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+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 77586 ***
+
+
+  [Illustration: VALLEY OF THE FÜNF-SEEN.
+
+    FRONTISPIECE, Vol. I.]
+
+
+
+
+                             “MAGYARLAND;”
+
+       BEING THE NARRATIVE OF OUR TRAVELS THROUGH THE HIGHLANDS
+                       AND LOWLANDS OF HUNGARY.
+
+                                  BY
+                  A FELLOW OF THE CARPATHIAN SOCIETY,
+                     AUTHOR OF ‘THE INDIAN ALPS.’
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+                       IN TWO VOLUMES.--VOL. I.
+
+                          WITH ILLUSTRATIONS.
+
+                                LONDON:
+              SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON, SEARLE, & RIVINGTON,
+                  CROWN BUILDINGS, 188 FLEET STREET.
+                                 1881.
+
+                       [_All Rights reserved._]
+
+
+
+
+                                LONDON:
+             PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED,
+                  STAMFORD STREET AND CHARING CROSS.
+
+
+
+
+                               Dedicated
+
+                                  TO
+
+                        ALL WHO LOVE MOUNTAINS
+
+                                  BY
+
+                        ONE WHO WORSHIPS THEM.
+
+
+
+
+                          CONTENTS OF VOL. I.
+
+
+                              CHAPTER I.
+                                                 PAGE
+    INTRODUCTORY                                    3
+
+                              CHAPTER II.
+    THE PUSZTA                                     17
+
+                             CHAPTER III.
+    A CAUTION TO SNAILS                            30
+
+                              CHAPTER IV.
+    GIPSY MUSIC                                    44
+
+                              CHAPTER V.
+    WE ARE MET BY OUR GUIDE                        55
+
+                              CHAPTER VI.
+    DÉLI-BÁB                                       66
+
+                             CHAPTER VII.
+    THE AGÁS OR HUNGARIAN WELL                     78
+
+                             CHAPTER VIII.
+    DAWN IN THE ALFŐLD                             92
+
+                              CHAPTER IX.
+    THE RACE                                      104
+
+                              CHAPTER X.
+    PEST                                          122
+
+                              CHAPTER XI.
+    THE VOLKSGARTEN                               136
+
+                             CHAPTER XII.
+    THE ICE-CAVES                                 154
+
+                             CHAPTER XIII.
+    A STORM IN THE MOUNTAINS                      169
+
+                             CHAPTER XIV.
+    SLOVAKS AND RUSNIAKS                          184
+
+                              CHAPTER XV.
+    THE SNOWY TÁTRA                               196
+
+                             CHAPTER XVI.
+    GOBLINS OF THE MIST                           208
+
+                             CHAPTER XVII.
+    THE MOUNTAIN HOME                             222
+
+                            CHAPTER XVIII.
+    THE GIPSY CAMP                                239
+
+                             CHAPTER XIX.
+    THE RED CONVENT                               252
+
+                              CHAPTER XX.
+    ZAKOPANE                                      265
+
+                             CHAPTER XXI.
+    THE CHAMOIS HUNTER                            277
+
+                             CHAPTER XXII.
+    ZIGZAGGING                                    289
+
+                            CHAPTER XXIII.
+    YETTA                                         298
+
+                             CHAPTER XXIV.
+    THE MOUNTAIN FUNERAL                          311
+
+                             CHAPTER XXV.
+    ANDRÁS IN DIFFICULTIES                        325
+
+                             CHAPTER XXVI.
+    AFLOAT!                                       340
+
+                            CHAPTER XXVII.
+    A MOONLIGHT MEDLEY                            353
+
+                            CHAPTER XXVIII.
+    SHOOTING THE CATARACTS                        366
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                        LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.
+
+                                VOL. I.
+
+
+                       FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS.
+
+    VALLEY OF THE FÜNF-SEEN                       _Frontispiece_
+    THE ICE-CAVES OF DOBSINA                   _Facing page_ 155
+
+
+                         SMALL ILLUSTRATIONS.
+
+                                                            PAGE
+    A YOUNG HUNGARIAN NOBLE                                 viii
+    VIEW ON THE GULF OF VENICE                                16
+    SLOVENE GIRL                                              17
+    SHEPHERD AND SHEEP ON THE PLAINS                          26
+    BRIGANDS                                                  29
+    OLD HUNGARIAN PEASANT                                     30
+    PEASANTS IN COUNTRY CART                                  32
+    GOING TO CHURCH                                           34
+    “LITTLE NELL”                                             41
+    “CARRIAGES MEET THE TRAINS!”                              43
+    TRAVELLERS BIVOUACKING FOR THE NIGHT                      51
+    MAGYAR COSTUMES                                           54
+    OUR GUIDE                                                 56
+    A HUNGARIAN VILLAGE                                       58
+    GIPSY-TENT                                                65
+    THE THRESHOLD OF ALFŐLD                                   72
+    DÉLI-BÁB (A MIRAGE)                                       76
+    SHEPHERD’S HUT AND WELL                                   91
+    PEASANTS AT A WELL                                        95
+    COTTAGE DOORWAY                                          103
+    A RAINY DAY                                              105
+    OUR GUIDE’S WIFE                                         111
+    JÖZSEF                                                   121
+    CHURCH STEEPLE AT PEST                                   122
+    A TRUE MAGYAR                                            133
+    OUR CHAMBER-MAID                                         135
+    BOAT-HOUSE IN THE VOLKSGARTEN                            143
+    A MAGYAR LADY                                            147
+    UNDER THE ROBINIAS                                       153
+    THE “CORRIDOR” IN THE ICE-CAVES                          154
+    THE SPITZENSTEIN                                         157
+    WOMEN WASHING IN A STREAM                                165
+    FETCHING THE MILK                                        168
+    AN INN KITCHEN                                           176
+    DOWN THE MOUNTAIN-SIDE                                   181
+    A CORNER IN THE INN PARLOUR                              183
+    AMONGST THE SLOVAKS AND RUSNIAKS AT WERNÁR               188
+    “THE LAST SWEET THING IN HATS”                           190
+    A YOUTHFUL SLOVAK IN TEARS                               195
+    VILLA SONTAGH                                            202
+    TÁTRA-FŰRED                                              204
+    A RUSNIAK BROTHER!                                       207
+    GOBLINS OF THE MIST                                      208
+    ZIGZAGGING                                               211
+    “MINSH’S” FLIGHT                                         221
+    THE LOMNITZER-SPITZE                                     236
+    A CARPATHIAN CART                                        238
+    KESMARK                                                  242
+    OLD MAGYAR WOMAN                                         251
+    THE RED CONVENT                                          254
+    BY THE WAY-SIDE                                          256
+    THE “ROYAL HUNGARIAN MAIL”                               264
+    PEAKS OF THE NORTHERN TÁTRA                              269
+    LAKE IN THE MOUNTAINS                                    276
+    THE HERR GRAF                                            277
+    TÁTRA STAFF                                              290
+    A MOUNTAIN “GOTTESACKER”                                 305
+    WAY-SIDE SHRINE                                          310
+    SLOVAK SYMPATHY                                          319
+    COVERED CART CONTAINING ZIPSER PEASANTS                  324
+    MORE “GENTLE SLOVAKS”                                    332
+    GREETING                                                 339
+    MERCHANDISE BOAT ON THE DANUBE                           340
+    A SWINE-HERD’S HUT                                       346
+    THE SCULLERY-MAID OF S. S. SZECHENYI                     352
+    OUR DANUBIAN JEANNETTE                                   361
+    A SLAVONIAN BOAT                                         365
+    CASTLE OF GOLUMBACZ                                      370
+    THE BOSNIAN BRETHREN                                     374
+    A HUNGARIAN COUNTRY INN                                  379
+
+
+
+
+                             “MAGYARLAND.”
+
+
+
+
+                              CHAPTER I.
+
+                             INTRODUCTORY.
+
+
+The sun has sunk to rest in the warm bosom of the plains, and the
+porphyry hills of Buda stand out blue against the sky. In the long
+green avenue of robinias which line the quay, the flowers, drooping
+from the fervid heat of noontide, now unfold their perfumed petals and
+scent the evening air. Zephyrs, Oriental in their softness, come borne
+towards us over the Southern waves of the Danube, while from the gilded
+balconies of the houses along the shore are heard the melodious ring
+of voices and merry laughter, where the Magyar ladies sit to enjoy the
+cool breeze. Above the streets and squares of Pest, the black-and-gold
+cupolas glistening in the ruddy gleam of expiring day look like
+sentinels flashing emblazoned sabres.
+
+What bright and pleasant recollections rise before us of the beautiful
+city as, in fancy, we visit it again and see its noble palaces that
+skirt the banks of the river casting the long reflections of their
+white façades in the deep waters beneath!
+
+Immediately opposite Pest, separated by the monarch of European
+rivers, lies Buda, linked to its sister-city by the most splendid
+suspension bridge the world yet boasts.
+
+Passing once more in fancy the grim lions that guard its entrance and
+crossing over to the other side, what stirring memories come crowding
+into the mind! What changes have come over this ancient city of kings
+since Imperial Rome sat proudly enthroned within its confines, and in
+her days of pomp and power erected this amphitheatre, enduring type
+of her greatness and her brutality! How varied and mighty have been
+thy fortunes, proud Secambria, since thy proconsuls celebrated in this
+arena their cruel fêtes!
+
+As the twilight falls, the busy hum and shouts of men, borne across
+the river, shape themselves in our present mood to the clamour of a
+barbarian camp. We catch the rumble of heavy chariots, and the tramp
+and neighing of their chargers, and we hear the triumphal strains of
+martial music that proclaim the overthrow of Rome and the erection of
+Attila’s iron throne.
+
+But the shadows deepen--and who are these, the pitiless heathen, that
+come sweeping up with the mists on the river, till they too reach the
+shores of the Danube and Buda’s embattled walls? _Hark!_ It is
+Arpád and his chieftains from the North, who celebrate in their turn,
+on the ruins of Attila’s palaces, with the music of lyres and the clash
+of cymbals, the Magyars’ conquest of Pannonia!
+
+Slowly the moon rises, and lo! “a change comes o’er the spirit of our
+dream.” Turning our eyes to the citadel, crowned with its palaces as
+with a diadem, we catch the flicker of the Crescent above the gateways,
+see fluttering from the walls the pennon of the Moslem victors, and
+hear from the towers of the Christian churches, now minarets, the
+watchman’s chant, “For Allah is great, and there is no God but He.”
+
+Yet once more memory holds up its magic crystal, and, as the moon
+floats in placid triumph in the sky and the solemn stars stand ranged
+about her, there grows over the scene yet another change. The flicker
+of the Crescent pales and dies. The green pennon of Islam droops and
+disappears. For the conquering shadow of the Cross has fallen again
+upon the sleeping city, and, instead of the cadence of the watchman’s
+voice, there is borne upon the night air now, the pious music of
+Christian vesper-bells.
+
+Truly, a wondrous history!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+It was a lovely morning on which we stepped into the train that bore
+us in earnest and for the third time towards the land of the Magyar,
+a thoroughly old-fashioned May morning. The East wind had at length
+taken itself off to its own quarter, and the sun shone as benignly
+as if it actually meant to stay. It was just one of those rare days
+when a person of sanguine temperament might have been justified in
+entertaining a certain amount of confidence in the stability even of
+English weather. Nature had thrown off her dingy winter mantle, and
+clothed herself in a garb of fairest green. Everything seemed to say,
+“Summer is come! Summer is come!” The lark said it as he soared high in
+the azure depths: the blue-bell said it as she hung her head languidly
+in the high grasses in quest of shade: the bees said it as the perfume
+of the wild flowers called them to drink of their honey: the breeze
+said it as it fanned the slender stems of the ragged-robins in the
+hedgerows, and made billows of the emerald corn: the old gentleman
+said it who sat opposite, and who, puffing like a steam-engine himself,
+arrived upon the platform just as the train was about to start.
+
+What matter to us how the wind howl to-morrow, or the returning frost
+nip the newly-awakened spring-flowers? We are away, away! New costumes,
+new scenes, snow-capped mountains, foaming torrents, placid lakes, all
+chase each other through the brain in rapid succession like a perpetual
+dissolving view. At this distance no _contretemps_ enter into
+our philosophy; no ferocious Hungarian officials who mistake us for
+Russian spies; no keen-sighted _douaniers_ who look us through and
+through, as they demand whether we have anything to declare, awakening
+serious qualms of conscience concerning just that one little contraband
+something concealed in a mysterious corner of our belongings which we
+have determined _not_ to declare; no days when we dine with Duke
+Humphrey and go supperless to bed. None of these things damp our ardour
+as we are borne through the smiling pastures of the West.
+
+“The channel’s as calm as a fish-pond,” remarked the fat stewardess
+on our arrival on board the steamer. “And there’s scarce the leastest
+swell on.” But--_exeunt_ passengers the following morning,
+woe-begone, dishevelled, wan, but hopeful.
+
+On, past the quay, where the “merry fish-wives” cluster round the
+vessels, and bend under the weight of their large full creels. Through
+the quaint suburbs of the old Norman town, where more merry fish-wives
+sit surrounded by conical baskets full of red mullet, which at a short
+distance look like exaggerated pottles of ripe strawberries.
+
+On, on, for we tarry nowhere, till we reach the fair capital of “La
+belle France.”
+
+Here we linger for a day to call on a Hungarian merchant. He had
+promised to give us letters of introduction to some friends of his,
+who were landed proprietors in the north and south-east of Hungary,
+and which we believed would be very useful to us in that _terra
+incognita_. For such the greater portion of Magyarland still is to
+the ordinary tourist in spite of M. Tissot, for his interesting travels
+were strictly confined to Croatia, and the extreme west of the country.
+
+The common and direct route to Hungary, and the one by which we entered
+it on our two previous visits, is _viâ_ Munich and Vienna. But
+partly because we pined to breathe once more the balmy breezes of
+sunny Italy and bask in the smiles of her people if for ever so short
+a period, and partly because, unless compelled to do so, we rarely
+follow the conventional routes laid down in guide-books, we decided
+to go through Venice, and make that place our starting point to the
+“polyglot” country whither we were bound; a decision that greatly
+astonished a little Frenchman whom we saw in the merchant’s office in
+question.
+
+“You should go to Munich,” said he, “and thence to Vienna, to reach
+Hungary.”
+
+“Why?” we demanded.
+
+“Oh! that is the regular route.”
+
+“Yes! but we do not care to go by the regular route,” we replied; “we
+wish to see Hungary in its byways as well as in its highways.”
+
+With a shrug of the shoulders, and an elevation of the eyebrows, as
+much as to say he hoped we should find the travelling to our liking,
+and muttering to himself “_que les Anglais sont originals_!” he
+turned away.
+
+Here another voice broke in, proceeding from a tall bony man, whose
+form, half hidden behind the sheets of _Galignani_, we had
+scarcely observed.
+
+“There are no _diligences_, and no carriages in Hungary worth
+mentioning _as such_,” he exclaimed, and then subsided behind his
+newspaper again.
+
+He pronounced the French word _diligence_ as we pronounce our own
+familiar noun, and his speech betrayed his Transatlantic origin.
+
+“Most _Messieurs les voyageurs_,” rejoined the Frenchman,
+returning to the charge, and evidently unwilling to surrender his point
+to another--“Most _Messieurs les voyageurs_ rest satisfied with a
+visit to Pest.”
+
+“_Vous avez raisong, mussoo_,” replied the American, without
+moving a muscle of his face, his eyes still fixed on the pages of his
+newspaper,--“Natur’ made Hungary a first-class country, but they’ve
+got a mode of locomotion there that whips all creation; as to railways
+they’ve none to speak of, and where you do find ’em the pace at which
+the lumbering old machines crawl along is a caution even to snails. If
+you want to do the Danube”--this time addressing himself to us--“take
+my advice and go _down_ stream; you’ll do it in half the time:
+and if you’re thinking of doing the Carpathians, what I say is,
+_don’t_; you’ll soon get tired of cross-country work in Hungary, I
+can tell you, and as to the language----”
+
+Happily at this juncture the conversation was brought to an abrupt
+conclusion by the entrance of the merchant himself, who had been absent
+on our arrival, but who now gave us the letters of introduction of
+which we stood in need, assuring us we should receive much hospitality
+and kindness from the gentlemen to whom they were addressed, together
+with assistance on our travels, should any be required.
+
+A brief examination, before leaving England, of Bradshaw’s Continental
+map had shown us that railway communication is now open the whole way
+from Venice to Pest, a distance in an almost direct line of five or six
+hundred miles. But the pages of that useful guide proved “too many” for
+us in their bewildering complications, and we were obliged to postpone
+the all-important question of “how to get there” till our arrival at
+Venice.
+
+Arrived at that place, however, the question seemed as far from being
+solved as ever. The local railway guide conducted us as far as Udine, a
+comparatively short distance on our way, and then left us stranded high
+and dry on a shore of uncertainty. This being the case, we hail from
+the window of our hotel a passing gondola, and float off to the railway
+terminus to ascertain the matter for ourselves.
+
+The hot weather had scarcely begun, and the wooden covers, with their
+black hearse-like fittings, had not been removed to give place to the
+bright-coloured awnings. As we glide through the sombre and silent
+ducts, walled in by ancient palaces which frown down upon us on either
+side, and skim over the glassy surface of the Grand Canal, the rocking
+motion of our dismal craft produces within us a vague and dreamy
+sensation; other black gondolas are following in our wake, the bell
+of a distant church is tolling, and being English, and taking “our
+pleasures sadly,” we feel we must be on our way to our own funeral,
+till we are jerked into consciousness and life again by the grating of
+the prow on the mainland close to the terminus itself.
+
+The ticket office is of course closed, and there is not the shadow
+of an official to be seen anywhere. But wandering along to the great
+platform in the dim hope of finding some one there who can help us, we
+are at length cheered by the sight of a person in the garb of a railway
+official of some sort coming towards us from the farther end. His
+footsteps echo dismally in the vaulted space, and for utter loneliness
+in his surroundings he might have been “the last man.”
+
+Could he inform us what time the train left for Pest? we eagerly
+inquired as he approached us.
+
+“Pest! Pest!” he exclaimed, looking bewildered--he could scarcely have
+been more so had we inquired the way to the moon.
+
+“The capital of Hungary,” we suggested.
+
+“Yes! yes!” he knew it was in Hungary somewhere; but here his stock
+of geographical knowledge came to an end, at any rate so far as that
+particular branch of the subject was concerned, and, with a bow and
+polite wave of the hat, he passed on his way, leaving us more benighted
+than before.
+
+Whilst ruminating what next to do, we heard a quick step behind us, and
+he again appeared.
+
+“_Perdono, Signore!_ It strikes me that you must go hence to
+Vienna, and you will then have no difficulty in reaching Pest.”
+
+Now to travel due north to Vienna, when Hungary lay in an easterly
+direction, was quite beyond the endurance of any enlightened
+travellers, particularly that of such experienced and enterprising ones
+as ourselves. It was not to be contemplated for a moment, but as we
+strolled back to our gondola, we began to wonder whether after all we
+had not for once been mistaken in deviating from the orthodox route and
+in creating one for ourselves.
+
+On mentioning the source of our disappointment to our swarthy Charon, a
+bright idea seizes him.
+
+“_Ma ecco!_ Why will not his _Eccellenza_ go to the _Signor
+Inspettore_ himself? He lives up those steps yonder”--pointing to a
+house close by.
+
+Why not indeed? Acting on our brave gondolier’s suggestion, we go at
+once in quest of him.
+
+The _Signor Inspettore_ was fortunately at home, and greeted us
+with the pleasant smile and ready courtesy which one invariably meets
+with in the people of this land. We were, however, once more doomed to
+failure. He knew everything apparently but that which we had come to
+learn; he certainly did _not_ know the way to Pest, but bidding us
+wait, he retired to an inner chamber, whence he soon returned bearing
+under his arm an enormous map, his radiant countenance proclaiming that
+he had at last solved the difficulty.
+
+“_Perdono, Signore!_ I have ascertained. You must go hence to
+Nabrisina. There you will have to wait two hours, when another train
+will take you on through Cormöns to the Hungarian frontier.” And by the
+way he spoke of Cormöns one would have supposed it to be the extreme
+limits of civilisation.
+
+“Not many strangers travel this way to Hungary,” added he.
+
+“But do not _your_ people sometimes travel?” we inquired.
+
+“_Ma no!_” was the reply, given in that sharp, incisive tone in which
+every Italian pronounces that latter monosyllable. “We do not often
+travel, and to Hungary never. _Basta!_ the climate of Hungary _e una
+clima da Diavolo_;” adding with a shrug of the shoulders--the full
+significance of which we duly appreciated--“_Perdono, Signore!_ Only
+the _English_ go there.”
+
+The moon had risen a full round orb as, the object of our quest
+accomplished, we once more stepped into our gondola and, gliding away,
+soon formed one of the many black specks crossing her silvery pathway
+on the great Lagoon.
+
+The brilliantly-lighted shops in the colonnades of the Piazza di San
+Marco remind us that we have still something to do before we are
+fully equipped for our Hungarian travels. We had, as I have said,
+seen Hungary on two previous occasions; seen it, that is, in its
+highways. This time we meant to see it in its byways also; for which
+purpose it was necessary that we should equip ourselves for that
+cross-country travelling of which the American had hinted such dark
+things. Experience, too, that stern schoolmaster, likewise taught
+us the desirability of rendering ourselves independent, as far as
+possible, of the accommodation to be met with at small out-of-the-way
+inns. For these, however full of promise externally, are inwardly,
+except in rare instances, replete with disappointment; and black bread,
+_kukoricza_, bacon, and “_paprika hendl_”--a national dish,
+in which a fowl that, in blissful unconsciousness of the immediate
+future, has been picking up the crumbs that fell from the traveller’s
+table as he partook of his first course, may, at his last, appear in
+the form of a hasty stew, thickened with red pepper--are the only
+things to be found wherewith to fortify the inner man.
+
+In addition, therefore, to a case of hermetically-sealed provisions
+brought with us from England, we here invested in a number of small
+items in the culinary line necessary for our anticipated wayside
+bivouacs, including a singular contrivance for easy cooking, whereby
+the mysterious operation of roasting meat in a species of saucepan is
+accomplished; the vessel in question being called a _cazarola_.
+Besides these, there was yet one other item we had to provide ourselves
+with; namely, some dozen yards of stout rope, a very necessary adjunct
+to cross-country travel in Hungary.
+
+For the necessities of the outer man we were already well provided
+by the possession of a large _bunda_--a relic of our former
+travels. This magnificent garment of Hungarian invention is a glorious
+institution, than which in the whole sartorial art there is none so
+grandly adapted to its purpose, or to the climate of the country,
+where the changes are exceedingly rapid. The chill which immediately
+follows the setting of the sun often causes the temperature to sink
+20° Réaumur in the short space of two hours, and without this garment
+the traveller will very probably fall a victim to the Hungarian fever
+occasioned by the exhalation from the marshes. In fact, as the Venetian
+station-master delicately hinted, Hungary, like England, may be said to
+have “no climate, only weather.”
+
+The majestic Alfőld, or plains of Hungary--the European Pampas as they
+have been called--though hardly as boundless as the ocean, are scarcely
+less fickle: now soft and tender under a calm and cloudless sky as they
+slumber in the dreamy haze of sunny noontide, now all glorious in the
+resplendent hues of the out-goings and in-comings of Day; anon fierce
+and tumultuous, as a violent wind sweeps over them, which, meeting with
+no obstacle whereon to spend its fury, whirls shrieking in frantic
+circles like an angry demon, tosses the trembling and resistless
+hillocks of sand into billows, or, with a hissing noise, lashes them
+into fragments like ocean spray. Here also, in summer, as on the great
+African desert, the traveller crossing the sandy wastes is often misled
+by the delusive mirage. In the distance a lake, or village, or lonely
+_csárda_ (tavern) lures him on, and causes him to lose his way.
+
+No landscape, however, is so impressive as that afforded by these
+plains--plains so vast that they appear to embrace the Infinite; where
+the sun at setting seems to sink into the very bosom of the earth, and
+the stars burn red to the verge of the horizon. Who can describe the
+awful grandeur and stillness that reigns over this boundless region,
+as Night comes hastening on, bringing with it the stars, to hang like
+silver lamps in the sapphire deeps; or the beauty of the heavenly arch
+when the “milky way” is stretched across the zenith like a spangled
+veil, and the planets burn with such a steady light that they seem to
+cast a path of glory athwart the plains beneath?
+
+Fitful as the climate is, there are however, happily for the traveller,
+two months in the year when he may almost depend upon fine weather,
+viz. May and June. The long winter’s frost and snow have at length by
+that time passed away; the intense heat of July and August has not yet
+begun, nor the autumnal rains which render the Hungarian roads (bad
+enough at the best of seasons) absolutely impassable.
+
+After two more deliriously happy days at Venice, spent in loitering
+about its colonnades, sitting in the beautiful Piazza di San Marco
+listening to the strains of the military bands and sometimes floating
+over the glassy surface of the canals, we bid adieu to the “Bride of
+the Sea.”
+
+In the railway carriage with us were two priests whom we had met at the
+hotel “Due Torri” at Verona, and who were, they informed us, to be our
+fellow-travellers as far as Udine. There was also a lady from Carniola
+on her way to Laibach, whose head was covered with a kind of Spanish
+mantilla and who spoke Slovenic, a dialect of the Wendish.
+
+As soon as the train had fairly started, the priests, taking off their
+broad-brimmed beaver hats and exchanging them for more comfortable
+skull-caps, began reading their breviaries, following the contents with
+a motion of the lips, but without utterance of the faintest sound.
+
+We now pass through an undulating country rich in cultivation, and
+olives and mulberry-trees take the place of vines. Our route leads us
+through the classic land of Illyria, a name rendered immortal by the
+poems of Virgil and Dante. After leaving Izonzo, we reach the ancient
+town of Monfalcone, situated within a few miles of the once famous city
+of Aquileia, where the Emperor Augustus often resided--a mere village
+now, but containing, in the time of the Romans, a population of 100,000
+souls.
+
+The train soon begins to ascend one of those barren and rugged hills
+which form the north-eastern boundary of the Adriatic Sea. Here all
+vegetation ceases except that of stunted herbage, and as far as eye can
+reach nothing is visible but rocky and conical hills.
+
+As the engine labours up the steep gradient the blue waters of the
+Adriatic suddenly burst upon the view. To the left stretch the marshy
+plains which, extending over a vast area, constitute the “Littorale,”
+or northern shores. Away, in the distance, rise the purple mountains
+of Istria, whilst below, embosomed in green hills, lies Trieste. The
+scene is calm, beautiful, and majestic in the evening light, recalling
+many a sad association connected with the life of the author of the
+“_Divina Commedia_,” as well as many an episode of early lore.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                              CHAPTER II.
+
+                              THE PUSZTA.
+
+
+“Is there anything to be seen here?” we inquired of a pretty Slovene
+girl, who, in short red skirt, velvet bodice, and top-boots, was
+stumping about the platform as we alighted from the train the next
+morning, and at last stood on Hungarian soil.
+
+Knowing just sufficient German to comprehend the nature of our
+question, she turned round, and pointing first in the direction of the
+desolate little station itself, then at a group of sheds opposite,
+and finally at a long straight road which apparently led nowhere, she
+showed two rows of pearly teeth, and looking up at us archly, burst out
+laughing at her own humour.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Pragerhof, the place at which we have just arrived--the junction of
+the Vienna and Trieste line--is in very truth a dreary spot to be set
+down at; but wishing to reach Sió-Fok the next day, it was necessary
+to break our journey here. Nothing could present a more utterly forlorn
+aspect, and why the spot should have been favoured with a name at all
+is an enigma, seeing that it consists solely--as our _naïve_
+little Slovene had intimated--of the station itself, three or four
+sheds, and the small _fogado_ (inn). Probably, however, the
+signification may have reference to a town or village hard by; “hard
+by,” that is to say, in a Hungarian sense, for in this part of the
+country, where villages are few and far between, people often call men
+“neighbours” who live twenty, thirty, and even forty miles distant, and
+not unfrequently convey their farm produce to fairs and markets full as
+many miles away.
+
+We have now reached the threshold of the great plains, and, looking
+north, south, east, and west, not a sign of habitation is visible;
+nothing, in short, but the straight road already alluded to, and the
+long line of railway which vanishes only with the horizon.
+
+The lonely _fogado_ in which we have come to anchor till the
+morrow forms a tolerable example of all wayside inns in Hungary, except
+in the position of the stranger’s bedroom, which, instead of being on
+the ground-floor, is in this instance approached by a movable ladder.
+The _salle à manger_, as is invariably the case, not only adjoins,
+but commands an extensive view of the kitchen; and the traveller
+can--if he feel disposed--watch as he sits at table the interesting
+process of the cutting up and frying of his cutlets, and stewing of his
+_paprika hendl_; as well as the slaughter of the innocent itself.
+For our present hosts form no exception to the generality of Hungarian
+innkeepers in the very open manner in which they carry into effect
+their culinary assassinations, and a scuffle, a sharp, piteous cry,
+followed by a “thud,” and the sight of a quivering victim hanging head
+downwards to a door-nail in full view, were our immediate welcome to
+the shelter of this solitary little inn.
+
+We are here plunged all at once into the very vortex of the Magyar
+language, which no other south of the Volga aids the uninitiated
+stranger to interpret, but which was, nevertheless, already spoken in
+this country by a Turanian people of kindred race at the Roman conquest
+of Pannonia.
+
+The landlord of the inn, who is a Magyar, can only just manage to
+render himself intelligible in German; whilst the young woman we
+addressed on our arrival at the station, and whom we find to be the
+waiting-maid, can only speak Hungarian and her mother-tongue, a Sláv
+dialect spoken west of the Hungarian frontier.
+
+The vast prairies we have now entered, so deeply interesting in their
+historical associations, cover the prodigious area of 37,400 English
+square miles, and the insular mind almost loses itself in contemplating
+their extent.
+
+Although Hungary contains within its embrace mountainous districts of
+vast extent, and beauty unsurpassed by any country in Europe, yet its
+principal characteristics may be said to be plains and rivers. In some
+portions of the former, which are as level as the ocean, the soil is in
+a high state of cultivation; others are mere sandy wastes; whilst in
+others again, Nature having spread a green and flowery carpet of her
+own weaving, thousands of wild horses and cattle are allowed to roam
+over it unfettered, and these, wandering about in immense herds, form
+one of the chief features of the _Puszta_ landscape.
+
+Here the sportsman may find ample food for his gun; for the marshes
+in the vicinity of the great rivers abound in wild fowl, particularly
+in the spring, when they are the haunt of storks, which may be seen
+pluming themselves all day long amongst the tall reeds and feathery
+grasses, or else leading their little family of storklings out for
+an airing on the confines of their watery domain. Flocks of noisy
+plovers too are everywhere seen, and not unfrequently a pelican; whilst
+throughout the length and breadth of the Alfőld, the harsh scream of
+the falcon is heard, wheeling overhead as it scours the air in quest of
+smaller birds, or swoops down upon a marmot.
+
+Scattered about these vast steppes, at long distances apart, are
+towns and villages. In the neighbourhood of the post roads they occur
+every three or four hours; but in other districts farther in the
+interior the traveller may often journey a whole day by carriage or
+_leiterwagen_, in going from one village to the next.
+
+No wonder is it then that this thinly populated region has ever been
+considered the El-Dorado of brigands, who until recently, that is
+to say until ten or twenty years ago, kept the otherwise peaceful
+dwellers of the plains in a perpetual state of terror and alarm. Many
+of the peasants and small landed gentry, however--paradoxical as it
+may appear--were known to harbour these “heroes;” thus encouraging
+brigandage whilst trembling for their own safety. In fact, so daring
+and numerous at one time were these robbers, that they often demanded
+board and lodging from the inhabitants as a right; whilst so lonely
+were the majority of the farmsteads, that the occupants, completely
+at their mercy, were compelled to yield without resistance to their
+demands. It was even customary a few years ago--a custom which,
+I believe, still exists in some remote parts of Hungary--for the
+inhabitants to pay what is called _felelat_, or “black-mail,”
+to these freebooters, to secure themselves from the plunder of their
+cattle, just as formerly existed in Scotland. Brigandage in Hungary is,
+in fact, of “noble” origin, for, intrenched within their strong castles
+and encompassed by fortifications, many of the nobles in the fifteenth
+century exercised the function of robber-knights, enlisting numbers of
+the peasantry in their exploits.
+
+Amongst these brigands of modern time were men of education and family;
+not only this, it has even been darkly hinted that magnates, who at
+one time held responsible positions under government, have been more
+than suspected of joining these marauders for the purpose of recruiting
+their enfeebled finances. The ruling powers have done their utmost
+to suppress these bandit hordes by offering large sums in the shape
+of “blood-money” for the capture of the leaders of the gangs, or the
+betrayal of their hiding-places to the police, but this has never
+been an easy task to accomplish in a country where so many of the
+inhabitants sympathise with the delinquents.
+
+The Hungarians are a manly, brave, and chivalrous race, but lately
+emerged from barbarism, for the Turks held the greater part of their
+country in possession until a comparatively recent date; and there
+no doubt exists to some extent, even at the present time, an innate
+disposition in the minds of some--a disposition not confined to one
+class of society in particular, but existing in the highest as well
+as in the lowest--to wink at, if not actually condone, all offences
+of whatever kind, provided they have been committed with valour and
+daring. These, of course, are very questionable ethics, but this state
+of things has always existed in Hungary; and far greater than the fears
+for their own safety has been the chivalrous feeling which has caused
+so many of the Hungarians to shelter these robbers, and treat them
+as heroes when pursued by the hands of justice. For this sentiment
+they are probably indebted as much to their past history as to the
+character of their surroundings. Men’s minds are much more influenced
+by external nature than we are often aware, and these limitless plains
+on which the Hungarians gaze from morn till eve have no doubt imbued
+them, unconsciously to themselves, with a notion of freedom of action,
+fettered by no boundaries and ruled by no human laws.
+
+So daring at one period were these robber-bands that they were
+occasionally known to attack caravans of merchandise even in broad
+day; whilst the extent to which brigandage prevailed only a few years
+ago may be inferred from the fact of there having been no fewer than
+twelve hundred of these robber-criminals imprisoned at the same
+time within the walls of the fortress of Szegedin--the capital of
+the Alfőld--amongst whom was the most daring and celebrated bandit
+modern Hungary has ever known; a man who rejoiced in the euphemistic
+appellation of Alexander Rose (Rózsa Sándor), and whose particular form
+of the profession was cattle-lifting, but who only eleven years ago
+attacked with his robber-band a train on its way through the plains,
+and is said to have murdered during his “brilliant career” upwards of
+a hundred persons. This “dashing hero,” who was pelted with flowers by
+the peasant girls when he was at length captured by the police, died,
+scarcely more than a year ago, a natural death in the citadel where
+he was confined, having escaped the punishment he so richly deserved
+by the clemency of the Emperor of Austria, who is said to possess an
+extreme dislike to signing death-warrants.
+
+The term often applied to these Hungarian brigands is that of
+_szégény légény_, or “poor lads,”--a term no doubt due, in the
+first instance, to the fact that many were originally fugitives from
+the Imperial conscription; whilst the romantic sentiment entertained
+concerning them and their lives arises from the intense and very
+natural repugnance to the Austrian army existing amongst all classes.
+The Magyars are radicals in all political and national affairs, hence
+their tolerance of, if not actual desire to shield, those who seek to
+evade the Imperial conscription, no less irksome to the inhabitants of
+this country than it was to the Italians when under the same yoke.
+
+Previous to 1848, a period that marks what the people of this country
+call the “War of Independence,” various forms of conscription were in
+force, some of which were especially obnoxious to the Hungarians. Many,
+therefore, fled from the hard fate it imposed, preferring freedom, with
+self-inflicted exile, to serving a foreign power. Some sought refuge
+in the wooded districts of the mountains, others in the vast fields of
+Indian corn found on the plains, in whose green labyrinths they could
+not easily be tracked. Concealed here until exhausted nature could hold
+out no longer, they at length crept from their hiding-places to begin
+a vagabond existence, begging of the peasantry as they wandered from
+place to place, with the shed of some lonely tavern, the favourite
+haunt of brigands, as their only shelter by night.
+
+No wonder then that these “poor lads,” after pursuing for a time a life
+of vagrancy, should end in becoming robbers likewise, the more so as
+they knew full well they would be protected from the vigilance of the
+_pandúrok_ by the peasantry, who, as I have said, were frequently
+known to conceal them in their houses when pursued by those officers of
+justice.
+
+The “poor lads,” however, differ somewhat from the orthodox brigand.
+The former plunder in order to live, and rarely commit murder, their
+weapons seldom consisting of anything more formidable than a bludgeon.
+But the brigand “proper,” besides being armed to the teeth, wears a
+cuirass, and carries in addition to his lance, loaded hatchet and brace
+of pistols, a lasso, in the use of which he is as dexterous as the
+Spaniards of South America, and forms in appearance, with his slouching
+“sombrero,” bronzed chest and flowing black hair, as noble a type of
+his order as any to be found in the mountain fastnesses of Calabria.
+But no matter whether he be an orthodox brigand or “poor lad,” when
+one of special notoriety happens to be captured he is, as in the case
+of Rózsa Sándor, pelted with flowers by the “_kisleány_,” or dark
+little maidens of the Alfőld, who always sympathise with these daring
+freebooters, of whatever type.
+
+During our present visit to Hungary some alarm was created by the
+announcement that three hundred banditti under the leadership of Milan,
+the notorious chief, had crossed the Danube from Servia, and were on
+their way to the Hungarian plains. A battalion of troops, however, sent
+to welcome them on the shores of the river, opposite Gradista, drove
+them back upon Belgrade by a more hasty retreat than they apparently
+expected, accompanied by an intimation in explosive terms that Hungary
+had quite as many brigands as she wanted without drawing upon the
+resources of Servia.
+
+The “_Alfőld_”--which literally interpreted signifies lowlands,
+in contradistinction to “_Felfőld_”--by which the Hungarians
+designate the mountainous districts of their land, is, strictly
+speaking, confined to that portion of the country which lies to the
+north of the river Marős and east of the Danube. It may however be
+appropriately applied to the whole of the plains, not excepting the
+“_Pettaurfeld_,” or “little Hungarian plains,” as the lowlands
+lying between Pragerhof and Lake Balaton are called, and upon which we
+have just entered. In the winter they are like a frozen sea--one great
+and boundless wilderness of white. The flocks that roam these rich
+prairies free and unfettered in summer-time are gone, and the tinkling
+of their bells is heard no longer; all are housed in huge clusters of
+sheds, where they low plaintively as they dream of the sunny herbage of
+the past. No sound is audible save the hoarse croak of the raven, which
+seems but to awaken the dreariness of the scene and make the silence
+live; whilst the very sun himself looks frozen as he peers forth from
+the pale blue sky.
+
+It is at this season that the stranger, unused to such scenes, is
+impressed with the awful loneliness and stillness of his surroundings,
+together with the profound majesty and immensity of nature, as his eye,
+wandering over the vast expanse of white, traces no boundary, and his
+ear detects no sound of living thing.
+
+In the spring, when the lingering winter snow has at length melted,
+and the warm sun showers his blessed life-giving rays upon the dormant
+earth, the shepherd with grateful and rejoicing heart once more wanders
+forth with his flock to the green pastures; and in the cultivated
+districts the husbandman, shouldering his simple and primitive
+implements of agriculture, just scratches the surface of the rich
+alluvial soil, which--as some one says--only needs to be “tickled” and
+sown with seed, to laugh all over at harvest-time with smiling grain.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+It is glorious summer now, and as we sit under an arbour of vines in
+the little sun-baked, sandy garden of our _fogado_, there come to us
+across the plains the plaintive sounds of a shepherd’s flute, and the
+pensive cadence of tinkling bells. Strolling off in the direction of
+the sound, we come to a large flock of sheep browsing on the short and
+tender herbage, whilst the shepherd, in his shaggy sheepskin cloak,
+wanders about amongst them, playing a small instrument here called a
+_telinka_, and looking, wrapped in his _bunda_ with its long wool
+outside, strangely in keeping with the flocks he is tending. About half
+a mile distant is another shaggy, fur-clothed man watching a herd of
+long-haired goats, whilst farther still three dark spots on the silent
+landscape indicate the existence of a gipsy encampment, the shepherd
+and the gipsy forming two of the most marked characteristics of the
+Alfőld, the one giving to it a pastoral, the other, with his little
+colony of tents, an almost Eastern aspect.
+
+The shepherd’s life is a lonely and monotonous one. During the summer
+he remains night and day with his flock, and for whole months together
+holds communication with no one, except with some other of his class
+with whom he comes in contact, as he wanders from pasture to pasture
+with his woolly family. His life however, though lonely, is not so
+dreary as might be imagined; the Alfőld to him is a Garden of Eden, a
+smiling land of a bounteous heaven: his isolated and pastoral existence
+frequently leads him to be a poet, and to the idyllic music of the
+_telinka_, a little instrument he manufactures himself, and as
+primitive as that by which Pan of old awoke the stillness of the dawn,
+he composes rhymes full of simple poetry and pathos.
+
+We had wandered fully two miles across the vast and trackless plains,
+yet lingered till the sun began to sink below the horizon and the chill
+of evening warned us to return. It is in regions like these that the
+wonderful phenomenon of the _afterglow_ is best seen. As the sun
+leaves the earth which it has gladdened with its smiles, and the last
+crimson streak fades slowly in the west, twilight’s shadows gather over
+the warm bosom of the plains, and a cold white vapour begins to rise
+from the marshes; the shadow lingers for a while, till suddenly, as if
+by the agency of a magician’s wand, there comes a wondrous flush of
+glory--_whence_ none can tell--that once more bathes both earth
+and heaven in a flood of gold and amber. But soon, fainter grow the
+colours in the west, colder and more tangible the snake-like vapours
+ascending from the hollows, deeper the transparent arc above, till
+evening at length sinks into the embrace of night. As we turn our faces
+homewards all sound is hushed; the wild fowl have sought their nests in
+the thick sedges which border the marshes, the marmots their holes in
+the warm sand; and the shepherd, weary with his day’s watch, wrapped in
+his _bunda_, lies stretched on the darkling ground fast asleep,
+beside him his faithful dog, whose paws twitch spasmodically in an
+imaginary race after some erratic sheep that has doubtless disturbed
+his equanimity during the hours of day, and which he now chases in his
+dreams. From the distant camp the smoke curls idly upwards in graceful
+wreaths above the ruddy fire; in the foreground a group of oxen chew
+the cud, and everything is suggestive of repose.
+
+Beautiful, however, as are our surroundings in their wondrous breadth
+of calm, we are after all but gregarious animals, and two hours later,
+whilst sitting in the crazy wooden balcony of the _fogado_, I
+find myself sighing for the rosy fruit of the Lotus, that I may eat
+and again mingle with the gay and festive throng in the Piazza di San
+Marco, and catch an echo of the music that so delighted me when there.
+F., on the contrary, like Odysseus, casts his mind forwards to the
+Ithaka of his love, the region of the snowy Carpathians, whither our
+steps are tending. But we both retire for the night with the conviction
+that Pragerhof in its absence of human life and maddening isolation is
+just one of those places in which more than one day’s sojourn must end
+in suicide.
+
+That melancholy catastrophe was at any rate averted for the present,
+for we found ourselves still alive on the following morning, when
+the little waiting-maid came stumbling and stumping up the ladder,
+bringing coffee as a preliminary to toilet and breakfast; which
+ceremonies completed, we welcome as a rescuing angel the train that at
+a quarter-past nine draws leisurely up to the station.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER III.
+
+                         A CAUTION TO SNAILS.
+
+
+The day had dawned with a glorious awakening. How bright and fair all
+was under its glistening veil of sparkling dewdrops, as we sat by the
+open door of the _fogado_ and partook of our simple breakfast!
+Beyond were the green plains and the distant sea-like horizon; near
+us broad vine-trellises, through which the sunshine flickered like a
+shower of gold. From afar came the distant lowing of cattle and the
+muffled bark of a sheep-dog; whilst all around us was so still, so
+very still, that we might have been in the vast prairies of the New
+World. The birds, playing at hide-and-seek amongst the reddening,
+dust-covered vine-leaves, or perched high up in the sooty eaves of the
+little station, chirped and bubbled over with song, as if their smoky
+and sandy domain had been the umbrageous aisles of some lonely forest.
+How grateful they were for their meagre mercies as they carolled forth
+their hymn of praise this dewy golden morning whilst we waited for the
+train, how glad they seemed to live, and what joy was there in their
+little lives as the Slovene waiting-maid scattered towards them the
+crumbs from the table-cloth of the restaurant!
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Our train was announced to leave at ten minutes to ten; but overdue,
+it did not arrive from Trieste until half-past eight o’clock, and how
+could any one be so unreasonable as to expect it to be got ready to
+start again in the short space of one hour and twenty minutes? At the
+time specified the engine-driver, seated on a heap of sand outside the
+platform, was dozing over his pipe, and the guard leisurely finishing
+his breakfast in the inn kitchen. And why not? No one thinks of
+hurrying himself in Hungary, where everybody has plenty of time for
+everything.
+
+The trains, punctual enough in their departure from large stations,
+are wholly indifferent as to the time they either arrive at or start
+from the smaller ones, which are generally situated in districts where
+persons take life easily, and with whom the railway authorities appear
+to think an hour or so out of the twenty-four can make no possible
+difference.
+
+Taking our places at last, and dragging slowly on, we pass here and
+there, at long intervals, true specimens of Hungarian villages, with
+their low-roofed one-storied houses, and cemeteries filled with small
+red, blue, and white crosses, which, just showing above the rank
+grass, look from a distance like wild flowers growing in a meadow. The
+traveller seems here to have been suddenly carried back to some remote
+period of the world’s history, everything is so heavy and so slow. At
+the stations at which we stop, curious-shaped vehicles are waiting to
+take the arrivals to towns and villages--who shall say how many miles
+away? Long waggons made simply of planks of wood nailed together, and
+others with open ladder-like sides, drawn by three horses abreast,
+or small light carts, called _szekérs_, to which, by a most
+uncomfortable arrangement, one poor, lean, miserable horse is harnessed
+to a pole. All are driven by strange-looking men in sheepskin cloaks
+or hussar-jackets called _mentes_, embroidered in divers colours
+of needlework, and wearing such full white trousers that they look
+like petticoats. Stranger people still get into these vehicles--women
+wearing sheepskin cloaks like the men, strange head-gear and
+top-boots--and, leaving the enclosure which surrounds the station, jog
+away over quagmires that seem to lead to nowhere, or to some distant
+world far beyond our ken.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Turf is burnt in the engine, so that the speed, as may be imagined,
+is not very alarming--its “linked sweetness long drawn out” scarcely
+exceeding ten miles an hour; besides which we linger at the various
+stations, time, as we have seen, being no object in this primitive
+country.
+
+Railway travelling in Hungary has in fact frequently been known to
+produce in the passenger--especially if he happen to have come from
+Western Europe--a species of temporary insanity; the particular form
+which the malady assumes causing the unfortunate sufferer to lose for
+the nonce all sense of his own individuality, and to imagine himself
+the “Wandering Jew,” destined to go on to all time.
+
+_À-propos_ of the slowness of the Hungarian locomotives, it is
+related that a certain peasant, when asked one day by a friend why he
+did not take the train to the market town, replied, “I have no time
+to-day; I must walk, or I shall arrive there too late.”
+
+As we wait, the villagers, leaning over the wooden palisades, gaze
+at us wonderingly, or gossip with the guard; the women clothed
+in the shortest of short petticoats, worn over a number of white
+under-garments frilled at the edges, and which, hanging a few inches
+below each other and starched almost to the stiffness of a board, are
+intended to serve as a hoop to keep the top skirt out.
+
+It is a festival of some sort, and, as we approach the villages,
+the cracked bells from the church towers are chiming away joyously,
+and all the people are dressed in their red-letter day attire, the
+women with black, red, or green bodices, full white sleeves and white
+chemisettes embroidered at the throat. Quaint children stand beside
+them, who, dressed in every respect precisely like their elders, even
+to top-boots, look like small men and women seen through the wrong end
+of a telescope.
+
+Entering the district of the river Drave, we are all at once surrounded
+by low, undulating hills which rise out of the plains, and wherever we
+turn our eyes, we see persons on their way to distant churches; the
+men walking together in front, and the women following at a respectful
+distance. The roads are muddy, and the women gather up their voluminous
+petticoats over their top-boots in a most exemplary manner; whilst the
+children, emulating the example of their mothers and holding up their
+little petticoats likewise, form one of the most amusing spectacles
+possible.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Presently we reach a large town, situated in the midst of what
+appears to be a ploughed field, the houses so wretched that they
+seem not to have been built, but to have grown there like cabbages
+or mangel-wurzel, or to have been heaved up from beneath by
+ill-conditioned and untidy gnomes.
+
+Whilst staying at this place, persons arrive from distant and unseen
+towns far away beyond the limits of the visible horizon, in vehicles
+more strange even than any we have yet seen, and such as might have
+existed in the camp of Attila. A score of tired but patient men and
+women are lying on their bundles, waiting the arrival of the down train
+from Buda-Pest to take them to their destination, whilst others are
+standing or walking about the platform; women, whose heads and faces
+enveloped in dark-blue kerchiefs, and sleeves padded at the shoulders,
+give them a strange incongruous look, half-Turkish, half-European;
+men--what splendid fellows! with manly faces bronzed by the fierce
+summer sun of the Alfőld, and with limbs as muscular as those of
+athletes.
+
+The times of the arrival and departure of the trains are indicated in
+a somewhat primitive manner on a slate; and whilst we are wondering
+what on earth can be keeping us here so long, we see a carriage drawn
+by six horses and surrounded by a cloud of dust, coming along the road
+at a terrific pace, the horses galloping furiously under the lash of
+the driver’s long whip. Possibly it is for this we have been tarrying.
+A tall, graceful, and very pretty woman descends from the carriage--a
+kind of _calèche_. Two men, one of whom wears a feather in his
+hat, the other a bunch of wild-flowers--servants apparently, who had
+previously arrived with the luggage--stoop and kiss her hand as they
+see her into the train; and as soon as the engine-driver and guard have
+charged their pipes afresh, the heavy, lumbering machine slides out of
+the station, and we drag on again as though it were a matter of the
+most sublime indifference as to what time we arrive at the end of our
+journey--if we ever do.
+
+In process of time, however, we do reach Gross Kanizsa, where our
+line of railway joins that from Agram and Vienna. At this place,
+which contains twelve thousand inhabitants, the sandy enclosure of
+the station is so full of girls in holiday attire that it looks like
+a flower-garden, and we feel we are in Hungary indeed, the land of
+beautiful women. Was anything half so ravishing as those little
+scarlet leather top-boots embroidered at the side, and which, adorned
+with rosettes, look like scarlet clappers as they peep forth from the
+bell-like skirts? What little darlings are the wearers, with their
+demure but coquettish faces, some blonde, some brunette, the plaits
+of their hair--which hang loosely down the back--ornamented with
+many-coloured ribbons reaching almost to the heels! Near some of these
+Kanizsa belles stand their brothers or sweethearts, wearing embroidered
+cloaks or little jaunty hussar-jackets, thickly covered with bright
+silver buttons, and white plumes in their small caps.
+
+Whilst waiting at this station, we are reminded of a very different
+scene that occurred the last time we were here. We had just arrived
+by train from Croatia, and on going into the buffet, which we found
+already crowded with passengers, many of whom were not only Croatians,
+but Servians, Slavonians and people from Lower Hungary, we could not
+help observing that our entrance seemed to be regarded as an intrusion.
+Seeing vacant seats at a table near the centre of the room, round which
+our fellow-travellers were already partaking of a table-d’hôte repast,
+we also took our places, wondering greatly at the disturbance which
+our presence evidently created.
+
+In a few moments several persons who had been sitting near us, with
+a surly glance and muttered exclamation, withdrew from the table,
+and walked to the farther end of the room. It was impossible to help
+perceiving that an insult was intended, although, as may be imagined,
+we were perfectly ignorant of the cause.
+
+Shortly after this, as we were doing our best to swallow the affront
+together with our soup--a doubtful compound called _ungarischer
+sauerkraut_, consisting of cabbage cut into thin strips and
+immersed in a colourless liquid in which small slices of sausage
+were floating--and washing down the whole with draughts of consoling
+_badacsony_, made of grapes grown on a mountain near Lake Balaton,
+a gentleman came across from the opposite side of the table and took
+his seat beside us. Addressing us in Latin, the frequent medium of
+communication between educated Englishmen and Magyars of Central
+Hungary, he explained the cause of his countrymen’s behaviour, and
+apologised profoundly for the rudeness to which we had been subjected.
+They had, he informed us, taken us for Russians, the political
+feeling against whom was very strong during that particular crisis of
+the Russo-Turkish war, then just at its height, especially amongst
+Hungarians of the lower provinces; but having been in England himself,
+though not for a sufficiently long period to acquire the language, he
+had at once recognised to what nation we belonged.
+
+“_Pileus ejus_,” said he, looking towards me, and alluding to my
+hat, which was of the species familiarly known as “pork-pie,” turned
+up with a broad band of fur--“the Russian ladies wear precisely such
+hats as the one you have on, and take my word for it, wherever you go
+in Hungary, you will be mistaken for a Russian, unless you change it
+for another.”
+
+Our train lingered here an hour, and whilst walking about the platform,
+we were more than ever struck with the variety of nationalities
+met with in this singular country. Standing round the door of the
+restaurant was a group of men, whose soft and effeminate tongue,
+delicate features, and supple figures, contrasting strongly with the
+manly energy and powerful physique of the Magyars, proclaimed them to
+be Yougo-Slávs from Croatia and Slavonia; there were others again,
+whose sandalled legs and feet, and lambswool caps the shape of mops,
+declared them to be Wallachs from Transylvania or the Lower Danube;
+besides Servians from their little colony in the capital, and men on
+their way to their homes in the Northern Carpathians, all of whom our
+previous acquaintance with Hungary enabled us at once to recognise.
+
+Amongst the many peculiarities which exist in this interesting country,
+there is not one that perhaps strikes the stranger so forcibly as
+the variety of races. By far the largest portion of it is inhabited
+by the Magyars, or ruling people; next to them in importance come
+the Wallachs, occupying the most eastern portion of the territory;
+whilst sprinkled here and there over the vast area which constitutes
+the Alfőld are little colonies of Germans, exclusive of the so-called
+Saxons and Szeklérs in the south-east, each of whom forms a distinct
+nationality. All the above-named races, however, inhabit the central
+and south-eastern portion of the kingdom; but, in the entire realm of
+the Magyar, no fewer than eight languages are spoken, not including
+the various Sláv dialects.
+
+In the south, divided from Bosnia and Servia by the river Save, lie the
+Hungarian provinces of Croatia and Slavonia, peopled by Croat-Serbs,
+whilst that portion of territory which extends south-west of the
+Northern Carpathians is inhabited by Slovaks, who border immediately
+on the Poles of Gallicia and the Tcheks of Moravia; the province
+south-east of the Northern Carpathians being inhabited by Rusniaks, or
+Ruthenians, there being no fewer than seventeen thousand Slavs in the
+dual-Monarchy. Besides these nationalities, there are also colonies
+of Greeks, Arnauts, and Armenians, spread over various parts of the
+kingdom.
+
+The chief cause of the existence of these various races is the frequent
+invasions, and final occupation of the greater portion of it by the
+Turks, who in the fifteenth century, penetrating into the very heart
+of Aryan Christendom, desolated the whole face of Hungary by fire and
+sword. Not only did these invaders and subsequent conquerors of the
+country lay waste the entire surface of the fertile plains, but by
+burning the towns and villages, rendered them wholly uninhabitable.
+To such an extent did the incursions of the Moslem hordes affect the
+region of the Alfőld, that it is only within the present century that
+the Magyars may be truly said to have begun to recover their lost
+ground.
+
+It is a common saying amongst Hungarians that “where the Turk treads
+no grass grows,” and so effectually was the country rendered desolate
+by the ravages of this foe, that after their final expulsion in 1777,
+by a series of battles nobly fought by the Hungarians, immigrants were
+called in, and encouraged by grants of land to re-occupy the ruined
+villages, and cultivate the soil rendered barren and unfruitful by the
+hated Moslem.
+
+Thus Hungary became what we find her to-day,--a country peopled by many
+nations, all subject to the parent State; each retaining, besides,
+its language, its own costume, and distinct characteristics; and
+continuing--and this is perhaps the strangest fact of all--as isolated
+in point of individuality of existence and territorial position as if
+each race constituted a separate nation in itself. Hungary is, in fact,
+unlike any other country in the world, and there is a novelty and a
+charm about it that fills the traveller with delight.
+
+“When I hear its name mentioned,” exclaimed a popular German author,
+“my waistcoat seems too tight for me; an ocean stirs within me; in my
+heart awaken the traditionary exploits of long ago, the poetry and song
+of the Middle Ages. Its history is that of yore; the same heroism lives
+within its borders, the names of its heroes alone have changed.” And
+he is right. There is an inborn chivalry and heroism in the character
+of the Magyars--traits evinced not only in their past, but recent
+history; the same noble and dauntless spirit that dwelt in their heroes
+of the Middle Ages lives in them now, and there is a bold and fearless
+independence, a straightforwardness, and high principle that cannot
+fail to win the love and admiration of all who really know them.
+
+Returning to our places in the train, we observe standing near the
+steps of our compartment a lady engaged in earnest conversation with
+a poor woman clad in the costume of the Alfőld peasantry, and holding
+in her arms a little golden-haired child of about four years old. The
+woman was weeping bitterly, and the fragile body of the child was
+convulsed with suppressed sobs.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Our interest in both mother and child was kindled in a moment, and we
+subsequently learnt from a German-speaking Magyar who travelled with us
+that the lady was taking the little creature--the child of one of her
+husband’s _földmevelök_ (farm-labourers)--to the hospital at Pest,
+to undergo a surgical operation that might detain her there for several
+months.
+
+The parting of mother and child was one of the most touching things I
+ever witnessed. We could not understand their lip-language, but the
+heaven-born utterance of human love needs no mortal speech to express
+its meaning, and we _felt_ all that their feeble, broken words
+conveyed.
+
+No sooner had the train left the platform than--the necessity of
+restraining her feelings past--burying her face in the cushions,
+“Little Nell” (for so we called her) gave way to a wild burst of grief.
+
+“_Anyám! Anyám!_” (Mother! mother!) was her agonising cry.
+
+Poor child! like many another, she had entered all too soon within the
+portals of the “sanctuary of sorrow.” Did anything, I wonder, whisper
+to her heart that which on inquiry at the hospital we subsequently
+ascertained, viz. that she was not to see her mother again till they
+were folded in each other’s arms in Paradise?
+
+The Hungarian gentleman sitting opposite wiped his spectacles, whilst
+F., turning abruptly to the window, began taking a most unwonted
+interest in the features of the country, and I doubt whether there was
+a dry eye between us, so truly does
+
+    “One touch of nature make the whole world kin.”
+
+But we are approaching our destination; and having passed through an
+immense forest of oaks, once notorious as the hiding-place of robber
+bands, and forming even yet a refuge for those _szegény legény_,
+or “poor lads,” over whom the popular sentiment of the country has
+thrown such a mistaken charm, we emerge again into the open plains, and
+see beyond us an azure lake lying calmly in the bosom of undulating
+hills. To the right stretches a vast tract of uncultivated land, roamed
+by wild horses, which with manes flying madly gallop away as we draw
+near, until they are almost out of sight and form mere dark specks
+in the distance, and we soon enter the swampy ground which marks the
+vicinity of the lake.
+
+The Platten-See, or Lake Balaton as it is often designated--both names
+being derived from the Sláv word “_blats_,” signifying swamp or
+marsh--is the second largest lake in Europe. Although bounded on the
+northern side by lofty hills, to the south it is almost shoreless,
+except here and there where fishermen, availing themselves of the
+gentle undulations of sandy soil, have erected rude huts of plaited
+reeds. In many places tall grasses eight or ten feet high cover the
+marshes in dense jungly masses, and the surrounding country is so
+inundated that the whole, save on the northern shore, presents an
+appearance of a series of lakes.
+
+Opposite Böglar, in the midst of vine-clad hills, rises the
+conspicuous mountain Badacson, from the grapes of which the celebrated
+wine is made; whilst jutting far into the lake a rocky promontory,
+crowned by an ancient abbey, stands boldly out against the fainter
+outline of the more distant hills.
+
+And then we reach Sió-Fok, and our railway journey is at an end at
+last.
+
+“Little Nell,” the golden-haired child, had long ago sobbed herself
+to sleep. That blessed nepenthe which mercifully follows childhood’s
+sorrow had folded her in the peace of heaven, and there was no sign of
+pain on her placid upturned face, as with an unspoken “God bless her!”
+we left the train for the steamer which was waiting to take us across
+the lake to Fűred.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                              CHAPTER IV.
+
+                             GIPSY MUSIC.
+
+
+“Magyars! Magyars!” I once heard a lady exclaim, who was not quite so
+well up in the science of ethnology as she might have been in these
+enlightened days, and who evidently confounded them in a nebulous kind
+of way with the natives of Madagascar or some other out-of-the-way
+island in the Indian or South Pacific Ocean--“a very interesting
+people, I dare say, but as to myself I never could feel interested in
+those poor savage Blacks!”
+
+What then is the origin of these men of the house and lineage of
+Arpád--this non-Aryan people whom Voltaire describes as _une
+nation fière et généreuse, le fléau de ses tyrans et l’appui de ses
+souverains_, and who, constituting the only Turanian race that has
+ever been recognised as forming a portion of the great European family,
+are well worthy of careful study, yet of whom the majority of persons
+know so little, and some nothing at all?
+
+They are the descendants of a Finnish people, who, emigrating
+southwards through the passes of the Carpathians from their home in the
+far North, approached Hungary in 886.
+
+The word “Magyar” (pronounced Mad-yar), however, is of very ancient
+origin, and has baffled the wisest philological heads to determine
+its precise meaning. It was supposed in the Middle Ages to have been
+derived from Magog, son of Japhet, the popular superstition of that
+period recognising in these “pitiless heathen,” as they were called,
+“the Gog and Magog who were to precede the approaching end of the
+world.” Modern historians, however, have attributed to it various
+other origins, the most recent affirming that the word signifies
+“confederate.” But whatever may be its derivation, Max Müller, by
+the unerring guide of language, has traced the original seat of this
+interesting people to the Ural mountains which stretch upwards to the
+Arctic ocean; and pointing out the close affinity the Magyar tongue
+bears to the idiom of the Finnish race spoken east of the Volga,
+declares that the Magyars form the fourth branch of the Finnish
+stock, viz. the Ugric; and in his ‘Science of Language’ he gives
+striking examples of the similarity and connection which exist in the
+grammatical structure of the Magyar and the Ugro-Finnish dialects,
+particularly in the conjugation of verbs, which have aptly been called
+the “bones and sinews” of a language; and there is little doubt that
+the Magyars are none other than the same race that, under a different
+name, were called in the fourth century “Ugrogs.”
+
+Hungary--the “_beata Ungaria_” of Dante--has been peopled since
+the beginning of the Christian era, as we have already seen, by three
+distinct and separate colonies of barbarians, whose birthplace was
+in the regions of the frozen North. Here, led by Attila, the Huns
+established themselves between the third and fourth centuries, and
+hither a century or two later came the Avars, belonging to the same
+northern race, each destined to accomplish its _rôle_ in the
+history of nations, to rise to its meridian and then decline, till
+finally overwhelmed by other warlike barbarians similar to themselves.
