared by Dietrich at
+the request of Dietlieb. It was unfortunate clemency, however, as
+Laurin, professing himself grateful and offering them refreshment
+after their labours and fight, gave them drugged wine, so that when
+they awoke they discovered that they had been bound and cast into a
+dungeon of the dwarf's castle. From this predicament they were happily
+freed by Dietlieb's sister, Simild, and after another fierce encounter
+with the dwarfs they defeated them, and trod the famous Rosengarten
+roses underfoot, their places being taken by those that bloom at
+sunset upon the peaks above the site of Laurin's mythical palace.
+
+That, at all events, is the story we have been told, and though the
+Rosengarten and its miniature valleys are beautiful enough for real
+roses to have their home there, none grow there now save figurative
+ones caused by the sunset light.
+
+The Rosengarten is a fine centre for mountain ascents, and the famous
+Vajolett towers and other rocky pinnacles present unfailing
+attractions to the adventurous rock climber, even though nowadays
+there can be very few "virgin" peaks or pinnacles to scale.
+
+From the Rosengarten itself as well as from Bozen one can witness the
+blooming of the roses, and the really wonderful and entrancing play of
+colour, light and shadow over the stupendous peaks which forms an
+unforgettable experience when seen during the late afternoon of a
+summer day and onwards till twilight comes to gradually throw its blue
+and mystic mantle over the valleys and the mountain summits.
+
+[Sidenote: KLAUSEN]
+
+North of Bozen, prettily situated by the banks of the Adige, and some
+one thousand seven hundred feet above sea-level, stands the little,
+though somewhat important, town of Klausen, with its long, narrow
+street following the configuration of the gorge in which most of the
+houses lie, dominated by the great Benedictine monastery of Säben
+perched upon a steep vine-clad promontory overlooking the town and
+river, and six hundred feet above it. A castle till the end of the
+seventeenth century, the convent was attacked by the French in 1809,
+and from all accounts the nuns were not respected, for upon the walls
+of one of the towers on the hill is a painted crucifix, which the
+people of Klausen say was placed there in memory of one of the nuns
+who, pursued by the soldiery, jumped to her death over the
+battlements. The first impression of Klausen is that of cleanliness,
+for the tall houses strike one in the brilliant sunshine of a summer
+day as very white, though most of them are relieved by patches of
+vivid green, where window shutters hang upon the walls or keep the
+sunshine from the windows. Klausen folk are fond of flowers, too, for
+many hang trailing from balconies; pink and red geraniums, a variety
+of clematis, and bunches of ruby-coloured valerian, and tufts of
+yellow and orange nasturtiums. There are generally many monks about
+the streets, too; sombre-looking figures in rough frieze habits, who
+look at the stranger with mild curiosity, and then pass on their
+silent way up the hillside, or through the one long, narrow street
+which runs between the mountain side and the rushing river. Klausen
+women bore a brave part in Hofer's struggle against the French and
+Bavarians, and dressed in their husbands' and brothers' clothes gave
+material aid in driving back the French through the pass in 1797.
+
+There is not much to see in Klausen itself, but as a typical southern
+Tyrolese village it is interesting. Picturesque it certainly also is,
+set amid crags and rocks of purple porphyry, whose bases and lower
+slopes are beautified by the greenery of many vineyards, and half
+encircled by the rushing Eisack. Near by is the famous Castle
+Trostburg, romantically beautiful with grey walls and red-tiled roof
+perched high above the pine forest which clothes the steep sides of
+the rocky spur upon which it stands, and with a patch of vineyard
+clinging to the wall of its upper square and solid-looking keep. The
+climb up to it is a steep one, but the view one obtains into the
+Grödener Thal and of the surrounding heights well repays one.
+
+[Sidenote: OSWALD v. WOLKENSTEIN]
+
+The castle is one of the comparatively few still remaining in the
+possession of the family with whose history it has for many centuries
+been identified. The Counts of Wolkenstein date their occupation from
+the twelfth century, and one of the most famous of the line was that
+Oswald born at Castle Trostburg in 1367, or about, whose romantic
+adventures might form the basis or plot of half a dozen historical
+novels. As a Minnesinger he set out early in life upon his travels in
+a gallant and adventurous age; devoted, one must imagine, to the
+service and adoration of the fair sex, as were supposed to be
+Minnesingers in general. Like many another adventure-loving lad, he
+ran away from his ancestral home, light of heart and equally light of
+purse, to wander through the world singing his way to fame and
+fortune, or to failure and poverty, as the case might happen.
+
+He appears in the first instance to have attached himself to the suite
+of one of a party of Tyrolese nobles under Duke Albrecht III., of
+Austria, who were bent upon a filibustering expedition into Lithuania,
+a district then lying between Poland and Courland. Afterwards he
+wandered far and wide over the world, visiting in turn Russia,
+England, Spain, France, and then sailing for the East, and travelling
+through Asia Minor and Persia. He seems, from contemporary and other
+accounts, to have been "everything by turns, and nothing long," except
+that he probably always kept up his "minnesinging." He certainly was
+page, soldier, sailor, and sea-cook; and for all one can tell these
+were but the chief occupation of many he followed during his wandering
+and adventurous life. At all events he appears to have acted at times
+as tutor, turning the half score of languages he had picked up to good
+and practical account. Amongst his more knightly adventures were
+campaigns against the English in the service of the Earl of
+Douglas--he was probably present on August 10, 1388, at the famous
+battle of Otterburn (Chevy Chase)--previously against the Swedes in
+Denmark in the service of Queen Margaret, who in 1397 united the
+kingdoms of Denmark, Norway, and Sweden together.
+
+Among his more peaceful victories and doings was the favour which he
+found in the eyes of the Queen of Aragon, who appears to have not only
+admired his poetic gifts, but to have loaded him with personal
+favours, caresses, and presents of jewelry.
+
+For several years after his visit to Spain he wandered about, and then
+at last (like the prodigal son) set his face towards Tyrol. No one
+recognized him, and he appears to have fallen under the spell of the
+daughter of a neighbouring knight, who, however, would not consent to
+marry him unless he would first obtain his knighthood by becoming a
+Crusader.
+
+Deeply in love with the fair Sabina and not doubting her sincerity,
+Von Wolkenstein took ship for Palestine, and in due course attained
+the coveted distinction by gallant conduct in battle, in consequence
+of which he attracted the attention and gained the personal friendship
+of Sigismund of Hungary.
+
+Alas! for his hopes. On returning to Tyrol covered with glory, and a
+"true knight," he did so only to find the fickle and deceitful Sabina
+married to another. In addition to this he was only just in time to
+see his father die. As a younger son he inherited the castles of
+Castelruth and Hauenstein, Trostburg and its lands descending to his
+elder brother.
+
+[Sidenote: A KNIGHT'S ADVENTURES]
+
+His roving disposition was not likely to be stayed now that he had
+lost both his intended wife and his father, so he once more set out on
+his travels, this time in the retinue of his friend Sigismund, in
+whose company he visited several countries. For several years he
+wandered through western Europe and as far south-east as Egypt, where
+he appears to have been received with much honour. Once more back in
+Tyrol in 1405, he became involved in the political upheavals which
+were caused by the drastic measures of reform instituted by Duke
+Frederick of the Empty Purse, against which the Tyrolese nobles
+fiercely rebelled. The ex-Minnesinger took the part of the latter,
+and in consequence drew down upon himself Frederick's vengeance. The
+latter burned his two castles, and compelled Von Wolkenstein to flee
+for his life to the protection of a relative who was the owner of the
+castle of Greifenstein, which is situated on an inaccessible pinnacle
+of rock between Bozen and Meran. Duke Frederick and his forces hotly
+besieged the castle, but failed to reduce it; and although Oswald was
+severely wounded and lost the sight of one eye he escaped, and a
+little later joined an expedition against the Moors in the train of
+John I., King of Portugal. During the severe fighting which took
+place, and at the capture of Ceuta in 1415, he appears to have so
+greatly distinguished himself that, we are told, "his fame was such
+that the troubadours enshrined his deeds in their songs."
+
+Ultimately, he came to his own in Tyrol owing to an act of the Council
+of Constance in Baden, which not only condemned John Huss--amongst
+many ecclesiastical enactments--to be burned, but also ordered that
+Duke Frederick, now an outlaw, who had burned Oswald von Wolkenstein's
+castles, should rebuild them, and restore to the knight all the
+property that he and his followers had seized. It is not easy,
+however, to comprehend how an outlaw who was fleeing from one place to
+another in fear of his life was to accomplish these things, nor how
+property taken by the soldiery years before, and probably long ago
+converted into cash or other uses, could be given up and restored.
+
+We are told, however, that after visiting France in Sigismund's train
+Oswald returned to his favourite castle of Hauenstein, the ruins of
+which nowadays are so lost in the vast pine forest which surrounds
+them as to be almost undiscoverable.
+
+Then Sabina, his old love, once more comes upon the scene, this time
+as the claimant of the castle on account, so she alleged, of an
+unrepaid loan made by her grandfather to the Wolkensteins. She
+invited her old suitor Oswald to join her in a pilgrimage to some
+shrine for old acquaintance sake; and when he came to her,
+unsuspecting and unarmed, she promptly had him seized, thrown into a
+dungeon, and there kept him a prisoner in chains. He lay in
+treacherous Sabina's castle until by chance Sigismund, hearing of his
+parlous state, intervened on his friend's behalf, and Oswald von
+Wolkenstein was set free. He was, however, so maimed by rheumatism and
+the fetters which had galled him that he ever afterwards went lame.
+
+Once more he was cast into prison, this time by Duke Frederick's
+machinations, and lay in a horrible underground and tunnel-like cell
+in Vellenberg not far from Innsbruck. He had married in 1417 Margaret,
+a daughter of the house of Schwangau, after a long period of
+betrothal, and to her he was deeply attached. On his second release,
+after three years' incarceration, he returned to Hauenstein to find
+his wife dead, and his home fallen into disrepair from neglect.
+
+A few years later we find him, unconquered in spirit though broken in
+body, at Rome to attend the coronation of his friend Sigismund, who
+but a year or two later was driven from the throne. In 1435 Oswald
+once more, as a man of fifty-eight, returned to forest-enshrouded
+Hauenstein, where he died nine years afterwards, never having again
+left it.
+
+Of course, the castle is haunted by the spirit of this unhappy and
+adventurous knight and Minnesinger, and there is still this belief
+amongst the peasantry of Seis and the neighbourhood round about. And
+the few who have ever ventured near the ruined pile after sundown aver
+that those who do are sure to hear the ancient Minnesinger chanting a
+dirge-like lay, accompanying himself upon his lute. But if this be so
+Oswald's spirit has wandered far from his body, for his remains repose
+at Neustift near Brixen.
+
+He was not only one of the most picturesque and romantic figures of
+the band of Minnesingers who were so numerous during the Middle Ages,
+but also in a measure an historical figure. By some authorities he is
+considered to be the last of these strange wandering minstrel
+adventurers. Probably it would be more correct to speak of him as the
+last really great Tyrolese "Minnesinger;" but, whichever estimate be
+right, his place on the roll of fame relating to the deeds and songs
+of these is assured by reason of his gallantries, misfortunes, and
+adventurous and knightly doings.
+
+[Sidenote: ST. ULRICH]
+
+On the way to Klausen one is wise to make a diversion down the narrow
+but picturesque Grödener Thal to St. Ulrich, which charming village,
+situated in a basin and almost surrounded by thickly wooded slopes,
+and beyond them stupendous and rocky peaks with the serrated pinnacles
+of the Langkofel in the background, is the centre of the Toy industry
+of Tyrol and an increasingly popular tourist resort. The road is a
+steeply ascending one, and one comes upon the first glimpse of the
+village, which stands midway down the valley between Waidbruck and
+Wolkenstein, quite suddenly. One's first impression is of a typical
+Tyrolese village of considerable size, its white--very white--houses
+standing out clear cut and prominently against the background of
+dark-green pines, and the lighter green of the valley fields in which
+they are, many of them, set. Of late years the clean-looking cottages
+of the villagers, the balconies of which are as often as not hung with
+delightful flowers, have been supplemented by good and large hotels,
+villas, and other modern up-to-date tourist accommodation. But,
+nevertheless, St. Ulrich is not yet spoiled, and there are still many
+of the almost mahogany-coloured barns and storehouses left, with their
+picturesque balconies running right round them, on which the grain and
+herbs are placed to dry, wood to season, and other stores are kept,
+forming so sharp a contrast to the hotels and white houses.
+
+Although we imagine St. Ulrich's chief attraction is its quaint and
+interesting toy-making industry, there are many others including most
+beautiful scenery, and the numberless excursions which can be made
+from it. In winter time, to quote the quaint phraseology and spelling
+of a local guide-book, it has "a very strange charme for the friends
+of Tobogganing and Ski-sport has the valley in the always mild and
+snowy winter-time." And regarding the accommodation offered, the same
+luminous authority goes on to say there are "very comfortable stabled
+hotels and land-houses extraordinary fit as a summerset for residence,
+likewise for a start place for numerous high-parties to the
+Dolomites."
+
+But let us give a brief description of the Toy Industry, which chiefly
+serves to differentiate the village from all others in Southern Tyrol.
+
+St. Ulrich's wares are ultimately sent all over the world, and whether
+in New York, London, Paris, Berlin, Vienna, or Rome one is almost sure
+to find amongst the toys, carved figures of saints, crucifixes,
+artists' "lay figures," chalets, and other articles some examples of
+work from this famous valley of wood carvers. The fact that nearly
+3000, or about three out of every five, of the inhabitants are engaged
+more or less directly in the work will give some idea of its
+magnitude.
+
+The carving industry at St. Ulrich is supposed to date from about the
+commencement of the seventeenth century, and there are some figures of
+the Virgin and Saints still extant in churches of the district bearing
+dates of that period, and other images of apparently much earlier
+date, which show that even in those remote times the carvers of St.
+Ulrich and the Grödener Thal possessed considerable skill and
+reputation. It was, however, one Johann von Metz who at the
+commencement of the eighteenth century appears to not only have raised
+the standard of the work of carving to greater perfection, but also to
+have organized and extended the sphere of the trade itself.
+
+In the years which immediately followed, the peasants were in the
+habit of themselves setting out into other lands with stocks of their
+work for sale; and some at least, according to tradition, found their
+way to England, and even across the Atlantic, where they abandoned the
+active work of carving for that of establishing trading depôts in
+connection with St. Ulrich, and thus they distributed the work done in
+the far-off and almost then unknown Grödener Thal throughout the
+commercial world.
+
+Nowadays to sally forth with their stock-in-trade on their backs or in
+a cart is no longer the practice of the workers. The greater number
+are employed by firms which act as wholesale distributing agencies for
+them, to whom they take their weekly output of work. Most of the
+villages of the valley are employed in the carving industry; St.
+Christina, for example, making a speciality of "lay figures" and hobby
+horses.
+
+Not only are most of the men of the villages in the Grödener Thal thus
+employed, but also many of the women and children. And it is no
+uncommon sight to see quite mites cutting away at blocks of the softer
+kinds of wood by the roadside or on the doorsteps of the cottages; and
+sometimes one meets the women on their way down from the woods or
+upper pastures with their barrel-like receptacles upon their backs,
+roughly shaping some article which will be finished off when they get
+home.
+
+[Sidenote: "TOY LAND"]
+
+Some of the carving done is really good, but it cannot be said to be
+cheap. One cannot find bargains in St. Ulrich, or, for the matter of
+that, in any of the villages of "Toy Land." The demand is too great,
+and the means of distribution too well organized for the peasants to
+care in the least whether one purchases a "bit" or not. There are
+practically no shops where carving is sold by the workers themselves,
+as nearly all are employed under contract or otherwise by wholesale
+dealers. But the tourist can generally visit one or other of the large
+_ateliers_, where, in particular, the carving of images and more
+elaborate articles is done under the superintendence of artists. It
+is an experience and a sight well worth spending an hour or two over.
+In that time, by watching several figures at various stages
+approaching completion, one can obtain a very good and clear idea of
+the different transformations which the rough-hewn block undergoes ere
+it assumes its final shape of a Virgin, St. Joseph, St. Antony, or St.
+Christopher. Many of these statues and smaller figures are sent to a
+different workshop for painting and gilding; and it is chiefly in the
+white chalets on the mountain side that the toys and smaller articles
+are made.
+
+The goods are stored principally in the larger houses of the villages.
+One of the chief depôts bears the name of the man who developed the
+industry, whilst other well-known merchants are Insam, Purger, and
+Prinoth. In these warehouses one sees shelf upon shelf laden with
+toys, figures, dolls, and other carved work; miniature waggons,
+monkeys on sticks, hobby horses painted in gay and let us add entirely
+"unnatural" colours, with flaming red, jet black, or piebald manes.
+The toys are of all prices, just as they are of many sizes and
+qualities as regards "finish;" hobby horses costing from half-a-krone
+to several florins each; dolls ranging in price from a halfpenny and
+even less to five or six kronen. Figures intended to form the contents
+of Noah's arks are there by the bushel, the cheaper kind bearing, it
+must be admitted, but faint and partial resemblance to the animals
+they are intended to represent; the better kinds being excellent
+miniatures of lions, elephants, tigers, giraffes, bears (especially
+good these), and the hundred and one smaller animals and insects of
+the patriarch's great family party; and accompanying all the
+delightful smell of freshly cut pine and other woods in the warehouses
+given over to unpainted things, and the somewhat overpowering smell of
+new paint in the others.
+
+Some of the dolls, more especially those which have Tyrolese costumes
+represented in wood, need great care in carving; and others are
+swiftly done, some by elementary machinery. The best wood used is the
+_pinus cembra_, or Swiss pine, which originally grew thickly on the
+sides of the mountains, but has now largely to be imported owing to
+the fact that whilst the trees have been cut down by the thousand,
+scant provision appears to have been made for the future by planting
+others. There is, however, plenty of the wood still left in the
+immediate neighbourhood.
+
+Nowadays at St. Ulrich there is an excellent Imperial School of
+Drawing, and modelling, and there would appear to be a distinct
+advance of recent years in the carving (of animals and figures
+especially) in consequence of the teaching given, though in their main
+characteristics the animals and small figures produced have not much
+varied from the ancient types.
+
+The church of St. Ulrich, although comparatively modern, dating only
+from quite the end of the eighteenth century, has a beautifully
+adorned interior; rather ornate and highly coloured perhaps, but
+interesting and typical. There is also in it a Mater Dolorosa by
+Maroder, and in the sacristy a fine marble Madonna by a pupil of
+Canova, Andrea Colli. The restored chapel of St. Anthony is also worth
+seeing, as it possesses a remarkably fine altar-piece, the work of
+Deschwanden.
+
+[Sidenote: CONCERNING DIALECT]
+
+There is a distinct dialect in the villages of the Grödener Thal,
+locally known as Ladin, which is said by philologists to be directly
+derived from the Latin tongue, and to date from the days of the Roman
+occupation. It is certainly so different from the dialects of modern
+Italy that it is almost impossible for the stranger, even though
+well-versed in those, to understand it. In some points it may be said
+to resemble the Grisons Romanche, and Romanese of the Engadine; but
+the parallel is not at all a close one, and needs several distinct
+qualifications. Although a deeply interesting one to philologists, it
+is impossible to deal with the question at all fully here. Certainly
+one would be inclined to think that this peculiar dialect has an
+Etruscan origin, for it is well-known that considerable remains of
+that people have from time to time been unearthed in the Grödener
+Thal, and, indeed, in the immediate neighbourhood of St. Ulrich
+itself.
+
+St. Ulrich is charming in winter, when the village is half-buried in
+snow, and the lower slopes of the environing mountains provide
+excellent toboggan "runs," and ski-ing grounds. How different the
+little place appears under these conditions from the sunny spot set
+amid green fields and pleasant pastures that it is in summer, only
+those who have seen it under both conditions can easily realize. And
+truly (as the local guide we have before quoted says) "in winter there
+are many grateful excursions for the high-flying parties, and swift
+ski-ing." By "high-flying parties" one should doubtless understand
+those who wish to ascend the higher slopes.
+
+Costume still survives at St. Ulrich and in the Grödener Thal, where
+(although less worn than even a decade ago) one still meets with women
+wearing the old style dress, with huge broad-brimmed felt hats trimmed
+with wide ribbons, and having short "streamers" down behind, or the
+still quainter high "sugar-loaf" hats, shaped almost like those of
+dancing dervishes, fitting down over the ears and allowing only the
+least suspicion of the forehead to remain visible. Wide linen collars,
+almost large enough to be called capes, with either plain edges or
+scalloped, and handsome aprons of silk, brocade, or other materials;
+wide skirts and a profusion of ribbons go to make up a costume which
+is always picturesque and often actually handsome.
+
+From Klausen, to which one returns on one's way northward, one
+proceeds to Brixen, charmingly situated in the valley of the Eisack,
+amid green fields, and pastures, and afforested slopes. The twin
+towers of the Cathedral in the centre of the picture at once catches
+the eye from whatever point one approaches the town.
+
+  [Illustration: SUMMER TIME NEAR ST. ULRICH, GRÖDENER THAL]
+
+Brixen, though little more in size and population than a large
+village, is yet one of the most interesting places in Southern Tyrol.
+It is not only historically and architecturally important, but is a
+pleasant place from which to explore the beauties of the neighbouring
+Puster Thal, Valser Thal, and Lusen Thal if only one's time permits.
+Anciently it was one of the most notable towns in Southern Tyrol, for
+it was during nearly a thousand years, and, in fact, until 1703, the
+capital of an ecclesiastical principality, with a long line of
+distinguished bishops, some of them almost as much noted for their
+militant as their spiritual qualities. It is still the seat of a
+bishopric, and in the town are many evidences of its past
+ecclesiastical importance and splendour.
+
+Artists find much in Brixen to attract them, as do also students of
+architecture, and although the valley is wider than in some similar
+resorts, making mountain ascents longer before one can reach the
+higher peaks, there are many excursions to be made, and interesting
+villages to be visited. That it is an attractive town its many
+visitors make evident, and in the pleasant gardens, which seem always
+cool even on the hottest summer day, situated between the Eisack and
+the smaller Rienz, one meets not only with interesting Brixen types
+(sometimes peasants in costume), but also most of the foreign visitors
+who may be staying in the place.
+
+[Sidenote: BRIXEN CATHEDRAL]
+
+The Cathedral, dating from the fifteenth century, is a handsome and
+even striking building, with its lofty twin towers, and their
+beautifully "weathered" copper domes. These are the oldest parts, most
+of the building itself having been restored and rebuilt as recently as
+the middle half of the eighteenth century. There are some extremely
+beautiful and interesting cloisters, with numerous frescoes on the
+groined roof, and some quaint mural tablets and tombstones. The view
+from the cloisters upon a sunny day across the courtyard is one of
+great charm in its play of light and shade, tempting one to linger in
+their hoary coolness and solitude. There is also an ancient chapel of
+St. John, dating from the eleventh century, containing some good
+frescoes of the thirteenth to fifteenth centuries. The tombstone of
+the famous Oswald von Wolkenstein is in the inner courtyard, which
+lies between the Cathedral and the Church of St. Michel, depicting the
+knightly minnesinger in armour with lance, and pennon, and lyre. Near
+this is also an interesting copper relief, depicting the scene of the
+Resurrection, placed there as a memorial of a noted local coppersmith
+named Hans Kessler, who lived in the first half of the seventeenth
+century.
+
+One reaches the Bishop's Palace by several interesting streets, in
+which some of the more ancient houses are to be found. There is a
+charming courtyard with colonnades, and a delightful garden, peaceful
+and full of flowers and the sentiment of other days. And here,
+fortunately, the traveller can gain admission for half an hour's
+restful contemplation of its beauty, and perhaps the study of some of
+the historical events which the town has witnessed.
+
+From Brixen to Sterzing one traverses the widening, narrowing, and
+again widening valley of the Eisack. Past Spinges, with its memories
+of the fierce battle in 1797, when General Joubert was marching
+through the Puster Thal to make a junction with Napoleon. His advance
+was not, however, permitted unchecked. The inhabitants of Spinges
+might not be many, but they were Tyrolese. It happened, too, that a
+few companies of the Landsturm were in the neighbourhood, and so these
+and the men of Spinges marched out to meet Joubert's immensely
+superior force. The French troops were armed with bayonets as well as
+guns, and the barrier they made was found unpierceable by the brave
+but badly armed patriots. But the opportunity or need produced the man
+as it had done rather more than four centuries before in Switzerland
+when Arnold von Winkelried gathered the Austrian spears into his bosom
+at Sempach. In this case it was one Anton Reinisch, of Volders, who
+"played the man," and heroically leapt, scythe in hand, amongst the
+French bayonets, a score of which pierced his body, and thus, hewing
+right and left ere he fell, carved a way for his comrades, and enabled
+them to break up the French lines.
+
+[Sidenote: THE MAID OF SPINGES]
+
+But Spinges will be celebrated still more in romance, as it has been
+in history, by the act of that anonymous maiden "the Maid of Spinges,"
+who, during the fight around the church of the village, mounted in
+company with the men the wall of the churchyard, and, armed with a hay
+fork, helped, by her strong arms as well as her example, to
+successfully repel three fierce attacks of the French soldiery.
+Unknown[18] by name, yet the fame of her courageous act, typical as it
+was of those of many others of her sex during the long and fierce
+struggle waged by the Tyrolese against the invaders of their beloved
+land, has descended through generations.
+
+On the other side of the valley to Spinges is Franzenfeste at the
+mouth of the defile known as the Brixener Klause. Few people stop at
+Franzenfeste, we imagine. To ramble on the hillsides would be an act
+of foolhardiness, for they are honeycombed with forts. It is a great
+strategic position, commanding the Brenner and the entrance to the
+Puster Thal; and investigation of the hillsides and neighbourhood, it
+is needless to say, is not encouraged by the Austrian Government. It
+is possible in the future that the spot which saw much fighting in
+1797 and 1809 will again be the scene of military operations, and a
+struggle not less fierce, and far more bloody. Who knows?
+
+[Sidenote: STERZING AND MATREI]
+
+Sterzing, with its sunny main street of which a most charming vista is
+got as one enters the town through the ancient gateway on the Brenner
+road, and shady arcades which remind one of the "unter den Lauben" of
+Meran, stands on the site of a Roman settlement, Vipitenum. It is
+situated at the junction of three beautiful valleys, the Ridnaun Thal,
+Pflersch Thal, Pfitscher Thal, in a broad basin-like depression,
+encircled by shapely mountain slopes, and on the right bank of the
+Eisack. Though nowadays possessing a population of less than 3000,
+Sterzing at once strikes one as having an air of importance and
+prosperity, hardly in keeping with its small size. Formerly, however,
+the town was an important mining centre, and the larger of its quaint
+and picturesque balconied and bay-windowed houses owe their origin to
+the wealthier inhabitants of the past. Marble quarrying and polishing
+is still carried on somewhat extensively, and doubtless helps to
+retain an air of commercial life and industry in the quaint old place.
+
+Sterzing is wonderfully decorative and compact in general effect; and
+there are a surprising number of fine and interesting buildings to be
+seen in its narrow old-time streets. The Rathaus, with its striking
+bow windows, is of late Gothic architecture, and in it is a fine
+fifteenth-century altar-piece, and some interesting and well-executed
+wood carvings. This building, now used by the town officials and
+magistrates, was formerly doubtless a mansion of a wealthy merchant.
+In it is one of the best preserved specimens of a Gothic ceiling,
+dating from about the middle of the fifteenth century, that we have
+seen in Tyrol in any private house of similar size.
+
+The church has been extensively, but on the whole well restored. It
+dates from the sixteenth century, and has a Gothic choir of note, and
+nave and aisles restored in the Rococo style, the ceiling paintings of
+which are by Adam Mölckh. The general effect of the interior is good,
+and the church has some interesting architectural details.