+Lastly--though these have shared a better fate--came the Magyars, the
+great conquering army with Arpád at its head, in whom the Ugro-Finnish
+type once more reappeared in all its pristine energy, the same that
+is believed to have existed in the bands of Attila: a nomad people
+who, though also composed of savage hordes, became by their daring
+and warlike propensities the scourge of Aryan Christendom, and were
+destined not only to become a great empire and take their place amongst
+the civilised nations of Western Europe, but, by their arms raised
+against the enemies to its peace, to be in after-ages its surest
+bulwark of defence against Mahomedan aggression.
+
+A little red steeple, and a sea of mud through which the stranger has
+to plough his way to the shore of the lake, under the full apprehension
+that each succeeding step must cause him to disappear in its apparently
+bottomless depths, introduce us to the village of Sió-Fok, situated on
+a small river into which the Platten-See falls, and which, by means
+of canals, is made to drain many of the marshes of the surrounding
+country; the Sió, which winds away in a southerly direction, being in
+fact one of those nine streams that are supposed to flow underground
+and communicate with the Danube.
+
+As soon as we have embarked, the steamer--which, lying amongst tall
+reeds and willows, was almost hidden till we came alongside her--breaks
+from her moorings and goes bounding away into the beryl waters of the
+lake. Skimming over its glassy surface, we pass scores of wild fowl as
+white as snow, which, not the least disconcerted at our near approach,
+stand gravely pluming themselves on the low sandy islands just
+appearing above the water, or watch with the keen eyes of anglers for
+the fish that the wash of the steamer may chance to lay at their feet.
+
+The Platten-See is at its narrowest here, and the steamer takes us
+across to Fűred in rather less than an hour, where, after travelling
+over the nearly desolate plains, we seem to have arrived all at once at
+the very centre of civilisation.
+
+Fűred itself lies at the foot of a range of volcanic hills, and is much
+resorted to by the Hungarians on account of its mineral springs. In the
+summer months the little place is crowded, and it is then difficult,
+if not altogether impossible, to find accommodation at either of the
+hotels or boarding-houses unless rooms have previously been secured.
+Should the traveller have failed to do this, he can have recourse to
+Arács, a neighbouring village, where “casuals,” “for a consideration,”
+can generally be “taken in and done for.” The season, however, had as
+yet not quite set in, so that we entertained no fears concerning our
+shelter for the night.
+
+Arrived at the opposite shore, we are met by porters who quarrel over
+us; two lay hold of our portmanteau, one at each end, while a third
+seizes it affectionately round the centre. They scramble for each
+article as it is disgorged from the steamer. Walking-sticks, umbrellas,
+dressing-bag, binoculars, are all alike severally snatched from our
+grasp. The landlord of the hotel to which we are bound also meets us,
+and, foreseeing in our persons a long line of prospective tourists,
+almost embraces us on the spot. Scanning us from the crown of the head
+to the sole of the foot, to ascertain whether there is another mortal
+thing left to be carried, he at length espies a small sketching-block
+under my arm, on which a precious unfinished picture is reposing, and
+lays violent hands upon it. A struggle ensues for its possession,
+during which, holding on to my treasure as for dear life, I come off
+panting, but victorious.
+
+Calmness once restored, we proceed in hurried procession to the hotel,
+where waiters rush out upon us and repeat the ceremony. They help
+us up the steps, they insist officiously on brushing the dust off
+our travel-stained garments, they almost pat us on the back in their
+great joy at the arrival of--what we afterwards found ourselves to
+be--the first real live tourists of the season. Overwhelmed with this
+consideration, their feelings do not permit of their leaving us for an
+instant. They follow us up the stairs, where, as our footsteps echo
+through the empty passages, they are joined by other domestics, who
+appear suddenly and mysteriously from unseen and hidden apartments.
+The landlord, the waiters, the porters, the cook, the chambermaid, the
+slavey from the shades--who arrives upon the scene, beaming but out of
+breath, just at the last moment--one and all either precede or follow
+us into the very precincts of the guest-chamber.
+
+On descending to the _salle à manger_, we find covers laid
+for four persons at a side table, whilst in the middle stand other
+tables, round which, closely placed together, are chairs, arranged in
+readiness for the visitors whose advent is now daily expected; and as
+we sit awaiting the arrival of our repast, Fancy, in the stillness of
+the great chamber, conjures up the spirits of its future occupants,
+and peoples it with cheerful guests, till the walls resound with
+merriment and laughter. Pretty, piquante Magyar women and girls;
+Hungarian officers in stiff backs and much-padded uniforms; Hungarian
+civilians--heavy fathers in ponderous braidings and more ponderous
+manners; German and Hungarian Jews and Jewesses--all are once more
+before us just as we saw them gathered in this festive hall three long
+years ago.
+
+At this juncture of our imaginings, a merry laugh and light steps
+herald the arrival of two ladies, who, advancing to our table, take
+seats beside us. The long aquiline nose and protruding upper lip
+proclaim them at once to belong to the family of Israel.
+
+The external characteristics of this people are not so strongly marked
+here as in many other countries, but it is nevertheless impossible to
+mistake them. In Hungary alone they number upwards of 1,100,000, and,
+like the gipsies, are met with at every turn. The ladies above referred
+to--mother and daughter, I imagine, from the likeness they bore to each
+other--were both strikingly handsome. Indeed, whether belonging to Jew
+or Gentile, it is seldom one sees a plain woman in this happy country.
+They were from Presburg, they informed us, and had arrived soon after
+ourselves. Fortunately they could both speak German, or our limited
+knowledge of the Magyar language would have rendered conversation
+impossible.
+
+The repast that was at length placed before us was both good and
+abundant, with the exception of the renowned Fogas (_Perca
+lucioperca_), a fish for which the lake is justly celebrated, and
+which--O ye epicures!--was garnished with shavings of raw onions.
+
+Now, I hope we are not delicate to a fault in the matter of food,
+provided its ingredients be not unclean, and we have more than once
+partaken--unwittingly, it is true, but not without relish--of a dainty
+viand afterwards discovered to have been minced snails fried in butter
+and bread-crumbs, which, if you “make believe” very hard indeed, tastes
+like scalloped oysters; but boiled fish and onions, cooked or uncooked,
+I hold to be an outrage on the gastronomic art quite unpardonable in
+any civilised nation.
+
+The familiar French proverb, however, was never more strikingly
+exemplified than in this particular instance, for both our fair
+companions partook of the--to us--unsavoury combination, and were still
+enjoying their _bonne bouche_ when, leaving them, we strolled out
+in the evening air.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+It is a lovely evening, and the setting sun, a ball of fire, floods all
+nature in a sea of glory. Away in the marshes, the lakelets are kindled
+into a harmonious mingling of vermilion and bronze, save where they
+reflect the pale soft azure of the zenith. Then as the fiery god sinks
+at last--as he appears to do--into the very bosom of the earth, what
+transcendent effects of light break like magic over earth and sky! What
+exquisite gradations of colour! What infinite depths of saffron and
+rose and violet stretch upwards, till they fade in the liquid purple of
+the arc above!
+
+Watch now the long lines of rich warm colour as they gradually stretch
+across the darkling landscape! Here and there some darker object still,
+a clump of trees or gipsy encampment, stands out black against the
+paler colouring of the “off-scape.” What is that dark mass yonder? The
+clear atmosphere, aided by our field-glass, at once declares it to be
+a party of travellers bivouacking for the night, reminding one of an
+Eastern caravan.
+
+What a statuesque group they make against the amber sky, and what a
+subject for an artist! Men standing in their long fur-lined mantles,
+others crouched on the ground making a fire or unpacking provisions
+for their evening meal; by their side lie numerous gourds and leathern
+bottles, just such as Hagar carried in the wilderness: while the rich
+colouring of their garments mellowed in the dying light, and the long
+shadows thrown across the golden sward, assist in forming a most
+picturesque combination.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+In these vast plains _csárdák_ (inns)--a name no doubt derived
+from _csárdás_, the national dance, which is performed more
+frequently perhaps in these little places of doubtful resort than
+anywhere else--are few and far between, but the Hungarians happily
+are by no means dependent on them for shelter. That wonderful garment
+the _bunda_, with which every man is provided, renders him
+invulnerable alike to heat and cold, forming as it does his house, his
+bed, his protection both from the scorching summer sun and from the
+intense frosts and bitter, cutting blasts that in winter scour the
+region of the plains. During the latter season the fur is worn inside,
+the garment being reversed when the hot weather sets in. “My son,
+forget not thy bread in winter, nor thy _bunda_ in summer,” is
+consequently a familiar and appropriate Magyar maxim.
+
+How strange, silent, and at the same time majestic, is the Alfőld at
+this hour; and how full of sentiment and repose, as twilight gently
+falling softens its lines and furrows, as slumber does a wrinkled,
+careworn face, smoothing all in a wondrous breadth of calm!
+
+A cold aguish mist now rising warns us to return. Looking behind us,
+the sapphire hills loom sombre against the evening sky. The stars peep
+forth timidly, and reflect themselves in the shadows of the lake. In
+the window of a villa along the shore a solitary light burns red, a
+little boat is making for the shore, and the far-off sound of music
+breaks the stillness with pathetic cadence.
+
+On nearing our hotel we find that it proceeds from a gipsy band,
+which, according to time-honoured custom, has come to serenade the new
+arrivals. The instruments consist in the present instance of three
+violins, a violoncello, double-bass, clarionet, and cymbals, and we
+hear once more those passionate strains, so full of pathos and beauty,
+which have lived in our memory ever since we first heard them at Pest
+four years ago.
+
+The Magyars have a perfect passion for this gipsy music, and there
+is nothing that appeals so powerfully to their emotions, whether of
+joy or sorrow. These singular musicians are as a rule well-taught,
+and can play almost any music, greatly preferring, however, their own
+compositions. Their music consequently is highly characteristic. It is
+the language of their lives and strange surroundings; a wild, weird,
+banshee music; now all joy and sparkle, like sunshine on the plains;
+now sullen, sad and pathetic by turns, like the wail of a crushed
+and oppressed people--an echo, it is said, of the minstrelsy of the
+_hegedősök_ Hungarian bards, but sounding to our ears like the
+more distant echo of that exceeding bitter cry uttered long centuries
+ago by their forefathers under Egyptian bondage, and borne over the
+time-waves of thousands of years, breaking forth in their music of
+to-day.
+
+Gipsies, like the Jews, muster strongly in Hungary, and number more
+than 150,000. They are said to have taken refuge in this country from
+the cruelty of their Mogul oppressors, and to have been suffered by
+King Sigismond to establish themselves here under the title of “new
+settlers.”
+
+There are three classes of gipsies in Hungary, or _Farao nepek_,
+“King Pharaoh’s people,” as they are often called in derision: the
+musicians; the _sátoros czigánok_, or tented gipsies, by which
+is meant, those who wander from place to place; and those who, having
+a settled habitation, are the only blacksmiths in the country.
+Notwithstanding their vagabond appearance, the gipsies are often
+anything but poor, and have sometimes been known to amass considerable
+wealth. Besides being musicians and blacksmiths, they also frequent
+fairs in the character of horse-dealers, so that the Hungarian gipsy,
+viewed in his social aspect, is a much more important individual
+than his English brother, and is in fact, as he has been very aptly
+designated, the “hanger-on” of the Magyar. No festivity ever takes
+place without his being summoned to enliven it with his soul-stirring
+music, whilst in some parts of Hungary it is the custom, or was so
+until very recently, for a gipsy band to attend a funeral procession
+to the cemetery.
+
+Wherever one goes, the _czigány_ (gipsy) is sure to be seen. With
+his long cart, on which, huddled together, sit his wife and ragged
+children, he travels from village to village, his destination usually
+being one of the numerous fairs which take place annually in this
+country; and whether travelling along with his little worldly all, or
+encamped with his tent under the blue expanse of heaven, he forms one
+of the most picturesque features of the Alfőld scenery.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                              CHAPTER V.
+
+                       WE ARE MET BY OUR GUIDE.
+
+
+In a country where so many nationalities exist it is not easy to
+travel without some one who can speak at least three or four languages
+unfamiliar to civilised ears; and as we purposed travelling not only
+through Central Hungary, but through Transylvania and the Northern
+Carpathians also, a guide was absolutely necessary, who, in addition to
+German and Magyar, should be able to speak Wallachian and Slovak.
+
+Besides the letters of introduction given us by the merchant at Paris,
+we received before leaving England another to a gentleman residing in
+one of the midland _comitats_ (counties), which before starting
+we forwarded with a letter from ourselves, asking the favour of his
+recommending a trustworthy person to accompany us on our journey, and
+if possible to send him to meet us here.
+
+We were seated at breakfast the morning after our arrival at Fűred
+when a little group of persons entered, a tall woman of forbidding
+aspect, leading a child by each hand, followed by a very small man,
+who, handing us a letter, proved to be one of our Hungarian friend’s
+own servants, whom he had sent in the capacity of guide, the letter
+assuring us he was thoroughly experienced in travelling, knowing how
+to make arrangements at country inns, etc. etc., and, in short, well
+versed on all subjects concerning what “to eat, drink, and avoid.”
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+It was somewhat alarming, however, to witness this little man’s
+belongings, and we began to wonder whether, amongst other strange
+things of this strange country, it was the custom for the guide’s
+family likewise to accompany the traveller. The bundles and small
+luggage also, which not only the woman but both children carried in
+their arms, and the travel-stained appearance of their garments,
+showing they had come from a long distance, were likewise circumstances
+tending to strengthen our very natural supposition. But our minds were
+soon set at rest on this matter by András himself, who informed us that
+his wife had relations in the neighbourhood of Fűred, with whom she
+purposed remaining with her children until his return.
+
+András was a good-looking man, with a bright and intelligent
+countenance. He wore white _gatya_ (trousers) fringed at the
+edge, a braided hussar-jacket thrown across one shoulder, and a small
+round felt hat and feathers. On our asking him to what nationality
+he belonged, he drew himself up proudly until he almost stood on
+tip-toe, and with a look expressive of triumph replied, “_Én Magyar
+vagyok_” (“I am a Magyar”), and went on to inform us that he was
+the grandson of an unfortunate noble whose lands had been forfeited,
+but whose descent could be traced to the _honfoglalás_, as the
+conquest of the Hungarian fatherland by Árpád in the ninth century
+is called,--an event regarded by the Magyars in the same light as we
+ourselves view the Norman Conquest. At this juncture he was overcome by
+his emotions, but whether awakened by the remembrance of his defunct
+grandsire, or simply that of his own greatness, it was hard to say.
+
+Our guide’s wife was a head and shoulders taller than her lord and
+master, and could easily have carried him about like a baby had she
+been so minded. She was a fierce-looking woman with beetling brows, an
+appearance by no means lessened by her peculiar style of dress; for,
+besides her Turkish-looking head-gear, short skirts and top-boots, her
+sleeves were padded at the shoulders, which, by increasing the width of
+her already broad chest, imparted to her a mien truly Amazonian.
+
+Whilst András provided for the exigencies of the journey, we occupied
+ourselves in making short excursions in the neighbourhood. The lake,
+though fifty miles long, is at no point more than nine broad; whilst
+at Fűred it is even narrower still, the peninsula of Tihany, which
+stretches halfway across it, almost severing it in two. Besides the
+_fogas_, already referred to, it contains several kinds of
+fish--the fogas, which is found only here and in the Nile, being
+esteemed by epicures as the very best fresh-water fish in Europe.
+
+The people living round Fűred are principally farmers and graziers. The
+houses of the former are clean; but those of the _földművelők_, or
+cultivators of the soil, synonymous with our agricultural labourers,
+are often little better than hovels, where the children, the goats,
+the poultry, and the pigs dwell together in happy-family parties. In
+one of these hovels we saw, suspended for safety to a beam under the
+roof, a baby lying in a trough in which the pigs had just been feeding;
+whilst in others we found the common sleeping-place to be a little nook
+behind the hearth, where the whole family huddled together in contented
+fellowship.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+One of the quaintest and most amusing things in the neighbourhood of
+these villages is to watch the kine returning at sunset from the plains
+whither they have been driven for pasture at break of day. At the sound
+of a horn, no matter how numerous they may be, each makes for its
+own village, some with slow and stately gait, others running, but one
+and all finding their way home unaccompanied to the very bosom of the
+family.
+
+It is then that these villages, so silent and deserted all the livelong
+day--during which the inhabitants have been working in distant fields
+or been otherwise busily occupied--are full of life and animation. The
+women, sitting at doorways, sew or knit, whilst the men, lounging on
+the benches beneath the gables, smoke the pipe of peace; meanwhile, in
+ragged and irregular procession, the kine come flocking in, together
+with the pigs, each scenting with discriminating nostril its own
+particular stall or stye, and making for it with glad, unhesitating
+stride.
+
+Wandering along the lake in the direction of Tihany, we find numerous
+shells of no known existing species, resembling goat’s hoofs, and
+by which name they are called by the peasantry. There is a singular
+tradition concerning the origin of these fossils, to which the
+imaginative Hungarians cling with characteristic tenacity.
+
+In the remote days of King Béla (1061), when the Tartar hordes pressing
+from the East menaced the country, the King, followed by his courtiers
+and the royal flocks and herds, fleeing for safety across the Danube,
+took refuge in the fastnesses of Tihany. The Tartars, however--so runs
+tradition--having overtaken him even here, compelled him to retreat
+still farther. Unable to save his flocks and herds, yet unwilling they
+should become spoil for the enemy, he caused them to be drowned in the
+lake, and the fossils found in it to-day are said to be the petrified
+remains of the hoofs of these animals!
+
+The rocks of Tihany also contain numerous other fossils, imbedded in
+the limestone; whilst in some portions of the plains, transported from
+the trachyte or volcanic hills, are deposits containing scoriaceous
+and earthy matters, in which not only pumice, but fossil and organic
+remains are found, consisting of opaline wood with impressions of
+shells and plants of various kinds.
+
+On the last day of our sojourn at Fűred, whilst F. went off to visit
+the monastery, accompanied by András, I sallied forth with my sketching
+apparatus for a climb over the hills.
+
+At our feet slumbering calmly, like an infant surrounded by diaphanous
+curtains in a downy cradle, lay the azure lake enveloped in a
+transparent veil of mist. Near the shore, the little fishing-boats
+floating on its surface in the direction of Sió-Fok appeared poised
+in mid-air, and, looming pale through the mist, looked like birds of
+morning or phantoms of themselves. To our right the abbey-crowned
+promontory of Tihany with its hermits’ cells was half hidden by a long
+stratum of vapour, which seemed to sever it in two; whilst Fűred, with
+its colonnades and white porticoes, looked like some fairy palace that
+must soon dissolve into thin air.
+
+Just as I had seated myself comfortably, and was about to make a
+sketch of the broad landscape beneath, the lake with its fringe of
+pampas-grass and flights of wild fowl, which frequently rose from
+the dense cover--for, the mists by this time having fainted away in
+the sun’s beams, the lake now reflected the deep sapphire of the arc
+above--I suddenly remembered that I had left my binoculars behind on
+one of the tables in the hotel restaurant. To go back for them and
+return in time to finish my picture would be impossible, and I did not
+like the idea of remaining alone in these wilds by sending András.
+
+Informing him of my dilemma, the good little man declared his
+willingness to descend the hill at once, but added that if we could
+only light upon a _czigány_, pilfering _Herrschaft_ as they
+were in ordinary, he could be safely entrusted with the delicate
+mission.
+
+“_Spricht man vom Teufel, so sieht man ihn gleich!_” exclaimed
+he, in the sentiment of our own familiar aphorism concerning angels
+and their wings, as looking behind him he descried a band of gipsies
+advancing in the distance.
+
+What a picturesque group they form, wending their way slowly
+along--three men, two women and half-a-dozen mop-headed children, the
+smallest of whom, seated on a heap of tent paraphernalia, is carried on
+the back of a shaggy brown pony, the very type of its owners!
+
+The moment they catch sight of us there is a general run, the women and
+children with hands outstretched--supplicating in whining, plaintive
+but importunate tones for kreuzers. A few choice expletives, however,
+administered by András in their own tongue in a commanding treble, soon
+send them to the right-about; and the whole party having passed in
+picturesque file, they begin to pitch their tent on a piece of level
+ground not far below us.
+
+András soon picks out his particular _czigány_ for the errand, a
+tall thin man of about forty years of age, with a roguish countenance
+and legs like spindles, who certainly fails to inspire me with the
+slightest confidence in the safety of the commission entrusted to him,
+as nimble of gait he flies down the hillside like a spider descending
+by his web, and is out of sight in no time.
+
+Meanwhile it is intensely amusing and interesting to watch the pitching
+of the tent, and its smoky, rich brown canvas forms a picturesque bit
+of foreground to the beautiful lake in the distance. In the fervour
+of their occupation they have evidently forgotten our presence, for,
+hark to the ringing laughter of these free, unwashed, bare-breasted,
+bronze-faced gipsies, as they utter their half-barbaric language, which
+defies the wisdom of philologists to interpret and the precise origin
+of which is unknown!
+
+No sooner is the tent pitched than the conventional tripod is erected,
+from which an iron pot is suspended. How the wood crackles and the
+sparks fly upwards as the little naked children, dancing like demons
+round the fire, throw on sticks to increase the flame! what shouts of
+laughter resound through the air from these sad melancholy-looking
+people who have no equivalent for the verb “to dwell,” and in whose
+vocabulary there are no words to express joy, happiness, or prosperity,
+although they have many indicative of sorrow, pain, poverty, and woe!
+
+Their mid-day meal of porridge flavoured with garlic is soon cooked
+and disposed of, but ere this our gipsy messenger has returned with my
+lost possession in perfect safety, and been cheaply rewarded and made
+radiantly happy by the bestowal of a florin for his pains. From the
+look of astonishment that rose to his large, sad, glistening eyes as
+I put the coin into his hand, he seemed to think himself the richest
+man in all the country; and as he descended to his people tossing it
+high in air and catching it again, there was general acclamation and
+rejoicing.
+
+Presently, waxing bold by degrees, one of the gipsies I had sketched
+came and stood behind me. He was a delicious specimen of pictorial
+tatters mellowed by every vicissitude of wear and weather. His brawny
+chest lay bare to the elements, whilst his broad and slouching felt
+_sombrero_, dragged into every possible degree of limpness,
+shading but not concealing his beetling brows, rendered him a fitting
+study for a Rembrandt. What a rich mingling _he_ too forms
+of black, brown and amber, and how beautifully he “composes” with
+the background of azure lake! Holding it towards him, I called his
+attention to the representation of himself and his surroundings, which
+appeared to interest him greatly, and with wondering admiration he at
+once recognised the faithful rendering of a long tear in the sleeve of
+his outer garment.
+
+Of all the gipsies in Hungary the _Sátoros czigányok_, or those
+who wander about with tents, are supposed to be the very worst
+specimens of the race, and are compelled by government to change their
+place of bivouac every twenty-four hours. After the musicians, the
+most respectable members of the community are those who take up their
+permanent abode on the outskirts of villages, and are the recognised
+blacksmiths and farriers of the country.
+
+Whatever be the origin of this singular people, many of their customs
+are completely Hindoo, and the similarity of their language to Sanscrit
+is a well-known fact, their very name “_Czigány_” being taken,
+it is said, from a Sanscrit word. The Sanscrit name for snake is
+“_nága_,” “nag” being the one used by our English gipsies. The
+mouth they call “mui,” which in Sanscrit is “_mukha_.” “Shaster”
+(Hindoo Bible) is the only term they make use of to denote any kind
+of book, and “Shulam!” their form of greeting, is evidently taken
+from the familiar Oriental one “Salaam!” Whilst a horse, which in
+Hindustani is “_ghoṛā_,” is called by the gipsy “grea,” and so on
+_ad infinitum_.
+
+At various periods philanthropists have endeavoured to civilise these
+wandering children of the desert, but without success. Towards the end
+of the last century, Joseph II., hoping to induce them to relinquish
+their vagabond lives, dignified them with the name of “New Peasants,”
+and caused houses to be built for them; but instead of living in them,
+they used them as stabling for their wretched horses, and either
+pitched tents or erected hovels for themselves outside. Since then many
+benevolent and sanguine individuals have done their best to win over
+the offspring of these Bedouins to a decent mode of life, by taking
+them from their parents when very young; but so strongly implanted
+in the gipsy is the love of vagrancy, that no sooner are the little
+urchins old enough to break through restraint than some fine morning
+they are certain to be missing--gone back to their own or some other
+band of wanderers.
+
+No matter whether young or old, the orthodox thorough-going
+_czigány_ is a creature not to be civilised, and he clings with
+the greatest tenacity, not only to his nomad, vagabond existence, but
+to all the ancient superstitions of his race.
+
+He believes the woods and forests are inhabited by gnomes, elves
+and evil spirits, but he has no God. For him death is annihilation,
+absolute and complete. He regards death with horror, and after the
+_pandúr_ (policeman) it is the thing he most dreads. Like his
+English brother, the Hungarian gipsy pretends to be ignorant of
+all laws, and, though seldom or never guilty of great offences, he
+entertains an innate horror of this functionary, regarding him as the
+obnoxious embodiment of some superior power, the precise nature and
+essence of which he professes not to understand. But whilst maintaining
+his universal character for pilfering, the _czigány_ has many
+redeeming qualities. He is strongly attached to the aged as well as to
+little children: and during the troublous wars which devastated Hungary
+in the last century, many instances of self-abnegation are recorded
+of these poor outcasts, and many romantic legends are possessed by
+the Magyars concerning them. But however much he may differ in his
+surroundings, in his consistent habit of humbugging and love of
+necromancy he is the same as elsewhere; and whether wandering over
+the great Alfőld or Felfőld of Hungary, or bivouacking as of yore in
+the green lanes of pastoral England, he is the same mysterious and
+mischievous waif, getting a living somehow, anyhow, by fair means or
+foul, as it suits his purpose at the moment.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                              CHAPTER VI.
+
+                               DÉLI-BÁB.
+
+
+The ordinary travelling conveyance of Hungary is the _leiterwagen_
+or _szekér_, a long skeleton cart, with sides like ladders,
+already described, which, from the convenient habit it has of
+accommodating itself to the manifold vicissitudes of Hungarian travel,
+and of wriggling and writhing itself into shape under circumstances
+that would utterly break up any English vehicle, together with the
+capacity it possesses of being dragged through quagmires that in this
+country bear the name of roads, is admirably adapted to its purpose.
+
+They know only part of a country who study it merely in its
+outward aspects and do not acquaint themselves with the lives and
+characteristics of its inhabitants. Before leaving England, therefore,
+we determined to throw off our national prejudices and mix with the
+people as much as possible, becoming Magyars on the plains, Slovaks
+and Rusniaks in the northern and north-eastern Carpathians, Wallachs
+in Transylvania and Yougo-Slávs in Croatia. For this reason too we
+determined not to keep to the iron-roads, but to travel across country
+by _szekér_--curiously enough pronounced _shaker_--or any
+other conveyance to be met with. The _szekér_ is by no means so
+uncomfortable a vehicle as might be imagined, for well filled with hay
+in addition to a couple of air-pillows--which no traveller in Hungary
+should omit to carry--one may journey in it day after day without very
+much fatigue.
+
+Starting from so small a place as Fűred--where thus early in the
+season we feared nothing else could be obtained--our expectations
+at any rate did not soar beyond that humble means of locomotion
+even if our ambition took a loftier flight. But our guide, on the
+contrary, threw, figuratively speaking, cold water upon that modest
+vehicle--in fact, very cold water indeed--venturing to insinuate at
+the anomaly that would be presented by an august _Ángol_, and
+his _tekintetes asszony_ (worshipful lady), as he persisted in
+styling us, travelling in so undignified a manner, and did his utmost
+to dissuade us from proceeding across-country by inducing us to return
+to Sió-Fok, and there take the train to Pest, at which place we could
+purchase a travelling carriage if we would, and journey through Hungary
+in a manner becoming an “illustrious family” from _Ángolország_
+(England).
+
+Talleyrand says somewhere in his philosophy that “the tongue was given
+to conceal the thoughts,” and András’s opposition to our travelling
+in a “shaker” bore, we felt sure, no reference to the maintenance of
+_our_ dignity, but simply to that of his own. The Hungarians are
+proverbially proud, ostentatious and fond of display, and there never
+was a truer proverb than that of their own creation: “_Sallangos a
+Magyar_” (the Magyars are fond of trappings). This being the case,
+the prospect of sitting side by side with the driver on the bench of
+a _paraszt-kosci_, or peasant’s carriage, as a _szekér_ is
+often designated--it was amusing to hear the scornful way in which
+he pronounced the word--was far more than so pompous an individual as
+a Magyar guide could view with complacency. It was to him therefore
+a source of no small chagrin that we intimated our intention of
+persisting in our contemplated cross-country journey to Pest.
+
+András in his ordinary attire, and András dressed in the livery of
+his master, were two entirely different personages. We could scarcely
+recognise him when he presented himself on the morning of the day
+on which we were to start, arrayed in the tightest of pantaloons
+of dark green cloth, braided with yellow, and hussar-jacket of the
+same. The livery was somewhat faded, it is true, but he presented,
+notwithstanding, quite a martial appearance; his moustache by the
+agency of some external application stood out perfectly straight,
+and, extending far beyond the region of his face, added a fierce and
+Mephistophelean character to his countenance.
+
+To the eyes of the English traveller the costumes or rather liveries of
+the servants of the “nobles” and gentry are very striking. There was
+a time however, and not so long ago, when they wore a full military
+uniform, resplendent with gold and silver lace, each gentleman having
+his valet, who was dressed and armed like a hussar, and who waited on
+him with the soldier-like accompaniments of sabre and spurs. The other
+men-servants of his establishment were similarly equipped; whilst the
+ordinary costume of their masters consisted of gay-coloured broad-cloth
+richly embroidered with gold, a velvet fur-lined mantle thrown over
+one shoulder, a girdle or sash of some costly material encircling the
+waist, and a hat adorned with splendid plumes.
+
+These beautiful “relics of barbarism” are, alas! fast dying out. The
+ladies have relinquished their national costumes for those of Western
+Europe, and the nobles only wear theirs on festive and grand occasions,
+unless they desire to make, as in 1870, a political demonstration
+against some Imperial laws, when to a man the Hungarians present
+themselves in all their former glory of plume, embroidered sash, and
+kingly mantle, and cause the streets of Pest to look like scenes from
+an opera.
+
+We were just starting for an early cruise on the lake, when András
+overtook us bristling with importance, his very hair standing erect
+in his eagerness to communicate something. He had that moment, so he
+informed us, by a piece of unprecedented good luck, heard of a britzska
+belonging to a dead Pole from Gallicia; that is to say, trying to
+correct himself, it had _once_ belonged to a dead Pole. Here,
+getting hopelessly entangled in speech, and unable to right himself,
+he came to a standstill, till growing calm by degrees he at length
+explained that a Polish gentleman, who had sought health in the healing
+waters of Fűred, had not only failed to find it, but had committed the
+misdemeanour of dying in a certain inn in the neighbourhood before he
+had paid the bill. The britzska consequently became the property of the
+landlord, and was for sale.
+
+Although the sum demanded was four hundred gulden, he, András, believed
+that by judicious bargaining it might be obtained for three hundred.
+At any rate would “their Graces” only come and see it? It was in an
+_álás_, or shed, in the village hard by.
+
+Following him, we soon came to the place where it was reposing,--a
+heavy, time-worn, battered, and oppressed-looking thing, typical,
+doubtless, of the fortunes of its late owner, whilst so ancient was
+its general appearance that it might have conveyed Arpád or even
+Attila himself across the Carpathians when they and their conquering
+armies made their first entry into Hungary. It possessed, however, the
+modern luxury of a hood and glass shutters, and was constructed so as
+to enable the traveller to lie down in it at full length, and we were
+forced to admit that the whole did unquestionably form a very snug
+arrangement for journeying through a country like this, where there are
+such violent and rapid changes in the temperature.
+
+The paper currency of Hungary was at this time more than usually
+depressed. We obtained everywhere twelve florins and about eighty
+kreuzers in exchange for our English sovereign, so that three hundred
+gulden--a gulden being equivalent to two shillings--represented in
+reality only £25 10_s._; we therefore informed him that if he
+could strike the bargain for that sum he might, and left him to do the
+haggling.
+
+We were doubtless not a little influenced in our compliance with
+András’s wishes by a conversation we had had that morning with a
+German, whom we happened to meet whilst walking on the shores of the
+lake.
+
+“Brigandage in Hungary,” he remarked, “is not yet a thing of the past.
+You will be journeying across the lonely Alfőld, and doing so in a
+manner befitting a person of distinction is, believe me, the only thing
+that will exempt you from an attack, should chance lead you in their
+way. You English have a proverb, ‘There is honour amongst thieves;’
+and it is one that might well have emanated from this country, for the
+innate pride of these Magyar ruffians causes them to regard with such
+respect and veneration all whom they conceive to be of pure blood,
+that instead of robbing them they will often afford them safe conduct
+through their fastnesses; and whilst a caravan of merchants crossing
+the Alfőld in broad day may fall a victim to their avarice, the haughty
+noble driving in his carriage, attended by one solitary servant, may
+travel in perfect safety throughout the livelong night. If you travel
+in your own carriage, you may be mistaken for one of these nobles; and
+rather than rob you, they will probably help you on your journey.”
+
+It is scarcely necessary to say that András succeeded in his
+negotiations, and in little more than an hour’s time--instead of the
+much-despised _paraszt-kosci_--our _britzska_, to which were
+harnessed four miserable-looking horses, quite in keeping with the
+equipage itself, drew up to the hotel.
+
+Our charioteer, a man of sinister appearance with deep-set eyes and
+raven hair, is smoking a pipe. He wears the usual hussar-jacket thrown
+rakishly over one shoulder and a bunch of flowers in his hat. Giving
+half-a-dozen flourishes with his whip, he tickles the ears of the
+leaders. The last bag has been deposited. The hamper containing the
+cold fowls, the yard of bread, the half yard of garlicky sausage and
+the bottles of _badacsony_, reposes safely in a net beneath the
+carriage. We take our places: a struggle ensues on the part of the four
+lean, long-tailed horses at starting, all of which manifest a decided
+will of their own--but suddenly we are off.
+
+Between Fűred and the mountains of Transylvania stretches an
+uninterrupted plain. The country in this locality, however, is less
+thinly populated than that of the Pettaurfeld, which we passed
+through on entering Hungary from Venice. On the road we meet waggons
+containing barrels and piles of merchandise drawn by beautiful white,
+meek-eyed oxen, and often driven by Jews, who all over Hungary are
+the “middlemen” between the producer and the consumer. It is to the
+Jews that the farmer sells the wool from his numerous flocks, and the
+“noble” the produce of his estates. They are Jews who buy the grapes
+and the wheat and the maize, and who drive hard bargains with the lowly
+peasant for his little plot of sunflowers, poppies or hemp, and who are
+the medium of nearly all the commerce in the country.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Our route now leads us in a northerly direction. At first the plains
+softly undulating are dimpled here and there with shady hollows; whilst
+like golden islands in an ocean of vivid green lie long stretches of
+yellow colza and ripening corn. On the gently rising upland yonder
+a dark round speck appears against the sunlit sky; gradually it
+elongates, and we hear a voice singing in a quivering treble some
+national idyll. It is a husbandman emerging from the hollow and
+trudging homewards along the crest of the undulation. Then all is
+silence and solitude once more, till coming to a standstill at one of
+the primitive wells by the roadside, we hear the distant rumble of a
+waggon as its wheels grind heavily along, the driver of it singing,
+as he goes, a melancholy ditty in the minor key. Then one by one the
+villages and solitary farms lying on the horizon die away; and we
+enter the boundless plains. How lonely we feel, and what tiny atoms of
+creation, with no objects to measure ourselves by save birds of prey
+and the white clouds sailing far up in the great, blue, glorious sky!
+
+Our carriage, though imposing only in the matter of size, proved very
+comfortable, its ponderous hood shielding us from the heat of the sun,
+save where, taking mean advantage of weak places in its constitution,
+it shot fiery arrows in upon us, scarcely less piercing than those that
+pour down upon the head of the traveller in the desert.
+
+The sun reflects itself in the white and dusty road. Above the soil
+on either side there is a flickering motion of the air like the haze
+from a lime-kiln. Everything is hot and dusty; not an insect is seen
+hovering about the low bushes which now and then skirt our pathway.
+All nature is taking its siesta in the dreamy noontide, and nothing
+is awake but the scarlet pimpernel that with wide-open unblinking eye
+looks straight up at the blazing sun. We now come to a marshy district,
+where a lonely heron is contemplating its lovely image in a small still
+pool, and then away we go again out into broad purple patches of newly
+upturned soil, bands of emerald corn, and speckled streaks of tobacco,
+with its large red and green leaves, and on through cool labyrinths of
+maize, till we come to vast tracts of uncultivated land, where wild
+horses with flying manes go scampering across its surface with all the
+natural grace of untamed things.
+
+As day advances and the shadows of the clouds begin to lengthen across
+the plains, a breeze springs up and plays about us softly, rustling
+the large white, surplice-like sleeves of the driver’s garment, but
+not sufficiently strong to stir his black and flowing locks, which,
+weighted with some unctuous matter, rest calmly on his shoulders. Our
+nearest town is Veszprim, but at the pace we are at present going we
+are scarcely likely to reach it before nightfall, if then. But what
+does it matter, when we have the whole of to-morrow, and the next day,
+and the day after that, aye, and our whole lives, to do the distance in
+if necessary? How delightful to enjoy for once the true feeling of rest
+in this world of hurry-scurry, where we are but too often compelled to
+live at high pressure! Let, oh! let us for once take life easily under
+the broad and peaceful canopy of heaven, and reduce the _dolce far
+niente_ to a science!
+
+Borne leisurely onwards by the monotonous jog-trot of our steeds, the
+scream of a falcon now and then, as it whirls overhead, is the only
+sound that breaks the stillness. Nothing is here to remind us of that
+busy world which seems somewhere quite outside the atmosphere of our
+present lives, and which, so far as we are immediately concerned,
+might belong to some wholly different planet, even if it exists at
+all. Mother Earth here folds us in an entirely different lap; all
+the symbols of our old lives have vanished, and the present is far
+too vague and dreamy to be linked with any real memories. And as we
+recline languidly and luxuriously in the warm shade of our comfortable
+carriage, our past experiences are for the time buried in the Lethean
+stream; whilst the things of men--the tragedies of life and death, the
+deeds of cruelty and wrong, the hunger and struggle with hard times
+which exist in that world that lies beyond the circle of our visible
+horizon--seem no longer real, but only a hideous fancy.
+
+Presently we espy what in the distance appears to be a river.
+
+“Is it old Father Danube turning up unexpectedly?” we ask each other;
+exclaiming, after a pause, “No, it cannot be a river, it is a broad
+lake with a green island in its midst. See how the trees are reflected
+in the water!”
+
+“What is the name of that lake yonder?” we inquire of András, who is
+half asleep on the box. “It surely cannot be the Platten-See again; it
+is the wrong side of us for that, and we must have left all sight of it
+behind us hours ago.”
+
+“_Déli-báb!_” replied András laconically, in a drowsy voice,
+aroused from his half-somnolent state only to subside into it again.
+
+Amongst the numerous myths which the fertile imagination of those
+pastoral nomads the ancient Magyars conjured up, dwelling on these vast
+steppes surrounded by rivers, trees and the ever-recurring phenomena of
+nature, not one is so poetical or so philosophical in its conception as
+Déli-báb, the “Fairy of the South,” and the ideal personification of a
+mirage.
+
+How ingenious and at the same time suggestive is the parentage
+that is assigned to this national fairy of the Magyars!--“Daughter
+of old Puszta of the Alfőld”--her home; “Sister of Tenger” the
+sea--which form she most frequently represents. “Loved by Szél”--the
+wind, which, fanning the quivering haze--the chief cause of the
+phenomenon--perpetually changes its aspect.
+
+How often too has she furnished a theme to the Hungarian poets! Have
+not Eötvös, Vörösmarty, and the impassioned Petőfi, sung of the
+deceptive beauty of this land sprite when--scarcely less delusive
+than the Sirens of ancient Greece, who from their rocky island called
+so sweetly to passing sailors “Come and rest! Come to our cool green
+caves, O men of many toils and many storms! and we will charm your
+cares away”--she lures the weary traveller onwards many a mile, and
+then, mocking, fades away?
+
+It is impossible to travel far on the plains on a sultry day without
+observing this beautiful apparition. Often it pursues the traveller for
+many hours together, whilst not unfrequently it is seen to encircle the
+whole horizon. Now it simulates a steeple and houses poised in mid-air;
+now a river or a lake; but, generally, a broad expanse of ocean, with
+long stretches of sandy beach and narrow promontories of marshy shore,
+near which are masts of vessels, with tall trees and copses and stones
+reflected clearly in the water.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+We have nothing in prosaic England to compare with the poetical
+superstition _Déli-báb_; but the resemblance between some of
+our national fables concerning good and bad fairies and those of
+Hungary, which are of Finnish origin, is very striking. Not to
+mention Mermaids and others, which until the middle of the last
+century were believed to inhabit the waters of the Theiss, there were
+sorcerers who were invariably accompanied by the conventional black
+cat; whilst Satan (_őrdőg_), whose particular personification in
+this case is supposed to be of Tartar or Persian origin, is always
+represented--though of ante-Christian era--with large ears and a
+long tail; his abode _Pokol_, where, amidst a band of numerous
+subjects, he dwells in heat and darkness.
+
+We have passed the episcopal town of Veszprim, with its melancholy
+houses and grass-grown streets, passed its numerous vineyards, and once
+more, out on the broad and silent plains, see at long intervals little
+sleepy farms lying half-hidden amongst the green recesses of Indian
+corn, and surrounded by a blaze of wild flowers.
+
+At still longer distances we come to small villages, almost every one
+of which is called _Kis_ or _Nagy_--_something_; adjectives signifying
+“little” and “great,” and which, when reversed, apply to villages far
+beyond our sight.
+
+All, whether _Kis_ and _Nagy_, are exceedingly alike. Each house has
+a white gable pierced with its one small window; beneath which, on a
+bench placed against the wall precisely in the same position as that
+of its next door neighbour, sit peaceful women and girls knitting and
+gossiping. These benches, with one of which each house is provided, are
+called by the appropriate appellation of _Szóhordók_, “word-bearers.”
+
+This uniformity in the villages of the Alfőld is very striking and
+peculiar, and cannot fail to arrest the attention of all who, leaving
+the iron-roads which now link all the large towns and cities of Hungary
+together, travel across the open country.
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER VII.
+
+                      THE ÁGÁS OR HUNGARIAN WELL.
+
+
+The aspect of the Alfőld varies considerably according to the nature
+of the soil. In some places it is boggy; in others sandy and incapable
+of cultivation; in others again it is so marvellously fertile that
+it produces crops which by an English agriculturist would be deemed
+absolutely fabulous. In such areas shafts have been sunk five
+hundred feet for the purpose of ascertaining the depth of the soil,
+but even then without the bottom having been reached. In this rich
+alluvial deposit wheat, poppies--the latter grown for a kind of
+confectionery--sunflowers, buckwheat, hemp, flax, maize and tobacco,
+are all cultivated.
+
+In the cultivation of some parts of the Alfőld the method adopted is
+to plant or sow in strips of about eighty feet wide and several miles
+in length; and the stranger, seeing no habitation far or near as he
+plunges along in his _britzska_ or “shaker,” is led to wonder
+where the people live for whom the roads are made and who they are who
+cultivate the soil, or whether benevolent earth spirits do not rise
+during the night to till the land, sow the seed, and hoe and weed those
+endless lines of golden maize and undulating corn.
+
+The soil being so fertile, the harvests, as I have said, are
+wonderfully abundant, and this, too, in spite of the drawbacks to
+which the crops are subject, arising from droughts on the one hand, and
+inundations on the other. The former are attributed in a great measure
+to the absence of trees, one of the first peculiarities that strike the
+traveller on entering the Alfőld.
+
+To remedy this evil to some extent, namely, the dryness of the soil,
+trees are being planted in great numbers in many districts of the
+plains, whilst in others attempts are being made to irrigate the land
+by means of canals.
+
+The inundations, however, are a difficulty that can never be overcome.
+Year by year a war offensive and defensive is waged by the waters of
+the Danube, and its tributaries the Marős and the Theiss, with the
+unfortunate inhabitants of the towns and villages situated on their
+shores. As the beds of these rivers rise, the dykes are raised also;
+but when there happens to be a sudden thaw in the higher Carpathians,
+no artificial barrier is strong enough to resist the great pressure
+brought to bear upon them, and the result is the bursting of the dykes,
+as in the case of Szegedin, and the inundation of the surrounding
+country.
+
+There is also another phenomenon prejudicial to the interest of
+agriculturists. The rivers flow subterraneously. In dry seasons they
+drain the soil by drawing down its moisture to themselves; while in
+rainy seasons the water of the overfull rivers, welling up through the
+light alluvial soil, converts the plains into a gigantic swamp. Nor
+is this all. The Danube is perpetually changing its course; in some
+instances it has left towns and villages many miles distant which were
+once situated on its banks; whilst it now flows close to others at one
+time far away.
+
+Geologists declare that at some pre-historic period the plains formed
+three inland seas, and it is quite impossible to travel in the vicinity
+of this greatest of all European rivers and its tributaries, without
+feeling that in Time’s great cycle the waters must once more submerge
+the whole district of the Alfőld.
+
+In spite of all these disadvantages, the Magyars love their plains just
+as the Swiss do their mountains, and see in them the embodiment of all
+natural beauty.
+
+Across these steppes the roads, which are often little better than a
+waggon track overgrown with grass, are occasionally given to being
+vague. Proceeding on our way we reach a point where two such roads
+meet. The driver is evidently puzzled which to take. That to the left
+appears to vanish in a corn-field, and the one to the right to lead
+to a farm lying half-hidden in low brushwood. Pausing to consider our
+bearings, we soon descried creeping lazily along the former, another
+long waggon, the only kind of vehicle we have passed since leaving
+Fűred.
+
+“Ho! Hi! _Soger_!” cries our driver--“which is the way to
+Stuhlweissenburg?”
+
+The word _Soger_, which in that sense meant German, was an
+unfortunate epithet, most insulting to a Magyar.
+
+“_Brother!_” was the reply, uttered in a savage tone of voice and
+accompanied by what sounded like an oath, the waggoner at the same time
+giving a sharp tug to the reins that brought the waggon right across
+our path and landed his team in a bog at the side. Then, standing
+upright on the seat, he traced with his finger slowly and majestically
+the whole circle of the horizon and exclaimed, “_There!_”
+
+The Hungarians entertain a deep-rooted dislike to Germans individually
+as well as to everything German; and to pretend to mistake a Magyar
+for one of the hated race is a favourite and very effective mode of
+insult.
+
+After a delay of half an hour, during which the oxen are being
+extricated from the bog, and the waggon dragged into position again,
+we journey on once more and come to villages, the one-storied houses
+of which are so uniformly built that, with their white gables facing
+the same direction, they look from a distance precisely like tents. In
+fact, wherever the observant traveller goes in Hungary, he is struck
+with two peculiarities: one consisting in the relics of Orientalism
+possessed by the people, as exhibited in their costume, manner of
+cooking food, and many other domestic habits; the other, in the
+resemblance their dwellings of to-day bear--in form and arrangement at
+any rate--to those of their Turanian ancestors. The general features
+of the Hungarian villages exactly correspond to a military camp;
+and a stranger who travels merely from Pest to Presburg, or _vice
+versâ_, will see this statement amply exemplified. The railway
+skirts the Danube nearly the whole way, and looking across the broad
+and glassy stream he will here and there observe, as the train bears
+him along, what appear to be thousands of tents standing in groups at
+the foot of, or lying on, the slopes of the hills; and should it happen
+to be his first visit to Hungary, he will be under the full impression
+that the whole army is camping out, until he suddenly finds, on nearing
+a village, that what he imagined from a distance to be white tents are
+after all but cottages.
+
+The Hungarians are in very truth an odd mixture, here exhibiting traits
+plainly traceable to their Ugro-Finnish forefathers, and there those
+common to their former subjugators the Turks.
+
+What, for instance, can be more truly Oriental than the _ágás_
+or Hungarian well, to another of which, as we continue to jog along
+the plains, we have just arrived? It consists of a deep shaft sunk
+in the soil, and enclosed by a low parapet or wall. The water is
+raised by means of a long cross-beam, fastened to a pole of equal
+length, to which a rope and bucket are attached; the whole forming the
+exact counterpart of the wells found on the plains of Hindustan, and
+doubtless the same as that at which Abraham’s servant met Rebekah and
+Jacob fell in love with Rachel on the plains of Mamre.
+
+These primitive wells are principally made for the use of shepherds,
+to enable them to water the flocks which graze on the uncultivated
+wastes of these vast plains. Unharnessing the horses, Jöszef leads them
+across to the one we have just reached. Hard by stands the shepherd’s
+hut, which is made of straw, its shape that of a beehive; whilst the
+shepherd himself, a tall man with a sheepskin cloak, who in his shaggy
+garment looks not unlike the sheep he is tending, comes out and,
+raising the water, holds the cool, dripping bucket to the noses of our
+thirsty team.
+
+After this we move on again as before, and pass lonely farmsteads,
+surrounded by wooden palings and sheds for cattle. Near these
+enclosures, and leaning wearily all on one side, may generally be seen
+a rusty iron crucifix, throwing its pathetic shadow across the path.
+
+Our Jehu, who has been smoking vigorously almost ever since we started
+in the morning, now takes his pipe from his mouth, and, placing
+it for safety in the leg of one of his top-boots, begins to doze.
+András, sitting beside him, also dozes, the horses doze, we doze, all
+nature dozes, in the sultry calm of eventide. The tired flocks cease
+to browse; the tinkling of their bells is heard no longer, and the
+shepherd--not he whom we passed an hour ago, and who gave our horses
+water, but another, his double--lies stretched upon his _bunda_
+fast asleep, his dog keeping watch beside him.
+
+On, through the same kind of pastures; the same waving corn-fields;
+the same villages with their twin churches--Roman Catholic and
+Calvinist--standing peaceably side by side; the same vague roads, which
+might be sheep-tracks, or anything, or nothing for that matter; the
+same dust, the same birds taking their evening bath in the white sand,
+the same sun, the same sky, the same everything. Yes! and I declare
+the same melancholy iron crucifix, all on one side, just as we left it
+whole hours ago behind.
+
+“Hullo!” cries F., opening his eyes, and giving Jöszef a sudden shake,
+that nearly overbalanced and knocked him off his seat on to the road,
+“we are not going to be deceived this time. This is no _Déli-báb_.
+We have been going backwards for an hour at least; what is the meaning
+of it, you rascal?”
+
+But, no: Jöszef, thus aroused--giving the horses an indignant reminder
+with his whip--observes that it is not Nagy-_Palota_ that we have
+come to, “and which we left behind us long ago,” but Nagy--_something
+else_. But by what possible sign he knows a particular village when
+he sees it and gives it any name whatever is a perfect mystery, for
+one and all are as absolutely alike to our unpractised eyes, except in
+minute details, as two pins in a paper.
+
+At length reaching _Nagy_--whatever it may happen to be (it
+is quite impossible to catch the outlandish names of these small
+places)--just as the sun had set, and the plains, suffused in soft
+tints of opal, seemed dreaming of the morrow’s sunrise, we come to a
+halt, and decide to remain here for the night.
+
+Our entry into the village excited no small interest. At the sound of
+our horses’ hoofs, every man, woman and child, who did not already
+happen to be outside, either came to the doorways, followed by their
+equally inquisitive pigs, or peeped through the windows of their
+houses, to ascertain what could possibly be coming to disturb the
+equanimity of their pastoral retreat.
+
+No sooner had we come to a standstill than we were surrounded by an
+eager crowd, prompted--as we subsequently proved--not so much by idle
+curiosity, as by a sincere desire to welcome and be of service to us;
+but no Americans ever manifested more inquisitiveness, or a greater
+desire for information than did the dwellers of this small village. Who
+were we? whence had we come? and whither were we going? were questions
+which András had to answer all in a breath; whilst that ostentatious
+little Magyar, doubtless thinking he would shine by a reflected glory,
+was telling them in a “stage whisper,” and by a succession of small
+falsehoods, that we were very great people indeed--a great English
+family, compared with whom all their lines of Eszterházys, and Bánffys,
+and Keménys put together, were as nothing--not even chaff before the
+wind.
+
+We had scarcely alighted, when some one came hurrying towards us, to
+whom all gave place, and whom from his general appearance we had no
+difficulty in recognising as the _curé_. Without interrogating us,
+as his parishioners had done, he begged we would at once accompany him
+to his house, and make it our home as long as it suited us to avail
+ourselves of so humble a shelter--a suggestion echoed by the whole
+admiring crowd.
+
+As the Hungarians are known to excel every other nation in the
+virtues of hospitality, this invitation gave us no surprise. Our
+_ci-devant_ host, however, was a priest, and as such may have been
+influenced by the apostolic admonition regarding the entertainment of
+“strangers.” Be this as it may, we were not destined to avail ourselves
+of his hospitality; for our guide--who had left us a few minutes
+previously to spy out the land and its capabilities--came hurrying back
+at this juncture with the intelligence that a tolerable inn existed
+in the village, containing decent accommodation for man and beast:
+whereupon, thanking the priest for his kindness, we proceeded thither
+at once.
+
+The _fogado_ in question was a straggling building of which the
+kitchen formed the principal room, where men--waggoners, apparently,
+whose horses or teams of oxen we had seen reposing in the _álás_
+close by--were drinking _slivovitz_.
+
+In common with the generality of roadside inns in Hungary, there was an
+odour of garlic pervading the apartments.
+
+Garlic! Why should we turn up our insular noses at the classic bulb?
+Did not Socrates himself advocate its use in the Banquet of Xenophon,
+and the children of Israel hanker after it in spite of their manna?
+
+To the right of the kitchen, furnished in the most primitive fashion,
+was the guest-room, whose small windows, placed high in the wall, made
+it seem like a prison. The hostess was a Jewess, but the house was
+scrupulously clean, as are nearly all on the Alfőld.
+
+In a corner of the room apart from the rest sat two men in the costume
+of the peasantry, who, taking off their hats, rose at our entrance.
+
+“They are nobles,” whispered the hostess as she led us to an inner
+room--“_bocskorosok nemesemberk_ (Lords of the Sandal), as they
+are sometimes called in ridicule, because half of them have not
+wherewithal to buy _csizmák_” (top-boots).
+
+These aristocratic rustics, nicknamed “_bocskorosok nemesemberk_,”
+are in reality peasants, who have fought on the battle-field, or
+otherwise served their country, and have received letters-patent of
+“nobility”--a title, however, that merely gives them certain legal
+privileges.
+
+The _fogado_ covered a considerable area. Where land is so
+abundant there is no need to economise space. Every room was on one
+floor, and arranged round a large courtyard, which was bordered with
+evergreens and flowering shrubs, growing in brightly-painted tubs.
+Beyond was a cluster of cowsheds, and beyond these again a clump of
+trees, beneath which a party of gipsies were bivouacking.
+
+Out in the plains, in the direction of the west and opposite the
+gipsies’ camp, a number of cattle were browsing peacefully; a man on
+horseback was driving home a flock of sheep, the outline of his form
+rendered vague and undefined by the crimson haze which flooded all
+nature; the trees stood out against the brilliant sky, now bathed in
+the afterglow, all golden towards their summits, and purple as they
+neared the ground; the smoke from the gipsies’ fire curled upwards
+in graceful wreaths; warm shadows lay across the greensward; a woman
+flitted to and fro with milk-pails, her dress a rich mingling of red,
+brown, and orange, and her head covered with a blue kerchief--the
+whole forming a beautiful picture of sympathetic colour and repose.
+
+These roadside inns are far less frequented now than they were, when
+the ordinary country roads formed the only communication between one
+town and another. The opening of railways must be an incalculable boon
+to the inhabitants of both Alfőld and Felfőld alike, for, until they
+existed, no towns in a state of siege could have been more cut off from
+the outer world than were those of Hungary in winter, when the roads
+become absolutely impassable, even for a light vehicle. The inhabitants
+were consequently obliged either to purchase everything they needed
+from a distance before the winter began, or to wait till the spring
+came to release them from their durance.
+
+Even yet, towns and villages connected by railways are few and far
+between; and very dreary, one would think, must be the people’s lives
+in places where none exist, when the earth has once lain down in the
+sepulchre of winter, and the frost has set its iron grip upon the broad
+expanse of plains. Locked in completely during this season from all
+communication with their fellows, how do they manage to live? They are,
+however, a contented, happy people, and their home joys greater far, it
+is said, than those of dwellers in towns and cities. Let us hope they
+are.
+
+In the long winter evenings, seated round their large high stoves,
+they read the passionate and patriotic utterances of their national
+writers, improvise rhymes to the _csárdás_, or compose those sad
+and plaintive melodies for the _telinka_ which one hears in the
+open air in summer-time. It has been well said that external nature
+is the outer body of national life, and these dwellers of the great
+Alfőld, with its impressive breadth and silence, possess contemplative
+and poetic minds, as nearly all do who are continually surrounded by
+nature’s solitudes. Even in their most joyous moments there is, indeed,
+a tinge of melancholy always perceptible in the temperament of the
+Magyars.
+
+The bad condition of the roads, at all events those of the Alfőld, is
+of course mainly due to the absence of stone, and the enormous expense
+which bringing the necessary materials from a distance naturally
+involves. We were told by a gentleman with whom we once travelled from
+Pest to Nagy-Várad, that one of the roads across the plains had cost
+the Government no less than what represented in English money £20,000
+per _mile_; and when the vast area of the plains is taken into
+consideration, one no longer marvels at the quagmires that carriages
+have to drag through whilst travelling from town to town and village to
+village.
+
+Nor is the absence of stone the only disadvantage the dwellers of these
+steppes have to contend with, for wood is almost as scarce, and in some
+remote districts the villages, from these combined causes, consist of a
+mere cluster of mud cottages, thatched with the dried stalks of Indian
+corn; whilst the farmers, unable to procure material with which to
+build granaries, are obliged to bury their corn in holes in the ground,
+which are lined with straw for the purpose.
+
+As evening wears on, and the plains are swallowed up in shadow, fires
+blaze up here and there in the vast expanse, indicating in unexpected
+places the presence of gipsies or travellers bivouacking for the night.
+During harvest-time, in the month of August, they are to be seen in
+every direction. The nights being chilly, notwithstanding the heat of
+the day, the reapers, in the absence of wood, make their fires of
+wheat-sheaves--a thing thought nothing of in this region of cereal
+abundance--and sit round them in merry groups as they eat their evening
+meal.
+
+Whilst the corn is being cut and gathered in, the peasants do not
+return to their homes, the distance, in most cases, being too great.
+They consequently sleep out of doors for many weeks together, until the
+harvest season is over. In some parts of Hungary the reaping of the
+grain is accomplished by moonlight, and the scene is very picturesque.
+The ruddy glow of the fires lights up the bronzed faces of the reapers,
+as they fell the long straight stalks of the Indian corn heavy with
+their weight of golden grain, or plunge their sickles into the softer
+and more supple labyrinths of wheat and rye, and forms pictures that,
+once seen, it is impossible to forget.
+
+After the labourers have partaken of their simple meal, which generally
+consists of black bread and bacon, a period of rest ensues, when
+they crouch or lie at full length round their fires, listening to
+songs improvised by one of their party. He adapts rhymes of his own
+composition to some popular melody, accompanied by a companion on the
+_telinka_, a kind of Arcadian pipe; for the Hungarian peasant,
+like the shepherd, is in a small way not only a musician, but a poet.
+Occasionally they get up a dance; and should the _czigány_-folk be
+wanting, besides the _telinka_ some one is sure to have brought
+his bagpipes with him, and to these strangely antagonistic instruments,
+the one so plaintive and pastoral, the other so wild and savage, they
+dance together in the moonlight. All are clad in sheepskin garments,
+the wool at that time of year being worn outside, and the whole scene
+reminds one of the days when Pan tended his flocks, and fauns and
+satyrs danced to the music of his reed. In whatever phase, or under
+whatever circumstances one meets with the Hungarian peasant or labourer
+of the Alfőld, he is the same half-savage, noble, kindly creature,
+possessing an odd mixture of qualities wherein the good predominates.
+During harvest-time the Slovaks from Upper Hungary migrate to the
+plains, so that, although the area under cultivation is vast beyond
+anything we in England are accustomed to, yet the lack of labourers is
+seldom felt.
+
+As we sit on the _szóhordó_ beneath the gable of our primitive
+hostel, we listen now to the rude cadence of a peasant’s song as he
+comes tramping home from work, and anon to the distant rhythmic beat of
+music proceeding from a cottage farther up the village. Let us follow
+up its strains; ten to one we shall find our friends the gipsies.
+
+Yes, there they are fiddling for dear life at the far end of the room.
+In their endeavours to leave as much space as possible to the dancers,
+just at this moment, in the very height and wild delirium of the
+_csárdás_, they have seated themselves on the high stove, in which
+exalted position, concealed, all but their Asiatic faces, by clouds of
+dust and tobacco smoke, they appear above the white wreaths like dark
+cherubim sawing away at violins.
+
+A wedding, christening, or some other domestic festival, is evidently
+being celebrated, for through the wide open doorway we can see into
+an inner apartment where a long table is spread, its numerous viands
+decorated with flowers. Half the village would seem to have congregated
+together, judging from the number of persons crowding the walls of the
+room where the dancing is taking place. What shouts, stamping of feet,
+and clashing of spurs is there as the men and their gentler partners
+whirl and twirl with the velocity of dervishes! How the long ribbons
+fly and the violet stockings quiver beneath the short red skirts, as
+the little feet of the Magyar maidens patter swiftly over the earthen
+floor!
+
+Outside, the frogs holding a deafening concert croak an indignant
+protest against these proceedings, and an insulted owl hoots from the
+tower of the church hard by. In the little cemetery the kindly moon
+keeps watch over the long green mounds upon which the crosses throw
+their shadows as if to keep them safe. Away, beyond the village, and
+out in the moonlit plains, the plaintive sound of a solitary sheep bell
+is heard, as some dissipated member of the woolly flock turning night
+into day nibbles the dewy grass.
+
+But the nights are always chilly in Hungary, no matter at what season,
+and as we make for our humble quarters we fold our wraps around us, for
+there is ague abroad on the air.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER VIII.
+
+                          DAWN IN THE ALFŐLD.
+
+
+Is there anything in all this sinful world so irritating,
+uncomfortable, and sleep-preventing as a Hungarian bed? Not only is it
+so short, that, unless the would-be sleeper happens to be far below the
+average height of ordinary humanity, he will find it impossible to lie
+at full length in it, but also, from the exasperating nature of the
+bed-clothes, the process familiarly known as “tucking up” is wholly
+impracticable.
+
+Regarded, however, from an external point of view, save in the matter
+of length, nothing could seem more luxurious. Even in these common
+roadside inns--“_Juden Kneipe_,” as András contemptuously calls
+them--the linen is of the finest, and the sheets and pillow-cases are
+embroidered at each end, but, alas! surely by the machinations of some
+mischievous sprite, the upper sheet is sewn to the counterpane; and as
+the latter is made the precise size of the bed, with nothing left to
+hang over the side, the whole thing subsides upon the floor, should the
+unfortunate occupant move ever so slightly during the night.