+
+The decline of Sterzing is attributable to the same cause as that of
+many other townlets and villages upon the old post-roads, and the
+roads over the passes which have gradually become less and less used
+as railroads have multiplied. But, in the case of Sterzing, its
+gradual descent from the position of importance it once occupied,
+traces of which are found in the numerous fine houses still standing,
+was undoubtedly more owing to the exhaustion or abandonment of the
+mining industry than to the coming of the railway which so seriously
+affected the road traffic of the Brenner Pass.
+
+Near Sterzing, it should be remembered, Hofer and his peasant forces
+fought the first big engagement of the struggle in 1809, which ended
+in the defeat of the Bavarians, who were driven back across the
+Brenner, Hofer having crossed the Jaufen from his home at St. Martin
+in the Passeier Valley.
+
+Matrei, or, as it is also called, Deutsch-Matrei, is the only place of
+any size or importance which we have not already described on the line
+between Sterzing and Innsbruck, or along the Brenner road. The little
+town is charmingly situated, and like others of similar character and
+altitude (it lies nearly 3300 feet above sea-level), is becoming more
+and more resorted to by tourists and travellers upon the Brenner
+route. The Castle of Trautson, belonging to Prince Auersperg, stands
+on the hillside above it. Sterzing forms a fine centre for ascents and
+excursions, and there is a most interesting pilgrimage church on the
+north-eastern flank of the Waldrast Spitze dedicated to the Virgin,
+and known by the name of the mountain; it dates from the middle of the
+fifteenth century. Its foundation was in consequence of a peasant's
+dream, in which he was directed to go to the woods, lie down and rest,
+and there he should be told what to do. When he had done this the
+Virgin appeared to him, and bade him build a chapel on the spot over
+an image of her which had miraculously appeared no one knew how some
+years before. To this chapel was given the name of Maria Waldrast
+(Wood's rest), and although the monastery, which was built on the
+spot more than a century and a half later, in 1624, is now but a ruin,
+the pilgrimage is even nowadays made by the devout to the church which
+is so beautifully situated more than 5300 feet above sea-level.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[16] For further details of the castle's history, see Prokop's
+interesting account.--C. H.
+
+[17] Some authorities state Pleier was from Salzburg or the
+Salzkammergut.
+
+[18] A Some authorities assert that her name was Katherina Lanz, and
+that from about 1820 till her death in 1854 she lived as housekeeper
+to the priest at St. Virglius near Rost, high up in the Enneberg
+Valley.--C. H.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER IX
+
+     SOME TOWNS AND VILLAGES OF WALSCH-TYROL: TRENT, ITS HISTORY,
+     COUNCIL, AND BUILDINGS--ROVEREDO AND DANTE--ARCO--RIVA
+
+
+Trent, which is easily reached from Bozen through the Etschland by the
+Bozen-Verona line, which winds through some delightful scenery and
+passes many a ruined castle perched high on inaccessible heights, is
+not only a large town of upwards of 25,000 inhabitants, but was
+anciently one of the wealthiest in Tyrol. It is generally supposed to
+have been founded by the Etruscans, and both Pliny and Ptolemy make
+mention of it; but whoever designed Trent seized upon a beautiful
+situation, and the builders have left behind them in the quaint town,
+broad streets, handsome palaces of dead and gone nobles, and a forest
+of towers and spires, delightful survivals of mediæval days.
+Surrounded by limestone crags, the city itself, notwithstanding its
+Italian character and fine atmosphere, gives one at first sight an
+impression of lack of colour which is not usually the case with
+Italian towns.
+
+Regarding the foundation of the city and the origin of its name, there
+is at least a local tradition that it was founded in the time of
+Tarquinius Priscus, about B.C. 616, by a body of Etruscans led by
+Rhaetius; and these founders, although so far removed from the sea,
+instituted the worship of Neptune, from which circumstance the ancient
+name Tridentum was derived. Be this as it may, the circumstance is
+interesting, as in these Etruscans under the leadership of Rhaetius
+one can perhaps discover the origin of the Rhaeti, who ultimately gave
+so much trouble to the Empire of Rome. At any rate, Rhaetius gave his
+name to the district in the immediate vicinity of Trent. The
+interesting Castle Del Buon Consiglio, which forms so dominating a
+feature of the town, and possesses a circular and lofty donjon of the
+type of Guy's Tower at Warwick, with its fine Renaissance loggia in
+the inner or fountain courtyard and several storied arcades in the
+older, was once the residence of the Prince Bishops, but now used as
+barracks. In it is preserved an ancient inscription relating to the
+government of the town, which proves that the regulations and statutes
+were very largely modelled upon those of Rome itself.
+
+Those who can do so should certainly endeavour to visit Trent during
+the latter part of the month of June, not merely from the fact that
+this month is charming by reason of the beauties of nature, the wealth
+of tender new foliage and delightful climate, but also because on the
+26th of the month falls the Festival of Saint Vigilius, the patron
+saint of Trent, and the martyr missionary who anciently did much to
+Christianize the country. At this _fête_ the ancient city, whose
+by-ways and narrower streets are full of interest, picturesqueness,
+and charm, is seen at its gayest and best. All the many churches are
+crowded with worshippers, thousands of whom have flocked down from the
+surrounding mountains and come in from the various villages of the
+Etschland, bound first upon religious observances in honour of their
+patron saint and afterwards to take part in the characteristic games
+and amusements which give the city for the time being such a festive
+and Bank Holiday air. In former days the more violent amusements were
+often supplemented by the performance of religious dramas, somewhat on
+the lines of the better known and more elaborate plays of
+Ober-Ammergau and the Brixenthal, and also by the illumination of the
+surrounding hills by huge bonfires, which are said to have had their
+origin in the religious observances of even more remote times than
+that of the Etruscan occupation.
+
+Saint Vigilius, who was born at Rome, eventually became the Bishop of
+Trent, and ultimately suffered martyrdom during one of the many
+persecutions which took place, and were similar in character to those
+of the fourth century.
+
+The city during its early wars was several times sacked, and more than
+once burnt by the Bavarian hordes which overran the country and even
+at last reached the gates of Rome itself. Thus Trent came to be built
+at various periods upon former foundations, and researches of recent
+times have tended to show that, as was the case with Rome itself, the
+comparatively modern Trent is built upon soil several feet above the
+level of its first site. One Italian authority, indeed, states that
+the streets of the original town lie some fourteen feet below the
+level of those of the present. Traces of at least three distinct lines
+of walls marking the growth of the city at various times have been
+excavated, leading also to the discovery of many interesting relics of
+Roman days, including tessellated pavements, portions of an
+amphitheatre of considerable size, ornaments, household utensils, etc.
+
+The bishops still retain their title of Prince, but they lost their
+power as territorial rulers at the time of the secularization which
+took place throughout Tyrol, and also in the principality of Salzburg.
+
+[Sidenote: THE COUNCIL OF TRENT]
+
+Although this ancient city, which is characterized nowadays by a
+cleanliness and order so often found wanting in Italian towns, has
+undergone many vicissitudes and has been the scene of important
+historical events, to the Trent folk of to-day and to many of the
+visitors who come to it the chief events in connection with its
+history will undoubtedly remain the sittings of the famous Council
+which commenced in the year 1545. Many may wonder how it came about
+that so comparatively small a town should have been chosen as the
+meeting-place of a Conference intended to attempt the co-ordination of
+the beliefs and doctrines and the regulation of ecclesiastical affairs
+of the whole of the then Christian world. Probably the sole reason for
+this selection was the geographical position of the city, which lay
+then, as it does to-day, a frontier town, so to speak, between Italian
+and German influences, and though situated on Austrian soil, yet
+containing an Italian-speaking population.
+
+The Council opened on December 13, 1545, and continued its sittings
+(with interruptions) until December 4, 1563, the last being the
+twenty-fifth in number. The meetings of the Council took place at
+various times during the reigns of three Popes, Paul III., Julius
+III., and Pius IV., and amongst the enactments of the Council the
+Canon of Scripture, including the Apocrypha, was confirmed, and the
+Church named as its sole interpreter; that traditions were to be
+considered as equal with Scripture, and the seven sacraments of
+Baptism, Confirmation, the Lord's Supper, Penitence, extra-Unction,
+Orders, and Matrimony were also confirmed; transubstantiation,
+Purgatory indulgences, celibacy of the clergy, auricular confession,
+and other matters were dealt with.
+
+The first sitting was held under Cardinal Del Monte, the papal legate,
+who rose amidst the assembled prelates and representatives and asked
+them whether it was their wish, "For the glory of God, the extirpation
+of heresy, and the reformation of the clergy and people, and the
+downfall of the enemy of the Christian name, to resolve and declare
+that the Sacred General Tridentine Council should begin and was
+begun?" The whole company, we are told, answered "Placet," a Te Deum
+was sung, and it was agreed that the first sitting of the Council
+should be held on the 7th of January. The sittings were continued at
+various times without any untoward event till the year 1552, when
+Maurice of Saxony invaded Tyrol, and although the Council was sitting,
+most of its members fled the country after having re-enacted the
+various decrees and ordinances which had been previously passed.
+
+Ten years later, what was to all intents and purposes another Council
+met at Trent, and a solemn service was again held, at which Cardinal
+Gonzaga was elected president. A quarrel seems to have arisen between
+some of the archbishops and bishops and one of the French envoys. The
+former did not agree to some of the terms of the proposition made by
+the Archbishop of Reggio, whilst the latter raised an objection to the
+Council being considered a continuation of the first Council.
+
+The building in which the Council sat has been stated at various times
+to have been the Cathedral, in the Piazza del Duomo, but there seems
+very little doubt now that the place of meeting was not there but in
+the Church of Santa Maria Maggiore, situated on the Piazza of the same
+name. In it on the north wall of the Choir hangs a large picture
+representing some three hundred of the various chief dignitaries as
+they sat in the Council Chamber. The members numbered nearly a
+thousand in all, and in addition to the cardinals, archbishops,
+bishops, abbots, chiefs of religious orders, and representatives from
+the University, there were also present ambassadors from the Emperor
+of Germany, and from the Kings of France, Spain, and Portugal, from
+the republic of Venice and Genoa, from Switzerland, and from the
+German electors.
+
+There were at first serious disputes regarding the mode of conducting
+the business of the Council: what subjects were to be brought up for
+discussion, and which of those so brought up should have precedence.
+The German prelates and representatives appear to have been favourable
+to the discussion of subjects of a more practical nature, realizing as
+they did that one of the chief causes of disruption and want of
+unanimity in the Church was the presence of practical and easily
+located abuses. They therefore strongly urged that the first work of
+the Council should be of the nature of reforms affecting these
+abuses. On the other hand, the Italian prelates and envoys were most
+favourable to the discussion of matters of doctrine and ecclesiastical
+observances. These differences of opinion were, however, ultimately
+overcome by an agreement that for each session of the Council dealing
+with dogma there should be one held to consider the question of
+practical reforms.
+
+The first president, Cardinal Del Monte, frankly acknowledged that
+many abuses had crept into the Church, and to prove the sincerity of
+his reforming proposals voluntarily yielded up his pluralities of
+office; and this example was followed by the Prince Bishop of Trent,
+who offered to resign the See of Brixen.
+
+In 1547, owing to an epidemic then raging in Trent, the first session
+was closed, and the next sitting took place at Bologna. Charles V.,
+who had been a very active promoter of the Council, objected to the
+change of venue and insisted upon it being adjourned. It again sat in
+1551 at Trent, and an interesting feature of the sitting was the
+presence of Protestant delegates and envoys from Maurice, elector of
+Saxony, and from the elector of Brandenburg. Queen Elizabeth declined
+to send any representative, preferring to accept the decisions of an
+English convocation. After transacting a considerable amount of
+business the Council was adjourned, and did not again meet for a
+period of eleven years. On that occasion many points came up for
+discussion, and a considerable number of measures of practical reform
+were agreed upon. One of the most important was the suppression of the
+alms gatherers, men who were sent for the purpose from Rome to
+different countries with power to sell indulgences. It was by this
+means that a large amount of the money with which St. Peter's, Rome,
+was built was obtained.
+
+[Sidenote: DECREES OF THE COUNCIL]
+
+Amongst other important matters decreed by the Council was that
+prohibiting the sale, printing, or keeping of any books whatever on
+sacred matters under pain of anathema and fine imposed by a canon of
+the last Council of Lateran, unless first approved of by the
+ordinary. It also provided that offenders should have their books
+burnt; should pay a fine amounting to a hundred ducats; should be
+suspended a year from the exercises of their trades; and goes on to
+add that they should be visited with a sentence of excommunication;
+and, finally, should their contumacy become worse, be so chastised by
+their bishop by every means granted by the law that others might take
+warning from them and not be tempted to follow their example. It was
+also decreed that even those who lent forbidden books, which included
+the writings of arch-heretics, such as Luther, Calvin, and others,
+even though in MS., should be liable to the same penalties; and all
+those who should have any such books in their possession, unless
+confessing the author's name, should themselves be regarded as the
+author.
+
+Cardinal Lorraine, who attended with fourteen bishops, three abbots,
+and eighty learned doctors of divinity on behalf of King Charles IX.
+of France, was charged with instructions from that monarch to entreat
+the Council to concede the following reforms and benefits: that in
+France the sacraments might be administered, the psalms sung, prayers
+offered up, and the catechism taught in the language of the people;
+and that the sacrament should be fully administered to the laity. Also
+that some strenuous means should be taken to check the licentious
+lives of the clergy; and that the Council should make any concessions
+tending towards peace and the abatement of schism which did not
+controvert or interfere with God's word. The French ambassadors also
+asked for clear instructions concerning the doctrines governing the
+uses of images, relics, and indulgences; and also they were instructed
+to urge argument against exacting fees for the sacrament, benefices
+without duties, and many other things which the more liberal minded
+and progressive of the prelates regarded as grave abuses in the
+Church. One astonishing objection which Renaud Ferrier, the then
+President of the Parliament in Paris, in company with Lansac, raised
+before the Council was to the dogma that the Pope's authority was
+supreme, their contention being that the Council was above the Pope!
+
+As we have said, this important Council on religion came to an end in
+December, 1563, when the President moved its dissolution. Before the
+closing scene, the acts of the Council were finally agreed to and
+signed, "the ambassadors also adding their names." Then the President
+dismissed the members in the following words: "After having given this
+to God, most reverend fathers, go ye in peace." To which all present
+replied, "Amen." Then Cardinal Lorraine rose and called down the
+blessing of the assembly upon the then reigning Pope, Pius IV., and
+also upon his predecessors, Paul III. and Julius III. "By whose
+authority," said the Cardinal, "this sacred Council was begun; to them
+peace from the Lord and eternal glory and happiness in the light of
+the Holy Saints." To which those present answered, "By their memory
+ever held in sacred benediction."
+
+Then there were prayers for the reigning monarchs whose ambassadors
+were present, for the holy oecumenical synod of Trent, whose faith
+and decrees all present declared they would keep for ever. Then came
+the final scene, when the Cardinal, standing in the midst of the vast
+assembly, declared in a loud voice, "Anathema! anathema! to all
+heretics!" To which there came the reply, "Anathema!" And thus ended
+not only the Council of Trent, but also the last great general Council
+of the Roman Catholic Church.
+
+[Sidenote: THE CHURCHES OF TRENT]
+
+The church of Santa Maria Maggiore, in which the Council held its
+sittings--a rather plain red marble building, which, however, has a
+fine Lombardian campanile--will always be one of the most interesting
+churches amongst the many of Trent. Severe outside, the interior is
+exceptionally ornate. The organ-loft, completed in 1534, twenty years
+after the commencement of the church, is one of great beauty.
+Designed by Vincenzo Vicentin, it has a white marble balustrading, the
+supports of which are thickly encrusted with decorative work and
+statuettes of delicately fine workmanship. In the church are also
+several interesting and good pictures, amongst the number one
+ascribed, though possibly incorrectly, to Tintoretto.
+
+There are one or two interesting traditional stories connected with
+this church. The first relates to the beautiful organ, and runs as
+follows: "So fine a tone and so esteemed was the work of the now--so
+far as we have been able to ascertain--unknown organ builder, that the
+Town Council are said to have determined to blind or maim him so that
+it should be impossible for him to construct another instrument like
+it for any other city. The unfortunate man, unable to get the
+Councillors to give up their diabolical intention, asked as a last
+favour to be allowed to play on the instrument he had made ere the
+barbarous sentence was carried out. But as soon as he was in the
+organ-loft he set to work and irreparably injured the vox humana stop
+which he had invented, and which had been the greatest attraction of
+the beautiful instrument; and thus he punished the Council who had
+determined to reward his genius in such a terrible manner."
+
+The other legend is of the crucifix, still to be seen in one of the
+side chapels of the Cathedral, which on the occasion of the final Te
+Deum, when the Council was disbanded on December 4, 1563, was seen to
+bow down in token of approval of the constitutions and enactments
+which had just been signed.
+
+Of the fifteen or sixteen churches of Trent, the Cathedral, which was
+commenced in the eleventh century and finished in the fifteenth, in
+the form of a Romanesque basilica with a lantern above the joining of
+the cross, is the most important. It is built of the same reddish
+brown marble as the church of Santa Maria Maggiore, which stone
+abounds in the immediate neighbourhood. There are some remnants of
+seventh or eighth century carvings, notably the Lombard ornaments of
+the three porches, which are of great interest. The interior of the
+church, which is dedicated to Saint Vigilius, contains many frescoes
+and some good pictures and other objects, including a Madonna by
+Perugino, a copy of the Madonna Di San Luca in the Pantheon, which was
+presented to a Bishop of Trent whilst on a visit to Rome in the middle
+of the fifteenth century, and has ever since been an object of great
+veneration to the townsfolk and peasantry of the district round about.
+
+The Museum in the Palazzo Municipale, which, at any rate, a year or
+two ago was unfortunately closed during the months of July and August,
+when many tourists are in Trent, contains some very interesting Roman
+antiquities, including inscriptions, household utensils, ornaments,
+coins, pottery, and similar objects, and is well worth an hour or two
+for inspection.
+
+[Sidenote: DANTE AND THE VAL SARCA]
+
+Dante's connection with Trent does not appear to be, even at the
+present time, very clearly proved, although there would seem to be no
+doubt whatever that the poet spent some few months, at least, in the
+Trentino. This theory gains some considerable support from references
+which occur in the "Divina Commedia" to the Trentino, which (various
+authorities state) are so detailed as to be only possible from
+personal knowledge. It may, however, be pointed out that, as in the
+case of Shakespeare, who described many places quite accurately to
+which he could never have been, it is possible Dante's knowledge of
+the Trentino was not gained from personal experience, and the theory
+advanced of his sojourn in the neighbourhood, based upon references to
+the district in his works, is not unassailable. A considerable number
+of books, pamphlets, and articles have been written, however, by
+Italian, German, and English scholars and students of Dante in support
+of different theories regarding his visit to these parts. One of the
+most learned and thorough writers upon this subject--Zaniboni--appears
+to have no doubt that Dante was in the Trentino, but that the
+"Inferno" was not written during his supposed visit to the Castle of
+Lizzana, but soon after his return to Italy. Other authorities have
+inclined to the view that the Val Sarca, near the tiny village of
+Pietra Murata, is the real scene of Dante's "Inferno"; and those who
+know this desolate and even terrible spot, where the very ground seems
+blighted, the heat intense between the towering and craggy cliffs, and
+the whole of the valley the scene of a horrible desolation, with huge
+boulders tossed hither and thither, and not a blade of grass and
+scarcely a patch of lichen to be seen, will be inclined also to
+support this view. But whatever the truth may be, Trent has put in a
+claim to Dante in the shape of the magnificent monument to him, from a
+design by Zocchi, erected in 1896 in the centre of the Piazza Dante,
+near the station. The figures around the base of the column upon which
+the statue of the poet stands, with his right arm upraised and
+outstretched, and his left pressing a roll of MS. to his breast, are
+remarkably well executed, and the whole effect of the memorial, with
+its background of craggy mountains and its environment of flower-beds,
+is impressive.
+
+There are, of course, numberless interesting buildings, and also
+several other churches worthy of study and attention; but, perhaps,
+amongst all the domestic buildings and palaces of Trent, including the
+Palazzi Wolkenstein and Sizzo, and the Tabarelli, in which are
+magnificent private collections of pictures and other _objets d'art_,
+none exceeds in romantic and legendary interest the Teufelspalast,
+which has been known by several other names at various times, and
+latterly as the Palazzo Zambelli. This beautiful home (now a bank) was
+built by George Fugger, a relative of the wealthy banker, Anthony
+Fugger, of Augsburg. The legendary story is as follows:--
+
+George Fugger having become acquainted with one Claudia Porticelli, a
+beautiful young woman of Trent, fell desperately in love with her, and
+although the fair Claudia does not appear to have discouraged his
+suit, she was too proud to yield too readily to his proposals, and in
+addition was very patriotic, and inclined to the view that a Tyrolese
+maid should marry a Tyrolese man. It was in pursuance of this idea,
+when at last her lover pressed her strongly for an answer, that she
+told him she would never marry a man who lived so far away from her
+beloved home, and that she wondered how any one who did not possess a
+tiny _pied à terre_ in Trent, should for a moment think that he could
+have any claim upon her affections. This reply to his suit might, one
+would think, have discouraged most people, but George Fugger, who
+possessed vast wealth, had no intention of yielding up his claim, or
+his supposed claim, to the beautiful Claudia without a struggle; and,
+moreover, Claudia Porticelli, although discouraging him so distinctly,
+had (like a woman) put off the evil day of giving a final answer for a
+period of a little more than twenty-four hours. In this delay, George
+Fugger saw the solution which great wealth and determination of
+character placed within his reach. He determined, therefore, within
+the short space remaining before Claudia gave him his final answer, to
+build a house "worthy of the human gem whose casket it was to be."
+
+[Sidenote: A SATANIC COMPACT]
+
+Twenty-four hours or so in which to build a palace was, however, such
+an impossibly short time that no man could hope to accomplish the task
+by human aid alone. Therefore (so the legend goes) he sought the help
+from a source to which no good Christian would think of turning,
+namely, that of the Devil. In legendary lore there are many stories of
+the Devil assisting men and women to an accomplishment of their
+desires, but almost invariably at the price of their souls.
+
+George Fugger, however anxious for the Devil's assistance, was too
+keen a man of business to wish to endanger his soul; so the object he
+set himself to accomplish was to obtain the Evil One's aid without
+paying the Evil One's price. The Devil was summoned, and he willingly
+enough undertook the task upon the usual condition, of the surrender
+at the end of life of the soul of the person he was helping. George
+Fugger, without hesitation, signed the bond with his blood, only
+stipulating for the insertion of a small clause, which provided that
+his Satanic majesty should on his part do Fugger one small service ere
+claiming the price of his assistance. The Devil must have been in a
+good humour, for he agreed to this quite willingly and unsuspiciously,
+and the two parties went their way, each well satisfied with his part
+of the bargain.
+
+Teufelspalast was, naturally enough, of magnificent design, and at the
+time it was built was furnished with the most luxurious fittings and
+decorations that the mind of man or devil could imagine. Marbles of
+different kinds entered largely into its construction, and the
+gilding, decorations, and carvings were such as to become famous
+throughout even a country noted for great and beautiful palaces. When
+the building was completed, the Devil summoned the owner, and asked
+him to name the little service that he was to do him. George Fugger
+had thought out his little scheme of outwitting the Devil, and he took
+a bushel of corn and strewed it over the different floors of his vast
+mansion. Then he said to the Devil, "See! If you can gather together
+all the corn strewn about the palace grain by grain, and deliver it
+back to me without the loss of a single grain before morning, then my
+soul shall be yours. On the other hand, should you fail to do this, my
+soul remains my own as well as the palace you have built."
+
+The Devil, we are told, was not in the least disconcerted by the task
+which had been set him, and without doubting for a moment that he
+would successfully accomplish it, he set to work to gather up the
+grain. In the end, just before sunrise he had completed his task, all
+but the finding of five grains of the corn. He searched high and low
+for the missing grains, but to no purpose, and ere he could find them
+daylight, which was to mark the end of the time allotted for his task,
+began to appear; but the Devil, notwithstanding the absence of the
+five grains, consoled himself with the thought that Fugger would
+never discover the loss of five grains amidst the many hundreds of
+thousands of others which he had heaped up in the measure. When Fugger
+came to see whether the Devil had performed his task or not, he
+counted out the number of grains of corn, and, of course, discovered
+the absence of the five, so he asked the Devil where they were.
+
+"Oh," said the Devil, "they are there, the measure is piled quite full
+up, and you cannot be so particular as all that."
+
+Fugger replied, "That is all very well, but five grains are missing,
+and I must have them, or you have not performed your task, and lose
+all claim to my soul in return for the palace you have so marvellously
+built me."
+
+The Evil One replied, "You have miscounted the number. I have built
+your house and picked up all the grains of corn, and I am not going to
+be done out of my part of the bargain; besides, you cannot prove that
+there are five grains short."
+
+"Oh yes, I can," replied Fugger; "stretch out your right hand." And
+the Devil, not seeing that it could be any harm to comply with the
+request, forthwith stretched out his great hand. Fugger seized it, and
+said, "There lie the five grains under your own claws. The corn I set
+you to pick up had been sanctified by being offered before the Holy
+Rood, and for this reason you were prevented from fulfilling your
+purpose. You have not collected the grains into your measure by dawn,
+as agreed, and therefore our bargain is annulled."
+
+The Devil was in a terrible way. He did not see how to escape
+conviction of failure, and so he sought to terrify Fugger by an
+exhibition of his Satanic wrath. He set to work and began to attempt
+to tear down the building which he had so recently completed. But he
+no longer had any power over the palace, and only succeeded in
+breaking a sufficiently large hole in the wall to enable him to fly
+through it and depart.
+
+For many years this hole, which had been bricked up, was shown to
+visitors, and was esteemed by many of the Trent people of the lower
+class as proof positive of the superhuman origin of the palace and the
+truth of the legend.
+
+The end of the story is just what might be expected. The fair Claudia,
+who probably never meant to refuse the rich banker, consented to marry
+him, now that he had a home in Trent. And there they lived, so it is
+said, happily ever afterwards, and in due time died.
+
+[Sidenote: THE MADONNA ALLE LASTE]
+
+In the immediate neighbourhood of Trent are several other buildings
+and places of very considerable interest and of great picturesqueness.
+One favourite excursion is to the chapel of Madonna Alle Laste, which
+lies on the hillside to the east of the city, about half an hour's
+stiff walking from the Port Aquila, a little way off the road to
+Bassano. From this spot one not only obtains good views of the town,
+but can visit on a spur of the mountain the celebrated marble Maria
+Bild, to which there is an interesting legend attached. This "picture"
+has been an object of veneration with the people of Trent and the
+district round about for centuries.
+
+Some time about the middle of the seventeenth century this fine tablet
+was sacrilegiously injured and disfigured by a travelling Jew, much to
+the rage and indignation of the people of Trent. And although a German
+artist, Detscher by name, did his best to restore the carving, it was
+impossible for him to entirely obliterate all trace of the injury it
+had received. But, so the legendary story goes, by some miraculous
+power it was altogether restored in one night, and this miracle so
+increased the veneration in which the Maria Bild was held that people
+thought there was no kind of disease too desperate that it could not
+be cured by prayers at such a holy shrine. Several miracles are
+ascribed to this wonderful carving, which became so venerated that
+ultimately a chapel was built for it and placed in charge of a hermit;
+and later on a community of Carmelites was established on the spot by
+reason of the generosity of Field-Marshal Gallas, and this remained
+until the secularization, now many years ago.
+
+The convent buildings, however, still stand, and from them there is a
+fine view of the distant range of mountains, and the foreground slopes
+covered with peach and other fruit trees.
+
+With the many other interesting walks and legends attached to the
+scattered villages which lie in the immediate neighbourhood of quaint
+and historic Trent there is no space to deal. Most travellers must
+leave Trent reluctantly, for it is beautiful in situation and deeply
+interesting from all points of view.
+
+To the south and south-west of it lie two interesting towns. The first
+is Roveredo, the second Arco; the former, though a less frequented and
+less historic town than Trent, is yet one of some importance and
+remarkably well situated. It dates from Roman times, and received its
+name Roboretum in consequence of the enormous oak forests by which it
+was surrounded. The high road which leads to it, owing to the fact
+that it was one of the ancient ways into Tyrol, is crowded with ruins
+of ancient fortresses and of castles in a state of more or less decay.
+Most of these, including Predajo, Castlebarco, Beseno, Lizzana (at the
+last named of which Dante lived during the first few years of the
+fourteenth century, after his banishment from Florence), and others
+took part in the various struggles for the possession of Tyrol which
+were waged at different times between the Emperor of Germany, the
+Republic of Venice, the Prince Bishops of Trent, and other powerful
+families of the district who carried on private and other feuds
+throughout the Middle Ages.
+
+[Sidenote: A BURIED CITY]
+
+At the time of Dante's banishment from Florence Castle Lizzana was the
+home of the Scaligers, who gave shelter to the poet during his exile.
+Not far from the Castle is that famous Sclavini (or land slip) di San
+Marco, which is in reality a vast "_steinmeer_," and is probably
+rather of the nature of a great and possibly pre-historic moraine,
+than a land slide. But be this as it may the locality of this immense
+accumulation of huge rocks thrown hither and thither no doubt provided
+the poet with at least the inspiration of the descent into the
+Inferno,[19] which runs as follows:--
+
+     "The place, where to descend the precipice
+     We came, was rough as Alp; and on its verge
+     Such object lay, as every eye would shun.
+
+           As is that ruin, which Adice's stream
+     On this side Trento struck, shouldering the wave,
+     Or loosed by earthquake or for lack of prop;
+     For from the mountain's summit, whence it moved
+           To the low level, so the headlong rock
+     Is shivered, that some passage it might give
+     To him who from above would pass; e'en such
+     Into the chasm was the descent: and there
+     At point of the disparted ridge...."
+               CARY'S Translation.
+
+There is a legend that a beautiful city, once known as San Marco,
+which was destroyed by a landslip that took place at the beginning of
+the ninth century, lies buried under the gigantic rocks. At any rate,
+in the Middle Ages this belief prevailed, with the result that the
+peasants of the district were for ever digging amidst the _débris_ in
+the hope of finding some of the vast treasure which tradition said had
+been buried with the city. The story, which possesses an almost
+Boccaccian touch of humour, goes on to say that on one occasion a
+peasant, whilst thus excavating, came across a vast boulder, on which
+was written in letters of fire in Italian, "Fortunate will they be who
+turn me over." Naturally enough, the peasant was in a state of great
+delight; surely this was an indication that the riches for which he
+sought would be found hidden underneath the stone. Calling his
+neighbours together, and, doubtless, promising them a share of the
+spoil, after almost superhuman exertions, the great rock was rolled
+over; but instead of finding in the cavity disclosed the treasure
+which they expected, they found but another inscription on the under
+side of the rock of a jocular and taunting nature, also in Italian,
+which, literally translated, ran as follows: "Thanks for turning me
+over; I had a pain in my ribs." As the Italian peasant, of all others,
+cares little for unremunerative toil, and is easily depressed by such
+sarcasm, we are told, "From that time forth the supposed ruined city
+of San Marco and its buried treasures were left in peace."
+
+Not far from this spot, too, on the other bank of the river, is the
+home of another legend of a deep cavern, concerning which there is a
+tradition that years and years ago it was the retreat of a cruel,
+white-bearded hobgoblin who lived on human flesh--children by
+preference--and that whoever should have the courage to explore the
+cavern to its depths would find at the end of it the remains of the
+hobgoblin, and that his spirit would reward the adventurer by telling
+him where a vast treasure lies hidden.
+
+Possibly the legend had some origin in the fact that the district
+close here was once infested by a fierce band of robbers, who
+plundered and robbed, not only travellers, but the people of the
+country round about. Towards the end of the twelfth century the band
+became so formidable that the then Bishop of Trent despatched a force
+against them and destroyed the robbers' lair, building on the spot
+where it was, and from whence they were accustomed to attack
+travellers, a hospice for the protection of wayfarers, the chapel of
+which was dedicated to St. Margaret.
+
+[Sidenote: ROVEREDO]
+
+Some dozen miles southward from Trent, down the pleasant valley
+through which the Adige wends its tortuous way, lies Roveredo or
+Rovereto, a busy and prosperous town famous for its silk culture,
+situated on both sides of the river Leno, and dominated by the ancient
+castle, which, built by the Venetians, has withstood many a fierce
+siege. The silk trade, that gives Roveredo its chief importance, was
+introduced into the town as far back as the middle of the sixteenth
+century, and has contributed very greatly to its continuous
+prosperity. Strangely enough, the principal family of Roveredo at the
+beginning of the eighteenth century established business relations
+with England, and a prosperous trade was the result.
+
+The town is prettily situated, and from the hillside above it presents
+the usual characteristics of red roofs and white walls which
+distinguish most Italian towns. It has many charming by-ways, flights
+of cobble-paved steps leading up through quaint arches into zig-zag,
+narrow streets of great picturesqueness, in exploring which one is
+tempted to spend much time, particularly if possessing a camera. Its
+chief streets, however, are wide and handsome, notably the Corso
+Nuovo, planted with shady trees, leading from the railway station to
+the town.
+
+Although there are seven or eight churches in Roveredo, none of them
+are of any great moment, but there is a good altar-piece, supposed to
+be the work of Giovanni da Udine, in the church of St. Rocchus, a
+building erected in the middle of the seventeenth century owing to a
+vow made by the inhabitants to do this during a visitation of the
+Plague if the scourge was stayed. Although not a place to stay in for
+any considerable length of time, Roveredo is undoubtedly worth a visit
+from those who like picturesque architecture, and also on account of
+its pleasant situation.
+
+Arco, which is on the way to Riva, lies almost due west of Roveredo,
+but is reached by rail circuitously, via Mori, Nago, and Vignole, and
+is picturesquely situated in the midst of laurels, palms, and olives,
+dominated by the large and ancient castle situated on a pine-clad rock
+high above the town. This castle was bombarded by the French, and
+destroyed during the War of the Spanish Succession in 1703. The
+church, a prominent object of the pretty town, is of considerable
+interest, and amongst other places worthy of note is the château of
+the late Archduke Albert, which has a remarkably fine winter garden.
+Arco has of recent years gained some note as a health resort for
+invalids with a consumptive tendency and, in consequence, possesses
+quite a number of excellent hotels.
+
+From Arco to Riva is but a few miles, and, if possible, these should
+be travelled by carriage in preference to the train, as the road lies
+through the most delightful meadowland, fertile, and stretching upward
+on either hand to the towering heights which shut in the valley. Riva,
+which is the Tyrolese port of charming Lake Garda, is one of the most
+delightful spots in all Tyrol. As one stands on the promenade, far
+towards the south stretches the beautiful lake, whose deep-blue waters
+and exquisite environment of mountains have been sung by poets and
+described by travellers in every language of Europe. At the head of
+the lake there is a very busy scene of coming and going
+tourist-steamers, sailing craft piled with merchandise, hay, and other
+produce, giving the little harbour quite a business-like air, which,
+combined with unusual picturesqueness, cannot fail to charm every one
+who comes to it.
+
+The town itself is situated chiefly at the foot of the precipitous
+Rocchetta, on the sides of which olive trees, figs, palms, aloes, and
+other vegetation grow; whilst above one hangs a deep-blue Italian sky,
+luminous in summer with the brilliant sunshine of northern Italy. A
+wanderer in the quaint streets and by-ways, some of the former of
+which are arcaded, will come across many a picture and many a piece of
+charming architectural detail for canvas and camera, whilst close to
+Riva, on the shore of the lake, is the little village of Torbole, the
+resort of artists, who find in its primitive character of a
+fisherman's hamlet a veritable mine of delightful subjects for
+pictures.
+
+The Parish Church of Riva deserves attention; it is really a handsome
+building, and has much of interest in its interior. On the outskirts
+of the town is the church of the Immaculate Conception, which was
+built by Cardinal von Madruzz for the purpose of enshrining a
+wonder-working picture of the Blessed Virgin. Two churches which have
+their origin in times of plague, those of San Roch and San Sebastian,
+erected in 1522 and 1633, are found in the town. The district round
+about has the distinction of supplying the whole of Tyrol with the
+branches of olive which are used on Palm Sunday; and Riva was long
+considered the most northerly limit at which olive trees would
+flourish. This idea, however, has of recent years proved to be
+erroneous, as they are now cultivated as far north as Bozen.
+
+[Sidenote: A WONDERFUL VIEW]
+
+The ascent of the Altissimo di Nago, although a tough climb for all
+save practised walkers, is well worth the trouble, as the panorama of
+the lake obtained from the summit is one of astonishing beauty. Many
+visitors to Riva also go to San Giacomo for the purpose of seeing the
+sun rise, just as the ascent of the Rigi is made. Behind one extend
+mountain range upon mountain range, and lofty peak upon peak of rocky
+and snow-clad Alps; whilst to the south lies the beautiful Lake Garda,
+of royal blue in the growing light, and the widespread plains of
+Lombardy on either hand studded with fair cities, of which number
+Milan, if the atmosphere be clear, will seem--though actually far
+distant--to be so close that a good before-lunch stroll should enable
+one to reach it.
+
+This favoured town not only takes one to the southern limit of Tyrol,
+but provides a charming rest-place, from which many interesting
+excursions may be made before setting one's face, reluctantly it will
+surely be, northward once more, through perhaps the grander but less
+soft and rest-provoking scenery of wilder Tyrol.
+
+FOOTNOTE:
+
+[19] Dante's "Inferno," Canto XII., lines 1-12.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER X.
+
+     AMONG THE DOLOMITES, WITH NOTES UPON SOME TOURS AND ASCENTS
+
+
+To many who visit Tyrol the most interesting district of this
+delectable land is the Dolomite region, which forms by far the greater
+part of the South Tyrol Highlands and offers not only unique
+opportunities for climbers, but also much impressive and beautiful
+scenery.
+
+It is only in comparatively recent years that the Dolomite of
+south-eastern Tyrol has become a popular holiday-ground of tourists
+and travellers. But a few decades ago it was--except to geologists, a
+few artists, mining experts, and the more enterprising climbers--a
+_terra incognita_, a region scarcely more known to the general
+travelling public than the centre of Africa. Even nowadays it is far
+less frequented by western European holiday-makers than it deserves to
+be.
+
+Formerly there was some excuse for an ignorance and neglect which a
+lack of easy transit, good roads, and railways to near-by points might
+be held to condone. But at the present time so much has been done to
+throw open this fascinating mountain district to the traveller,
+rest-seeker, and artist that the excuse can no longer be urged.
+
+Concerning the climate, scenery, people, and accommodation now offered
+to travellers, much can be said in praise. Indeed, regarding all of
+these, it would be difficult to say everything one might without
+running the risk of being accused of partiality or exaggeration.
+
+In this portion of Tyrol (as, indeed, may be said also of others) one
+still meets with hospitality and courtesy at inns and rest-houses
+which are not chiefly based upon the expectation of personal
+aggrandisement or monetary reward, just as one still finds quietude
+wedded to splendid scenery and beautiful prospects not yet exploited.
+
+In the Dolomite region, though its popularity is yearly increasing,
+one can yet happily meet with comfortable hotels, which are not
+overrun by the type of tourist for whom a good dinner is more than
+fresh air and scenery, and dress clothes and gorgeous costumes of an
+evening a _sine quâ non_. In a word, we have found that the Dolomite
+region is free from many of the disadvantages of Switzerland--that
+most exploited of European countries, and the one in which nowadays
+perhaps the least quietude and rest is to be found--and provides a
+playground for the mere pedestrian as well as a most attractive region
+for the exercise of the climbing instinct.
+
+It must be admitted, however, that in the less frequented passes and
+valleys one has occasionally to "rough" it in a mild kind of way, and
+that one needs to be a good and enduring walker to "do" the region on
+foot. But although some of the inns in the lesser known valleys are
+yet somewhat primitive, the cooking is usually good, and the beds,
+though the linen may be coarse, will be found almost without exception
+spotlessly clean.
+
+It may be added that French is of little use in the Dolomites, except
+in the hotels at the most frequented tourist resorts, such as Toblach,
+Cortina, Karer See, Bozen, etc., Italian and German being generally
+spoken--the former almost everywhere in the region; the latter chiefly
+in the Gader Thal, Grödener Thal, and the district north of the
+Ampezzo Thal; although in scattered hamlets south of the latter, here
+and there one finds peasants speaking both.
+
+The Dolomite region is most accessible from the Venetian frontier,
+Bozen, or Bruneck; and the true Dolomite district, which contains all
+that is most magnificent as regards scenery and attractiveness to the
+mountaineer and geological student, lies midway between the points we
+have mentioned, and covers the comparatively small area of some fifty
+miles by forty miles.
+
+Even nowadays there remain many peaks in the Dolomites yet untrodden
+by the foot of, at least, modern man, as well as numberless delightful
+paths amid exquisite scenery, where flowers carpet the earth and tiny
+streams make their water-music. Along which by-ways, from sunrise to
+sunset, one can travel amid the great silence of the hills without
+meeting a single fellow-wayfarer. Many of the summits are upwards of
+10,000 feet in height, and they who first climb their rocky walls,
+deeply fissured sides, and ice- and snow-clad peaks, will have
+accomplished tasks not inferior to those performed by the intrepid
+mountaineers of the past who have scaled the great heights of the Alps
+or the Himalayas.
+
+[Sidenote: THEORIES OF ORIGIN]
+
+Ever since geologists have speculated and argued concerning the origin
+and nature of natural phenomena, there has been a conflict of opinion
+amongst Tyrolese, German, and French geologists in particular
+concerning the Dolomites. But although speculations have been many,
+and various plausible theories have from time to time been advanced,
+it may, we think, safely be said that none have been absolutely proved
+or universally accepted. Baron Richthofen is perhaps the ablest
+exponent of what is commonly known as the Coral Reef theory of origin,
+and this has of late years been largely accepted by leading geologists
+of different nationalities.
+
+  [Illustration: ALPENWIESE, ON THE SEISER ALP]
+
+Baron Richthofen bases his theory chiefly upon the following points:
+"(A) The isolated nature of the mountains themselves, and the fact
+that their sides are frequently so steep and clear-cut as to preclude
+any suggestion that they have been so made by the ordinary processes
+of attrition, and that in general form they resemble atolls. (B) That
+in their substance there are often found fossils and deposits of a
+strictly marine character very closely resembling those found in coral
+reefs; in addition to which the configuration shown by many of the
+peaks is almost exactly similar to that found in the coral reefs of
+to-day, with precipitous and almost perfectly vertical sides, where
+they would have been (if the coral-reef theory is the correct one)
+constantly scoured by the tide, and with much less precipitous sides
+on the inner or lee side. (C) The fact that there is no trace
+discernible of any volcanic origin. (D) They also, in their general
+shape and lines, enclose spaces in a similar way to that which coral
+reefs invariably enclose." There are many other points of resemblance
+advanced in Mr. G. C. Churchill's exhaustive "Physical Description of
+the Dolomite District," into which it is, however, unnecessary here to
+enter more deeply.
+
+Of the Schlern, the magnificent peak which rises from so wild and
+picturesque a wooded ravine to a height of 8402 feet, Baron Richthofen
+makes the positive assertion that it is a coral reef, and that its
+entire formation is owing, like that of the "Atolls" of the Pacific
+and Indian Oceans, to animal activity and deposit.
+
+The Dolomites, which may be said to stretch between the Eisack, Etsch,
+and Puster-Thal towards the south-east, and extend over the Tyrol
+border into the Venetian district, derive their name from the
+well-known geologist, Dolomieu, who lived in the eighteenth century,
+and during the latter part of it travelled extensively in Tyrol, and
+was the first to call the attention of scientists and others to the
+peculiar structural formation of the southern mountain ranges. It may
+be briefly here said that their material is largely limestone, but is
+distinguished from the other chalky Alps by a special admixture of
+magnesia. The fact that long ages ago the sea must have covered this
+region, and did so for a period of long continuance, is proved by the
+circumstance that, when climbing, one often finds on the very summits
+of the highest peaks fossilized sea-shells. Many authorities are
+inclined to the belief that some at least of the Dolomites have been
+assisted in their growth, if not actually formed, by volcanic
+agencies, and this theory is borne out by the fact that craters are
+traceable in some of them even to-day. But whatever may be the true
+origin of these magnificent peaks, there can be no doubt regarding
+their unique formation.
+
+It may be urged by some that the Dolomites do not possess the severe
+and apparently unapproachable majesty of the snow-clad Middle Alps,
+with their mighty glaciers and fields of perpetual snow; but as
+regards their beauty of colour, the wildness of their romantic
+scenery, closely connected with the most lovely and panoramic of
+landscapes, they are unequalled, just as the climate of the district
+in which they stand is delightful and invigorating.
+
+In this comparatively small area one has a variety of scenery
+unsurpassed by any, so far as we know, on the Continent of Europe.
+Within the confines of the Dolomite region one has the wide range of
+lofty mountains and terrific cliffs, in places reminding the traveller
+of the cañons of the Rocky Mountains, with pinnacles, battlements, and
+towers, rearing themselves on every hand like ruined and Titanic
+fortresses, yet with their wildness softened in a measure by their
+beauty of colour when gilded by the sunrise or bathed in roseate hue
+of sunset light. Between the lofty peaks which rise skyward into the
+very vault of heaven, as it seems to the wayfarer at their feet,
+stretch lovely, winding Alpine valleys, often well-wooded and with
+turf of a most delightful greenness strewn with myriads of Alpine
+blossoms. Through valleys sweet with the odours of pinewoods and
+flowers run rushing torrents or more quietly flowing streams, which
+often have their origin in tiny, dark-blue Alpine lakes set amid
+environing pine forests, in whose tranquil waters are reflected the
+towering rocks and secluded woods which surround them.
+
+To these beautifully situated spots, which are peopled by happy and
+friendly disposed peasants, come year by year an increasing number of
+travellers from other countries of Europe and from America, flocking
+into all the more frequented parts intent upon enjoying the beautiful
+scenery over which hangs, during the summer months, a vault of
+deep-blue sky, looking all the bluer by contrast with the snow-clad
+Dolomite peaks, whose grandeur and fascinating beauty are not easily
+forgotten by those who have once gazed upon them.
+
+[Sidenote: TOURING FACILITIES]
+
+One of the great advantages of touring in the Dolomites to
+pedestrians, and cyclists more especially--although cycling provides
+plenty of "collar-work"--is the wonderful network of roads which cross
+the country in all directions. The surface of these roads is generally
+excellent, although several of them reach altitudes of between five
+and six thousand feet above the sea. The gradients have been well seen
+to, the road ascending by winding curves up the hillsides mostly by
+such easy stages as enable them to be traversed either on foot, in a
+carriage, motor-car, or even on a bicycle without much difficulty or
+fatigue. In this manner one reaches the open, sunny plateaux and
+ridges which serve to divide the separate groups of mountains one from
+the other, where the traveller can almost always find accommodation in
+good modern hotels or in well-arranged and modernized inns.
+
+It is in the possession of these numerous well-managed and excellently
+appointed hotels and inns that the Dolomite region excels; and they
+are of such variety as regards size and the kind and cost of
+accommodation which can be obtained at them, that almost all tastes
+and purses can be suited. This has been more especially the case
+during the last decade, in which new routes have been opened up, and
+further and adequate hotel accommodation provided. Huge buildings,
+affording every possible comfort and modern convenience, patronized by
+the wealthy visitor, hotels on a less grand scale, suited to the
+requirements of the well-to-do middle classes, and yet more modest,
+though not less well-managed and comfortable, establishments, where
+for an almost incredibly small sum pedestrians and tourists of more
+restricted means can obtain excellent food, are all to be found in the
+Dolomite region. In the larger hotels at the more noted resorts, of
+course, one finds much the same "life" as that prevailing at such
+places as Ischl, Semmering, Pontresina, St. Moritz, and Lucerne, where
+bands play during dinner, ladies wear elaborate Parisian toilettes,
+men dress for dinner, and climbing is, for most of the visitors, quite
+a secondary consideration to that of enjoying "smart" society. In the
+smaller places one finds greater simplicity and, to our thinking,
+greater charm, with more of the life of the people in evidence and
+less of the exotic.
+
+But the Dolomites themselves present many attractions to the climber,
+and yet provide numerous ascents which can be undertaken by the
+comparatively untrained and inexperienced. This is largely owing to
+the fact that they consist chiefly of isolated groups of mountains of
+great height, but which, owing to their isolation, are not approached
+by long and toilsome journeys ere the actual climbing itself
+commences, such as is often the case with the greater peaks of the
+Central Alps. Numbers of the higher ones, reaching to upwards of 9000
+feet in height, may be ascended without any great fatigue by well-made
+paths, thus providing for the tourists who are not expert climbers
+plenty of exercise with just those elements of adventure and
+inspiration which prove the greatest charms to all climbers, and the
+reward at the end which comes to those who penetrate the higher
+regions of a purer atmosphere, and a larger outlook upon the glorious
+beauties of mountainous districts.
+
+There are, of course, many other Dolomite summits which can only be
+ascended, and should only be attempted, by practised and hardy
+climbers, for whom great heights and the risks attending their ascent
+possess no terrors. It is generally conceded that the district
+provides both for the inexperienced and most experienced climbers some
+of the most interesting mountain ascents in Europe. In the Dolomite
+region, especially of recent times, climbing has made extraordinary
+progress. Summits, the ascent of which a few years ago was looked upon
+as a great achievement by even good climbers, are now scaled by
+numbers of people every year; and each year brings additions to the
+conquered peaks, some of which were a decade ago looked upon as
+absolutely unclimbable, and likely to remain so.
+
+The Dolomites are, indeed, gradually becoming as well known to
+climbers and would-be climbers of even the countries of Western Europe
+as are the Swiss Alps, and annually a larger number of lovers of
+Alpine scenery take their holidays in this region; and of late years
+the district has been visited by many even in winter time. In summer,
+although much accommodation has already been provided for tourists, it
+is, up to the present, decidedly insufficient for all the visitors who
+flock to this region during the months of July, August, and September.
+It is, therefore, advisable for any one who wishes for a comfortable
+time during those months to secure rooms in advance at all places
+which are to be visited, more especially at those centres of
+attraction to which the greater number of tourists are in the habit of
+gravitating.
+
+[Sidenote: DOLOMITE GROUPS]
+
+The Dolomites may be divided into the following groups, running from
+east to west.[20] (1) The Sextner Dolomites, the most important
+summits amongst which are the Drei Schuster Spitz, 10,375 feet, which
+is ascended generally from the Fischelein Boden; the Elferkofel,
+10,220 feet; the Zwölferkofel, 10,150 feet; Oberbacher Spitz, 8700
+feet, and the Drei Zinnen, 7897 feet, two absolutely bare peaks of
+sulphurous limestone, streaked with pale orange, rising grandly and
+boldly from behind the Monte Piana plateau like two huge scored and
+fissured fingers of a Titanic hand. (2) The Ampezzaner Dolomites,
+with Monte Cristallo, 10,495 feet, with its many peaks veiled by
+snows, glassing itself in the agate green waters of the lovely
+pine-environed Dürren See. Monte Antelao, 10,710 feet; the three
+Tofanas, ranging in height from 8565 feet to 10,635 feet; and the
+Sorapis, 10,520 feet. (3) The Agordinischen Dolomites, with the
+Nuvolau, 8685 feet; Monte Pelmo, 10,395 feet; and Monte Civetta,
+10,565 feet, whose western face from Caprile was unascended till as
+recently as 1895, when Messrs. Raynor and Phillimore, with two Ampezzo
+guides, made the ascent. (4) The Grödener Dolomites, which embrace the
+beautiful Rosengarten, the Schlern, 8415 feet; the Sella-group,
+including the Sellajoch, 7275 feet; Rodella, 8155 feet, and other
+lesser peaks; and the Geislerspitzen, with its highest peak, Sas
+Rigais, 9930 feet. (5) The Fassaner Dolomites, consisting of the
+groups of the Latemar, 9166 feet; the Marmolada, the highest of all
+the Dolomites, a huge group with several peaks, including the Puntadi
+Penia, 11,020 feet; the Marmolada di Rocco, 10,820 feet, and other
+magnificent and lofty summits; and the Pala Group, including the
+Cimone Della Pala, 10,450 feet, the Pala Di San Martino, 9830 feet,
+and the Pala Della Madonna, 8336 feet.
+
+There are numberless interesting and picturesque excursions to be made
+in this charming region of the Dolomites, but the space at our
+disposal will only permit of the mention of a few of the most
+accessible, interesting, or picturesque.
+
+
+  [Illustration: MISURINA LAKE]
+
+INNICHEN THROUGH THE SEXTEN THAL TO LAKE MISURINA.
+
+Innichen, reached from Toblach through a beautiful pine (larch)
+forest, is a prettily situated townlet on the Puster Thal road, with
+good accommodation for visitors. It possesses a fine monastery church,
+dating from the thirteenth century, which is one of the most
+interesting and unique buildings in Tyrol. It contains some very
+extraordinary and grotesque figures and faded frescoes, and a small
+chapel built in imitation of the Holy Sepulchre by one of the
+villagers, who once made a pilgrimage to the Holy Land. The road leads
+a little below past the village into the Sexten Valley, the principal
+hamlet of which is Sexten, or St. Veit, which is nowadays a charming
+and much-frequented summer resort, where one may wander amidst almost
+illimitable pine forests, and enjoy fresh mountain air and quietude
+surrounded by exquisite scenery. From Sexten one reaches in about an
+hour Fischlein Boden, by way of Moos, along a beautiful path through
+the pine woods, from whence one obtains an admirable view of the head
+of the valley, with the Drei Schuster Spitze, the Oberbacher Spitze,
+Drei Zinnen, Elferkofel, Zwölferkofel, and Rothwand, and an almost
+unrivalled vista of snow peaks. From this point, passing the Zsigmondy
+Hut, 7320 feet, one comes to the Bacherjoch. From the Zsigmondy Hut,
+the Elferkofel and the Zwölferkofel may be ascended, both of which
+are, however, very difficult. Over the Bacherjoch a footpath leads to
+the Drei Zinnen Hut on the Toblinger Riedel, 7895 feet, on past the
+celebrated Drei Zinnen to the pretty Misurina Lake, tree-bordered and
+mountain environed, one of the most charming and picturesque spots in
+the Dolomites.
+
+
+TOBLACH THROUGH THE AMPEZZO THAL TO SCHLUDERBACH AND CORTINA.
+
+From Toblach there is an excellent excursion through the Ampezzo
+Valley to Schluderbach and Cortina. The starting-point is situated on
+the watershed of the high Puster Thal, and is a great place for
+consumptives and different forms of fresh-air cures. It is visited by
+people from almost all parts of the world, and in consequence the
+hotel accommodation is excellent and even luxurious. The village of
+Toblach itself is at the head of the Ampezzo road, which here leaves
+the Puster Thal at an altitude of nearly 4000 feet, and leads due
+south, passing between the Sarlkofel, 7740 feet, on the right, and the
+Neunerkofel, 8418 feet, on the left. The Puster Thal railway, which
+comes within about a mile of the village, makes Toblach easily
+accessible, and it is in the neighbourhood of the station that the
+huge modern hotels are built, acting, as it were, as gateways to the
+beautiful Ampezzo Valley. The road through the latter is a magnificent
+one, well suited for motoring if care be taken in descending some of
+the sharp curves which lead down into Cortina; and especially
+beautiful upon such an evening in June as we traversed it, just as the
+sunset hues were illuminating the higher peaks with that roseate glow
+which is destined too soon to fade to purples and through them to the
+slatey blues of twilight.