+
+Our _logement_ at the various hotels in Hungary is generally
+described on the bill as _napi lakdij_, and there never was a
+more appropriate, signification so far as English travellers are
+concerned, to whom the rest afforded is at best but a series of naps by
+jerks, and, in consequence of the abominable custom above referred to,
+a lop-sided conflict with the bed-clothes all night long.
+
+In this “happy Arcadia,” however, even the mild term of _napi_
+was inappropriate, for we could get no sleep at all. By an unfortunate
+coincidence which befalls most things in this country of anomalies,
+the guest-rooms adjoined the stables, so that every time the horses
+kicked, they threatened to knock the wall in. Nor was this the only
+circumstance antagonistic to sleep, for the dragging of manger-chains
+throughout the livelong night and the hoarse shouts of the drivers
+making strenuous but ineffectual attempts to keep their animals
+quiet--they were evidently sharing the same apartment--were no less
+disagreeable. In the silent village a clock in the belfry tower tolled
+solemnly the hours which dragged wearily along, as they always do with
+those who are deprived of blessed sleep.
+
+Before dawn, looking out of my window which commanded the whole of the
+eastern horizon, I watched the fires of night burn low. A thick pall of
+cloud, black as Erebus, seemed hanging over the firmament, for neither
+moon nor star was shining, and nothing was visible but the flickering
+fires in the distance, and the tall straight beam of an _ágás_
+across the village green, just showing like a sable spectre against the
+sky. No tinkling of bells or lowing of cattle was heard as in the day.
+All was silent under the drowsy spell of Night.
+
+Then, as soon as night had culminated in the most complete darkness,
+an indescribable change came over nature, a change which at first
+seemed scarcely more than mere sensation, a palpable silence as of a
+world not dead--until this moment--but only asleep. Then eastward the
+darkness lost its opaqueness and became transparent. Behind night’s
+dusky curtain a streak of light shone faintly through the veil, and in
+the hush of dawn, that cold mysterious hour, the curtain with unseen
+hands was drawn asunder and light became a living thing. The eastern
+sky began to palpitate, and out of the void form gradually appeared.
+The traditionary cock crew, and from that moment as if by given signal
+all animate nature awoke from slumber, and made itself perceptible,
+first by soft and peaceful murmurings, then by louder bleatings of
+sheep and goats. Dogs barked, cows lowed,--sounds followed in due
+course by the milking of those latter mammalia, which little domestic
+operation we also heard distinctly from our room. See how silently and
+mysteriously the _ágás_ yonder throws its giant arm about, as the
+shepherd--whose form is hidden in the distance--begins to draw water
+for his flocks! And now the sun himself begins to rise from out the
+bosom of the plains; first sending upwards his _avant-garde_ of
+crimson cloudlets with gold-embroidered edges. There is a sudden flash
+of glory, and lo! the fiery monarch comes forth with slow and stately
+majesty. Gradually, the golden lustre spreads itself across the plains
+till, opening wide his arms, the god of day encloses all within his
+bright embrace.
+
+By this time the villagers are not only awake, but surrounding the
+nearer _ágás_ across the green; old women and maidens filling
+their crocks and pitchers for the day. A shepherd too is there, who,
+having deserted his little flock of shaggy sheep, is lowering the
+bucket for a Magyar dowager. The Hungarian, whether prince or peasant,
+is chivalrous, and the old and weak first claim the shepherd’s
+attention. In the fervour of his occupation he has doffed his hairy
+mantle, in which but a moment ago he looked like a huge ungainly bear.
+Observe how gently he takes the pitcher from that uncomely old woman
+who has just come tottering up, and offers to fill it for her; looking
+archly over his shoulder the while at a couple of merry, laughing
+girls, as much as to intimate that _their_ turn--a sweet morsel
+he is reserving for the end--will likewise come ere long. What a smile
+bursts over his rugged sun-burnt countenance, as the old dowager thanks
+him for his kindness, and, bidding him “good morning,” totters away!
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Now comes the _kisbiró_, or little judge of the village, walking
+leisurely along in the direction of the rising sun. What a splendid
+carriage he has, and a quiet dignity of manner quite patrician, every
+line of his face expressive of deep thought and firm determination!
+Look, also, at that man yonder in his long, full, embroidered cloak. He
+wears it with such a stately grace that it might be the imperial purple
+instead of the skins of beasts begrimed with the mud of years! Or that
+group of peasants coming down the road: what a noble bearing they too
+have, despite their full-fringed petticoat and full white sleeves, as
+with their primitive implements borne across the shoulders they go
+forth to their toil with a step as proud as if every inch of Alfőld
+soil were theirs by right of ownership!
+
+The term _paraszt_ (peasant), by which is meant agriculturist, is
+not necessarily applied to a possessor, or even to an occupier of the
+land, but refers in its primary sense to one who cultivates it, whether
+he be owner or tenant.
+
+Before the reforms of 1848, the peasantry only were taxed, the “nobles”
+being free from taxation of every kind. There are three distinct
+classes of peasants: those who _rent_ land in small or large
+allotments, those who _own_ it, and those who _cultivate_ it;
+each class possessing a distinct social status amongst his fellows, of
+which the true Magyar is very observant.
+
+Yet although they are more highly taxed now than before 1848, the
+position of the Magyar peasant is far better than previous to that
+time, when the feudal system prevailed; during which, if not serfs
+in the strictest sense of the word, they were at any rate compelled
+by law to work on certain days of the week for the lord whose land
+they rented, as well as to pay him prescribed dues both in money and
+kind. The emancipation of the land from the forced labour of the
+peasantry was effected during this revolutionary period, together with
+the abolition of the exclusive right of the “nobles” to possess real
+estate. Before this, one nobleman could not sell any portion of his
+estate except to another nobleman, on account of all “noble-land” being
+free from seigneurial impost. It was this in fact which constituted the
+distinction between the nobleman and the peasant: the one possessed
+land and paid no taxes to government; the other occupied it, or
+laboured on it, and was subject to taxation. In like manner the money
+was wrung from the peasants for the various public works, whilst the
+“nobles” were exempt from any exaction whatever. An example of the
+unfairness of this law may be instanced in the bridge of boats at
+Pest which existed until 1849--when the magnificent suspension bridge
+that now crosses the Danube was completed--and which was open to the
+“nobles,” whilst the peasant and the beggar in his rags had to pay
+toll. All, “peasants” and “nobles” alike, are now equally taxed, and
+the former can even become landowners, a thing after which they strive.
+To possess a few _jochs_ of land and some “_jószag_” (flocks
+and herds) to graze it, is the very height of the Magyar peasant’s
+ambition, the very aim and end of all he dreams of or hopes for in this
+life.
+
+Until 1848 the State, the Church, and the “nobles” were the only
+landowners in the kingdom. The peasants however were granted the
+hereditary use of certain tracts of land designated “session lands,”
+for which they had not only to pay tithes to the owner in the shape of
+the tenth part of their produce, but were also compelled to work for
+him a certain number of days in the week or year; which forced labour,
+called “_Rabot_,” practically reduced the condition of the peasant
+to one of serfdom. The estates of the “noble” consisted of land farmed
+by himself, the feudal lord, and also that which was held by the feudal
+tenants. Perhaps the very worst part of this system existed in the fact
+of the feudal lord holding the position of judge or chief magistrate
+over his tenantry; even the bailiff (_Ispán_) having the right of
+administering on the peasant the punishment of twenty-five lashes if he
+saw fit to do so,--a right which, no doubt, was often abused.
+
+Happily the feudal system in Hungary is a thing of the past. Already
+annulled in principle by the Hungarian Diet of 1848, it was practically
+put an end to in 1868 by a special law sanctioned by Ferdinand V.
+
+The labourers on the large estates are much better paid than ours are
+in England, each man receiving about £27 per annum, besides board and
+lodging in the farm. On smaller estates, however, they are often paid
+in kind, more especially in produce such as _kukoricza_ (Indian
+corn). When this is the case, arrangements are frequently made between
+the landlord and tenant whereby the latter undertakes to cultivate
+the land, furnish the seed and house the crop, in return for which he
+receives half the yield.
+
+Journeying on through a boggy country, our carriage begins to lurch
+from side to side like a ship in an Atlantic storm. Some of these bogs
+abound with leeches,--a fact of which we were made painfully aware
+when bivouacking in the vicinity of one of those bogs on a previous
+visit. The Servians and Bulgarians carry on a considerable trade in
+these little creatures, which they collect principally here and in the
+districts of Bessarabia, whence they convey them to the chief markets
+of the West of Europe. At certain times of the year these merchants
+arrive from their southern provinces for the purpose; and, having
+collected the leeches, they preserve them in small tanks until they
+have a sufficient number to transmit to their several destinations.
+
+Passing a shepherd’s hut, we are greeted by a wolfish-looking dog,
+which follows us with threatening aspect, but is brought to reason by a
+stick thrown after him by the shepherd. These dogs are sometimes very
+dangerous, and are known to attack the unoffending stranger. The sheep
+here, in consequence of a disease engendered by the marshy nature of
+the soil on which they graze, are nearly all lame. It is curious to
+observe how instinct teaches them to shield themselves from the fierce
+rays of the sun. About two o’clock, having ceased to browse, and the
+sun no longer vertical, they form a close circle, and, lying down one
+behind the other, each places its head in the shadow cast by the body
+of its nearest neighbour.
+
+Away in the distance, faithful to her character, Déli-báb, “fair
+daughter of the Puszta,” presents her delusive objects to our view, and
+invites us towards her by the cool and refreshing scenes of placid lake
+and ocean shore which she spreads so temptingly before us. But we give
+no heed to her seductive charms, for the most poetical of travellers
+becomes prosaic when he is hungry, and the approach to a small village
+suggests a halt.
+
+Our guide, whom we soon found to be great in the commissariat line,
+had replenished our larder at our last restingplace with a couple of
+roasted fowls, some Hungarian sausage, and a variety of other little
+et-cæteras, together with a bottle of excellent red wine, with the
+distinctive merits of which he was thoroughly conversant. We ourselves
+therefore were well provided for, but our tired horses wanted both rest
+and provender.
+
+The village, however, at which we have just arrived, proves almost as
+illusory as the fair daughter of the Puszta herself, for on András
+going off to reconnoitre he ascertained there was neither inn nor
+_álás_. Besides which, the whole place seemed deserted. There
+were the whitewashed cottages on each side of the dusty highway; there
+were the empty “word-bearers” beneath each gable; there were the pigs
+lying down in the dust which they had hollowed out to fit their long
+lean forms; the poultry was swarming about the courtyards, and running
+in and out of their funny little straw coops, the precise model of a
+shepherd’s hut; but where were the inhabitants? Not a vestige of human
+life was visible.
+
+Presently, just as we were about to drive away, hoping to be more
+fortunate at the next village, a door opened and a woman holding a
+distaff appeared, with whom, after some little parley, András returned
+with the gratifying intelligence that there was a shed behind the
+woman’s cottage at which the horses could be put up, adding in his
+usual pompous and grandiloquent style, that if the _Tekintetes
+két_ (worshipful pair) would condescend to alight from their
+chariot, and, plunging their feet into the unworthy dust, honour with
+their presence the humble abode of the widow of a _bérlö_, etc.
+etc.; which rodomontade we understood to signify, in plain English,
+that, if we would get out of our vehicle, and, scrambling over the
+pigs, enter the dwelling of a defunct farmer, we should be able to rest
+there whilst the horses were being baited.
+
+Yielding to his suggestion, we do plunge ankle-deep into the dusty
+road, and, scrambling over the pigs in question, enter the cottage; the
+woman, who meets us at the doorway, stooping to kiss our hands.
+
+A Hungarian household of this description is prosaically and
+unpictorially clean: no delicious mingling of rich brown tints, no
+mud and muddle dear to the eye of an artist, greets the traveller as
+he enters. Everything is provokingly and unsentimentally neat. In the
+apartment into which the door opens, the first thing that will arrest
+his attention is the high stove in the centre; the next, a small
+bedstead, generally standing in a corner, supporting feather-beds,
+which are enclosed in the cleanest and prettiest linen casings, and so
+numerous that, piled one above the other, they reach the ceiling. So
+far as I could ascertain, these beds, of which the housewife is very
+proud, are simply kept as ornaments, and seldom or never used; their
+number being supposed to indicate the prosperity of the household. The
+windows, whose sills are painted bright green, contain flower-pots,
+half hidden by neat muslin curtains, whilst on the walls hang
+bright-coloured prints, depicting events in Hungarian history, and,
+if the dwellers are Roman Catholics, a picture of the Blessed Virgin
+and a crucifix. In addition to all of which, in this instance, hung
+a portrait in full Magyar costume--evidently executed by some local
+genius--of the defunct _bérlö_ himself.
+
+As we sit by the open doorway, the plains beyond the village seem to
+dance in the fervid heat. In the parched, sun-baked garden the tall
+reeds of the pampas-grass bow their plumed heads, and wave and rustle
+in the sultry air; butterflies and insects hover about the homely
+flowers; zephyrs wafting in upon us fan our cheeks, and then his away
+again to the corn-fields to fulfil the task allotted them by nature,
+and fertilise with soft pollen the young and tender blades.
+
+By the time our horses are harnessed and we are jogging along the road
+again, shadows are lengthening. By windmills turning their endless
+somersaults; by salt marshes in which the corn-crake clacks a greeting
+as we pass; by sandhills, which the wind creates but to destroy, till
+suddenly a dark object appears above our heads. How majestically it
+cleaves the azure deeps, as with motionless outstretched wing it sails
+in the cloudless sky! It is an eagle which has caught sight of some
+prey; for see! it begins its downward flight by describing circles,
+which, wide at first, grow less and less, till from its dizzy height it
+falls to earth to settle on its trembling victim.
+
+Only a few minutes ago from out the clover fields quails were rising
+here and there in peaceful coveys, and hawks scouring the translucent
+air, whilst in the marshes wild ducks and geese were paddling in and
+out amongst the green reeds and sedges, and dipping their snowy heads
+in search of tadpoles and smaller game. Where have they all gone? Not
+a bird is seen in air or water, not a sound is heard; the plovers have
+ceased to chatter, the hawks to scream; all are hushed in terror, every
+living thing has sought to hide itself from that piercing eye.
+
+This monarch of the air--the imperial eagle--is very common in the
+plains, but is migratory, and roosts in forest trees, its favourite
+food being marmots, young foxes, and deer. Many of the forest birds in
+the plains of Hungary are very beautiful, and almost Oriental in the
+splendour of their plumage, the brilliant colouring of some surpassing
+any met with elsewhere in Europe. These, however, are songless, but in
+some districts the woods are full of nightingales that trill a carol
+all the livelong day and night.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                              CHAPTER IX.
+
+                               THE RACE.
+
+
+It is a sultry evening, and there is a stillness in the air that
+forebodes a storm. The leaves of the robinias hang down languidly
+against their stems, and clouds which have rapidly risen from the west
+obscure the sun. All Nature holds her breath expectant. Presently large
+drops begin to fall, creating dusty globules on the thirsty earth.
+
+“Patter, patter!” down it comes at last in real earnest and puts
+Jözsef’s pipe out, and high time too, for that _Träger Kerl_ has
+been smoking every mortal moment of the day. The rain pours down the
+windows of our _britzska_ in winding streams, and fills the broad
+brim of Jözsef’s brigand-like hat, out of which the tall crown rises
+like a wet island, till, overflowing its borders, it trickles in a cold
+shower down his neck.
+
+In a short time a large town comes in sight, and a very important one,
+judging from the number and variety of the steeples and towers which
+rise above the low one-storied houses; and Jözsef, removing the pipe
+from his mouth which he is still pretending to smoke, and pointing with
+it in the direction of the town in question, slowly utters the words,
+Székes Féjévar, as though he had been introducing to our notice some
+great metropolis.
+
+As we draw near to this our second restingplace since leaving Fűred,
+there is nothing in its outward appearance, although so imposing from a
+distance, to impress us in its favour; it would seem on the contrary to
+be situated in the centre of an immense bog, and presents a very spongy
+exterior as, at length approaching the town itself, we rattle over the
+stones and dash through its outskirts. We always enter the towns and
+villages at a gallop, the little strength which the wretched horses
+possess being economised on the road for these displays of Jehuship,
+dear to the heart of a Magyar driver.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+In rounding a corner, we manage to wrench from a shop doorway a
+signboard, which according to Hungarian custom was placed there to
+advertise the merchandise within, and at another corner nearly run over
+a group of small children in top-boots and _gatyas_, occupied in
+the manufacture of mud pies, till finally coming to a sudden stop, that
+nearly brings the wheelers on their haunches, we are almost jerked out
+of the carriage, and into the very arms of the landlord of the hotel.
+
+I have long ago discarded my fur hat for a broad-brimmed one of white
+straw, but, notwithstanding this, strange to say, we are here, as at
+Gross Kanizsa on our former visit, mistaken for Russians--Julinka, the
+chambermaid, as she arranges our room, addressing us every now and
+again as _Muska_ (Muskovite); and upon our informing her that we
+are _Ángolok_, she elevates her eyebrows in astonishment.
+
+At this juncture an old woman enters the room, who had evidently
+overheard the colloquy.
+
+“_Ángolok! Ángolok!_” (English people! English people!) “_Jó
+Isten!_” she exclaimed, apostrophising the Magyar deity, as though
+we had told her we were visitants from some other planet, adding,
+after a pause, that she thought she had heard the priest read of the
+_Ángolok_ one Sunday in the Gospel. From which observation we
+augured that neither missionary nor “schoolmaster” was “abroad” at any
+rate in Székes Féjévar.
+
+The town which rejoices in the imposing appellation of Székes
+Féjévar--what a language is the Magyar for accents!--is the capital of
+the _comitat_, or county, of the same name. It contains 23,000
+inhabitants, was founded in the eleventh century by King Stephen I.,
+and is interesting to the archæologist from having been built on the
+site of an old Roman city, said to have been the “Roman Floriana,”
+whatever _that_ may be.
+
+In consequence of having been so frequently destroyed by the ruthless
+Turks, to which it surrendered in 1543, under Solyman the Magnificent,
+the town contains no relics of the ancient city, but is not devoid
+of other objects of interest; namely, the cathedral and St. Mary’s
+Church, both of which were built by that indefatigable monarch St.
+Stephen, whose original name was Waik--the first Christian king of the
+illustrious line of Arpáds.
+
+For many centuries Székes Féjévar was the place at which Hungary’s
+sovereigns were crowned, and no fewer than fourteen are here entombed,
+amongst whom are several of her mediæval kings, viz. St. Stephen, St.
+Ladislaus, and Matthias Corvinus. Its name signifies “White fortress of
+the throne,” and it is consequently often alluded to as “Alba Regalis.”
+Up to the end of the seventeenth century it remained in the hands of
+the Osmanlis; and on their expulsion in 1777, the Empress Maria Theresa
+constituted it an episcopal see.
+
+The day following that of our arrival was Sunday. Taking a survey
+through the window, early in the morning, we found small improvement
+in the state of affairs so far as the weather was concerned. The
+streets were wet and miserable, and there was a general sponginess
+about everything that made Székes Féjévar look like a huge fungus.
+From earliest morn however the church-bells had been twanging, and the
+sturdy Magyars, notwithstanding the rain, had been tramping to and from
+the various places of worship.
+
+There exists in Hungary not only a diversity of nationalities and a
+confusion of tongues, but an equal variety in matters religious. Thus
+there are Roman Catholics, Greek Catholics, Lutherans, Calvinists,
+Unitarians, Sabbatarians, Moravians, Jews, Nazarenes, Adamites,
+Johannites, and doubtless Hittites, Hivites, and Jebusites as well.
+
+The Magyars for the most part belong to one form or other of
+the Protestant faith, the greater number being Calvinists. Many
+however belong to the Lutheran Church--“Evangelists of the Augsburg
+Confession,” as they are sometimes called; whilst others, again, are
+Roman Catholics.
+
+The Hungarians who follow the Greek rite are principally found amongst
+the Wallachs occupying the whole of Transylvania, the Rusniaks dwelling
+on the eastern slopes of the Northern Carpathians, and the Slavonians
+and Croat-Serbs inhabiting the provinces which skirt the banks of
+the Save, the votaries of the numerous sects I have enumerated being
+generally found in the former, viz. Transylvania.
+
+The natural result of this variety of religious opinion is complete
+toleration amongst all classes in matters of faith, and it is curious,
+when passing through the towns and villages of the Alfőld, to observe
+how closely the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches are built
+together. In such friendly fellowship, in fact, do they stand to each
+other as to situation, that the faithful adherents of the one not only
+jostle those of the other on their way to their respective places of
+worship, but the lusty singing of the Protestant not unfrequently
+drowns the monotone of the priest in the adjoining temple, creating a
+rather unseemly jumble.
+
+In Hungary the whole Christian body, embracing every sect and party, is
+denominated under one head, namely, “The Church of God;” that branch
+of the Church Catholic called “Roman” in other countries, whilst
+acknowledging the Pope as supreme, has here never added “_Roman_”
+to its title, which is even forbidden by law. In vain do Popes
+attempt to impose ecclesiastical bulls upon these Hungarian clergy:
+they persist in promulgating their own laws, organising their own
+dioceses, and, whilst possessing a strong attachment to the tenets of
+their Church, have, so far as discipline is concerned, been from time
+immemorial very unruly sons of the Vatican.
+
+By ten o’clock, the weather having made up its mind to improve, we
+started for church. As good Protestants, we of course went to the
+one most nearly allied to our own in doctrine and practice. The
+Protestant religion as represented in Magyarland is, however, of a
+very unattractive character. Its buildings, painfully destitute of
+all ornamentation, are bare and wretched. The one we visited had
+whitewashed walls; the women sat on one side of the church, the men on
+the other; whilst the discordant singing we heard on that occasion, in
+the shape of hymns to the All-Supreme, was enough to turn one’s hair
+grey.
+
+On our homeward road, we happen to pass a Roman Catholic chapel.
+Leaving the “garish day,” we grope our way through the dark vestibule,
+into the dimly-lighted oratory, filled with the fresh fumes of incense.
+What a contrast everything presented to the “Reformed Church” which we
+had left, so bald in its surroundings! What earnestness was there in
+the devotion of the people! some of whom were kneeling, with clasped
+hands, others with hands outstretched in earnest supplication before
+the dark little shrines. How different! how pathetic! and, above all,
+how sad!
+
+Kneeling on the lowest step of a shrine at the side of the chapel,
+was a man gazing intently at a grotesque representation of some
+female saint, enclosed in a frame begrimed with the dust of ages. All
+around it hung smaller pictures, even more grotesque, representing
+deliverances wrought through her means.
+
+“Do we not know that man?” inquired F., our eyes not yet accustomed to
+the “dim religious light.”
+
+It was Jözsef, his great ugly face looking almost beautiful, lit up as
+it was by an expression of veneration and love. It was no longer the
+Jözsef sitting on the box, doggedly smoking _his_ long pipe, it
+was Jözsef actually with a soul, a spark of the divine love shining
+through even _his_ usually stolid countenance.
+
+We watched him long, wondering what was the secret that brought him
+hither to kneel beneath the shrine of this--to _us_--unprepossessing
+saint. What miracle had she wrought for him, or his? or what was he
+seeking from her, in his honest, simple heart?
+
+He was still kneeling in the same position, evidently unconscious of
+all around him, when, leaving the hot, stuffy little chapel, we once
+more stepped into the street. It was now full of people returning
+to their homes, women in white head-gear, and short petticoats--oh,
+_how_ short!
+
+Notwithstanding the limited dimensions of their garments, however, the
+devout Magyars are always seen in muddy weather to gather them up over
+their top-boots in the exemplary manner before depicted, the children
+imitating their elders here as elsewhere. The men invariably head the
+family procession, Hungarian _patres familiæ_ of a certain class
+inheriting, amongst other precious legacies bequeathed them by their
+Eastern subjugators, that of regarding the female sex as inferior to
+themselves.
+
+Close to the hotel we met András, who, in reply to our inquiries as
+to which form of religion he belonged, replied that he professed the
+_Magyar Vallás_, thereby signifying that he was a Calvinist.
+
+From his own subsequent description of it, however, his religion was
+not of a very intelligible kind; but then, as we have previously seen,
+András was occasionally deficient in the “art of putting things,”--in
+other words, he sometimes found it difficult to express himself;
+_his_ idea of religion, he informed us, being that the Almighty
+was not so hard as He was said to be, and that the devil (_őrdőg_)
+was blamed for a great deal he did not deserve, and that if a man
+harmed no one, and was kind and gentle to women and children and such
+weak things, he would not find himself far out at the last. And our
+thoughts involuntarily turned towards András’s wife and her magnificent
+proportions, and we wondered whether he regarded _her_ as a “weak
+vessel.” In fact, this theology in _gatyas_, whether Protestant or
+Roman Catholic, is of a very free-and-easy kind. It has nothing austere
+about it. Its teachers exact little self-denial or sacrifice; impose
+few penances, and indulgences are granted even without the asking.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Later in the day, the streets having dried up, the Magyars turn out in
+great force, _Magyar-Miska_ and his “inferior half,” the latter
+in all the splendour of her Sunday attire, the two now walking side by
+side-- an amiable concession made by her lord, by way, doubtless, of
+holiday indulgence.
+
+The beautiful Magyar girls too, the “_kisleány_” or “bright-eyed
+little Alfőld maidens,” trip along in their top-boots, the sides of
+which are not only embroidered, but ornamented with leather of various
+colours; their hair drawn behind the ears, hanging down the back in
+one long plait, and lengthened by numerous streamers of many-coloured
+ribbons. The beauty of the Hungarian women has not been exaggerated.
+Their features, as a rule, are not regular, but the type is refined,
+and there is a blending of the European with the Oriental, the traces
+of which are manifest even at the present day. They possess, moreover,
+in every movement, a grace and nobility of bearing, that make every
+woman one meets appear a lady.
+
+The rough, hard visages of the men, too, tanned by the scorching heat
+of summer, and furrowed with a thousand lines by exposure to the
+frost and bitter winds of winter, grow upon one marvellously, and
+the stranger soon learns to love these weather-beaten faces, and to
+recognise under a rugged exterior, and a manner sometimes brusque, real
+goodness and kindness of heart.
+
+The term “Magyar-Miska” is applied to a man of the precise type of
+our English “Hodge.” But let no one look down upon the homely garb
+of a peasant in this country, for though he wear a sheepskin cloak,
+huge white linen trousers (_gatya_), and a shirt that scarcely
+reaches to the waist--which part of the body is generally exposed to
+the elements--its wearer may be the owner of thousands of acres of
+Alfőld soil. The dress of Bagi Jözsef--a man not so named on account
+of his _baggy_ nether habiliments, but Jözsef Bagi, as we should
+call him, the surname in Hungary being invariably placed before the
+Christian--is none other, although his income is not less than half
+a million florins a year. These _gatya_ are so full that they
+often consist of ten and sometimes fifteen yards of linen; and it is
+in this costume, together with the short jacket-like shirt with its
+voluminous sleeves, that Bagi Jözsef, the “Nabob of the Alfőld,” as
+he is appropriately called, wanders over his vast domain. Both sexes,
+winter and summer, wear by way of outer clothing a short sheepskin
+jacket, called a _kődmőny_, embroidered on the smooth side with
+bright-coloured silk or wool. But whatever be the outer garment, so
+far as the men are concerned, the sleeves are a purely ornamental
+arrangement, for the arms are seldom put through them, and the jacket
+is worn loosely over the shoulder.
+
+The costumes vary slightly in every town and village, each having its
+distinguishing mark whereby the wearer is at once recognisable as
+belonging to a particular place. These peculiarities, however, are too
+slight to arrest the notice of the traveller, and often consist in
+such insignificant signs as the position or number of the buttons on
+the _kődmőny_, some persons having one row, others two, others
+again wearing them in a pattern, instead of in a straight line down
+the front. But however slight the difference may be, the Magyar rustic
+never deviates from it, and is as proud of the distinction as a soldier
+of his badges, whilst a girl who is married to a man from another town
+or village continues to wear her own distinguishing dress as long as
+she lives.
+
+Notwithstanding our first impressions of the hotel, which were by
+no means favourable, and in spite of its plain exterior and homely
+internal arrangements, we found it exceedingly comfortable, and were
+entertained in it right royally.
+
+In Hungarian hotels, meals are never served in the visitor’s own room,
+and he is expected to descend for the purpose to the restaurant.
+Following the custom of the country, therefore, at the Gothic hour of
+two--the Magyar’s usual dinner hour--we made our appearance in the
+_speise-saal_, and were ushered to a table luxuriously arranged
+for us at the top of the room. In the centre of the table stood a
+large silver _épergne_, tastefully filled with forget-me-nots
+and white water-lilies; whilst two _talnok_ (waiters) waited on
+us obsequiously in white cotton gloves. They also--and this to our no
+small annoyance--addressed us as _úr_ and _úrnö_ (lord and
+lady), as, indeed, did the landlord himself. We did not waken up to the
+full significance of all these proceedings and their practical bearing
+on our resources until we paid for our first dinner--a thing always
+done at once in this country, where the food is not charged for with
+the other items on the bill--when the truth all at once dawned upon us.
+András, in his usual ostentatious manner, had doubtless been impressing
+the good people of the house with false notions of our grandeur.
+
+Summoning him at once to our room, we talked to him very seriously
+on the subject. He was a truthful little man, and at once
+confessed the fact, adding in his chagrin that in these democratic
+“_tingle-tangle_”--a word used in the North of Germany to denote
+a low restaurant where music is performed, and which he persisted in
+calling this clean and well-appointed little hotel--they were incapable
+of recognising any distinction below the rank of “noble;” ending by
+saying, with tears in his eyes, that he wished his _édes uram_
+and _édes asszony_ (sweet master and sweet mistress)--a very
+frequent mode of address made use of in Hungary, not only by servants
+to their masters and mistresses, but _vice versâ_--to be shown all
+the respect, whilst passing through his country, that was their due.
+
+The inns in Hungary are nearly always kept by Jews, but costly as
+was our dinner, viz. 30_s._ calculated by our English currency,
+the charge was by no means exorbitant, considering the excellence
+of the repast. We tried to make our guide understand, however, that
+unless he turned over a new leaf we must send him back to his master;
+that every English gentleman was not an _úr_, neither was every
+English lady an _úrnö_. We were, in fact, spending money with a
+prodigality which, if unchecked, would very soon bring us to the doors
+of a Hungarian workhouse, and his conduct forcibly reminded us of the
+friendly bear, who in attempting to brush away a fly from his sleeping
+master’s forehead is said to have knocked the top of his head off.
+After this serious admonition, András, I am happy to say, gave us no
+more annoyance of the like nature, but it was easy to see that it cost
+the proud little man many a struggle, if not many a tear.
+
+We were, however, less fortunate in the case of the landlord and the
+waiters, who, upon our assuring them we had no handle to our names,
+only bowed more obsequiously than before. Our attempts at lessening our
+own importance, instead of having the desired effect, only made matters
+worse, and I shall always believe to my dying day that they regarded us
+as a prince and princess travelling in disguise.
+
+In the evening, the sun setting crimson illuminated the domes and
+spires of this ecclesiastical little city; and as it wore by
+this time a less washed-out and bedraggled appearance, we walked
+round the square, where the demure but coquettish little Magyar
+maidens are walking in all their Sunday best, accompanied by their
+chaperons--grave-looking women, with heads muffled up in white
+kerchiefs--the honourable badge of the married state. The young
+_betyárs_ too pace backwards and forwards in all the glory of
+their brand-new _csizmák_, or stand and make love to their “fair
+ones” beneath the statue of the poet Varósmarty--the Schiller of
+Hungary--quoting from his songs a description of the joys of home.
+
+The term “betyár,” which will often be met with in these pages,
+possesses a twofold meaning, and, whilst frequently applied to a
+brigand, is also a sobriquet used to denote a rustic who dresses
+himself gaily and endeavours to render himself attractive to the fair
+sex; in short, a _dandy_. He may generally be seen with his hat
+set jauntily on one side, in which is stuck a bunch of fresh flowers
+or plume of the beautiful flowering grass, which at a slight distance
+looks just like the tail of a bird of paradise. Just such a man is
+András, and, as we watch him in the square in front of us, it is easy
+to see that he is making a great impression on the Székes Féjévar
+belles.
+
+It has evidently been noised abroad that English persons have arrived,
+and our dress betrays that we are they. As the promenaders make room on
+the uneven pavement to let us pass they regard us furtively, with much
+apparent interest, and from more than one we hear the whispered words,
+“_Bival Jankó_,” that being the Hungarian’s euphonious appellation
+for that noblest of all animals, “John Bull.”
+
+By some management of his own, András had engaged the horses that
+brought us hither for the whole journey to Pest; but they were such
+sorry beasts that we insisted on his sending them back and procuring
+others here.
+
+Unhappily _vorspann_--a word derived from _Fő-ispán_, a commandant of a
+county _banderium_--has been abolished since the opening of the Alfőld
+railway. This method of travelling, universal in Hungary up to that
+period, consisted of an order from a magistrate to the Judges of the
+peasants, who were peasants themselves, and called in the Hungarian
+law-books _Judices plebeii_, to supply the holder with horses to
+transport him to the next station, the distance between each being
+about fifteen or twenty miles. In this manner even the journey from
+Vienna to Pest used to be accomplished, though it was one that occupied
+no less than a week. To obtain such an order was considered a great
+favour, it being vouchsafed as a rule to the military only, or to some
+one travelling on the public service. The conveyance consisted, as now,
+of a long country cart half filled with hay. On arrival at the various
+stages along the road, the traveller had simply to send his _vorspann_
+to the Judge’s house, who saw that the peasant whose turn it was to
+furnish a relay of horses fulfilled his duty.
+
+Although this obligatory state of things has passed away, we found
+little difficulty in obtaining horses, which are by no means an
+expensive luxury in Hungary, where they are often caught fresh from
+the _puszta_ and harnessed to the traveller’s conveyance. On this
+occasion, however, the horses which András engaged to take us on to
+Pest came direct from the inn stables.
+
+It was a right jolly little team that we found waiting at the door of
+the hotel the morning of our departure, and this time we anticipated
+our journey with something like pleasure and satisfaction. Our
+departure was considerably delayed, however, by an altercation that had
+taken place between our new driver and another, engaged at the time in
+harnessing his team to an empty _leiterwagen_. We had witnessed
+the quarrel from the window of our room without understanding them, and
+had heard the angry words which passed between the two drivers, and
+which András interpreted to us as he strapped our rugs and portmanteaus
+preparatory to the start.
+
+The driver of the _leiterwagen_ team had intimated to our Jehu
+that his horses were screws, and that with such a heavy carriage he
+would not reach Pest by nightfall. This was a challenge. As we took our
+seats we observed a dark cloud settle on the face of our charioteer,
+who, justly proud of his horses, will not take the statement as a joke.
+The two drivers shower complimentary expletives at each other, and then
+our coachman cracks his whip and drives through the archway at full
+gallop, and whizz past the shops, and over the rough paving stones
+until we reach the open country and pass through boundless fields of
+wheat and rye.
+
+Before many minutes are over we hear the clatter of hoofs behind us.
+The insulted Sándor--our new coachman--stands up and looks back over
+the hood of the carriage. He utters not a word, but as he resumes
+his seat, he pulls himself together significantly, “sits tight,” and
+gives a shake to the reins. He is a Magyar, and we know full well how
+passionate and determined they are when once aroused, and instinctively
+we realise what is about to happen. The _leiterwagen_ gains upon
+us sensibly, but Sándor gives his sturdy little nags their heads and
+a sharp touch of the whip at the same time,--a double reminder, the
+meaning of which they fully comprehend, for we go flying over the
+ground at a pace that would astonish a sober English driver and make
+his hair stand on end, now plunging into a hole a foot deep in sand,
+now ploughing our way through boggy soil, but tearing along through it
+all at a maddening and ever-increasing gallop. Sándor “sits tighter”
+still, but turns his head round sharply now and then and utters cutting
+epithets between his clenched teeth at his antagonist, now close upon
+our heels, or sharp savage cries to the horses.
+
+The _leiterwagen_ overtakes us quite, and we race side by side
+for a few seconds. Its pilot is skilful and its weight light. We come
+to a quagmire, and here the _leiterwagen_ has the advantage
+over us; great are its contortions, but, possessed of a snake-like
+vertebræ, it has the capacity of writhing, twisting and doubling itself
+up without being the worse for it, and overcoming by its plastic
+nature all difficulties. It is ahead of us now by fully fifty yards,
+its long supple body swaying from side to side. Our carriage, on the
+contrary, is heavy, and its draught is beginning to tell severely
+upon our willing steeds. The lines about Sándor’s mouth contract,
+and his aspect grows more fierce; he will die rather than surrender.
+Seconded by our guide, we shriek, implore, expostulate, but entreaties
+and remonstrances are alike unheeded and unheard; Sándor regards
+us no more than if we had been children. He stands up now, and his
+countenance is fierce like that of a wild Indian hastening on to
+battle, as he urges his horses onwards by gesture, expletive, and force
+of the lash. Crack, crack, hi! hi! jolt, bump; we once more overtake
+the _leiterwagen_, and the contest grows hotter and hotter each
+instant. There is a deep hole before us, and we hold our breath, for
+surely we _must_ upset this time. But no; a severe jolting, and
+a violent struggle on the part of our team to extricate themselves,
+and on we go again, but--_alone_, for on looking back we find
+our opponent has come to ignominious smash; one of his leaders having
+fallen. Then reining in his plucky steeds, whose flanks are steaming,
+Sándor once more looks over the hood of the carriage, and, taking off
+his broad-brimmed hat, exclaims as he regards the signal overthrow of
+his antagonist:
+
+“So my horses were screws, were they, and we shan’t get to Pest by
+nightfall, shan’t we? _Teremtette! Ejnye!_” he continued, with a
+derisive laugh; “you won’t call a man’s horses screws again, I take it.”
+
+Whilst giving the horses rest, Sándor slowly draws from his boot his
+long pipe, and taking from his pocket his leather pouch, filled with
+home-grown tobacco-leaves coarsely cut, begins smoking the well-earned
+pipe of peace.
+
+As we proceed on our way again, we are more than ever impressed both
+with the wonderful fertility of these plains and the thinness of the
+population--in some districts that we pass through, vast tracts of
+uncultivated land many miles in extent, consisting of soil so rich that
+it only needs to be turned and sown with grain to yield rich increase;
+and as we gaze from horizon to horizon and see only one solitary
+farmhouse, we marvel that English colonists do not emigrate here
+instead of exiling themselves to the Antipodes.
+
+Our approach to the Hungarian capital is indicated by the Danube
+spreading itself out over its low sandy shore, against which numerous
+rafts and floating water-mills are moored. But first we reach
+Promentorium, with its curious subterranean dwellings hewn out of the
+limestone rock, and then pass through the outskirts of Buda. Splash,
+jolt, creak, crack, shake, bump, rattle, bang, screw--eugh! the hood
+of our unfortunate carriage is nearly wrenched off this time. Squeak
+go the wheels as they grind heavily through the mud, for it has been
+raining here also and the road is little better than a ploughed field.
+Past one-storied houses in which lights shine brightly, for the sun
+set long ago, and day has succumbed to night. Over a good road now,
+and dashing down a hill we enter a long tunnel which passes under the
+Schlossberg. Here other carriages meet us, thundering and rumbling on
+their way to the railway station, and we make our exit close to the
+suspension bridge, where the great lions couchant look grimly forth
+upon the night.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                              CHAPTER X.
+
+                                 PEST.
+
+
+How astonished would the traveller be, how utterly flabbergasted and
+dumbfounded, were he set down suddenly at Pest without having been
+previously informed of his whereabouts! How puzzled, as he threaded
+the clean and handsome streets, and looked at the names over the shop
+windows and doorways, to conjecture at what part of the globe he could
+possibly have arrived! One can fancy his rubbing his eyes and imagining
+himself half asleep, or else that the odd arrangement of the letters
+of his once-familiar alphabet, bristling all over with accents like
+porcupine quills, must surely be some post-prandial jumble that will
+come all right to-morrow morning, and that as to himself he must be
+suffering from some temporary lapse of memory as to the proceedings of
+his own immediate past.
+
+As he walks along he will see such names as the following: Mészáros
+Imre, Stőszer Ignatz, Miskolczy Testvérek, Vadász Ferener, Szép
+Ferenz, Lápossy Jankó, Vértessy Sándor, and a thousand others equally
+outlandish. If he wants to buy mineral waters, he will probably do
+so at the shops of Édeskuty Lajos, or grocery either at Messrs.
+Radocsay and Bángay’s or Szenes Ede’s; whilst if he happen to be a
+person of a literary turn of mind he will probably go to _Ráth Mór
+Könyvkiadóhivatala_, who will publish his book on the shortest
+possible notice, in spite of his long superscription.
+
+Occasionally however, like roses amongst thorns, he will come upon such
+modest and familiar names as Jones Thomas, Hill Robert, or Brown John,
+for the surname as we have seen always precedes the Christian name in
+this strange country.
+
+Nor will the stranger be less astonished, if he takes a stroll along
+one of the beautiful quays in the evening, at the extraordinary number
+of pretty women gracefully pacing the asphalt promenade, accompanied
+by their duennas. Where else can one see so many lovely faces or such
+ravishing toilettes?
+
+Hardly even in Paris can we hope to find such a quiet and delicious
+harmony of tints, or such perfect refinement of style, as in the dress
+of these Hungarian ladies; and nowhere indeed such lovely combinations
+and simple elegance. And as we gaze at them admiringly, we wonder
+who the goddesses can be who invent such charming costumes, and
+make them fit so beautifully the graceful and slender figures, and
+whether they are Manaszterly and Kuzniek, who announce themselves as
+_Hölgyruhakészítő_ (ladies’ dressmakers).
+
+What a bright, clean, beautiful city, it is with its noble mansions,
+the very type of the Magyars themselves! Here there is no sham, no
+struggle to keep up appearances under false pretensions, no stucco
+that will crumble away and lay bare in a few years the miserable
+counterfeit behind; all is real and what it seems. Its palaces not only
+look like palaces, but are built of solid stone, to defy the ravages
+of Time the destroyer; whilst the magnificent position of the capital,
+situated as it is on the banks of the Danube, with the rock-built
+city of Buda facing it and the majestic Blocksberg rising above it,
+constitute, to my mind, the most beautiful place I have ever seen.
+
+Walk along the terrace of the embankment on an evening in early summer,
+when the robinias are in bloom! The odour of the flowers, the beauty of
+the women, the fresh breeze blowing from the river; the noble mountain
+buttress opposite, rising out of the water a sheer precipice of eight
+hundred feet; the setting sun illuminating the black-and-gold cupolas
+above the houses and suffusing the waves of the Danube with a crimson
+dye,--all form as perfect a whole as can well be imagined on the earth
+this side of Paradise!
+
+The evening must be fine, however, and the weather warm, for the
+butterflies do not spread their wings and come forth at other seasons;
+and, ah me! how cold it is at Pest sometimes! It freezes one’s blood
+even to think of it! But we will banish the remembrance of the nipping
+blasts that blow over the ice in winter and spring. It is June now, the
+best month of the whole year in which to visit Pest: the robinias are
+decked in their fairest green, the fountains plash, and the butterflies
+are abroad in all their glory.
+
+Pest, which threatens one day to rival Vienna in size as it already
+does in position, has greatly changed even within the last four years;
+and when one considers the peculiar difficulties against which its
+people have had to contend from first to last, the progress it has
+made is marvellous.
+
+Situated on a quicksand to begin with, the very ground on which
+the houses stand had to be thickly covered with cement before the
+foundations could be built, besides which the absence of stone in the
+Alfőld has naturally been a very serious drawback. Before the days of
+railways, and when the now obsolete _vorspann_ was almost the only
+means of travelling through Hungary, it is said that when a postboy
+happened to see a stone or pebble on the road he would stop his horses
+to pick it up, and, placing it carefully in his pocket, carry it home
+as a curiosity, or something very precious, to be kept as an heirloom
+in the family and handed down to successive generations!
+
+In spite of all these disadvantages, Buda-Pest with its splendid
+river embankments is, as I have said, one of the most beautiful
+capitals in the world. The Magyars are a most patriotic people, and
+contribute nobly to all national institutions, responding liberally
+to every object that is undertaken for the benefit of their country.
+Occasionally, however, they embark in almost more than so young a
+nation--which thirty years ago had scarcely emerged from the barbarism
+of the Middle Ages--can afford; and their notions of splendour and
+eager desire to embellish their beloved metropolis are sometimes,
+it is to be feared, too mighty for the state of their finances. The
+National Museum, a very large and handsome building, was erected partly
+by private subscription. The Magyars likewise contributed voluntarily
+a million and a half of gulden for the endowment of the palace of the
+Academy of Sciences, a beautiful edifice completed in 1865, at a cost
+of 800,000 gulden; while the Redoute, a splendid building in the
+Moorish style near the river, which contains a spacious ballroom and
+restaurant, was erected at a cost of no less than 600,000 gulden.
+
+Although comparatively few English travellers come to Pest--“fewer and
+fewer each year, _mein Herr_,” the porter said, as he deposited
+our luggage in the room that had been allotted to us--we took care
+here, as we invariably do when “pilgriming” abroad, to avoid hotels
+recommended either by Murray or Bradshaw, preferring not only to mingle
+with the natives of the place rather than our own countrymen, but to
+fall in with the national customs as well. On our arrival therefore,
+we drove at once to the “_Jägerhorn_,” and, finding all its lower
+rooms occupied, took up our abode at the Hôtel ---- in the Servieten
+Platz, one of the most completely Magyar hotels in Hungary. Although
+small, we are most delightfully situated at this hotel, and never can
+I forget its appalling cleanliness, the dusting and scrubbing that
+perpetually go on, or the exquisite texture and dazzling whiteness
+of the linen. I name these facts because the Hungarians are a
+much-maligned people, and are supposed to be behind the majority of
+other nations in the matter of cleanliness.
+
+That melancholy institution the table d’hôte does not exist in Hungary,
+and the traveller has the option of either taking his meals _à la
+carte_ or ordering his meal beforehand. The Hungarian bill of
+fare includes wild boar, red deer, and, as the irrepressible Murray
+informs us, “frogs in the proper season!” Perhaps it may with propriety
+be questioned whether there does exist any “proper season” for the
+devouring of those little reptiles of the Batrachian tribe, or of
+snails either, another delicacy previously alluded to, to which Magyar
+epicures are much addicted; but, with the exception of these two items
+of the Hungarian school of gastronomy, we were quite willing to partake
+of anything which their cuisine afforded. But “_Si Romæ fueris Romæ
+mores sequeris_” being our motto when travelling abroad, we were not
+prepared to satisfy our hunger with anything so English as “ros-bif”
+or “bif-stek,” which the waiter--who had evidently discovered to what
+nation we belonged--informed us, on handing the day’s bill of fare, we
+could also have if we did not mind waiting for it.
+
+Now, as an Englishwoman, I object to the belief commonly entertained by
+all foreigners that in our island habitat we live and move and have our
+being solely by the agency of those two sources of nutriment. In France
+the notion does not surprise one; for is it not a creed amongst her
+people that it is by these means that “_Jong Boule_” has conquered
+one-half of the world and bullied the other? But here, not only in the
+heart of the Magyar capital, but in the seclusion of a Magyar hotel,
+where English persons so rarely come, to be thus reminded of our
+national weaknesses, and have them in a manner thrust down our throats,
+is more than provoking, and I am afraid we answer rather snappishly
+that we wish neither the one nor the other. At this doubtless we sank
+considerably in the waiter’s estimation, for how could we be true
+_Ángolok_ and not require our _ros bif_ or _bif-stek_!
+
+The sun is scorching in the city. But on the heights of the Blocksberg
+we shall enjoy a cooler air, to which end we must cross the suspension
+bridge, a triumph of engineering skill accomplished by an Englishman,
+Mr. Tierney Clarke; _Herr Clarkey_, as he is invariably called
+by the grateful Hungarians, who never fail to speak of him to the
+stranger when alluding to the bridge.
+
+Yonder flows old Danube, tearing along in desperate hurry, as though he
+had lost time somewhere in his wanderings farther north-west, and had
+to make it up, or he would be late in his arrival at the Black Sea.
+
+The magnificent structure spanning it, of which the Hungarians may well
+be proud, was erected at a cost of £460,000. The width of its central
+span is much greater than even that of the Menai chain-bridge, and its
+strength was tested in a very severe and singular manner, when, in
+1849, it was opened for the first time to admit of the Hungarian army
+crossing the Danube under the leadership of Kossuth when pursued by the
+Austrians. It is stated that during those first two days, no fewer than
+260 pieces of ordnance and 66,000 troops passed over the bridge; and
+the scene, as graphically described to us by an eye-witness, must have
+been one of the wildest tumult and confusion, the retreating army being
+closely followed by squadrons of Austrian cavalry and artillery.
+
+The last time we were here we happened to see the breaking up of the
+winter’s ice, and it was a wondrous sight to behold the great blocks,
+borne down by the swift current, heave and struggle and beat against
+each other, and then dash headlong against the massive stonework of the
+bridge, with a crash like that of a volley of musketry.
+
+The breaking up of the ice is always a time of especial anxiety to the
+immediate dwellers on the banks of the Danube, particularly to those
+of Buda and Pest, with the remembrance of the calamity of 1838 ever in
+their memory. Should a rapid thaw take place higher up the river, the
+pent-up waters, suddenly let loose, pour down _en masse_, and,
+bursting the ice, hurl huge blocks many tons in weight up into the air,
+not unfrequently throw them on to the shore, and wreck many a small
+craft moored to the river’s banks.
+
+So terrible indeed is the apprehension when a sudden thaw occurs that
+alarm-guns are fired to apprise the inhabitants of the threatened
+danger, while the ice itself is cannonaded in order to break it up and
+allow the imprisoned waters to escape.
+
+During the present century there have been no fewer than fourteen
+inundations, none however so disastrous in their effects as that of
+1838. Only three years ago one occurred which threw the citizens on
+both sides the river into a state of great consternation. The snow,
+which had melted unusually early in the mountains of the Tyrol, caused
+the Danube to rise to an alarming height, and the ice getting jammed
+a few miles below Pest, the blocks which the waters gathered in their
+progress hither heaped themselves one upon another and formed a
+complete barrier to all outlet.
+
+“It was like a great ice mountain,” exclaimed a German-speaking Magyar
+with whom we got into conversation as we leant over the bridge together
+and watched the unruly river tearing by.
+
+“_Ach! lieber Himmel_,” he continued, “that too was a dreadful
+time. We scarcely went to bed for three nights. Buda was under
+water, and the houses could scarcely live in the surging flood which
+threatened at each instant to inundate Pest.”
+
+In fact, not only has the physical formation of the country rendered
+this “_beata Ungaria_” a perpetual anxiety to the children of
+her soil, but ever since the time of Constantine until the middle of
+the present century she has seldom been otherwise than in a state of
+anarchy and confusion from causes which have reached her principally
+from without. Five times has Pest been under the dominion of the Turk
+alone; and though her political horizon is now tolerably free from
+cloud, she has her own two great climatic evils perpetually hanging
+over her,--inundation on the one hand and drought on the other; so that
+nature and man seem to have conspired together to render this grand but
+unhappy country the sport of fortune.
+
+But we must loiter no longer on the bridge, or evening will have
+closed ere we can return. Before us in bold outline rise the porphyry
+mountains, on which shadows are already beginning to lengthen. Opposite
+rises the proud citadel of Buda, which bravely held its own during
+the twenty sieges that were laid against it in the course of three
+centuries, not only by Moslems, but by Christians also. On the summit
+of the rock, with its terraced gardens and magnificent flights of steps
+sloping at right angles down to the river, stands the Regal Palace,
+together with the ruins of a church, once dedicated to the Cross, but
+which, once and again, has borne on its sacred frontal the ensign of
+the infidel Crescent.
+
+Taking a droszky at the other end of the bridge, we make for the
+majestic Blocksberg. What a glorious and at the same time singular
+panorama greets us from its steeps! How beautiful looks Pest from this
+elevation, with its noble palaces, above which rise conspicuously its
+many cupolas and spires of ebon and gold! Below lies its sister-city
+Buda, a name said to be a corruption of Bléda, given to it by Attila,
+after one of his brothers--wearing such an odd old-world look that,
+forgetful of the long, long centuries that have come and gone, one
+can almost imagine the Huns still established here under their great
+leader, who is said to have fixed his court and camp on the spot where
+Buda now stands. A little above, on the site of the ancient fort,
+rises the citadel, bristling with cannon, in which a Turkish Pasha, to
+whom the half of Hungary was compelled to own allegiance, once ruled
+supreme. Nor was Pest the only city that owned his sway, for in 1529
+the conquests of the Sublime Porte extended to Vienna, where for two
+centuries the Crescent replaced the Cross on the cathedral there.
+
+The united population of Pest and Buda, the modern and ancient cities,
+is estimated at rather more than 200,000.
+
+From the heights on which we are standing we look down upon the citadel
+which has been the scene of so many sanguinary struggles. Ah! if
+those stones could but speak to us, what tales of bloody conflict and
+dauntless bravery would they not unfold! What a strange contrast, too,
+do these twin-cities present, the one so ancient, bearing in everything
+evidences of a bitter past, the other a splendid city of to-day!
+
+Between them flows the Danube. Who would suppose, looking down upon it
+now so calm and smiling, that it is in reality such an ill-conditioned
+river, and so absolutely without self-control, keeping the peaceful
+inhabitants settled on its inhospitable shores in such a frequent state
+of alarmed expectancy? Yes! there it goes! rolling on in majestic
+silence, coldly indifferent to the presence of friend or foe: invasion,
+conquest, bloodshed, flood and drought, are equally unheeded. Yonder in
+its arms lie peacefully the fair green islands. How like toys look the
+steamers that ply between them and Pest, as like some monster shuttle
+they “weave each together into closer and closer union”!
+
+In the distance rise the gentle vine-clad slopes of Buda, from the
+grapes of which various kinds of wine are made, amongst which are
+Ofner, Adelsberger, and another appropriately called “Turk’s blood,”
+which I should imagine the Hungarians, with their memories ever keenly
+alive to bygone days, must partake of with considerable relish.
+Beyond all stretch the sandy plains, the great Alfőld steeped in a
+rich mingling of varied hues which a hot tremulous vapour has blended
+and softened into one delicious harmony. In the remote distance the
+mountains of the Mátra, dimly floating in a dreamy haze, rest their
+summits against the azure.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+On first arriving at Pest, the traveller--who will doubtless have heard
+so much of the national costumes--will feel not a little disappointed;
+for the railways, which have already done so much to rob Switzerland
+and the Tyrol of a great part of their old charm, are slowly but surely
+doing their work here. The so-called civilisation of the West is
+likewise toning down not only the costumes, but the primitive customs
+of this part of Eastern Europe.
+
+The gradual extinction of the former is a source of intense regret to
+the Hungarians of the old school, who regard it as a sign of coming
+evil, attributing it to German influence. Occasionally in the streets
+a man with an immense round beaver hat and curious short jacket thrown
+across his shoulders may be seen, and there are plenty of sheepskins
+and fur-lined mantles everywhere; but to see costumes that once so
+astonished the traveller one must go some distance from the capital.
+The great fear that possesses the mind of a true Magyar--the very
+_bête noire_ of his existence--is lest his country should become
+Germanised. The Magyars of the old school in all internal matters are
+strongly conservative: they do not object to progress, but it must
+wear the Hungarian costumes, speak the Hungarian language and think
+the Hungarian thoughts, and must be of that kind which opposes with
+clenched antagonism the faintest shadow of German innovation; for any
+sympathy with the Teutonic nation he looks upon as an evidence of
+national decadence.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+“There was a time within my memory, and not so long ago either,”
+remarked _mein Herr_ Dulovics, the landlord of the hotel, an
+old man with a tow-coloured wig, who liked to have a quiet talk with
+the _Ángolok_, much as he disliked speaking the hated German
+tongue--the only medium of communication between us, for he knew
+neither French, Italian, nor Latin--“There was a time when even the
+nobles wore the _gatya_ and a distinctive dress, and Pest was
+vastly different in those days. Now, on the contrary, even the
+servants wear _Schleppen_ and _Hauben_ forsooth (trains and
+bonnets), and the Magyars, who used to be so much sought after as
+making the best of servants, are now avoided, and we have to get them
+from Bohemia and Poland, and goodness knows where besides;” and the old
+man sighed heavily as he thought of the “good old times.”
+
+Not a lass however of the kind he had been describing, who wore a
+_Schleppe_ and _Haube_, was the chambermaid of the Hôtel
+Dulovics, with her modest head-gear, a clean white kerchief crossed
+over her smooth, fair hair and tied under her chin. What a deft little
+woman she was, as she went trudging about with her duster and broom and
+neat checquered apron pinned over her bosom! No enterprising spider
+wove seductive webs behind the curtains where _she_ reigned
+supreme, nor did dust attempt to evade her eye by collecting in remote
+corners; and as she tidied the room, the polished furniture gave back
+her bright little image as from a many-sided mirror.
+
+The waiters, on the contrary, wore the ugly garments of Western Europe.
+The head man, to whom appertained the making out of the bills and
+superintendence of the hotel generally, was a sort of black divinity
+in whose presence the importance even of Herr Dulovics himself was
+dwarfed. He also waited upon us, doing so as though we had been of
+royal blood, not obsequiously however, like our _tálnok_ of
+Székes Fejérvár, but with a deference and dignity of manner quite
+perfect. I never saw anything like the stately bearing of this grave,
+broad-shouldered, handsome specimen of Magyar, or the amplitude of
+his embroidered shirt-front. He might have been, and probably was, a
+prince or “noble” in disguise. Nothing whatever brought the ghost of a
+smile over his countenance, and he was altogether so extremely solemn
+and correct that we almost lost our appetite as he waited on us. It
+seemed indecorous, somehow, to be hungry in the immediate presence of
+such deportment, and we often wondered whether that grave visage ever
+relaxed when, his duties ended, he retired within the secret recesses
+of his own lair, and whether he ate and drank and slept like mortals.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                              CHAPTER XI.
+
+                           THE VOLKSGARTEN.
+
+
+Pest is a costly place to sojourn at, and our money absolutely flew, a
+_gulden_[1] scarcely going farther than a _franc_ in Paris,
+or a _lire_ in any part of Italy. No wonder is it then, as the
+porter told us on our arrival, that “fewer and fewer English travellers
+come each year.” Prices however vary considerably, according to the
+state of the currency; and are a barometer indicating the state of
+political affairs in Hungary, as well as external ones affecting the
+interest of the country, ascending with the depreciation of the paper
+currency, and descending as it increases in value. Thus the tradesman
+loses nothing by the fluctuations of the circulating medium; his gulden
+may not be worth so much at one time as at another, but he charges
+more for his wares, and thus keeps up for himself a wise and equitable
+balance.
+
+[1] Supposed to be worth two shillings, but averaging, in the
+depreciated state of the Austrian currency, only one shilling and eight
+pence.
+
+What an aggravating and irritating currency is the Austro-Hungarian
+with its miserable kreuzers and paper gulden! Our purses will not hold
+sufficient even for our daily wants. Oh, to live in a world where there
+is no need of money! We have ceased to count the kreuzers, one hundred
+of which go to a gulden, and give them out promiscuously, a small
+handful of those little coins generally covering the cost of tickets
+for the steamers that ply all day between Buda and Pest, cab-hire,
+“pour-boires,” and the like.
+
+Ordinary hackney carriages--which are here called “comfortables,” just
+as in Transylvania they are designated, more oddly still, by the German
+name of “_Gelegenheiten_” (opportunities)--are however both cheap
+and excellent. They consist of small broughams drawn by one horse, but
+besides these there are carriages of other kinds, always to be found
+waiting for hire in the Gasella Tir, to which two horses are attached,
+the carriages of all kinds being nearly as good as private ones. Let
+us jump into one and go off to the Stadt-Wäldchen. We have lunched
+sumptuously at the Jägerhorn, to the sound of plashing water and the
+fragrant perfume of flowers, and are ready for anything.
+
+At what a pace the horses go, as they dash round the corners, and take
+us on through the crowded thoroughfares, into the long broad road which
+leads to the open country, at the end of which we can just descry,
+through the blue veil of atmosphere, the trees at the entrance to the
+People’s Park! It is a festival of some sort, and the streets are full
+of holiday-makers, in holiday attire. In vain the bells which with
+equal importunity summoned the faithful to church in the early morning
+now peal forth again, and clang and twang and nearly crack themselves
+in the anxious vehemence with which they strike against their clappers.
+The people refuse to hear the call, and still in never-ending stream
+make their way to the various piers, and crowd the steamers which
+every few minutes are seen cutting through the waters with a cool and
+pleasant splash to Buda, Alt-Ofen, or other places lower down the
+Danube, and, calling for passengers at Pest, come banging against the
+wooden framework of the piers and nearly knock them over.
+
+All is hurry, bustle, and excitement. The sun shines fiercely, but a
+refreshing breeze is blowing down the river. If ever a day was made
+for a holiday, surely this one is. The Hungarian flag has a rare time
+of it, and its red, white, and green stripes wave and flash, not only
+from the sterns and masts of steamers, but from every available spot.
+The open omnibuses--which are here like two Victoria phaetons joined in
+one--are passing and repassing by the score, filled with quiet happy
+people seated under the clean brown-holland awnings. Every mortal thing
+is clean in Pest. On through the Sugár út, with its bordering of gilded
+mansions and pretty Italian villas, till we reach our destination,
+where dismissing our droszky on payment of the magnificent sum of
+one gulden for the “_course_,” and an equally magnificent sum
+of twenty kreuzers to the driver, we hasten away to “Arcadia’s green
+bowers,” not proof however against the seductions of the vendors
+of delicious sweetmeats (_édességek_), which, lying in small
+white muslin booths, like babies’ bassinets, waylay the weak-minded,
+sweet-toothed pleasure-seeker at each step on entering the domain.
+
+This sylvan retreat, dear to the hearts of the people, as well it
+may, was not long ago a huge swamp, but, having been drained by
+an artificial lake, now contains “every requisite” for a pleasure
+resort. The sheet of water, with its swans and (moored to its banks)
+innumerable gaudily-painted canoes, is a great source of delight to
+the holiday-makers, who paddle about and fish for minnows and tadpoles
+with a gravity and perseverance quite astounding. Nothing short of an
+insurrection or an overflow of the Danube would prevent the Hungarian
+_bourgeois_ from resorting hither on Sundays and week-day
+festivals: to them a tour in the “merry-go-rounds” and a saunter in the
+pleasant shady walks is a necessity of their lives, without which they
+could not digest their “_gulyás hús_” or “_paprika hendl_,”
+and would even lose relish for their “_schoppen_” of beer.
+
+As we proceed, the discordant sounds of music, the spasmodic beating
+of drums, and hum of many voices greet us; for in the deep recesses
+of the Wäldchen itself, the Hungarian world is _tout en fête_.
+There are open-air theatres, Blondin feats, dancing on the tight-rope,
+and something to suit all comers, not to speak of the aforesaid
+“merry-go-rounds,” each rivalling the other in eccentric design.
+
+Emerging from behind a group of trees, we find ourselves close to
+one of these popular sources of amusement and exercise, composed
+of an artificial menagerie--a “happy family” revolving in peaceful
+fellowship, as they carry their bold equestrians, male and female,
+whizzing in giddy circles.
+
+A few steps farther on we find an opposition one, and, judging from the
+crowd of lookers-on which stands outside the gaily-fringed awning, a
+great favourite.
+
+Managing to work our way through the throng of people, we behold
+the twelve signs of the Zodiac chasing each other with maddening
+velocity--objects sufficiently grotesque to send children both small
+and great back to their homes with a whole lifetime of nightmares on
+the brain. Farther still is another in which huge swans with gilded
+beaks are made to draw wondrous cars containing not only children but
+grown-up men and women of all ages, some sitting, some standing. So
+accustomed are the Magyars to this particular mode of exercise that
+they rotate with a speed positively astounding, doing so at the same
+time with the gravity of judges, scarcely the ghost of a smile breaking
+over the countenance of any one of them. Never can I forget one young
+woman in a pink dress with long golden hair flying out behind like
+a mermaid; as, standing bolt upright in one of the cars, her hands
+demurely folded and her eyes bent downwards, she managed to rotate
+about twenty times without moving a muscle of her body, or holding on
+to anything for support. In fact, so perfectly still was she, that
+we had just come to the conclusion that, like a figure-head at the
+bows of a vessel, she was simply placed there for effect, when the
+machinery came to a standstill, and she stepped out of the car with a
+pair of “understandings” of most unquestionable flesh and blood, and
+disappeared amongst the crowd. This part of the entertainment would
+seem to be regarded as a duty rather than an amusement; for still
+they go round and round to the grinding of an immense barrel-organ,
+the most popular instrument, seemingly, with the proprietors of these
+_divertissements_, combining as it does the greatest quantity
+of sound with the least possible motive power, and the people never
+stop--except to begin again.
+
+The whole scene was headachy and bewildering; whilst the jumble of
+barrel-organs, each playing different tunes in a different key, soon
+sent us off in quest of a more peaceful locality.
+
+Not far away, but a little out of the noise and tumult of voices, came
+the familiar squeak of the immortal Punch, sound irresistible at all
+times. But a _Magyar_ Punch and Judy!--we _must_ go and see
+it. Following the direction of the dulcet tones, we see before us, not
+the modest and itinerant arrangement of our childhood, but a permanent
+theatrical establishment. The performance proves to be a most elaborate
+and imposing rendering of the drama of the classic pair, consisting of
+a play in five acts, in which Judy leads the same miserable life, and
+receives the same number of wooden blows from the arms of her lord and
+master, who finally poisons her and marries again, but in which she
+comes to life again in the fourth act, and, imbued with supernatural
+powers, takes the form of a hideous monster,--a creature with huge
+jaws, half alligator, half shark, whose appearance frightens the little
+children, but preaches a wholesome lesson to Hungarian husbands, for
+it dodges the footsteps of the newly-wedded pair to such an extent,
+that the second Mrs. Judy takes leave of this mortal stage in a rapid
+consumption, and is buried with much pomp and ceremony, whilst the
+conscience-stricken Punch, after wasting to a mere shadow, is crushed
+to death in the animal’s jaws.
+
+This tragic and melancholy ending of the hitherto victorious hero was
+accompanied by the most dolorous music, extracted with much difficulty
+by a young female in long plaits, who ground away with both hands at an
+asthmatic old organ, which sent forth spasmodic gasps and groans highly
+appropriate to the occasion.
+
+At this juncture, the loud bell of the al-fresco theatre, about a
+hundred yards off, announces that another performance is going to
+begin there also. Let us throw our little heap of kreuzers into the
+greasy saucer which is now seen hovering above the heads of the people,
+and, having paid our modest tribute to the memory of the defunct
+Punch, follow yon hurrying throng in the direction of the theatre,
+take tickets at the rustic wicket-gate for the “dress circle,” and,
+entering, rest beneath the cool shade of waving trees.
+
+As fate would have it, the hero of the piece was the typical
+Englishman, and in course of the performance we were treated to
+an exposure--most graphically rendered--of some of our national
+traits, which, though not particularly flattering to ourselves, were
+at any rate highly appreciated by the audience, who greeted their
+representation with immense applause.
+
+In these al-fresco theatres the popular drama is not seen in its most
+_recherché_ form, certainly; and the garish day, by laying bare
+many of its secrets, detracts not a little from its accessories, but
+there is seldom anything to offend eyes or ears the most fastidious.
+There are no coarse jests nor ribaldry. Everywhere there is merriment
+and happiness, but vulgarity and intemperance never; and the people
+greatly enjoy this source of amusement, often paying the price of their
+tickets over again, to witness a repetition of the same piece.
+
+The last time we were in Pest a troupe of Italian pantomimists were
+performing here; but they could scarcely have come to a worse place
+than Hungary to find an appreciative audience, for the phlegmatic
+Magyar _bourgeois_ seems incapable of taking in the full meaning
+of mute gesture, of which the Italians are so fond and which to them
+has all the power of language. In vain the supple bodies of the
+“_mimi_” rocked to and fro in their endeavours at simulating
+passion, or quivered in every nerve under the power of strong emotion;
+in vain they emitted electric flashes from their finger-tips
+expressive of disgust and indignation; in vain the lines and muscles of
+their faces worked convulsively as they endeavoured to give expression
+to the various sentiments. Love, hate, sorrow, joy, indignation, and
+contempt, all came alike to the Hungarians, who can only comprehend the
+force of pantomime when exhibited in their national dance.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+On whatever side we gaze there is a stream of human life which has
+been augmenting each moment throughout the day. The greensward is
+covered with happy groups reclining beneath the shade of trees. Like a
+palace of the “Arabian Nights” lies the boat-house yonder, reflecting
+itself in the calm water over which swans white as snowflakes glide
+in spotless procession. Beyond all, in wavy curvature rise the hills
+of Buda. And now the little rustic bridges are crowded with persons
+crossing over to the island whence come the sounds of music, no longer
+that of barrel-organs, but of a gipsy band, and soon the broad surface
+of the lake is alive with canoes and brightly-painted boats, and the
+swans floating in graceful curves seem to keep time to its inspiriting
+strains.
+
+Outside the various restaurants the people sit at the small
+marble-topped tables under the awnings, and eat ices or drink coffee
+whilst listening to the music. This is the people’s day, and the
+_beau monde_ do not appear; but in spite of this we see some
+lovely faces, as well as figures of exquisite contour. Look at that
+Magyar girl yonder, leaning against a tree, her hat resting against
+her lap. What makes her look so sweetly sad as the gipsy band rings
+out one of its speaking melodies, and what is she thinking of whilst
+the butterflies with spangled wings play at hide-and-seek amongst the
+branches, and the sunlight like a shower of gold lingers about her
+head as though it loved it? She is only a shop-girl probably, out for
+a holiday, but how pretty she is with her tiny features, and what
+modesty and reserve there is in her whole bearing! Quietness without
+insipidity, and dignity without pride.
+
+But now bidding adieu to this gay and festive scene, just as the fires
+of sunset are paling in the west, we jump into a droszky, scores of
+which crowd the entrance to the gates, and rattling off to the Danube,
+take a steamer to the fair green island of Marguerite.
+
+Here the holiday-makers are of a far different type, and, consisting
+of the _nil admirari_ class, take their pleasures tranquilly, a
+military band being the only source of amusement provided. Walking
+through shady alleys skirted by noble forest trees, across broad
+stretches of velvet lawn and past well-kept parterres, we reach a
+large restaurant at the end of the island--and here we dine.
+
+This beautiful island of woods and flowers, which lies so peacefully
+in the Danube’s arms, belongs to the Archduke Joseph. Here in ancient
+days, so runs tradition, a lovesick maiden--the daughter of a king--was
+in the habit of retiring to pray. Her name was Margaret, that is
+“Pearl,” and it is after her that the island is so sweetly called the
+“Pearl of the Danube.”
+
+Seated beneath the lime-trees, amongst which hundreds of lamps are
+gleaming, we listen to the melodious rhythm of the orchestra, and seem
+to be in fairy-land. The soft evening air blowing from the Danube fans
+our cheeks, and our prosaic _Kalbs Schnitzel_ and _Lämmerchen
+Braten_ no longer taste like either. We are partaking of ambrosial
+food, our “Turk’s blood” converted into nectar of the gods. We fall to
+earth again, however, with one fell swoop, when, having asked for the
+bill, it is presented--but who would think of grumbling after such a
+happy day? Restaurant-keepers _must_ live, and money was made to
+spend, whilst the _cuisine_ was excellent and the wine direct from
+the Archduke Joseph’s cellars.
+
+To our right sit a group of buxom Germans, not dwellers in Hungary
+evidently, or they would have spoken Magyar; it being the highest aim
+and ambition of the German residents to be taken for the dominant race.
+So great, in fact, is the attempt of the Germans to repudiate their
+own nationality and pass for Hungarians, that they will often tell
+you they are Magyars, in a language which though Hungarian betrays a
+very unquestionable Teutonic accent, and swear that their ancestors
+came over with Árpád. The ladies in question therefore must be
+visitors to the fair capital, possibly from Vienna, where it is the
+fashion to speak ill of everything Hungarian, for they are abusing
+not only the country and its people, but all that is placed before
+them, in their harsh gutturals, and again and again we hear such
+words as “_miserables Brod_” and “_schlechtes Fleisch_;”
+but still they eat and drink, and we marvel at the quantity of
+“miserable” _Speisen und Getränke_ (meat and drink) they manage,
+notwithstanding, to consume.
+
+To our left sit a trio of slim Hungarian ladies prattling softly
+in their expressive language. How gentle in manner are they, and
+how modest and demure! What a charming absence of vanity and
+self-consciousness is there about these Magyar belles! and how unlike
+in these attributes--may I be forgiven for saying so?--are they to many
+of our English girls of the period!
+
+In their beauty the Magyar women have been said to resemble the
+Circassians. Of this I have had no opportunity of judging. But lest
+it should be thought I have exaggerated, let me quote the opinion of
+a gentleman (M. Tissot) on the subject: “Those who want to see the
+true type of feminine Magyar beauty should come here (_Margarethen
+Insel_), seat themselves in the shade, and watch the women who
+pass by. What strikes one first among the Hungarians is the extreme
+freshness, delicacy, and purity of the complexion, whether they be
+brunette or blonde. Their wavy hair, as in all women of this race, is
+superb; in their large Oriental eyes, shaded with long lashes, reverie
+mingles with passion; their lips are the colour of roses, and their
+teeth have the brightness of pearls.... The figure is supple, the
+joints fine, and the feet arched and tiny. You recognise a Hungarian
+woman at once by her walk, so completely without affectation, so noble
+and full of ease. It is an indescribable stamp of aristocracy and of
+good manners, which makes the German women who live among them yellow
+with envy.”
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Amongst these Magyar sirens the stranger will often recognise a face
+that is decidedly Hebraic, and often the Grecian and even Spanish type
+is manifest; whilst immediately opposite us a lovely woman is sitting,
+whose type might be a mingling of all three. Her complexion is a clear
+brunette, with a tint like the damask rose just showing through the
+delicately transparent skin, and her wavy clusters of dark brown hair
+drawn back in loose bands. She too has taken off her bonnet and is
+fanning herself, for the evening is sultry. She has already caught
+sight of my sketch-book, and knows by my fixed gaze that I am sketching
+her, but looking up she smiles sweetly, then resumes the same pose,
+remaining perfectly still, the expression of her face imbued in its
+every line with that unconscious grace and charm of indifference to
+admiration which great beauty so often adds to its possessor.
+
+On the men of Hungary Nature has been less lavish in her gifts. They
+are tall, manly, and even stately in form, and handsome faces are very
+frequently observed, but they are not the rule, as amongst the women.
+Now and then, amidst these fine and well-formed people, one is seen who
+recalls to mind their Tartar origin, and anthropologists are puzzled
+not a little to account for the change which these once pastoral
+nomads--the Magyars dwelling in their northern steppes--have undergone
+both in face and feature since they migrated southwards and became a
+settled and agricultural people. They affirm that the admixture of
+Slavonian and other blood which has taken place from time to time is
+inadequate to account for the complete change of type evinced not
+only in external characteristics, but even in cranial formation. For
+whereas the Lapps and Finns, who have been ascertained by philological
+research, no less than by the guidance of ethnology, to form with them
+a common stock, still retain their ancient physical characteristics,
+and are “short of stature and uncouth,” with “pyramidal” skulls--a
+type which is said to distinguish in a great degree all the pastoral
+races of the North--the stature of the Magyars of the present day is
+stalwart, and the cranium has acquired the “elliptical” form, that
+denotes the dwellers in Western and Southern Europe.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Twilight had drawn its veil across the sky and the stars were peeping
+forth by the time we turned our backs upon this “Paradise of Houris,”
+and, taking the steamer, made for Pest. A celebrated gipsy band was
+to perform that night at the restaurant of the “Jägerhorn,” and we
+determined to go and hear it, and thus conclude our exciting day.
+
+Entering the quadrangle of the hotel which formed the restaurant, we
+took our seats. The stars, dimmed by the lustre of the artificial
+lights, looked down upon us meekly, for we were seated in the open
+air. The fountain in the centre of the court merrily tossed its spray,
+and the gold-fish darted in and out of their miniature grottoes as they
+played at “hide-and-seek.”
+
+The soul-stirring, madly exciting, and martial strains of the
+“Rákótzys”--one of the revolutionary airs--has just died upon the ear.
+A brief interval of rest has passed. Now listen with bated breath to
+that recitative in the minor key--that passionate wail, that touching
+story, the gipsies’ own music, which rises and falls on the air. Knives
+and forks are set down, hands and arms hang listless, all the seeming
+necessities of the moment being either suspended or forgotten--merged
+in the memories which those vibrations, so akin to human language,
+re-awaken in each heart. Eyes involuntarily fill with tears as those
+pathetic strains echo back and make present some sorrow of long ago, or
+rouse from slumber that of recent time.
+
+Watch narrowly the countenances of the listeners one by one! Regard
+that phlegmatic and, as you thought but a few minutes ago, painfully
+prosaic man of threescore years sitting over his high glass of
+_Lagerbier_. See, he hangs his head and wipes away a tear! Now
+gaze furtively at the face of that fair one opposite, in all the
+rounded grace of early womanhood. What a look of pain is fixed upon her
+brow! how the eyebrows knit and the corners of the sweet mouth droop!
+And that younger form beside her, of a girl who has scarcely left her
+teens--what a pensive shadow passes over the expression of her face
+also; _hers_ the unconscious foreshadowing of some future cloud!
+All are firmly held, grasped, enthralled as by a magic spell, every
+heart responding to those plaintive notes, and every sorrow stirred by
+the thrilling vibrations which hang upon the ear.
+
+And now the recitative being ended and the last chord struck, the
+melody begins, of which the former was the prelude. Watch the movements
+of the supple figure of the “first violin,” standing in the centre of
+the other musicians, who accompany him softly. How every nerve is _en
+rapport_ with his instrument, and how his very soul is speaking
+through it! See how gently he draws the bow across the trembling
+strings! and how lovingly he lays his cheek upon it, as if listening
+to some responsive echo of his heart’s inmost feeling, for it is his
+mystic language! How the instrument lives and answers to his every
+touch, sending forth in turn utterances tender, sad, wild and joyous!
+The audience once more hold their breath to catch the dying tones, as
+the melody so rich, so beautiful, so full of pathos, is drawing to a
+close. The tension is absolutely painful as the gipsy dwells on the
+last lingering note, and it is a relief when, with a loud and general
+burst of sound, every performer starts into life and motion. Then
+what crude and wild dissonances are made to resolve themselves into
+delicious harmony! What rapturous and fervid phrases, and what energy
+and impetuosity is there in every motion of the gipsies’ figures as
+their dark eyes glisten and emit flashes in unison with the tones!
+whilst in the restaurant itself everything is once more stir and
+motion. Knives and forks clatter, corks fly, and the cool fountain
+plashes with a merrier sound.
+
+The deep-toned cymbals--a large kind of lyre laid flat upon a table and
+played with padded sticks--thrum and ring and vibrate; the strings of
+the double-bass thunder; the strains come thicker and faster, but in
+perfect time, till the performers, interrupting the regular measure by
+an inversion of the order of notes, glide into syncopated passages, and
+we think they must surely lose themselves in those intricate and subtle
+“quantities.” But no! “Thump, bang, crash, and squeak” rend the air,
+but in the din and clamour and fury of the wild rhythm they all come
+right again, and wind up in the greatest precision.
+
+The fiddles are now placed upon the table; the “loud cymbals” are
+hushed; the double-bass and violoncello rest against the green
+trellis-work with which the walls of the restaurant are covered; the
+clarionet lies hidden amongst a labyrinth of leaves, and for a brief
+space the _czigánok_ walk about the quadrangle, and receive the
+congratulations of the audience. But they never really tire, and would
+seem to be endowed with the power of perpetual motion, for they soon
+begin again, and “men may come, and men may go, but” _they_ “go on
+for ever.”
+
+No wonder is it that the Hungarians prefer their national music to any
+other, for the gipsies are not only gifted with an extraordinary genius
+for music, but their impetuous and passionate natures make them enter
+into it heart and soul; and this being the case, it is impossible for
+them to help communicating some of their ardour and enthusiasm to their
+impressionable listeners.
+
+The cymbals (_czimbalom_), the most characteristic of all their
+instruments, possess great tone as well as capability of expression.
+They emit as much sound, in fact, as that of a grand piano, the lower
+strings possessing immense depth and power. We are so accustomed to
+associate the word cymbals with the circular brass plates which are
+clashed together, that it seemed odd to hear any other instrument
+called by that name; but I never heard the gipsies’ _czimbalom_
+without wondering whether they had inherited them from their ancestors,
+and whether, under a more simple form, this stringed instrument, in
+universal use amongst the Hungarian Ishmaelites--so infinitely more
+capable of expression than the sharp ringing sound produced by the kind
+of cymbals familiar to us in our own country--be not in reality the
+“loud cymbals” with which David told the Jewish people to “praise the
+Lord.”
+
+Our last night in Pest has come for the present; our last bill is paid
+at the Jägerhorn restaurant; our farewell of the gipsy-band has been
+taken, and we return in regret to our hotel. Ascending the stairs, we
+meet Herr Dulovics, who demands our wishes concerning our early repast,
+previous to our journey on the morrow, observing--a fact we had already
+recognised--that the inns on the Alfőld are both few and indifferent.
+He suggests, therefore, the desirability of our fortifying ourselves
+with a substantial meal.
+
+Seeing that we hesitate for an instant, he breaks in hurriedly, as
+though seized by a happy inspiration--
+
+“Leave it to me; I will take care that you have a breakfast to please
+you,” and then disappears.
+
+On the following morning, descending to the _Speise-saal_, we
+see the snowy cloth spread in readiness for us, and at the sound of
+our footsteps, peeping through a doorway at the end of the apartment,
+mine host’s head appears. He looks hot and busy, and his wig is all
+on one side in the very fervour and excitement of his occupation. The
+cook, clad in white, stands hard by, his arms folded. He is not deemed
+equal to the occasion evidently. Herr Dulovics himself undertakes the
+important office of preparing a savoury mess--a parting blessing in the
+flesh-pot way--such as he thinks the soul of the _Ángolok_ loves.
+
+The Magyars were called Ogres by the ancient Romans on account of a
+belief commonly existing amongst them that these heathen conquerors ate
+the hearts of their enemies and drank their blood, an idea possibly
+originating in the fact of their eating almost raw meat.
+
+Surely Herr Dulovics must have been imbued with a similar notion with
+regard to the descendants of the Ancient Britons, for in a few minutes
+he is seen approaching bearing in each hand a small round silver dish.
+No other hands, not even those of the “black divinity,” shall present
+to us those time-honoured morsels.
+
+“There!” he exclaims, a look of complete triumph animating his
+whole countenance, as removing the covers with a flourish he places
+before each of us a piece of half-cooked meat--“There! _Bif-stek à
+l’Anglaise_.”
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XII.
+
+                            THE ICE-CAVES.
+
+
+From the south-east corner of Hungary, where they form the boundary
+between it and Roumania, and stretching upwards in one unbroken chain
+to the provinces of Bukovina and Gallicia, rise the noble Carpathian
+mountains, embracing two-thirds of the Hungarian plains as with a stony
+girdle.
+
+  [Illustration: THE ICE-CAVES OF DOBSINA.]
+
+At the foot of the highest group of the Carpathian chain lies the
+Comitat of Gőmőr, a district of singular beauty and variety, in
+which are mountains on whose summits grow the Arctic lichen and the
+pine: whilst at their base, not only the vine, but tobacco, melons,
+and Indian corn flourish in great luxuriance. It is in this county,
+within a few miles of the mining town of Dobshau--into which name
+the Austrians have Germanised the more euphonious Hungarian one of
+Dobsina--that the newly-discovered caverns are situated which form
+the heading of this chapter.
+
+The existence of an ice-cavern had for many years been suspected,
+a fissure having been observed to be constantly blocked with ice,
+although situated at the low elevation of 3500 feet, where snow rests
+on the ground during the winter months only. It was however left to
+a young Hungarian named Ruffiny, a youth of unwonted courage and
+enterprise, to be the first to enter these wondrous chambers, which
+Nature has fashioned for herself in the secret recesses of the earth.
+
+Having provided himself with everything that could be devised to
+insure his safety in the perilous task he had undertaken, this bold
+and intrepid adventurer set out for the fissure, two young friends
+accompanying him.
+
+Suspended to his girdle was a miner’s lamp and a stout rope many yards
+in length. To this rope a bell was attached, designed to serve as a
+means of communication if necessary with his companions above, whilst
+another rope was fixed to a windlass. In this way he entered the chasm,
+and working his way valiantly over blocks of ice, and a chaos of
+_débris_, which in the course of ages had found its way thither,
+he became lost for a time in the darkness of a new world.
+
+We can readily imagine what must have been the feelings of this brave
+young explorer as he entered alone those grim, silent, and unknown
+regions, from which he might never return, for we may be sure he was
+fully alive to the danger his enterprise involved. Curiosity however,
+and a love of adventure which is found to animate some minds, led him
+onwards, his feeble lamp doing little more than to render the darkness
+visible, as he surmounted first this icy barrier, and then that, at
+one time sliding down slippery inclines, at another unwinding the rope
+which encircled his body and plunging into yawning depths, till he
+reached at length a vaulted chamber, and stood on what appeared to be a
+frozen lake.
+
+What wonders of the Ice-world did not his glimmering lantern then
+unfold! Pausing a moment to feel quite sure that his senses did not
+deceive him, he clambered back with all speed to within some distance
+of the mouth of the cave, and shouted to his companions to follow.
+
+Thus were these icy solitudes revealed to man, and a tablet erected
+on the outer rock just above the entrance records the names of these
+youthful heroes, together with the date on which the caverns were
+discovered.
+
+It was a hot day, and the sun shining fiercely from his throne in
+heaven, when, having left our carriage at the foot of the Dusca, the
+mountain in which the caves exist, we commenced its ascent, and soon
+entered a cool forest of pines. Halfway up, through a natural opening
+in the forest, a beautiful view is obtained of the valley by which we
+had come and of the bold _Spitzenstein_ rising abruptly out of
+it, near which--looking mere toys in the distance--lie the foresters’
+houses.
+
+Sauntering up a narrow zigzag path, between banks of moss interspersed
+with wild-flowers of every hue, we soon reach the plateau beneath which
+lies the cave. We are soon made aware of its proximity by a stream of
+cold air issuing from the chasm.
+
+Descending to it by a flight of wooden steps which are carried over
+huge masses of fallen rock, we signal for a guide, whose voice,
+answering from the depths below, comes rolling upwards with a muffled
+echo, his approaching footsteps sounding like the hollow boom of cannon.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+As we stood at the fissure waiting for him, it was curious to observe
+how, notwithstanding the warmth of the atmosphere, the outer face
+of the rock within a radius of thirty feet was covered with a thick
+coating of hoar-frost, having all the appearance of newly-fallen snow,
+each projecting shelf of rock being likewise fringed with long icicles.
+
+But the guide--whose footsteps reverberating through corridor after
+corridor, and hall after hall, we have heard in one continuous roar
+for the last fifteen minutes--at last reaches us; and following him,
+we descend the narrow flight of stairs, which, together with the
+balustrade that we cling to for safety, is also covered with a thick
+crystalline coating as white as snow. This leads us to the “Small
+Saloon,” where we find ourselves standing on a floor of ice environed
+by numerous ice-formations, to each of which the guides--attributing
+to them a resemblance to common objects in the outer world--have
+given a name. Thus in the centre of this chamber two almost square
+pillars of ice, rising perpendicularly from the ground, are called
+“_grabsteine_” (gravestones), whilst the most prosaic and
+unimaginative person would have no need to be informed that a splendid
+heap of frozen matter issuing in one great volume from a cleft in the
+limestone rock above, and bearing down in graceful undulating waves
+till it seems to splash on the icy floor, is designated a waterfall, so
+closely does it resemble one in every detail--its silence and absence
+of motion alone telling that it is but a vast and compact body of ice,
+and does not actually flow. As the guide illumines this beautiful
+object with magnesium light, the effect is altogether startling and
+superb.
+
+Leading out of this chamber is a narrow passage, hitherto unexplored
+beyond a distance of ninety feet, but which is supposed to communicate
+with other caverns. Following the guide, we now descend to the “Grand
+Saloon,” which is separated from the upper by a broad curtain of rock.
+As we proceed, the ice crunches beneath our feet, and we are obliged to
+walk with great caution, each step we tread being on ice as slippery as
+glass.
+
+Reaching the “Grand Saloon,” we are awe-struck at its impressive
+grandeur, beauty, and extent. Its height however is not in any degree
+commensurate with its length and breadth, the former being only
+forty feet, whereas the two latter measure 370 feet and 180 feet
+respectively. The walls of this vast hall are studded with thousands
+of ice-structures varying from a half to one inch in diameter, and
+which, thickly set together, resemble clusters of anemones and other
+flowers, whose imprisoned colours, changing each moment, scintillate
+like diamonds and glow with an unnatural splendour in the brightness
+of the magnesium light. On examining the crystals themselves which
+create these varied forms, we find them to be hexangular, and generally
+attached to the rock by one point only.
+
+These crystals, unlike the other glacial structures in the caverns
+which have a progressive growth, are said to be formed quite suddenly
+and entirely of vapour, the moist particles of which, floating in the
+cold air, get seized by the still colder surface of the rocks with
+which they come in contact and become instantly frozen.
+
+On first entering this vast chamber, its roof appears to be supported
+by three huge columns of ice, each of which measures from twenty-five
+to thirty feet in circumference. The central column stands on a
+shelving bank of ice; those on either side rise like stalagmite from
+the ground itself; whilst the whole is reflected in the icy floor as in
+a mirror.
+
+A death-like stillness reigns; no sound is heard save the unearthly
+echo of our own voices and the distant “drip, drip” of the water as it
+percolates through some rock; whilst the reverberation of the footsteps
+of another guide, lighting the lamps in a cavern below, reaches us like
+the thunder and rumble of an earthquake just beneath our feet. What
+billows of sound come swelling upwards, and passing by, go bounding
+off to remote corridors; and what strange articulations rise and fall
+upon the ear, and then wandering on, die away in the distance, till the
+mocking intonations, re-echoing our voices in various ways--according
+as the wave of sound now strikes upon a mass of solid ice and now
+against some hollow pilaster--seem to proceed from the hidden recesses
+of the rocks into which the light cannot penetrate, and we feel we must
+be in some nether spirit-world!
+
+Nothing can exceed the beauty, transparency, and iridescence of the
+pillars and larger ice-fabrics in this cavern, and we feel lost amidst
+the variety of forms which water--that patient labourer--has been
+creating drop by drop for unknown ages; which still tips each tiny
+ice-stalactite with moisture, and will doubtless go on working till the
+“fashion of this world has passed away.” The three gigantic columns
+are hollow, and entering one of them through a narrow cleft we stood
+surrounded by an almost translucent curtain.
+
+Resting by the side of the largest is a crystal cone resembling an
+Arab’s tent, which name it bears. Like the others, it is supposed
+to have originally formed a column, but to have been displaced and
+overturned at some epoch by a glacier-like movement, upon which it
+assumed its present shape.
+
+Upon careful examination the ice in these caverns is found to consist
+of two kinds,--that which contains minute air-bubbles, and that which
+is completely transparent. In the former case it is opaque, and
+resembles alabaster--a phenomenon accounted for by the learned as
+follows.
+
+When the water freezes quickly, the air gets seized before it can
+make its escape, the result being the formation of innumerable small
+air-bladders or cavities which cause the ice to look opaque. When,
+however, crystallisation takes place slowly, the air has time to
+disentangle itself from the freezing substance, and the result is
+perfect transparency.
+
+The temperature of the caverns of course varies considerably according
+to the time of year, but no atmospheric current is perceptible in any
+part of them, and the feeling is one of perfect stagnation of the air.
+There is, however, one very remarkable phenomenon connected with their
+action upon the compass, which is hitherto unexplained; the disturbing
+influences being such that the movements of the magnetic needle when
+placed horizontally become completely hindered; whilst if held in any
+other position it invariably points downwards.
+
+“We are as yet merely on the threshold of these wondrous caverns, and
+must move onwards,” exclaimed the guide, preceding us, and who seemed
+to think we had lingered here too long.
+
+A descent of a hundred and fifty steps, partly cut in the ice, and
+partly made of wood where the ice-walls are too steep to admit of their
+being continued, and two small bridges spanning yawning chasms, usher
+us to what is termed the “Corridor,” the most weird and impressive
+portion of the whole of these Regions of the Night, a shadowy gulf
+where huge rock-fragments lie on the ground like prostrate Titans, over
+whom watch white and shining forms created by the irregular dripping of
+water down the sides of the rock,--a “ghastly resurrection,” whose icy
+draperies hang drooping over their frozen sides as they stand in fixed
+immovability.
+
+This corridor, which is 700 feet in length, is formed on the outer side
+by a rugged and uneven wall of limestone rock; the inner wall being
+a solid mass of ice, which stretches upwards to the height of 60 or
+70 feet, and covers the astonishing surface of 31,500 square feet of
+uninterrupted ice of the most varied kinds.
+
+As the guide crawls on hands and knees to illuminate these several
+objects, what wondrous things the light reveals! what graceful
+draperies and fringes! what waterfalls, grottoes and fairy palaces,
+fashioned in the darkness of eternal night, present themselves to view
+in rapid succession, mingling strangely with the grim rock masses
+opposite, and consorting ill with the solitude of these funereal
+labyrinths!
+
+“_Es ist einer der grössten Naturmerkwürdigkeiten_” (It is one
+of the greatest wonders in nature), remarked the guide, who evidently
+liked long words, as he lighted his magnesium wire opposite an immense
+rounded mass of ice, and allowed us to see its stratification.
+
+Here the ice is seen to have been formed horizontally, inch by inch,
+and layer by layer. And looking at this great old-world palimpsest, we
+seem to read off in serial record the silent and persistent processes
+of nature which have for ages been building up these giant walls. Some
+of the layers are clear as crystal, others opaque like alabaster,
+whilst between many of them lie thin layers of dust, all alike defined
+with marvellous exactness.
+
+In addition to these larger ice-creations are others suspended from
+them, of infinite beauty and variety; there being scarcely anything
+in nature which does not here possess its prototype: palms, ferns,
+flowers, strings of pearls, delicate filaments and garlands, all
+varying according as the water percolating through the limestone has
+been arrested in its fall by the different degrees of cold in the
+temperature.
+
+The ice in these caverns would appear to be slowly but steadily on the
+increase; that which is formed in the winter by _Wasserdampf_--as
+our guide expressed it, and by which I fancy he must have meant
+vapour--never melting entirely even in summer.
+
+The best time to view this masterpiece of nature is in May, before
+the ice begins to thaw, which it does to a slight extent always later
+in the season. The floors of the caverns are then wet, and many of
+the six-pointed crystals previously described, which form one of its
+most beautiful features, become detached from the rocks and melt in
+consequence of the increase in the temperature.
+
+It is generally believed that these caverns run right through the
+mountain, and also that they are drained by a spring which, making its
+appearance near its base, is supposed, from the extreme lowness of the
+temperature, to be formed of melted ice.
+
+It may be interesting to some persons to learn the conditions under
+which these remarkable ice-caves exist, and which are due, not so much
+to their elevation and northern aspect, as to the particular formation
+of the caves themselves. Had they extended through the mountain in an
+upward direction, the cold inner air during summer, in consequence of
+being more dense than the exterior atmosphere, would naturally press
+downwards towards the opening, and by creating a vacuum would permit
+the warm outer air to ascend, which possessing lower specific gravity,
+or, in other words, being lighter, would naturally have a tendency to
+rise, in which case by displacing the cooler air it would soon cause
+the ice to disperse. But inasmuch as the caverns slope throughout in
+a downward direction, the heavy external atmosphere of winter readily
+penetrating through the narrow entrance cools the inner air, and by
+reducing it to its own temperature not only hardens the ice which
+already exists within the caves, but favours the creation of more. On
+the other hand, during the summer months the cold inner air cannot
+escape upwards, neither can the lighter exterior air penetrate these
+icy labyrinths, the consequence being that their temperature is never
+so materially affected as to cause any great dispersion of the frozen
+matter.
+
+In the clefts of the rocks the bones of the brown bear (_Ursus
+Arctus_) have been found, and these, with the exception of
+butterflies, two of which we saw frozen to the walls just within the
+entrance, are the only indications of life which have at any time been
+discovered in any portion of these caverns.
+
+This region, like that of the Karst in Carniola, abounds in these
+subterranean phenomena, but, unlike that which we have been describing,
+neither possesses the conditions necessary to the formation of ice.
+
+The existence of caverns in this district, as well as that of the
+Karst, may generally be determined by the presence of what are called
+_dolinen_, a Sláv word signifying a small dell. The Hungarian term
+_tőbőr_, however, is far more suggestive of their true nature, as
+well as external form, _tőbőr_ signifying crateriform depressions
+or hollows. They are in fact funnel-shaped holes occasioned by the
+action of water which contains carbonic acid or fixed air, and which,
+in consequence of dissolving the porous limestone upon which it drops,
+causes the earth to fall in.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Dobsina lies embosomed in wooded mountains, which rise blue as the sky
+one above another. It is a clean little town, with curious old houses
+sloping outwards, the windows being so small and so high above the
+road, that each house wears the appearance of a miniature fortress.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+A long row of houses skirts the principal street to the right, the
+left side being bounded by a stream in which women, standing knee-deep
+in the water or kneeling on its margin, are thumping and beating with
+brawny arms--as only Hungarians can--linen into premature decay.
+
+Reaching the hotel--the best, if not the only one, the little place
+affords--we are conducted to our apartment across a narrow wooden
+balcony, which extends round the second story of the house. Our
+apartment can scarcely be said to be of the most luxurious description,
+containing as it does one chair and one table only, and being moreover
+wholly guiltless of carpet, but it is at any rate clean. Our modest
+dinner too is well cooked, though of a very limited menu, consisting
+merely of beef-steak and potatoes. Happening to pass the kitchen, I
+inquire of the clean _Mädchen_ who evidently presides over that
+department, what her larder can furnish, and on being informed that
+the choice lies between a _hendl_ (fowl)--a tough old bird, for I
+see it hanging up by its spurs to a door-nail--and “_bif-stek_” I
+choose the latter; upon which she demands laconically--
+
+“_Ángolhoné?_” (English?)
+
+“No!” I cried indignantly, remembering our experiences of “_bif-stek
+à l’Anglaise_” at Pest, and replied so brusquely to the poor little
+woman’s question that she was quite startled, and nearly fell backwards
+on to the stove--“_Nein! nein! nicht rau, aber ganz braun._” (No!
+no! not raw, but thoroughly brown.)
+
+We had brought with us a letter of introduction to one of the directors
+of the cobalt mines in the neighbourhood, but on calling at his house
+found he was not at home. Late in the evening however, just as we were
+returning to our “_napi_” he returned our visit, and proposed
+meeting us there at ten o’clock the next day.
+
+Accordingly, hiring a _leiterwagen_ the following morning--the
+only thing in the shape of a vehicle that could be obtained--we started
+on our excursion to the Femberg and Maria-Stollen mines. We had a hard
+climb before us, and the road, torn up by the torrents which during
+heavy rains scour the mountain steeps, was simply execrable. The roads
+would never seem to be mended, but, having once been made, to be left
+to the mercy of nature.
+
+The mountains above Dobsina are absolutely honeycombed with mines of
+one kind and another; wherever we look, there are small openings which
+appear like little black dots on the steep declivities, and which,
+surrounded with heaps of earth, resemble gigantic ant-hills.
+
+After an ascent of an hour’s duration, we reach the place of
+rendezvous; and, entering the mines by a narrow aperture, pursue the
+adit for about 1500 feet. The stone in which the precious metal is
+enclosed is of a pale, reddish-grey colour, of scarcely any lustre, and
+is found only in connection with _Kalkspat_, a white substance
+similar to alabaster, or a species of very compact and delicate quartz,
+which permeates the rock like a white artery. This vein the miners
+carefully follow, for it contains the object of their search, silver
+and nickel being also found in conjunction with the cobalt. As we
+proceeded the hollow sound of the pickaxe reached us from the lateral
+adits, where the miners with their feeble lamps were extracting the ore
+from the vein.
+
+This mine was begun by the Romans, who for some reason or other
+abandoned it at about 350 feet from the entrance, probably driven from
+their occupation by the conquests of Attila.
+
+It is easy to see the exact spot at which they left off working, their
+manner of excavating differing so entirely from that pursued in modern
+times. As we observed the marks of the Roman chisel which bit by bit
+had chipped away the hard rock--and which, though accomplished at
+the very least 1600 years ago, is still as fresh and well defined as
+if it were but the work of yesterday--we marvelled at the energy and
+perseverance of that great people.
+
+The stone in which the cobalt is found, and which furnishes the
+exquisite colour so dear to artists, has to be sent to England or
+Saxony to be smelted, it being in these two countries alone that the
+process of separating this valuable metal from its various surroundings
+is understood.
+
+It was hardly to be expected that we should survive the descent of
+the hill without an accident of some sort. In momentary fear of being
+precipitated on to the road, we were holding to the ladder-like sides
+of the _leiterwagen_ with all our might, when a jolt of unusual
+violence snapped one of the straps by which the plank we were seated
+on was attached to the vehicle; whereupon, falling backwards, we
+subsided on to the bed of straw with which the _leiterwagen_ was
+fortunately provided; and there, remembering that in lowliness there is
+safety, we remained for the rest of the journey.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XIII.
+
+                       A STORM IN THE MOUNTAINS.
+
+
+At the foot of the Tátra, and also in the county of Gőmőr, hidden
+deep in the lovely valley of Stracena, is a little brook from which
+the valley takes its name, “Stracena” being a Szláv word signifying
+“vanished,” or “passing out of sight.”
+
+Leaving Dobsina, we begin the ascent of the Langenberg, and soon look
+down upon the little town nestling at our feet, surrounded on every
+side by a glorious amphitheatre of mountains, wave after wave and
+summit after summit rising one above another till they are seen to fade
+away in the misty distance.
+
+A road to the left leads us to a wild and beautiful gorge, which we
+gradually descend through stupendous pine forests; a swift mountain
+torrent, clear as crystal, which follows the roadway, accompanying the
+jingling of our horses’ bells with a sweet and plaintive melody.
+
+Here beauty and grandeur alternate in singular contrast. Now we see
+before us huge rock-fragments lying by our pathway which have been
+hurled from the heights above, and, anon frowning down upon us with
+forbidding aspect, are rugged peaks. But all mingle with the gentler
+charms of soft lichen-covered pine, and grassy mead dainty with
+forget-me-nots.
+
+The air blows fresh, for it is early morning yet, and the dew still
+lingers on the grass, and drips upon us from the pine-branches, each
+stem and spine of which is tipped with a crystal bead; whilst on the
+mossy banks the lichen flowers peep forth from their soft green beds
+like fairy cups, and hold the moisture brimful.
+
+Presently we miss the murmur of the brook which discoursed such
+pleasant music as we wound along its margin; its waters grow less in
+volume, and it lingers on its way, as if it were flowing sadly. Watch
+it closely, for soon it becomes lost to sight and--as its German name,
+_Flören-seufen_, poetically implies--vanishes with a sigh!
+
+This is but another of the phenomena so common to the district. The
+bed of the stream, consisting of limestone, contains one of the
+_tőbőr_, or fissures, so frequently met with in that formation,
+through which the water discharges itself, to reappear through another
+fissure lower down the valley, till at length it empties itself in the
+river Göllnitz.
+
+We have hitherto been traversing the valley of the Graben (grave),
+whose name also has reference to the vanished brook, and do not enter
+that of Stracena until we reach the little village which bears its
+name, a mere cluster of wooden huts chiefly occupied by woodmen, and
+others employed in the ironworks belonging to the Duke August Coburg.
+To the right rises the singular Macskáshegy, or Cat’s Crag, to the left
+the pine-clad Hanneshőh, fit portals to the splendid defile we shall
+shortly enter.
+
+Through the gorge flows the river Göllnitz, swelled by the little
+_Flören-seufen_, now mysteriously come to life again; the former
+an impetuous torrent, lashing itself into spray over moss-covered
+boulders, as it winds along the roadway. On either side, tier above
+tier and pinnacle above pinnacle, like mighty battlements rise the
+cliffs, which, almost shutting out the sky, seem to close us in as with
+prison walls.
+
+Here leaving our carriage, and following a Slovak guide, furnished by
+the manager of the ironworks, we climb the crags by a narrow pathway
+between a chaos of rock and loose stones, and reach a beautiful
+oasis--a fertile meadow carpeted with Alpine flowers. We do not pause,
+however, except to take breath, till we reach a point where a truly
+Swiss landscape is spread out before us--the snow-capped _Tátra_,
+in all the glory of Alpine peak, cutting its rugged way into the very
+heavens; and here, throwing ourselves down upon a moss-covered bank, we
+indulge in well-earned repose, and enjoy the magnificent panorama which
+lies before us.
+
+Having rested after our climb, we visit a spot celebrated for its
+intermittent spring. On reaching the place, we observe a bowl-shaped
+hollow, rather deeper than it is wide, in which lie fragments of a
+calcareous nature. The water could only just have disappeared, for the
+pebbles in its channel were still wet, and we regretted much that we
+had not arrived a little earlier upon the scene. From the moment of its
+appearing it continues to increase in volume, until it has reached a
+certain height, when it gradually subsides, to return after an interval
+of two or three hours. Half an hour is the period of its duration, but
+its recurrence varies according to the season of the year.
+
+At the mouth of the spring once stood a mill-wheel, erected for the
+purpose of informing visitors to this wildly beautiful gorge that
+the waters were beginning to flow, the wheel being so placed that the
+stream caused it to revolve and set in motion a hammer, which, striking
+upon a metal plate, resounded through the valley. It is said, too, to
+have served also as a signal to the wild deer that abound in these
+forests, which, on recognising the sound, used to come down to drink!
+
+Soon after again starting on our way, we enter a narrow pass, the
+beauty and grandeur of which it is impossible to describe, language
+altogether failing in its power of expressing the endless variety
+of forms which the rocks assume, as like ruined ramparts they rise
+majestically above us. Skirting these mighty precipices, we tremble
+lest even the hollow rumble of our carriage, as it reverberates against
+the rocks, should shake them down upon us.
+
+As we descend further through the pass, the road becomes so narrow that
+there is only just room for our carriage, and we seem to have reached
+a _cul-de-sac_, for a lofty pyramid of rock we can almost touch
+completely shuts us in. A few more paces, however, and a sharp angle in
+the road shows that it has been tunnelled, and we reach the celebrated
+Felsenthor. We were just about to enter it, when, from a small fissure
+thirty feet above us, an eagle flew out and went sailing up the gorge,
+its wild scream echoing from rock to rock.
+
+It had been thundering slightly the last hour or so, but, our minds
+pre-occupied, we had taken little heed of its warning voice. Presently
+heavy rain-drops began to fall, then a loud clap was heard that almost
+seemed to shake the very earth.
+
+“We are going to have a storm,” cried András, descending from the box
+and putting up the hood of our carriage.
+
+Contrary to our expectations, however, the rain after a short
+time ceased, and the sun shone out again, but there were heavy
+thunder-clouds still hanging about the ridges of the gorge that wore
+an ominous look, and there was that peculiar stillness in the air that
+foreboded a coming storm.
+
+As soon as we have passed the Felsenthor the road widening enables us
+to proceed quickly without danger; and the driver whipping the horses
+into a gallop, we go on at a rattling pace, passing a gipsies’ camp by
+the way, the first we have seen since leaving the lowlands. Emerging
+from the gorge, we drive through broad stretches of meadow-like
+pastures lying at the foot of mountains, which even here are densely
+clothed with enormous pines, reaching to their very summits. Oh the
+grandeur and beauty of these Carpathian pine-forests! In the distance
+slightly to our left, the heavens wear a leaden appearance, whilst a
+broad sheet of dark cloud, extending to the earth in perpendicular
+lines, plainly indicates that yonder it is raining in torrents.
+
+Our road fortunately leads us in a contrary direction, but should the
+storm overtake us we shall have a drenching. We therefore fly before
+it, and, our road soon making a curve to the right, we seem for a while
+to leave it behind. Yonder a long belt of pine-forest forms a perfectly
+black line against the livid sky. Above it we see the clouds open, and
+a flash of lightning, shooting downwards with sharp angles, pierces its
+very centre, as if attracted by the peak of some lofty pine rearing its
+head above its fellows.
+
+Meeting a Slovak, our driver stops the horses for a moment to inquire
+how far we are from shelter. The Slovak points onwards in the direction
+we are taking, and we go on again faster than before. But fleet as are
+our steeds under the heavy lash of the driver’s whip, the clouds,
+travelling still faster, overtake and almost sweep us with their ragged
+fringes.
+
+The wind comes with the clouds and sways the pine-trees to and fro.
+The crazy hood of our carriage rocks from side to side, and creaks and
+cracks as though each blast would send it flying through the air. And
+now large hailstones come pelting down upon us, striking the horses
+with such violence that it is with difficulty the driver urges them
+onwards. But as the centre of the storm gradually passes overhead, the
+hail ceases and gives place to heavy rain; and well protected from the
+outer elements as we flattered ourselves we were, the fond delusion
+is speedily dispelled, for the rain comes trickling in upon us at
+every point, as though the hood had been a sieve, and we discover that
+whatever else it was made for, our carriage evidently was _not_
+constructed to resist a mountain storm.
+
+Before very long we are consoled by András, who, looking over his
+shoulder, informs us from out of his sheepskin covering--with which he
+is enveloped even to his eyelids--that we are coming to an _álás_,
+upon which the horses are once more whipped into a gallop, and in five
+minutes we are under shelter.
+
+The _álás_ in question, a long barn-like building, is full
+of teams of oxen, which have also been driven to take refuge from
+the storm. Near them stand the Slovak drivers in large felt hats,
+shoes made of hide, and their legs bound with thongs of leather;
+formidable-looking men enough, with their large knives stuck in their
+girdles, but in reality as harmless as mice.
+
+Having explored the beautiful valley, or rather gorge, of Stracena,
+our intention on starting in the morning had been to return to Dobsina
+by a different route. That intention however was destined to resolve
+itself into a strong determination not to move another inch to-night,
+if we could only find a room where we could dry our dripping clothes
+and get something to eat. Opposite the _álás_ is a small inn, of
+the very humblest pretensions, so far as we can judge from its outward
+aspect; but experience of the byways of this country teaches us to
+expect clean mattresses at all events, and our rugs when dried can very
+well be made to supply other deficiencies in case of need.
+
+We are now in the North-West Provinces of Hungary, a district inhabited
+by Slovaks, a branch of that great Slavonic family which at one time
+doubtless peopled almost the entire eastern portion of Europe from the
+Volga to the Baltic, and on the south-west as far as the Adriatic Sea,
+and who in all probability inhabited the greater part of Hungary until
+the invasion of the Magyars drove them from their home on the plains,
+and caused them to flee for safety to these mountainous regions of
+the Felfőld: the term Slovak being simply adopted to distinguish this
+branch from their brethren the Slávs of Southern Hungary. Many of the
+Slovaks, however, inhabiting this north-western corner of the kingdom,
+are the immediate descendants of the Moravian Tcheks; this part of the
+country at the time of the conquests of Árpád having formed a portion
+of the principality of Moravia.
+
+Crossing the sea of mud that surrounded the shed--how I realised at
+that moment the appropriateness of the national top-boots!--we make
+our way valiantly towards the flight of steps leading to the house. A
+long stone passage ushers us into the kitchen, with its walls covered
+with bright copper vessels of various descriptions. Sitting on benches
+are Slovaks, quiet, pensive and contemplative-looking men, one of
+whom wears ringlets, and all, in spite of their strange dresses, are
+almost effeminate in appearance. The Slávs of Hungary, whether from the
+north or south, may generally be recognised at once, and form a great
+contrast to the Magyars with their manly and energetic bearing. Besides
+which they have soft features, generally blue eyes, and often golden
+hair.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+The house is prettily situated on the slope of a pine-clad mountain,
+and appears to embrace the double function of farm and inn; for the
+window of our chamber, commanding a near view of a shed across another
+sea of mud in the back premises, initiates us into the mysteries of
+sheep-shearing, an operation here performed by women.
+
+Never can I forget the woe-begone appearance of the sheep, as, shorn of
+the covering with which nature had provided them, they came forth from
+the hands of the shearers, and bleating plaintively, stood shivering in
+the rain, the most pitiable objects possible to conceive; so thin that
+they were nothing but skin and bone, whilst their flanks were quite
+hollow.
+
+The sheep in the North of Hungary are reared almost exclusively for
+their wool and milk, the latter being used for making Slovak cheese,
+a commodity met with all over Hungary, and a source of great commerce
+amongst the Slovaks. As we dry our wet garments by the kitchen stove,
+the sheep-shearers now and then come straggling in to partake of
+_slivovitz_, the favourite beverage, and bring with them a strong
+odour of sheep.
+
+Our host--likewise a Slovak, judging from his large broad-brimmed
+hat--speaks German, as do nearly all the innkeepers even in these
+out-of-the-way parts of Hungary. He is a young man of about
+five-and-twenty, and appears not a little disconcerted at our
+arrival, for it is evident that we are by no means the kind of guests
+who usually frequent his modest little inn, a fact which our guide
+doubtless for his own honour and glory had already taken care to
+impress upon him.
+
+Having purposed returning to Dobsina in time for dinner, we had only
+provided ourselves with a light luncheon to partake of in the carriage
+as we drove along; but the prospect of finding anything to eat here
+was the reverse of encouraging, for the bare idea of our requiring
+refreshment of any sort seemed a possibility that had not even
+occurred to the landlord, so great was his consternation at our mere
+mention of it.
+
+“_Mittagessen! Mittagessen! es ist unmöglich_ (Dinner! dinner! it
+is impossible). I have nothing in the house, absolutely nothing, and
+the noble strangers doubtless are hungry.”
+
+“_Paprika hendl_,” we suggested.
+
+“_Ach nein!_” he cried, “miserable being that I am; the last
+_hendl_ was cooked for a traveller who came this morning.
+_Ach!_ why did I let him have it! it was such a beauty too, such
+a fine, fat-breasted, beautiful fowl, and only three years old, if the
+_Herrschaft_ will believe me.” The tears stood in his eyes, and
+he almost tore his hair, as he thought of it, together with the feast
+which might have been the “illustrious strangers’,” but for his want of
+foreknowledge.
+
+“_Wurst_ (sausage) I have in abundance,” he continued, “of good
+quality and various kinds, but the _Herrschaft_ may not care for
+that.”
+
+No, we certainly did not think we should, having tasted Slovak
+_Wurst_ on our way to Dobsina, and found it unusually impregnated
+with garlic.
+
+“Have you no eggs?” we demanded, growing desperate, as we became more
+frantically hungry each moment, and the prospects of getting anything
+to eat grew less and less.
+
+“Eggs! eggs! Yes!” he replied, a smile of relief suffusing his whole
+countenance. “_Goose’s eggs_, they are plentiful, plentiful. See
+here!” reaching up to a shelf--“a whole basketful, which I bought just
+an hour ago.”
+
+Well, at any rate we shall not starve. “Goose’s eggs,” black bread,
+Slovak cheese, and--_slivovitz_. What a _menu_!
+
+Whilst we were partaking of the banquet, our host entertained us with
+his history. He was a native of Felka, a village lying at the base of
+the Tátra, and was consequently a Zipser, and not a Slovak as we had
+surmised. He had, however, married a Slovak girl from this district,
+and on the death of his father had migrated hither, bringing his little
+_jószág_ and household gods with him. Like Kintu, the Founder of
+Uganda, who is said to have taken with him from the north “one wife,
+one cow, one goat, one sheep, one banana-root, and a sweet-potato,
+and journeyed south in search of a suitable land to dwell in,” he had
+established himself here in like manner, and having settled down, his
+widowed mother had followed him, and was living in a cottage close
+by. He had been married two and a half years, and his wife had that
+morning taken her baby and gone to visit her parents, to-day being its
+_Namenstag_ (baptismal anniversary), but she would be home soon,
+very soon--and all this he informed us of in one breath.
+
+In the corner of the guest-room near the window stands a
+spinning-wheel, by the side of which are two small high-heeled shoes;
+what expression there is in a well-worn shoe, and how it seems to
+partake of the individuality of the wearer! Hanging to a nail just
+over them is a baby’s cap, which has retained the shape of the little
+round head. The picture is complete, and we feel we have made the
+acquaintance of the possessors already.
+
+An hour later, we hear the loud, harsh tones of a woman’s voice in the
+kitchen, and those of the landlord expostulating mildly. The woman is
+evidently his mother, from the words that pass between them. We cannot
+help overhearing through the thin wooden partition, and my thoughts fly
+pityingly to the owner of the fat little shoes in the corner.
+
+“She has the key of the _Schrank_, and how can the linen be got
+at? There are strangers here and no one to wait on them. It is not
+acting as _I_ did when I was a young wife. She ought to have been
+home before.”
+
+“It is a long way, the road is heavy after the rain, and the old horse
+sometimes gets the _Schwindel_. She will be back before nightfall;
+there will have been a little merry-making over the baby,--that is what
+is keeping her so long.”
+
+“Merry-making indeed! what does she want more than her husband and her
+home, such as she had by birth no right to? She brought nothing with
+her to speak of, not twenty yards of house-linen, nothing but a pretty
+face. _Pfui!_” exclaimed she snappishly, turning away, “_es ist
+immer so._”
+
+The rain had ceased by this time, and picking our way along the wooden
+_trottoir_ which surrounded the house, we went for a stroll.
+The air was fragrant with the odour of the pine-trees, and the sound
+of many waters reached us, each ravine now having its own little
+watercourse, which, tearing down the mountain-side, hastened to swell
+the foaming river beneath. From a distance the bell of a church tolled
+the Ave Maria, and the line of shadow came creeping up the valley.
+
+Looking to our right, we see a cart wending its way slowly down the
+hill; the horse with bunches of flowers stuck in his bridle, and
+branches of fir ornamenting the cart. In it sits the happy young
+mother, with the setting sun glowing in her face as she looks down
+proudly upon the little child in her arms.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+The husband and mother-in-law come out to meet her, the latter with
+black looks and bitter words. Anticipating a violent action of the
+moral elements, and thinking that our presence might possibly break the
+fury of the storm, we also go to meet her.
+
+The moment she recognised the form of her _Schwiegermutter_
+(mother-in-law) her smile faded, and bending her head sadly over her
+sleeping child, she hurried into the house.
+
+In all this we learnt a history, and felt that we had gained an
+insight into the life of, at any rate, one Slovak family, which
+after all would seem to be identical with our own. Here in this
+peaceful region, far removed from the strife of men, is a little home
+tragedy being enacted--a tragedy of woman’s struggles and woman’s
+sorrows--everywhere the same.
+
+Just as twilight is folding all nature to sleep, András comes towards
+us, his face beaming with happiness, and communicates the prosaic but
+by no means unwelcome intelligence that he has got some _Forellen_
+(trout) for us, and also that he had succeeded in obtaining from the
+priest of the village a small _Kalbsbraten_ (joint of roasted
+veal). The former we request him to have cooked at once, but to retain
+the latter luxury for our journey on the morrow.
+
+We find our guide particularly useful in this district, where, with
+the exception of the innkeepers, the people speak a language not a
+word of which we can understand. Without him it would be impossible to
+get on comfortably, if at all. There is often a difficulty in getting
+horses to take us on from stage to stage, besides which the drivers
+are occasionally not too civilly disposed. András possesses however
+a rather quarrelsome disposition, and is decidedly hostile to all
+innkeepers, driving hard bargains for rooms, etc., which we do not
+always approve of.
+
+As we were returning to the house, we saw through the window a sweet
+picture. In the corner of the kitchen near the raised hearth, the fire
+lighting up her figure with a ruddy glow, sat the little wife rocking
+the cradle. She had cried herself into comfort, for, although her eyes
+were still moist, she was singing softly, and her countenance wore a
+placid smile--the sacred mystery of maternal love manifesting itself in
+her whole attitude as, forgetful seemingly of all else, she looked down
+upon her child.
+
+I stood gazing at her long, thinking what a subject she would make for
+an artist; with the spinning-wheel behind her, which had evidently
+been taken from the inner room during our absence, the pictorial
+surroundings of the kitchen, the bright copper pans and long ladles
+hanging above her head, the fire on the hearth, over which hung an iron
+crock suspended from the ceiling, the deep warm shadow of her figure
+thrown against the wall--till I was awakened from my reverie by our
+guide announcing that the _Forellen_ were fried to a turn and
+awaited us on the guest-room table.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XIV.
+
+                         SLOVAKS AND RUSNIAKS.
+
+
+It was on the second day after the events narrated in the preceding
+chapter that, leaving Dobsina, to which place we were obliged to return
+to pick up our luggage, we started on our way to Poprád, where, leaving
+our heavy carriage behind us, we purposed visiting the snowy mountains
+of the Tátra.
+
+During a great portion of the way, our route takes us through scenery
+differing little from that we have been passing for the last few days.
+The geological formation of these mountains of Gőmőr consists of a
+confused mass of gneiss containing beds of granite and mica-slate
+alternating with sandstone; the whole district containing valley
+after valley and gorge after gorge, varying but slightly from each
+other in their general characteristics. The flora, however, differs
+considerably, not only at the several elevations, but also according to
+the aspect.
+
+Ascending another beautiful defile, and following a swift mountain
+torrent, we wind through forests of pine mingled with birch and yew,
+the latter attaining an enormous size. The sun shines brightly, but
+gilds the summits of the mountains only, all beneath being in deep
+and solemn shade. No sound is heard save that of the woodman’s axe, as
+he fells wood for the charcoal-burners, or the rush of waters hurrying
+down the gorge. In this sheltered locality a delicate species of pine
+with drooping foliage, whose needles grow on stems resembling slender
+threads, takes the place of hardier kinds; and the higher we ascend,
+the larger become the yews, their dark glazed foliage and rugged bark
+forming a great contrast to the other trees.
+
+On this southern slope of the mountain we lose all trace of the
+familiar lichen which elsewhere draped the pines from top to bottom as
+with a white fringe; there is, too, a different feeling in the air;
+butterflies hover about the wild flowers which grow everywhere around
+us; whilst beetles, with outstretched bright metallic-looking wings
+of blue and green and gold, glisten in the sunshine; and at last we
+have reached the summit of the gorge. What beautiful glimpses we now
+gain of the Alpine region beyond, with its peaks all shrouded in snow;
+whilst casting our gaze downwards by a precipice of full two thousand
+feet, the narrow valley we have left behind looks blue and cold, and
+the pines stand silent, stern and motionless, imparting to it an air of
+grandeur and repose.
+
+The climb has occupied us just two hours; and beginning the descent on
+the other side, we again recognise our old friend the lichen, for the
+magnificent pines, which grow here to a height of two hundred feet,
+are covered as thickly with it as if it had been newly-fallen snow.
+The road is excellent the whole way, and we tear down it at a pace
+that absolutely makes us giddy, and takes our breath away when we look
+at the yawning gulfs that seem waiting to welcome us, as we turn the
+zigzags abruptly and the driver threatens to overturn our unwieldy
+vehicle.
+
+We soon however reach a smiling meadow, blue with forget-me-nots, lying
+in a hollow surrounded by mountains, and, arriving at an _állás_,
+are once more plunged into a sea of mud. The driver unharnesses the
+horses, and we are left in a perfectly helpless condition for the
+present; for, even had we wished, it would have been utterly impossible
+to alight from the carriage. It is true that at some period, probably
+anterior to the present century, a person or persons of sanguine
+temperament, and possessing no doubt longer legs than the men of the
+present age, had placed large stepping-stones wherewith to connect
+the shed with the roadway by a miniature bridge, but they were now so
+hopelessly embedded in the mud, that any attempt at crossing them must
+have led to the most disastrous consequences. A dog tried to accomplish
+it--possibly tempted by the prospect of crumbs, and succeeded in
+reaching halfway, where, after pausing a while, he wisely thought
+better of it, and turning round beat a slippery and disastrous retreat.
+
+It is difficult to give any adequate idea of these quagmires to the
+English reader. The Hungarians, as in every other particular, are
+conservative in the matter of roads, and have no notion of mending them
+even at their own doors. To do so in the plains is, as we have already
+seen, almost an impossibility, from the absence of stone. Here however,
+where it abounds, nothing is wanting but a little energy on the part
+of the people themselves. But everything comes to an end if you only
+wait for it; and in an hour’s time, which seemed like a century, the
+horses are again harnessed, and by the assistance of two powerful men,
+who, taking off their top-boots and tucking up their petticoat-like
+_gatyas_, plunge into the dismal swamp and seize the wheels, we
+are released from our undignified captivity, and once more landed high
+and dry on the roadway.
+
+Our route now lies through a broad valley, and the road henceforth--if
+indeed the word be not absolutely a misnomer--is execrable. It is a
+marvel how our carriage manages to hold together, as it leaps over
+the holes and ruts which beset our path at almost every step. Our
+bodies are shaken into jelly and our tempers into vinegar, and we
+are right thankful when we see before us a steep hill and find we
+have another mountain to climb; slow torture being preferable to the
+muscle-wrenching, rib-dislocating agony of the more rapid motion.
+
+As we ascend the mountain we leave yew-trees behind and enter an
+entirely new region, clothed with the yellow pine interspersed with
+spruce and larch of immense girth, whilst here and there we find a
+silver birch, which, emulating the height of the noble conifers with
+which it is surrounded, forsakes its own habit, and grows with a tall
+straight stem, branching only at the top; its trunk covered with a
+deep fringe of red-brown moss. On our way we pass waggons laden with
+charcoal and drawn by sleepy oxen, often six and eight in number, and
+lastly a herd of these splendid creatures, driven by three men with
+such immense hats that, when walking side by side, they could not have
+approached within four feet of each other without knocking them off
+their heads.
+
+Besides the Slovak race occupying the north-western slopes of the
+Carpathians, there is also in this district a sprinkling of Rusniaks,
+another branch of the Slavonian family. Both races belong for the most
+part to the Greek Church, which imposes on its adherents fasts grievous
+to be borne. Not only is there a saint for almost every day in the
+year, but it is infinitely more strict in enforcing the observance of
+fast days than the Roman Catholic, there being on the average four fast
+days to be observed in every week! The result of this is frequently
+demonstrated in the thin forms and pallid countenances of Slovaks and
+Rusniaks alike.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+At two o’clock we reach Wernár--a Rusniak village, and end our
+sufferings for the present at the inn. We enter it by the kitchen, an
+apartment shared by a juvenile calf, two geese, and sundry pigeons,
+and in which the _Hausfrau_ is occupied in making bread. Even in
+this Arcadia there would not always appear to be the peace that might
+be expected; for there had evidently been some altercation between the
+husband and wife--possibly he had been beating her, an accomplishment
+to which Rusniak husbands are said to be not altogether strangers.