+
+From Toblach the ascent is very gradual to the pretty and romantically
+situated Toblach Lake; and thence one passes on to Landro at the head
+of the valley of the Schwarze Rienz, where rise the lofty and
+snow-clad Drei Zinnen with the waters of the Dürren See, jade green
+and beautiful in colour, with Monte Cristallo with its cap of eternal
+snow and its glacier, the Piz Popena and Monte Cristallino, rising in
+the background. From the Dürren See to Schluderbach, 4730 feet, is a
+distance of less than two miles; and here, too, one finds a
+beautifully situated village surrounded by fine scenery, and provided
+with excellent accommodation for tourists whether they be but passing
+along into Italy or inclined to make a lengthy stay.
+
+
+  [Illustration: A ROAD THROUGH THE DOLOMITES]
+
+SCHLUDERBACH--CORTINA.
+
+From Schluderbach the road passes over the boundary between Tyrol and
+Italy, through a beautiful forest, past a deep ravine, down to
+Ospitale, 4835 feet, situated at the base of the Crepa di Zuoghi, 6745
+feet, and afterwards skirting the Peutelstein or Podestagno, 4945
+feet, by a wide though sharply curving road skirting precipitous
+slopes and crossing the deep gorge of the Felizon by the Ponte Alto,
+down to Cortina d'Ampezzo, 4025 feet above the sea, reached by
+carriage from Toblach in about seven hours, and distant from it just
+over twenty miles.
+
+[Sidenote: CORTINA]
+
+Cortina is beautifully situated on the left bank of the River Botta,
+with the fine Tre Croci Pass (which takes its name from the three
+large wooden crucifixes) opening away behind the town eastward, and
+the Tre Sassi Pass widening out before it westward. The town is the
+principal one in the commune of Ampezzo, and is surrounded by
+stupendous heights and grand snow-clad mountains, amongst which are
+some of the most splendid of the Dolomites. For years past Cortina has
+been so considerable a resort of tourists and rest-seekers that
+splendid accommodation is nowadays obtainable; and one of the first
+impressions made by the place upon the traveller who comes to it after
+that of its picturesqueness is its prosperity. It is far cleaner, too,
+than most Italian or semi-Italian towns of its type. Though the
+climate is so favourable--even in the coldest of winters the
+thermometer seldom falls far below freezing-point--the soil of the
+district is very poor, and the appearance of most of the
+mountain-sides and valleys is bleak. There is in consequence little
+agriculture and no cultivation of the vine in the immediate
+neighbourhood of Cortina. Indeed, throughout the Ampezzo Thal
+pasturage and timber-felling, and not agriculture, are the chief
+industries, although wood-carving and the manufacture of gold and
+silver filigree work is carried on to a very considerable extent.
+
+The festivals and fairs of the district are amongst the most important
+of south-eastern Tyrol, and at them one still sees many of the
+charming peasant costumes which have had here, as elsewhere, a
+tendency to die out. The huge silver-headed hairpins of the girls
+form a particularly noticeable feature of their elaborately and neatly
+plaited coiffures.
+
+The main street of Cortina is a sunny and picturesque one, many of the
+houses possessing quaint, irregular roofs, and the church, little
+piazza, and hostelries making up a charming picture, with a beautiful
+vista of pastures and mountain summits at the end of the street.
+
+The church, with its stately detached campanile, from the gallery of
+which, nearly 250 feet above the level of the street, there is a fine
+and extensive view of the town and valley, is one of the largest for
+many miles around, and contains, amongst other things, an unusually
+handsome altar, and some beautiful wood-carvings by Brustolone. The
+churchyard (unless recently altered) is a desolate though a
+picturesque spot, unfortunately a standing memorial of indifference
+for the memory of those who have passed away, and irreverent neglect.
+
+All who reach Cortina, whether they stay long or merely for a few
+hours, should go to the Aquila Nera Inn, if only to see the
+interesting and varied paintings of two of the sons of a former
+proprietor named Ghedina which adorn the walls of the dining-room,
+staircase, the outside of the "Dependance," and even the whitewashed
+walls of the outhouses and stables. The subjects are of great variety,
+displaying in many cases much technical skill and imaginative gifts,
+and comprise military and religious figures and designs, grotesques,
+and on the walls of the square-built and solid-looking Dependance are
+some large groups representing painting, sculpture, architecture, and
+other domestic subjects, especially noticeable being the painter-like
+and clever manner in which modern objects, such as telegraphic
+instruments, cameras, steam-engines, etc., have been handled.
+
+From the top of the campanile, in which are hung great bells, one has
+the village and the valley spread out at one's feet, with the Ampezzo
+Thal stretching north and south and the passes of Tre Croci and Tre
+Sassi stretching east and west.
+
+[Sidenote: BEAUTIFUL FLOWERS]
+
+In the valleys surrounding Cortina there are many beautiful wild
+flowers and specimens of Alpine flora, amongst the most noticeable of
+which are the wild daphne and the smaller mountain gentian; we fancy,
+too, that in another very beautiful though small pink flower with
+waxen petals, which grew in large clusters, we found the _Androsace
+glacialis_, although two botanically learned friends differed as to
+the correct name of this charming specimen.
+
+On the way to Cortina via Schluderbach one can, by branching off
+southward soon after leaving the village, reach, either on foot
+through the woods or by a good carriage road through the Val Popena,
+the beautiful and nowadays much-frequented Lake Misurina, in which the
+peaks of the Drei Zinnen and the tree-clad lower slopes of environing
+hills are charmingly reflected. The lake, although of comparatively
+small size, is justly considered one of the most beautiful in Alpine
+regions, and on its banks several large hotels have already been
+erected for the accommodation of the increasing number of visitors who
+come to this quiet and lovely spot which lies nearly 6000 feet above
+sea-level.
+
+One of the most picturesque excursions in this extreme southern limit
+of Tyrol is by the carriage road, which, after passing through the
+village, traverses the forest and by a gradual ascent reaches Tre
+Croci, 6000 feet above sea-level. All along this beautiful road, which
+traverses the slope of the Crepe di Rudavoi, one obtains the most
+beautiful peeps of the huge cliffs of Cristallo to the right, with
+fine vistas of the Marmorole and Sorapis on the opposite side. At Tre
+Croci the beautiful Ampezzo Valley suddenly bursts upon the view with
+the huge mass of the Tofana right across the valley, whilst in the
+distance and to the south-west appears the serrated ridge of Croda da
+Lago; and yet further distant the snow-clad summits of Marmolada.
+From Tre Croci the beautiful road runs direct to Cortina down a rather
+steep incline. Although the former means of reaching Cortina from
+Schluderbach by the high road and through the Ampezzo Thal is the more
+easily accomplished, none who have taken the road by way of Misurina
+will regret its greater length because of its greater interest.
+
+
+SCHLUDERBACH--PLÄTZ WIESE--PRAGSER WILDSEE--NIEDERDORF
+
+From Schluderbach, too, there is another road branching northward from
+the Imperial Road to Niederdorf on the Bruneck-Innichen-Toblach line,
+leading over the Plätz Wiese, upwards of 6500 feet above sea-level.
+There is a fine hotel on the Plätz Wiese, about two hours from
+Schluderbach, and it is from thence that one ascends the Dürrenstein,
+9320 feet. This easily climbed mountain, although not providing much
+excitement for the expert Alpinist, is one of those which amply reward
+the climber for the fatigue and trouble of the ascent. As one stands
+upon the summit one has spread out around on all hands a most
+astonishing and magnificent panorama of the Dolomites, as well as of
+the glaciers and Middle Alps which lie to the north. Amongst the great
+heights and groups, on a good day plainly visible from the mountain,
+are those of the Tauern, Ortler, and Adamello, and the beautiful
+Pragser Thal, with amongst the chief heights the Hohe Gaisl, 10,330
+feet; Cadini, 9320 feet; Monte Cristallo, 10,495 feet, with its
+glacier, and many other giants of the region.
+
+[Sidenote: PRAGSER WILDSEE]
+
+The road from Plätz Wiese continues past the little watering-place
+Alt-Prags to Niederdorf, to reach which occupies about three and a
+half hours. There is from this road another, branching off and leading
+past the watering-place of Neu-Prags, with its prettily situated
+houses and hotels, to the lovely Pragser Lake, nearly 5000 feet above
+sea-level, and distant from Niederdorf seven and a half miles. Pragser
+Lake, or the Pragser Wildsee, is one of the most beautiful, secluded,
+and romantic of all the Alpine lakes, surrounded and sheltered as it
+is by the mighty walls of the Seekofel, 9220 feet; the Herrstein, 8035
+feet; Col de Ricegon, 8770 feet; Hochalpenkopf, 8420 feet, and many
+other wild and impressive heights. In the olive-green waters of the
+lake itself the two first-named giants are reflected with wonderful
+distinctness and beauty; whilst on the slopes of most of the
+surrounding mountains the silvery, star-like flowers of the edelweiss
+and the royal blue gentians grow with a luxuriance scarcely equalled
+in any other part of the Dolomite region. The climate of this Alpine
+lake is indeed bracing and health-giving, for on the hottest summer
+day one finds a cool and refreshing air coming down from the mountains
+and traversing the surface of the lake, whilst in the evening the
+temperature is not materially lowered, as so often occurs at places
+having such a considerable altitude and set amid great peaks, so that
+one can remain in the open air quite safely, even though lightly clad,
+until the beautiful Alpine twilight wraps the lake and its shores in a
+mantle of mysterious beauty, and night seems to descend from the
+summits of the great peaks around.
+
+No one, however, should think of visiting Pragser Wildsee in the
+summer season without first bespeaking accommodation at the beautiful
+hotel situated on the borders of the lake, or they may find themselves
+compelled (as have been many others before them) to turn their backs
+upon this lovely spot for lack of accommodation, as this is always
+crowded with visitors during the months of July, August, and the early
+part of September. This charming resort is most easily reached from
+Niederdorf, situated on the Puster Thal railway, one station eastward
+from Toblach.
+
+
+CORTINA--FALZAREGO--BUCHENSTEIN.
+
+From Cortina the old Imperial or high road takes one out of the
+Dolomites to the south-east into Venetian territory to Belluno, an
+interesting and picturesque old town standing on a hill between the
+Piave and Ardo, which at this point flow together. The Cathedral,
+built chiefly by Tullio Lombardo in the early years of the sixteenth
+century, was unfortunately greatly damaged during the earthquake in
+1873; but it has been largely restored, and contains, in addition to
+many interesting architectural details, some fine altar paintings.
+From the summit of the campanile, which is upwards of 200 feet in
+height, one obtains a most exquisite view of the old town and
+surrounding country. The Prefecture, in the Piazza del Duomo, is a
+fine early Renaissance building dating from the end of the fifteenth
+century, and was originally the Palazzo dei Rettori.
+
+Belluno will shortly be connected by rail with Cortina, and possess a
+station of its own. The new Dolomite road, however, travels from
+Cortina in a south-westerly direction to the rock-strewn Falzarego
+Pass, 6945 feet, lying in the shadow of the Hexenfels, 8126 feet,
+whilst to the south-west rises the impressive, snow-covered Marmolada,
+with the Col di Lana, 8084 feet, in the foreground of the picture.
+From this pass one can ascend the Nuvolau, 8460 feet, from the summit
+of which there is a panoramic view of the railway and surrounding
+peaks. At the other end of the pass the new Dolomite road descends
+more than a thousand feet into the valley of Andraz, a little,
+picturesquely situated village from which several interesting
+excursions can be made, near which lie the ruins of a very ancient
+castle bearing the same name. Buchenstein, the chief village of the
+Buchenstein Valley, distant from the end of the pass some nine miles,
+is reached by the road from Andraz. There are some excellent inns, and
+the village is splendidly situated and makes a good centre for
+holiday makers.
+
+
+  [Illustration: A PEEP OF THE DOLOMITES]
+
+BUCHENSTEIN--CAPRILE--ALLEGHE SEE--ARÁBA.
+
+Near it a little road branches off to the south-east, which, leading
+through Italian territory and crossing a stream, leads to Caprile,
+just over the Italian frontier, descending on the left side of the Val
+Cordevole, with fine views of the Val di Livinallongo. The village of
+Caprile, at the far end of which is the short Venetian column,
+surmounted by a lion of St. Mark, a relic of the days when the
+Venetians ruled the district, is a somewhat straggling one, with many
+of the houses built upon arches. The church is ordinary, although
+there are some quaint decorations to the organ-loft worth seeing. But,
+disappointing as is the village itself, its beautiful surroundings,
+with the truly magnificent prospect of Monte Civetta, and the
+beautiful Alleghe Lake, tempt one to prolong one's stay.
+
+From Caprile the road leads to the Lake, which lies at the foot of
+Monte Civetta. The high road, however, which is fairly level, leads
+first of all to the village of Arába at the foot of the Pordoijoch,
+7355 feet.
+
+
+BRUNECK--ENNEBERG--ARÁBA.
+
+On the way to Arába one can also reach, direct from the Puster Thal
+station, St. Lorenzen, through the wildly beautiful and romantic
+Enneberg Thal, which forms the shortest route to the middle division
+of the great Dolomite road. One peculiarity of the Gader or Enneberg
+Thal, and other similar valleys of the district, is the fact that the
+peasantry speak neither German nor Italian (although in some valleys
+the latter language is gradually becoming more used), but the patois
+known as Ladin, which somewhat resembles the Romanche of the Grisons
+district, although each valley has certain peculiarities of dialect.
+No doubt these latter will in time die out, and German will become the
+common language of the more German valleys, and Italian of the more
+Italian.
+
+The carriage-road, which is 45 kilometres (28 miles) in length, is not
+suitable for motors; it leads past Pedrazes, 4350 feet high, and
+Corvara, 5110 feet, to Arába. Near Corvara lies the way over the
+Grödener-Joch, 7010 feet, into the beautiful Grödener Thal, often sung
+by the poet Walther von der Vogelweide.
+
+
+WAIDBRUCK--GRÖDENER THAL--ARÁBA.
+
+The usual starting-point, however, for the latter is Waidbruck, to the
+south of the Brenner road between Franzenfeste and Bozen. From
+Waidbruck, 1545 feet, which lies at the head of the Grödener Thal,
+with the Trostburg, 2040 feet, towering above it, the road goes to St.
+Ulrich, 4055 feet, distant eight miles, the chief village in the wide
+valley, prettily situated and surrounded by tree-clad slopes, beyond
+which rise some magnificent rocky Dolomite peaks. The church, dating
+from the end of the eighteenth century, has a beautiful interior,
+containing some excellent examples of the woodcarving for which the
+Grödener Thal has for ages been and still is famous.
+
+  [Illustration: THE LANGKOFEL]
+
+[Sidenote: SOME DOLOMITE PEAKS]
+
+From St. Ulrich it climbs upwards through the valley, which at each
+step becomes more beautiful and more magnificent, to St. Christina,
+4685 feet, with its mountain pastures dominated by the huge
+Langkofel-Joch, 8800 feet, and many other impressive heights, such as
+Secéda, 8270 feet, Geislerspitzen, 9930 feet, to the north, and the
+Plattkofel, 9740 feet, to the south; the Stella Group to the
+south-east, with the Col dalla Piëres, 9055 feet; and the Pitzberg,
+6020 feet, Puflatsch, 7140 feet, and the more distant Rosengarten and
+the Schlern to the south-west.
+
+From St. Christina the road continues over the hill to St. Maria in
+Wolkenstein, to Plan, 5290 feet; from whence mule tracks lead over the
+magnificent Grödener-Joch, with its protection hut, or hospice, 7010
+feet, into the Enneberg Valley to Arába; and also over the great
+Sella-Joch, 7275 feet, to Canazei, in the Fassa Valley, which lies
+southward of Pordoi. There are several excellent and interesting
+ascents which can be made from the Grödener Valley. First of all there
+is the romantic Geislerspitzen, which, however, should only be
+attempted by the skilled climber, as it is both a laborious and
+difficult ascent. In the same category, though more difficult, and
+suitable only for hardy mountaineers, are the Grosse Furchetta, with
+its highest point 9930 feet; Kleine Furchetta, a few feet less; the
+Fermeda-Thurm, 9440 feet; and the Gross Nadel, 9250 feet. Starting
+from the Sella-Joch, the magnificent Sella, with the Boè Spitz, 10,340
+feet, as well as the wildly rugged Langkofel, can be ascended. From
+the Sella-Joch also one can easily ascend the Col Rodella, 8155 feet,
+which lies to the south-west of the former, from which summit one
+obtains a very fine and extensive panoramic view.
+
+
+ARÁBA--PORDOI--CANAZEI.
+
+In Arába, the second part of the new Dolomite high road, which comes
+over the Pordoi-Joch to Canazei, in the Fassa Thal, the way ascends in
+wide zig-zags through a beautiful and broad Alpine valley, in which
+those interested in botany will find a wealth of Alpine flora scarcely
+excelled by that of any portion of Tyrol, up to the heights of the
+Pordoi-Joch, where there is an inn at which meals can be obtained, and
+from which a most magnificent circular panoramic view extends. From
+this place well-made tourist paths extend in many directions to the
+Boè-Spitz as well as to the Fedaja Pass, 6710 feet, and the frontier
+between Tyrol and Italy; a most attractive road, with the huge snow
+peaks and glaciers of the giant Marmolada close at hand.
+
+The new Dolomite road goes from the Pordoi-Joch in a south-easterly
+direction, traversing a magnificent forest with wonderful and
+ever-changing views of the craggy peaks of the Dolomites, and thus on
+to Canazei in the curve of the Fassa Thal.
+
+
+CANAZEI--FASSA THAL--NEUMARKT--TRAMIN.
+
+This little town, 4790 feet, distant from Arába just over twelve
+miles, is charmingly situated, and much resorted to by tourists as a
+centre from which to make numerous interesting short tours in the
+Dolomites. The inns are simple in character though comfortable, and
+for that reason many will find that they possess an attractiveness
+exceeding that which one finds in hotels of a more pretentious class.
+The high road leads near Canazei, past Gries, Campitello, Vigo, and
+Möena, to Predazzo, the chief town in the Fassa Thal, 3340 feet, about
+nineteen miles from Canazei.
+
+The place occupies, so we are told by Baron Richthofen and other
+authorities, including de Saussure and Churchill, the site of an
+ancient volcanic crater, although it is indeed difficult for those
+unversed in geology and seismic phenomena to realize the fact.
+Predazzo, which stands in a broad valley at the junction of the Val
+Travignolo and Fleims Thal, is a prosperous town, mainly owing to the
+mineral wealth in the immediate neighbourhood, which of late years has
+been developed and worked, and the fertile nature of the valley. The
+inhabitants are principally iron workers, farmers, and hay or timber
+merchants, and their sphere of trade is a far wider one than the
+uninitiated would imagine, extending as it does throughout the
+Austrian Empire, to Germany, Switzerland, and other countries. The
+town cannot, however, be described as either very picturesque or
+pretty; there are too many saw mills and iron furnaces in it, and
+these in a measure serve to destroy the beauty of a naturally pretty
+valley. But the painter of figure studies and tiny domestic pictures,
+and the camera user with an eye for quaint "bits" may find them in the
+older portion of the town amongst the wooden buildings; and
+picturesque groups of women and girls are sure soon to reward the
+patient artist or photographer who takes up a position commanding the
+stone fountain in the main street, to which many come daily to draw
+water.
+
+There is a fine new church, which, however, cannot displace in one's
+artistic or sentimental affection the old one with its Tyrolese belfry
+and weather-worn look. The famous and curious old house known as the
+Nave d'Oro, now an hotel, but once the home of Giacomellis for
+hundreds of years, is worth inspection, as some of the armorial
+bearings of this erstwhile noble family still appear above the old
+carved doorways, and serve as decorations of the ceilings and
+fireplaces. The visitors' book contains what must be one of the most
+valuable (so far as scientists and geologists are concerned)
+collections of autographs to be found in any Tyrolean hotel.
+
+Predazzo is one of the finest geological centres in Eastern Europe,
+and in the immediate neighbourhood of the town many beautiful and
+varied minerals and crystals are found, amongst them the Tourmaline
+granite, Uralite porphyry, and the Syenite porphyry, with its
+marvellous crystals, which, so far as we have been able to ascertain,
+are unique to this district.
+
+Although Predazzo is chiefly--and, in fact, almost entirely--given
+over to mining, smelting, and timber-cutting, there is yet, amid all
+the hum of the timber sawing-mills, and the roar and smoke of the
+furnaces, a considerable lace-making school for women, where this most
+delicate of industries is taught and practised. Some exquisite
+specimens of lace are to be seen, and can be purchased at moderate
+cost.
+
+An interesting fact in connection with the rich pasturage on the
+slopes of the Latemar is that it belongs by common right to the
+descendants of the original families founding the village, and was
+given to the latter by a grant dating from the Middle Ages, but by
+whom made it does not appear absolutely certain.
+
+The road leads on through the Fleimse-Thal, past Cavalese, where there
+is an ancient palace of the Bishops of Trent, which has a painted
+façade. The building is now used as a jail. There is here a fine
+Gothic parish church, standing on a hill, with an old marble entrance
+porch, and some interesting pictures by native artists. The road then
+leads one on to the railway station at Neumarkt-Tramin, which is
+twenty-four miles from Predazzo and ninety-eight miles from Toblach.
+
+
+  [Illustration: MOUNT LATEMAR]
+
+VIGO DI FASSA--KARER SEE.
+
+At Vigo di Fassa, 4565 feet, the chief village in the Fassa Thal on
+the road to Bozen and the Karer Pass, the road branches off, leading
+in a westerly direction over the Pass, 5270 feet, and past the Karer
+See, 5030 feet, which lies at the base of the Latemar, to Bozen.
+
+[Sidenote: THE VAJOLET AND SCHLERN]
+
+Karer See is one of the most beautifully situated places between the
+Rosengarten and Latemar, and is also one of the most celebrated and
+fashionable resorts in the Dolomite region. From its situation and
+numerous delightful walks and excursions which can be taken from it,
+it is especially suited for a lengthy stay, and for these reasons
+partakes somewhat of the nature of the well-known Swiss resorts such
+as St. Moritz, Pontresina, Engleberg, and other places of a similar
+character. Many of the hotels are most beautifully situated on the
+borders of the lake, with a picturesque background of pine woods,
+beyond which tower the serrated and deeply fissured summits of the
+Dolomites, with striking views of the great peaks of the Latemar,
+Rothwand, Ortler, Oetz Thal, and Stubai Alps. From Karer See the
+Latemar and the Rosengarten, whose highest point is 9780 feet, are
+easily visited, and among the excursions which those who are not
+expert climbers can take is that from Karer See, by the Rosengarten,
+past the Ostertag and Ciampedie hut, 6530 feet, to the Vajolet hut; or
+past the Kolner hut, 7630 feet, over the Tschager-Joch, to the Vajolet
+hut, 7430 feet. Starting from the Vajolet hut, one can ascend the
+Vajolet Thürme through a ravine filled with _débris_ and a steep slope
+usually covered with snow; the Rosengarten Spitz, 9780 feet, and the
+Kesselkogel, 9845 feet; Cima di Laura, 9440 feet, and several others.
+All of those mentioned are difficult ascents, and should only be
+attempted by expert climbers and with guides.
+
+From the Vajolet hut a fairly good footpath also leads over the
+Grasleiten Pass, 7100 feet, to the hut which occupies a magnificent
+position with an extensive view of the giant Dolomites in the
+immediate vicinity, and towards the west a fine prospect of the
+Presanella and Ortler Group. From this point the path leads through
+the Bärenschlucht up the Schlern.
+
+
+WAIDBRUCK--SEIS-SCHLERN.
+
+The Schlern, which is a huge accretion of Dolomite rock, towering
+above the green, undulating plateau which forms its base, the middle
+peak known as the Alt-Schlern or Petz, 8402 feet, is the highest of
+the series, although several of the peaks approach it in altitude
+within a few hundred feet. The Schlern forms one of the most
+attractive groups of Dolomite peaks, on account not only of the
+magnificent view which rewards the climber, but also because excellent
+accommodation for tourists and climbers has been provided on the slope
+of the Alt-Schlern just above the plateau, at a height of 8040 feet.
+There are situated the Schlern house, belonging to the Bozen Alpine
+Club, with upwards of thirty beds, and the Schlern Inn, containing a
+little over half that number.
+
+The starting-place for the ascent of the Schlern is usually Waidbruck,
+already referred to, and from thence a carriage-road leads by way of
+Kastelruth and the charmingly situated summer resort Seis, 3285 feet,
+to Bad Ratzes, 3950 feet, situated in the wild but well-wooded gorge
+of the Frötschbach. Between Seis and Bad Ratzes, set in the forest,
+are the ruins of the ancient home of the Minnesinger Oswald von
+Wolkenstein. From Bad Ratzes the peaks of the Schlern can be easily
+reached by a mule track, although serious climbers generally take up
+their residence at either the Schlern House or the Schlern Inn whilst
+ascending the various peaks which can be most easily reached from that
+point.
+
+
+BLUMAU--TIERSER THAL--ROSENGARTEN.
+
+From the Schlern and Rosengarten district one proceeds from the
+railway station to Blumau, 1020 feet, near Bozen, into the renowned
+and picturesque Tierser Thal. The carriage-road from Blumau takes one
+through pretty scenery in about two and a half hours to the little
+village of Tiers, and then on to Weisslahn-Bad, 3818 feet, from whence
+tourists' paths have been made leading up the Schlern to the
+Grasleiten hut, and over the Niger to the Kölner hut, from which one
+can then either ascend the Rosengarten, or proceed through beautiful
+flower-bedecked Alpine meadows to the charming Karer See.
+
+
+KARER SEE--BOZEN.
+
+From Karer See the road, which, though a fair one, is not practicable
+for motors, winds, gradually descending, through beautiful woods to
+Welschnofen, 3865 feet, a favourite summer resort, situated in a fine
+open valley with splendid views of the towering serrated ridge of the
+Latemar on the right, and on the left the beautiful Rosengarten. From
+Welschnofen there is a good road to Birchabruck, 2895 feet, a pretty
+place where the Welschnofen Thal branches to the left, and the wildly
+romantic Eggen Thal, leading to Bozen--which is the principal town in
+southern Tyrol--to the right.
+
+
+FASSA THAL--PANEVEGGIO--SAN MARTINO--TRENT.
+
+At Predazzo there branches off from the high road another good road
+which leads over the Rolle Pass, 6510 feet, into the Pala Dolomites,
+and then over Primero, 2350 feet, on one side towards Venice, and the
+other towards Trent. This fine high road threads its way through a
+splendid forest to Paneveggio, 5055 feet, a pleasantly situated
+village--set amid pine woods--from which one can return over the Lusia
+Pass, 6745 feet, to Möena, and ultimately to Karer See, with
+magnificent views of the Colbricon, the Cimon della Pala, and the Oetz
+Thal Alps in the background. From Paneveggio, too, the road climbs up
+the Rolle Pass, which forms the watershed between the Adige and
+Brenta, and then descends to San Martino, 4740 feet, which is
+charmingly situated in a beautiful wooded dell at the foot of the
+Dolomites. The road from the head of the pass to San Martino, once a
+monastery, is by stupendous zig-zags cut through a splendid forest.
+Yearly the little village is becoming more and more popular, owing to
+its beautiful situation, the equableness of its climate, and the many
+charming excursions which can be made on every hand suitable either
+for the pedestrian or the climber.
+
+The Imperial road from here descends rapidly to Primiero, and then
+traverses a wildly romantic ravine full of boulders, and with
+tree-clad mountain slopes to Primolano, on the Italian frontier, and
+thence to Tezze, 740 feet, which is the present terminus of the
+railway, and is the principal point on the Val Sugana road uniting
+Tezze with Trent, 640 feet, the chief town of the Italian Tyrol, with
+25,000 inhabitants.
+
+These, then, are a few briefly sketched tours in the Dolomite region
+which will, as we ourselves know, well repay the seeker after
+magnificent scenery, pure air, and solitude, or society, as the case
+may be.