+Unlike our little Slovak, however, she did not let “concealment feed
+on her damask cheek,” but stoutly rated her husband, and proclaimed
+her wrongs to the company, as she diligently pursued her occupation and
+watered the bread with her tears.
+
+Whilst resting from our labours, and settling into something like shape
+again after the dislocating agonies of the journey, some other guests
+arrived in a long country cart drawn by five horses, the wheelers
+harnessed three abreast. Its occupants were a young woman and her
+grandfather, the latter informing us he was a tobacco-planter, having
+an estate in the lowlands of Gömör, and both were immensely amused on
+hearing we were English, the girl laughing heartily, as she exclaimed:
+
+“English! Then you live in London; and is it possible that you have
+come all the way to see _this_ country, where there are no fine
+houses and shops and streets? What _can_ you have come _here_
+for?” and she looked at us attentively, as though to feel quite sure we
+were not demented.
+
+We did our best to convince her that although we were English we did
+_not_ live in London, but in a fair green country like this; but
+that we had no high mountains and deep gorges and majestic rocks such
+as are found here, and that the English loved to see these, regarding
+them as amongst the noblest works of God. But she only shrugged her
+shoulders, and looked as though she thought we must, after all, be
+Bedlamites.
+
+At this moment our conversation was cut short by the arrival of the
+drove of oxen we had passed on the road, upon which we ran out to have
+another look at the men with the big hats. The charcoal-waggons have
+also arrived with _their_ drivers, and the large inn kitchen is
+soon filled with guests, consisting not only of Rusniaks, but Slovaks
+also from the neighbouring districts, all of whom are the most quiet
+and undemonstrative people imaginable, coming in noiselessly, taking
+their quota of the national beverage, and then journeying on again.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+What a contrast the Szláv peasants present to their Magyar
+counterparts! Their step slow and hesitating, their voices supplicating
+and sad, they wear the appearance of a crushed people. The Magyars,
+on the contrary, with their frank open brows, dilating nostrils, and
+majestic carriage, whose whole expression is one of pride and victory,
+bear witness to a noble lineage.
+
+According to the latest returns, there are 470,000 Rusniaks in the
+north-east portion of Hungary, and 2,000,000 Slovaks occupying the
+north-west; the former supposed to be the descendants of a band of
+Russians who “came in with Árpád.”
+
+During the two hours we spend here whilst our horses are being baited,
+we have ample opportunity of studying the exterior characteristics
+of both races. Their dress is almost identical, the only difference
+consisting in their head-gear. The Rusniaks, instead of the large
+“_sombreros_” which distinguish the Slovaks, wear ponderous
+caps made of black curly sheepskin, which from a distance look like
+the wearer’s own hair combed erect, and give them a very wild and
+incongruous appearance.
+
+Their garments consist of a loose jacket and large trousers, and are
+made of a coarse woollen material the colour of which is originally
+white, while their waists are encircled by enormous leather belts,
+more than half an inch thick and from twelve to sixteen broad, studded
+with brass-headed nails so arranged as to form a variety of patterns.
+In these belts they keep their knives, scissors, tobacco-pouch,
+a primitive arrangement for striking light and a number of other
+small useful articles, and their whole appearance is so perfectly
+irresistible that I immediately began sketching one of them on the sly.
+But he soon discovered my occupation, and turned away.
+
+“_Stui!_” (stop!) I cry, hazarding a word I had heard when
+travelling farther North of Hungary, amongst a different branch of the
+Slavonian family.
+
+The expression is at once recognised, and I am instantly surrounded by
+a merry crowd, all eager to have a peep at my sketch-book.
+
+“Look at this fellow coming now,” remarked F.: “his hat is a yard wide
+if it is an inch. Try and get a sketch of him,” as another man walks
+gravely up the steps, and paces along the passage which leads to the
+kitchen--his hat so large that he passes the doorway by a mere shave.
+
+The nature of my occupation is by this time understood by all; and no
+sooner is their attention attracted to the unusually large size of the
+head-gear of the new arrival--no doubt the “last sweet thing” in Slovak
+hats--than he is seized by two of his brethren, who, holding him fast,
+entreat me to come and sketch him then and there.
+
+“_Stui! Stui!_” they all exclaim, as, taken aback at this summary
+and unexpected proceeding, he struggles to get free.
+
+As soon, however, as it is explained by András and echoed by a
+chorus of voices that I am “a great English lady”--András opening
+his eyes very wide at this juncture to give full importance to the
+adjective--“come all this way to take pictures of the Slovaks back with
+me to _Ángolország_,” than he stands as still as a statue, though
+I doubt whether this appalling information imparted anything definitely
+to his mind as to who I really was, whether the Queen of England or of
+the Cannibal Islands, or one of the saints in mercy dropped out of his
+calendar.
+
+Having already made a sketch of three men and their umbrella-like hats,
+I began to feel I had pursued art sufficiently for one day at any
+rate, and was about to close my portfolio when I heard a voice behind
+me saying in soft and plaintive accents, “_Io som Šlovinsky_” (I
+am a Slovak), and, on looking round, I saw another supplicating to be
+immortalised, who proved to be so importunate in his solicitations that
+it was impossible to give him a denial.
+
+Whilst I am busily occupied, the gravity of my “subjects” is often
+upset by proceedings taking place in a remote part of the kitchen. A
+long-haired patriarchal goat has also wandered in, prompted possibly
+by the prevailing curiosity, and is made by one of the company to
+pirouette to the music of the bagpipes, an accomplishment to which
+he would seem to be no stranger. I was just putting the finishing
+touches to the portrait of a very exacting “subject,” who insisted on
+the faithful rendering of every brass nail in his girdle, and which I
+trusted would really prove my last sketch for the day, when I observed
+the manner in which a more than ordinarily quiet and pensive-looking
+young Slovak tried to obtrude himself upon my notice, hoping thereby I
+would take him also, but evidently failing in the courage to ask me. I
+pretended not to see him however, and after finishing the one on which
+I was occupied to the entire satisfaction of the original--who went
+into ecstasies over the delineation of his pipe--I closed my book and
+abruptly walked away.
+
+Looking behind me ten minutes later, what was my surprise to behold my
+young Slovak in tears! Who could resist such an appeal? There is no
+help for it, and I am compelled to take him also; which task completed,
+neither tears nor supplications prevail with me any longer.
+
+Before leaving, we made ourselves very popular by treating every one in
+the room to _slivovitz_, which so worked upon the feelings of a
+lame old man with one eye, that coming up he seized my hand and kissed
+it reverently. I think he was bent on a somewhat warmer greeting, but I
+am thankful to say he suppressed his emotions.
+
+At that moment we could not help thinking what the stern Mrs. Grundy
+would have said, could she have witnessed our proceedings for the last
+two hours--the _Mesdames_ Vernon Smiths and Ponsonby Joneses of
+Society; and their voices came wafted towards us over the Alfőld and
+Felfőld as they exclaim one to the other:
+
+“How dreadful, my dear! What vulgar people! We really cannot read
+any more of this horrid book. Fancy fraternising with those low-born
+savages the Rusniaks and Slovaks! So dirty and common, you know, and
+all that sort of thing!”
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+There being nothing to be met with here but black bread, honey, and the
+milk of human kindness, we determined upon halting a little distance
+from the village, and enjoying our meal al-fresco of such things as we
+happen to have with us.
+
+Starting on our way, and reaching in half an hour’s time a shady nook
+close to a clear mountain stream, a fire is soon lighted, and we watch
+the boiling of our kettle and the stewing in the little _cazarola_
+of some unknown compound, which turns out to be mushrooms that András
+had gathered on the way, or rather a species of edible fungus, that one
+meets with so often in Italy, called _spongignola_, on account
+of its resemblance to a sponge. Nothing can be more delicious, for it
+far exceeds in flavour the ordinary mushroom. A roasted chicken formed
+part of our _menu_, but, alas! the salt had been forgotten, and
+the bread our larder afforded, though not black, was acid and flavoured
+with caraways. Oh! how I dislike these Hungarian combinations! but
+mountain air gives zest to our appetites, and there are no meals so
+pleasant as those we partake of in our carriage or bivouacking by the
+roadside.
+
+At five o’clock in the evening we reach Poprád, at which place, being
+bound for the snowy heights of the Tátra, we leave all superfluous
+luggage behind, and bid for a while a sorrowing farewell not only to
+our guide, but to our lumbering old carriage likewise which has carried
+us in safety--though with many a lurch--over hundreds of miles of
+plains, and through many a verdant valley and rocky gorge.
+
+There is a railway-station here, Poprád being situated on the Kaschau
+and Oderberger line.
+
+We were standing in the waiting-room whilst András was arranging for a
+carriage of some sort to take us on; when we heard a voice behind us
+saying in German:
+
+“Are the _Herrschaft_ on their way to Schmecks?”
+
+Turning round, we saw behind us a gentlemanly man of about forty years
+of age. It was Dr. Nicolaus von Sontagh, so well known to all who
+visit this neighbourhood, and in whose villa--though a stranger to us
+then--we afterwards spent so many happy days.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                              CHAPTER XV.
+
+                           THE SNOWY TÁTRA.
+
+
+Rattling, rumbling, jolting, bumping, and sometimes heeling over at
+an angle of 45° as we tear through the streets of Poprád, with what
+a magnificent spectacle of blue mountain and snow-capped peak are we
+greeted as they rise above the black but picturesque roofs of the
+houses!
+
+Running almost into a disabled bullock-waggon as we dash round the
+corner--left, Hungarian-like, in the middle of the road for any chance
+comer to stumble over--and nearly upsetting, as we take “a header” into
+an unexpected hollow, we rock and ride over the holes like a heavy
+unwieldy barque over the waves of the sea, till at length, reaching the
+open country, we see all at once before us, rising sheer out of the
+plains of Poprád like a monster crater, the glorious Tátra rearing its
+ermined summits proudly heavenwards till they seem to cleave the very
+sky.
+
+This lofty group of the Carpathians, called by the Hungarians “The
+_Central_ Carpathians”--though for what reason I am at a loss
+to conjecture, except it be that they are situated at almost the
+extreme _end_ of that chain!--are about seventy-two miles long
+by twenty-seven broad; whilst so completely do they rise out of
+the plains like a wall on every side, without what are designated
+_Voralpen_, i.e. lower intervening mountains, that a line could be
+drawn round almost their whole circumference.
+
+This singular region contains within its limits no fewer than a
+hundred and twelve lakes or tarns, which in the language of the people
+of the district--German colonists, who settled here in the twelfth
+century--are called “_Meeraugen_” (eyes of the sea).
+
+What a bewildering and indescribable fascination there is about
+snow-capped mountains! Nothing can be more imposing and impressive
+than those towards which we are journeying, with their bold and rugged
+peaks sharp as needles, their almost perpendicular sides scoured by a
+thousand watercourses, the region of cloud indicated by a long thin
+stratum of white vapour, which, hanging halfway between their summits
+and their base, seems to sever them in two.
+
+Having passed the villages of Félka and Schlangendorf, we enter a pine
+forest, through which a good road runs the whole way to Schmecks.
+
+In consequence of the Tátra being exposed to the north wind during
+the greater part of the year, vegetation is much retarded, and the
+elevation at which the various species of Coniferæ grow is considerably
+lower than that of Switzerland, varying in some instances to the extent
+of from 300 to 900 feet. For example, the zone at which the pine
+(_Pinus picea_) is found in Switzerland is 4077 feet, whereas in
+the Tátra it is only 3585; whilst the difference in the altitude at
+which the Scotch fir (_Pinus silvestris_) grows in the two regions
+is no less than 900 feet. The larch, on the contrary, strange as it
+may seem, is met with in the Tátra at almost the same elevation as in
+Switzerland, there being scarcely a hundred feet of difference in the
+limits of its growth in the two countries.
+
+Many of the deciduous trees in the outskirts of this forest have not
+yet awakened from their long winter’s sleep, and their brown dry
+leaves, red and sere, rustle and flutter strangely in the breeze, as if
+they were impatient of their bondage and were longing to find rest on
+the soft mossy ground, and to mingle with the marl of mother Earth, the
+destiny of all nature.
+
+As we gradually ascend the densely-wooded slope which lies at the
+extreme foot of this part of the Tátra, we get surrounded in mist; for
+that long thin stratum of vapour which we had observed in the plains,
+and which, glistening in the sunshine, looked so like a silver line
+drawn across them, now that we have at length approached it, turns out
+to be a cloud of many miles in width.
+
+The evening is rapidly closing in, and the impenetrable pine forest on
+either side adds greatly to the darkness. Since leaving Schlangendorf,
+almost two hours ago, we have not seen the ghost of a habitation, nor
+met any one on the road. Night has well-nigh overtaken us, and we
+are beginning to wonder how soon our journey will be ended, when our
+driver, taking us suddenly off the main road, strikes into the thick
+of the forest by a mere waggon-track to the left. Is he in league
+with the brigands, we wonder? We had all along thought him a wild and
+uncanny-looking fellow. I confess to feeling very uncomfortable, for
+the neighbourhood is quite new to us, and the silence, solitude, and
+gloom of our surroundings are beginning to influence us sensibly.
+
+The utterance of what I fear may have been rather unparliamentary
+language on the part of one of us, in a loud key, has the effect of
+bringing him to an abrupt standstill.
+
+There is nothing like loud speaking to a Hungarian driver when he is
+doing anything you do not like. It is a species of eloquence understood
+in all languages, and our present charioteer knows as well all we
+are saying as if we had been speaking his own mother-tongue; for,
+pointing with his thumb over the tree-tops straight ahead, he makes us
+understand that _it_ is _there_.
+
+At this moment, gleaming through the mist, a welcome light is seen
+emanating from the windows of a châlet, then another and another,
+till a short drive over a gravel road brings us to the door of the
+“Sanatorium,” at which we pull up.
+
+How cheery, in this unknown land, is the sound of voices which greets
+us from the balcony! Surely lights never twinkled half so brightly as
+those which are brought to guide our footsteps up the broad wooden
+staircase leading to the house. How cheery, too, is the open fire in
+the little _salle-à-manger_, and how glad we are to sit beside it
+whilst our rooms are being prepared for our reception! We are now in an
+Alpine region at an elevation of 3258 feet, and the warmth of the fire
+is pleasant; for, the Tátra being situated so far north, the cold is
+much greater than it is in Switzerland at the same altitude.
+
+Having partaken of supper, we retire at once to our rooms, which are
+situated on the second story at the end of a long corridor, and in
+which fires are also burning. What music there is in pine-logs as they
+crackle in the open stoves! and how fragrant the perfume!
+
+“If you look out of your window early to-morrow, you will see the whole
+range: the peaks are generally clear at sunrise,” exclaimed the manager
+of the Sanatorium, on wishing us “good-night.”
+
+The Tátra was almost the only region we had not already explored during
+one or other of our previous visits to Hungary, and great was the
+pleasure we anticipated. We are worshippers of mountains. They possess
+such an irresistible and inexplicable fascination over me, that I could
+not sleep a wink for picturing them to my imagination, and thinking of
+the treat that the morrow was to bring. How many times, even when at
+length slumber overcame me, did I awake with a start, and opening my
+eyes expect to find I had overslept myself, and that it was already
+broad day.
+
+Five o’clock. “To-morrow morning” has come at last! I look out of the
+window, but surely I must be dreaming still, or have the pixies changed
+the room during the night? Where are the mountains and plains? There
+is nothing to be seen but murky sky. Ah! it is early yet, and the sun
+has not risen; it will be all right presently. I will watch for its
+appearing.
+
+Five minutes past five. No! it is _not_ sky, after all, that I
+have been looking at, it is mist, for there beneath our windows are
+two pine-tops just showing through it like grey spectres. I get up,
+however. “Early to bed and early to rise” is the best of rules in
+Alpine regions.
+
+But the morning is chilly, as, stepping out of the window, which opens
+like a door, I stand shivering on the balcony that, in true châlet
+fashion, “runs” round the whole house; and I half regret having adopted
+the praiseworthy motto above mentioned, at any rate for this one
+morning. Re-entering the room, I shut the door quickly, but carry with
+me a ton of vapour at the very least, but enveloping myself in a warm
+rug, I try to “come out jolly” under difficulties, and overhaul my
+sketches.
+
+Seven o’clock. Delightful sounds of the clattering of cups and saucers.
+They are evidently laying the table for breakfast. But it is a long
+while yet before the bell will summon us to that welcome meal. Oh for
+our own particular and peculiar little tea-pot, and András to make us a
+hot cup of the “cheering” beverage!
+
+Heavy steps ascend the staircase and come stumping down the corridor,
+and then stop outside the door.
+
+“Rat-tat.”
+
+Disentangling myself from the mountain of rugs in which I have wrapped
+myself, I go to see who can be there at this early hour. What joy!
+Enter a young and rosy female, more beautiful at that moment than the
+most exquisite Alpine flower, bearing in her hands a tray of smoking
+coffee and appetising little butter-breads in the shape of half-moons.
+And what celestial coffee, too! for celestial is the only adjective
+in the vocabulary capable of expressing its delicate and perfectly
+delicious flavour and aroma.
+
+Whilst gratefully imbibing it, we wonder how it comes to pass that,
+not only in the lowlands of Hungary, but in these far-away mountain
+regions, such exquisite coffee can be met with, whereas in England it
+is seldom if ever drinkable, that is to say by those who, having once
+travelled abroad, have tasted of better things.
+
+_Neu_ (New) Schmecks, at which we are staying, consists of a
+cluster of beautiful châlets, erected in the heart of the pine-woods by
+Dr. Sontagh, who has created a Sanatorium in this picturesque spot.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Going down to the breakfast-room, he comes forward to greet us, and
+we immediately recognise in him the gentleman who had accosted us
+the evening before at the station, whither he had gone to accompany
+a friend, but did not return home until after we had retired for the
+night.
+
+“There is no chance of your having an excursion to-day, I fear, if this
+mist should last,” he exclaimed as we took our seat at his hospitable
+board. “But you can at any rate visit the Kolbach Fall; and if you will
+allow me, I will be your guide.”
+
+As the Fall is on the way to the Fünf-Seen, however, which we hope to
+visit ere we leave the neighbourhood, we decide to-day to potter idly
+about our immediate surroundings and spy out the bearings of the land.
+The mist, too, clears as the day advances; and though not sufficiently
+to admit of an extensive view, yet the winding walks through the pine
+forest to the smaller Falls close by, as well as to the little temples
+and kiosks which have been erected for the comfort and enjoyment of
+tourists, give us ample amusement for our first day’s sojourn in this
+beautiful locality, and afford us an opportunity of becoming acquainted
+with the general features of the immediate neighbourhood.
+
+Ten minutes’ walk through a narrow pathway edged by crimson heather,
+moss, and Alpine flowers of every hue, brings us to “Bad Schmecks.”
+
+Most persons in these enlightened days understand German sufficiently
+well to know that “Bad” means a place where there are mineral springs.
+But what an ugly-sounding name for such an idyllic region!
+
+Let us ignore it, as I would all names which the Austrians have
+translated into their own language, and call it by its pretty
+Hungarian--though less commonly known--appellation of Tátra-Fűred.
+
+Having arrived at a finger-post on which its name is written in both
+languages, we follow a little pathway in the direction indicated, and
+soon recognise through the pine-branches, which almost sweep us as we
+pass, the red gable of another châlet, and reaching a small opening in
+the forest find, as at New Tátra-Füred, a whole cluster of them, but
+standing more closely together, and scarcely so picturesque a place.
+
+This place owes its origin to Count Stephen Csáky, who, in 1797, was
+the first to discover the mineral springs which have brought it into
+note. There are, however, three other springs in the vicinity, viz. the
+_Rainer_, the _Lautsh_, and the _Vámbéry_, besides those
+which pass under the singular if not classic sobriquet of Castor and
+Pollux.
+
+The bathing season begins on the 15th of May and lasts until September;
+but in addition to the bathing establishments, there are several
+dwelling-houses for ordinary visitors, amongst which are those
+passing under the euphonious titles of the “Adria,” “Flora,” and
+“Rigi,” together with the very appropriate ones of “Alpenfee” and
+“Sans-souci.” In every instance the Hungarian significations are also
+attached to the foreign names.
+
+In 1873, the “Carpathian Exploration Society” was formed for the
+purpose of investigating the mountains from a scientific point of view,
+of making and improving paths over the various passes, erecting places
+of refuge for travellers, as well as organising the proper training of
+guides. The Society meets twice a year; in the winter at Késmark, and
+in the summer in this place at a châlet called “Priessnitz.”
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+This little settlement is at present closed in the winter, but there
+is no doubt that as the climate of the southern slopes of the Tátra
+becomes better known--which may with truth be called the Hungarian
+Engadine--it will be open all the year round, as is the case with the
+Sanatorium of Dr. Sontagh. Meteorological observations show that the
+temperature of this side of the Tátra group is comparatively even,
+the heat never being great in summer; whilst the thermometer during
+winter ranges several degrees higher than in the plains. Fogs seldom
+visit this elevation during the winter months; and should they appear,
+they soon pass over. The air is generally clear and transparent and
+the sky blue. We were told by a disinterested observer that there are
+days in Tátra-Fűred, during the coldest season of the year, when the
+climate is enchanting, and that to those who have visited this region
+in the winter the impression left on the mind has been one never to be
+forgotten. The dark pine-woods, against which the peaks stand out in
+appalling whiteness; the deep blue chasms at their base; the soft and
+pearly shadows thrown by the snowy protuberances themselves; the sea of
+vapour lying all across the plains, which, rolling and surging as it
+floats, resembles a troubled sea, out of which the distant mountains
+of Gőmőr rise like a rocky, storm-beat shore--form a spectacle at once
+beautiful and majestic.
+
+The winter of 1879–80, which will be remembered as one of more than
+ordinary severity and duration throughout Europe, is said to have been
+an exceedingly mild one at Tátra-Fűred, the average temperature during
+the very coldest time having been from 54° to 60° Fahrenheit.
+
+In exceptionally mild winters, the cranberry with its small myrtle-like
+leaves may be seen growing luxuriantly among the green pines in
+company with ferns of the hardier kinds, whose bright green fronds
+mingle sweetly with the more sombre foliage of the non-deciduous
+sub-Alpine flora. At such times the _Veronica officinalis_ with
+its small blue flowers and the _Geum montanum_ blossom freely,
+each with the same bright hues which delight the eye of the tourist
+in summer-time; whilst in the lower Alpine world, clothing itself
+but scantily with its white mantle, the dark pines and scattered
+rock-masses form a pleasing contrast to the glistening snow-fields of
+the higher regions.
+
+It is difficult for the uninitiated stranger to realise the warmth of
+this elevation during winter, but meteorological observations carried
+over a series of years bear testimony to the fact. The circumstance is
+no doubt due to the extreme dryness of the air, and absence of rain and
+fog, together with the protection from the wind afforded by the higher
+ridges.
+
+The deciduous trees, however, lose their leaves, as well as the larch
+its spines, in the beginning of November, when, no longer able to make
+further resistance, they resign themselves to the dominion of the
+frost-king until the middle of March, when the first spring flowers
+once more announce the re-awakening of vegetation.
+
+Nowhere in the region of the Tátra are there any real glaciers, but
+lying in some of the valleys towards the north there are vast fields of
+perpetual snow, together with unmistakeable evidences of the existence
+of glaciers at some former period--of which more anon. The snow does
+not lie much on these peaks long after June, the reason assigned being
+that their extremely sharp declivities afford no flats or ledges
+upon which it can rest. The Alps of Switzerland are as a rule less
+perpendicular and pointed, from which circumstance the snow does not
+slide down and disappear when the thaw sets in as it does here.
+
+The principal element of these mountains is granite, though of a
+somewhat different kind from the ordinary crystalline rock of that
+name. This difference is not observable in small blocks, but is very
+marked in some of the rocky precipices,--for example, in those of the
+Lomnitzer group; a circumstance pointed out to us by Dr. Sontagh, who
+is not only a naturalist, but a geologist as well. Here where the rock
+forms an upright precipice, the parallelism of the strata, which often
+measure four feet in thickness, is very clearly distinguished. Its
+bed dips from east to west, slightly inclining from the ridge, which
+circumstance causes the small peaks or needles of this mountain to bend
+over and assume very singular and fantastic forms.
+
+The mountains of the Tátra constitute the most northern boundary of
+Hungary, and the natural wall dividing it from Gallicia or ancient
+Poland.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XVI.
+
+                         GOBLINS OF THE MIST.
+
+    “Who are these, a shadowy band?
+    Come they from the Spirit-land?”
+
+
+“You will have a glorious day to-morrow for your climb to the
+Fünf-Seen” (Five-lakes), exclaimed the Doctor. “Look! the Königsberg is
+quite clear,” pointing to a prominent mountain rising out of a valley
+to the right, and upon which the sun is setting with a crimson blush.
+
+“But the barometer has fallen considerably,” broke in the manager, who
+was standing by our side.
+
+“The best barometer we have is the Königsberg,” replied the former,
+clinging to his pet theory: “and see! there is not an atom of cloud
+hanging about its ridges anywhere; the barometer can only have fallen
+for _heat_, it cannot be for either rain or fog.”
+
+Horses and guides are consequently ordered to be in attendance at 6
+A.M., an early start being necessary, as we cannot in any case be home
+until the evening.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+At 6 A.M., however, such is the disappointing habit of mountain
+regions, nothing is to be seen but dark pines looming through the mist;
+and as we descend the wooden steps of Villa Sontagh and mount our
+steeds--whose breath pouring from their nostrils appears so like vapour
+let off from the safety-valve of a steam-engine, that we expect every
+moment to hear them whistle--we feel instantly enveloped in a wet sheet.
+
+Everything is moist, murky, and miserable, each hair of our guide’s
+moustaches and whiskers being furnished with its own particular and
+peculiar little globule of moisture, as well as those of the provision
+_Träger_ who follows modestly behind. I observe that we are all so
+confident of its being fine, “by and by,” that we make no inquiry of
+our guide concerning the probable state of the weather in the heights,
+taking the fact of its clearing up quite as a matter of course.
+
+Forcing our way along the narrow pathway under the pine-trees, whose
+branches, heavy with their weight of moisture, hang their heads and
+sweep us as we pass, is not however quite so pleasant as it might
+be; and we are perhaps a thought more silent than is customary with
+persons starting on a mountaineering expedition. As we proceed, too,
+our ardour becomes damped together with our clothes. Still we jog on,
+and try to look hopeful at any rate, if not beaming, which is difficult
+when you feel the feather of your hat--that once possessed a lovely
+curl--hanging down behind your neck with a steady drip.
+
+My horse--I give him this appellation for the sake of euphony, for
+he is a nondescript animal not easy to define--has not only a rough
+and disagreeable action, but I soon discover that all attempts at
+guiding him are unavailing. Possessing as he did a mulish desire
+to go directly contrary to the wishes of his rider, I have to pull
+persistently with the left rein to insure his going steadily to the
+right, and _vice versâ_; and the bit and bridle are evidently an
+ornamental arrangement, for the only thing he heeds is the voice of
+his master, who walks some little distance behind, and to which he
+instantly responds. His master, indeed, talks to him as though he were
+not only gifted, like Balaam’s ass, with the power of speech, but with
+understanding of the Zipser _patois_ also--the language spoken in
+these mountains, a corruption of the German.
+
+“Now then, Minsh”--that being the creature’s name--“look out! see
+where you are going! mind that hole there! To the right, Minsh! to the
+right! keep back! don’t go so fast down the hill, the path is steep
+and stony;” and “Ah! Minsh, _dear_ Minsh, don’t go so near the
+precipice, or _she’ll_ be over,” were the warning and consoling,
+not to say complimentary, observations that often reached me from afar.
+
+“Minsh” had also a disagreeable habit of looking at everything he
+passed; he was a beast of inquiring mind, but the indulgence of that
+praiseworthy propensity is not always agreeable to the equestrian in
+localities like the present, where one false step might send both rider
+and steed tumbling into an abyss below.
+
+“Minsh,” however, was not destitute of good qualities, after all, and
+moreover possessed a great notion of his own importance, taking good
+care of himself when the road happened to be dangerous; and looking
+neither to the right nor the left whenever we chanced to be passing
+close to precipices, but picking his way right dexterously among the
+large boulders that often beset our path.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Our little cavalcade is headed by the guide, followed by the Doctor
+himself, who had volunteered to accompany us. He is clad in an
+appropriate and becoming costume of drab cloth, with a broad-brimmed,
+high-crowned hat to match. An ardent sportsman, he carries not only his
+gun across his shoulder, but his _Jägerhorn_ hangs from his side;
+whilst in the band which surrounds his hat are stuck various trophies
+of the chase: a bunch of the long hair of the chamois, sundry black
+feathers from the _coq de bruyère_, and a bunch of faded wild
+flowers, gathered on some previous expedition. Next comes F., looking
+like a species of lichen with which the pines are enveloped, his dark
+clothes covered with an infinitesimal number of white particles of a
+dewy nature. So striking, indeed, is the resemblance that a spider
+mistakes him for it; and letting itself down by its tiny thread as he
+passes by, begins forthwith spinning a splendid specimen of cobweb
+on his hat. Then comes your humble servant, the chronicler of these
+annals, looking much the same; whilst last, but by no means least,
+comes the provision _Träger_, who brings up the rear.
+
+“It is a good sign when cobwebs are seen,” remarked the sanguine
+Doctor, not alluding to the patient little weaver still diligently
+plying his art in F.’s wide-awake, but to the number of webs clinging
+to the trees above our heads.
+
+But in spite of these auspicious indications, and the predictions of
+the Königsberg of the previous evening, the weather does _not_
+improve. We look up, but the mist comes down and hangs about the pines
+like wreaths of smoke.
+
+In half an hour’s time we reach a pretty little wooden hut or “refuge,”
+close to our pathway, called the Rosa-Schutzhütte, standing on a ledge
+of jutting rock whence a glorious view is obtained--when you can see
+it--of the beautiful valleys of the Little and Great Kolbach, together
+with the Lomnitzer-Spitze rearing its pinnacles heavenwards. In the
+distance, we hear the roar of the waters of the Great Kolbach Fall,
+and, after a quarter of an hour’s further scramble, come in sight of
+it, dashing over huge blocks of granite from a height of four hundred
+feet, and forming itself into numerous cascades and eddies till it
+leaps over an immense wall of rock and covers us with its spray.
+
+Climbing a large boulder, we have a fine view of as much as we can see
+of it, as it comes tearing down the gorge with thundering might. The
+vegetation on either side is very varied and beautiful; here and there
+a Siberian stone-pine (_Pinus cembra_) rears its head grandly
+above the deciduous trees which lean picturesquely towards the Fall, as
+if attracted towards it by some mysterious and hidden fascination.
+
+Following a little path to the left, we descend to the “Lange-Fall,”
+where the gorge becomes more contracted, and the water flowing over
+various shelves of rock has fashioned for itself numerous rounded
+cavities, or basins, similar to those often seen in Scotland, where
+they are designated “witches’ caldrons.” At the bottom of these
+cavities, besides a number of small round stones, a large one is
+invariably found, which is supposed, when the cascade is full, to be
+made to revolve by the water working itself into eddies and whirlpools,
+in consequence of which the rock, by the constant friction of the
+stone, gets worn away into these smooth, circular, and basin-like
+hollows.
+
+Mounting our ponies again, we continue the climb, and follow the
+magnificent Fall for a considerable distance, getting glorious glimpses
+of it every now and then through the pine-trees to our right; but the
+thunder of its waters is so deafening, that it is almost a relief when
+we find ourselves standing in a peaceful Alpine meadow, where, leaving
+our ponies at the Rainerhütte to await our return, we recommence our
+climb on foot.
+
+Above us to the left rises a perpendicular rock, two thousand feet in
+height, beneath which the _Kleine_ (Little) _Kolbach_ hastens
+to join its larger prototype, and accompany it in its mad career to the
+distant and peaceful plains.
+
+Crossing the meadow, which is purple with the Alpine crocus, we pass a
+wooden bridge and follow the windings of the _Kleine Kolbach_ over
+moss-covered boulders and under the spreading branches of the krummholz
+(_Pinus Mughus_), a species of dwarf pine growing three or four
+feet from the ground, and whose limbs, knotted and gnarled, assume--as
+its name (crooked timber) implies--the most angular and grotesque forms
+imaginable.
+
+This pine, which is never found in these mountains at a lower altitude
+than 5000 feet, forms a perfect zone of 1000 feet round the whole of
+the Tátra, entirely ceasing to grow at 6000. So rigidly, in fact, does
+it cling to its own particular circle, that Dr. Sontagh has never been
+able to induce it to grow at his little settlement, only 1500 feet
+below, his frequent attempts having invariably proved unsuccessful.
+
+As we ascend further, the pink _daphne_ greets us with its
+fragrance; whilst the pale mauve _primula_ with its rigid
+pinnulate leaves, growing close to the stones as if clinging to them
+for shelter, relieves the eye with its beautiful cushions of bloom. The
+mist has partially cleared by this time, and we journey on with lighter
+hearts, though with no small difficulty; for the loose stones over
+which our track leads us, and which is nothing more nor less than the
+dry bed of a watercourse, adds greatly to the fatigue of our climb.
+
+Everywhere around us there are footprints of chamois, but we are far
+too noisy a party for such shy game to show themselves.
+
+“There are certain to be plenty in there,” remarks the Doctor, as
+we pass a more than usually dense clump of _krummholz_, “and
+ten to one they are watching our movements narrowly through the dark
+green branches; they always take refuge in the thick recesses of the
+_krummholz_, on the first sound of approaching footsteps.”
+
+Game abounds in the Tátra. In the forests lying at their base nearly
+all kinds common to other countries are found, besides wolves, bears,
+and polecats. In the higher regions chamois and marmots abound, while
+the rocks are the haunt of the golden eagle and the vulture.
+
+At length, after two hours’ climb, during which we have been getting
+into deeper and deeper snow, the mist that had partially cleared now
+gathers over us again. We can scarcely see a yard ahead of us, and I
+lose all sight of my companions. They too had lost sight of me, but I
+soon heard a voice proceeding from the darkness shouting in stentorian
+accents “Where are you?” so close to me that I was quite startled,
+and, looking up, saw their shadowy forms looming through the mist like
+goblins, almost at my elbow. In a few minutes we recognise, crouching
+beneath an overhanging rock, the welcome form of the provision
+_Träger_, evidently engaged in making a fire, for we have arrived
+at the _Feuerstein_.
+
+We are now above the region of vegetation, except that of herbaceous
+kinds, and nothing is visible above the sheet of snow save the long
+coarse grass which hangs in brown and matted tufts from the more
+sheltered ledges of the rocks. The scene, surrounded as we are by an
+ocean of white, relieved only by blocks of granite, which appear black
+upon their bed of glistening snow, is dreary in the extreme.
+
+A great deal of _krummholz_, brought hither by a previous party
+of excursionists, is lying near us; for the _Feuerstein_ is
+the invariable place of bivouac for ascending tourists. It is damp,
+however, and does not easily ignite, but we beguile the time meanwhile
+by unpacking the provision-basket, and spreading its contents before
+us, until, having shivered philosophically for the space of half an
+hour, our patience is at length rewarded by a blaze.
+
+During the time occupied by these interesting proceedings the guide has
+been on ahead in the direction of our further climb, for the purpose
+of ascertaining whether it is clear in the higher ridges, but he now
+returns with the intelligence that it is impossible to reach the
+Fünf-Seen to-day.
+
+I think that in our secret hearts, though each expressed the due amount
+of disappointment at the ill-success that had attended our expedition,
+we were all rejoiced at this announcement. Nothing in the whole world
+is equal to a really thick mountain mist for taking the “go” out of
+one, and we were wet, worn and weary.
+
+By this time the fire is burning cheerily, and crouching round it
+we form, if a dishevelled, at any rate a picturesque group. But
+_krummholz_, from its pungency, is not the most pleasant wood to
+burn, and we are nearly blinded from its effects; whilst an aggravating
+current of air blowing round the north side of the _Feuerstein_,
+drives it in our direction. But these little annoyances do not
+interfere with our appetites, and like real mountaineers we try to
+think everything is charming and delightful, though I fear, after all,
+with but a sorry counterfeit.
+
+Tourists often spend the night under the shelter of this overhanging
+rock to see the sunrise. It also enables them to have an early climb
+should they wish to ascend the Lomnitzer-Spitze, the second highest
+mountain in the Tátra, a feat which takes, starting from this point,
+from three to four hours to accomplish. Until a comparatively recent
+period the Eisthaler-Spitze, 8690 feet, was believed to be the loftiest
+of the whole chain. The latest measurements, however, declare the
+Gerlsdorf to be sixty-six feet higher still. The two most difficult
+mountains to ascend are the Eisthal and the Lomnitz. To climb the
+latter the tourist has to proceed in a northerly direction, when,
+after passing over a mass of shattered rock-fragments, he reaches a
+narrow cleft called the “_Grosse-Probe_,” on account of its great
+difficulty.
+
+The summit of the Lomnitz consists of a block of granite about
+forty-five feet in circumference, and the ascent is both dangerous and
+difficult, but the view from its summit is magnificent, and Tátra-Fűred
+looks a mere speck in the dark forest at its base.
+
+Dr. Sontagh, a bold mountaineer and “cunning” huntsman, was just
+entertaining us with an exciting account of a chamois hunt in which he
+took part a few months ago, when there was a shout from below.
+
+“Come down quickly, the clouds are lifting, and there is a glorious
+view of the Lomnitz and Eisthaler Spitzen.”
+
+It was the voice of the guide. Hastily leaving the _Träger_ to
+“pack up,” we descend from our place of bivouac, where the overhanging
+rock above us had entirely shut out all view, and, looking upwards,
+what a magnificent scene presented itself to our gaze! Gradually, as
+though a giant but invisible hand were drawing aside a curtain, the
+vapour, which had previously shrouded all in mystery and gloom, rose
+higher and higher, disclosing one mighty cone after another, till with
+a final effort it rolled away entirely and displayed peak after peak
+in endless succession, but far too precipitous for any snow to rest
+upon--pinnacles and spires and mighty domes piled one above another,
+rugged, denticulated, and sharp as needles; the whole scene rendered
+all the more savage by portions of the mist itself, which in rising had
+become caught in the jaws of the inner pinnacles, where, unable to make
+its escape, it rested in the hollows, and, separating one cone from
+another, caused each to stand out single and distinct.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+It was long before we could take our eyes from this wondrous scene.
+Never even in the Switzerland of my affections had I beheld aught so
+wild, so majestic, or so perfectly _awful_ in its grandeur.
+
+As we descend the valley, what a world of chaos greets us, everywhere
+hidden, when we climbed the slope, by the mist, which, partially if not
+wholly, had concealed it from our view!
+
+In regions like these how old the world appears, and what pigmies
+we feel ourselves to be as we stand in the midst of such primeval
+formations! We no longer regret our inability to reach the Fünf
+Seen--our destination at starting. We have seen enough for one
+day--enough, that is, for those who realise in their heart of hearts
+the appalling grandeur of such sights in nature, and who love to
+photograph them for ever on the retina of their memory. As we turn our
+backs upon them and resume the descent we endeavour to close our minds
+to all other impressions, and occupy ourselves in collecting Arctic
+mosses and lichen, and, at a lower altitude, small seedling trees of
+_krummholz_, hoping that although--jealous of its rocky mountain
+habitat--it has baffled the attempts of Dr. Sontagh to induce it to
+grow in Tátra-Fűred, it may yet do so in our English home.
+
+“Bestow one last look on the Lomnitzer-Spitze ere it fades entirely
+from our view,” exclaims the Doctor behind us.
+
+Thus summoned, we look back upon it once more. There it is, beautiful
+still, but how changed is its aspect! The mist that clung to the base
+of the cones and caused them to stand out solitary and alone has
+vanished into air, and a glory of sunlight is resting upon them; for,
+although hidden to us in the valley, the sun is shining full upon the
+summit of the mountain; but the scene has lost its mystery and weird
+grandeur, and we feel thankful we saw it as we did. Cloud and mist
+harmonise far better than sunshine with the savage spirit of such a
+scene.
+
+There is great variety in the colouring of this part of the Tátra
+region. The different shades of green, not only in the carpet of moss
+and lichen which we tread beneath our feet, but also in the small
+coniferæ which vegetate at the highest limits of the larger growth
+of flora; the rich dark green of the _krummholz_ with its brown
+stems; the light and delicate green of the feathery and prickly
+juniper; the red trunks of the small pines above mentioned, and others
+rent in some instances from top to bottom lying upon the ground, or
+across the granite rock-fragments, bleached and wan--all form such a
+beautiful harmony of tints that there is no monotony anywhere.
+
+Just as we were completing the descent of the mountain, the mist,
+which had completely cleared away from the valleys and the base of
+the peaks, and concentrated itself into cumuli high above us, opened
+for an instant, and permitted us to behold the lofty summit of the
+Schlangendorfer-Spitze--the pearl of the Southern Tátra--and which,
+surrounded by billows of cloud, and clad with newly-fallen snow, looked
+almost too beautiful to belong even to this beautiful earth.
+
+Those who come only a fortnight later in the season miss a great deal;
+for these mountains are inconceivably grand when their summits are
+covered with their glistening mantles. On the other hand, many of the
+passes are closed to the ordinary climber, being still blocked by snow.
+
+Arriving at the Rainerhütte, we find our steeds already saddled in
+readiness for us.
+
+As a rule “Minsh” was not given to violent spirits, but he had been
+waiting long and patiently in the cold, and the thought of his warm
+_álás_ forced itself on his mind, and in fancy he scented his
+provender from afar, so that I was no sooner on his back than,
+whinnying to his companions and shaking his head wickedly as much as to
+say to the others “I’m off home,” he cantered away, and endeavoured to
+take me by a short cut through the dense pine-woods. In vain I pulled
+at the reins as hard as I was able; all remonstrance on my part proved
+unavailing, till the voice of his master sounded from a distance in
+loud and deprecating accents.
+
+“Ah, Minsh! Minsh! Stop, dear! stop! _She’ll_ be killed. The trees
+are close together! There’s no room to pass! She’ll be killed to a
+certainty. Ah, Minsh, may the Saints forgive you!”
+
+Minsh thus apostrophised could hold out no longer, and came to a
+standstill; when, retracing our steps, I rescued my hat, which was
+hanging to a branch at the entrance to the forest, and, soon rejoining
+the rest of our party, we reached Villa Sontagh without further
+incident.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XVII.
+
+                          THE MOUNTAIN HOME.
+
+
+Tátra-Fűred, lying as it does both between and immediately under two
+of the loftiest summits of the whole chain, namely the Lomnitz and the
+Gerlsdorf, the most delightful mountain excursions can be made from
+it in all directions. But besides these--which must often be left to
+the more ambitious climber--are others within an easy distance, one of
+the latter being to the _Räubersteine_ (Robber-stones), about an
+hour’s pleasant walk through the lovely pine forest.
+
+These stones consist of three colossal blocks of granite, whose
+existence can only be accounted for on the theory that they must
+have been brought from the somewhat distant heights by some glacial
+movement. Twenty paces farther on to the right is a smaller block, at
+which point a magnificent panorama of the plains of Poprád, situated
+3000 feet below, bursts upon the view, with a gracious wide-spreading
+landscape. How sweetly the little towns and villages dot the plains,
+the former so quaint and ugly near, but which from a distance look like
+toy-towns made of ivory--and sometimes even of silver, as a ray of
+sunshine gleaming upon the whitewashed houses and steeples causes them
+to glisten like veritable palaces of Aladdin. Surely never did distance
+lend such enchantment to the view!
+
+The plains surrounding the Tátra belong to what is called the
+_Zips_, a district covering an area of two hundred English square
+miles, and inhabited almost exclusively by the descendants of the
+German colonists who migrated hither in the twelfth century from their
+home in Lower Saxony; a fact which explains the seeming anomaly of
+the German language being spoken in this region of Northern Hungary,
+otherwise almost exclusively peopled by Slávs.
+
+Over these smiling plains the eye wanders until arrested by the
+bold outline of the Königsberg, the Baba, the Borzova, and the
+_Teufelshochzeit_ (Devil’s marriage). From the former mountain the
+whole of the Tátra chain can be seen, and thither, on first arriving at
+these Northern Carpathians, the tourist often repairs--since it is an
+excursion that can easily be accomplished from Poprád in one day--in
+order that he may be able to form a correct idea of the characteristics
+and extent of the whole of the Tátra range, before penetrating into its
+interior.
+
+The immediate neighbourhood of Tátra-Fűred is in fact replete with
+beauty of every kind, and we never tired of strolling about its
+narrow winding paths, breathing the fragrant odour of the pine woods,
+and listening to the waterfalls, which, crossed by rustic bridges,
+come tumbling over moss-covered boulders quite close to the chalets
+themselves.
+
+Our favourite haunt, however, was the “Pavilion,” half a mile distant;
+a pretty kiosk, situated close under the Gerlsdorfer-Spitze, from which
+it is separated only by a belt of pines. To me no scene was ever more
+impressive than that afforded by the plains from this spot. Unlike that
+portion of them which is viewed from the _Räubersteine_, not a
+sign of habitation is visible, nothing but the plains themselves and
+the long deep belts of pines--undistinguishable from this distance
+except in colour--which create dark and sombre lines of greenish black
+across the landscape. Scarcely a bird or insect disturbs the solitude
+of this spot, and one feels completely separated from the world,
+and immersed in the lonely heart of Nature. The whole vicinity of
+Tátra-Fűred forms in truth one of the most romantic and sweetest places
+I ever saw, and one in which I would fain make my home for many months
+to come, so entirely do its surroundings content my taste.
+
+A fine day imbues us with a spirit of renewed courage for a climb, and
+we start for the Félka Lake, which being situated at a lower elevation
+than the Fünf-Seen, and consequently having less snow lying in the
+hollows on the way, we have every prospect of reaching.
+
+Just as we were standing on the balcony preparatory to our journey, a
+fine deer was brought in, together with a small animal with beautiful
+long reddish-grey hair, the size of a badger. The creature had
+evidently been just killed by some other animal that had doubtless
+designed it for its dinner, for there were no signs of shot-marks on
+its body, and it was still warm as it hung over the shoulder of the man
+who had found it in the woods hard by.
+
+Our way leads us by a steep and stony path through a forest consisting
+almost wholly of the red pine (_Pinus abies_), so called from the
+colour of its bark. These lordly trees are draped with two or three
+kinds of lichen, dark green, greyish-green, and white, which, hanging
+like tresses from each branch and stem, have, when stirred by the wind,
+a most singular effect, resembling witches’ hair.
+
+Almost all ferns common to England grow in the Tátra; the “beech” and
+“oak” ferns growing abundantly in shady nooks in the Kolbach valley,
+together with the “prickly” and the “thorny” ferns (_Aspidium
+aculeatum_ and _Aspidium spinulosum_). Besides which the
+beautiful _Cystopteris fragilis_ is found growing on the rocks,
+and the dark-stemmed _Asplenium trichomanes_.
+
+The forest solitudes are literally full of game; and occasionally, as
+our ponies pick their way over the stony path, an enormous bird with
+a green and bronze breast rises with a “whirr” from the thick covert
+which encloses us, and, stirring the air, startles our ponies with
+the fluttering of its great black wings. It is the _Auerhahn_, a
+most difficult bird to bag, only experienced “shots” being fortunate
+enough to bring them down, for they see at long distances, and have
+very sharp ears. There is, moreover, only one moment when the sportsman
+can entertain the slightest hope of aiming with effect, viz. when
+they _sing_. At this juncture, opening wide their great fans
+and throwing their heads far back, they can neither see nor hear. It
+is an affair of an instant, and the sportsman, already on the _qui
+vive_, must immediately fire, or he will do so in vain.
+
+The Tátra is said to be the only region in Europe where the _Auerhahn_
+(_Tetras Gallus_) is found. It is a much larger bird than the peacock,
+and has immense claws with barbed edges as sharp as needles. We often
+tasted it, in one form or other, whilst staying at Villa Sontagh; the
+flesh, though rather coarse and dark, being not altogether unlike
+goose. These forests also abound with the _Birkhahn_, the _Haselhahn_,
+the _Rebhahn_, and the _Kaiser-Vogel_, or “Emperor bird,” so called
+from the deliciousness and delicacy of its flesh, which resembles that
+of the turkey. In higher regions still the “Chamois Eagle” and the
+“King Eagle” are likewise met with, forming in all a goodly selection
+for enthusiastic sportsmen.
+
+As we pursue our way the mountain steeps are covered with flowers,
+conspicuous amongst which is the large Alpine anemone, whose size
+is much greater than that of the little pet of our own woods, its
+rigid foliage and tall inflexible stem covered with a coat of white
+down, with which kind mother Nature has furnished it to enable it to
+withstand the severer climate of this region.
+
+Our path has hitherto been that by which the Schlangendorfer-Spitze
+is approached, but we now strike off into one called the
+_Kreuzhübel_, which leads by a direct route to the Félka lake, and
+then pass along the ridge of a high tableland, whence we look down upon
+the peaceful plains of Poprád, lying at the foot of the southern slopes
+of the Tátra; whilst to the north the wild rushing Faelker torrent
+comes tumbling towards us.
+
+These heights are perfectly full of chamois. In the moist sand which is
+formed by the overflow of the torrent during heavy rains, as well as
+in the peaty soil on either side, we see their footprints everywhere
+as they flee before us. Not unfrequently we can trace them right into
+a clump of _krummholz_, or a group of granite blocks, where,
+entrenched as in a natural fortress, we feel quite sure they are hiding
+with beating hearts. We also pass, close to our pathway, several
+marmot-holes. This animal, which in the plains is scarcely larger than
+a squirrel, is here the size of a hare. During the winter months they
+sleep, and are then easily captured by the _Jäger_, who, wearing
+curiously-constructed snow-shoes, climb these dangerous steeps for the
+purpose.
+
+At length getting, even at this lower elevation, into deep snow, we
+leave our ponies behind; for, as the poor animals sink into unseen
+holes at almost every step, it is neither agreeable nor safe to ride
+them any farther, and by scrambling up a steep bank inaccessible to any
+quadrupeds but chamois, we hope we may be able to avoid the snow lying
+in the hollows.
+
+(I have hitherto forgotten to say that having forsworn “Minsh” and his
+idiosyncrasies for ever, I have for the time become the happy possessor
+of a sure-footed animal that carries me capitally, and has neither will
+of his own, nor any peculiarity whatsoever.)
+
+After struggling through mountain streams, clambering over granite
+boulders, and making our way through fields of snow in spite of all
+efforts to the contrary, we reach the _Zufluchtshütte_, or “hut
+of refuge,” recently built, the one previously standing on the borders
+of the lake having been destroyed by an avalanche a few years ago. The
+scene is both lovely and desolate, the perpendicular mountains, huge
+masses of fallen rock, a lovely little cascade, and the placid lake
+reflecting the heavenly blue, presenting a picture of alternate savage
+grandeur and gentle beauty.
+
+This exquisite little lake, or, more correctly speaking, Alpine tarn,
+lies at a little less than 6000 feet above the level of the sea. The
+colour of its water is brightest emerald, except near its shores, where
+it fades into the more delicate tint of beryl. Not a ripple disturbs
+its glassy surface--a death-like stillness prevails: and as we stand
+and gaze upon it, a spell seems hanging over it and us; its intense
+loneliness imparting to it quite an eery look, whilst its silence seems
+to hold us captive.
+
+Adding to the general desolation, close by stand the ruins of a stone
+hut that was shattered by an avalanche; but just within its ruined
+walls, in strange contrast to its surroundings, we observe blooming a
+lovely little yellow flower, sending forth its fragrance even here, and
+looking in its brightness like a wee scrap of sunshine dropped from the
+sky.
+
+Near this lake is the beautiful _Blumengarten_, which, rich in
+vegetation, contains many rare flowers peculiar to the Tátra. It is
+supposed to be situated on the bed of what was also formerly a lake,
+evidence of whose existence is seen in the _Wassertümpel_ (pools),
+as they are called, of to-day.
+
+This sweet little pleasaunce is watered by a brook which, meandering
+through it, falls over a precipitous wall of granite 330 feet in
+height, and, forming a lovely cascade, empties itself into the lake.
+
+By this route the Lange-See may be reached, likewise situated at about
+6000 feet; a lake supposed to have formerly been much larger than it
+is at present, its size having been lessened by the immense number
+of stones and boulders which have fallen from the Gerlsdorfer-Spitze
+and blocked up its bed. Beyond the Lange-See, the Polnischer
+Kamm--Lengyelnyereg, as it is called in the harsh language of the
+Poles--is likewise approached. It is however a difficult climb, there
+being no pathway, and enormous blocks of granite, sixteen and twenty
+feet in height, have first to be conquered; but the patience and
+perseverance of the enthusiastic mountaineer will be fully recompensed
+by the superb view he will have of the various peaks of the Northern or
+Polish Tátra, as well as those of the South, together with the Zipser
+plains stretching away beyond.
+
+Lingering in the vicinity of the Félka-See, we search for garnets; one
+of the attractions of this lake being the “Granatenwand,” a purplish
+grey rock rising abruptly from it. The shore beneath this mountain is
+strewn with fragments in which the crimson stones lie almost as closely
+imbedded as currants in a plum-pudding, varying in size from a pea to
+half an inch in diameter.
+
+Immediately above the lake, forming in fact one of its gigantic walls,
+is the Gerlsdorfer-Spitze, its rugged outline cutting into an almost
+purple sky. Every Alpine traveller knows how in regions like these the
+sky as he ascends appears to come down to meet him, descending lower
+and lower as he climbs, till it appears to span him with a palpable
+and opaque arch, and also how intense and utterly indescribable is
+its blue. We had scarcely expected to observe this phenomenon at an
+altitude of little more than 6000 feet, but it is notwithstanding very
+marked to-day; and as we cast our eyes upwards towards the empyrean, it
+seems almost to touch us; whilst all around in the small _Alpen_,
+as the green patches are here called, the blue forget-me-not is paled
+almost to cold grey, in contrast with the dome above.
+
+On the western side, and 150 feet above the level of the valley, there
+exist evidences of glacial action in the bed of an ancient moraine
+a mile in length, containing pointed and jagged blocks of granite,
+which could not have fallen from the precipitous heights which rise on
+either side (these being formed of dolomite), and must therefore have
+been brought hither from a considerable distance by the slow but steady
+course of the glacier.
+
+As we stand looking at this mighty stone-stream, now inert, which,
+once imbued with motion, travelled silently and imperceptibly day by
+day, carrying on its back the _Schutthaufen_, or accumulated rock
+_débris_ of ages, the whistling of the marmot--its little pipe
+echoed in many a rocky precipice--is the only sound that greets our
+ears.
+
+In descending we take a slightly different route, and get into a
+field of snow, frozen so hard that it is as slippery as glass. This
+frozen sheet of white covers a broad valley hemmed in on all sides by
+rugged pyramids and pinnacles of purple rock, and proves to be that
+which we had so often gazed at from below, where it appears but a
+small and slender line of white--a frozen artery zigzagging down the
+mountain side; whilst that huge cone in its centre, whose form we also
+recognise, and which looked from a distance but a mere stone, now turns
+out to be a pinnacle of rock several hundred feet in height!
+
+Presently we descend another valley, and our feet sink deep in
+yielding snow, which, though less dangerous than the previous ice,
+is far more disagreeable. Our guide this time is none other than the
+Doctor himself, who, ever ready for a mountaineering expedition, had
+accompanied us hither also--a circumstance that greatly added to our
+pleasure--for with his knowledge of the botany and geology of the
+district he proved a most interesting companion.
+
+Whilst descending this gorge, we observed close to us a track made by
+a number of chamois. They could only just have passed, for the powdery
+snow they had scattered still lay there, and the sand from their
+hoofs was still moist and fresh. Seeing footprints to our right, we
+fancy they must be those made by ourselves on our upward way, but on
+following them they lead us into serious difficulty, the snow masking
+under its deceitful mantle such crevasses and holes that we have to
+retrace our steps. Before doing so, however, a slight examination of
+the footprints convinces us that they are not our own, and at this
+instant a shot fired higher up the gorge betrays the presence of
+poachers, disquieting our host not a little, to whom the game of this
+part of the mountain exclusively belongs. Having been misled some
+distance by the intruders’ footsteps, it was a considerable time before
+we were able to regain our old track.
+
+Close to our pathway, which was formed by the dry bed of a mountain
+stream, we observed many holes fashioned in the sand at a safe distance
+from high-water mark. They were nests, and, looking down into one of
+them, I saw a number of brown eggs. I was about to thrust my hand in
+to take one out “to look at,” when I was checked by the kind-hearted
+Doctor, who said gently:
+
+“_Ne les touchez pas, de peur de troubler la mère. Laissez-les, je
+vous en prie._”
+
+Before reaching the spot at which we had left our steeds, a thin streak
+of vapour that had been lying across the valley, and which we had been
+anxiously watching for some time past, began to ascend, and now wrapped
+all nature, far and near, within its gloomy curtain. In the distance,
+however, we hear the loud “cooey” of the muleteers, and, following
+the sound, see them looming through the mist. This soon turns into a
+drenching rain, and we arrive at our peaceful and hospitable châlet
+somewhat in the condition of drowned rats, but are consoled by the
+sight of large fires, made in anticipation of our returning in a moist
+condition; for we learnt afterwards that it had been raining almost
+ever since we started, although we, up in the heights, had fortunately
+escaped it.
+
+Dinner is succeeded by a pleasant evening spent in the company of Dr.
+Sontagh and his pretty and amiable wife, and, sitting over the cheerful
+pinewood fire, we listen to the daring mountain exploits of the
+former. All round the room the walls are hung with the accoutrements
+of the chase--guns, pistols, knives, large flat snow-shoes, a net,
+chamois-rope, _Jägerhorn_, etc.--together with its trophies, the
+heads of deer and chamois, and those of large birds; and as we hear the
+wood crackle and watch its merry blaze dance upwards, we feel for the
+moment that we must be in the mountain home of some ancient knight.
+
+Taking out the flowers which we have been collecting, we arrange and
+press them between sheets of blotting-paper; for Carpathian wild
+flowers will be a delightful novelty to our friends at home.
+
+There are various species of flowers which are indigenous to the
+Tátra only, amongst which are the _Saxifraga hieracifolia_,
+_Dianthus nitidus_ (both of which grow on limestone), _Avena
+Carpatica_, _Gentiana frigida_, _Ranunculus pygmæus_, and
+the _Campanula Carpatica_; whilst the beautiful _Edelweiss_,
+which has been stated, most unaccountably, not to exist at all in the
+Carpathians, grows to an enormous size in many districts of these
+mountains,--a fact borne out by the splendid specimens we have of it
+in our collection of Tátra flowers.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+The morrow brings a lovely day. Birds carol in the pine-woods, which,
+saturated with moisture from the recent rains, give forth a fragrant
+odour as the sun shines hot upon them. The forget-me-not opens its
+sweet blue eyes wide to catch the light of heaven. The fragile
+_Polygala_ erects its slender spikes, and the delicate _Dentaria
+glandulosa_, that yesterday almost fainted under its weight of
+moisture, now holds aloft its fairy-bells. The hoary lichen, which
+hung dishevelled like matted hair, dries its fringes in the sun, which
+filtering through the branches sparkles in the drops still lingering in
+the cups of the anemone.
+
+As we canter through the forest to the Cszorba-See, cataracts and
+mountain streamlets, swelled by the rain, come dancing, leaping,
+hurrying down each rocky gorge and shadowy ravine, till at length
+the broad and placid lake--which Nature has hidden deep in mountain
+fastnesses from the gaze of all but those enthusiastic lovers who
+diligently seek it out--bursts suddenly upon the view.
+
+Lying embosomed in its rocky cradle, the Cszorba-See is one of the
+most beautiful lakes of the whole range. Above it rises a glorious
+amphitheatre of mountain peaks. On the eastern extremity the
+Gerlsdorfer, and on the western the _Spitze_ of the Krivan, rear
+their mighty crests, whilst in the centre are the giant blocks of the
+Bastei and Szolyiszkó, the whole forming a circle of twelve miles in
+extent.
+
+The lake itself, which lies at an elevation of 4355 feet above the
+level of the sea, is the largest in the Southern Tátra; and as we stand
+on one of the lofty and serried precipices of granite with which it is
+environed, we think no scene was ever so enchanting. The crystal bosom
+of the water mirroring the sky; the bright green tint of the centre of
+the lake; the ethereal blue of its surface where it reposes over the
+deeper hollows, and the dark pines on its margin, combine together to
+form a gem of mountain, wood, and water.
+
+Though this lake possesses a depth of between sixty and seventy feet,
+and is therefore one of the deepest in the whole Tátra, it appears to
+feed itself, there being no inlet visible to the eye. It is surrounded
+by granite boulders, and partly floored with them too, while the water
+is so exquisitely clear that even the pebbles lying at the bottom among
+the granite seem close to the surface, and we feel we have only to
+plunge the hand in to pick them from their watery bed. As we stood on
+its margin we saw numerous triton (_Triton cristatus_) darting in
+and out amongst the stones, small fish about three or four inches long,
+covered with bright red spots; whilst feeding on the green sedges were
+several gold beetles (_Philoperta horticola_) in their glistening
+coats of mail. No whistling marmots make their nests in the rocks round
+the Cszorba-See; but the visitor, as he sits silently on its shores or
+climbs the precipices which wall it in on every side, will not remain
+long without seeing a kingly eagle cleave the skies, or, crossing the
+region of the lake, reflect its majestic image on its glassy bosom.
+
+During a storm this lake is said to be covered with large waves,
+which dash over the rocks, and the scene must then, indeed, be one
+of wild grandeur. Its outlet lies towards the south, where, almost
+imperceptibly to the eye, it empties itself over moor and fen, even in
+the driest months of the year, always flowing, and proving therefore
+that, though unseen, it must have a continual inflow. Strange to
+say, the water from some cause or other is bitter, possibly from the
+pinewood, a great deal of which has fallen into the lake, and which
+lies at the bottom.
+
+Hungarian _savants_ declare that this lake is the offspring of an
+ancient glacier, the upper end of which formerly extended to the ridge
+of the mountain lying between the twin rocks Bastei and Szolyiszkó, and
+which filled the valley between them, the base of the glacier resting
+on the space where the lake now fills, and which formed its reservoir;
+whilst the huge granite wall which is seen to enclose it on one side
+was the moraine which the glacier dragged with it in its progress down
+the mountain side. It is further believed that interesting remains
+exist in this lake similar to those discovered a few years ago in
+that of the Neusiedler in the west of Hungary. On this account it has
+been proposed by the Carpathian Society to draw off its waters, and
+the proposition may doubtless some day be carried out, when it is
+conjectured that relics of the Stone or Bronze Age will be brought to
+light.
+
+Our last evening at Villa Sontagh has arrived. Going out to bid
+farewell to the mountains which have at intervals behaved so badly to
+us, we find the Lomnitzer-Spitze rearing its head proudly above the
+dark pine-tops and bathed in a rich mingling of bronze and amber, its
+graceful outlines pencilled on a clear and mellow sky.
+
+At our feet lie the broad plains, flooded in the softened splendour
+of the evening light. The villages with their white spires, lying far
+apart amidst the expanse of ripening corn, which an hour ago were
+glistening like burnished gold, are now suffused with a faint and
+delicate flush of rose, for the sun is sinking in the crimson west.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Very softly, almost imperceptibly, the stately shadow of the mountains,
+marching with silent and stealthy steps begins to steal along the
+boundless plains, till the sun, lingering for an instant upon the
+highest peak as though it mourned to leave it, sinks at last to rest. A
+sombre shade passes over the landscape, like a sudden sadness over the
+human face--and thus our last day comes to an end.
+
+“You have been rather too early in the season to meet with fine
+weather,” remarked the Doctor, apologetically, as we sat round the
+fire for the last time, and the conversation had turned upon that
+never-failing resource of shipwrecked talkers, puzzled for a theme--the
+weather. We had alluded rather ungraciously, I fear, to the frequent
+rain and mist during our sojourn in these heights.
+
+“If you had come a fortnight later, or a month earlier,” he continued,
+“you would have been more fortunate, and, besides, this has been an
+exceptional year.”
+
+Now, I never remember having visited a new country, or returned to
+an old one, nor indeed gone anywhere whatever, but I have been told
+that the state of the weather is “exceptional.” Am _I_ then the
+cause of these meteorological disturbances--these unseasonable and
+unexpected risings and fallings of the barometer--these abnormal rains,
+untimely frosts, and bitter cutting winds--these cut-throat fogs, and
+murky, sunless skies? As the appalling possibility occurs to me, I feel
+inclined to retire within my castle like Giant Despair, and leave the
+elements in peace and quiet for ever!
+
+Our visit to the Tátra had in fact been carefully timed, and we had
+come early by intention. About three weeks hence, Hungarians and
+Austrians will be fleeing to these Alpine regions from the scorching
+heat of the Alfőld; gipsy bands and the sounds of revelry will awake
+these majestic solitudes; the fashionable world will bring hither their
+toilets and their etiquette, all very well in their place, but so out
+of time and tune, so hideous, so forbidding, and so altogether contrary
+to the poetry of these picturesque surroundings, that in their presence
+our whole being would have been set on edge. Besides which, the lonely
+beauty of the Alps loses its true spirit when gazed at in a crowd.
+How often have we crossed the great Swiss passes in sledges--the St.
+Gothard, Splügen, and the Simplon--ere they are open to the ordinary
+traveller, that we might enjoy Switzerland before the great rush of
+visitors begins! Never is it so grand as in the latter end of May
+or the beginning of June, when the snow is still lying in immense
+masses far down the mountain sides, and icicles still hang from each
+projecting rock and hoary pine. The scene may be desolate, but it is
+wild, beautiful, intensely Alpine, and, if I may so express it, _like
+itself_; and those who can see beauty in Nature, not only in her
+calm and placid moods, but in her savage and austere ones also, will
+gain far more than they imagine, by venturing to visit these sublime
+fastnesses before the season for the ordinary tourist sets in. They
+will then see the glorious Tátra as they are for eight or nine months
+in the year, and not during the two or three when they are all smiles
+and on good behaviour for company. And what eye does not perceive
+that sunshine is sometimes out of harmony with the spirit of mountain
+scenery? _Distant_ mountains may look best in sunlight, but near
+ones are never so majestic as on a grey day, or when clouds passing
+over the face of the sun throw them into alternate glow and gloom.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                            CHAPTER XVIII.
+
+                            THE GIPSY CAMP.
+
+
+An ordinary Hungarian coachman has little notion of time beyond that
+which has reference to the movements of the sun. The sun rises, and
+behold it is morning. It sets, and, lo! it is night. It is somewhere
+high up in the heavens, it is mid-day--but what time of day to within
+an hour or two he has not the faintest conception.
+
+Greksa Jankó, however, was not quite an ordinary coachman. He had
+long been under the influence of Tátra-Fűred civilisation, and was
+consequently only twenty minutes late when he drove up to the steps of
+Villa Sontagh as strong and jolly a little pair of cobs as could be
+found in all Hungary.
+
+There is a general leave-taking, very sorrowful on our part. The Herr
+Doctor comes out, and the pretty Frau Doctorinn; the manager, the
+little boy Simon, aged four, and the baby just five weeks and a day,
+all come out to see us off. There is much waving of the hand and cries
+of “_au revoir_” and “_auf wiedersehn_” from the balcony as,
+turning the corner, we get our last glimpse of the peaceful mountain
+home, and its pleasant and kind occupants.
+
+Away through the pine-woods by a broad pathway, and out into the main
+road which leads to the village of Félka, where we shall have to stay
+whilst the horses are shod, for we have a week’s hard work for them
+over mountain passes in the Northern Tátra, whither our steps now tend.
+
+I have already spoken much of the badness of the roads in Hungary, but
+nothing in all my experience comes up to the one we traverse, after
+emerging from the pine forest--through which, as I have previously
+said, it is good the whole way. It is my private opinion that one-half
+the cures which are supposed to be effected by the mineral waters
+of Tátra-Fűred are due as much as anything to the violent exercise
+to which the patients are subjected as a preliminary to the baths,
+and that “To be shaken before taken there” ought to be added to the
+programme of the bathing establishments.
+
+There is moreover a tradition of no very ancient date, that a dyspeptic
+old Magyar, believed to be suffering from enlargement of the liver,
+was so entirely cured on the journey between Poprád and Tátra-Fűred
+that he required no treatment on arrival, and simply turned round and
+went back again. The road in fact has never been other than a broad
+sand-track destitute of stones. We go down into holes and then ascend
+over hillocks, and the carriage rocks from side to side, and creaks and
+cracks, and strains in such a manner that we wonder it does not break
+up altogether, and that the plucky little horses do not give in and
+cease their efforts in utter despair. At last we reach Félka, and pull
+up at a blacksmith’s forge.
+
+The profession of shoeing horses in the Zipser district is evidently
+not affected by gipsies, as in other parts of Hungary, for the
+good-tempered-looking Vulcan who comes out smoking a long pipe, and
+at once commences the necessary operations, is not a gipsy; but not
+caring to take a lesson at present in the art of shoeing, we alight,
+and walking along to the quaint old church, make a sketch of it with
+its tall white tower and slender red cupola, which, rising from the
+centre of the roof, looks as though it had originally been a chimney,
+but in course of years had grown up and developed into a steeple.
+
+As I sketch, the people standing behind half-open doors or
+beneath archways--which might have been built in the time of the
+Pharaohs--watch me furtively, and then run into adjoining houses and
+summon their neighbours to come out and see what it all can mean.
+
+Passing through Poprád, we think it wise to stop and ascertain the
+safety or otherwise of our _britzska_, and find it safely reposing
+in the _álás_ where András deposited it the day we left both him
+and it for the mountains. It looks more dusty, and worn, and battered
+than ever, and gazing at it we feel it is high time its work was done.
+Close to the wheels some geese are wading in the mud, and sometimes
+getting stuck fast in it with their broad webbed feet; whilst within
+the sacred precincts of the carriage itself a hen would seem to have
+serious intentions of making her nest.
+
+In two hours’ time we reach Kesmark, a straggling old town, or
+rather--I beg its pardon--a “Royal Free City,”[2] and the most
+important place in Zips, containing 4500 inhabitants. It is situated
+on the river Poprád, at an elevation of 2115 feet above the level of
+the sea, close under and lying to the east of the Tátra. Its broad
+streets are lined with houses whose picturesque wooden roofs and
+gables overhang the road; each gable having attached to it an immense
+rain-shoot, sometimes even fifteen feet in length, made from a long
+straight trunk of a tree, which, hollowed out and projecting from the
+eaves, gives to the place a most singular and old-world appearance.
+Besides this, the gable and roof of each house is surmounted either by
+a wooden cross or ball, according to the religion of its occupants; the
+inhabitants being divided between Lutherans and Roman Catholics. These
+Zipsers, as they are called, are an industrious and thriving folk, well
+worthy the traveller’s attention, inheriting as they do the ancient
+characteristics and customs of their forefathers.
+
+[2] Although the laws existing before 1848 prohibited non-nobles from
+acquiring real estate, there were certain towns which in themselves
+were considered “noble,” and whose municipalities in their corporate
+capacity had the privilege of possessing and acquiring lands, not as
+individuals, but in the name of the towns they governed, such towns
+being distinguished from others not holding the privilege by being
+called “Royal Free Cities.”
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+In the centre of the town stands the _Rath-Haus_, or Town Hall,
+erected in 1461, and within a hundred yards of it stands an interesting
+old castle, formerly belonging to the Szapolzag family, but now in the
+possession of Count Täköly, who has caused it to be beautified and
+restored.
+
+The most interesting object of all, however, is the ancient Gothic
+church, erected in 1444, and built entirely of wood. I wish I could
+describe this wonderful old edifice, with its numerous gables,
+pinnacles, and figures, all painted grotesquely in fresco. The altar
+and pulpit are of the most fantastic description, the latter supported
+by two pink angels with gilt wings, stout muscular angels with brawny
+arms--types of the Zipser maidens. The church in fact was so full of
+sculpture that we mistook it for a Roman Catholic edifice, whereupon
+the woman who showed us over almost screamed and told us it was
+Lutheran.
+
+It was sad to be told that this quaint old monument of a past age
+is to be destroyed to give place to a brand new one of stone, very
+ostentatious and ugly in design, which is being built close by, and
+which, overtopping the beautiful ancient one, seems to be looking down
+upon it with disdain.
+
+Kesmark is the head-quarters for various Alpine excursions, such as
+to the “Alabaster Caves,” and the Green, Red, and White Lakes; but
+we do no more on this occasion than bait our horses. Whilst waiting
+at the hotel for our carriage to be brought round, we see on the
+table before us a Hungarian newspaper, entitled “_Osszehasőnlitó
+irodalomtőrtenelnu Lapok_.” Fancy taking in a periodical afflicted
+with such a name, but, after all, I believe it signifies nothing worse
+than “Comparative Literary Journal”!
+
+After leaving Kesmark, we journey towards the mountains which tower
+grandly above us, and pass through sleepy and silent little villages,
+the houses of which are made of pine-logs, and whose interstices are
+filled with moss to keep out the cold. There are no chimneys, and the
+smoke issues “picturesquely” through the roof.
+
+By the wayside, in the neighbourhood of the villages, are little
+shrines containing images of saints, resembling gaudily-painted dolls;
+whilst close to a mountain stream we are just passing, and which is
+evidently given occasionally to overflowing its borders, we observe
+a niche attached to a high pole, in which stands the figure of St.
+John Nepomucensis--a saint who, though drowned himself, is supposed to
+possess the power of restraining unruly waters, and protecting others
+from inundation.
+
+Farther still we recognise the form of St. Philip, that hospitable
+saint, who, just “done up,” is radiant in every colour of the prism.
+
+As we approach the quaint little town of Béla, with its prodigious
+shoots extending from the gabled houses--and which, in length and
+ponderousness, far outdo even those of Kesmark--the snowy range is
+glistening like molten silver, the peaks piercing the sky with points
+like needles.
+
+Nowhere is the outer belt of this stately group of mountains more
+beautiful than from this point. At Poprád the whole length of the range
+is seen, but here we are nearer to them; and although they present only
+a foreshortened view, they are far more bold and rugged.
+
+What a heavenly scene it is!--the ermined giants veiling their
+foreheads in the fleecy clouds which here and there pass across them;
+the deep blue precipices at their base dreaming in the noontide haze,
+and the broad stretch of pine-clad plains in the foreground.
+
+In the undulating pastures oxen are ploughing in teams of four, and
+even six, as they lazily turn the rich brown soil. Yonder is a group of
+men and women reclining under the shadow of a waggon as they eat their
+mid-day meal; whilst near the roadway to our left stands another of
+those picturesque wayside shrines, beneath which some country-people
+are kneeling.
+
+Since leaving Poprád the roads have been excellent, and, soon beginning
+to ascend the pass of a mountain which separates the south side of the
+Tátra from its northern or Polish slopes, we again get into the region
+of primeval pine-forests, the banks of which are full of that most
+lovely of all Alpine flowers--the blue gentian--which, dwelling so far
+above the ordinary abode of men, and reflecting the deep colour of the
+zenith, seems to have tempted down bits of the sky.
+
+The birds sing sweetly, and our hearts beat high. Who does not remember
+to have experienced such moments when the mere fact of existence is an
+immeasurable delight--when the life-blood courses through the veins
+with a warmer glow, and each bodily sense vibrates in unison with
+external nature? The invigorating mountain air, fragrant with the
+breath of pines; the purple expanse of mountain peak beyond; the bright
+sunshine,--all kindle within the heart a new joy, which leaves no room
+for other and sadder feelings. Even the sorrows of the past that are
+common to the lot of all, come floating upon the memory with a gentler
+sadness.
+
+Now and then we meet a long waggon filled with timber on its way to
+the plains, driven by a mild Slovak, who sings as he comes along, for
+he too is joyous on this lovely day. Sometimes a pedestrian passes us,
+his hat adorned with flowers gathered by the wayside; he lifts it, and
+gives us an unintelligible but kindly greeting. Then as we approach the
+summit of the pass the ragged edges of a fleecy cloud get caught in the
+topmost branches of the pines, and for a few moments we are enveloped
+in mist, but the sun soon shines brightly as before.
+
+Having crossed the pass, which has occupied about two hours, we arrive
+at the straggling village of Altendorf, inhabited by our old friends
+the Slovaks--for we have left Zips with its German-speaking population
+far behind, and shall soon be in a district inhabited entirely by
+Rusniaks, or _Malo-Rossijantsi_ (Little Russians), as they are
+sometimes called.
+
+There has been a fire here recently, for many of the houses are reduced
+to mere heaps of charred wood, which is lying about in all directions.
+Against each house a ladder is left standing, in readiness for the next
+conflagration: fires, we are told, being of very frequent occurrence
+at Altendorf. When one does take place, it is a marvel how any house
+escapes, for once ignited they must blaze like a box of matches,
+consisting as they do wholly of wood, and leaning almost one against
+the other.
+
+The Slovaks in this district differ slightly in appearance from those
+we saw in the _comitat_ of Gőmőr, and wear, instead of the large
+round felt hats which had amused us so infinitely, smaller ones turned
+up at the brim, very peculiar in shape, but less striking at first
+sight than the former. In other respects their costume is precisely the
+same, and their features and manner are wholly unmistakable, as also
+is their voice, which is melancholy and low. We felt glad to be amongst
+the gentle Slovaks again, for there is a pathos about them and their
+simple lives which interested us greatly.
+
+Long before we had completed our repast, which consisted of edibles
+brought with us from Villa Sontagh, it became noised abroad throughout
+the village that a family from _Ángolország_ had arrived, and were
+resting at the inn. Not that that noun suggested anything very definite
+to the ungeographical Slovak mind. But just as there are the moon
+and stars--spheres which they cannot reach or comprehend the nature
+of--so there are places on the earth, afar off, in a mysterious region
+beyond the Slovak horizon, or, it may be, in an altogether different
+world from that in which he has his being, where there are strange
+people speaking a strange language, possibly having tails or walking
+on “all fours,” and, for aught they know, possessing some entirely new
+arrangement of humanity. They consequently all turn out to behold with
+their own eyes these unknown entities and unexpected visitants to their
+hemisphere, and are no doubt greatly disappointed when they discover
+that we are men of like fashion with themselves.
+
+Walking down the village, we find on its outskirts a gipsy encampment.
+It consists of two hovels, formed of planks placed together tent-wise
+and partially sealed with mud. Close to these human kennels is a
+wretchedly old tent, whose canvas is seamed with many a patch and darn.
+In one of the hovels a small anvil rests on the ground, and from this
+we infer that they are the resident blacksmiths of the neighbourhood.
+
+I think it is Carlyle who says that “society is hung upon clothes.”
+These gipsies, however, possess in this matter a contempt for the
+superfluous common to their race, and, although residents of the
+village, they are not recognised as members of the Slovak community,
+possibly on the aforesaid theory. Be this as it may, no one had taken
+the trouble to impart to them the interesting fact of our arrival, or
+we may be quite sure they would long ere this have presented themselves
+clamouring for kreuzers, as is their wont on the advent of the
+stranger. But as soon as they see us, they begin to make up for lost
+time, and come pouring out of their hovels like a swarm of bees from a
+hive, thirteen women and children covered with the veriest rags, which,
+hanging upon them without shape or form, look like a hideous mockery
+of clothing, and cause them to present the saddest spectacle I ever
+witnessed. They were soon joined by two men, evidently of the party,
+hunger and oppression written in the faces of every one of them; whilst
+those of the younger wore an eager, wizened, hunted look. Not that they
+are ill-treated by the villagers,--far from it; but, descendants of
+a vagabond race, these “settled” gipsies seem no more civilised than
+their wandering brethren, and possess the same sad, oppressed, and
+down-trodden expression of countenance inseparable from their race--a
+heritage brought with them from the land of bondage, and which, like
+that of the Jews, has stamped them a separate and distinct people for
+ever, to be individually recognised in all countries and in all climes.
+
+As we look at them, clothed in their blackened rags which cling to them
+like cerements, we ask each other in dismay, Have these poor creatures
+immortal souls, and are they brethren? Are these amongst the number for
+whom precious blood was shed--these wild, half-savage-looking beings,
+with their secret language, their belief in elves and hobgoblins, their
+total disbelief in the immortality of the soul, and utter ignorance of
+every form of religion? Can _these_ be brothers and sisters, who,
+more degraded than the South Sea Islanders, recognise the existence of
+no Great Spirit higher and better than themselves?
+
+The Austrian Government insists on the gipsies having their children
+baptized, but they have no notion of the meaning of the rite. In fact
+the Christian religion is a complete puzzle to them, especially in
+regard to the Holy Trinity; some labouring under the belief that God
+the Father has abdicated in favour of His Son, others that He is dead
+and that His Son reigns in His stead.
+
+It is marvellous that in the nineteenth century such ignorance should
+exist in any Christian country. Surely there is work here, amongst
+these 150,000 outcasts, for Christian philanthropists?
+
+“How do these people live?” we ask of a respectable-looking man, whom
+curiosity has prompted to join us, and who we feel sure, from his
+wearing the familiar costume of the West, will be able to understand
+the question we have put to him in German, and reply to it, if ever so
+imperfectly; moreover, in all probability he may prove to be a Zipser.
+
+“_Gott allein weiss_,” he replied readily, shrugging his shoulders
+as if to give greater force and expression to the utterance, so full of
+sad and pathetic meaning. “_God only knows._”
+
+“But what do they live on? what do they eat?” we inquired, anxious to
+come to the root of the matter.
+
+“Anything,” was the reply; “they snare birds, and eat rats, and snails
+and frogs besides; nothing comes amiss to the _czigány_. There are
+three more men belonging to this gang, but they are away, picking up
+a job here and there, and _möglicherweise mausen sie_” (possibly
+pilfering). “They manage to live _somehow_”--and regarding the
+slender anatomy of these poor creatures, I could not help thinking
+that the various species of esculent he enumerated could not be
+very nourishing food; and the word “_somehow_” in all its sad
+significance haunted us for many a day afterwards.
+
+“Would they wear decent clothes if they were given them?” I asked
+again, remembering with regret the number of travel-stained garments we
+had left behind us at Poprád.
+
+“Yes! they would wear them,” answered our informant, who we afterwards
+learnt was an officer in the Revenue Department. “But the Slovaks are
+poor, very poor; besides,” he continued, smiling sardonically, “who
+would think of giving clothes to a _gipsy_?”
+
+Whilst this colloquy is taking place, F., surrounded by a knot of
+peasants a little higher up the village, is making the boys run for
+kreuzers. Amongst them is a gipsy urchin, who he insisted should be
+permitted to take part in the race, but who so invariably came in
+first, that after a few times he had to be handicapped; whilst a
+juvenile specimen of the male Slovak, whose particular mission in life
+would seem to be to lug about a big baby, cried so pitifully because he
+was unable to join the sport, that he had to be consoled with kreuzers.
+
+Then the small fry--the little four-year-olds--are made to run. In
+vain the bell summons them to afternoon school. In vain the long-robed
+priest comes out to see what can be the reason of their absence. A
+complete state of demoralisation has taken place--the Slovak urchins
+heed neither the schoolmaster nor his Reverence, call they never so
+loudly, and so the afternoon has to be declared a general holiday.
+
+At length it was proposed that the men should compete, a race in which
+our Jehu joins. Jankó had evidently made a great impression on the
+minds of the gentle Slovak by his Sontagh livery, which consists of a
+scarlet waistcoat and blue hussar jacket and tights, embroidered with
+bright yellow braid. All the village turns out to see the fun, even the
+babies, who whine plaintively, and receive not only kreuzers, but extra
+shoves on the part of their small nurses, who are scarcely bigger than
+themselves. I think I never saw so many babies together in all my life
+as in this Slovak village; and had it rained babies and hailed babies,
+instead of the conventional cats and dogs, during a recent heavy
+storm, I doubt whether they could have been more numerous. The day’s
+excitement is at last brought to a blissful termination by a _feu de
+joie_, in the shape of a general scramble for small coins, and we
+gallop away amidst the blessings and acclamations of the multitude,
+whom we have made quite happy at the cost--divided into infinitesimal
+fractions--of the magnificent sum of four and a half gulden.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XIX.
+
+                           THE RED CONVENT.
+
+
+In these northern localities persons are not only given to be a trifle
+vague in their measurement of time, but are also extremely patriarchal
+in their manner of computing distances.
+
+Thus, these simple Carpathian folk do not say a place is so many
+_miles_ away, but a day’s journey, or half a day’s journey, and so
+on as the case may be. We were consequently told at Tátra-Fűred before
+starting this morning that Neumarkt was a _long_ day’s journey
+off, but that if we made good speed we might reach it before nightfall.
+As however it was four o’clock by the time we lost sight of the village
+of Altendorf, which is scarcely more than one-third of the way, we are
+scarcely likely to see Neumarkt before to-morrow’s sunrise, even if we
+journey on from now till then.
+
+It is true that we had loitered in the company of those “little vulgar
+boys,” wasting our time and substance upon their amusement, but this
+only delayed us half an hour beyond the time required to rest our
+horses. The map showed that we should be passing several villages on
+the road, so that, although the prospect of putting up at a Slovak
+inn for the night was not very inviting, we pushed on, hoping for
+the best. We are so experienced by this time in the vicissitudes
+of Hungarian travel that, in the language of the Revenue Officer
+when alluding to the gipsy _menu_, “nothing comes amiss” to
+us; and if we cannot meet with an inn on our way, well, then we can
+“_out-span_.” Nor will it be for the first time, for we have
+done so on more than one occasion when travelling in the plains on a
+previous visit.
+
+We still continue to follow the post-road, and our spirited little
+nags, although they have already covered thirty-five miles of road,
+appear as fresh as possible as they trundle us along. It is wonderful
+what these Hungarian horses can accomplish with proper care and feeding.
+
+On our way, however, we meet the Royal Hungarian Mail, to which a horse
+of quite a different type is harnessed, and which, judging from the
+way it was progressing--being that moment engaged in the lively act
+of jibbing--was scarcely likely to reach Altendorf before to-morrow
+morning.
+
+To our left rises a bold and almost perpendicular cliff, densely
+clothed with majestic pines. At their feet flows rapidly but silently
+the Dunajecz--the river boundary between Hungary and Poland--with its
+waters, though perfectly clear, almost black, on account of the deep
+shadow thrown upon their surface by the sombre foliage.
+
+Crossing the stream by a covered wooden bridge, with its roof supported
+on enormous beams, through which we obtain, as in a rustic framework,
+exquisite pictures of rock and river and mountain peaks, we see
+immediately before us to our right a series of barren volcanic rocks,
+resembling gigantic cinders, and in colour almost vermilion. On their
+summits not a tuft of grass is growing; but on the highest pinnacle
+of all, perched on its extreme point, stand the ancient ruins of the
+_Rothe Kloster_, or Red Convent; whilst beyond the river, raising
+its crowned head proudly, lies the picturesque Kronenberg, so called on
+account of its jagged summit, which resembles a diadem. The whole forms
+the most striking scene in Hungary, and is in itself alone well worth
+coming all the way to see.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Ascending the steep rock on which the noble ruin stands, we are met
+halfway by a monk,--a stranger to this district, he informs us, like
+ourselves,--who turns back and accompanies us to the ancient building.
+
+From its red colour the castle is evidently built of the soft tufaceous
+stone found in the surrounding rocks, which would probably account for
+its massive walls being in such a complete state of decay, the cells
+and refectory having ceased to exist. Following our guide, we tread
+softly, recalling the time when the outer walls enclosed a tide of
+human life now in the land of silence; we hear the gentle footfall,
+and hushed voices of the saintly throng who once inhabited these
+cloisters, and a solemn and almost supernatural peace and stillness
+seem to hang about the place, as if long centuries had not been
+permitted to wrest them from its crumbling walls.
+
+As we stand gazing through an arch upon the wondrous scene beneath, and
+across at the Kronenberg, the “_Angelus_” tolls, and instantly the
+monk who accompanies us falls upon his knees.
+
+A visit to the Convent Church, which is still in a good state of
+preservation, concludes our ramble amongst these interesting ruins.
+They belong to the Bishop of Eperies, of the United Greek Church, and a
+pilgrimage is made to them once a year, when mass is said in Greek.
+
+Everywhere around us lie fragments of tufaceous matter, declaring
+the volcanic origin of this singular group of rocks, one of the many
+instances demonstrating the gigantic scale on which volcanic agency
+once operated in this country, there being no fewer than seven or
+eight mountain groups which are clearly distinguishable as owing their
+existence to that cause.
+
+Fain would we have lingered longer on these sacred heights, but day
+is on the wane, evening’s shadows are already beginning to fall, and,
+bidding the monk adieu, we journey on our way again.
+
+A little beyond the convent two roads meet; and uncertain which we are
+to follow, Jankó stops to ask the way of a woman who comes trudging
+along, picturesquely clad in a blue skirt, red bodice, and red kerchief
+round her head, and who forms the very object in the foreground which
+the eye needed to render the picture complete.
+
+We are now in Poland, and already, though we have only just crossed
+the frontier, we perceive a great difference in the appearance of the
+villages, which are much cleaner than those of the Slovaks. The houses,
+too, are differently built, being roofed with long thin planks placed
+one upon the other instead of shingles; whilst to add to the danger in
+case of fire, the inhabitants must needs cover half of the roof with
+thatch.
+
+Rural life in Gallicia is very picturesque. At every turn, we pass
+little roadside pictures which in their colouring and composition
+remind us of Cuyp. At this instant we come upon just one of those
+scenes which the old masters so loved to depict--a rustic bridge
+standing out against an expanse of moorland, which stretches away to
+the distant hills. In the foreground a girl in an “arrangement” of red
+is tending sheep and goats, some of which are drinking from a trough.
+The sun is setting, there is a rich saffron glow in the evening sky,
+and the whole scene is full of tranquillity and repose.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+On past lonely wooden churches with open belfries, and more pastoral
+pictures--girls driving sheep, goats, and oxen, or flocks of geese,
+which crane their long necks as we drive by; past curious doorways,
+half Chinese, in which women stand or sit spinning; past melancholy
+little cemeteries, lying all alone under the darkening sky. Then we
+leave all villages behind and enter a broad valley, bounded on one
+side by low pine-clad hills, and on the other by a long range of
+barren mountains, which constitute the peaks of the Northern Tátra. By
+and by solitary groups of houses show black against the horizon, and
+lonely farms, from the small deep-set windows of which a light here and
+there burns dim, and then we begin to ascend a hill. Halfway up we see
+standing in the roadway three men wearing large slouching hats, such as
+are worn by the typical brigand. And my heart beats faster when I find
+they are keeping pace with us. Presently one of them lays hold of the
+iron rod connected with the box of the carriage, and begins talking to
+Jankó--but there is no harm in him. He and his companions are, after
+all, only dear, honest, tired peasants, returning from their toil in
+distant pastures, and they are asking him, by way of friendly greeting,
+where we have come from, for we hear him answer “Schmecks.” They speak
+Polish, of which Jankó happily understands a little.
+
+“How far is it to Neumarkt?” he inquires, and then turns round, and,
+leaning over the box, interprets their answer in German.
+
+“_Zwei gute Stunden._” (Two good hours.)
+
+Now, had the answer been “_Zwei Stunden_” only, we might, late as
+it was, have tried to push on, but when spoken by a German or Pole the
+small adjective _gute_ becomes so indefinite in its signification,
+as we had many a time learnt to our cost, that we resolved to come to
+a halt at the next village. Our plucky little steeds, too, are at last
+beginning to give in, as well they may; the night is dark, and there
+are _of course_ no candles in the lamps. Candles would have been
+an instance of forethought wholly unprecedented in a Hungarian coachman
+beyond the realm of Pest.
+
+Such heavy clouds have gathered over the sky that neither moon nor
+stars are visible, but coming in a short time to a wayside farm, whose
+light gleams hospitably across the road, we pull up and inquire how far
+it is to the next village. The door opens, and a man comes out with
+long hair hanging over his shoulders and drawn behind his ears like
+a woman’s. He is followed by the buxom _Hausfrau_ herself, clad
+in a black velvet bodice laced loosely over a scarlet stomacher, and
+large white sleeves. How pretty she looks with the bright light from
+within shining upon her! and what a sweet bit of concentrated colour
+she affords, very cheering to the eye amidst the surrounding darkness!
+Through the open doorway we can see into the room, which is clean and
+tidy; whilst nearly in the centre, not far from a table on which the
+evening meal is spread, is a cradle containing a small Polish baby fast
+asleep, pretty much like other babies, but it is the first real, live
+Polish baby we have seen, and we make the most of it.
+
+There is a village, they inform us, where we can find accommodation,
+ten minutes farther on, but will we not stay and take some refreshment?
+“the strangers have travelled far, they must be weary.” With the
+prospect however of shelter at last so near, we do not accept their
+proffered kindness. Then very gently, but not until we have really
+started, the door closes, and the darkness seems twice as great as
+before--not so much, we fancy, because of the contrast the light
+afforded and which had dimmed our vision by the glare, but by reason
+of the halo of happiness and comfort that appeared to surround that
+secluded home. The very remembrance of it cheers us on our way.
+
+On, till many lights gleam red in the distance, and we pass a
+turnpike,--a primitive construction, consisting of a pine-log,
+suspended over the road,--which brings another, similarly dressed but
+younger, woman out into the darkness, and we enter the village, the
+houses of which are much better than any we had seen whilst travelling
+through the North of Hungary. Within the fence that surrounds them,
+large fires are burning in the “open,” near which the people sit in
+groups; giving to the scene a very wild, weird, and un-European look.
+
+Presently we stop to inquire of two men crouching round one of these
+fires the way to an inn. They come towards us instantly, and bare
+their heads, holding their hats while answering the questions of the
+coachman, just as all had done on the road earlier in the day. They
+direct us to a house a little farther on, and volunteer to accompany
+us. It is a large one-storied building standing in a kind of yard.
+At the unexpected sound of wheels--travellers are evidently not very
+frequent here--a little knot of persons appear at the doorway, their
+figures standing out black against the bright light inside.
+
+“Have they a room, and can they accommodate us for the night?” inquires
+Jankó in Polish.
+
+A rather long parley ensues, It is not an inn, after all, there being
+in fact none in the village; but strangers are sometimes accommodated
+here. A woman comes to the carriage and addresses us in German. We are
+welcome to her roof, but the accommodation she has to offer is of the
+humblest description, and not suitable for “_hochgeborene Herrschaft
+wie Sie_.” But would we enter and see it for ourselves?
+
+The house was a rambling old place, built entirely of wood, and
+entered by a verandah raised some steps from the ground. The outer
+room was beautifully clean, the bright “_batterie de cuisine_”
+suspended from the kitchen walls smiling a welcome to us as we
+crossed the threshold. We are shown at once to the guest-room, which
+every moderately well-to-do family keeps ready for the stranger in
+this hospitable country as well as in Hungary. The furniture, as we
+anticipated, was of the most modest description, but perfectly clean,
+and we wanted nothing more. Outside the room was a sort of dairy, in
+which large pails of milk were standing, and there was a pleasant odour
+of cream and butter pervading the whole house. Beyond this was a large
+shed, in which were several cows with their calves, and into which the
+window of our room looked, apparently the only light it possessed. A
+lantern was suspended from a beam, and an old man was giving Indian
+corn to Jankó for the horses.
+
+On returning to the general room, a young woman comes forward out of
+the shadow of the inner porch and kisses our hands.
+
+“The _Herrschaft_ are English,” remarked our trim hostess by way
+of introduction, to whom we had previously confided that interesting
+fact; “they come from the country where the sugar and the coffee grow.
+_Such_ a long way off. _Ach!_ I recollect learning all about
+it _in der Schule_ when I was a child.”
+
+Saying which, she took from her capacious pocket a bunch of keys, and
+unlocking a _Schrank_ (wardrobe) took thence a quantity of clean
+homespun linen.
+
+A cloth was already spread on a long table at the side of the
+apartment, and it was evident that we were expected to join the common
+meal. The evenings are exceedingly cold on the northern side of the
+Tátra, however hot the days may be, and there are only six weeks in the
+whole year when it does not freeze by night. The warmth of the fire was
+therefore very pleasant.
+
+Sitting by the broad hearth, we watch the movements of the two women,
+mother and daughter, as they trip about in their short petticoats and
+laced red bodices preparing supper, neither of them appearing in the
+smallest degree disconcerted at the presence of strangers. A place of
+honour is however set apart for ourselves at the top of the table,
+where a small white cloth of finer linen is spread, together with
+the best china, which the younger woman had reached from the shelf
+of a little glazed cupboard. As soon as the simple meal was ready,
+consisting of a huge dish of fried slices of potato, some kind of
+stewed meat and a _Pfannkuchen_ (pancake), the old man whom we had
+seen in the adjoining shed came in, his white hair, drawn behind the
+ears, hanging over his shoulders in snowy locks. He also kissed our
+hands and welcomed us warmly, saying in German, in which more than one
+Sláv word was intermingled, “Happy are they who welcome to their humble
+roof the homeless and the stranger.” He was evidently a man who, like
+any other peasant, had spent his life in the labours of husbandry, but
+he spoke these words with a dignity and courtesy of manner that would
+have done credit to a “noble” with a pedigree of sixty generations.
+
+Then followed a short “grace” in an unknown tongue, at which all stood,
+after which we were invited to take our seats.
+
+Supper ended, and whilst the women were flitting about as they
+performed the household duties for the night, a priest came in, a more
+intelligent man than the priests usually are in these remote districts,
+and from him we were enabled to glean a great deal of information
+concerning the country we are now visiting.
+
+Gallicia, besides its own native population, contains no fewer than
+two millions and a half of Rusniaks, here called Ruthenians, a people
+speaking a dialect of the Russian, and belonging, like the Slovaks,
+to the Greek Church. The Poles however, as we had ample opportunity
+of ascertaining before we left this province, are the most bigoted
+of Roman Catholics, not only deeply attached to their Church, but
+most observant of its rites; a people full of religious zeal, and
+very intolerant of the faith of those who differ from them. Since the
+partition of Poland in the latter part of the last century and the
+occupation by Austria of Cracow (the ancient capital) together with the
+whole of Gallicia, the German language has been growing more and more
+general amongst the better classes; but the lower classes still cling
+to their Sláv dialects, occasionally, however, interlarding them with
+German words.
+
+Whilst we were conversing with the priest, two young men, apparently
+brothers, strolled in and took their seats on the other side of the
+hearth, but seemed rather taken aback on finding themselves in the
+presence of strangers. They appeared to have been expected, for no
+sooner had they arrived than a sweet warm drink, something akin to our
+national beverage “punch,” was handed round to each person, including
+the hostess and her daughter, who had now joined the circle. The latter
+was a young girl of about seventeen or eighteen, and she, avoiding
+the opposite side of the hearth occupied by the new arrivals, seated
+herself shyly on the settle beside her grandfather,--a circumstance
+which called forth a facetious remonstrance from the old man, which
+caused her to turn away her head, whilst a crimson blush suffused her
+whole countenance. There was an awkward pause, broken at last by the
+priest, who, evidently trying to restore the girl’s tranquillity,
+remarked with a twinkle in his eye:
+
+“Martcha! your _Gebräude_ (brew) is not as good as usual to-night.
+Make another, and help us all again!”
+
+At this juncture, fearing our presence might be a restraint upon the
+little company, we retired for the night, feeling very glad that
+circumstances had compelled our remaining here, and afforded us an
+opportunity of making the acquaintance of a Polish family.
+
+Several hours’ sound sleep not only refreshed but made us feel equal to
+any emergency that might arise during our next stage. Dawn however was
+ushered in by a most unaccountable succession of noises, accompanied by
+the clatter of women’s tongues, with frequent titterings and mention
+of the name of Yetta, the reason of which we afterwards learnt was
+the young girl’s marriage, which was to take place that very day, the
+“happy man” being one of the village swains whom we had seen last
+evening.
+
+Although our inclination prompted us to remain and witness the novel
+spectacle of a Polish wedding, we feared our longer sojourn would be an
+intrusion, and at ten o’clock, our carriage being at the door, we took
+leave of these, to us, interesting people with their simple and idyllic
+lives. From the first we felt that they would make no direct charge
+for the accommodation afforded. We therefore placed, at the moment of
+parting, a gratuity in Martcha’s hand, but even this was declined with
+such a look of pain from each one that we saw it would be vain to press
+anything upon them; nor was it until after I had succeeded in assuring
+them it was not offered by way of payment, but as a _souvenir_ and
+wedding present, that I prevailed on Yetta to accept a small trinket
+which I happened to have attached to my watch-chain.
+
+“_Andenken! Andenken!_” (Remembrance! Remembrance!) “Ah, surely
+we want none to keep alive within us the memory of the _gute
+Engländer_. We will never forget you, never! never!” and with much
+kissing of the hand on their part, and expressions of gratitude on
+ours, we bid adieu to the village.
+
+  [Illustration: _The Royal Hungarian Mail!_]
+
+
+
+
+                              CHAPTER XX.
+
+                               ZAKOPANE.
+
+
+It is high festival at Neumarkt, and men, women, and little children,
+emerging from arched doorways, rosary and prayer-book in hand, are
+hurrying to church. In the green enclosure outside the building the
+people are kneeling in picturesque groups, old men with long white
+locks hanging over their shoulders, and decrepit old women in singular
+head-gear, all mumbling their prayers in a feeble monotone; whilst
+beside them kneel young maids and matrons in every gradation of red and
+pink, with broad white scarves covering the head and shoulders.
+
+Inside the church there is a throng of devout worshippers. And what a
+curious old place it is, with its side altars and unexpected alcoves,
+erected at the top of broad flights of stone steps, where the people
+are standing and kneeling in such numbers that, as we leave the garish
+day and enter the dimly-lighted sanctuary, the whole length of the
+wall extending from east to west appears to consist of a bas-relief of
+many-coloured life-sized figures, rather than a crowd of living men and
+women!
+
+They are singing in Polish the psalms for the day. There is no choir,
+so far as we can ascertain, nor instrument of any kind to lead
+them, but the congregation sing lustily, and make up in quantity for
+whatever shortcomings there may happen to be in quality. The men and
+women chant the verses alternately, and if their voices are not the
+most harmonious, their hearts are at any rate attuned to the grateful
+utterances of Israel’s great Poet.
+
+The psalm they were chanting when we entered, and which we were able
+to recognise from its refrain--“O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is
+gracious; and His mercy endureth for ever”--was the one hundred and
+thirty-sixth.
+
+It was beautiful to hear them with one accord singing this grand old
+psalm, whilst the faithful outside the church, standing with heads
+uncovered, united their voices to those within. I can not remember a
+more impressive sight. The strange costumes, the singular old edifice,
+and the devout attitude of the people, all looked more like a highly
+finished picture than anything in real life. Observing the entrance of
+strangers, they quietly made way for us, but there were no restless,
+wandering eyes, nor any idle curiosity evinced to know who or what we
+were. The form of religion which we profess may differ from theirs, but
+beneath the shadow of these ancient and glorious mountains, all minor
+dissimilarities vanish out of sight, and our hearts mingled with theirs
+as the grateful hymn of praise rose like incense to the Common Father
+of us all, and we felt that it was “good for us to be here.”
+
+Besides the costumes of the peasantry we noticed amongst the
+worshippers many pertaining to persons of the better class; and were
+made acquainted for the first time with the true _polonaise_, a
+long garment of black cloth, half tight, half loose, edged with broad
+gold lace, very handsome in itself, as well as becoming to the figure
+of the wearer.
+
+It is not however all _couleur de rose_ at Neumarkt, or Nowýtarg,
+as the town is called in Polish. The inn at which we have taken up
+our temporary abode is of the dirtiest description. Standing in the
+narrow courtyard beneath our room, all amongst the kitchen and the
+stables, both of which are in the closest juxtaposition, are several
+repulsive-looking Jews in greasy black gowns extending to the heels.
+These Gallician Jews, although wearing the hair short behind, allow the
+front locks to remain unshorn, which they twist into long ringlets, and
+which, hanging down each cheek, give to the wearers a most unmanly and
+comic appearance.
+
+On descending to the lower apartments, we find the general sitting-room
+also full of Jews, talking in loud tones of _jochs_ of land and
+_massen_ of gold, and having already had a surreptitious peep into
+the shades where the cook reigned supreme, we determine to leave our
+carriage here for a few days to give the horses a thorough rest, and
+to hire another to take us on to Zakopane, a village lying at the foot
+of the Northern Tátra, where we hope to find, if humble, at any rate
+cleaner accommodation.
+
+Whilst waiting for a vehicle to be got ready for us, we again stroll
+out into the town, and are presently accosted by a Polish gentleman who
+had that morning arrived from Cracow.
+
+“Throughout Gallicia,” said he, in German, upon our mentioning the
+reason of our leaving Neumarkt for Zakopane, “the inns are invariably
+kept by Jews, who are not only dirty, but the very bane of our land.
+Those who have inns encourage the peasants who come to them for
+spirits or other intoxicating liquors to buy on credit, preferring
+the credit system infinitely to receiving payment at the time; for the
+wily Jew knows full well that each customer possesses as security a
+_joch_ or two of land--an inheritance handed down to him for many
+generations. The Gallician peasant lives a hard life, and enjoys his
+glass of _slivovitz_, needing but little encouragement to exceed
+his intended quantity, and heeding little the cost of that which he
+does not pay for then and there. At length, though long deferred, the
+day of reckoning comes, and then money is wanting to pay the bill
+that has possibly been accumulating for years. One household treasure
+after another has to be resigned, and when these are exhausted the
+_jochs_ have to be mortgaged. So frequently in fact does this
+latter happen, that in some districts whole villages are virtually in
+the hands of Jew creditors, who hold the entire population in bondage.”
+
+The Poles of this province keep their festivals as we keep Sundays.
+It was a considerable time therefore before a person could be found
+who would drive us; but a young Pole of elastic conscience was at
+last unearthed, and the landlord, chagrined at our speedy flight,
+informed us in no very civil tone that the _britzska_ is ready.
+Notwithstanding this imposing signification, our vehicle is none other
+than a cart whose sides consist of two rough planks of unpainted
+wood. The seats however possess iron backs, an unusual luxury in this
+mode of conveyance, for which we feel truly thankful. The horses, two
+grey bony creatures, at least sixteen hands high, are ornamented with
+bridle-knots and streamers cut out of scarlet leather, so that with
+such a _tout ensemble_ we are conscious of presenting a very
+commanding appearance as we rattle over the uneven pavement and go
+dashing out into the road that leads in a direct line to the mountains
+which rise above us--a majestic stretch of peaks, shrouded in snow.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+We pass a crucifix, and off goes our driver’s hat. Another, and off it
+goes again. A group of men come walking along the road, who also bare
+their heads in passing. I never saw so many crucifixes and shrines in
+any country in my life. Yonder is a piece of cultivated land; it too
+has its crucifix. They do these matters magnificently here, for all are
+painted in black and gold. Two roads meet, and guarding them is the
+image of a saint; whilst every little rivulet that comes trickling down
+the hillside “with a sweet complaining” is watched over by a St. John
+Nepomucensis. In fact, so frequently are these wayside shrines met with
+in this country, and so persistently do the people uncover their heads,
+that we begin to wonder they wear any hats at all; whilst in the
+villages saints may truly be said to swarm. Surely the crops can never
+fail nor barns be empty if the saints, whose spiritual presence would
+seem to be a great living reality with these dear devout Gallicians, do
+that which is expected of them.
+
+Here the traveller sees no images with blackened eyes and broken noses,
+nor any with dilapidated and faded garments, as in other countries
+nearer home. All are as spick and span as paint and gilt and varnish
+can make them; and the manner in which the faithful “shovel on” the
+colour is both exemplary and praiseworthy.
+
+A very favourite saint, if we may judge from the frequency with
+which shrines are devoted to his reception, is St. Nicolas; and if
+we might be permitted to express an opinion, it would be that he is
+very hardly used. None other than the St. Claus of our juvenile days,
+whose particular mission it is to slide down sooty chimneys and watch
+the behaviour of children both good and bad, it is nothing less than
+cruelty to expect him to look after _bees_ as well. But here he
+is again, in all the majesty of gilt mitre and purple robes, standing
+in an alcove in which a number of bee-hives are reposing, watching the
+movements of those busy workers, and seeing that they “improve the
+shining hour.”
+
+It is only fair to say that the villages over which these titular
+divinities preside with untiring vigilance and unblinking eye do them
+no small credit. There are no signs of poverty apparent anywhere, and
+the low one-storied log-built houses are pictures of warmth and plenty.
+
+As we proceed, the distant lowing of cattle comes borne towards us.
+A church whose steeple we just catch sight of through the trees is
+tolling its little cracked bell for vespers, and there is in everything
+an all-pervading sentiment of happiness and peace. Responsive to the
+call, the villagers are hastening in its direction; the women in their
+beautiful costume, a short dark-blue under-skirt, over which are worn
+garments in various and distinct shades of brilliant red.
+
+This blending of various degrees of the same colour is exceedingly
+artistic, and the effect from a short distance both rich and
+harmonious. The women all wear the clean white muslin scarf over the
+head before alluded to, the ends of which are trimmed with lace or
+fringe, and which evidently constitutes their church-going attire.
+The costumes of the stronger sex however--whose privilege it is to
+be ugly--are seldom really picturesque anywhere, nor are they here.
+A long loose garment of coarse brown cloth, very baggy about the
+sleeves--indeed, very baggy everywhere--forms their Sunday garment.
+But even this shapeless gaberdine is not left unadorned in its elegant
+simplicity, but is ornamented with a very elaborate trimming of scarlet
+cloth, cut with infinite skill into strips one narrower than the other,
+until the thickness of half an inch is attained. The edge of each
+strip is scalloped, and the effect when new exactly resembles a heavy
+trimming composed of small red beads.
+
+In this particular, the outer garment of our driver is quite a study
+in its way, and one we have ample opportunity of pursuing as we jog
+along the road, until by a similar accident to that which befell
+ourselves on the way from the cobalt mines at Dobsina, he suddenly
+doubles up, and for a space becomes lost to sight amongst the straw
+at the bottom of the cart. By a series of jolts and jerks of more than
+ordinary violence, the box-seat had collapsed in consequence of the
+straps breaking which attached it to the side. F., alive to the danger
+which this catastrophe threatened, seized the reins, but, contrary
+to his expectations, instead of our fiery Arabs attempting to run
+away, they instantly pulled up short; for were they not accustomed to
+little _contretemps_ of the like nature, and had they not been in
+momentary expectation of one occurring ever since we started? As soon
+as he has picked himself up and shaken himself into shape again, the
+driver, with the greatest calmness and deliberation, searches amongst a
+number of old chains and straps in a corner of the vehicle for a piece
+of rope, repairs the fracture as if it were the most ordinary episode
+possible, and we continue our route.
+
+By this time the vesper bells have ceased their chiming, and the late
+comers crowding the churchyard kneel close under the walls of the
+sacred edifice, till they surround it like a ring. On the mountain
+slopes women in blue and red--the “keepers at home”--are driving in
+the kine, for the nights in this region are always cold. Surely Nature
+herself must have taught these people how to dress! Where all is green,
+how pleasing to the eye is a little patch of red--its complementary
+colour--giving warmth and animation to the landscape!
+
+Wending their way through the pine-woods which we have now entered,
+these peasant women make the most ravishing pictures imaginable. But
+to-morrow they will lay their gay attire in the long coffer with which
+every house is provided, until the following Sunday or the next
+festival comes round again, and, donning their every-day garments of
+faded pink and red, will be seen working in the fields like men.
+
+Following the road through the thick forest, we now come to an opening,
+and see in front of us a splendid mountain, which seems to bar our
+further progress as it rises in bold bare bluffs above the ragged
+pine-tops at its base. Below flows the _Weisse Dunajecz_, clear as
+crystal, which at this point sometimes assumes all the appearance of a
+lake, but is to-day dwindled to a mere rivulet flowing through the deep
+channel of its white and pebbly bed. A turn to the right, and we find
+ourselves facing a large square stone building of one story, to which
+the driver first points, and then placing his open palm against his
+cheek, closing both eyes and leaning his head on one side, intimates by
+mute gesture that this is the inn where we are to sleep to-night.
+
+Dismissing him and his bony animals with a _pour-boire_ with which
+he seems more than satisfied, we enter the house and find ourselves
+standing in a long comfortless stone passage, out of which lead rooms
+at right angles with each other. There is no lack of ventilation here,
+at any rate, and one would imagine that the dwelling must have been
+originally constructed with an especial view to the entertainment of
+the four winds of heaven, which I should imagine must be its only
+guests for at least three-fourths of the year.
+
+There is, however, a homely something about the place which is
+difficult to define, and a glimpse of the large kitchen adjoining the
+sitting-room convinces us at once of its perfect cleanliness, whilst
+a combination of savoury odours, suggestive of the familiar process
+known in the technical language of kitchens in general as “dishing
+up,” proceeds from that mysterious apartment, to which our hunger
+gratefully responds. Although we have been travelling since early
+morning, we have partaken of nothing save two hard-boiled eggs left
+from the provisions with which we were hospitably provided on leaving
+Tátra-Fűred, and the fossil remains of a piece of sausage, the relic of
+an even more remote repast; but who after this will venture to question
+the sustaining qualities of the classic garlic!
+
+The table is laid for four guests, who soon appear; a lady and
+gentleman from Cracow, and two Germans, one of whom is not only a
+Count, but a huntsman, judging from his style of dress, which was a
+kind of William Tell “get up,” and only wanted a bow and arrow to
+render his resemblance to that interesting hero complete. We could
+not ascertain from the conversation that ensued what had been the
+day’s success of this enthusiastic young sportsman, but there was a
+great talk of “_Gemsen_” (chamois), “_Hirsche_” (deer), and
+such familiar and domestic animals as “_Bären_” (bears), all of
+which we heard whilst sitting at another table close by. His clothes,
+evidently quite new, bore no honourable marks such as one would suppose
+his to possess who had encountered these quadrupeds in the chase;
+moreover his hands were as white as those of a woman, and his long
+thin fingers, adorned with a variety of large oval rings, gave rise to
+doubts as to whether so effeminate and dainty a creature could even
+have joined issue with a sparrow.
+
+After dinner they all went to the village some little distance off,
+where there is a billiard-room for visitors, and we were glad to be
+alone.
+
+“Ah,” exclaimed our host, a Pole from Warsaw, when he found that we
+were English, “a countryman of yours was the first to climb the
+Eisthaler-Spitze from Zakopane; his name was Ball; not many can
+climb _him_,” by which I imagine he meant the mountain, and not
+Mr. Ball, who, though renowned for his Alpine explorations, I never
+heard was a person of more than ordinary dimensions. “Ah! he was
+great, and noble, and brave,” alluding this time to Mr. Ball, and
+not to the mountain. “It is a long time ago now, nearly thirty-seven
+years, but there are some who still remember _der tapfere Englische
+Bergsteiger_” (the brave English climber).
+
+“There is to be a chamois hunt to-morrow, got up for the Herr Graf,”
+continued he, referring as we fancy to our friend of the William Tell
+costume. “But it was snowing on the heights yesterday, and they will
+have some tough climbing up yonder”--pointing through the wall to the
+great mountain outside. “You will not have much sleep, I fear, after
+four o’clock, at which hour they will be starting.”
+
+A chamois hunt! It was the dream of my childhood verified. A born lover
+of Alps and Alpine pursuits, has not my heart gone “pit-a-pat” many a
+time over the bold exploits of the chamois hunter? Ah! if I had only
+been a boy, I would have grown into a chamois hunter too, and lived in
+a lonely châlet beneath some snowy peak. And here I am at last in the
+very place of chamois hunters! We must rise with the sun to see them
+start; and who knows but that in our own climb to-morrow, we may come
+in for a little of the sport--from a distance, at any rate.
+
+Ascertaining which way they are likely to go, we order ponies to be in
+readiness at seven o’clock, determining to ride as far as we can, and
+then take to our feet, or even “all fours” if necessary. The mountains
+are very precipitous in the Tátra, much more so as a rule than those
+at the same altitude in Switzerland, and ponies we knew would not be
+able to carry us very far on the way, but to be saved even a couple of
+miles of road would be a comfort when we have a hard climb before us.
+A guide and provision _Träger_ are also told off to accompany us,
+and I retire for the night feeling that one of the desires of my life
+is about to be accomplished.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XXI.
+
+                          THE CHAMOIS HUNTER.
+
+
+The morning broke just as such mornings should, but so seldom do; the
+dark and sombre mountains, rearing their perpendicular walls of granite
+high into the zenith, stood out blue and sharp against the rosy sky,
+as the sun, still far below the horizon, sent upwards his crimson
+messengers.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Long before it was light, however--for dawn defers her coming in
+this mountain gorge--we were suddenly awakened from a sound sleep by
+hideous, unearthly, and perfectly indescribable noises outside our
+window, which we afterwards learned proceeded from a duet, if not a
+trio, of cow-horns. We had fallen asleep under the impression that
+we should be aroused from our slumbers by the sweet and inspiriting
+music of the _Jägerhorn_, but how cruelly was this fond delusion
+dissipated! We had hardly recovered from the effects of the first
+deafening blast, when another burst from the inharmonious trio
+of sound, followed by the snapping of rifles, awoke throbbing and
+reproachful echoes in the stern mountains, and this time brought the
+Herr Graf out of his apartment. _We_ had also obeyed the rude
+summons, and, hastily attiring ourselves--elaborate toilets being at
+the best of times out of place in the mountains--were soon standing
+outside the barrack-like building in the chill morning.
+
+Mountain air is much more provocative of hunger than sleep, so that
+getting up in the small hours is not nearly so uncomfortable a
+proceeding as in one’s snug home in the lowlands. In any case it was
+well worth the effort on this occasion, if only to see the breaking of
+the morn, and to watch one beautiful object after another, rock and
+tree and flowing water, take shape and grow out of the dim chaos of
+night.
+
+The hunting party, consisting of about seven men, all either _Jäger_
+or _Treiber_ (huntsmen or beaters), were being regaled with coffee
+before the start; besides whom were several provision _Träger_ and
+porters for promiscuous baggage, which they carried strapped to their
+backs like knapsacks. At a little distance, talking confidentially to
+the landlord, is the youthful Count himself, in all the panoply of the
+chase, not a single accompaniment wanting. In addition to his hunting
+costume, he wears wound round his body a large net and rope. The use of
+the former was somewhat difficult to define, and left us in doubt as to
+whether it were intended for a hammock, or for catching fish in one of
+the Alpine lakes in the vicinity of which they were about to beat.
+
+“How do you manage to exist in these solitudes during the long
+winter?” we inquired of our host after they had gone, as he spread the
+snowy cloth for our breakfast.
+
+“What can one do?” replied the little man, with a look of sad
+resignation: “the time seems long, very long, but one must have
+patience, and then the summer comes, bringing with it the visitors.
+Ah,” he continued, with a sigh, “we are no longer at home in our once
+peaceful land. Where Russia rules, no Pole’s house is his own, and none
+can tell what we have to suffer. In Austrian Poland we are safe from
+persecution, but in _Russian Poland_----I am a self-imposed exile,
+and would rather be a peasant under Austrian rule than a prince under
+that of Russia.”
+
+Well fortified by an excellent breakfast for our own climb, we mount
+our ponies at the appointed hour, and crossing the foaming Bystre,
+at the ironworks of the Baron Ludwig Eichhorn, ascend a steep path
+through the forest; after leaving which we again reach the region of
+_krummholz_, which is growing in dishevelled masses on the abrupt
+precipice of the Thalkessel.
+
+Our ponies, unaccustomed for nine whole months of the year to carry
+human freight, have, as may be readily supposed, like my old friend
+Minsh, their respective idiosyncrasies, and I have a shrewd suspicion
+that the one on which I am seated has never before carried anything of
+greater importance than a sack. It manifests in fact such a spirit of
+antagonism to me personally, that before I had been in the saddle many
+minutes, it did its best to get rid of me entirely by running close to
+ledges of rock--where any presented themselves on the left side of the
+path--as well as against trunks of trees and prickly brushwood or any
+other obstacle of the like nature, evidently hoping thereby quietly
+to rub me off as it would have done a fly, or leech, or any other
+obnoxious and irritating parasite. I must say that considering their
+patriarchal titles--their names were Abraham and Sarah--they behaved
+very badly indeed, the former having an uncomfortable trick of keeping
+to the outer or precipice side of the narrow paths, causing one leg of
+his rider to hang over the yawning abyss immediately beneath, as if to
+give him timely warning of the kind of “promised land” _he_ had
+to expect unless he took heed to his ways. Beyond this odious habit,
+however, Abraham pursued his course with austere dignity, looking
+neither to the right nor to the left.
+
+We are getting on fast with our knowledge of the Polish language. When
+we wish to go faster, we give the patriarchal pair a gentle reminder
+with a bramble--which has been furnished us in lieu of a whip--and
+exclaim in commanding tones “_Jedj prentko!_” and when we desire
+to stop, cry “_Stu-i!_” At length, after a climb of an hour and a
+quarter’s duration, we reach a grass-covered hollow lying between two
+mountains, and, leaving the ponies behind, continue our climb on foot.
+
+Following our guide and scrambling through the branches of the
+spreading _krummholz_, we soon stand at the foot of the Felsenkegel,
+from whence we have a magnificent view of the north-western portion
+of the Tátra chain, here called the Krapak. But, beautiful as it is,
+we do not linger at this spot, having a long climb before us to the
+Frozen and the Black Lakes, called respectively, in the Sláv dialect
+of the district, _Zamárly Staw_ and _Czarny Staw_. Retracing our steps
+as far as the meadow where our ponies are grazing, we cross a babbling
+stream and begin to ascend the mountain by a more gentle slope, till
+we see the Black Lake before us, lying snug and warm in the lap of
+enfolding mountains, and which, next to the Cszorba-See, is one of the
+loveliest of which the Tátra boasts. To the west, floating still and
+calm in its oval-shaped basin, lay a small rocky island covered with
+the dark _krummholz_. Not a ripple disturbs the tranquil bosom of the
+lake, for here, as at the Félka tarn, perfect silence reigns, and not a
+bird or insect breaks the stillness. Above rises the Kóscielec-Spitze,
+reflecting its mighty walls in the clear black-green waters, its every
+outline and feature defined sharply as in a mirror.
+
+“In stormy weather,” exclaimed our Polish guide--who, fortunately for
+us, spoke German--pointing in the direction of the great peak, “he
+sends down huge pieces of himself into the lake. I saw him once in a
+storm of wind and rain when, overtaken in the mountains, I had to flee
+for shelter beneath that low overhanging rock opposite. It was an awful
+thing to see him then: the fragments came tumbling down his face, as
+though he had been a giant weeping tears of stone, and, plunging into
+the lake with a roar like thunder, sent the water halfway up his sides
+like a mighty _Springbrunnen_” (fountain)--and he spoke of the
+mountains, as so many Alpine guides are wont to do, as though they had
+been living, sentient things.
+
+These mountain lakes, so far removed from the abode of man, with their
+dark still waters, possess a weird and indescribable fascination, and
+always seemed to me to be the abode of some great Spirit, which brooded
+over them and held them as in thrall. In their silent presence a
+silence crept over us too--a spell which seemed to forbid the utterance
+of words. So greatly did this Black Lake impress me individually that
+I dreamt of it that night. I dreamt that I was standing here alone; it
+was twilight, as it nearly always is in dreams; when there came to me
+a presence, felt, not seen, and said, “All those who venture within my
+sanctuary and once behold my Spirit, I hold them mine for ever.” And
+instantly I felt my feet grow rooted to the spot. I could not move.
+Then in struggling to get free I awoke, feeling thankful it was, after
+all, “but a dream.”
+
+The Frozen Lake, lying at an elevation of nearly 6000 feet above the
+level of the sea, is approached from the eastern bank of the Czarny
+Staw. A short but steep climb over large boulders of granite brings us
+to a small plateau, whence we look down upon it, lying in its snow-girt
+cradle: and here again the scene is one of grandeur and sublimity
+impossible to describe. Surrounded by gigantic rock bastions, whose
+ravines and gullies are filled with colossal fields of snow extending
+to the lake itself, it seems held in their icy grip; silent, immovable,
+the most dreary and desolate but impressive thing in nature. As we
+stand looking down into its frozen depths, a golden eagle--the first we
+have seen in the Northern Tátra--flies out of a fissure in the rocks
+and with motionless wings cleaves the azure deeps, and then, swooping
+down again, seeks its solitary nest.
+
+No vegetation is here, not even _krummholz_, for no plant could
+find sufficient soil upon these barren rocks in which to germinate
+and spread its roots and grow. No lonely Alpine flower holds up its
+grateful petals to the light. All is barren, sterile, desolate, as if
+there had once been a curse upon the land that blighted it for ever.
+
+Throughout this rocky labyrinth the eye searches long in vain for
+outlet. We seem shut in as by lofty battlements and prison-walls, but
+yonder, nevertheless, there is a narrow gorge through which we make our
+exit.
+
+The _Träger_, who for some time past had been loitering in the
+rear, and whom we feared might--in a paroxysm of hunger--be making
+a raid upon the provision-bag, now comes in sight. Our suspicions
+were incorrect however, for we soon find that that inestimable
+and much-injured individual, in a burst of benevolence and with a
+singleness of heart quite affecting to contemplate, has been collecting
+wood for us in some lower elevation, and now comes toiling breathless
+up the steep with a large faggot on his shoulders, filling our hearts
+with such remorse on account of our evil thoughts concerning him, that
+we inwardly determine to make it up to him by the bestowal of an extra
+florin on his leaving us at night.
+
+A few handfuls of dry moss, which he had also brought up with him, make
+the wood crackle and send up a hundred merry sparks playing amongst the
+grey and sombre rocks, and a bright fire soon burns cheerily. Throwing
+ourselves down before it, we dine like lords, and, after resting for an
+hour, journey on again with joyful countenance.
+
+The day is lovely. It is indeed a model day, a day of days. Not a cloud
+flecks the sky, which is of that intense, opaque, and sapphire tint
+known so well to all Alpine travellers, whilst the air is so clear,
+and so altogether intoxicating in its freshness, that we are scarcely
+sensible of fatigue as we climb yet higher, now over loose stones which
+give way beneath the feet, and now through wastes of dazzling snow,
+till we reach our goal,--a lofty ridge whence a superb view of almost
+the entire Tátra is obtained, and which extends as far as the Alps of
+Liptau.