+
+Quite recently a most excellent and original type of relief map of the
+Dolomites has been published, which on account of its clearness and
+comprehensive character makes it a very valuable, if not positively
+indispensable, companion for all who wish to travel in this most
+interesting, though somewhat complicated district. Fortunately the
+map, which is published at a remarkably moderate price, is to be
+obtained at all the principal railway stations of the south Austrian
+railways, and one cannot do better than obtain a copy ere setting out
+for a Dolomite tour, whether it be an extended one or not.
+
+We would call particular attention to the fact that the Dolomites
+being, many of them, on the frontier between Austria and Italy, there
+are numerous fortresses dotted about in quite unsuspected corners, the
+sketching and photographing of which, or even of their immediate
+surroundings, is very strictly prohibited. Warnings on signboards are
+erected at all the points of danger, and the instructions placed
+thereon should on no account be disregarded. The consequences of so
+doing are likely to be extremely unpleasant, and possibly lead to the
+at least temporary incarceration of the offender.
+
+FOOTNOTE:
+
+[20] The heights given are those appearing in the latest edition of
+Baedeker's "Eastern Alps" and the publications of the Vienna and
+Austrian Alpine Clubs.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XI
+
+     THROUGH THE UNTER-INNTHAL: KUFSTEIN--KUNDL--RATTENBERG, AND
+     THE STORY OF WILHELM BIENER--BRIXLEGG, AND ITS PEASANT
+     DRAMAS--THE FAMOUS CASTLE OF MATZEN--ST. GEORGENBERG, AND
+     ITS PILGRIMAGE CHURCH--CASTLE TRATZBERG--SCHWAZ
+
+
+The first view one has of Kufstein from the railway, or rather of its
+ancient fortress of Geroldseck, which dominates the prettily situated
+little town, is almost bound to evoke the remark that it is a Salzburg
+in miniature. Indeed, the parallel is not an inapt one, for the
+partially tree-clad and rocky eminence on which the last stronghold
+held by the Bavarians at the end of the invasion of 1809 stands bears
+considerable resemblance to the greater Mönchsberg with the town
+spread out at its feet.
+
+The river Inn has narrowed ere it reaches Kufstein, which may be
+called the border town of north-eastern Tyrol, and now flows rapidly
+onward to meet the Danube. The place is pleasantly situated; but it is
+rather on account of the interest and beauty of its surroundings than
+to the town itself that its growing popularity as a holiday resort
+must be chiefly ascribed. And yet, with that ancient and grim old
+castle above one, with its huge round tower dominating the rock on
+which it stands, and the charming valley and pine-clad slopes of the
+environing hills spread out on either hand, one is tempted to linger
+in the town.
+
+The Castle, which in all probability occupies the site of Roman
+_Albianum_, marks the position of one of the oldest settlements in
+Tyrol. Even in the times of Charlemagne there is at least one record
+of the place "Caofstein," accompanied by some interesting details.
+From its position near the borderland of an antagonistic race
+Kufstein's history is romantic, stirring, and chequered. As a
+well-known writer upon Tyrol aptly says, "For centuries it was turned
+into a political shuttlecock, now taken by force of arms, then by
+stealthy surprise, now mortgaged, then redeemed or exchanged for some
+other possessions by its whilom owners."[21] And its general fate and
+varying fortunes were similar to those of other frontier fortresses,
+such as Kitzbühel during the Middle Ages.
+
+The grim fortress upon the rock, somehow or other, when seen in the
+fading light of evening, seems to bear its story of cruelty, rapine
+and harshness on its face. Many a gallant heart in the old days, which
+people are so prone to label "good," pined or fretted to death within
+its walls; and, unless tradition is entirely at fault, many a noble
+maiden and dame also were incarcerated and died tragic deaths within
+its thick, grim walls, and in its sunless dungeons.
+
+The history of the fortress, so far as it concerns us, may commence
+with its cession to Bavaria in or about 1363 by the Duchess Margaret,
+the last of Count Albert's successors as rulers of Tyrol, when she
+found herself unable to govern the country. She had acquired the
+estates of Kufstein, Rattenberg, and Kitzbühel on her marriage with
+Louis of Brandenburg; and when she ceded Tyrol to Austria it was
+stipulated that these properties should revert to Bavaria.
+
+[Sidenote: SIEGE OF KUFSTEIN]
+
+These possessions remained Bavarian until the reign of the Emperor
+Maximilian I., when the two latter gave allegiance to him. Kufstein,
+however, refused to yield, and so in 1504 Maximilian appeared before
+it, and commenced a siege. This event is particularly interesting, as
+some authorities state it constituted the first occasion on which
+proof was given that the introduction of artillery meant the
+death-knell of mediæval fortresses, however strong and hitherto
+regarded as inaccessible they might be. We are told, however, that the
+guns brought to bear upon the Castle by the Emperor in the first
+instance were quite ineffective, so much so, indeed, that the
+Governor, named Pienzenau, whose sympathies were strongly Bavarian,
+aroused the Emperor's anger by causing some of the garrison to sweep
+up with brooms the dust, which had been the only damage done by the
+besiegers' guns to the Castle walls, which were of great thickness,
+and also to dust the latter themselves with the same articles in full
+sight of the besiegers. The guns were either too small, or had been
+placed at too great a distance from the Castle to do more than graze
+it with their shot.
+
+Finding his culverins and "serpents" of no avail, the Emperor
+dispatched some one to Innsbruck for two monster guns, known as
+_Weckauf_ and _Purlepaus_, which the Governor of that town, Philip von
+Recenau, had recently cast at the foundry. These weapons, of which
+drawings are extant, although the chroniclers of the time do not
+mention their calibre or dimensions, were of considerably larger size
+than "Queen Elizabeth's Pocket Pistol" at Dover, and threw balls of
+about 300 pounds in weight, it is said, for a distance of nearly two
+thousand yards. The arrival of the great guns put a very different
+complexion upon the siege; and after they had been brought to bear
+upon the castle, and had been fired,[22] it was found that their shot
+not only penetrated the fourteen-feet-thick walls with ease, but even
+the rock itself was pierced, according to some historians, to a depth
+of eighteen inches. Pienzenau now wished to surrender to the Emperor,
+provided his life was spared. But Maximilian did not forget the
+incident of the brooms, which bears some slight analogy to the
+historic "broom" incident connected with the Dutch Admiral Van Tromp,
+who hoisted one at his masthead in derision of the English, whom he
+claimed to have swept off the seas. "So he is anxious to throw away
+his brooms, is he?" the Emperor is said to have remarked. "He should
+have taken this course before. He has caused by his obstinacy the
+walls of this fine fortress to be so shattered, so he can do no less
+than give his own carcase up to a similar fate."
+
+And although great efforts were made to obtain pardon for Pienzenau
+and some of his more important supporters they were unsuccessful, the
+Emperor remaining quite obdurate. It is this execution of a brave man
+(whose courage and fidelity to his nation should have aroused nothing
+but admiration) which is a stain upon the Emperor's record. No less
+than five and twenty of the principal defenders were condemned to be
+executed. The survivors of the garrison attempted to escape secretly
+before the general assault, which had been arranged, took place, but
+they were captured. The first to be beheaded was Pienzenau; but when
+seventeen (some authorities say eleven) of his companions had shared
+the same fate, Eric, Duke of Brunswick, interceded with Maximilian so
+earnestly that the lives of the rest were spared. This same Eric had
+formerly saved the Emperor's life in battle, and possibly this fact
+influenced the latter towards clemency. Over the grave in which the
+victims of Maximilian were buried by the people of Kufstein was
+erected a little chapel at Ainliff on the opposite bank of the river.
+
+The booty and valuables taken from the Castle were placed together and
+divided (including, for those times, the very large sum of 30,000
+florins in hard cash) according to the rank of the victors. The
+Emperor showed himself on this occasion more just to his troops than
+he had been clement to the defenders, as he paid his share of the
+spoil into the common fund. The small booty he took consisted
+chiefly, if not entirely, of skins of the lynx and marten, and other
+hunting trophies.
+
+Kufstein, after its reduction by the Emperor Maximilian, was
+garrisoned, and in succeeding ages underwent numerous sieges,
+including the memorable one during the campaign of 1809, when
+Speckbacher performed deeds of bravery which were almost apocryphal in
+character.
+
+[Sidenote: A KUFSTEIN ROMANCE]
+
+As is perhaps only natural, there are many legends and romantic
+stories connected with the fortress, some of them arising out of the
+life-histories and achievements of the many distinguished prisoners
+who were from time to time during the Middle and succeeding ages
+confined within its walls. Amongst the more romantic captives was the
+famous Hungarian brigand, Andrew Roshlar, who was tried and condemned
+to death at Szegedin nearly forty years ago, to whose account upwards
+of a hundred murders were ascribed.
+
+Kufstein must have been a difficult place from which to break out, but
+there is, at least, the tradition of a prisoner in the fifteenth
+century making good his escape. He was a Tyrolese knight captured by
+the Bavarians, and confined, apparently with some degree of comfort
+and laxity of surveillance, in one of the upper chambers of the great
+round tower, from which, through the devotion of the girl (a maiden
+much beneath him in rank) to whom he was secretly betrothed, he
+succeeded in escaping. The story goes that this girl, who came from
+some place west of Innsbruck, having discovered the whereabouts of her
+lover after some difficulty, succeeded in obtaining a post as maid in
+the household of the then owner. After some weary weeks of waiting,
+she obtained access to her lover's cell, having been given the work of
+carrying up to him daily his supply of food and water. It was then
+arranged between them that she should each day convey to him a small
+quantity of hemp, out of which he was to fashion a rope. This she did,
+concealing the hemp in the bosom of her dress. In course of time the
+imprisoned knight had made a sufficiently long rope to reach from his
+window to the ground, the bars across which he had gradually almost
+filed through from the outside inwards, so that any one casually
+examining them would not be likely to discover the fact. Everything
+was ready for the escape, and it was arranged that the same night the
+girl was to make her way out of the Castle and join him ere the great
+gate was shut.
+
+On the day fixed she had brought the captive's allowance of food about
+noon, as usual, when on leaving the cell and making her way downstairs
+she was accosted by one of the steward's sons who had sought her
+favour. She was horrified to find that he suspected the plot, and that
+the price of his silence was her honour. She hesitated, and pitifully
+entreated him to spare her, but to no avail. Then, when he told her
+that not only would discovery mean her own death in all probability,
+but certainly the death of her lover, she yielded. About sundown she
+left the castle, and mad with grief at the shame and insult she had
+been compelled to suffer, she wandered about until it was dark. She
+had determined to assure herself of her lover's escape, and then to
+cast herself from the steepest point of the rock upon which the Castle
+stands down into the valley below. In the dusk she at length saw
+faintly a black figure descending against the wall, and then she heard
+cautious footsteps approaching the thicket in which she stood
+concealed.
+
+With a half-stifled cry which she could not altogether suppress, she
+hurried through the undergrowth, and was within a few yards of the
+edge of the rock, when she was seized by her lover and saved from
+destruction. The story goes on to say that they both escaped, and that
+the knight eventually married (and, let us hope, lived happily with)
+the brave girl who had compassed his deliverance.
+
+  [Illustration: A PEEP OF KITZBÜHEL]
+
+The town of Kufstein itself does not call for extended description.
+But one feature that immediately prepossesses the visitor in its
+favour, if one arrive, as we did when last there, on a hot summer
+day, is the number of shady promenades to be found, more especially on
+the east side of the town, in the neighbourhood of the delightfully
+picturesque Kiengraben. None should fail to visit the Calvarienberg,
+from which there are delightful and extensive views of the Castle,
+town, and valley.
+
+[Sidenote: KUFSTEIN TO KITZBÜHEL]
+
+To reach Kitzbühel from Kufstein it is necessary to change trains at
+Wörgl, eight and a half miles down the Unter-Innthal, and proceed up
+the Brixen Thal by the Staatsbahn past Hopfgarten to Kitzbühel. The
+town is a charming one, surrounded by gardens where once there ran a
+moat, and containing some interesting houses along the banks of the
+Kitzbühler Ache. Many of them still have Gothic roofs and gables,
+which give them a mediæval appearance, and one of great charm. The
+town has of late years become a favourite summer resort, and its fine
+situation in a wide valley nearly 2500 feet above sea-level has much
+to recommend it. But its fame is by no means merely that of a summer
+holiday spot. It is almost equally resorted to for winter sports of
+tobogganing, ski-ing, and skating, and may be, in fact, called the
+Tyrolese Grindelwald or Adelboden. Then the snow-clad valley is indeed
+beautiful, more like fairyland than aught else, with only the church
+spires of Kitzbühel and the pines on the hillsides to break the wide
+white expanse.
+
+The Kitzbühelhorn is a favourite ascent, from which very fine views
+are to be obtained, especially of the giants of the Tauern range, the
+Chiemsee, and the rocky and impressive Kaiser Gebirge. The pasturage
+and the Alpine flora in the neighbourhood of Kitzbühel are especially
+rich, and there are many beautiful excursions to be made in the
+district round about. In the Brixen Thal, indeed, the artist and the
+student of costumes and ancient customs, which are, alas! so rapidly
+dying out, will find much of interest. In many of the villages the
+annual contests, consisting of wrestling and other sports--which
+anciently were often so strenuous as to lead to serious injury to the
+combatants and competitors, and even bloodshed--still take place. At
+Kitzbühel there is an athletic gathering in June, which is held on a
+plateau near the inn on the Kitzbühelhorn, and partakes of the
+character of the Grasmere Sports of our own land, and the Braemar
+gathering in Scotland.
+
+The peasants as a general rule in the Brixen Thal, as in the more
+famous Ziller Thal, are musical, and often indeed are quite skilled
+musicians; and frequently as one wends one's way through the
+flower-spangled pastures or climbs the mountain-side, from some
+isolated hut or shady nook beneath a boulder will come the musical
+tinkling of a cowherd's zithern or the flutey notes of his pipe. But,
+as a rule, we have found the players shy of performing before
+strangers, who will therefore be well advised if they listen to the
+music unseen and without seeking to discover its source.
+
+The Brixen Thal, too, is a great dairy district, the chief industries
+of which are butter- and cheese-making.
+
+As regards the scenery of the valley one may say that in few others in
+Tyrol does one come across a greater variety of light and shade, or
+more delightful cloud effects. Indeed, the clouds, which at one time
+seem as though they will sweep down the mountain-sides and obscure
+everything, and at others sail majestically, like huge cotton-wool
+argosies, across the blue vault of heaven, thousands of feet above the
+highest peak of the Tauern Giants and the bare and grey limestone
+peaks of the Kaisergebirge, in themselves form pictures and phenomena
+of the greatest beauty and of ever changing interest.
+
+[Sidenote: MONKISH MIRACLES]
+
+Kundl is a small village some four miles south-west from Wörgl, and it
+would attract little attention from travellers were it not for the
+curious church of St. Leonard auf der Wiese (St. Leonard in the
+Meadow) and the quaint legend attached to it. The story goes that
+early in the eleventh century a stone statue of St. Leonard came
+floating down the Inn to this spot; and the people, recognizing that
+for a stone statue to float was nothing less than miraculous, after
+securing it, set it up by the roadside, so that all who passed by
+should see and reverence it. Probably modern scepticism will lead us
+to suppose that the figure was in reality of wood and not stone; and
+then the miracle explains itself! The region is subject to floods, and
+doubtless the figure of St. Leonard came from some church higher up
+the valley which had been destroyed by avalanche or inundation.
+
+However, the story goes on to tell us that the statue had not long
+been placed in position alongside the high-road ere Henry II., Duke of
+Bavaria, himself passed that way, and seeing it paused to ask an
+explanation of its being there. When the story had been told him, he
+seized the opportunity (as did many other rulers in those days) to
+strike a bargain with Heaven which, whilst benefiting Mother Church,
+would also be not without profit to himself. He therefore vowed that
+if the expedition into Italy, which had brought him along that road,
+should prosper and his forces be victorious, he would on his return
+build a handsome votive church over the spot where the figure of the
+saint stood.
+
+Alas! for human vows, even those of one destined to become an Emperor.
+Although his arms prospered, and he was crowned at Pavia, and made
+King of Germany, he forgot all about St. Leonard. Some years later (in
+1012) fortunes and the cares of his kingdom once more brought him into
+Tyrol on his way northward and to the spot where the figure of the
+saint still stood by the roadside. Then another miracle happened, for
+his horse, "although urged forward with whip and spur and words,"
+refused to pass the spot where his master had formerly made so solemn
+a vow, and stood foaming and champing his bit much to his rider's
+embarrassment. As was but natural, the Emperor at once remembered his
+vow and set about fulfilling it.
+
+The church, which was forthwith commenced, was finished in a couple
+of years, but a catastrophe marked its completion. Just as a young man
+was about to place the vane in position he was seized with sudden
+giddiness, and falling to the ground was dashed to pieces. "His body,"
+so a somewhat quaint local version of the story has it, "was gathered
+together by the horrified onlookers," and his skull--which can still
+be seen--was placed at the foot of the crucifix on the high altar as
+an offering. There is a record in the church of the fact that the
+Emperor erected the building, and that Pope Benedict VIII., who was a
+nominee of his, made the very considerable journey from Rome to
+consecrate it. There would, however, notwithstanding this, appear
+considerable reason for doubt whether he did.
+
+The image now to be seen only dates from 1491, and there is no record
+regarding the disappearance of the original "miraculous" one which it
+must have replaced. The interior of this church has suffered both from
+neglect and whitewashing at various times. But there are some quaint
+and excellent carvings, including a few pew ends, and also some fine
+iron work, and the figures adorning the ten columns which surround the
+high altar are interesting. It is as one comes into the village that
+the prettiest view of the church is obtained.
+
+Rattenberg, which is some five miles distant from Kundl on the main
+line and road, is not much visited by tourists, and is chiefly of note
+on account of the copper mines, which are still worked. The town is,
+however, decidedly picturesque and repays a visit. Scarcely anywhere
+in Tyrol in a place of similarly small size does one get such
+contrasts in architecture. And, doubtless, for this reason one seldom
+fails, during the summer months, to find several artists at work in
+the narrow streets. One side of the river is occupied by houses and
+buildings of the most solid, gloomy, and altogether unprepossessing
+character, whilst on the opposite bank one finds the very antithesis
+in the pretty, light-looking dwellings, quaintly painted in delicate
+shades of buff, pink, and sky-blue. Beside them and between them are
+quaint courtyards and narrow alleys of often an extremely picturesque
+character.
+
+[Sidenote: WILHELM BIENER]
+
+Many people seem to confuse the Castle of Rattenberg, which dominates
+the little town and river, with that of Rottenberg, the crumbling
+ruins of which lie on an eminence overlooking the roads which lead out
+of the Inn Thal into the Achen Thal and Ziller Thal, once the seat of
+one of the most powerful feudal families of Tyrol. Rattenberg Castle
+is said by some authorities to date back to the days of the Roman
+occupation, and even to Etruscan times, and its history has been not
+less stirring and chequered than that of most other similarly placed
+fortresses of the Inn Thal. The chief event in connection with it was
+the imprisonment of Wilhelm Biener, the brilliant Chancellor of
+Claudia Felicitas de Medici, wife of the Archduke Leopold V. Biener,
+unfortunately, afterwards fell into disfavour with the pro-Italians at
+the Court of Claudia's son and successor, the Archduke Ferdinand Karl,
+Regent of Tyrol, and was executed at Rattenberg in 1649 and buried
+near the wall of the churchyard. Those who wish to know more of the
+romantic and stirring period of Tyrolese history in which Biener lived
+and died cannot do better than read that fine historical novel, "Der
+Kanzler von Tyrol" (The Chancellor of Tyrol), by Herman Schmid.
+
+The story of Biener's fall may be briefly told. Claudia de Medici, on
+the death of her husband, with her Chancellor's advice and assistance,
+succeeded, not only in governing Tyrol wisely and well during the
+minority of her two sons, but, by the exercise of great wisdom,
+contrived to escape embroilment in the terrible and disastrous Thirty
+Years' War in which the whole of the rest of the German Empire was
+involved. Her rule, however, was not altogether without some
+harshness, which was chiefly shown in the collection of taxes, and in
+this matter the Chancellor Biener was naturally concerned, with a
+result that his zeal for his beautiful mistress's interests caused him
+to incur the hatred of a certain section of the Court and community at
+large. On one occasion he found himself in serious opposition to the
+then Bishop of Brixen concerning the payment of certain dues, the
+legality of which the bishop questioned. Biener appears for once to
+have failed in his usual skilful and diplomatic treatment of affairs.
+He wrote a very intemperate letter to the bishop, which the latter
+never forgot nor forgave. Years after the death of Claudia, the
+resentment against Biener took more definite shape, and he was accused
+of having misappropriated some of the money belonging to the State
+which had passed through his hands. Tried by two Italian judges, he
+was found guilty (though, apparently, upon very flimsy evidence), and
+condemned to death.
+
+The fallen Chancellor made a last appeal to the Archduke Ferdinand
+Karl, son of his late mistress, and the Archduke, thoroughly believing
+in Biener's good faith and innocence, and, doubtless, remembering his
+many distinguished services to his family, reprieved him. Unhappily
+for the condemned man, his greatest enemy, the President of the
+Council, named Schmaus, was able to so delay the messenger that he
+arrived too late to save the Chancellor.
+
+Biener was led out for execution, and on stepping on to the scaffold,
+he cried out, "As truly as I am innocent of this thing, I summon my
+accuser (Schmaus) before the Judgment Seat above before another year
+shall pass away."
+
+When the executioner had done his work, and stooped to pick up the
+head to exhibit it to the multitude, he found that he had also
+unknowingly smitten off three fingers of the victims right hand,
+strangely (so the story goes) bringing to mind the remark of the
+Bishop of Brixen on reading Biener's letter years before--"The man who
+could write a letter like this to me deserves that his fingers which
+held the pen should be cut off."
+
+By an equally remarkable occurrence, we are told, the President of the
+Council, who had been not only Biener's most relentless enemy but his
+chief accuser, died within the specified time of a terrible disease.
+
+The wife of the Chancellor is supposed to haunt the mountain paths in
+the neighbourhood, and at night may be sometimes met with proclaiming
+her husband's innocence in a moaning voice. The story, doubtless, has
+its basis in the circumstance that the unfortunate woman lost her
+reason and ran away no one knew whither, but was ultimately found
+wandering aimlessly, and quite bereft of her senses, on the
+mountain-side between Brixlegg and Rattenberg. There was for many
+years (and may be still for aught we know) a tradition that when any
+one was about to die in the little village near Innsbruck, where
+Biener's wife, after her marriage, lived happily for many years, she
+appears to warn them.
+
+Near the town, in one of the mining buildings, is a most curious
+picture done upon a wooden panel, combining a representation of the
+mining works about 1500 with one of the Crucifixion, in which the
+miners, with their pickaxes and shovels laid down beside them, are
+seen kneeling in prayer.
+
+[Sidenote: BRIXLEGG]
+
+Brixlegg is but a mile or so from Rattenberg. The neighbourhood is
+pretty, and there is a charming view from the bridge. The little busy
+town also forms an excellent centre from which to make some of the
+shorter excursions into the Ziller Thal and Achen Thal. But, although
+there are considerable smelting works and a wire-drawing industry at
+Brixlegg, to the tourist it is chiefly its reputation for peasant
+dramas which forms the chief attraction in the town, which is,
+however, quaint and in a measure picturesque.
+
+The rural plays of Brixlegg are not only interesting by reason of the
+historical scenes they many of them represent, but also as survivals
+of a very early (if not the earliest) type of German dramatic
+expression and art which has come down to us. Most of the plays,
+types of costume, plots, and all the various items which go to make up
+these performances have done service for generations; but occasionally
+new plays are written and staged, mostly dealing with historical
+incidents and characters. In some parts of Tyrol where these plays
+survive, till at least very recent times, old masks were extant, which
+must have been handed down from the early Middle Ages, and possibly
+(so some competent authorities assert) date from Roman and Etruscan
+times. The Brixlegg performances should most certainly be seen by all
+who are interested in the true peasant drama and the evolution of
+dramatic art. The representations are far more interesting as native
+and peasant art than those of Meran, where to a certain extent outside
+criticism and influence have served to bring about modifications, the
+Meran performances lacking some of the naiveness and spontaneity of
+these simpler peasant dramatic plays.
+
+[Sidenote: SCHLOSS MATZEN]
+
+Just after leaving Brixlegg, on the left-hand side of the road stand
+three castles of note--Matzen, Lichtwer, and Kropfsberg. The first
+named is one of the most interesting and well-preserved examples of
+the mediæval schloss in Tyrol. A whole volume might be devoted to a
+description of its beauty of situation, architecture, romantic history
+and sieges, and yet leave much unsaid. Its huge round tower dominates
+the landscape, just as its beautiful lower courtyard, with its four
+tiers of cloistered corridors round two sides, with the "springs" of
+the arches supported upon short columns of unworked marble, its fine
+main hall, with priceless carved and panelled oak and hunting
+trophies, make it a unique possession. There is a charming view of its
+rivals, Lichtwer and Kropfsberg, from the drawing-room window, whilst
+standing at which (according to old chroniclers) one of the Frundbergs
+was shot dead by a crossbow bolt fired by his brother from the tower
+of Lichtwer, of which castle the latter was the owner.
+
+  [Illustration: SCHLOSS MATZEN]
+
+Of special interest to most visitors who may be fortunate enough to
+be permitted to see Matzen and its treasures will undoubtedly be the
+famous figure of Christ upon the cross in the chapel; the library--one
+of the oldest rooms--with its fine Renaissance chest; the fine
+collection of old pewter; the hunting-room, with the many trophies of
+its famous "sporting" as well as literary owner;[23] and perhaps not
+without interest to most visitors will also be the stone table, once
+standing upon the place of execution at the other end of the castle,
+but now in the shadow of the great circular Roman tower, just outside
+the postern entrance from the garden. At this table in olden times, it
+is said, the owner of Matzen sat when dispensing justice to his
+vassals or retainers. Set in the wide valley, and girt around by
+trees, Matzen is one of the most picturesque as it is one of the most
+interesting and historic castles in Tyrol.
+
+There is not much to detain one at Jenbach, which is a small town at
+the entrance to the Achen Thal, on the northern, and the Ziller Thal
+on the southern, bank of the Inn.
+
+Just before one reaches Schwaz, one sees storied Castle Tratzberg high
+on a wooded spur of the Bavarian Alps, with its three turrets in line,
+seeming to overhang the rocky eminence upon which it stands. Up above
+the castle, scarcely visible from the valley, is the famous pilgrimage
+church of Georgenberg, which all who can should visit.
+
+The path, though toilsome, winds through a sweet-scented pine forest.
+As one nears the goal of one's pilgrimage, the way is marked by
+stations of the cross. One passes through a silent region, and, as one
+ascends, the pretty villages scattered below in the valley of the Inn
+are gradually and for a time lost to view. Scarcely any one is met
+save a stray pilgrim or some tourist curious enough to make the
+ascent, and no sound is heard save the soughing of the summer breeze
+in the pines and the tinkle of little streams or the water-music of
+the Stallen torrents. At last, through an opening in the environing
+forest, one catches the first glimpse of the white church, with its
+Romanesque tower and rust-red roof, standing on a steep and barren
+rock some three hundred feet in height, to reach which the covered
+wooden bridge spanning the deep ravine must be crossed.
+
+And what a shrine it is! An isolated tabernacle set upon a rock in a
+solitary place, and amid surroundings of the greatest beauty and
+impressiveness; shut out of the world and shut in with nature. The
+cross at the head of the bridge records the miraculous escape of a
+girl long ago who, whilst attempting to pick the fairest flowers for a
+chaplet to place upon the Madonna's head or lay upon the altar, fell
+into the ravine, a distance of over one hundred and fifty feet, and
+yet escaped serious injury when death seemed certain.
+
+The impression one receives when at last the summit of the rock upon
+which the church stands is reached is one of great solemnity and even
+of grandeur. For a time the outer world has receded from one's mind
+and ceased to exist. And when one enters the church itself, the
+impression which has been created cannot fail to be intensified by the
+silent, kneeling figures almost always found within, with their faces
+illumined with rapture and faith or transfigured by religious fervour.
+
+[Sidenote: ST. GEORGENBERG]
+
+The little chapel of "Our Lady of Sorrows" (Schmerzhaften Mutter)
+comes first, surrounded with a tiny graveyard, in which are buried the
+favoured few who have had their wish gratified to rest in death in the
+solitary but beautiful spot they loved and visited when alive. The
+larger building, the church of St. George opposite the chapel,
+contains one of those most curious legendary relics of which not a few
+have been preserved from time immemorial in Tyrol. The story of the
+miracle which produced the relic is briefly as follows:--About the
+year 1310, in the days when Rupert I. was the fourteenth abbot in
+charge of the Monastery of Georgenberg, the ruins of which surround
+the present church, a Benedictine monk was saying Mass in this very
+church. Just as he was about to consecrate the cup, a doubt came into
+his mind as to whether such a miracle as the changing of the water and
+wine into blood could be accomplished in his unworthy hands. Torn with
+doubt, he nevertheless proceeded to use the words of consecration; and
+he was struck dumb with astonishment and awe to find, in place of the
+white wine and water he had placed in the cup, blood, which overflowed
+the chalice and fell upon the wafers. Some portion of this miraculous
+blood was preserved in a phial, which was set in a reliquary and
+placed upon the altar. In former times this precious relic, we are
+told, has worked many miracles, and is venerated almost as much to-day
+as in mediæval times.
+
+[Sidenote: A WOODLAND SHRINE]
+
+The pilgrimage of St. Georgenberg is one of the most famous and
+ancient in Tyrol. So ancient, indeed, that its origin appears to have
+dated as far back as the end of the tenth century, when a chapel was
+consecrated here by Albuin, the then Bishop of Brixen. Even before
+this, however, Scherer asserts that a young Bavarian nobleman named
+Rathhold, from Aiblingen, "having learned the hollowness of the joys
+of even his great position, made up his mind to live apart from the
+haunts of men in some wilderness and solitary spot." And in pursuit of
+this determination he wandered on through the fertile fields and
+valleys of his own land and those of the Inn until he at length
+reached this spot in the Stallen valley, and ultimately came to the
+rock upon which the church stands. Up on the mountain-side he carved
+out for himself a cave where he lived as a hermit. But after a while a
+desire possessed him to go to some of the shrines of the greatest
+saints. He visited many, even travelling so far afield as to the
+shrine of St. Jago de Compostella; and at length returned once more to
+his hermit's cave to finish his days in prayer and contemplation. But
+he brought back with him a picture of the Madonna, over which with his
+own hands he reverently erected a protective shrine.
+
+Soon from all the district round about, and even from distant parts of
+Tyrol and Bavaria, people came to worship at the shrine; and ere long
+"Our Beloved Lady under the Lindens" became a great pilgrimage resort.
+One day, years afterwards, so the story goes, there came to the place
+another young Bavarian nobleman who had wandered far in pursuit of
+game, and on hearing of the shrine had determined to visit it himself
+to ascertain what were the attractions and virtues of a place which
+was so venerated by the peasants of the mountains and valley round
+about. On his arrival at the little chapel he sought the hermit
+guardian, when what was his joy and astonishment to discover, in the
+white-bearded recluse, the elder brother whose strange disappearance
+from his castle home years before had caused much grief. Overjoyed at
+the meeting, the younger brother vowed that he would build a chapel on
+the spot more adequate for the protection of the holy and miraculous
+picture, and also a "shelter house" for pilgrims.
+
+The work was soon started, and from far and near peasants and even
+nobles came or sent offerings so that they might have some part in the
+work. Then a strange thing happened. All the virtue, which had made
+the spot one of miracles, and one of such good fortune to the halt,
+diseased, blind, and dumb, seemed to depart. Hardly had the workmen
+commenced the foundations of the proposed chapel ere accident after
+accident occurred, some of them fatal. The stones would not remain in
+place, and everything connected with the building "went wrong."
+Another curious happening was the presence day by day of two white
+doves, which came down, apparently from out of the woods higher up
+the mountain-side, and picked up every chip of wood upon which any of
+the workers' blood had fallen when they cut themselves with their
+tools (as they frequently did), and then at once flew away with the
+chips in their beaks.
+
+  [Illustration: A WAYSIDE SHRINE IN A PINE WOOD]
+
+Finding that this action of the doves continued and that no progress
+could be made, the hermit determined to seek an explanation of the
+mystery, and so one day he followed the birds up the mountain-side,
+and on reaching the spot where he saw them descend he found to his
+astonishment a perfect miniature chapel or shrine which had been
+constructed out of the chips and shavings the doves had carried away.
+"In this miracle the hermit discovered the directing hand of God, and
+going down again to his brother he entreated him to have the
+contemplated chapel built upon the spot which had been so miraculously
+pointed out." This the latter willingly consented to do, and the work
+now progressed without accident or other interruption. The chapel so
+erected, which is further up the hillside than the larger church of
+St. George, was rebuilt at the time the latter was erected in the
+eighteenth century.
+
+From time to time other pilgrims both noble and simple who visited the
+shrine set amid the woods and mountains were moved to remain, and thus
+gradually a community was gathered together living in roughly built
+huts in the vicinity of the hermit's cell, which in course of time
+about the twelfth century was put by the then Bishop of Brixen under
+the rules governing the order of St. Benedict. The monks not only
+built a monastery but cultivated the surrounding land, and quite a
+large community at last dwelt in this secluded spot. But the life of
+the monks was destined to be very chequered, and often troubled with
+grave misfortunes. Fire, avalanches, famine, and disease all did their
+best to extirpate the brotherhood. And at last, at the beginning of
+the eighteenth century--after having been established at St.
+Georgenberg for more than five hundred years--it was decided to remove
+the monastic institutions to Fiecht.
+
+Vast funds were needed, for the then abbot, named Celestin Böhmen, who
+was a native of Vienna, and had formerly been an officer of artillery,
+projected the new monastery and buildings upon a lavish and colossal
+scale. There was, however, no lack of funds. St. Georgenberg held a
+place in the hearts of all the people for a wide district round about,
+and money also flowed into the monastic coffers from foreign lands
+from which pilgrims had come to the famous shrine. Then a great
+disaster happened. The abbot, tempted by the vast wealth which had
+been placed in his hands, and perhaps weary of his life of retirement
+from the world in which he had once been a prominent figure, fled with
+the money which was to have been used for the new abbey at Fiecht. The
+work of building was for a time brought to a standstill, as no trace
+of the defaulting abbot could be discovered. But after some years a
+sufficient sum of money was obtained to permit of the work being
+continued under the direction of Abbot Lambert. The result was the
+present handsome late Renaissance building; which, however, comprises
+but a small portion of the first magnificent scheme. The renegade
+Abbot, Celestin Böhmen, some years after his flight and crime, once
+more became enamoured of a life of contemplation, and suddenly
+appeared at the monastery, confessing his wrong-doing and throwing
+himself upon the mercy of his former companions. He did not appeal to
+their clemency in vain; for, refusing to deliver him up to justice,
+they allowed him to end his days in piety and repentance, which one
+can only trust was genuine.
+
+Such, at all events, is substantially the story as told by Burglechner
+and other writers.
+
+A strange fascination seems to enshroud this quiet and secluded
+shrine of St. Georgenberg, and certainly it is one of the pilgrimage
+places which most inspire one with the spirit of those remote ages
+when in the making of such journeys many found comfort, peace of mind,
+and refreshment. Indeed, one almost wonders that the monks should have
+deserted it for a new home and a less quiet situation on the hillside
+near Schwaz, which has now for some years been used as a school.
+
+[Sidenote: CASTLE OF TRATZBERG]
+
+Just before reaching Schwaz one passes the old and fine castle of
+Tratzberg, which well deserves a visit, not only on account of its art
+and other treasures, but also by reason of the delightful views
+obtained from it. Tratzberg, which was sold by the Duke Frederick to a
+rich mine-owner named Christian Tanzel in 1470, with the title of
+Knight of Tratzberg, was often visited by the Emperor Maximilian I. on
+his various hunting expeditions in the neighbourhood. Knight Tanzel
+spared no expenditure to make it one of the most beautiful and famous
+castles in the Inn Thal. Not the least interesting of the many finely
+decorated rooms which it contains are those which were generally
+occupied by Maximilian on his visits, and the fine apartment known as
+the Queen's room, with beautiful presses, interesting portraits, and
+magnificent panelled ceiling. The armoury, too, full of mediæval
+cannon, pikes, lances and other ancient weapons, never fails to
+interest the student and archæologist, who, whilst wandering through
+these ancient and wonderfully well-preserved rooms, gains a more vivid
+idea of the conditions of life in the Middle Ages than much "book
+learning" could give him. In the great hall are some remarkable
+frescoes in _tempera_, depicting the genealogical tree of the house of
+Habsburg with quaint groups of portraits. Some of the antlers, which
+are so attached to the wall as to serve as portions of the design, are
+said to have been hunting trophies of Maximilian himself.
+
+The two Maximilian rooms, which open one into the other, are happily
+in much the same condition and state as when occupied by the Emperor.
+The panelling, whilst not comparing for elaborateness with that in
+some of the other rooms, is good, and the ancient stove, dating from
+the fifteenth century, is of great interest. On the walls of the room
+in which this stands is an inscription in chalk, said to have been
+written by Maximilian himself, which sums up a quaint philosophy, and
+has been translated thus--
+
+     "I live I know not how long,
+     I die I know not when;
+     Must go I know not whither;
+     The wonder that I so joyful am."
+
+[Sidenote: A GRUESOME STORY]
+
+In 1573 the castle and lands passed into the possession of the famous
+Fugger family, and ultimately into that of the Enzenbergs, one of whom
+is the present owner. There is at least one gruesome story and
+tradition told in connection with Tratzberg, which is not itself at
+all gruesome-looking, as Tyrol castles go.
+
+It appears that the ancient owners of the castle were most of them
+more noted for love of the chase than for being "instant in prayer,"
+and one was so great a defaulter in this respect that, although he
+could always hear the notes of the hunting horn blown early in the
+morning and rise with alacrity to obey its summons, sad to relate,
+when the chapel bell rang for Mass, it was quite a different matter.
+One morning the bell woke him as usual, and as usual he yawned, and
+turned over in his bed for another nap, thinking, no doubt, pityingly
+of the folk who had got up early to attend the service. He had no
+sooner done this than he had a dream or vision of the old chaplain
+performing the service in the chapel, and of the devout worshippers
+gathered to listen to him. Then the triple tinkling of the Mass bell
+announced to him the most solemn rite of the service was being
+performed. Then came a rumbling noise, the very foundations of the
+castle seemed to shake, and the building to sway as though about to
+collapse, and the hundreds of windows rattled and shook. The knight,
+who was superstitious if not religious, terrified beyond control,
+shrieked aloud, and then tried to hide himself under the bedclothes in
+his terror. His cry was heard by some of the servants and retainers,
+who came hurrying to the room; and upon entering they were
+horror-struck to find their master dead, whilst upon his throat were
+the imprints of three claws, which had burned as well as torn the
+skin. The inference drawn was that the knight had been enjoined by
+some Heavenly spirit to rise and repair to the celebration of the
+Mass, but had resisted the Divine influence, and had been claimed by
+his master, the Devil, who had strangled him. Some marks on the walls
+of the room where he died were for years afterwards shown as those of
+the wicked knight's blood.
+
+There are many other traditions and legends attached to this famous
+castle, which is one of the several buildings in Europe making a claim
+to possess exactly as many windows as there are days in the year; but
+for these stories, interesting though they are as exhibiting the
+credulity, barbarism, and imaginativeness of mediæval times, we have
+not space.
+
+Not far from Tratzberg is the quaint, interesting, and flourishing
+town of Schwaz, on the right bank of the Inn, and overlooked by the
+Castle of Frundsberg. It was, far back in the times of the Roman
+occupation of Tyrol, a station of considerable importance and size;
+but after the evacuation of the country it gradually declined until
+the fourteenth century, when it was little more than a scattered
+hamlet of poor houses, with an inn for the accommodation of travellers
+who were too weary to proceed further on their way to Innsbruck, or
+who had been overtaken near the place by nightfall.
+
+[Sidenote: SCHWAZ MINERS]
+
+Then at the commencement of the fifteenth century, according to
+Burglechner, a vein of silver ore was discovered through the rampant
+behaviour of a bull, who went mad or became uncommonly energetic, and,
+tearing up the grass on the hillside with his horns, was the means of
+disclosing what afterwards proved to be a vast deposit of silver ore.
+The news of the discovery was brought hot haste to the poor hamlet by
+the herdsman who was in charge of the animal, and the inhabitants
+flocked out to investigate the story of the shining metal which had
+been uncovered. In a very short time Schwaz regained its ancient
+prosperity and importance, and at one time, when the silver mines were
+at their best, the population, which nowadays is about 6500, was not
+far short of five times as many. The discovery of the silver caused
+several of the noble families in the neighbourhood to forsake the
+calling of arms and knightly service for that of mine owning and mine
+working; and the vast wealth of the Augsburg merchants and bankers,
+notably the Hochstetters, Ilsungs, and Fuggers, was largely employed
+in the working of the mines which had been speedily opened up. Amongst
+the noble families who turned miners or mine proprietors was that of
+the Fiegers, one of whom was an intimate companion of Maximilian I.
+The latter, when Fieger died full of years and leaving an astonishing
+progeny and an enormous fortune behind him, was present at his old
+friend's funeral. His son, Hans Fieger, married Margaret von
+Pienzenau, who, on her coming to her husband's home, was accompanied
+by a vast cavalcade consisting of four thousand horses, of which those
+drawing her coach were shod with silver.[24]
+
+The mining industry was speedily developed by the immense sums wealthy
+merchants in Bavaria and elsewhere were willing to embark in
+speculation, or advance upon the security of the mines themselves; and
+so skilful and daring did the Schwaz miners become, that later on
+their services were requisitioned for use in the mines of other
+districts, and for military mining operations against the Turks in
+Hungary. In the siege of Vienna in 1529 by the Turks, Soliman the
+Magnificent, who invested the city with an army of 300,000 men, was
+forced to raise it, after losing nearly a fourth of his men, owing to
+the countermining of the Schwaz miners. Two centuries later, the
+Schwazers undermined and blew up the splendid and almost impregnable
+fortifications of Belgrade before it was ceded to Turkey; and at
+various times their services were engaged by the Dukes of Florence and
+Piedmont.
+
+Schwaz, too, has the distinction of having had one of the earliest of
+printing presses set up in the town; and matters referring to mining
+and mining methods were often referred to the experienced and skilful
+miners and engineers of Schwaz.
+
+Just as was the case with the miners of the not far distant
+Principality of Salzburg, those of Schwaz embraced the doctrines of
+Luther, and made serious attempts to put down Roman Catholic
+clericalism and oppression. On two occasions at least they marched in
+considerable numbers upon Innsbruck, but were met at Hall by the
+Bishop of Brixen, who prevailed upon them to return to their homes by
+promises of redress of their grievances. But though they consented to
+do this and did not proceed further down the Inn Thal, in Schwaz
+itself the new faith and its supporters became so powerful that at one
+time the latter managed to possess themselves of half of the parish
+church, in which portion the Lutheran service was performed.
+Ultimately they were ejected, and had to meet in a wood near the town,
+where two followers of the Reformer, who had been deprived of their
+status as Catholic priests, used to preach.
+
+The appearance some little time later of a Franciscan, who came to
+Schwaz with the object of "stiffening" the backs of the Catholics and
+stamping out the new faith, led to collisions of a violent character
+between the two parties.
+
+One story, that was very generally accepted as a miracle by the
+Catholic population, concerning these disputes, which sometimes were
+not confined to words and arguments alone, is as follows. A leader
+amongst the reformers is stated to have exclaimed during a heated
+discussion, "If Pastor Söll (one of the priests who had accepted
+Luther's doctrines) does not preach the true doctrine, may the Devil
+carry me up into the Steinjoch." Hardly, we are told, were the words
+out of his mouth when the speaker vanished.
+
+It is unnecessary to add that the Lutheran faith received a heavy blow
+from this incident, and the effect of the miracle, establishing, as
+the Catholics claimed, the true faith, was further increased when the
+unfortunate man who had thus been so suddenly spirited away returned
+some time afterwards, confessing his transportation to the Steinjoch,
+with a bruised body, and shattered faith in Pastor Söll.
+
+Later on the mining industry was brought almost to a standstill owing
+to religious disputes, and an invasion of Anabaptists. And although
+the latter were expelled, and many thousands of those who favoured the
+reformed faith were brought back to the true fold through the
+instrumentality of the Jesuit fathers from Hall, the mines from this
+time commenced to decline in richness, and never recovered their
+former productiveness. For a considerable period copper and an
+excellent quality of iron was found in large quantities after the
+silver gave out, but the place as a mining centre declined more and
+more as the years rolled by.
+
+Schwaz, in addition to its religious dissensions, has in the past
+suffered from a visitation of the plague, "when the inhabitants died
+off like flies"; and it also suffered terribly in the campaign of
+1809. In the latter year the Bavarians under the Duke of Dantzic and
+their French allies under De Roi determined to strike terror into the
+hearts of the inhabitants of the Inn Thal by burning the town. They
+attacked the place, and not content with putting the inhabitants to
+the sword practised upon them the most horrible cruelties; more
+especially upon the women and young girls; some so revolting as to be
+indescribable in print. None were spared; "old and young alike were
+outraged, then either slain or thrown into the river or the blazing
+ruins which had once been their homes."
+
+[Sidenote: SCHWAZ PARISH CHURCH]
+
+Fortunately, although little of the town itself was left standing to
+show succeeding generations what ancient Schwaz had been like, owing
+to successive occupations by hostile troops at the latter part of the
+eighteenth and early part of the nineteenth centuries, the fine parish
+church which had been commenced in 1470 (about) and was consecrated in
+1502 was less injured than might have been expected. The plan of the
+building is remarkable, containing a double nave, each complete with
+its aisles, choir, and high altar, the cause of this peculiarity being
+the fact that the miners were of sufficient wealth and importance at
+the time of its construction to insist upon having a separate church
+to themselves apart from the townspeople. Indeed, even nowadays one of
+the high altars is known as "the Knappen Hoch Altar," or Miners' High
+Altar. In the roof, composed of copper tiles, of which there are said
+to be no less than fifteen thousand, provided as a contribution by the
+mine-owners and miners, and in the device of crossed pickaxes,
+appearing here and there in the decorations of the building, one can
+clearly trace its connection with the mining industry, and the
+interest the miners themselves showed in its erection.
+
+The church at various times has been unskilfully restored, but it
+still contains some very interesting and fine monuments, that to Hans
+Dreyling, a metal-worker and founder, being especially worthy of note.
+In it are depicted not only the metal-worker, but his three wives and
+children, who are habited as knights, all being under the protection
+of St. John the Baptist. This remarkable work is by the famous
+founders Alexander Colin of Malines, and the even more famous Hans
+Löffler. There are, too, nine altar pieces by Tyrolese painters which
+should be carefully noted.
+
+One finds some interesting painted houses in Schwaz, as in many other
+villages and towns of the district of the Inn Thal, and some of the
+frescoes, most of which depict religious subjects, are of considerable
+merit.
+
+The town, however, is not one to which many travellers come, or in
+which tourists linger, although it is on the main line of railway, and
+has considerable interest for those for whom church architecture,
+legendary lore, and picturesqueness of a sort possesses attractions.
+
+[Sidenote: GEORG VON FRUNDSBERG]
+
+The deserted and ruined castle of the famous Frundsberg (whose name,
+by the way, outrivals that of Shakespeare in the many forms in which
+it is and can be spelled), a fortress which was there before the dawn
+of the Christian Era, and no one seems to know quite how long even
+before that, is quite close to the Schwaz. Its history is obscure for
+many centuries after the period we have named, and only the barest
+fragments have come down to us of the doings and life at Castle
+Frundsberg during the eleventh down to the end of the fourteenth
+century. It was in the time of "the famous fighter of a fighting
+race," Georg von Frundsberg, son of Ulrich, knight of Frundsberg, born
+at Mindelheim in 1473, and the founder of the _Landsknechte_, that the
+castle and the family appear to have reached their zenith of
+prosperity, wealth and fame, the former two characteristics being
+chiefly due to Georg's marriage with a wealthy Suabian heiress. He was
+"one of many sons, most of whom became distinguished, and three of
+whom (Georg himself being one) were much esteemed by the Emperor
+Maximilian." Georg was, at a very early age, made a general, and after
+the Battle of Regensburg, in 1504, was knighted on the field by
+Maximilian, who had witnessed his astonishing bravery and feats of
+arms. When only four and twenty, he was esteemed a skilled and
+unequalled leader of men, and in his campaigns against the Swiss and
+Venetians he was wonderfully successful. Some most astonishing feats
+of personal strength of his are recorded; how he could push an
+ordinary man over with one of his fingers; could catch a runaway horse
+and bring him to his haunches with one hand; and many a time clove his
+opponents in two halves with a blow from his two-handled sword. It is
+not unlikely that his immense natural strength had a good deal to do
+with his being exalted into a popular hero, and being made the central
+figure of many legendary tales and astonishing romances. Of him they
+sang--
+
+     "Georg von Frundsberg,
+     Von grosser Sterk,
+     Ein theurer Held;
+     Behielt das Feld
+     In Streit und Krieg.
+     Den Feind niederslieg
+     In aller Schlacht.
+     Er legt Got zu die Er und Macht."
+
+Which maybe roughly translated: "George of Frundsberg, of marvellous
+strength; a hero of renown; invincible upon the field of combat and
+war; victorious in every battle. The honour of which success he gave
+to God."
+
+He threw in his lot with the Lutherans, and commanded the troops under
+Charles V., and was one of the knights who were concerned in the
+attack upon Rome.
+
+Although at one time immensely wealthy, when he was at last taken with
+an apoplectic seizure during the siege of the latter city, and carried
+home to die at Mindelheim, he was a ruined man. He had spared none of
+his wealth in the prosecution of expeditions in which he had been
+engaged, where, as often as not, the kings and emperors on whose
+behalf they were undertaken failed to pay the troops. To his credit,
+Georg von Frundsberg seems to have invariably paid the men himself;
+and we are told he seldom took the booty which fell to his share,
+selecting only some comparatively valueless, though generally
+historically interesting objects, such as flags and banners, a sword
+(jewelled sometimes, it is true, but still comparatively unimportant
+monetarily compared with the vast treasure he might have taken as his
+share), or the helmet of a conquered challenger, preferring that his
+men should be well paid by the major portion of the loot for their
+bravery and endurance. In those days money advanced by nobles and
+others to warring princes to carry on expeditions was generally not
+recovered from the actual borrowers, but repaid by robbery of the
+conquered, out of the booty seized, or by means of the ransoms paid by
+distinguished prisoners. So it happened that Georg von Frundsberg,
+scorning these means, was gradually ruined, for neither Charles V. nor
+Maximilian saw to it that the vast sums he from time to time expended
+on their behalf during their campaigns were repaid to him.
+
+His motto, which ran, "The more opponents the greater honour," was
+characteristic of himself and of his race. But with his death, and the
+financial embarrassments which afflicted his heirs, owing to the heavy
+mortgages on the estates which he had left behind him, with no means
+of discharging the same, the Frundsbergs declined rapidly in power,
+and the race came to an end in the male line on the death of his son
+George (one of nine children) in 1586,[25] though there are
+descendants in the female line of the Frundsbergs living at the
+present time.
+
+The castle afterwards fell into ruins, and its history may be said to
+have ceased with the close of the sixteenth century. The Bavarians,
+however, made use of the ruined walls for "cover" during the campaign
+of 1809, when they were attacked by the forces raised by Hofer and his
+comrades.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[21] W. A. Baillie Grohman, "Tyrol: the Land in the Mountains."
+
+[22] The Emperor is stated to have trained and fired the first shot
+himself.
+
+[23] Mr. W. A. Baillie-Grohman.
+
+[24] One account states that the coach itself was drawn by the four
+thousand horses!
+
+[25] Some authorities give the year as 1580.--C. H.
+
+
+
+
+CHAPTER XII
+
+     THROUGH THE OBER-INNTHAL: ZIRL, ITS CHURCH, LEGENDS, AND
+     PAINTED HOUSES--THE MARTINSWAND AND
+     MAXIMILIAN--SCHARNITZ--LANDECK--BLUDENZ--BREGENZ AND ITS
+     LEGEND OF THE MAID
+
+
+From Schwaz to Zirl,[26] beyond Innsbruck, is between twenty-nine and
+thirty miles, either by train or road. The latter is quite good for
+cycling, and those who are not cyclists or pedestrians will find to
+make the journey by carriage a delightful way of reaching the
+picturesque little village from which the ascent of the Gross Solstein
+may be made, and that also of the more romantic and famous
+Martinswand.
+
+The village is, unlike many of those lying in the Unter-Innthal, east
+of Innsbruck, an agricultural one, with most of the houses built in
+straight rows, and having quaint and picturesque, but not very clean
+or salubrious, courtyards in the rear. Some of the most charming
+groups of peasants, ox-carts, and "farm scenes" are to be found at
+Zirl, which is a good deal visited by artists, and invites the
+attention of amateur photographers.
+
+In most cases the houses have their dwelling-rooms and sleeping
+accommodation on the first floor, which is reached by flights of
+steps, and the exteriors of the dwellings are made picturesque and
+quaint by the projecting gables of carved wood, and the galleries
+which jut out beneath them, where the corn, herbs, and other produce
+is either laid out or hung up to dry. As in other villages of the Inn
+Thal, one sees the love of colour in the delicate pink, blue (almost a
+lavender), and green tints of the stucco-work on the house-fronts and
+walls. Zirl is a picture-village, too, and on the houses, as one
+drives or walks through the narrow streets, one catches glimpses of
+paintings of Virgins, saints engaged in vigorous and deadly combats
+with evil-looking monsters of the dragon tribe, and here and there,
+set in a niche in the wall, a tiny figure of a Madonna, saint, or
+crucifix protected with glass, and often surrounded with a chaplet or
+bunches of withered flowers.
+
+One of the Inns, named "the Regenbogen," has a most vivid and even
+startling representation of a rainbow (which gives it its name)
+painted over the arched doorway.
+
+The church of Zirl is chiefly interesting from the frescoes it
+contains, which are the work of Schöpf. The churchyard is a spot in
+which to linger. It is instinct with the pathos which comes in a
+measure from partial neglect, and picturesqueness of environment.
+
+One of the little town's chief attractions to the antiquarian and the
+student of ancient and curious things will undoubtedly be the
+Calvarienberg, which lies a little to the north; green and beautiful,
+and crowned by a picturesque pilgrimage church. The ascent is
+comparatively easy, and well repays one for the climb, not only on
+account of the interest of the "Calvary," to form which the natural
+rocks have been adapted, but by reason of the delightful views which
+are obtainable from the plateau.
+
+The path is dotted here and there by tiny buff-coloured chapels,
+painted a sky blue inside, marking the stations of the cross; and from
+almost all, as one turns round and faces the way one has come, or
+looks out over the valley below, there is some charming view, or tiny
+tree-framed vista, to arouse one's interest and delight one's eyes.
+The church, were it not so isolated, and set amid greenery, and
+surrounded with flower-bedecked grass, would strike one as garish, so
+bright in tone are the colours with which it is adorned. But somehow
+or other there, amid silence scarcely ever disturbed by the noises of
+the village and only occasionally broken by the musical tinkle of cow
+bells, and in a sunshine and air which is so bright and breezy and
+clear, one's artistic sense seems to rest unshocked by the vividness
+of the distemper and paint, and the crudity of the decorations.