+
+Below, at our feet, is the highest of the Fünf Seen, lying at an
+elevation of more than 7000 feet. Of the peaks, the Krivan is lord
+over these bleak territories, though not by any means the highest,
+the Eisthaler and Lomnitzer _Spitzen_ carrying off the palm in
+this respect. But it is not the actual elevation of mountains which
+impresses the beholder, it is rather their shape, position, and
+altitude relative to surrounding objects; and I do not think I ever
+remember having seen, even in Switzerland, so truly wild and majestic
+a panorama as that of the Tátra and Krapak which is presented to the
+traveller from this point. In Switzerland the mountains, if I may so
+express it, are more civilised. In the Tátra they are wild, barren,
+savage; there is less of gracious beauty, but more of ruggedness in
+their formation. It is--as I have elsewhere observed--as though Nature
+had worked herself into a state of frenzy, and created them without
+either forethought or arrangement.
+
+The lowest of these mountains of the “Central Carpathians” is more
+than 1000 feet above the region of perpetual snow, whilst the highest
+is nearly 3800 feet above it; yet on neither, except in inconsiderable
+quantities, does snow rest much after the beginning of June,--a
+phenomenon all the more singular from the fact of their northern
+position, there being no less than 2½° difference between Switzerland
+and the Tátra region. The average temperature of Kesmark and Poronin
+shows a difference of 32·81°; whilst the difference in the elevation
+of these two places is 313 feet. If it be allowed that a decrease
+in temperature occurs in the upper region in the same proportion, it
+follows that the theoretical snow-line in the Tátra will be at an
+altitude of 6254 feet, according to which perpetual snow ought to lie
+everywhere under the lofty ridges; and yet, although there are ravines
+in which large masses of snow are found which do not melt even during
+the hottest summer, a peak covered with eternal snow is nowhere found.
+The chief reason of its not remaining on the higher peaks and ridges is
+doubtless their extreme declivity and the absence of ledges or flats on
+which to rest; the consequence being that the first thaw causes it to
+slide away and leave the peaks bare.
+
+Not far from the ridge on which we have been standing is the pearl
+of all the Tátra lakes--the Fisch-See--and the rock pyramid of the
+_Meerauge_, but we feel we have had enough climbing for one day,
+and decide to rest on our laurels at this spot.
+
+Although it was not far from here that the _Jäger_ were to beat,
+not a voice or sound of shot has reached us, and the mountains and
+gorges are as still as if the earth had reached that period when all
+life had passed away, and they stood alone in empty desolation.
+
+Looking down upon a field of snow, however, we presently see a small
+black dot--a mere fly it looks from this distance. F. raises his
+binoculars and has a look at it. It is a pedestrian, and carries a
+staff in its hand. How infinitely does this mere suggestion of human
+life seem to add to the loneliness of our surroundings! What poetry
+is there in that small black speck, and what a history Fancy weaves
+concerning it, as it threads its solitary way over the glittering snow!
+It is an aged pilgrim, perhaps, making his way to some holy well in
+the heart of these mountains, where so many streams find their rocky
+cradle, or perhaps one of those poor men who spend their time in these
+solitudes searching for gentian-roots.
+
+“Let us go down and meet him, it is on our way home,” exclaimed F. in a
+gush of benevolence. “Ten to one he is hungry, poor beggar, and we can
+give him the remains of the provisions; both guide and _Träger_
+have had as much as they can eat for one day, I’m sure.”
+
+Imagine our surprise when, descending towards the black speck which
+had so excited our sympathies as it toiled over the snow, we found
+it develop into no less a person than the Herr Graf himself, who had
+evidently been botanising all the time we pictured him to ourselves
+as circumventing the wily chamois. Not in the smallest degree
+disconcerted by our having lighted upon him thus suddenly in the mild
+and contemplative capacity of botanist, which he had exchanged for the
+excitement of the chase, of which we supposed him at that very moment
+to be the hero, he greeted us naïvely, saying:
+
+“I left the _Jäger_ up there in the heights. There is a poetical
+endurance in the manner in which those fellows hunt, which we
+lowlanders cannot understand. I did not see the fun of perching behind
+a snowy pinnacle and freezing all day for a possible chamois, so that,
+having waited in that interesting attitude a full hour, and no game
+having showed itself, I came away.”
+
+He had not been idle, however, in his subsequent occupation, having
+collected more than twenty specimens of Alpine flowers, amongst which
+was one that we had diligently sought for on our way up, but sought
+in vain, the _Gentiana frigida_, which grows at the highest
+elevation of all the gentian tribe.
+
+Preceding us to the plateau whence we looked down upon the Frozen Lake,
+he led us over a small meadow to a group of sombre granite boulders,
+looking almost black in contrast with the dazzling snow-fields
+everywhere around, and pointed to a narrow shelf of rock. There in very
+truth was the lovely little flower in all its pure and simple beauty,
+looking down upon us from its shrine of sanctity all amongst the
+spotless snow--a whole tuft of it reflecting the cerulean blue. Beauty
+such as this is an awful thing. In that lowly flower there was a grace
+and purity not of earth’s devising, and I left it where it was, for to
+handle it seemed little short of sacrilege.
+
+Home at sunset to a dinner of _Auerhahn_ soup, red deer served
+with cranberry sauce, and _Kaiser-Vogel_ to follow, we feel like
+hardy mountaineers with a vengeance. The Russians have taken their
+departure, and some new guests have arrived, who have come hither from
+Schmecks to make the ascent of the Eisthaler-Spitze. They report a
+continuance of fog at the little bathing-place, and we congratulate
+ourselves on having escaped it on this side the Tátra.
+
+Going to the doorway, we find the moon shining brightly. It scarcely
+seemed night, but merely a spiritual and ethereal extension of day.
+Tired though we were, the temptation was too strong to be resisted:
+we must have a stroll up the gorge, for the beautiful mountain stream
+which came scampering from its frigid birthplace all amongst the clouds
+seemed to beckon us towards it. It was the same little brook which rang
+such a merry peal as we rode past it in the morning, and which, falling
+over mossy stones, and running in and out amongst them, formed tiny
+bays and sandy shores, where the fairies might have bathed and then
+danced on its sands in the moonlight. It flows sadder now, though not
+less quickly, and its melody is more plaintive. Presently the moon,
+travelling on its pathway through the heavens, begins to cast a shadow
+from the highest tree-fringed summit of the gorge. Slowly it creeps
+downwards like a thing of life, slowly but surely. First the topmost
+branches of the trees are enclosed in darkness, then the rocks; and
+now it touches the little silvery torrent. It crosses it and begins
+the ascent of the opposite side. It is almost dreadful to stand and
+watch it, so like is it to the shadow that so passes over our own
+lives. On it comes relentless, never pausing, but creeping onwards,
+upwards; shutting out first this object, then that, till everything is
+encompassed in the gloom, and I almost shudder as the last light dies
+upon the topmost crag, and the spirit of the scene has fled, so like is
+it to death.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XXII.
+
+                              ZIGZAGGING.
+
+
+One more delightful and joyous day spent in climbing the pine-clad
+Nosol, and in driving to the beautiful valley of Kościelysko,
+terminates our stay at Zakopane.
+
+Starting for the former at 9 A.M., we are accompanied not only by a
+guide, but by the Herr Graf himself, who still wears his William Tell
+costume and looks meekly ferocious with his moustache well cosmetiqued
+for the occasion. At his side dangles a miniature barrel, filled,
+before leaving the inn, with some invigorating beverage in readiness
+for any emergency that might befall us on the way. He is likewise armed
+with his gun, for who knows but that a chamois or two, or a spotted
+deer, might cross our pathway, these animals being such very friendly
+game. Should either do so, it would be provoking not to have a shot at
+him. In addition to these equipments of the chase he carries on his
+shoulders a small scarlet flag, but for what purpose, other than that
+of effect, we are as greatly at a loss to determine as in the case of
+the net of the previous day.
+
+The noble pine forest up which we were slowly zigzagging is one of
+nature’s own gardens at this time of year, and our progress would have
+been arrested every moment as we stooped to gather the lovely Alpine
+flowers which were blooming in lowly beauty at our feet, had not our
+guide warned us that time is a fast fleeting substantive, and that
+if we went on loitering in that fashion we could never expect to be
+“_auf der Spitze_.”
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Climbing with the aid of the Tátra staff--a strong hatchet-headed
+stick, with which we are each provided, and which every one uses
+on this northern side of the mountains--we catch hold of roots and
+branches of trees, and ascend the precipitous mountain that would
+otherwise have been impossible to climb. As we approach the summit,
+the noble pines bear evidence to some recent tempest, for all is dire
+disorder; the tops of some, partially severed from their trunks, are
+upheld by the branches of the trees next to them, whilst others again
+that have succumbed to the fury of the storm-king are lying like
+prostrate giants where they fell, their beautiful foliage withering in
+the sunlight, whilst the young and feathery larches are either strewn
+about or bowed like withies almost to the ground.
+
+“Four hundred trees were blown down on this mountain alone during the
+storm,” remarked our guide, as he pointed to a splendid monarch of the
+woods that, torn up by its roots, was poised against another tree, and
+formed a pointed arch above us.
+
+Whilst travelling in the Carpathians it has been a constant marvel to
+us that any pines are left standing, for not only are these splendid
+primeval forests exposed to the ravages of the north wind, and
+ruthlessly cut down by the inhabitants, but it is the rarest thing
+possible to see young trees planted in their place. It is true that
+the forests being vast in extent, and the country thinly populated, it
+is scarcely likely there will ever be a lack of wood, but it is sad to
+see one of the most beautiful characteristics of this mountain land
+gradually dwindling away.
+
+In an hour and a half from the time of our leaving the valley, we
+stand on the summit of the Nosol. For the last twenty minutes of our
+way it has been a terribly hard climb, but we now find ourselves well
+repaid by a magnificent view of the surrounding country. Below lies
+the village of Zakopane, which contains 2500 inhabitants; its houses,
+which, after the Polish custom, are erected in groups, looking like
+mere toys. To the south rises the rocky summit of the Giewont, which,
+although of lower altitude than others behind it, far exceeds them in
+grandeur. Two peaks of this singular mountain form themselves into
+pyramids, which at one season of the year serve as a clock to the
+inhabitants of the village, the sun at noon standing almost immediately
+over a chasm which lies between them.
+
+The _Edelweiss_ grows in great abundance on the Nosol, its
+silvery-white bracteal leaves and woolly flowers contrasting vividly
+with the blue gentian. I was sitting silent and alone, making a rapid
+sketch of the rocky labyrinth around, when something came behind me and
+threw a handful of these lovely Alpine flowers into my lap. It was a
+little child, who with another, scarcely older than herself, had come
+from the village below, both having scrambled up the steep face of the
+mountain, by a shorter way than that by which we had come--scrambled
+up, goodness knows how! Both were such perfect little rustics, and had
+such bright colours and rosy lips, that they looked like Alpine flowers
+themselves, as, wandering in and out amongst the rocks in search of
+the beautiful gentian and other flowers, they made them into bunches
+and stuck them in my hat, and then without the least shyness threw
+themselves on the soft grass beside me, prattling in their strange Sláv
+tongue, and watching me while I sketched.
+
+F. and the Graf, under the leadership of the guide, had gone for a
+further climb to a group of rocks on the extreme summit, and I was glad
+of the companionship of these little mountaineers. Presently out of
+the sweet melody existing in their hearts they began to sing, not in
+any regular succession of sounds modulated by art, but carolling like
+forest-birds, until, with the impulsiveness of childhood, they jumped
+up suddenly and were gone.
+
+I shuddered as I watched them zigzag down the dizzy height by the steep
+and almost imperceptible pathway, singing as they went and taking no
+heed to their footsteps. I watched them out of sight, and felt that
+the Angels must indeed have special charge over these mountain “little
+ones,” for one false step would have sent them rolling over and over to
+a depth of full a thousand feet.
+
+On the return of my companions, we go to visit the remains of a glacier
+moraine, which consists of blocks of granite and other _débris_
+forming the bed and sides of what must have been a broad glacier
+no less than a mile long. The surrounding rocks are of dolomite:
+consequently the stones, like that of the Félka valley, must have been
+brought hither from a considerable distance by ice-masses.
+
+Some of the pines in this district are very singular, having no lower
+foliage at all, only little patches of green upon their tips and
+extreme points of the branches, and they look old--_so_ old--with
+icicles hanging from their stems, that we are forcibly reminded of the
+primeval forests of the mountains in the far East, where they stand and
+lie by thousands, dead, and blanched by time, looking like phantoms
+of themselves. The cones which fall from these Eastern forest-trees,
+from some cause or other, have ceased to germinate; and there being no
+inhabitants in those wilds to replant the forests with young pines, the
+splendid primeval pine-woods will soon be quite extinct.
+
+Gazing at these fine weather-beaten old fellows as, winding round
+the mountain, they are perpetually presented to our view, our minds,
+as I have said, revert sadly to the Nemesis that has overtaken those
+in the more distant land; and we wonder whether, in that cycle which
+is silently weaving gradual but unmistakable changes in the world of
+nature, the same causes which so mysteriously affected the cessation
+of their growth and natural reproduction will--it may be centuries
+hence--operate here also, and many of these mountains be robbed of one
+of the chief features of their beauty, unless man intervenes to prevent
+the possibility, and plants them with young trees.
+
+We had left orders before starting that Abraham and Sarah were to be
+in attendance at two o’clock to take us on to the Kościelysko-Thal, so
+that we tarry no longer in the neighbourhood of the Nosol, but descend
+the mountain as quickly as we can. On nearing the inn, the first
+things which attract our notice are these interesting animals, already
+saddled and patiently awaiting our return; for we are nearly an hour
+later than we had intended. A meal hastily partaken of--for day is
+waning, and there is no time to be lost--and we are cantering off to
+the beautiful defile, a quadruple cavalcade, not only the Graf but the
+guide himself accompanying us _à cheval_, for the distance is too
+great to walk our ponies and admit of his going with us on foot.
+
+The road is excellent, and takes us through forests nearly the whole
+way. In the small clearings in the pine-woods what sweet pictures are
+seen! piles of newly-cut wood, and happy peasants in bright-coloured
+clothing, lighting up the dark green foliage and tall grey stems of the
+trees.
+
+The entrance to the valley is guarded by two rocks, which create a
+portal so narrow that we can only just pass in on our ponies; thus
+jealously does Nature secure from intrusion one of her grandest
+sanctuaries.
+
+On the other side of this natural gateway we find a small meadow, in
+which a cow and two goats are peacefully grazing. But no sooner does
+the former catch sight of the Graf’s red flag--who is some twenty yards
+ahead of us--than gathering herself up, with head and tail erect, she
+waits his nearer approach with menacing aspect, evidently ready for an
+attack.
+
+The effect of this bovine demonstration on the Graf’s weak nerves was
+startling. Paralysed with fear, he stood gazing at the infuriated
+animal for some seconds until, whether from pity or scorn, the creature
+forsook its threatening aspect and walked quietly across to another
+part of the meadow.
+
+Not far off is Alt-Kościelysko, where there is a hut in which benighted
+travellers can, when necessary, find shelter till the following
+morning. Proceeding farther still, we come to another pass, called the
+“Upper Gate,” scarcely broader than the former, there being only room
+for the pathway and the stream that flows beside it. It is at this
+point that the grandeur and beauty of the gorge may with truth be said
+to commence.
+
+On either side the rocks, rising almost perpendicularly, assume the
+most marvellous and fantastic forms, and to many of these names have
+been assigned. Thus, about half a mile from the Upper Gateway there is
+a narrow cleft called “Krakow,” on account of the resemblance the rocks
+are said to bear to some of the old buildings of the ancient capital of
+that name.
+
+Leaving a giant rock behind us, 3400 feet in height, on which the
+Browns, Joneses, and Robinsons of Hungary, Poland, and Germany have
+inscribed their names, and on which, to the inexpressible astonishment
+of our guide and the Herr Graf, I need scarcely say we did _not_
+immortalise our own, we pass on to another yet more magnificent group
+of rocks, and are not overtaken by the Graf--who has been enlightening
+future tourists with a long list of his titles--until we have entered
+a forest leading to a small lake which lies in its centre, and whose
+waters are almost black from the boggy nature of its bed. As we
+approach it, a flock of wild ducks rise from its margin and soar away
+over the tree-tops. F. shouts to our gallant sportsman, who is still
+slightly in the rear, but on his joining us we ascertain that he had
+brought every mortal thing with him with the exception of powder and
+shot. These it had escaped his memory to bring! So that, although the
+sedges are evidently full of game, we were not permitted to witness
+his prowess; a circumstance which I shall always feel was a most
+fortunate circumstance, so far as our own lives were concerned.
+
+We have a lovely ride home, the moon shedding such radiance over all
+things far and near that the night was once more almost converted into
+day. Not until ten o’clock did we espy the roof of our hostel, and
+recognise the hoary pate of the hospitable landlord, standing outside
+in the moonlight, watching for us anxiously and wondering what could
+have kept us so late. There were tidings for us, too, which the old man
+was burning to communicate. The _Jäger_ had returned and brought
+down from the heights not only a chamois, but some smaller game,
+together with a bear. Great was the excitement in the inn, from which
+came the sound of many voices; for the _Jäger_, who had arrived
+only an hour previously, were being regaled with supper in the kitchen.
+Having been two days in the mountains, they were doing full justice
+to their well-earned meal, and formed an exceedingly picturesque
+group, and one which might have done capitally for a representation
+of freebooters or robber-knights, so thoroughly did they sustain the
+character so far as externals were concerned.
+
+The game lay in an _álás_ opposite, whither one of the _Jäger_ soon
+accompanied us. The chamois, which had received its shot in the
+neck, was one of only moderate size. It had been roused--so said the
+_Jäger_--at a place not far below the Frozen Lake; and had fled for
+safety to the peak beneath which the Graf had been stationed, having
+passed within a few yards of the very stone behind which he had been
+concealed, about two hours previously.
+
+The party slept in a _Zufluchtshütte_ or hut of refuge, and then
+beat a forest for bears. The one they had bagged was a fine shaggy old
+fellow, but very much mutilated, having received no fewer than seven
+shots,--a great pity, on account of the injury to its skin.
+
+The Count did not seem so chagrined at his absence from the sport as
+one would naturally have imagined, but took a very lively interest in
+its results. He is to depart early on the morrow to catch the morning’s
+train at Poprád, where, journeying by the Kaschau and Oderberger
+railway, he will return to the _Vaterland_, no doubt full of his
+daring exploits.
+
+As we leave the shed and re-enter the inn where our own repast now
+awaits us, we hear him giving directions for the head and skin of the
+chamois, together with that of the bear, to be forwarded to him so soon
+as they have been cured; after which they will doubtless be carefully
+suspended in the baronial hall, in the company of the William Tell hat
+and the various accoutrements of the chase, as a witness to successive
+generations of the valour of their ancestor.
+
+The story will be recorded of how one Ludwig von ----, in the year of
+our Lord 188-, did fight with a bear, how that he was seized in its
+grip, and hugged like a baby; but by the strength of his mighty arm,
+and without either gun or lance, or any weapon whatsoever, did overcome
+the powerful monster, and fell it to the ground, where it immediately
+lay dead before him. A bear erect, rampant, on a fess _gules_,
+will be added to the family escutcheon, and the name of Ludwig von ----
+will be immortalised for ever.
+
+
+
+
+                            CHAPTER XXIII.
+
+                                YETTA.
+
+
+A year has passed since we stayed at Tátra-Fűred and Zakopane and made
+our journey across the plains. Since then we have been to England,
+and planted our _krummholz_ and Carpathian flowers, nearly all
+of which are growing: even the former has taken quite kindly to its
+English home. And here we are back again in the Northern Tátra, for
+the second time, waiting for the _diligence_ to take us on to the
+world-renowned salt-mines of Wieliczka.
+
+The faithful András is again with us, and once more awaiting our return
+at Poprád with the same old lumbering vehicle that accompanied us on
+our former travels through Hungary, but which, having been patched up
+during our absence, has entered on a new lease of life.
+
+In the square at Neumarkt the same Jews are standing idly about the
+pavement as when we were last here, and their sole occupation still
+appears to be to watch other people’s movements. Their interest
+however at the present time is centred in the departure of the yellow
+_diligence_ in which we are just about to take our seats.
+
+There was no _coupé_, so that we were obliged to journey in the
+_intérieur_, our fellow-travellers consisting of a gaunt man--a
+Pole--and a young woman whose nationality we could not determine, but
+from whose general appearance we imagined to be Rusniak.
+
+The process of shaking down is one of no small difficulty, but we
+manage it at last, and are soon rattling along at the usual pace
+at starting. The young woman referred to was on her way to Lubień,
+wherever that place may be,--a fact made known to us by the name
+which was marked in scrambling letters on a large cardboard box
+that she persisted in carrying on her lap, and which half filled
+the _diligence_. I ventured to remonstrate with her on this
+proceeding, but she defended herself and her box so vigorously in
+her own particular vernacular, that if she had been carrying a
+boa-constrictor instead, there is not one of us who would have had the
+courage to make any further objection.
+
+The other passenger was a man of grave and sedate countenance--as are
+nearly all the Poles--who seemed to find it impossible to dispose
+satisfactorily of his feet and legs. They proved a source of intense
+irritation to the young female who sat opposite, and I should
+say--judging from the painful attitude he assumed in his endeavours to
+stow them away--of no small dislocation to himself. But they too shook
+down at last, and with the exception of an occasional flash from her
+dark eyes, as every now and then he involuntarily trod upon her toes,
+all things went on smoothly enough.
+
+The distance between Neumarkt and Wieliczka is forty-five miles, the
+latter being situated near the beautiful Vistula, which waters the
+plains of Gallicia, and which, hastening on its northern course,
+finally empties itself into the Baltic.
+
+It was on these fertile pastures that the progenitors of the Poles
+had their original seat, dwelling on the rich banks of the Vistula;
+the word Pole itself being derived from the Slav word _polska_,
+meaning a level field, or plain.
+
+The vast salt-fields of Wieliczka--which, according to a popular
+tradition, were accidentally discovered during a vigilant search made
+to recover a wedding-ring--lie immediately under the town of the same
+name; and, whilst extending to the great breadth of 10,000 feet in a
+north-easterly direction, penetrate to the depth of more than 1700
+feet, and consist of four distinct stories.
+
+Permission to explore this singular region was readily granted on
+application, and a guide and several boys carrying torches told off
+to accompany us. Having been solemnly robed in white cloaks, we took
+our places in a kind of lift, and were suddenly plunged into the mouth
+of the shaft, through which we descended to a distance of thirty-five
+fathoms, when we were landed on what may be called the topmost story
+of these wonderful excavations, and found ourselves standing in a
+vaulted chamber, which, but for the surrounding darkness, might have
+been the gigantic packing-room of some warehouse. Here men were busily
+occupied in filling barrels with salt for transmission to its various
+destinations. Our guide however, preceding us across this busy hive,
+led us through long galleries to inner halls and chambers hewn out
+of the salt-rock. There was no oppressive feeling in the air as we
+followed him through corridor after corridor; and the boy-guides
+illuminating our pathway with their broom torches lit up the white
+walls, which sparkled as though they had been set with myriads of
+gems. Neither was there any difficulty in our progress; we walked as
+comfortably as if we had been in the open air, till we reached a
+salt-lake, where we found a small flat-bottomed boat in readiness to
+take us across to the opposite side. As we stepped into it, clad in our
+white sepulchral vestments, and assisted by a dark and muscular Charon,
+it was difficult to believe we were not about to cross a veritable
+Styx: the black waters in which the torches were reflected; the curious
+dress of our attendants, with their singular Sláv physiognomies,
+together with our own ghost-like garments, all favoured the illusion.
+Occasionally a dull report was heard like the boom of cannon, which
+seemed to shake the very foundations of the earth as the miners blasted
+the rock in some distant excavation.
+
+The salt is exceedingly compact, and, as a rule, unmixed--except
+near the surface--with any extraneous matter. These mines have been
+worked without cessation for more than 900 years, and yet the work of
+quarrying has still gone on in the different stories, until some of the
+chambers have attained the size of from 1000 to 2000 feet in width and
+100 in height. Numerous fossils are continually being found imbedded in
+the rock, which is supposed to be of Tertiary formation.
+
+One of the most interesting objects connected with these subterranean
+perforations is the fine Gothic chapel hewn out of the salt-rock, with
+its statues, enormous crucifix, and altar formed entirely of the same
+substance. One of the statues represents St. Cunegunda, the owner of
+the ring whose search was followed by such wonderful results, and on
+whose annual festival, as patroness of the mines, mass is said in the
+chapel in the presence of all the miners.
+
+As in Hungary, the salt found here is a monopoly of the Austrian
+government, the out-turn from these mines alone being from fifty to
+sixty thousand tons annually.
+
+On our return from Wieliczka, hiring a carriage, we start at once for
+the _Dunajecz_, which we were unable to visit on our last year’s
+sojourn in the Northern Tátra. As we bade adieu to Neumarkt, that place
+of sordid Jews and devout Catholics, the rugged peaks were beautiful
+in the morning light; not a cloud dimmed their outlines, which were
+sharply pencilled on the sky. The peasants of both sexes were at work
+in the fields, and all was pastoral and lovely. By this time, however,
+we were so frantically hungry that we fully endorsed Dr. Johnson’s
+sentiment that no view, however exquisite, is perfect unless it have
+an inn for its immediate foreground. There was, however, not one to be
+met with between this and Altendorf, a good four hours’ journey; and we
+decided therefore to stop at the house at which we slept last year on
+our way through this district, and where we were certain to meet with a
+hearty welcome.
+
+It was not long before we approached the outskirts of the village, and
+found ourselves standing in the porch of the rambling old dwelling with
+its black wooden balcony, rendered familiar by our previous visit.
+
+Entering the homely kitchen, we expected to be greeted like old friends
+and recognised with joyful acclamation, but there was no one in it but
+a young child and a priest seated on a settle, who rose as we entered,
+bowed, and, uttering the words “_Servus domine spectabilis_”--a
+form of salutation still frequently used by many of the priests of
+Hungary--left the room.
+
+“Where is Yetta?” we inquire of the child. She could only speak
+Polish, but at the mention of the name she pointed to the church nearly
+opposite the house; and I could see that she meant “dead.”
+
+“And the _Grossvater_?”
+
+Again she pointed in the same direction.
+
+“What! dead too?” I ask.
+
+“_Nein! nein! nicht todt_” (no! no! not dead), she manages to say.
+
+At this juncture, however, the _Hausmutter_ came in from an
+adjoining apartment and demanded what was our pleasure.
+
+“Martcha,” I cried, “do you not remember _die Engländer_ who were
+here a year ago, and whom you promised never to forget?”
+
+She passed her hand over her forehead, as if to dispel some intervening
+mist and recall some long-forgotten memory, and then burst into tears.
+
+“Yetta is gone!” she exclaimed, so soon as her sobs would let her. “She
+died just three weeks ago, and her little baby lies with her in the
+_Gottesacker_ yonder.”
+
+“And the old man, your father, what of him?” we inquire eagerly. “Is he
+well?”
+
+“Well, but quite childish,” was the reply. “Since Yetta died he
+has often wandered in his mind, and stands about the grave all
+day. We cannot keep him from it. Ah! if he would but go into the
+_Kapelle_, and say ‘Our Father,’ he might find comfort. But the
+trouble has hardened him. He will not think but that the good God was
+cruel to take her from him, and he so old.”
+
+All this she told us as she busied herself in preparing the coffee and
+spreading the cloth for our breakfast, after which we go over to the
+_Gottesacker_ with Martcha, where she says we are sure to find him.
+
+He is leaning on a wall not far from a new-made grave, over which an
+iron crucifix has already been placed, and on which we can read, in
+bright gilt letters on the black, the name of Yetta Poschaska, followed
+by a word we cannot read and by the figures 19 and 1880.
+
+As we approached, he raised his cap slightly, but did not recognise
+us, and then resumed his previous attitude with an almost vacant look,
+nothing in the expression of his face denoting emotion of any sort.
+
+“I wish he would but come into the church,” whispered Martcha. “Perhaps
+he would, if you were to ask him: he has never been there since.”
+
+“Her spirit is not _there_,” said the priest, who happened to be
+passing by, and pointing to the sod, “but up yonder, _in dem blauen
+Himmel_” (in the blue heaven).
+
+“That is nothing to me,” he replied curtly; “I cannot see her there.”
+
+“Come, father,” said Martcha, shaking him gently by the arm, “the two
+_Engländer_ are here again, and want to see the church; won’t you
+show it to them?”
+
+“_Lasz mich in Ruh’!_” (let me be!) he answered peevishly, “she
+would like to feel her old grandfather was near her. Show them the
+church yourself, can’t you?”
+
+As we went into the quaint antique building, however, he followed
+slowly, and half involuntarily, as though unconsciously to himself he
+was glad of the companionship of human voices. We were observing the
+curious pictures and other objects surrounding the walls, when, looking
+round, we saw Martcha kneeling at one of the gaily decorated shrines,
+whilst the old man, following her example, was kneeling also, but quite
+mechanically as it seemed, his face wearing the same stolid look as
+before.
+
+Leaving the church very softly, we wander across to the quiet territory
+of the dead. The great mountains, piled peak above peak as far as eye
+can reach, rise sheer from the village with its dark foreground of
+picturesque wooden houses.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+As we linger in the little cemetery, which is thickly sown with graves,
+and think of the once busy hands and loving hearts now lying at rest
+beneath, we wonder how _they_ must feel who have no belief in the
+spirit’s unceasing consciousness, and how terrible must be the blank
+when those they love are wrested from them; how terrible, too, the
+contemplation of their own short and ever-fleeting lives. And there was
+something so still and beautiful in the surroundings of this spot,
+with the great mountains in their solemn majesty keeping watch over the
+long green mounds, that made one feel somehow nearer heaven.
+
+It was eleven o’clock by the time we bade farewell to Martcha, the old
+man, and the peaceful village, and were on our way again, through the
+broad valley that leads to the _Rothe Kloster_. As we approach the
+volcanic rocks, on one of which it stands proudly even in its decay,
+we discover that the whole scene is much grander when approached from
+the north than by the way we reached it from Altendorf. Opposite, on
+the other side of the river Dunajecz, on a lofty crag stands a castle,
+the two seeming to menace each other from their battlemented heights,
+whilst on the crest of the lower pinnacles are small chapels, each with
+its crucifix and shrine.
+
+Sending our carriage on to await our arrival at a place called
+Scyavnicza (pronounced Schevaniska), we walk down to the river, and
+find two men awaiting us with a raft which had been previously ordered
+by the landlord of the inn at Zakopane. They are Poles, but are dressed
+like Slovaks, with broad felt hats and immense leather girdles.
+
+The mountains of the Dunajecz here divide the Carpathian chain; those
+to the left being called the Pieninen.
+
+The excursion down the Dunajecz is one of the most popular of the whole
+Tátra, the river passing through a narrow cleft in a rock, which it
+entirely fills; whilst the mountains and precipices on either side are
+so precipitous that they rise sheer out of the water, and do not admit
+even of the smallest footpath along its margin. The sun is just in that
+position in the heavens when, without having sunk towards the horizon,
+it throws shadows deep and long, and the narrow gorge--one side of
+which is immersed in profoundest shade, whilst the other is golden in
+the blaze of sunlight--presents a marvellous effect as the raft, formed
+of two small flat-bottomed boats lashed together, takes us through its
+windings.
+
+The water of the Dunajecz is perfectly clear, the rocks and vegetation
+that rise above it being reflected in its depths with marvellous
+distinctness. In some portions the river flows silently along, and
+there is scarcely a ripple on its surface; in others, however, it
+becomes a rapid and boisterous torrent, covered with crests of foam.
+No one who visits the Tátra should fail to pass through this beautiful
+defile.
+
+Emerging from the gorge at its northern outlet, we reach the village of
+Unter-Scyavnicza. It is the custom at this spot for young Polish girls
+to await the arrival of the rafts, and hold boughs and flower-garlands
+over the heads of the visitors as they step on shore. Most gladly
+would we have dispensed with this “function” had it been possible, but
+they had completely taken possession of us, and accompanying us across
+the white and pebbly shore of the river--which at this point takes a
+sharp bend to the right--they help us to climb its steep banks to the
+village, laughing merrily all the while and chattering together their
+(to us) hopelessly unintelligible Sláv dialect. I never beheld such
+a group of merry light-hearted sirens, as having been rewarded by a
+“consideration” they went scrambling back over the loose pebbles with
+their naked feet in the hope of crowning with unearned laurels some
+other unsuspecting hero of the gorge.
+
+Leaving the village, we climb a steep hill and find ourselves
+surrounded by châlets built in such a truly ornamental style, that they
+look like sylvan palaces. There are baths here, much frequented in the
+season by Prussians as well as Russians and Poles.
+
+On the top of the hill we recognise our carriage. The driver, having
+failed to find a place where he could bait the horses in the village
+below, had added to their fatigue by bringing them up the ascent in the
+vain hope of meeting with an _álás_; but, alas and alack-a-day!
+he was unsuccessful, and our only plan now is to take them on to a
+place called Kroschenko and there give them two hours’ rest; it will
+fortunately be on our way to Altendorf, where we shall now be compelled
+to pass the night.
+
+We soon get into a good post-road, which we follow until we reach
+Kroschenko, a large village lying amongst verdant hills.
+
+There are no fewer than 190,000 Jews in this province alone, and
+one would suppose from the number that are met with everywhere that
+the whole neighbourhood must be given over into the hands of the
+Israelites. Standing about the principal street, or sitting in groups
+on the benches beneath the houses, wherever we turn we see these
+black-robed gentry: old Jews with snow-white ringlets; middle-aged
+Jews with iron-grey ringlets; boy Jews with black ringlets--the last,
+dressed like their elders in the long greasy toga, forming the most
+incongruous-looking objects in the universe.
+
+Even in this little place there is a government lottery. As we walk up
+the street we pass a small shop where spirits are sold. Close to the
+door on an oval shield we notice the hideous black eagle on the yellow
+ground, near which is a board with the numbers last drawn. Entering
+this den of iniquity--for so in truth it might be named--we find it
+full of women of all ages drinking the coarse white brandy of the
+district, which is distilled from potatoes. Some of them had already
+imbibed too freely of the unwholesome beverage, yet the shopkeeper,
+an old man of unmistakable type, a Jew of Jews and Hebrew of Hebrews,
+still pressed them to take more. Hastening from the close, dense
+atmosphere into the pure and open air of heaven, we breathe again,
+and pass more Jews, none of whom seem to have any occupation, for
+they sit or stand about the place smoking their long pipes, gossiping
+and talking of money. Whenever we happened to be near enough to
+hear their conversation, the most conspicuous words invariably were
+“_tausend Gulden_,” “_hundert Gulden_,” “_Joch_,” and “_Kreuzer_,” and
+involuntarily a feeling of intense pity filled our hearts for the race,
+so degraded and fallen, who were once called “the elect people of God,”
+and whose glorious country, the country of David and Solomon and Jesus,
+is subdued, crushed, and trampled under foot by an infidel power.
+
+It was a relief to turn not only from the actual presence of these
+repulsive-looking Jews, but from the melancholy contemplation of their
+fallen estate, and find at the other end of the village a Christian
+church with its standard of the cross. Entering it, we gratefully
+inhale the fumes of incense which still pervade its precincts. No
+service is taking place, but the door stands open. Kneeling on the
+pavement here and there are lonely women, laying bare the secrets of
+their hearts to the Great Unseen, and who, having withdrawn for a while
+from the toil and business of their weary lives, have brought into the
+peaceful seclusion of these walls their many wants and burdens.
+
+Like all we have hitherto seen in Gallicia, the church is full of
+banners and grotesque pictures. Hanging on the north wall was the
+picture of a saint whom we had not hitherto recognised as belonging to
+the calendar, and who, clad in the costume of ancient Rome, with sword
+and helmet, was engaged in pouring water upon flames,--an extremely
+popular saint, I should imagine, in a country like this, where fires
+are of such frequent occurrence.
+
+As we pass once more beneath the Red Convent on our way to Altendorf,
+the sun is setting, and, blazing against its ruined walls, transfigures
+its blocks of tufa into molten gold. On the slopes of the serried
+hills, that glow like red-hot cinders, the small white patches of
+calcareous matter intermingled with the lava glisten like silver. But
+already the shadow thrown by the crumbling pile is creeping down the
+eastern slope, and, looking back for one last look as we cross the
+wooden bridge, the whole is swallowed up in gloom.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XXIV.
+
+                         THE MOUNTAIN FUNERAL.
+
+
+Twilight has drawn her curtain across the saffron sky, and the lights
+of day have died on the metal cupola of the church as we once more
+reach Altendorf.
+
+Alighting on its outskirts, we send our carriage on with the luggage to
+the inn, and walk through the village; in doing which we are greeted
+with many a nod and smile of welcome from the “gentle Slovak,” as we
+are recognised in passing. Within a hundred yards of our destination we
+behold our old friend Gretchen the hostess--whose acquaintance we had
+made on our former visit--hot in the pursuit of a flock of geese, which
+she is vainly endeavouring to drive home, and which evince such decided
+and unmistakable reluctance to return to the family mansion, that had
+we not arrived upon the scene at that critical juncture to render
+timely aid, it is doubtful whether it would have been accomplished
+before nightfall. Just as we were bringing our interesting occupation
+to a triumphal close by chasing the last unruly emblem of ourselves
+into its unwished-for shelter behind the inn, a Dunajecz raft-man
+presented himself to our notice, offering for sale a large fish, which
+he called _Lachsen_.
+
+“_Lachs_” being the German word for salmon, we had some curiosity
+to taste what this fish was like; but inasmuch as its possessor
+demanded a florin a pound for it, and refused to part with any unless
+we took the whole, and moreover, although hungry, we did not quite
+think we could eat fourteen pounds of fish at one sitting, we declined
+further negotiations, and F., in the most polished German--which the
+Slovak, I fear, failed fully to appreciate--commended it to his own
+digestion, and expressed the hope that he might find it agree with him!
+
+The little “_Wirtschaft_,” or inn, kept by a worthy couple, was
+entered by the customary stone kitchen. Beyond it, however, was a small
+inner room in which a bright fire was burning, and from which the
+welcome fumes of coffee-roasting reached us; a cup of that invigorating
+beverage being the very thing we wanted, but a luxury we hardly
+expected to meet with in a Slovak village. In twenty minutes’ time
+however we are once more regaling ourselves with _café à la crême_
+such as cannot be conceived out of Hungary or the Sublime Porte, and we
+ascertain from the housewife, who speaks German, that the great secret
+in its manufacture lies, not only in grinding the berry just before
+it is required, but in roasting it also--exactly so much and no more
+than is needed for the moment, grinding it before it has had time to
+cool, then boiling and serving it immediately, with hot cream as an
+accompaniment.
+
+Whilst sipping leisurely this delicious nectar, which is far too good
+to partake of hurriedly, we are reminded of a popular American author’s
+recipe for German coffee; and if to _German_, how much more
+applicable to _English_:--
+
+“Take a barrel of water and bring it to a boil; rub a bit of chicory
+against a coffee-berry, and convey the former into the water. Continue
+the boiling and evaporation, till the intensity of the flavour and
+aroma of the coffee and chicory has been diminished to a proper degree;
+then set aside to cool. Now unharness the remains of a once cow from
+the plough, insert them in a hydraulic press, and when you shall
+have acquired a teaspoonful of that pale blue juice which a German
+superstition regards as milk, modify the malignity of its strength with
+tepid water, and ring up the breakfast. Mix the beverage in a cold cup,
+partake with moderation, and keep a wet rag round your head to guard
+against over-excitement.”
+
+Although destitute of every luxury attendant on civilisation, this
+funny little place is at any rate far better than the generality of
+inns in Hungarian towns, and especially that of Neumarkt. The beds
+are clean, and Jews with their corkscrew curls and frowsy Israelitish
+odour are happily absent. It is true that a pet fowl which had made
+a snug roosting-place in a corner of the stove insists on descending
+and having a share of our dinner, and that a calf keeps up a gentle
+lowing in the adjoining apartment. But these rustic accompaniments are
+rather interesting than otherwise, and for the rest we are thankful
+with small mercies, and can make ourselves quite contented with such
+things as we have. In the outer room, Slovaks, home from their labour
+in the fields, sit and drink their _Schnäpschen_ (small glasses of
+spirits). The room is full of these wild-looking creatures, formidable
+even to us who know them so well, in their slouching hats, long hair,
+and broad brass-bound girdles, as night wears on and one cannot
+distinguish clearly the mild expression of their faces. They are,
+however, perfectly orderly and quiet, and we are disturbed by no noise
+or ribaldry such as would be usually heard in most country inns under
+similar circumstances.
+
+At eight o’clock we stroll out into the village. It is bright
+moonlight, and the distant rhythmic beat of anvils in the direction of
+the gipsy camp invites us towards them, and assures us its occupants
+are still awake. We had not forgotten these wretched beings since last
+we saw them a year ago, and were just descending the little pathway
+leading to their wretched hovels when we were met by two gipsy women,
+who, instantly recognising us, cried--
+
+“_Inglesca! Inglesca!_”
+
+Beckoning both to follow, we returned to the inn, and bestowed upon
+them and theirs such things as cost us no sacrifice to part with, but
+which, if we might judge from their expressive voices as they thanked
+us in their unknown tongue, must have carried joy into their camp that
+night. And what sacrifice would not have been amply rewarded by the
+gratification of making for once in their lives these poor outcasts
+happy? Hastening back with their bundles, they left us, uttering their
+thanks in that sweet modulation of the voice that always seemed to me
+more like singing than the mere utterance of words.
+
+I have elsewhere spoken of the melancholy inflexion of the Magyar
+voice; the same may be observed in that of the Slovaks, and indeed to
+a greater or less degree in that of all the inhabitants of Hungary.
+It exists, however, to an incomparably greater extent in that of the
+Hungarian gipsies, particularly amongst their women, whose voices, once
+heard, linger on the ear, and can never be forgotten. They are sad,
+sweet, and low; qualities which, blended together, form a minor cadence
+often as melodious as the tones of an Æolian harp. I have sometimes
+tried to believe that these children of nature must have learnt to
+speak thus from the wailing of the wind, the sighing of trees, or the
+sad complaining of streams as they flow through tall grasses and murmur
+plaintively and mysteriously in the forest shade, but I fear that the
+sad inflexions of their utterance are due to the long centuries of
+oppression and misery to which their whole race has been subjected.
+
+Sitting on the “word-bearer” beneath the gable in the calm, soft
+moonlight, we gossip with our hostess Gretchen.
+
+“Do English people ever stay here on their way to the Northern Tátra?”
+we inquire.
+
+“Yes, we have before some years seen three English gentlemen,” she
+replied in her Teuton idiom, “and two ladies have been here also, but
+to what nation they belonged I cannot say; only as they were pleasant
+and good and _schön_, I think they must have been English!”
+
+As we sit here we watch the people of the village quietly entering
+or leaving the house, often taking their _Schnäpschen_ without
+speaking, and going on their way again.
+
+Presently a flock of sheep come trooping by on their way to the distant
+plains; large, long-legged, bony creatures with spiral horns, and
+the longest, shaggiest wool I ever saw. They are accompanied by two
+shepherds, whom they follow, reminding us of the East; sheep in Hungary
+never being driven. They follow the shepherd as in ancient Scripture
+times.
+
+A great deal of Slovak cheese is made in this district, and the poorer
+classes subsist almost entirely upon it and, of course, black bread.
+However poor a family may be, they invariably have a few sheep which
+they keep for the purpose. The cheese is sometimes made by themselves,
+but far more frequently the little flock is made over, for certain
+months in the year, to a herdsman who has a sheep-dairy, and who
+contracts to supply fourteen pounds of cheese from the milk of each
+animal, reserving whatever else he may make above that quantity as
+his own profit. Sometimes these dairymen have as many as 500 sheep
+committed to their charge; indeed, the combined flocks of a whole
+village.
+
+The Slovak peasants are generally spoken of as being exceedingly poor;
+but this was by no means the impression we formed concerning them when
+travelling through their country on either occasion. That they have
+but little money I can readily believe, but of the kind of poverty too
+often seen in agricultural districts in England, where a labourer has
+to support his family on twelve or fifteen shillings a week, we saw
+none. Here every one works for himself, except in rare instances, the
+Slovak as a rule having inherited a _joch_ or two of land from his
+forefathers, on which he grows rye for his black bread and potatoes.
+In addition to this, he owns a cow or two, together with a few sheep
+and pigs. The long wool of the sheep the women spin, and then have
+woven into material for their outer garments. Possessing almost every
+requisite for their simple lives, what need have they for money?
+
+The “gentle Slovak,” however, is greatly despised by his proud and
+haughty Magyar neighbour, who at one time designated him by the
+opprobrious title of “_tót_,” a word signifying “not a man at
+all.” “_Tót nem ember_” being a favourite motto of the ancient
+Magyars when alluding to the Slávs. The servant of no man, not only
+the haughty Magyar peasant, but the Slovak likewise, possesses a
+self-respect and quiet dignity of manner which are very pleasant
+to see, and I could not help wishing our own poor had but the same
+advantages joined to the same inherent thrift and industry.
+
+There is, however, one virtue in which the Slovaks eminently fail;
+namely, cleanliness. Their wooden houses, surrounded on three sides
+by sheds containing their little live stock, are full of dirt and
+discomfort. The room in which they live, adorned with crucifixes,
+grotesque coloured prints and images bought at the neighbouring fairs,
+is ill-ventilated and ill-furnished, and seldom lighted by more than
+one small window, whilst the one room is used for all purposes.
+
+Unlike their Magyar sisters, the Slovak women are exceedingly plain.
+But a Slovak baby is, on the contrary, the wee-est and prettiest little
+creature possible. At three years old, they are such tiny atoms of
+creation that, clinging to their mothers’ skirts, they look mere dolls,
+and with their small round faces, large eyes, long eyelashes, and
+pensive expression are so irresistibly pretty, that I have often been
+seized with the desire to kiss them, until, having sought diligently
+for a clean patch on their faces for the purpose, I have had to
+relinquish that impulse in despair.
+
+The following day being Sunday, our intention had been to start at
+6 A.M. for Kesmark, in order to attend the early service at the old
+Lutheran church. The carriage which brought us hither from Zakopane,
+however, to our great annoyance and surprise, had silently departed
+some time during the small hours of the night! It is true we only hired
+it in the first instance to bring us on to Altendorf, but, having
+ascertained on arrival here that there existed not the ghost of a
+conveyance, we arranged with our Zakopane driver, by the help of the
+fair Gretchen, who acted as interpreter, that he should take us as far
+as Kesmark, we on our part agreeing not only to pay extra for the use
+of the carriage, but promising him a handsome “_na vordken_” (gratuity)
+besides.
+
+Here was a dilemma! Left stranded high and dry in a Slovak inn, its
+charms grew wonderfully less as soon as the prospect of spending an
+indefinite period within its shelter was presented to our minds, or at
+any rate until some friendly vehicle passing--goodness knows when, a
+year hence, probably--might come to tow us off again. It was as much
+as even patient travellers like ourselves could endure with anything
+like philosophy. The miscreant had also sneaked off without even paying
+for the baiting of the horses. What could be his motive for playing us
+false? Unfortunately F., in the plenitude of his goodness and out of a
+full heart, had paid him at once on arrival, and bestowed upon him his
+“_na vordken_” besides, and he was gone, the fiend! _gone for
+ever_.
+
+“Had any one heard him depart?” inquired the landlord of a group of
+neighbourly Slovaks, who had already scented something unusual in the
+near horizon.
+
+“No!” was the reply from a chorus of voices, accompanied by a murmur
+to the effect that whatever time he managed to make his escape, and
+wherever he might happen to be at present, he would in all probability
+spend his future in a warmer climate than that to which he had been
+accustomed in the Northern Tátra for so deceiving “_die erwürdigen
+Engländer_” (the gracious English people).
+
+Our case received the sympathy of the entire Slovak population. Women
+left their cows and came to the fore. The gentle Slovak for once
+grew quite ferocious under the insult that had been offered to the
+“strangers.” Finally, the “fat boy” arrived upon the scene, panting
+under the weight of the big baby.
+
+Now during our travels through this country I trust I have proved
+beyond all question that we do not regard our dignity as a thing of
+such light and airy weight that it can be taken off its balance by
+anything on wheels, but there _are_ limits to indifference to
+appearances, as well as to bodily endurance; and, anxious as we were
+to quit Altendorf and proceed on our journey, we did not feel quite
+prepared to avail ourselves of a vehicle--although deeply grateful for
+the offer--which an amiable Slovak neighbour, who had gone back to his
+own premises to fetch it, now brought in triumph to our rescue. Neither
+did we feel disposed to invest in a pair of broken-kneed, half-starved
+ponies which another amiable Slovak offered to part with to _draw_
+the said vehicle, at the alarming sacrifice of sixty gulden each--about
+£5, the average price of such animals in this district.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+We had just decided to resign ourselves to our fate, until a carriage
+could be fetched from Kesmark, when a youthful Slovak Hodge, pointing
+in the direction of the road by which we had come from Zakopane, and
+opening his eyes very wide, gave vent to the laconic word in the
+_platt_, or colloquial Slovatian of the district, “_Posri!_”
+(Behold!)
+
+There in truth in the distance, surrounded by such a cloud of dust that
+not only the wheels of the carriage but the horses’ legs were quite
+hidden, came the object of our indignation and regret--the faithless
+driver, seated high upon the box above the white cloud, looking
+like some dark phantom poised in mid-air. He was repentant, then.
+Conscience, that faithful monitor, had pricked him on his homeward way,
+and he is returning to us with all speed, humbled and subdued. We would
+be magnanimous, and exercise forgiveness, that noblest of all virtues.
+
+A volley of Slovatian expletives more or less complimentary greeted his
+approach, but to our chagrin he seemed neither repentant nor subdued;
+on the contrary, giving a flourish to his whip and pulling the horses
+up short, he pointed triumphantly to their shoes, and said in Slovatian:
+
+“_Hotovo!_” (Done!)
+
+Then, and not till then, did it occur to us that he had spoken the
+previous evening about the necessity of the animals being shod in the
+event of our taking them on to Kesmark over more miles of mountain
+road. To this end he had arisen when we and the Slovak world were still
+in dreamland, and, having driven them to our friends the gipsies at the
+outskirts of the village, had had it done.
+
+At nine o’clock however, the driver having been made radiant by a good
+breakfast, we get once more under weigh. The morning is fine, but dark
+clouds hang ominously overhead, and occasionally obscure the sun. In
+the quiet little Slovak villages through which we pass, people dressed
+in their Sunday best are coming from church. But the gipsies, who meet
+us at the entrance to each, and to whom the day brings no rest from
+labour--the foretaste of that more perfect rest, when, these sad lives
+of ours, being over, that home is reached “where the wicked cease from
+troubling and the weary are at rest”--are at work as on all other days,
+lustily striking their small anvils. Gipsy urchins, too, run after us,
+turn somersaults, and indulge in various other gymnastic exercises, in
+the hope--vain, alas!--of engaging our attention. But at last, having
+to climb a steep hill, we pass through another village, where a little
+bevy of gipsy children keep pace with us; and two of them are carrying
+such infinitesimal specimens of babies, so small and so old-looking,
+and with such large brown, melancholy eyes, that they touch our hearts,
+and cost us unlimited kreutzers. Following them was a pretty little
+gipsy boy with immense black eyes, his skin almost as dark as that
+of a Hindoo, and whose only garment was a blue-and-white checquered
+handkerchief, tied by the corners round his neck, whence, hanging down
+square over his little back, and extending to his heels, it formed a
+sort of Spartan mantle.
+
+Stopping the carriage, we alight and put a kreutzer into each of his
+tiny hands, lest the older ones might rob him of his share of those
+we had already thrown to the whole party. But he stood silent and
+pensive. For him the possession of money seemed to bring no joy as to
+other children; he was one who looked as though he had been born with a
+weight of care upon his small shoulders, and was an atom of humanity
+that touched us to the quick. With a dull and heavy feeling at the
+heart, we left him standing in the road, and, re-entering the carriage,
+once more wandered on our way.
+
+Continuing the ascent, we see, not far below the summit of the green
+alp we have to cross, a long procession of white-robed figures, for
+such they appear to us from a distance, but as they come slowly
+zigzagging down the steep we find it is a funeral. On an open bier,
+drawn by two white oxen, is laid the coffin. Where not covered with
+chaplets of flowers, we see it is painted white with gilt panels, and
+yet it is evidently the funeral of some peasant. Following the bier
+are some fifty women dressed in the pretty costume of the district, a
+short woollen skirt of broad red-and-blue stripes, worn over a blue
+petticoat, the head and shoulders covered with a long white muslin
+scarf. It is a picturesque scene as they come pattering along the road
+with naked feet, and we do not lose sight of them till we reach the
+summit of the pass, and enter a forest of pines.
+
+We had scarcely proceeded another mile when the rain, which had been
+threatening all the morning, began to pour; and as we commenced the
+descent of the mountain on the other side, it increased with such
+violence that umbrellas were of small avail. In half an hour’s time
+we were reduced to the condition of sponges, and were so miserably
+water-logged that, approaching a woodman’s hut which stood a little
+above the road, we sent the driver up to see whether we could take
+refuge in it, and he soon returned with the gratifying intelligence
+that although empty it contained a large fire. The grass under the
+pines was long and thick, but it was impossible to be wetter than we
+were already, so we determined upon taking shelter in the hut until
+the storm should be over. It could not have been long vacated, for the
+fire, which had evidently been just replenished, was burning brightly
+on the raised hearth. A pile of wood also stood in a corner, and we
+heaped it on without ceremony until we had a splendid blaze, which soon
+dried our soaking, sodden garments. Until we reach Poprád we have no
+change of raiment whatever--the possibility of such a storm as this not
+having entered into our calculations when we gave our other garments to
+the gipsies--and I am afraid it just crosses our minds that “virtue”
+has hardly been “rewarded” in this instance quite as it might have been.
+
+Whilst we ourselves are revelling in the warmth of the hut, our
+horses--which have been unharnessed--are grazing in the forest hard
+by, and the driver is crouching by another fire which he has made for
+himself under an adjoining shed. And we wonder what the owner of the
+hut would think were he suddenly to return and find his dwelling thus
+taken possession of.
+
+The storm was of short duration, and in an hour’s time, leaving on a
+bench a small gratuity for the worthy woodman by way of remuneration
+for our having, during his absence, invaded his little domain, we go
+on our way rejoicing, and soon find that the storm had been so partial
+that there had been no rain whatever a mile farther on.
+
+Nearing Béla, we meet carts and waggons drawn by two, three, or even
+four oxen, filled with peasants on their way from church to their homes
+many a mile distant in the heart of the beautiful mountains, which
+again tower above us, and cut their rugged way into the deep clear
+blue. In many of these waggons, as the oxen crawl leisurely along,
+one of the peasants may be seen reading the Bible, for we are once
+more amongst the Zipser Protestants, whilst the others sit, with heads
+uncovered and eyes bent low, listening to the “word of life.”
+
+Having passed through the quaint old town of Béla, we cross another
+green alp, and from the summit of it gain a wondrous panorama of the
+plains of Zips and the southern slopes of the Tátra rising out of them,
+and then, descending further, we see Kesmark lying beneath us like a
+toy-town, its white houses glistening in the sun.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XXV.
+
+                        ANDRÁS IN DIFFICULTIES.
+
+
+We reached Kesmark in time for the evening service at the Lutheran
+church; the curious old building, with its grotesquely painted roof
+and walls, taking us back to mediæval times; whilst the officiating
+minister, wearing a costume of the sixteenth century, looked as
+though he had just stepped out of some old picture-frame. It was
+all exceedingly quaint and interesting, and we were glad to have
+witnessed a service in one of these ancient edifices--so few of which
+now remain--that connect the present with the past, and tell more
+eloquently than words of the struggles of the people in the cause of
+religious freedom, so hardly won. As we watched these honest Zipsers
+peacefully thronging to the church in which their fathers worshipped
+and who fought so nobly for their faith, and listened to their lusty
+singing, our minds could not help reverting to that troublous time
+when, at a Diet held at Buda in 1523, an edict was passed empowering
+the government “to hang or, if of noble lineage, to behead all Lutheran
+heretics and their abettors found in the Apostolic Kingdom of St.
+Stephen.”
+
+How bravely they held their own against the intolerance of the Roman
+Church of that period may be inferred from the fact of there existing
+no fewer than 1,100,000 Lutherans in Hungary at the present time,
+irrespective of other Protestant sects, which number in all 3,124,000
+members.
+
+The service ended, we were walking about the old building, when we
+were accosted by the woman who had been so horrified at our supposing
+the church to be other than Protestant. She asked us to walk into
+the vestry, just vacated by the minister, who, having doffed his
+ecclesiastical robes, now looked like an ordinary mortal of the
+nineteenth century.
+
+What a conglomeration of relics of a bygone era awaited us here! To
+enumerate them would be impossible. Suffice it to say that an antiquary
+would have gone mad with delight over the _bric-à-brac_ which the
+room and its vestibule contained, and I doubt whether the contents
+of all the shops in Wardour Street could have produced a greater
+display of “art treasures,” in the shape of sacred vessels and other
+antiquities, of the Roman Catholic period. They are all so old that,
+in comparison, two ancient life-size portraits of the great Reformers,
+Luther and Calvin, appeared but the work of yesterday; and who,
+forgetting in the mellowing influence of three and a half centuries
+their bitter antagonism in matters of religion, here hang side by side,
+and ogle each other with Christian benignity.
+
+We found a letter awaiting us here from András, containing many
+expressions of devotion to our service, and informing us in somewhat
+florid German that he should hold himself in readiness to accompany
+us on our further travels from to-day. We had given him leave to go
+home during our absence in the Northern Tátra, a leave which extended
+almost a week beyond the present time, in consequence of our having
+purposed making excursions in the neighbourhood of Kesmark; but as he
+has already returned to Poprád, we decide to journey on to that place
+this evening.
+
+Having dismissed our Zakopane coachman, we hire another carriage to
+take us on, and bid farewell to this interesting old town at five
+o’clock. The roads are excellent the whole way; and the horses this
+time spinning along at an exhilarating pace, we have a splendid drive,
+and do not once lose sight of the Tátra, whose peaks, rising above us
+in lonely majesty, appear in the clear atmosphere to be scarcely more
+than a stone’s throw off. As we near Poprád, the sun is setting, and
+they tower above us bathed in all the tender roseate hues of evening;
+whilst the dense pine-forests reposing at their base, which cross them
+in one magnificent sweep, stand out blue and sombre and cold.
+
+Entering the town or village, or whatever Poprád may be called,
+the first person we recognise is András himself, looking more
+“_betyár_” than ever; his moustache--after the fortnight’s growth,
+and careful manipulation he has been able to bestow upon it during our
+absence--extending far beyond his cheeks, and twisted into a lovely
+curl at each end. Great at all times in ties and top-boots, he is so
+altogether “_chic_” now that he is out for a holiday, that as he
+walks down the street with that peculiar swagger which he invariably
+assumes when he is decked out in all his “war-paint,” the little
+children look up at him wonderingly with open mouths and reverently
+kiss his hand, thinking, as they see their small round faces reflected
+in his shining boots as in the bowl of a tea-spoon, that he is quite a
+superior being; whilst the Zipser damsels sitting out of doors in the
+cool evening air evidently regard him with unfeigned admiration, as the
+very perfection of a “_Magyar-miska_.” Although he had written to
+say he had returned to Poprád and was at our service, he had no reason
+to expect our arrival for several days to come, so he was not a little
+surprised when, pulling up, we made our presence known to him. But
+kissing our hands reverently, and expressing in Magyar idiom his great
+joy at once more beholding the face of his “sweet master and sweet
+mistress,” he mounted the box, and directed the driver to take us to
+“Hôtel Tátra.”
+
+Hôtel Tátra is well named, the only objects visible from its windows,
+besides the ugly little station of the Oderberg and Kaschau railway,
+being the great mountains rearing their jagged and denticulated summits
+into the purpling sky. We purpose remaining here, however, one night
+only, and starting early on the morrow for Neusohl, a few miles beyond
+which friends reside to whom we have a letter of introduction, and
+who have asked us to spend a few days with them on our way from the
+mountains.
+
+Whilst András was making the necessary arrangements for the journey,
+which chiefly consisted in procuring horses and driver, together with
+laying in a small store of provisions for our roadside bivouacs, there
+was a gentle knock at the door, and in response to our “_Herein!_”
+a tall man, dressed in shabby black, entered hat in hand. That we were
+greatly puzzled at receiving such a visit may readily be imagined; his
+appearance, too, added not a little to our wonderment. He might have
+been a tract-distributor, or a _colporteur_, if he had only had
+his pack; or a detective in disguise, or an “undertaker,” or Methodist
+parson. He looked demure enough for anything.
+
+It was not long, however, before he unfolded the object of his
+mission. Could we tell him whether the person in our service was
+_aufrichtig_ (upright), and the kind of man to whom a devoted
+father would like to entrust his daughter’s happiness? This odd inquiry
+subsequently elicited the fact that András had not been spending his
+time during our absence in the bosom of his family, as we had all along
+imagined, but had remained here instead, lodging with our visitor, who
+possessed a daughter, to whom he was said to have engaged himself in
+marriage, and, to use the words of the “devoted father,” _sie waren
+verlobt_--they were betrothed.
+
+We were quite taken aback by this astounding and most improbable
+declaration. That András was a little prone to “butterflying” with the
+opposite sex we already knew by experience, but that there was any real
+harm in our little “_betyár_” we did not believe for an instant;
+for, having accompanied us on two of our previous journeys through
+Hungary, we had known him long. In vain we assured the demure man in
+black that he must be labouring under a delusion, informing him that
+our guide was married, and the possessor of several olive-branches.
+He insisted on the fact with such earnestness and gravity, and talked
+about compensation and redress in such a fierce and determined manner,
+that we began to fear it must be true.
+
+I need scarcely say, however, that we soon proved that our good little
+guide had been guilty of no such enormity. That he had been spending
+his time here _pour s’amuser_, and had not thought it necessary
+to impart to the fair ones of Poprád the fact of his being ineligible
+as a “partner for life,” I fear there is not much doubt; probably
+acting on the casuistic principle contained in the French proverb,
+“_On est obligé de parler toujours sincèrement; mais on n’est pas
+toujours obligé de parler_;” for, on the matter having been brought
+to the notice of the “_pandúr_,” to whom we were obliged to have
+recourse by way of intimidating András’s traducer--who we subsequently
+discovered to be a Jew, and who went so far as to threaten to prosecute
+him for his alleged fraudulent conduct--the whole thing fell to
+nothing like the fabled fox-track in the snow, which “dwindled to a
+rabbit-track, and then to a squirrel-track, and finally ran up a tree,”
+and was doubtless, as the “_pandúr_” hinted, only a device to gain
+money under false pretences.
+
+“Why did you not go home to your wife?” we inquired of András later in
+the evening, as--the unpleasant little episode over--he came to wish us
+“good-night” and receive the latest orders for the morrow.
+
+“Ah! if my sweet master and mistress only knew”--tears came into his
+eyes, and he sighed piteously--“if they only knew how Katicza treats
+me!”--all the starch and perkyness dying out of him at once as the
+image of that charming female rose before him in all her magnificent
+proportions. As it did so, he stood before us a wrinkled, cowed, and
+thoroughly submissive man; and we realised the situation in an instant,
+and regarding him under his changed aspect we learnt a moral. Here was
+a man, small of stature, it is true, and usually dauntless in spirit,
+who could hold his own, and assert himself with _men_, but who
+nevertheless, under the irresistible and all-powerful hierarchy of
+womankind, was reduced mentally to the condition of a subdued kitten.
+Poor András, thou art, after all, but an example of a judiciously
+henpecked husband!