+
+[Sidenote: THE MARTINSWAND]
+
+The village is, of course, very closely connected with several
+incidents in the defence of Tyrol against the various Bavarian
+invasions; and in the immediate neighbourhood is the Martinswand,
+which rises sheer from the valley below Zirl, and was the scene,
+according to tradition, of a perilous hunting adventure of the Emperor
+Maximilian. The story is as follows: It was on Easter Monday, in the
+year 1493,[27] when "Kaiser Max," as he was familiarly and
+affectionately called by his Tyrolese subjects, was staying at
+Weierburg, that he determined to set out on one of his favourite
+hunting expeditions on the Zirlergebirge. There are many accounts of
+what happened, but one of the most credited says that the chamois
+which the Emperor had been stalking suddenly led him down the
+precipitous face of the Martinswand.
+
+[Sidenote: MAXIMILIAN'S EXPLOIT]
+
+Intrepid hunter as he was, however, the steepness of the terrible
+descent, which suddenly opened up beneath his feet, did not quench his
+ardour for the chase nor deter him. But unfortunately, in his haste in
+scrambling down the rocks, the iron nails in his hunting boots were
+torn out one by one, until when he at last reached a rocky ledge
+scarcely a foot in width there was but a single spike left in either
+of them. To descend further was impossible, and upon glancing upward
+along the path he had come, the Emperor at once saw that retreat by
+the same way was equally hazardous. So there he hung literally
+between earth and sky, visible as a mere speck from the valley which
+yawned beneath him. A less fearless sportsman might well have been
+unnerved by the position in which he found himself, or exhausted by
+the strain put upon him. But the Emperor was made of tough and
+enduring stuff, and his nerves were iron. Not only did he manage to
+retain his foothold at that dizzy height, but he succeeded in nerving
+himself to look about him, and after doing so for some time discovered
+near by a small cleft or cavity in the rock which would afford him at
+least a better foothold, if not actual protection.
+
+The members of his hunting party who had followed him to the edge of
+the precipitous Martinswand now looked down, but were unable to
+determine what had become of Maximilian. And none from below in the
+valley could, of course, see him, even if he had not been partly
+hidden, first, by the ledge of rock and then by the cave, from the
+fact that he was more than a thousand feet above them. At last,
+however, when his probable situation became known to his followers and
+to the inhabitants of Zirl, prayers for his safety and ultimate escape
+were offered up in the church; and the priests also brought the Holy
+Sacrament out to the top of the Martinswand, and there again offered
+prayers for the Emperor's deliverance.
+
+His retainers, huntsmen, and companions in the chase gazed up or down,
+as the case might be, helplessly and hopelessly at him, and to them no
+human aid seemed to be possible. Just as every one was about to
+abandon hope (one version of the occurrence tells us), a daring
+huntsman, named Oswald Zips, appeared, having himself climbed down the
+precipice in pursuit of his quarry.
+
+Surprised to find the Emperor, he called out, "Hullo! What brings you
+here?"
+
+  [Illustration: AUTUMN IN S. TYROL]
+
+And the former, no doubt, relieved in mind and not disposed to stand
+upon ceremony or resent so unconventional a greeting, replied, "I am
+on the look out."
+
+To which the newcomer replied, "And so am I. Shall we venture down
+together?"
+
+And upon the Emperor agreeing to make the attempt--after, according to
+various accounts, having spent from twenty-four to seventy-two hours
+in his perilous position--they set out to descend the remainder of the
+cliff face, and ultimately succeeded in doing so in safety. The daring
+hunter (who various accounts say was a brigand, and others an outlaw),
+to whom a secret path was known, was naturally well rewarded by the
+grateful monarch, and ultimately was ennobled with the title of
+Hollaner von Hohenfelsen; the last word, "High Rock," commemorating
+the incident. As is perhaps natural, some accounts place a
+supernatural aspect upon the Emperor's deliverance, and state that it
+was an angel which guided him to safety, sent by Heaven in answer to
+the prayers of the priests and people and the Emperor's trust in
+Providence.
+
+Amongst the treasures of Schloss Ambras is the monstrance in which the
+Host was carried by the priests of Zirl when they celebrated Mass for
+the comfort of the Emperor on Martinswand and offered up prayers for
+his deliverance.
+
+Maximilian, finding afterwards that many of the people of Zirl and the
+district were determined to make the perilous descent to the little
+cave which had afforded him shelter and foothold, employed some of the
+Schwaz miners to cut a path down to it and to enlarge the cavity,
+which became known as the Max-Höhle. In the cave was placed a
+crucifix, with figures of the Virgin and St. John on either side, of
+sufficiently large size to be visible from the valley below. The
+cavern can be reached by this path (or one made since) in about an
+hour and a half; but the climb is distinctly one which should be
+attempted only by the clear-headed and sure-footed. A very excellent
+view of the "hole" used to be obtainable from the ruins of the little
+hunting-box and chapel to St. Martin which Maximilian afterwards
+erected upon the green knoll opposite to it, known as the
+Martins-buhel, but now private property.
+
+Those who stop at Zirl and visit the Martinswand should not fail to
+proceed a few miles further northward to the pretty little village of
+Seefeld. On the way along the six miles of winding and picturesque
+road one passes Fragenstein, once a strong fortress and afterwards
+converted by "Kaiser Max" into one of his numerous hunting seats,
+which lie scattered about the Inn Thal and the district round about.
+
+There is quite a romantic story of buried treasure in connection with
+ruined Fragenstein, in which a huntsman clad in green is mixed up, who
+appears periodically and invites the peasants by his gestures to come
+and assist him in digging up the treasure. Several attempts have been
+made to discover the latter in past times, but all have been
+frustrated when success appeared to be certain. On one occasion the
+peasants of the valley say those who were digging, and had worked hard
+for many days turning up the soil in every direction, actually had the
+metal chest, in which the treasure is reputed to lie buried, in sight,
+when a terrific storm burst over the valley, and when it had subsided
+all traces of their work had been washed away or otherwise
+obliterated, and the clue was never again discovered. The road to
+Seefeld, though tempting for pedestrians, is steep, especially up to
+Leiten and Reit; but those who walk may take some short cuts on the
+curves, and will be well repaid by the pretty scenery and fresh,
+invigorating air.
+
+Neither at Leiten nor Reit is there much to detain the traveller--a
+few picturesque houses; nothing more. And so on to Seefeld. In
+connection with the village and its Heilige Blutskapelle there is one
+of those many legendary stories, of which there are so great a number
+known to Tyrolese Folk-lore.
+
+Many centuries ago there appears to have lived at Seefeld a man named
+Oswald Milser, who was rich and powerful and generous both to the
+Church and to his poorer neighbours. His one besetting sin, however,
+was pride, and so one day when he went to take the Easter Eucharist he
+insisted that to distinguish him from the other communicants and mark
+his importance the priest should give him one of the larger wafers
+reserved for the use of the priests alone. Afraid to offend Milser,
+who had been a generous supporter of the Church and a giver of large
+alms, the priest complied with his request. No sooner, however, was
+the host placed upon his tongue than the weight of it bore Milser to
+the earth. And although in his terror and predicament he clung to the
+altar, and then to the altar steps as he sunk further, the latter gave
+way, and he continued to sink lower and lower, till in his terror he
+called upon the priest to take the host back from him. This the priest
+did, and when Oswald Milser had recovered from his fright he
+recognized that the circumstance was a lesson to his pride, and
+ultimately he gave his goods to the poor and the Church, and entered a
+monastery to lead a life of penance and contemplation.
+
+[Sidenote: A MIRACULOUS ROSEBUSH]
+
+When his wife was told the miracle, she refused to credit it, saying
+that sooner than do so she would believe that a dead rose-tree could
+blossom. The story goes on to tell how immediately "a rose-tree which
+was near by and had been dead for a long time, put forth the most
+beautiful blooms, and so confounded the wicked woman that she went out
+of her mind, rushed from her house, and was never more seen in the
+flesh." But her spirit was often heard at night, wailing and moaning
+on the mountain-side.
+
+It was to contain this miraculous host which had confounded Oswald
+Milser's pride that the Archduke Ferdinand, in 1575, built a special
+little chapel on the left side of the fine fourteenth-century Gothic
+church of Seefeld. This is even nowadays an object of veneration, to
+which a considerable number of pilgrims come. The altar-piece is a
+fine one, and was well restored about five-and-thirty years ago. The
+statues which adorn it are those of the favourite legendary heroes of
+Tyrol, St. Oswald and St. Sigismund, whilst the subjects of the
+bas-reliefs are the incidents of Biblical history, known as "The
+Mysteries of the Rosary." Amongst the "treasures" of the church are a
+remarkably fine and interesting crystal reliquary and crown, given by
+the Archduchess Eleonora.
+
+From Seefeld there are many interesting excursions to be made into the
+picturesque Mittenwald district, which lies to the north, upon the
+Bavarian frontier.
+
+Scharnitz lies at the point where the Hinderan and Karwendel valleys
+unite. It has memories of many a struggle against the Bavarian
+invaders, and more particularly of the defence of the fortress Porta
+Claudia, built during the Thirty Years' War by Claudia de Medici, by
+an Englishman named Swinburne, an ancestor of the late Algernon
+Charles Swinburne the poet. He was an officer in the Austrian service,
+and had a force of only 600 against Marshal Ney, with nearly 20,000,
+and made so gallant and stubborn a defence that when the garrison at
+length surrendered to such vastly superior numbers they made their own
+terms and were allowed to march out as prisoners of war whilst
+retaining their side-arms. They were sent as prisoners to
+Aix-la-Chapelle, but the "colours" were saved by one of the garrison,
+a Tyrolese, who made his escape with them wound round his body. He was
+sought for amid the mountains for many weeks, but was not recaptured,
+and lived to, later on, reach Vienna and hand the precious colours to
+his gallant chief, who had so well defended the fortress.
+
+We reached Telfs from Seefeld by road. The village, which boasts a
+large cotton factory, is prettily situated and pleasant, but there is
+nothing in the place itself to detain the traveller. The same remark
+applies to Imst, once given over to the breeding of canaries, which
+were so celebrated for their singing qualities that they were exported
+to all parts of Europe. The old Inn, however, is worth inspection
+should a stop be made at the little town, and there are many
+excursions of a charming character to be made in the district round
+about.
+
+[Sidenote: LANDECK]
+
+Landeck is a prettily situated and important little town in a wide
+bend of the Inn Thal, having a fine prospect of environing mountain
+summits occupying both sides of the river and dominated by Castle
+Landeck, whose grim, square, and battlemented tower forms a striking
+feature of the landscape. Another prominent building, which at once
+strikes one on approaching the place either by road or rail, is the
+fine fifteenth-century parish church standing on the slope of the
+hill, which is crowned by the castle.
+
+The church was founded by two natives of the place, only the Christian
+names of whom appear to have survived, who, having lost their two
+children in the forest near by, vowed that if the latter were found
+they would show their gratitude by erecting a church to the Holy
+Virgin. Hardly had the vow been uttered, the legend states, when the
+distracted parents saw a bear and a wolf advancing towards them, each
+bearing a child unharmed in its mouth!
+
+The spire of the church, which has a curious double bulb surmounting
+it, is of considerably later date than the building itself, which,
+although thoroughly restored some forty years ago, was done very
+carefully and sympathetically, and preserves many of its most
+interesting architectural features, including some very early
+sculpture. In the churchyard, from which such a delightful prospect of
+the valley of the Inn is obtained, there are two monuments, which
+should not be missed by any one interested in antiquities and history.
+One is to Oswald von Schrofenstein, dating from early in the fifteenth
+century; the other takes the form of a little Gothic chapel, dating
+from 1870, which was erected to the memory of the Landeckers who fell
+whilst assisting to defend the Italian frontier of Tyrol during the
+Austro-Italian campaign of 1866.
+
+[Sidenote: A TYROLESE VICTORY]
+
+Landeck bore a brave part in the War of the Spanish Succession in
+1703, when Maximilian, Elector of Bavaria, joined forces with the
+French and Italians against Austria, and invaded Tyrol. The Tyrolese,
+always ready to speedily assemble in defence of their beloved country,
+soon made the main road over the Brenner impossible of passage by the
+enemy, and Maximilian thought to elude the sharpshooters who swarmed
+upon the hillsides commanding that way, by sending his forces round by
+the Finstermunz and Ober-Innthal. They reached the neighbourhood of
+Landeck without much opposition; but the Tyrolese had gathered to
+dispute their further advance on the first favourable opportunity.
+
+The Judge of the district, one Martin Sterzinger, had speedily
+summoned all the available Landsturm forces of the neighbourhood, and
+worked out a plan of campaign. The latter were to permit the enemy to
+advance until they were well into the gorge, and then attack them so
+fiercely and from so commanding a position as to have some hope--in
+spite of their greater numbers--of severely and finally defeating
+them. They were in consequence allowed to advance into the narrow
+gorge, the road through which was spanned by the Pontlatzerbrucke. But
+before they entered the defile the bridge had been destroyed by the
+Tyrolese. The Bavarians, who were compelled to traverse a steep and
+narrow mountain path, when they came in sight of the destroyed bridge
+at once realized that they were entrapped. The precipitous sides of
+the hills above them were practically unscalable, and there was no way
+now the bridge was destroyed by which they could cross the roaring,
+rushing Inn to safety on the other side. In the panic which ensued
+numbers fell or were pushed from the road into the river, to be swept
+swiftly away.
+
+  [Illustration: LANDECK AND ITS ANCIENT FORTRESS]
+
+Then suddenly the heights above literally swarmed with Tyrolese, who
+had remained hidden until the right moment to attack, who poured into
+the huddled and panic-stricken mass of the enemy a hail of bullets,
+supplemented by stones and pieces of rock hurled down by those who
+were not possessed of guns. Only a mere handful of the force was able
+to turn back and escape along the path by which they had come, and
+these were speedily overtaken by the active mountaineers and made
+prisoners. Not one, we are told, made good his escape to bear news of
+the disaster to headquarters, and thus the French and Bavarian
+commanders were for some considerable time in doubt as to what had
+occurred. In the end they learned how their immensely superior force
+had been literally cut to pieces and wiped out, and perhaps also to
+hold the "rough jackets" of Landeck and the Inn Thal in greater
+respect than they had done before. The victory of July 1st, as it is
+known amongst the many other successes of the peasants' campaign
+against the invaders of their land, is celebrated every year by a
+procession and _fête_.
+
+Besides being a most interesting little town, Landeck is yearly
+growing more popular with holiday makers and rest seekers as a fine
+centre from which to make some of the most delightful excursions and
+short tours in the whole of the Inn Thal. The chief of these are
+either in the immediate neighbourhood into the Lotzer Thal, and
+Medriol Thal, or along and by way of the splendid Finstermunz high
+road to Sulden, Trafoi, and other smaller places. There is also, of
+course, the famous Stilfserjoch, the highest carriage-road in Europe,
+and the pretty villages and valleys of the Kaunser Thal to invite a
+long stay amid surroundings which are scarcely excelled in any other
+district of North Tyrol.
+
+But not merely days and weeks, but even months could be pleasantly
+spent with Landeck as a base from which to explore the numberless
+beautiful and almost unknown smaller valleys and gorges which run out
+of the Inn Valley north and south, and in the former case lead one to
+that wonderland of the Bavarian highlands, with its many ancient and
+Royal castles, lovely little lakes, and fertile, flower-decked
+pastures.
+
+Soon after leaving Landeck, either by rail or road, one crosses the
+boundary which separates the Ober-Innthal from the Vorarlberg. If by
+the latter, as one approaches the summit of the Arlberg, which is 5910
+feet above sea-level, one catches sight of an immense crucifix
+overshadowing the road, near which are the two posts marking the
+boundary line. The old road was opened for traffic nearly a century
+and a quarter ago, but a considerable portion of that now generally
+used, which is more sheltered and protected, was not made until 1825.
+By the magnificent Arlberg Pass route one can reach Bregenz, and to
+make the journey in this way by carriage or afoot is most delightful,
+though the railway, after the long tunnel is passed, is very
+interesting and picturesque.
+
+However, comparatively few tourists and travellers nowadays devote the
+time necessary to traverse the Arlberg to Bregenz by road, and so
+Bludenz must be included in the itinerary we are describing. The
+little town, which has a bustling and prosperous air, though it is
+decidedly hot in summer, still possesses a considerable number of its
+older buildings and houses. The ancient château or castle of
+Gayenhofen is now used for Government purposes; it forms a picturesque
+landmark in the town.
+
+Bludenz will always have a place in the romantic history of Tyrol from
+the fact that it was here that the well-beloved "Frederick with the
+Empty Purse" came while an outlaw and in fear for his life. He made
+himself known to the innkeeper where he sought refuge, who, though
+embarrassed, was delighted to shelter the popular hero. His view was
+shared by the rest of the inhabitants of the town, who when summoned
+by the Emperor Sigismund to deliver up their prince declined to do so,
+saying, "they had sworn fealty to Duke Frederick and the house of
+Austria, and they would not betray him."
+
+Frederick, though doubtless touched by the loyalty of the Bludenz
+folk, knew that if he remained amongst them the result would probably
+be the dispatch of a force by the Emperor to capture him, and the
+possible destruction of the town by way of reprisal. So he stole
+quietly away, and Bludenz was saved.
+
+The old town is well worth a few hours' stay, and there are many
+picturesque "bits" to be discovered for sketch book and camera in the
+older houses and side alleys, even if time will not permit of a
+sufficiently long sojourn to allow one to visit the pretty Montfacon
+Thal, with its legend of a beautiful maiden who lived up in the
+mountain guarding a hidden treasure, which she is condemned to watch
+over until some one is bold enough to kiss three times a huge toad
+which lives hard by, and also guards the wealth that is to reward the
+bold rescuer of the maiden.
+
+[Sidenote: FELDKIRCH]
+
+Feldkirch is the last important town on the route to Bregenz.
+Pleasantly situated near the grim gorges through which the river Ill
+rushes with ever-increasing rapidity and force to join the Rhine,
+there is much of interest in the quaint streets, and the arcades which
+run in front of many of the houses.
+
+The town itself is shut in by the mountains and dominated by the old
+fortress of Shattenburg, now used as a retreat or home for the poor;
+and for this reason perhaps is less resorted to than it otherwise
+might be. There are, however, a large number of most interesting
+excursions to be made in the neighbourhood, and the fifteenth-century
+church is a fine one, with a good "Descent from the Cross" by a native
+artist, Wolfgang Huber, and a remarkable and handsome pulpit, both
+dating from the early years of the sixteenth century. Costume, too, is
+occasionally seen in Feldkirch, and on one Sunday, the occasion of a
+festival, there were quite a number of women wearing the old-time
+steeple-crowned, brimless beaver hats--in shape somewhat like that of
+a Russian _Moujick_ or the busby of a Grenadier--wide white collars,
+embroidered bodices, and handsome brocaded aprons.
+
+The last place in Tyrol when leaving it by the Arlberg route is the
+most delightful and ancient town of Bregenz, standing upon the
+north-eastern shore of Lake Constance. It is the capital of the
+Vorarlberg, and in this delightful corner of Tyrol there is no town of
+greater charm or historic interest. Above it rises the picturesque
+Gebhardsberg, from the summit of which there is one of the most
+celebrated panoramic views in Tyrol, embracing as it does the
+beautiful lake, the Appenzell Mountains, and the rapidly flowing
+Rhine.
+
+There are really two towns in Bregenz. The old town, shaped like a
+quadrilateral, standing on the hill which ages ago was the site of the
+Roman settlement and castle, with two ancient gates, one of which has
+been pulled down; and the newer town, with its shady promenades, quay,
+modern buildings, and air of bustle during the tourist season.
+
+[Sidenote: A LEGEND OF BREGENZ]
+
+Irrespective of its unusually beautiful situation, one finds in
+Bregenz much to interest and detain. It is a truly ancient place, with
+much history--some of it of a romantic kind--attached to it. In the
+Middle Ages, indeed, the overlords of the town and district were so
+powerful that their house supplied the Emperor Charlemagne with a
+bride, concerning whom there is a legendary and highly romantic tale.
+
+  [Illustration: CHURCH INTERIOR, TYROL]
+
+It would appear from this story that Charlemagne was of a more than
+usually suspicious nature, and by no means one of those complaisant
+husbands with which the Mediæval tales have familiarized us. An old
+lover of Hildegarde, having seen her married to the Emperor with great
+distress of mind, in his wrath against her for preferring even an
+Emperor to himself, got ear of Charlemagne, and so succeeded in
+poisoning the latter's mind against his bride, that he either divorced
+or repudiated her, and married a Lombardian princess called
+Desiderata.
+
+Accepting her fate resignedly, Hildegarde eventually found her way to
+Rome, where she devoted herself to the care of the sick, and
+especially of the sick pilgrims who came to the "Eternal City." In
+course of time, so the story goes, her revengeful lover, whose name,
+Taland, is almost as common a one in Tyrol as Smith in England, having
+lost his sight, came on a pilgrimage, and whilst in Rome was cared for
+by Hildegarde, "whose tender and saintly hands," we are told, "not
+only restored his physical sight, but also his moral perception of
+right and wrong."
+
+He was so overcome with remorse when he learned to whom, under
+Providence, he owed his restoration to sight, that he confessed his
+fault to Hildegarde, and insisted upon accompanying her to
+Charlemagne, to whom he also confessed, and proved Hildegarde to have
+been blameless. The Emperor at once restored her to favour and honour.
+
+In another story connected with Bregenz, which was made the subject of
+a poem by the late Adelaide Ann Proctor, one has preserved an incident
+connected with the heroic conduct of a Bregenz woman in saving the
+town from surprise and destruction by the Swiss. There are several
+versions of the story, which dates from 1408, but probably, as it is
+of a legendary character, the one given in the ballad is as correct as
+any other.
+
+Unhappily, the Bregenz folk of to-day appear to know little of this
+heroine; and on one occasion on which we visited the town, and made a
+search for the effigy of the Maid and her steed on the gate of the old
+castle, or walls of the upper town, we were unable to find it. No one
+seemed to know the story of the "Maid of Bregenz," and an old lady,
+who had a temporary stall outside the gate for the sale of cakes and
+other refreshments, became quite irascible upon our persisting in the
+belief that there must have been a "Maid," and that she (the old lady)
+ought to know the legend.
+
+"There is no 'Maid of Bregenz,'" she said angrily at last. Adding,
+after a pause, during which she looked us up and down as though to
+decide upon our nationality, "But mad English people have asked me
+hundreds of times about her. I know nothing. There is no more to be
+said."
+
+And with this she returned to her perusal of the paper she had been
+reading when we accosted her, and we had to be content.
+
+We made our way down the somewhat rugged and steep road to the lower
+town a little crestfallen, although the view of the lake in the late
+afternoon sunshine of a July day was exquisite beyond description, the
+water deep blue and green in patches, with the incoming and outgoing
+boats and steamers leaving frothy-white or rippling wakes behind them
+almost as long as they themselves remained in sight. One determination
+we came to. It was in future not to inquire too closely into such
+pretty and poetical stories as that of the "Maid of Bregenz," and not
+to allow our desire for legendary or antiquarian knowledge to permit
+us to run the risk of further disillusionment.[28]
+
+We did not find the effigy of "the maid and her milk-white steed," on
+which she had ridden over the Swiss frontier and swum across the Rhine
+to warn the inhabitants of her old home of a projected attack by the
+Swiss amongst whom she had gone to dwell in service. The genial
+proprietor of the Oesterreichischer Hof, we found, had heard of "the
+Maid." Alas! not from his fellow-townsfolk (who should have cherished
+her memory), but, like the old lady in the upper town, from English
+tourists, who had, doubtless, climbed the steep ascent on a similar
+errand of inquiry and research to our own.
+
+"Maid" or no maid, however, Bregenz is delightful, and well deserves
+the title of "pearl of the Vorarlberg" which has been bestowed upon
+it. In its quaint old streets, its Capuchin Convent, which is so
+prominent a feature, standing as it does upon a wooded knoll of the
+Gebhardsberg, and its fine church, to the south on another eminence,
+with an ancient and weather-worn tower, there is plenty of interest.
+Picturesque the place most certainly is, and the effect is greatly
+heightened by the near presence of the lake, which stretches away in
+front of the town to fair Constance in the far distance.
+
+[Sidenote: FAREWELL, TYROL]
+
+In leaving Tyrol by way of beautiful Bregenz, washed as it is by the
+waters of one of the most delightful of Swiss lakes, one carries with
+one a last impression which is fragrant with the memories of a
+hospitable race, charming scenery, and innumerable things of historic,
+artistic, and antiquarian interest. There is, indeed, no other gate
+through which one would rather leave this "Land within the Mountains,"
+which, as yet unspoiled by crowds of tourists and general
+sophistication and the deterioration which arises therefrom, lures one
+to return to it again and again.
+
+FOOTNOTES:
+
+[26] By a strange coincidence, whilst the following description of
+this interesting and charming village was actually being written, the
+news of its almost total destruction by fire reached the author,
+necessitating the omission of some details. Many of the houses,
+however, have been rebuilt, in much the same style as formerly.--C. H.
+
+[27] Some authorities give the date as being several years
+earlier.--C. H.
+
+[28] It is possible that Miss Proctor's poem ("A Legend of Bregenz")
+is founded upon the legendary story of Ehre Guta, who is reputed to
+have delivered the country-folk of the Bregenz district from an attack
+of the Appenzellers some time during the early part of the fifteenth
+century.--C. H.
+
+
+
+
+INDEX
+
+     A
+
+     Abbey of Wilten, 17
+
+     Abel of Cologne, work of, 99
+
+     Absam, 139-142
+       and Jakob Stainer, maker of violins, 139
+       dragon legend of, 140
+       painted houses at, 140
+       story of "Miraculous Window" at, 141
+
+     A buried city, 249
+
+     Adventures of Oswald von Wolkenstein, 217-220
+
+     Aeni, Pons, 7
+
+     A fifteenth-century "blue stocking," 194
+
+     Aguntum (Innichen) Station, 9
+
+     Albianum (Kufstein), 7
+
+     "A Legend of Bregenz," 326
+
+     Alemanni, the, 11
+
+     Alpine flowers at Cortina, 267
+
+     Alt, Salome, and Archbishop von Raitenau, 174
+
+     Altissimo di Nago, 253
+
+     Ambras, Castle, 113
+       Court at, 121
+       early history of, 114
+       the Hoch Schloss, 123
+       the tourney ground, 125
+       traditions, 124
+       treasures at, 123
+
+     Ancient palaces of Trent, 243-247
+
+     Andechs, family of, 16
+
+     Anif, castle of, 179
+
+     Anna Katharina Gonzaga of Mantua, 31
+
+     Anton Gump, Landhaus of, 84
+
+     Aquila Nera Inn, Cortina, 266
+
+     Araba, 273
+
+     Archduke Ferdinand, 29
+       Leopold, 31
+
+     Arco, 251
+       church at, 251
+
+     Arlberg tunnel, 72
+
+     Arms, summons to, 41
+
+     Arno, Bishop of Salzburg, 156
+
+     Art, collection at Innsbruck, 89
+
+     Art, world-famous collection, 30
+
+     Arthur, King of England, 93
+
+     Arzl, pilgrimage chapel of, 133
+
+     Augusta Vindelicorum, 6
+
+     Austerlitz, battle of, 38
+
+     Austria, emperors of, 32
+
+     Austrian, defeat of forces at Wagram, 43
+
+
+     B
+
+     Bad Ratzes, 278
+
+     Baiovarii, 12
+
+     Battle of Austerlitz, 38
+       Custozza, 50
+       Giants, 106
+       Leipsic, 49
+       Marengo and Hohenlinden, 37
+       Naïssus, 11
+       near the Brenner, 4
+       Sadowa, 50
+       Spinges, 228, 229
+       Vercelli, 3
+
+     Bavaria, Duke Louis of, 25
+
+     Bavarian occupation, 39
+       troops enter Tyrol, 43
+
+     Bavarians, 12
+
+     Belluno, cathedral at, 270
+
+     Bible incidents, oral versions of, 57
+
+     Biener, William, and Rattenberg, 291
+       story of, 291-293
+
+     Bishop of Freisingen, 20
+       Passau, 15
+
+     Bisson, General, surrender of, 41
+
+     Black Death, 21
+
+     Bludenz, 322
+       and "Frederick of the Empty Purse," 322, 323
+
+     Bohemia, Prince John of, 19
+
+     Bozen, 206-210
+       Calvarienberg, near, 211
+       description of, 206, 207
+       fine houses, 208
+       Franciscan monastery at, 210
+       history of, 207
+       Laubengasse at, 209
+       Parish Church, 209
+       (Pons Drusi), 8
+       Sarnthal costumes at, 210
+
+     Bozen, statue of von Vogelweide at, 209
+
+     Bregenz, 324-327
+       Capuchin convent, 327
+
+     Brenner route, the, 3
+       road, the, 8
+       history of, 10
+
+     Brixen, 226-228
+       cathedral of, 227, 228
+       bishop's palace at, 228
+
+     Brixlegg, 293
+       peasant plays at, 293, 294
+
+     Buchenstein, 270
+
+     Büchsenhausen, castle of, 97
+
+     Burg, the, 80
+
+
+     C
+
+     Campo Formio, treaty of, 37
+
+     Canazei, 274
+
+     Caprile, 271
+
+     Castle Ambras, 113
+       Court at, 121
+       early history of, 114
+       the Hoch Schloss, 123
+       the tourney ground, 125
+       traditions of, 124
+       treasures at, 123
+
+     Castle Tyrol, 16
+       siege of, 22
+
+     Castle of Büchsenhausen, 97
+       Frundsberg, 303
+       Lizzana, 248
+       Runkelstein, 211
+
+     Castle of Runkelstein, frescoes of, 211, 212
+       Schonna, near Meran, 203
+       Starkenberg, 68
+       Tratzberg, 295
+       Trautson, 231
+       Trostburg, 216, 217
+
+     Cathedral, Belluno, 270
+       Brixen, 227, 228
+       Salzburg, 171, 172
+
+     Cathedral, Salzburg, burning of, 171
+       Trent, 241
+
+     Catherine of Saxony, 27
+
+     Catholic persecutions, 161
+
+     Cavalese, 276
+       bishop's palace at, 276
+
+     Cell, Maximilian's, 85
+
+     Cenotaph, Maximilian's, description of panels surrounding, 99
+       description of, 98
+
+     Ceremonials, pathetic, 60
+
+     Chapel, pilgrimage, of Maria Larch, 145
+       Silver, Innsbruck, 97
+       Silver, Innsbruck, statues in, 103
+
+     Charlemagne, empire of, 13, 14
+       reforms by, 15
+
+     Chasteler, General, 42
+
+     Church of the Servites, Innsbruck, 84
+       Jesuit, Innsbruck, 85
+       of Maria Waldrast, near Matrei, 231
+       Madonna alle Laste, near Trent, 247
+
+     Cimbri, the invasion of, 2
+
+     Civil war, 21, 25
+
+     Conquest of the country, Roman, 6
+
+     Constance, Council of, 25
+
+     Cortina, 265, 266
+       church at, 266
+       famous inn at, 266
+       festivals at, 265
+       frescoes at, 266
+
+     Costumes of Innsbruck, 75
+       at Feldkirch, 323
+       at St. Ulrich, 226
+       national, of Tyrol, 82
+       the Sarnthal, 210
+       Tyrol, 63
+
+     Council of Constance, 25
+       Trent, 236-240
+
+     Counts of Tyrol, 16, 17
+
+     Court at Castle Ambras, 121
+       Innsbruck, 80
+
+     Customs, curious wedding, 64
+       quaint Tyrolean, 59
+
+     Custozza, battle of, 50
+
+
+     D
+
+     Dante and the Castle Lizzana, 248
+       Trentino, 242
+       Val Sacra, 243
+
+     "Das Land im Gebirge," 13
+
+     Death, Black, 21
+
+     Defregger, Franz, historical masterpieces of, 90
+
+     Dialect, concerning, 225
+
+     Diaries of early travel, 14
+       of the Bishop of Passau, 15
+
+     Dolomite district, 255
+       groups, 261, 262
+       scenery, 258
+
+     Dolomites, 254-280
+       characteristics of the, 260
+       formation of, 256, 257
+       inns and hotels in the, 259
+       theories concerning, 256
+       theories of origin of, 257
+       touring in, 259
+
+     Dreiheiligen Kirche (Holy Trinity), 86
+
+     Drusi, Pons (Bozen), 8
+
+     Drusus, 4, 6
+
+     Duke Ernest, 25
+       Frederick, 24, 25
+       Louis of Bavaria, 25
+       Sigismund, 26
+
+
+     E
+
+     Eggenthal, famous waterfall in the, 213
+
+     Eleanora, daughter of James I. of Scotland, 194
+       Vincenzo of Mantua, 31
+
+     Emperor Theodoric the Goth, 93
+
+     Empire, Charlemagne's, 14
+
+     "Empty Purse, Frederick of the," 24
+
+     Enneberger, 271
+
+     Epiphany performances, 60
+
+     Eppans, the, 16
+
+     Ernest, Duke--reconciliation of Duke Frederick, 25
+
+     Etruria, ancient language of, 53
+
+     Evangelic Union, 170
+
+
+     F
+
+     Falzarego Pass, 270
+
+     Fassa Thal, 275, 279
+
+     Feldkirch, 323
+       costumes at, 323
+       engagement near, 37
+
+     Ferdinand, Archduke, 29
+       Tomb of, 102
+
+     Festival of St. Vigilius, 234
+
+     Festivals at Cortina, 265
+
+     First Counts of Tyrol, 17
+
+     Fleimse Thal, 276
+
+     Florus, the historian, 5
+
+     Franz Defregger, historical masterpieces of, 90
+
+     Franzenfeste, 229
+
+     Frauenberg, Conrad of, 23
+
+     Frederick, Duke, 24
+       reconciliation of Duke Ernest, 25
+       of the "Empty Pocket," story of, 73
+
+     Freisingen, Bishop of, 20
+
+     French, Bavarian and Saxon troops enter Tyrol, 43
+
+     French Revolution, 36
+
+     Frundsberg, Georg von, 308-310
+
+     Fugger, George, story of, 243-246
+
+     Fulpmes, 131
+
+
+     G
+
+     Gaisberg, 179, 180
+       view from, 180
+
+     Gebhardsberg, 327
+
+     General Bisson, 41
+       Chasteler, 42
+
+     Georgenberg, St., 295
+       ancient shrine at, 296
+       dishonest abbot of, 300
+       miracle of, 296
+       origin of the Church of, 298
+
+     Germanization of Tyrol, 53
+
+     Ghostly Legend, A, 69
+
+     Giants, battle of, 106
+
+     Gilg Sesselschreiber, 95
+       flight to Augsburg, 96
+
+     Golden Roof, the, 79
+
+     "Goldener Adler," 81
+
+     Goths and Huns, 12
+
+     Goths, Emperor Theodoric of the, 93
+
+     Goths, inroads of the, 11
+
+     Grafschaften, 15
+
+     "Grape Cure" at Meran, 198, 200
+
+     Grape Harvest at Meran, 200
+
+     Grasleiten Pass, 277
+
+     "Great Week" in Tyrolese history, 45
+
+     Grödenerthal, ascents in, 273
+
+
+     H
+
+     Habsburgs, schemes of the, 22
+
+     Haimon and the Dragon, 107
+
+     Hall, 134-138
+       interesting church of, 137
+       Münsterturm at, 135
+       St. Saviour's church, 138
+       salt mines, 135
+
+     Haspinger, the Capuchin Monk, 38
+
+     Haydn, Michael, at Salzburg, 185
+
+     Heilig Wasser, 128
+
+     Hellbrunn, Chateau of, 176-178
+       gardens and fountains, 177
+       mechanical theatre at, 178
+       Monatsschlösschen at, 178
+       stone theatre at, 178
+
+     Henry, youngest son of Meinhard II., 17
+
+     Herzog-Friedrich-strasse, arcades of the, 82
+
+     Highway, Tyrol, 14
+
+     Historian Florus, 5
+
+     Historic Events, Innsbruck, 101
+
+     Historical masterpieces of Franz Defregger, 90
+
+     History of the Statues at Hofkirche, 94
+
+     History in Marble, Innsbruck, 99
+
+     Hofburg, the, Innsbruck, 91
+
+     Hofer Andreas, 37, 46
+       birth of, 38
+       commander-in-chief, 40
+       "battle cry" of, 44
+       triumph of, 45
+
+     Hofer's nickname, 45
+
+     Hofer named dictator of Tyrol, 46
+       capture of, 48
+       led forth to die, 48
+       death of, 49
+       tomb of, 102
+       in the Meran "Hero Plays," 195, 196
+
+     Hofkirche, the, Innsbruck, 92, 104
+       History of the statues, 94
+
+     Hohen-Salzburg, 167-170
+       description of, 167
+       sieges of, 169
+       cable railway, 169
+
+     Hohen Tauern, range, 150
+
+     Hohenlinden, battle of, 37
+
+     Hollaner von Hohenfelsen, 315
+
+     Horace, 4
+
+     Hostelries, 10
+
+     Huns and Goths, 12
+
+
+     I
+
+     Igls, 126
+
+     Inhabitants, original, 1
+
+     Innichen (Aguntum) Station, 9
+       church and village, 262
+
+     Inns and hostelries, 10
+       ancient, 81, 275
+
+     Innsbruck, approach to, 72
+       art collection, 89
+       attractions of, 110
+       capture of, 42
+       character of, 74
+       costumes and uniforms at, 75
+       famous statues, 97
+       gaieties, 73
+       gay court at, 80
+       historical masterpieces of Franz Defregger, 90
+       Jesuit church at, 85
+       market types, 83
+       Marktgraben, 83
+       Maximilian's Tomb, 93
+       Maximilian's, description of, Cenotaph, 98, 99
+       mediæval buildings in, 81
+       museum treasures, 89
+       National Museum, 87
+       plague, 86
+       rise of, 76
+       rulers, 77
+       Silver chapel at, 97
+       site of, 5
+       some historic events at, 101
+       the environs of, 113-132
+       the Hofburg, 91
+       the Hofkirche, 92
+       the newer town, 87
+       winter sports at, 111
+
+     Invaders, Teutonic, 13
+
+
+     J
+
+     Jews, the, 21
+
+     John, Prince of Bohemia, 19, 21
+
+     Julium Carnicum (Zuglio) station, 9
+
+
+     K
+
+     Kapuzingerberg, view from, 180
+
+     Karrersee, 213, 276
+
+     Kastelruth, 278
+
+     Kerpen, General, 36
+
+     King Arthur of England, 93
+
+     Kitzbühel, 287, 288
+       sports at, 288
+
+     Kitzbühlerhorn, ascent of, 287
+
+     Klausen, 215
+       story of a nun, 216
+
+     Kufstein, 281-287
+       castle of, 282-284
+       siege of, 283, 284
+       plundering of, 284
+       Maximilian at, 283, 284
+       legend of, 285, 286
+
+
+     L
+
+     Ladin, the dialect of the Grödenerthal, 225
+
+     Lake Missurina, 262
+
+     Landeck, 319, 320
+       church of, 319
+
+     Landhaus of Anton Gump, 84
+
+     Landtag, first Tyrolean, 26
+
+     Language, the Tyrol, 55
+
+     Larch, Maria, pilgrimage chapel of, 145
+
+     Latemar, curious customs relating to, 276
+
+     Laudon, General, 36
+
+     Legend of Castle of Tratzberg, 302
+       a ghostly, 69
+       Chapel of Madonna alle Laste, 247, 248
+       Kufstein Castle, 285, 286
+       St. Leonard auf der Wiese, 289, 290
+       San Marco, 249
+       the Sclavini di San Marco, 248-250
+
+     Legends of the Rosengarten, 214
+       Tyrol, 55
+       Wilten, 109
+
+     Leipsic, battle of, 49
+
+     Leopold, Archduke, 31
+       I., Emperor, 34
+       II., Emperor, 35
+
+     Lienz (Lonicum) station, 9
+
+     Lizzana, Castle, 248
+
+     Löffler, Gregor, and Castle of Büchsenhausen, 97
+
+     Lonicum (Lienz) station, 9
+
+     Lotzer Thal, 321
+
+     Louis, Duke of Bavaria, 25
+
+     Lueg Pass, 151
+
+     Luneville, treaty of, 37
+
+
+     M
+
+     Madonna alle Laste, chapel of, 247
+
+     "Maid of Spinges," 229
+
+     "Maid of Bregenz," 325, 326
+
+     Mantua, Anna Katharina Gonzaga of, 31
+       Eleanor Vincenzo of, 31
+
+     Marco, San, 249
+
+     Marengo, battle of, 37
+
+     Maria Larch, church of, 145
+
+     Maria Theresa, empress, 34
+
+     Maria Waldrast, chapel of, 231
+
+     Marriage in Tyrol, 61
+
+     Martin, St., home of Speckbacher, 144
+
+     Martinswand, 313-315
+       Maximilian's adventure on the, 313-315
+
+     Masciacum (Matzen), 7
+
+     Massena, general, 37
+
+     Matrei, 231
+       church of Maria Waldrast, 231
+
+     Matrejum (Matrei), 8
+
+     Matzen, Schloss, 294, 295
+
+     Maurice of Saxony, 30
+
+     Max-Höhle at Zirl, 315
+
+     Maximilian, 28
+
+     Maximilian's cell, 85
+       tomb, Innsbruck, 93
+       Cenotaph description, 98
+
+     Medriol Thal, 321
+
+     Meinhard II., youngest son of, 17
+       untimely end, 23
+
+     Meran, 192-201
+       architecture of, 193
+       the Burg, 193
+       the Landesfürstliche Burg, 193, 194
+       gardens of, 195
+       "Hero Plays" at, 195, 196
+       costumes at, 197
+       "grape cure" at, 198
+       the "Saltner" at, 199
+       sports and pastimes at, 201
+       castles near, 201-203
+
+     Merchants, Venetian, 27
+
+     Michael, St., 144
+
+     Milser, Oswald, 316, 317
+
+     Mines, salt, 9
+
+     Mirabell, Schloss, garden of, 174, 175
+
+     Missurina Lake, 263
+
+     Monasteries, suppression of, 35
+
+     Mönchsberg, early church in, 153
+       walk along the, 182, 183
+
+     Mozart's birthplace, 184
+       relics in, 184
+
+     Mozart-Häuschen on the Kapuzingerberg, 181
+       furniture and relics in, 181
+
+     Mozart-Häuschen, beautiful garden of, 182
+
+     Muhldorf, battle of, 157
+
+     Munatius Plancus, 4
+
+     Museum, National, at Innsbruck, 87
+       treasures, 89
+
+     Myths of Tyrol, 55
+
+
+     N
+
+     Naïssus, battle of, 11
+
+     Napoleonic wars and Salzburg, 163
+
+     Nave d'Oro, inn, 275
+
+     Nonnberg, convent on the, 183
+       Gothic chapel of the, 183
+
+
+     O
+
+     Ober-Innthal, through the, 311-327
+
+     Original inhabitants of Tyrol, 1
+
+     Ostrogothic leader, Theodoric, 12
+
+     Oswald Milser, 316, 317
+
+     Ottoburg, the, 81
+
+
+     P
+
+     Paneveggio, 279
+
+     Paris von Lodron, archbishop, 171
+
+     Passau, bishop of, 15
+
+     Passeier Valley, 205
+       Hofer's hiding-place in, 205
+
+     Peace of Westphalia, 160
+
+     Peasants' revolt at Salzburg, 159
+
+     Persecution by Catholics, 161
+
+     Petermann, lover of Margaret of Tyrol, 108
+
+     Philippine Welser, tomb of, 102
+       romantic story of, 115-120
+       character of, 119
+       death of, 122
+
+     Pienzenau, story of Governor, 283, 284
+
+     Plague, ravages of the, 86
+       at Trent, 238
+
+     Plancus, Munatius, 4
+
+     Plätz-Wiese, 268
+
+     Pliny, quotation from, 9
+
+     Plutarch's "Marius," 3
+
+     "Pocket-Mouthed Meg," 18, 23, 108
+
+     Pons Aeni, 7
+
+     Pons Drusi (Bozen), 8
+
+     Pontlatzerbrucke, 320
+
+     Porta Claudia, Scharnitz, 318
+
+     Post Road, Brenner, 7
+
+     Power of Rome, 11
+
+     Pragser Lake or Wildsee, 269
+
+     Predazzo, 274, 275
+       Nave d'Oro inn, 275
+
+     Pressburg, treaty of, 38, 40
+
+     Prince counts of Tyrol, 17
+
+     Prince John of Bohemia, 19
+
+     Princess Catherine of Saxony, 27
+
+     Protestants, expulsion of, 161
+
+     "Pulpit bride," the, 61
+
+
+     R
+
+     Rattenberg, 290
+       castle of, 291
+       history of, 291
+
+     Reforms by Charlemagne, 15
+
+     Regent, Archduke Leopold as, 31
+
+     Revolution, French, 36
+
+     Rhætians, the, 4, 7
+       their dialect, 53
+
+     Rhæto-Roman stations, 8
+
+     Riva, 252, 253
+       parish church of, 252
+
+     Roman conquest of the country, 6
+       occupation of Rhætia, 7
+       Rhæto-, stations, 8
+
+     Rome, power of, 11
+
+     Romedius, St., story of, 133, 134
+
+     Rosengarten, 213-215
+       excursions in the, 215
+       legend of, 214
+
+     Route, the Brenner, 3, 7
+
+     Roveredo, 250, 251
+       churches of, 251
+
+     Rudolph IV., 24
+
+     Rulers, Innsbruck's, 77
+
+     Rum, village of, 133
+
+     Runkelstein, castle of, 211
+       frescoes at, 211, 212
+
+     Rupert, St., at Salzburg, 155
+
+
+     S
+
+     Sadowa, battle of, 50
+
+     St. Leonard auf der Wiese, 288, 289
+
+     St. Martin, village of, 203
+       Hofer's inn at, 204
+       Hofer relics at, 205
+
+     St. Peter's church, Salzburg, 185
+       cemetery, Salzburg, 186
+       monastery, Salzburg, 186
+
+     St. Romedius, story of, 133, 134
+
+     St. Ulrich, costume at, 226
+       quaint guide-book to, 226
+       toy industry of, 222, 223
+       village of, 221, 222
+
+     St. Vigilius, festival of, 234
+
+     Salome Alt and Archbishop von Raitenau, 174
+       and Schloss Mirabell, 174
+
+     Salsbund, the, 161
+
+     Salt mines, 9
+       discovery of, 142, 143
+
+     "Saltner," the, at Meran, 199
+
+     Salzach Valley, 151
+
+     Salzburg, 147-191
+       beauty of, 147
+
+     Salzburg, approach to, 148
+       province of, 149
+       in Roman times, 152
+       building of, 153
+       history of, 154
+       rise of, 155
+       early rulers of, 157
+       the Reformation and peasant revolt at, 159
+       province of, during French invasions, 162
+       luxurious archbishops of, 164
+       rebuilding of, 165, 166
+       ancient fortress of, 167
+       cathedral, burning of, 171
+       cathedral, 171, 172
+       Residenz-Platz, 172
+       St. Peter's church, 185
+         monastery, 186
+         cemetery, 186
+       Carolina-Augusteum museum, 186
+         special features, 187
+       peasants' ball at, 188, 189
+       a curious custom, 190
+       the market, 191, 192
+
+     Sandyland, birth of Andreas Hofer, 38
+
+     San Martino, 279
+
+     Sarnthal, costumes of the, 210
+
+     Saxon troops enter Tyrol, 43
+
+     Saxony, Princess Catherine of, 27
+       Maurice of, 30
+
+     Scarbio (Scharnitz), 8
+
+     Scenery, Tyrol, 1
+
+     Schabs (Sebatum) station, 9
+
+     Scharnitz, 318
+       defence of, by Swinburne, 318
+
+     Schlern, the, 277
+
+     Schloss Mirabell and Salome Alt, 174
+       gardens of, 174, 175
+       Zenoburg, Meran, 201
+       Rubein, Meran, 201
+       Tyrol, near Meran, 202
+         " description of, 202, 203
+       Matzen, description of, 294, 295
+
+     Schluderbach, 264
+
+     Schmalkald, war of the, 29
+
+     Schonberg, 131
+
+     Schonna, castle of, 203
+
+     Schwaz, 303-308
+       silver mines at, 304
+       curious church at, 307
+
+     Sclavini di San Marco, 248-250
+
+     Sebatum (Schabs) station, 9
+
+     Servites, church of the, 84
+
+     Sesselschreiber, Gilg, 95
+       flight to Augsburg, 95
+
+     Sigismund, duke, 26
+
+     Silver chapel, Innsbruck, 97
+       statues, 103
+
+     Site of Innsbruck, 5
+
+     Spanish Succession, War of the, 33
+
+     Speckbacher, birth of, 38
+
+     Spinges, Battle of, 228, 229
+       maid of, 229
+       engagement of, 36
+
+     Sports, Tyrolese, 67
+       at Kitzbühel, 287, 288
+       at Meran, 201
+       winter, at Innsbruck, 111
+
+     Starkenberg, Castle of, 68
+
+     Stations, Rhæto-Roman, 8
+       Tricesimum, 9
+       Julium Carnicum (Zuglio), 9
+       Aguntum (Innichen), 9
+       Lonicum (Lienz), 9
+       Sebatum (Schabs), 9
+
+     Statues, famous, at Innsbruck, 97
+
+       "        "       Hofkirche, 94
+       in Silver Chapel, Innsbruck, 103
+
+     Sterzing (Vilpetenum), 8
+
+     Sterzing, 229-231
+       Rathaus at, 230
+       church at, 230
+
+     Stilfes, gorge of, 44
+
+     Story of Charlemagne and Hildegarde, 324, 325
+       a nun, 216
+       Georg von Frundsberg, 308-310
+       Governor Pienzenau, 283, 284
+       Heilig Wasser, 128
+       Oswald Milser, 316, 317
+       Oswald von Wolkenstein, 217-220
+       Pastor Söll, 306
+       Philippine Welser, 115-120
+       St. Romedius and the Bear, 133, 134
+       Teufelspalast, Trent, 244-246
+       the "Maid of Bregenz," 325, 326
+
+     Strange natural phenomena, 131
+
+     Stubai Valley, 129
+       Bahn, 130
+
+     Summons to arms, 41
+
+     Superstitions of Tyrol, 55
+
+     Swinburne and Scharnitz, 318
+
+
+     T
+
+     Telfs, 318
+
+     Territory, New, 29
+
+     Teutonic Invaders, 13
+
+     Thaur, 133
+       village of, 56
+
+     Theodoric, Emperor of the Goths, 93
+       the Ostrogothic leader, 12
+
+     Thirty Years' War, 33
+
+     Tiberius, 4, 6
+
+     Toblach, 263
+
+     Tomb of Archduke Ferdinand and Philippine Welser, 102
+
+     Tomb of Hofer, 102
+       Maximilian, 93
+
+     "Toy-land," 223, 224
+
+     Tratzberg, castle of, 301, 302
+       Maximilian rooms, 301, 302
+       story of, 302, 303
+
+     Trautson, castle of, 231
+
+     Travel, diaries of early, 14
+
+     Treaty of Campo Formio, 37
+       Luneville, 37
+       Pressburg, 38, 40
+       Vienna, 47
+
+     Tre Croci Pass, 265
+
+     Trent (Tridentum), 8
+
+     Trent, 233-247
+       ancient, 235
+          "     palaces of, 243-247
+       cathedral of, 241
+       church of Santa Maria Maggiore, 240
+       Claudia Porticelli, story of, 243
+       Council of, 236-240
+       Dante and, 242
+       decrees of the Council of, 238
+       end of the Council of, 240
+       festival of St. Vigilius at, 234
+       foundation of, 233
+       museum, 242
+       opening of the Council of, 236
+       plague at, 238
+       story of the organ-builder of, 241
+       Teufelspalast, 244-246
+
+     Tricesimum, Roman station of, 9
+
+     Tridentum (Trent), 8
+
+     Trostburg, castle, 216, 217
+
+     Tunnel, Arlberg, 72
+
+     Types, ancient, along the highway, 14
+
+     Types, market, Innsbruck, 83
+
+     Tyrol scenery, 1
+       inhabitants, 1
+       types along the great highway, 14
+       Counts of, 16, 17
+       castle of, 16
+       possession of, 32
+       population of, 37
+       French, Bavarian, and Saxon troops enter, 43
+       Hofer, dictator of, 46
+       as Bavarian territory, 47
+       triple division of, 49
+       description of, 52
+       Germanization of, 53
+       the language of, 55
+       legends, superstitions, and myths of, 55
+       Wälsch, 57
+
+     Tyrol folk-lore, tales of, 57
+       quaint customs relating to Christmas in, 59
+       Epiphany performances, 60
+       pathetic ceremonials in, 60
+       marriage in, 61
+       bride's procession, 62
+       costumes of, 63
+       curious wedding customs, 64
+       sports and wrestling in, 67
+       national costume of, 82
+       Margaret of, 108
+       "Toy-land" in, 223
+
+     Tyrolean dances, 66
+       Landtag, first, 26
+       wedding, 65
+
+     Tyrolese character, 56
+       history, in--as "the Great Week," 45
+       masters, works of the, 89
+       sports, 67
+
+
+     U
+
+     Ulrich, St., 221, 222
+       church at, 225
+       costume at, 226
+       quaint guide-book to, 226
+       toy industry of, 222, 223
+
+     University, of Innsbruck, 84
+
+     Unter-Innthal, vast mineral wealth of, 27
+       through the, 281-310
+
+
+     V
+
+     Val Sacra and Dante, 243
+
+     Val Sugana, 280
+
+     Veldidena, 5, 8
+
+     Vendome, General, 33
+
+     Venetian merchants, 27
+
+     Vercelli, 3
+
+     Via Claudia Augusta, 8
+
+     Vienna, treaty of, 47
+
+     Vigilius, St., festival of, 234
+
+     Vilpetenum (Sterzing), 8
+
+     Vindelicorum, Augusta, 6
+
+     Vineyards at Meran, 199, 200
+
+     Von Keutschach, Bishop Leonhard, 158
+
+     Von Lodron, Paris, archbishop, 171
+
+     Von Raitenau, Bishop Wolf Dietrich, 160, 170
+
+     Von Vogelweide, statue of, 209
+
+     Von Wolkenstein, story of, 217-220
+
+     Vorarlberg, words and expressions used in, 54
+
+
+     W
+
+     Wagram, defeat of Austrian forces at, 43
+
+     Waidbruck, 272
+
+     War, Civil, 21
+       of the Schmalkald, 29
+       of the Spanish Succession, 33
+       Thirty Years', 33
+
+     Wasser, Heilig, story of, 128
+
+     Wealth, vast mineral, 27
+
+     Wedding, a Tyrolean, 65
+       customs, 64
+
+     Weisslahn-Bad, 278
+
+     Welser, Philippine, character of, 119
+       death of, 122
+       romantic story of, 115-120
+       tomb of, 102
+
+     Westphalia, Peace of, 160
+
+     Wildsee, Pragser, 269
+
+     Wilten (Veldidena), 8
+       abbey of, 17
+       a legend of, 109
+       story and description of abbey of, 105
+
+     Woodcarvers of St. Ulrich, 222, 223
+
+     Wrestling, Tyrolese, 67
+
+
+     Z
+
+     Zillerthal maidens, 59
+
+     Zirl, 311-316
+       Calvarienberg of, 312
+       Maximilian at, 313-315
+       painted houses of, 312
+
+     Zuglio (Julium Carnicum), Roman station of, 9
+
+
+PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED, LONDON AND BECCLES.
+
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of Tyrol and its People, by Clive Holland
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 40889 ***