+
+It was, however, impossible to allow this incident, so indicative of
+András’s weaknesses, to pass without “improving the occasion,” and
+bestowing on him a few platitudes relative to his general behaviour
+towards other goddesses than his own, and I sincerely trust that he
+retired to rest that night if a “sadder,” yet a “wiser” man.
+
+As gloriously as it had sunk to rest, the sun rose out of the plains,
+calling men from their slumber to the toils of day. We too were up
+early, and saw the rugged summits of the mountains start into awful
+life--the snows looking in the morning light like glittering flames of
+gold.
+
+We have broken our morning’s slumber so effectually by habitual early
+startings, that we can no longer sleep much after five o’clock; and the
+immortal “ode to the sluggard” can scarcely, therefore, be said to be
+applicable to ourselves, in _these_ days at any rate. Distances
+are great in Hungary, and the fresh morning air breathed as we bowl
+along is well worth the effort of turning out--even if it _were_
+an effort, which in our case it has long ceased to be. Our hope is
+to reach Neusohl by nightfall, a distance of about sixty miles, to
+accomplish which we start to-day with four horses.
+
+Journeying towards the western slopes of the Tátra, we find that the
+mountains at their base have been ruthlessly robbed of their beautiful
+pine-trees, and they appear wretchedly barren after those we have left
+behind. And we tremble at the possibility of a day arriving when, the
+forests on the outer declivities of the Tátra once exhausted, the
+forest department may be compelled to have recourse to those of the
+interior, in which event the aspect of these wild and beautiful regions
+will soon be totally changed.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Having, to András’s intense satisfaction, left the district of the Zips
+behind--he declares that having shaken from his feet the dust of _das
+Land der Juden_, as he persists in calling that peaceful country,
+nothing shall ever induce him to enter it again--we find ourselves
+once more in the region of big hats, and reach a province inhabited
+entirely by Slovaks; our approach to each village being indicated by a
+steeple peeping above the gentle undulations. First appears the small
+round ball supporting the cross, then the metal cupola, shimmering like
+a star in the morning sun, then the tall white tower, and lastly the
+sleepy little village itself comes in sight, with its sombre houses,
+and semi-circular windows in the wooden roofs, like eyes half open.
+Here and there in these villages we see women standing on high ladders,
+engaged in repairing the shingled roofs, plastering the corners of
+the houses, or otherwise busily occupied; for these operations, which
+in other countries pertain unto men, are evidently confided in this
+locality to the “weaker sex,”--if that term can with truth be applied
+to these Slovak matrons, whose muscular development is of the very
+highest order.
+
+The pigs, too, afford instructive examples of the Darwinian theory
+of mental development by “hereditary experience,” their constant
+association with the creature man--with whom they live in close
+fellowship--having made them almost human. As we drive through the
+villages, they rise from their wallowing in the dust on either side
+of the road, droop their tails, and then with a peculiar squeak, half
+grunt, half speech, gallop off to their respective cottages to inform
+the dwellers therein that interlopers have arrived to disturb the
+tranquillity of their borders. These quadrupeds however, though in a
+high state of cerebral development, are, I should say, in regard to
+physical anatomy, the very lowest type of their class. Covered with
+scanty red hair, and possessed of an erect and scrubby mane which
+extends down the nape of the neck, an immense head, high back and short
+body, they resemble hyenas far more than the domestic and familiar
+mammal of our styes.
+
+Never can I forget the indignation of one of these animals, or the
+expression of its countenance, as we passed a little colony of
+charcoal-burners. First looking at us full in the face, as though
+about to charge, it almost swore at us. Then, as if thinking it would
+be hardly a match for us, it turned round with a look of injured
+innocence, and with a series of grunts, whose intonation was almost
+like that of the human voice, ran home to complain in the most
+deprecatory accents of our raid upon the village. We had often heard of
+the fine pigs of Hungary dignified with the royal title of “Palatine,”
+but we venture to hope that the Slovak species does not belong to that
+noble order.
+
+Passing now over a very bad road, our progress is exceedingly slow;
+the carriage rocking to such an extent that we tremble lest in its
+old age it should break up entirely and land us on the ground, which
+is covered with stones sharp as needles. Opposite, lashed to the front
+seat, is the provision-basket, in which stands a bottle of wine, and
+which occasionally takes such a leap into the air that we have serious
+fears, not only for the safety of its contents, but lest the quality
+of the wine itself be impaired by the perpetual churning to which
+it is subjected; a process which has caused us long ago to refrain
+from bringing milk, experience having taught us that that fluid under
+similar circumstances is without human agency occasionally given to
+exchanging its properties for those of butter.
+
+For some time past we have been winding round the buttresses of rugged
+mountains, whose trees have only recently been cut down; but on
+proceeding a mile or two farther, we welcome the existence of a nursery
+of young pines--seedlings just peeping above the soil, showing that the
+forest department are not wholly unmindful of their duty to the future.
+We are again surrounded by vegetation, and, coming to an unusually
+steep ascent, András jumps off the box and climbs the outskirts of the
+forest in search of _Pilzen_, or edible fungi, which abound in
+Hungary, and are of the most beautiful colour and form. In some places
+the mossy banks are thickly sown with what appear at first sight to be
+daisies, an effect produced by the white _Jungfernsschwämme_. In
+others it is covered with the golden _omphaleák_, which hold aloft
+their small and variously painted heads on slender, half-transparent
+stems. Besides these, there are the canary-coloured _Clitocybe_
+and the exquisitely adorned _Täublinge_, standing together like
+soldiers on parade, with their purple, green, or violet caps; whilst
+here and there, like gnomes amongst the elves, a fat _Cortinaria_
+may be seen, almost bursting through its leathery outer garment; nor
+must the scarlet _Fliegenschwämme_ be forgotten, one of the most
+beautiful of all.
+
+These fungi, which in many instances are quite as splendid in both form
+and colour as flowers, are not all edible. The peasants however easily
+distinguish the one from the other; the edible, with the exception
+of the _maschlare_, the flesh of which is too soft, being much
+esteemed.
+
+András, who now rejoins us, bearing a quantity of _Pilzen_,
+which he informs us are of the best kind, calls our attention to the
+existence of a number of enormous slugs lying amongst the damp moss
+and lichen on either side of the road, with bright emerald-green heads
+and dark-blue bodies, which he declares to be a _Leckerbissen_
+(dainty), and recommends our trying them as an accompaniment to our
+_Pilzen_ at the end of the journey, when he assures us our
+prejudices will vanish for ever.
+
+Zigzagging down the steep mountains come long waggons laden with
+charcoal, and driven by our old friends the Slovaks with the large
+hats. But we are nearing a larger village than usual, and our driver,
+lashing his horses, takes us bodily into the middle of an _álás_,
+where alighting we arouse the anger of a number of turkeys, who spread
+their broad fans and make for us with indignant gesture. It had
+occurred to us that we might possibly find something to eat at this
+place, but on going over to the adjoining inn we find they can as usual
+offer us nothing but rye bread and Slovak cheese. In a few minutes
+we are joined by our guide, who informs us that there is also some
+difficulty in procuring a relay of horses to take us on, and that he
+fears it will be some time before any are forthcoming, all the animals
+belonging to the village being engaged in the fields many miles away.
+This being the case, we request him to find a pleasant and retired spot
+for a bivouac, to make the fire and prepare our meal, and to leave for
+once the arrangements about horses to ourselves.
+
+Sending for the village “_pandúr_,” we ascertain that the
+inhabitants have spoken quite correctly; neither love nor money could
+procure horses for us that day; and upon his suggesting a yoke of oxen
+as the only possible solution of the difficulty, we set off together in
+search of a benevolent peasant who may be induced to lend us four for
+the purpose. For to-morrow’s journey the _pandúr_ proposes sending
+a messenger over the mountains to the next village by a nearer route,
+to obtain horses there if possible, and have them ready for our arrival.
+
+As we walk down the village, so great is the curiosity concerning us
+that a face is peeping from every window or half-opened doorway; dogs,
+too, which appear to consider themselves a kind of rural police, rush
+out of sheds, show their teeth and bark at us furiously, until they see
+that we are already in the company of a functionary of the law, when
+they slink off again as though they felt they might safely consign us
+to his _surveillance_, and that in this instance the duty which
+they owed to their Slovak masters, in the protection of the village
+from the incursions of suspicious characters, no longer devolved upon
+themselves.
+
+At length, reaching the end of the long street, we observe a rustic
+leaning out of a window smoking a pipe. He is evidently the immediate
+object of the _pandúr’s_ quest, for he accosts him, and after a
+short conversation, carried on in the Slovak language, he informs us
+that in an hour’s time a team of strong oxen will be at our disposal.
+
+Hastening back to András with this intelligence, we find him busily
+occupied with his culinary utensils, and looking--crouched round the
+fire and peering into his stew-pans--like a wizard engaged on some
+unholy philtre or mystic spell, whilst the _cazarola_ was sending
+forth the most appetising odours.
+
+He had chosen for our refectory a sweet green spot under the cool
+shadow of a tree. What though on the journey the mustard had invaded
+the territories of the butter? What though the omelette, when it came
+smoking from the frying-pan, resembled Australian damper and was gritty
+from the all-pervading sand? What though the faithful András, cumbered
+with many things, had forgotten before starting to bring the salt? Our
+good appetites compensated for everything.
+
+The wine, however, though it had the tint of rubies, was both a
+delusion and a snare--whether from the exhilarating effects of the
+severe process of churning to which it had been subjected on the way,
+or from the nature of the wine itself, I know not. But I incline to the
+latter theory. Bad Hungarian wine, especially if it happen to be new,
+has a vicious habit of going at once to the head; and before either
+of us had imbibed more than half a glass of this, we are almost taken
+off our balance, and subjected to the humiliating consciousness of
+considerable difficulty in the power of articulation!
+
+Having seen that the wants of our excellent _chef_ were well
+supplied, and taken care, by consigning it as a libation to the river
+at our feet, that he did not himself partake of the wine, we repair
+to the _álás_, where we find our carriage already attached to its
+novel team.
+
+Patriarchal and primitive as our wanderings have been hitherto,
+travelling through the country with a yoke of oxen is an entirely new
+experience. In all this “vale of tears” there is nothing so slow and
+dreary, and, crawling along the road in our lumbering old chariot, we
+seem to be carried back to a remote period of the world’s history, even
+to the drowsy old times of the ancient Seers. As we pass through the
+sleepy little villages, people come out of their houses and follow us,
+asking questions of András and the driver, who we are and whence we
+have come; the more intelligent addressing them in German, and taking
+no more heed of our presence than if we had been deaf.
+
+In process of time we reach the village where the horses were to await
+us, and, suddenly aroused by the stentorian shout of the owner of
+the oxen, who brings them to an abrupt standstill, we see three bony
+animals standing in the middle of the road.
+
+At eight o’clock we reach Neusohl, and are driven at once to the Hôtel
+----. We had stayed here with András on our previous visit to Hungary;
+and the moment he enters the inn to make the necessary inquiries as to
+accommodation, he is recognised. The landlord, a German Jew, embraces
+him with effusion. He is his “long-lost brother.” The landlady almost
+repeats the ceremony, but suppresses her emotions with a dignity and
+fortitude that do her credit.
+
+“_Und die Engländer_?--They are here too? _Ach!_ It is too
+much. Accommodation?” They should think so. The whole house was ours.
+The best guest-chamber, where the King himself had slept; and if the
+hotel had been full, why then we should have had their own. Yes! their
+very own room. “_Ach!_”
+
+The preamble happily coming to an abrupt conclusion with the utterance
+of this guttural, we are permitted to alight from the carriage and
+enter the hotel, which not being full, the hospitable alternative above
+mentioned had no need to be taken advantage of--a distinction which,
+having been favoured with it on our last visit, we did not appreciate
+sufficiently to desire its repetition on the present occasion.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                             CHAPTER XXVI.
+
+                                AFLOAT!
+
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Far away from Hungary, in the Black Forest, and in that region which
+once formed part of the great Hercynian woods of the ancients, which
+in Cæsar’s time stretched to the boundless steppes of the North, is a
+shady nook which the fairies might even envy, where, cradled in the
+lap of luxury and surrounded by beauteous flowers of man’s planting,
+trickles forth a limpid stream discovered seven centuries before our
+era by the Greeks, who named it Ister. To it, in ancient days, men
+walking many a footsore mile came to pay homage, and bathe their
+wearied limbs and slake their thirst in its cool, refreshing waters,
+first mingling in the stream a goblet of red wine as a libation.
+
+Hither marching from Lake Constance came the proud Tiberius, to do
+honour to that tiny thing--the infant Danube, which from such small
+beginnings was destined to become the main artery of Europe; for,
+however much those Montagues and Capulets of modern time--the St.
+Georgenites and people of Donaueschingen--may dispute the honour of
+giving the mighty river birth, the latter even quoting Tacitus in
+confirmation of their claim, there is little doubt that the nursed and
+petted rivulet which rises in the domain of the Counts of Fürstenberg
+is the veritable Danube. Still year by year the same controversy rages,
+and there is war to the knife between the men of Donaueschingen and
+those of St. Georgen touching the source of this splendid stream.
+
+Having arrived once more at Buda-Pest after a most pleasant visit to
+our Hungarian friends in the neighbourhood of Neusohl, we hire “a
+comfortable” at half-past ten P.M. the following day, and, András
+having previously gone on with bag and baggage, we drive to the quay,
+whence start the Danube boats for Semlin and the Black Sea.
+
+The place of embarkation is crowded with motley groups, through which
+we fight our way. The steam is already up, and the last signals of
+departure are being given to those on shore. The decks are full of
+passengers of almost every shade of colour, from the dark-complexioned
+Bosnian to the fair-haired German. In the large saloon all is hurry
+and bustle, for the gentlemen are eagerly hastening to secure berths
+for the night--amongst whom we observe two natives of the Sublime
+Porte in scarlet fezes; whilst below, the ladies’ saloon is full to
+overflowing, and stewards, their arms laden with pillows, sheets, and
+counterpanes, are hurrying hither and thither, to appease the demands
+of those passengers who are willing to pay an additional florin for
+these luxuries.
+
+The first-class accommodation on board these steamers is excellent,
+but unfortunately all ranks of society above the very lowest have to
+avail themselves of it, that of the second class being occupied by the
+“great unwashed,” with whom only the “great unwashed” themselves can
+possibly mingle. For these latter, however, no accommodation whatever
+is provided beyond the bare deck of the forecastle, upon which, wrapped
+in their rags and _bundas_, many were already fast asleep.
+
+The _express_ steamers now make the voyage to Belgrade in
+twenty-six hours; the ordinary--in one of which we are sailing--in
+thirty-two. But at the time of our departure the former had not begun
+to run.
+
+Eleven o’clock has struck--the hour advertised for the steamer to
+start; the last bale of merchandise has been taken on board; the last
+farewells have been spoken; the last passenger has crossed the gangway,
+and the “Szechenyi,” loosed from her moorings, goes bounding into
+mid-stream, and, after crossing to the other side to pick up passengers
+at Ofen, glides into the deep shadow of the rocky Blocksberg. High
+above us rises the bold perpendicular cliff, baring its summit to the
+moon. Lights twinkle here and there along the shore, the fringe of
+lamps at Pest grows fainter in its outline, till, rounding the reach of
+the noble river, the tall white houses of the fair city fade entirely
+from the view.
+
+The Danube, which at Pest is contracted within a comparatively narrow
+channel, now separates into two arms, called respectively the Soroksár
+and Promontár, and forms the island of Czepel, more than twenty miles
+in length.
+
+Passing the village of Promontorium, with its singular subterranean
+dwellings hewn out of the solid rock, in which, like the ancient
+Troglodytes, between two and three thousand persons have their being,
+we come to a large fishing town of nine thousand inhabitants, and,
+leaving this again and reaching a place called Paks, we commence the
+great windings of the river, and enter the morasses, which extend
+beyond its banks for many a mile.
+
+As far as the eye can penetrate, nothing is seen but a level swamp,
+covered with reeds and tall grass, save where the river, having
+overflowed its natural bed, has formed for itself a series of small
+lakes, which, reflecting the peaceful moonlight, appear like broad
+sheets of silver. But the stream soon enters the plains of Somogy, and
+as we are borne rapidly over its glassy surface it impresses us greatly
+with its awful power. It is master everywhere it flows, and seems to
+hold the whole surrounding country within its grasp as it rolls onward
+through the plains, deluging them at one time, and cutting new channels
+for itself at another, till, collecting in its progress the tribute of
+sixty navigable streams, it discharges its mighty waters into the Black
+Sea.
+
+It is one o’clock, and the night so balmy and delicious that, instead
+of retiring to our berths like the rest of mankind, we sit at the
+doorway of our cabin close to the stern, enjoying the great stillness
+amidst the crowd of human life which immediately surrounds us. No sound
+is heard but the heavy and stertorous breathing of the sleepers in the
+saloon below, and the measured tread of the ship’s officer on watch as
+he paces the distant quarter-deck.
+
+Occasionally, as we are borne rapidly down the stream, we come in
+sight of small towns and villages sleeping calmly in the moonlight.
+How strange and solemn it seems, to be keeping vigil in the great
+void night whilst all the world is slumbering! Here and there at long
+intervals are lights in lonely windows, suggesting wakefulness where
+all else is repose. What dramas of human life may not be taking place
+within those rooms which the outer walls exclude from mortal gaze!
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+Two hours’ fitful sleep, and we open our eyes upon Mohács, at which
+place we have just arrived. All is tumult and confusion, for here we
+take in fuel. The morn has broken fair and bright, and the sun, rising
+scarlet, reflects its image on the river like a fiery pillar; whilst
+the Danube, which at Buta, higher up the stream, divided into two great
+arms, here once more forms an island of many miles’ extent.
+
+At Mohács we lose a good many of our passengers, who have been
+gradually diminishing in number ever since we started, those only
+remaining who are bound for more eastern ports.
+
+There are two Turkish ladies on board, swathed in white muslin
+bandages, with trousers tied round the ankle, and wearing large black
+silk cloaks, which present a most grotesque appearance from a back view
+when, the wind inflating them like a balloon, they are blown out to
+their fullest extent. There are several Turkish children also, whose
+little fingers are dyed with _henna_, and their eyes set in a
+deep framework of _kohl_, which adds to them a wondrous size and
+lustre. They all avoid the gaze of the “giaours,” and try to conceal
+themselves behind the deck saloon, which is just outside our cabin.
+There is likewise a young Bulgarian lady, dressed in a kind of paletôt
+or pelisse, worn over a long petticoat and apron, and encircled at the
+waist by an embroidered belt. Her head is adorned by a stiff scarlet
+cap, resembling in shape a fez, which is covered with gold and silver
+coins; her husband being dressed similarly to the Turks.
+
+There are three persons, too, on board, whose manly bearing and
+close-knit frames proclaim them at once to be Servians. They are
+gentlemanly men, dressed in the costume of Western Europe, and talking
+at the present moment to a group of Servian peasants squatting on
+the deck amongst the second-class passengers. They are all smoking
+and chatting familiarly together--for the true-born Serb, like the
+Montenegrin, entertains a high sense of personal dignity, every one
+being noble in his estimation who is industrious and imbued with
+courage and the manly virtues, all men being equal who possess these
+qualities, which are the only distinction they recognise in their
+social scale. They hold their heads erect, these men of Servia. The
+expression of their countenance is one of intelligence, and their
+manner easy and dignified.
+
+Gleaming all over like a russet apple in the setting sun, sits near me
+a stout old Servian lady, her head covered with a small fez, round the
+rim of which is a roll of scarlet cloth forming a kind of coronet, and
+amongst which her long grey hair is entwined. She looks quite regal in
+her black velvet jacket embroidered richly with silver, but she has no
+more shape than a tub, as she sits with her dimpled hands spread out
+upon what would have been her lap, if kind Nature had only permitted
+her to have one.
+
+The noble river continues to flow on in a southerly direction until
+it is joined by the Drave. Its character now changes perceptibly. Its
+waters become darker and clearer, and flow on in a more massive volume.
+Its bed also deepens; it winds less frequently, and is less often
+interrupted by channels; and we soon border the province of Slavonia,
+which occupies the right bank the whole way to Semlin.
+
+On a promontory stands the ruined fortress of Erdöd, with its massive
+towers, and presently we pass the town of Illok, and afterwards fertile
+villages, each of which possesses a dismantled castle, telling of
+former pomp and glory.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+The river here is more than a mile wide, and, instead of marshy shores
+fringed with tall reeds and willows, the right bank is covered with
+immense forests of oak, where roam innumerable herds of swine. Here and
+there we pass a swineherd’s hut, picturesquely placed against the trunk
+of a tree and raised on poles. Here and there, too, monarchs of the
+woods, loosened from the soil by recent inundations, lie prostrate on
+the banks, bleached white, like skeletons, with contorted and leafless
+boughs, resembling arms thrown upwards in the agonies of death. Like
+the wayside tavern in lonely places, the swineherd’s hut often affords
+shelter at night to brigands, the _kanasz_ (swineherd) himself not
+unfrequently belonging to that honourable fraternity.
+
+One of the most singular and characteristic features of the Danube
+are the water-mills, which, floating sometimes almost in mid-stream,
+get run into by the steamers at night, and split to pieces like a box
+of matches. They are of the most simple and primitive description,
+constructed of two long boats moored side by side, to which the
+machinery of the wheels is fixed, the latter of course being turned by
+the force of the current. But besides these water-mills, other objects
+are seen floating on the river which puzzle the stranger not a little
+until he is informed of what they consist, viz. buoys, made by the
+fishermen of bundles of reeds, and attached to their sturgeon-nets.
+
+Perched on these primitive buoys may sometimes be seen a stork or
+pelican, but more frequently the white hawk, and now and then a heron.
+It is surprising how calmly these birds take our approach, seldom
+moving from their position, even though we pass quite near them.
+
+Everything is new and interesting. It is amusing to watch the
+antiquated craft which occasionally pass alongside--rafts of timber
+gliding down the stream, and flat-bottomed barges without keel, surely
+the most original thing afloat. On some of these rude contrivances
+stands a wooden house, and the whole device reminds us of the
+Noah’s-ark of childhood. Besides these, however, are somewhat more
+important boats, conveying pigs from the Servian forests to Pest and
+Vienna.
+
+Until a comparatively few years ago, the navigation of this mightiest
+of European rivers was accomplished in the most primitive manner.
+Although uniting, as the main artery of Europe, Hungary, Wallachia,
+Moldavia and Servia, with Russia, Turkey, and Asia Minor, the only mode
+of transport on these waters consisted of barges formed of planks,
+merely tied together with sufficient strength to enable them to sustain
+the downward voyage, after which they were broken up as waste timber.
+These strange “vessels” were provided with neither oars nor sails, but
+were floated down the current, there being scarcely any navigation
+up the stream. The first steamer was launched in 1830, but there are
+now on the river no fewer than 134, including steam-tugs for boats of
+merchandise. Yet whatever passes, the passengers as a rule take no
+heed, but either sit with their backs to the river, apparently wrapped
+in deepest thought, or gossip with their neighbours.
+
+There are three or four Hungarian ladies on board, two fair-haired
+Teutons, and several officers in Austrian uniform, and there is of
+course the same amount of coquetting going on which is generally seen
+under similar circumstances. The _dolce far niente_ life on these
+steamers is highly provocative of the tender passion, or its tender
+imitation, for everything conspires for the time against the sterner
+rules of society, and he who “finds mischief still for idle hands” must
+surely have a busy time of it with idle hearts in the height of the
+season, when the steamers are much fuller of passengers than they are
+at present. The warm and languid breeze fanning the cheeks; the dreamy
+“lap, lap” of the water against the sides of the vessel; the loitering,
+whispering couples under the shady awning; the dalliance of the storks
+on the green or golden shore, that arch their long white necks and
+clatter their beaks together as the manner of them is when flirting;
+the young newly-married couple, evidently on their honeymoon, that sit
+so close together, cooing in the shade of the deck saloon--are all in
+sympathy together, this hot and lazy day. Shall I except the Turkish
+ladies, who seem to have scarcely moved a muscle since early morn, and
+who sit with their backs turned towards everybody, looking out drearily
+through their muslin bandages over the steamer’s wake? Yet once and
+again, as I passed in or out of our cabin, the younger lady drew aside
+her veil softly and almost imperceptibly as if by accident or by the
+natural stirrings of the wind, and displayed a pensive and somewhat
+pretty face. But did I not see thy small henna-tipped fingers give that
+gentle twitch? O thou daughter of Eve!
+
+András, who possesses amongst his other idiosyncrasies a rather curious
+and inquisitive turn of mind, has already made himself acquainted with
+their history, and informs us that this Turkish family are on their
+homeward way, having been on a visit to some baths in Hungary; that
+they are likewise rich, and live in the suburbs of Constantinople.
+
+We find our guide a very useful and cheap luxury here as elsewhere.
+We pay him a florin a day and his travelling expenses, an additional
+florin generally more than covering his outlay for food, for he is
+a creature of simple habits, and would be quite satisfied if he had
+nothing but “_kukurutz_” soup and black bread every day of his
+life. He brings us our coffee, straps and unstraps our portmanteaus;
+sometimes--shall I say it?--even washes a clean spot on the deck for
+me to sit on; superintends F.’s toilet, and patronises both of us in
+a variety of ways. He, too, is suffering from the pernicious effects
+of the _dolce far niente_, and is engaged at the present moment
+in turning the head of the little fat ball of a scullery-maid, who
+lives in a hot cupboard adjoining the galley, and who addresses him
+as “_per kend_” (your grace), as he stands on the threshold, and
+leans, in a Magyar “Dundreary” style, languidly against the doorpost.
+What a scullery-maid! There is not a clean patch about her from head
+to foot, except where a small portion of the skirt of her gown has
+by accident got soaked in a pool of clean water on the floor. She
+has just washed the salad for dinner, and now comes out, with the
+same bowl in which she accomplished that operation, to fetch coal. He
+endeavours--oh, for shame, András!--to make her pay toll, but this
+little Magyar Cinderella knows well how to hold her own, and gives him
+a smart box in the ear for his pains; but, a compromise being at length
+effected, she allows him to fetch the coal for her instead.
+
+At the savage hour of one, a bell summons us to table d’hôte. We are
+only twenty guests, the other first-class passengers having, I observe,
+brought their provisions with them, which they partake of secretly
+and at odd moments in out-of-the-way corners, producing them from the
+depths of mysterious and cunningly-concealed pockets or baskets; the
+particular species of esculent being, as a rule, a portion of sausage,
+which the possessor cuts into thin slices with his or her penknife, and
+consumes _ad infinitum_.
+
+We form at table a mixed gathering, consisting of Hungarians,
+Slavonians, Servians, and Germans. As we happened to lead the
+conversation at our end of the table in German, it is carried on by
+all in that tongue, out of courtesy, as we imagine, to ourselves. The
+fare is abundant: soup, fish of two kinds, boiled and pickled, the
+latter smothered in a creamy sauce composed of a mixture of capers
+and finely-scraped horse-radish--not by any means a bad compound,
+and one I recommend to my countrywomen as a novel adjunct to their
+_cuisine_. After this came boiled beef, also served with
+horse-radish sauce. This, together with red pepper, would appear to be
+a very favourite condiment with the Hungarians, who probably inherit
+their taste for highly-seasoned viands from the ancient Avars, who
+are said to have cooked their food with various aromatic spices. Then
+followed a variety of light dishes, too numerous to mention, succeeded
+by roasted chicken, to accompany which were handed preserved apricots,
+cherries, and greengages. A bottle of _Nicotina_--an excellent
+Servian wine, slightly resembling the Italian _Barbera_, and which
+creates an agreeable pricking sensation on the tongue--compensated in
+some measure for the garlic with which the cutlets were flavoured,
+and which we had unfortunately partaken of; whilst a dessert of
+splendid melons and grapes--taken on board at Baja, on the left bank
+of the river above Mohács, where a considerable trade is carried on
+in the various kinds of fruits for which the district is greatly
+celebrated--completed the repast.
+
+During dinner, the conversation turned upon German literature, chiefly
+sustained between an enthusiastic young German and a testy old Magyar
+who sat immediately opposite, both of whom drifted into an extremely
+warm argument on the respective merits of Schiller and Goethe; the
+Magyar condescending to express his strong admiration of the former,
+but declaring that the latter was too deep for him to appreciate.
+Whereupon the young German began quoting Goethe and talking loudly of
+his philosophy, a circumstance which called forth the rejoinder from
+the old gentleman--who grew quite scarlet on the subject--that he was
+but a mere _Spitzbube_ (puppy), and did not know what he was
+talking about!
+
+This remark evoked another from F., who sided with the German; but a
+series of jerks and bumps which almost shook the glasses off the table,
+and a chorus of voices from the shore, announced the fact that we had
+arrived at another town or village, and happily brought the argument to
+an abrupt conclusion, for we all hurry up the companion to see what is
+taking place on deck.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                            CHAPTER XXVII.
+
+                          A MOONLIGHT MEDLEY.
+
+
+On looking over the steamer’s side, we see a youthful Jeanette and
+Jeanot in the agonies of parting. It was a sight both comic and
+pathetic: the grief of the former--a girl of scarcely more than sixteen
+summers--was so evidently real, as she clung passionately to her
+disconsolate but somewhat abashed swain. But much of the poetry of the
+scene resolved itself into very flat prose when--the time being up--a
+stern Hungarian official, not given evidently to encouraging weaknesses
+of the kind, thrusts her from the arms of her lover with a most
+unsympathetic shove, and hurries her across the gangway on to the deck.
+Her face, as she passes, is sadly disfigured with weeping.
+
+At this place we also take on board a Magyar noble and his servant; the
+latter attired in a gorgeous livery of green and gold, with a hat to
+match, and surmounted by a long and almost erect feather.
+
+We were taking a promenade on deck, F. smoking the cigar of peace, when
+the testy old gentleman passed us. He had evidently not yet forgiven us
+for the part we took against him, in the discussion at dinner, on the
+respective merits of Goethe and Schiller.
+
+“_Swab_,” I heard him mutter beneath his clenched teeth, as he
+withdrew a few paces from us--a term of contempt very frequently made
+use of by the Magyars when alluding to the hated German race.
+
+This word and the manner of its expression amused the fat old Servian
+lady immensely, who happened to be sitting near. _She_ knew we
+were English, for we had had a long chat with her earlier in the day,
+and the mistake in calling us by the ignominious name of _Swab_
+she evidently regarded as such a good joke, that she laughed till she
+shook all over like a jelly, and could not steady herself for a long
+time afterwards.
+
+“You take us for Germans,” I said, confronting him boldly as he passed
+again.
+
+“And what else may you be, pray?” he demanded in a haughty tone,
+colouring to the roots of his hair, all his porcupine quills appearing
+in an instant, as, thrusting his hands into his pockets, he stood ready
+for the attack.
+
+“We are _Angolok_, by your leave, _mein Herr_.”
+
+“_Angolok?_” rejoined he. “Then I have indeed to crave your
+forgiveness”--all his testiness calming in an instant, whilst he
+extended his hand towards us, adding sadly, “Ah, you do not know what
+insults we Hungarians often have to bear from those _S--s--swab_.”
+And I could see that the mere utterance of the word itself was a relief
+to his feelings!
+
+After this little episode we became great friends. He was a Magyar of
+the old school, hating Austria and everything that had an Austrian
+tendency. He had been an active partisan of Kossuth, having fought for
+his country in ’49, and still carried the marks of a sabre cut on his
+forehead, of which he was not a little proud.
+
+Meanwhile our Danubian Jeanette sits disconsolate, fixing her eyes upon
+the fading shore, long after the gables and church steeples of the town
+have become invisible, looking down tenderly now and then on a flower
+which is hanging its head meekly in her bosom and languishing--as,
+alas! how soon her _love_ did.
+
+An hour or two later, and her eyes and nose no longer red from crying,
+we find that she is quite pretty, and also that she has already
+attracted the attention of a spurred and top-booted Austrian officer,
+who appears to be of the same opinion. He takes his seat beside her,
+and then we see for the first time what large expressive eyes she has,
+and how blue they are. Ah! If Jeanot could only see his Jeanette now!
+Later still, they--the Austrian officer and she--are leaning over the
+bulwarks of the ship together; as he whispers “soft nothings” in her
+ear.
+
+Their faces are fronting up stream, and I wonder whether her thoughts
+are still travelling in the direction of the little, sandy, sun-burnt
+port where her lover dwells, and whether he too is casting regretful
+glances down the river’s course, or whether, on the contrary, he is
+whiling away the tedium of the evening and consoling himself in the
+presence of some other fair one!
+
+By this time we had ourselves attracted the attention of our
+fellow-passengers, and my small sketch-book had become the terror of
+some and the astonishment of all. At first I was able to sketch the
+various groups on board unseen--hiding behind friendly backs, sometimes
+utilising F. for the purpose, sometimes András--till one unlucky
+moment, taken off my guard, I allowed an inquisitive “native” to take a
+mean advantage of me and slip round behind us. Thenceforward I had no
+more peace. “The great unwashed” particularly manifested a most decided
+disinclination to be immortalised, half believing I possessed the gift
+of the “evil eye”--above all the Turkish ladies, who, when they were
+informed of my dangerous proclivities, drew their bandages closely over
+their faces till even their eyes were concealed, whilst the passengers
+on the forecastle crowded round me to such an extent that the Captain
+at last came to see what could be the matter. Some who happened to be
+too far in the rear to have a good view of my proceedings had climbed
+on to the ship’s bulwarks, where, holding on by the iron supports from
+which the boats were suspended, they not only had a good view, but felt
+secure from my dreaded machinations.
+
+I never saw people more excited, until it became noised abroad that
+“some one in the crowd knew all about it.” I was simply taking
+pictures for the Illustrated _Zeitung_ (Journal) of Belgrade.
+This was regarded as so natural and likely a solution of the matter
+that henceforth--there being no longer any mystery--the interest in
+me gradually subsided, and I was permitted to pursue art under less
+difficulty.
+
+Count ----, the “noble” who joined us at Esseg, is a most intelligent
+and agreeable person; and as soon as he has ascertained to what
+nationality we belong, he comes up and addresses us in the familiar
+tongue. He speaks English very tolerably, but cannot, or at any rate
+_affects_ not, to understand German. Immediately that he discovers
+we speak French, however, he gladly relapses into that language, being
+evidently more accustomed to converse in it than in English, although
+he has, he informs us, been in England several times.
+
+We soon discover that many Hungarians speak French both well and
+fluently, for just at this juncture a heavily-laden barge of more than
+ordinary interest passing alongside awakens a number of the first-class
+passengers from their usual lethargy, and brings a little knot of
+persons of both sexes to the part of the steamer where we are sitting;
+and after the excitement has subsided, conversation becomes general,
+turning--every one speaking French--upon the comparative merits of the
+various modern languages, all agreeing that the English and Magyar are
+the most reasonable, these being the only ones in Europe, so far as we
+knew, in which the three genders are philosophically applied.
+
+“Fancy!” broke in the testy old gentleman, glad to have a hit at
+anything _German_, and growing almost black in the face. “Fancy
+the bench (_die Bank_) upon which I am sitting being feminine,
+whereas the chair (_der Stuhl_) upon which the Count reposes
+is masculine. Why should not objects inanimate in every language be
+neuter, as in ours and yours?” (looking towards us.) “Hang it, sir,
+why should they have _any_ gender at all? ’Tis monstrous!” and
+apoplexy seemed imminent.
+
+“Or the sun” (just then setting, like a fierce war-god stained
+with blood) “be _feminine_, whilst the placid, gentle moon is
+_masculine_!” broke in some one else, continuing the argument.
+
+“And the stars, the stars, oh! why should _they_ be masculine,
+which twinkle so sweetly, and give us such a tender light?” added the
+voice of a Magyar girl, in melodious but rather doubtful French.
+
+    “Der Mond ist aufgegangen,
+    Die goldnen Sternlein prangen,
+      Am Himmel hell und klar,”
+
+sang the young German in a clear and manly tenor, paraphrasing in verse
+the two last clauses of the discussion.
+
+This was the signal for a request for some music, to which however
+no one responded, till a Croatian gentleman, suddenly disappearing,
+brought from below a kind of mandoline, the national instrument of the
+Croat-Serbs, upon which he played some plaintive melody, and then sang
+in his native language, Slavonian, a ballad to its accompaniment.
+
+There is something very novel and delightful, as well as healthful to
+the mind, in the feeling which creeps over one on board these Danube
+steamers. Where else can one meet and converse, at one and the same
+time, with people of so many nations and climes?
+
+Even those poor, helpless lumps of humanity, the Turkish ladies, whom
+not even the strains of music have aroused from their lethargy, and who
+sit staring vacantly into the river,--I feel half-drawn towards them.
+Yet their apathy almost drives me mad, though I know it to be due to
+etiquette and not to choice.
+
+Going across to their children, however, I try to amuse them, and
+soon bring laughter to their melancholy eyes; till, growing bolder
+by degrees as twilight approaches, they even let me lead them to
+the forecastle, where a strange scene presents itself. Surely, with
+these singular surroundings, we cannot be in Europe, but in some
+Eastern vessel bound for Mecca or some other shrine with a freight of
+pilgrims. There are groups of Bosniaks--Bosnians, as we in England
+call them--crouching upon their bundles which contain their little
+worldly all, or sitting on the deck eating their evening meal of black
+bread and fat, uncooked bacon. There are manly Servians by the dozen,
+and bronze-faced Turks: men clothed in pictorial rags begrimed with
+cosmopolitan dirt; and the air terribly “Oriental” and frowsy with the
+odours of sheepskin and garlic.
+
+Here too are men of almost every religion, from the offshoot of the
+Reformed faith, in the person of a stern and silent Debricziner,
+priding himself in the exclusive doctrines of Calvin, to the
+unbelieving Hebrew; whilst yonder, at the prow, is a turbaned son of
+the Prophet, who, having spread his little island of carpet, is still
+salaaming to the west, although the sun set full an hour ago, and
+twilight’s shadows are gathering over all.
+
+Close by us is a stalwart, broad-shouldered, and burly Bulgarian,
+who, having spread _his_ rug also, makes the sign of the Greek
+cross, and, drawing his fez over his eyes, lays him down to rest. There
+are Roumanians too of every degree, from the tall, effeminate, and
+sallow-complexioned dweller in Bucharest, to the wild and uncivilised
+shepherd from the Wallachian mountains in sandalled feet. Amongst
+all these, the poor down-trodden Jews sit alone, despised of their
+neighbours--outcasts even here in this motley assemblage--the “pariahs”
+of Europe.
+
+As I stand watching from a little distance this diversity of peoples,
+wondering whither they are going, and what kind of rustic homes will
+shelter them when their voyage is ended, I observe a haughty Roumanian
+pacing down the deck with measured strides, his curled lip and lofty
+carriage bearing witness to his arrogant claims of ancestry.
+
+He is smoking, and looking down disdainfully as he passes upon the
+swarthy groups covering the planks of the vessel. Presently his foot
+catches in a portion of the flowing garment of a poor, hoary-headed
+Jew. The rag was trespassing on the space that, by tacit and mutual
+consent, had been left clear the whole length of the deck, to enable
+the passengers to walk up and down. The Roumanian first regards the
+wearer with an expression of unutterable scorn, and then, muttering
+between his teeth what seems to be an oath, kicks him thrice, and bids
+him get out of the way.
+
+The Jew, however, instead of resenting both insult and blows, turns
+an abject gaze upon the imperious Gentile, and, quietly accepting the
+ignominy which is his heritage here, draws his garments more closely
+round him, and simply rolls over on the other side.
+
+The rock-built fortress of Pétervárad now comes in sight, standing on
+a promontory formed by the windings of the river. It has been called
+the Gibraltar of the Danube, and presents a formidable array of walls
+and bastions, rising tier above tier, perforated with loopholes for
+cannon, and from its ramparts the guns and bayonets of the sentinels
+glisten in the moonlight. The town at its base is interesting as
+being the place at which Peter the Hermit marshalled his soldiers for
+the first Crusade, and from whom doubtless the town has received its
+present name. It is long before we lose sight of this great fortress,
+commanding as it does, from its lofty position, the whole surrounding
+country, which, like a sphinx, it seems to guard, the river skirting
+it on three sides.
+
+At length its battlemented heights begin to fade from sight, but
+the moon still links its distant shores to the steamer’s wake by a
+tremulous chain of glory. The top-booted Austrian officer departed with
+the last gleam of the setting sun, and our little Jeanette, alone this
+time, is once more leaning over the steamer’s side and looking down
+upon the moon’s pathway. Is it guiding her thoughts back, we wonder,
+to her lover? We welcome, at any rate, weeping eyes and downcast looks
+as a good omen; and, passing by the deck saloon, we see that she has
+placed her withered flower in water, and that--typical of her love--it
+is holding up its head again!
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+We were due at Semlin at eight o’clock, but being three hours after our
+time in arriving at Pétervárad, we are scarcely likely to reach the
+former place much before midnight.
+
+As we sit languidly on the deck, and skim softly through the warm,
+voluptuous air, the discordant sounds of a horn reach us from the
+forecastle, probably that of a Wallachian shepherd.
+
+We are now passing beneath lofty hills, which form the most
+south-eastern portion of the Fruskagora chain. They are clothed to
+their summits with primeval forest, but their lower declivities are
+cultivated with the vine. Every now and again we pass a Slavonian
+village, with its tall and slender steeple standing like a spectre in
+the moonlight, and gleaming white against the sapphire hills. Will the
+prophecy of a Panslavonic unity ever, I wonder, be accomplished?
+
+That portion of the Slavonic race known as Russian first came in
+contact with the Greek empire in 865, under the warlike house of Ruric,
+just before the Magyar invasion of Pannonia. Three times the Russians
+attempted to conquer Constantinople, the last occasion in 1043. The
+Greeks twice succeeded in defeating these barbarian hordes by means of
+Greek fire thrown from their war-galleys. Elated, however, by their
+previous successes, the Greeks, on the third invasion of their northern
+foe, pursued them too rashly, and were overpowered by the enemy. A
+treaty was entered into, but the terror which this third attack upon
+their capital created was greatly enhanced by the discovery that a
+statue in the square of Taurus had been secretly inscribed with a
+prophecy to the effect that _in the last days the Russians would be
+masters of Constantinople_.
+
+A singular prediction in connection with the former is also said to
+have existed amongst the Turks, viz. that they were to continue to rule
+in Constantinople 400 years, and that after that period their dominion
+over it would cease. They have, as is well known, already exceeded this
+term by some few years.
+
+More than one Greek priest with whom we conversed recognised, in the
+possible fulfilment of these prophecies, the partial realisation of the
+Panslavonic efforts; for, by the Emperor of Russia becoming likewise
+Emperor of Constantinople, the two branches of the Greek Church, at any
+rate, would be united under one head.
+
+Reaching Slankament, the waters of the Danube are augmented by those of
+the Theiss. At the mouth of it numerous vessels are lying laden with
+corn from the north, and into one of these we nearly ran, grazing her
+side and carrying away a portion of her bows.
+
+The moon shines brightly as we sit talking to the various races of
+people on board, sometimes speaking German, sometimes French, sometimes
+Italian or Spanish, and not unfrequently jumbling all together in our
+endeavours to sustain conversation and make ourselves intelligible to
+every one.
+
+All evince the same curiosity which we have met elsewhere in our
+travels in Hungary to know who we are, whence we have come and for what
+purpose--in fact, all about ourselves and our belongings--which seems
+the more remarkable, because one would suppose that English persons
+must often be met with on board these steamers on their way to the
+Lower Danube. They are not, however, met with frequently enough to
+cause them to cease to be _raræ aves_ on these waters; and it is
+intensely amusing to listen to the cross-questioning to which we are
+subjected.
+
+“English! Is it possible? Then you live in London. Well, to be sure!
+_What_ a long way off! How long have you been on the journey? and
+what cities did you pass through? Perhaps the illustrious strangers
+are on their way to Constantinople? No! Well, then, doubtless the
+gentleman is an engineer engaged in some public works undertaken by
+the Hungarian Government--railways, perhaps?” All open their eyes very
+wide when we tell them we are merely on a “_Lustreise_,”--that is,
+travelling for pleasure, and the announcement invariably calls forth
+the exclamation, “_What_ a lot of money it must cost to travel so
+far! But the English are always, so rich, so _very_ rich.”
+
+At Pétervárad we are joined by a young Bosniak gentleman. With the
+exception of a fez and a crimson satin waistcoat, he wears the
+ugly dress of Western civilisation; but his servant, a tall, fine,
+broad-shouldered old fellow--a perfect picture in himself--is clad
+in loose dark blue Turkish trousers, embroidered jacket, and crimson
+shawl girdle; the whole rendered quite splendid by a heavily-braided
+and fur-lined mantle worn loosely across the shoulders. András has
+already made himself aware of his existence, and the two have been in
+close conclave, no doubt imparting to each other the history, past,
+present and future, of their respective masters. At any rate, András
+is well up in that of the Bosniak, for I overhear him telling a German
+acquaintance that he has large landed estates in the east of Bosnia,
+and has six hundred labourers; that he cannot live in his own country
+on account of the climate being too severe, and that he is on his way
+to Adrianople, where he intends to settle.
+
+At eleven o’clock the lights of Semlin come in sight, and there is
+a general stir amongst the passengers, many of whom will leave us
+there: stewards are rushing after some who had not yet paid their wine
+bills: the decks are crowded with luggage. The second-class passengers
+shoulder their bundles and rugs, and, having shaken themselves into
+shape again, crowd the approach to the gangway till we come alongside.
+What a strange wild scene now presents itself, and what a Babel of
+tongues! Magyar, German, Greek, and Illyrian, or--I beg Mr. Max
+Müller’s pardon--_Windic_: and what savage, uncanny faces loom out
+of the darkness, faces of men whose acquaintance one would not like to
+make on a lonely road; men with closely shaven locks, wearing caps like
+fezes and Turkish trousers; others whose long-matted hair hangs over
+their broad high shoulders and half conceals their features! And how
+they rave and yell, and clamour for more, as the new passengers, whose
+luggage they bring on board, put a _douceur_ into their hand to
+repay them for their trouble!
+
+“This--only this?” each seems to say in his own particular jargon as,
+extending with bitter scorn his greasy palm in which the silver coin is
+glistening, he asks for double. And witnessing these proceedings, we
+feel thankful that we are not to land, at night at any rate, amid such
+strange and wild surroundings.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                            CHAPTER XXVIII.
+
+                        SHOOTING THE CATARACTS.
+
+
+Having great things before us to-day, we once more shake off dull
+sloth and early rise. During the night we had passed not only Belgrade
+and Semendria, but an ancient Turkish fortress and many other places
+of interest, all of which we were sorry to miss; but even the most
+enthusiastic of travellers cannot always keep awake.
+
+Going out on deck, we find we are passing a long island, clothed with
+dense vegetation of fairest green, feathering down to the water’s edge.
+
+“How exactly this portion of our great Duna (Danube) resembles the
+Mississippi, which I visited last year!” exclaimed the Count--the only
+passenger as yet on deck, and who coming forward greeted us with a
+pleasant smile. “There is nothing wanting to complete the resemblance.
+No! not even the canoe--for see that strange savage-looking fellow
+yonder, paddling himself about in that small sandy creek--his boat the
+hollowed-out trunk of a tree! And those ‘snags,’ too, lying half-out in
+mid-stream. How like all is to the mightier river of the New World!”
+
+The island itself is full of wild-fowl--a “whir-r-r!” and away go a
+large flock skimming through the air, their white wings gleaming
+like silver in the morning light; whilst here and there web-footed
+“water-ravens,” about the size of a small goose, are still seen
+roosting on the trees or standing on sandy promontories watching for
+fish.
+
+The cold is intense, the climate having altered strangely since
+yesterday, when even before sunrise it was warm and pleasant. Yet the
+river’s course has been taking us steadily southwards since leaving
+Pest.
+
+“We are approaching the jaws of the defile,” said the captain, who,
+just then appearing on deck, observed me drawing my large “cloud”
+around me. “The wind is always rough there, even on the hottest day, no
+matter how calm it is elsewhere, and it will blow very hard to-day, for
+we can feel it even here.”
+
+We had lost the greater number of our fellow-passengers, for they left
+us at Semlin and Belgrade. The Turkish family, however, are still with
+us, together with the young Bosniak, who, by the way, has been joined
+by a brother. Both are resplendent in crimson satin waistcoats covered
+with silver chains and various kinds of ornaments, and they look very
+handsome as they pace the deck in their beautiful sable-lined cloaks
+and broad fur collars. There are several Hungarians who have also
+remained on board, including the testy old gentleman, who hospitably
+insists on our being his guests at breakfast this morning. That meal,
+however, is very hastily partaken of on this occasion, for there are
+too many things of interest to be seen on deck to admit of the most
+prosaic person lingering in the saloon longer than is absolutely
+necessary.
+
+There are three sets of steamers on the Danube, and we are fearing lest
+we may have to leave this one at Drenkova, on account of the lowness
+of the water. At some seasons the navigation of the Lower Danube is
+very dangerous, except for the smallest steamers; the narrow channels
+between the reefs, which in some places stretch across the whole
+breadth of the river and rise above its surface like alligators’ teeth,
+containing scarcely more than eighteen inches of water.
+
+Attempts have been made to remove these obstructions by blasting the
+highest of the reefs, but with ill success. They principally consist of
+a hard micaceous slate, which is very difficult to blast; and even the
+little flat-bottomed barges which are made expressly for the shallows,
+striking on the edges of these pointed rocks, are often sunk or broken
+to pieces. The most dangerous of these rapids, or _Cataracten_
+as they are called here, lies below Drenkova, where the reefs create
+a fall of eight feet. Across these the native boatmen dash heedlessly
+without steering, shutting their eyes to the danger, and appealing for
+protection either to Allah or the Virgin, according as their religion
+may dictate; their craft, however, not unfrequently coming to hopeless
+grief notwithstanding, whilst they occasionally lose their own lives as
+well.
+
+Having passed the island of Moldova, curious sandhills appear in sight.
+They are almost destitute of verdure, a tuft of grass here and there
+being the only vegetation seen upon them, and appear in fact to be
+formed of loose sand drifted hither by the wind. Yet these small and
+insignificant hillocks are in truth none other than the beginnings of
+the South-Eastern Carpathians, which soon enclose us on either side.
+
+At Moldova, a military frontier-post, the river widens considerably,
+and wears all the appearance of a beautiful lake, whose sandy shores,
+crimson in the rising sun, are backed by golden and purple mountains,
+veiled partially in the morning mist. As we proceed, however, we soon
+discern a narrow cleft in the high rocks through which the river forces
+its way. Through this narrow defile the wind tears madly, as if to defy
+our entrance.
+
+The pent-up waters are now covered with innumerable waves, as, flowing
+over reefs which lie only a few feet below the surface, eddies and
+whirlpools are formed which cause the steamer to rock from side to
+side. But this is by no means one of the really formidable portions of
+the Pass, and is but a small obstacle to the navigation of the river
+compared with those which we have to encounter farther on.
+
+The scene which now presents itself to our view is surely one of the
+most magnificent in the world. On either side are lofty crags, which
+rise precipitously out of the raging waters. On the topmost crest of
+that to the left stands the ruined stronghold of a robber-knight, now
+abandoned to eagles; whilst a little lower down, on the right bank,
+crowning the summit of an almost inaccessible rock--the two having once
+held the keys of the Pass--stand the splendid but crumbling ruins of
+the feudal castle of Golumbacz, with its nine towers and battlemented
+walls dominating the river. Its name is said to be a corruption of
+“Columba” (the castle of the Dove), for it was here that the Greek
+Princess Helena was imprisoned.
+
+This splendid ruin--called in Turkish _Gögerdschnik_-- which
+was besieged by King Sigismund and afterwards taken from the Turks
+by Matthias Corvinus, is built on the site of an ancient Roman
+_castrum_, many historical events being recorded in connection
+with its imposing towers, seven of which are still in good preservation.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+Projecting about eighteen or twenty feet above the boiling stream,
+we now come in sight of a singularly-shaped solitary rock, called
+“Babacaj,” a word said to mean in the Turkish language “Repent,” and
+to which tradition assigns a strange history. For here--so runs the
+legend--a ruffianly Beh, seized with jealousy, brought his young bride,
+and having landed her on the rock, rowed away, and left her to starve
+and die, answering her piteous cries with “_Babacaj! babacaj!_”
+(Repent! repent!) And the shepherds watching their flocks on the summit
+of these mountain heights tell how in the “stilly nights” her voice
+reaches them above the restless wave, and how also on stormy ones, as
+the water dashes over the rock, piercing screams come echoing up the
+gorge.
+
+       *       *       *       *       *
+
+As we approach the rock “Babacaj,” a vulture perched conspicuously on
+its summit, solemnly regarding the surrounding scene, rose suddenly,
+and with a great flapping of wings, which measured fully seven or eight
+feet across, flew to his eyrie in a mountain crest on the opposite
+side of the gorge. These rocky precipices, perforated with clefts and
+fissures, are the abode of numerous vultures of a large species, as
+well as eagles.
+
+The largest of these fissures is called “the cavern of Golumbacz,”
+on account of its proximity to the ruined castle of that name, and
+was pointed out to us by a credulous Magyar as being the veritable
+cave in which St. George slew the Dragon, whose carcase--so tradition
+adds--still in process of decay, gives birth to innumerable
+“_Mord-mücken_” (murder-flies)--a very venomous species of gnat,
+known to naturalists as the _Furia infernalis_. However much the
+former part of the tradition concerning their origin may be regarded as
+a myth, there is no doubt that these terrible little pests do really
+inhabit this cave. During the months of June and July they pour forth
+like a living cloud, and are the terror of the shepherds and herdsmen
+on the heights of the Danube, who light large fires of green wood by
+night to protect themselves and their flocks from the ravages of these
+insects, which often prove fatal in a few hours even to horses and
+buffalo, and which, attacking the eyes, nostrils, ears and throat,
+create suffocation from the swelling caused by the poison of their
+sting.
+
+In vain the peasants have endeavoured to wall up the cavern; these
+poisonous gnats only force their way through other fissures. They are,
+however, scarcely likely to have any real connection with the cavern,
+and are doubtless bred in the marshes and swamps of the Danube, taking
+refuge in these rocks during the frosty weather, collecting into huge
+societies, and then pouring forth when the ice melts and the summer
+heat begins.
+
+After passing the first rapids, we find ourselves in calm waters.
+Looking back, the scene is perfectly sublime, and the Danube, hemmed
+in on all sides, as at Moldova, with precipitous mountains, once more
+wears the appearance of a lake, whilst here and there the windings of
+the shallow shore, showing black against the lofty crags, and cutting
+into their reflections with horizontal lines, create a picture the
+splendour of which it is impossible to describe. Beautiful as are the
+defiles of the Rhine between Bingen and Coblenz, they are but a mere
+toy compared with those of the Lower Danube.
+
+To the right, about half a mile below Golumbacz, are the ruins of the
+Roman fort Gradisca, the first visible tracings of the Via Trajana,
+while on the left or Hungarian bank of the river we now trace the
+magnificent modern road which was constructed by the Hungarian
+Government at the instance of its great patriot Count Szechenyi, whose
+name it bears, and to whom the navigation of the river, and many of
+the public works in Hungary, are due. This roadway is formed in some
+places--where the rocks, rising sheer out of the water, admitted of
+no pathway--of vast galleries which pierce the mountains; whilst in
+others, the road being carried along the outside of the rock, it is
+widened by terraces of masonry.
+
+Passing beneath one of these terraces, we see three figures wending
+their way along, the only signs of life we have observed on the banks
+to-day. They are Wallachian women, dressed in bright-coloured garments,
+with blue and red scarves wound round their heads like turbans, and
+contrasting very picturesquely with the sombre grey and brown tints of
+the surrounding rocks. They are driving a herd of yellow long-haired
+swine, but the whole procession looks so small as it skirts the giant
+ramparts, that they appear like tiny figures in a Noah’s-ark.
+
+We are now approaching another defile, and the wind blowing fiercely,
+as through the last, again defies our entrance.
+
+The captain having kindly offered me his place, a snug little corner
+on the quarter-deck, strongly framed-in with canvas walls and
+overlooking the forecastle and bows, I not only had an uninterrupted
+view of all around me, but, up to my shoulders at any rate, was well
+protected from the fury of the wind. But for this circumstance I doubt
+whether I should have been able to remain on deck. Looking behind me
+for an instant, I see F. and the other gentlemen staggering as they
+try to maintain their equilibrium, whilst below me, crouching in
+the forecastle, whither they have gone for shelter, are our Bosnian
+brothers, muffled up in cloaks and fur-lined hoods, the picture of
+abject misery, if not despair.
+
+Borne onwards by the swift current, we now approach the second defile
+at a pace that makes one giddy, the rate at which the steamer takes us
+being no doubt greatly exaggerated to our senses by the close proximity
+and height of the stupendous mountain buttresses which hem us in on
+either side. The wind blows against us with a deafening noise, and
+almost stuns us.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+It is impossible to remain any longer standing, and I am obliged to sit
+down and hold on tightly; whilst the gentlemen’s voices shouting to me
+from the deck to look, now on this side, now on that, as object after
+object of peculiar interest and beauty, and the stupendous bastions of
+rugged rock, unfold in rapid succession, seem like voices far away. I
+cannot hear, but the captain, leaving his position on the other side of
+the vessel and coming to the place where I am enclosed, interprets for
+them, and bids me turn my eyes to the left, for we are passing a series
+of Roman fortifications; and then, fastening my wraps more securely
+round me, tells me that the wind always blows fiercely always up this
+gorge, though not usually so madly as to-day. And now, rounding a rocky
+rampart which rises perpendicularly out of the water, the cataracts
+of Islaez and Tachtalia come in sight, two sister reefs consisting of
+hard porphyry, which, stretching across the river like dams, extend for
+a mile and a half. Here and there, piercing through the surface, are
+pointed rocks, round which the water rushing fiercely makes innumerable
+eddies, till we at length reach the monster whirlpool that so often
+proves fatal to small craft ascending or descending the river. Near it
+rises a fragment of rock called “the Buffalo,” beyond which long lines
+of white-crested breakers are seen stretching across the whole width
+of the river. Holding our breath, we pass by a mere shave through a
+narrow channel in the reef, more dangerous on account of its eddies
+and whirlpools than even the reefs themselves. We no longer steam: the
+current of the river bearing us along, whilst the captain stands on the
+bridge looking down anxiously on the boiling, seething mass.
+
+Navigation is fraught with the greatest danger to small vessels when
+the water is low. At such times also passengers are transferred from
+the steamers to peculiar flat-bottomed boats, constructed especially
+for this part of the river, which is then not navigable for boats
+drawing more than a minimum of water.
+
+The Romans, alive to the serious obstacles which these rocks presented,
+constructed a canal here, remains of which are still said to exist.
+
+As soon as we have safely descended the rapids and doubled a sharp
+promontory, the river begins to expand until it again attains the
+proportions almost of an inland sea; when it again becomes contracted,
+and we approach the formidable and perilous passage of the “Greben,”
+in the centre of whose reefs stands ominously an iron cross to warn
+boatmen of the dangerous Pass which has wrecked so many vessels.
+
+We have now crossed three of the great rapids, or _Cataracten_,
+of the Danube, with their tremendous breakers and currents, doing so
+in one instance through a gap only twenty yards broad and twenty-four
+inches deep. Over some of these weirs the steamer rocked as in a storm
+at sea, as it struggled against the eddies which, formed by the rocks
+beneath the surface, were driven back against the current.
+
+The river, freed from its present difficulties, now leaps forth
+exultant into a broad channel, like a monster released from bondage,
+and spreading out its arms embraces the Servian island of Porecz, where
+a Greek church has been erected, and above which rise bluff escarpments
+and walls of rock containing cracks and rents like loopholes of a
+Cyclopean citadel, and beneath which our steamer seems dwarfed to a
+mere speck upon the waters.
+
+At this point commences a line of Roman fortifications, which with
+little interruption form conspicuous objects on the left bank of the
+river for twenty miles, until, indeed, we reach the magnificent ruin of
+Tricule, with its triple-towered castle, one of the most beautiful of
+Roman antiquities.
+
+Immediately after passing this castle, we arrive at another imposing
+spectacle of the mighty Danube. Already the majestic limestone crags
+flanking its threshold are in sight; and we soon steam beneath one of
+the most glorious monuments of nature’s architecture--the “_Sterbeczu
+Almare_,” or “huge bastion of the Danube”--rocks which rear their
+summits almost perpendicularly to a height of over two thousand feet
+from the water’s brink. Beneath the rocks the narrow channel of the
+river, suddenly cramped to its smallest dimensions, rushes with a
+deafening roar, and, rolling its waves over its rocky bed with a noise
+like thunder, lashes the rugged sides of its obstructing enemies with
+furious spray. This is none other than the celebrated Kazan Pass; a
+defile so narrow, notwithstanding the depth of the river--200 feet at
+this point--that, as our pigmy steamer takes us through it, we tremble
+lest it should get foul of the rocks on one side or the other. And if
+this river presents such a wild and savage scene now, in its stately
+summer grandeur, what must it be in winter, when it becomes a mass of
+floating ice through which the narrow storm-tossed channel has to force
+its way! How wonderful and terrific must then be its aspect, as bearing
+down on its current huge boulders of ice, they knock and crash against
+each other, and then, hurling against the rocks, grind themselves to
+powder!
+
+At the termination of this last defile, and nearly _vis-à-vis_ to
+the little village of Old Gradina, we arrive at Trajan’s _Tafel_,
+another interesting monument commemorative of the achievements of the
+Emperor whose name it bears, consisting of a tablet hewn in the solid
+rock, on which are inscribed his titles, together with the names of the
+legions and their cohorts by whom the road was constructed.
+
+This tablet, which stands on a niche sloping outwards from the
+vertical, is supported by winged genii and dolphins, the whole being
+surmounted by the Roman eagle.
+
+As we passed, a man standing in a clumsy kind of canoe was impelling
+himself by a pole close under the tablet, whilst another wild-looking
+fellow was sitting in the niche cooking his mid-day meal.
+
+At this point on the Servian side the rocks manifest very singular
+serpentine stratification--like metal that had twisted in the act
+of cooling. On the same side, too, we once more see tracings of the
+ancient Roman road, which, situated about ten feet above the river,
+extend for a considerable distance. They consist of a perfectly
+horizontal ridge, varying from two to four feet in width, beneath
+which, as previously observed higher up the river, are a number of
+square holes or sockets, placed at regular intervals, believed to
+have been made to support beams by means of which the narrow path
+was widened by a wooden platform which overhung the stream. In a
+climate like this, which is subject to such severe alternations of
+cold and heat--frosts Arctic in their rigour and heat little short of
+tropical--it is marvellous that these ancient memorials should not ere
+this have been either defaced and concealed, by Time’s obliterating
+mantle, or have crumbled beneath his tread; but there they are, as
+fresh as if the Roman workman had just left his hammer and chisel and
+would return to continue his work on the morrow; whilst in places where
+the rocky escarpment was cut to form the pathway, the stone is as white
+as if laid bare but yesterday, and its edge as sharp and angular as
+when first completed.
+
+Continuing our steam down the river, we meet for the first time
+with true specimens of Wallachian villages, with which, at a later
+period, we were destined to become so familiar in our travels through
+Transylvania.
+
+We descended the Danube thus far for the purpose of steaming through
+the renowned “Iron Grate Pass,” about twenty miles below Orsova; but,
+although it is said to be the most dangerous and formidable of all the
+rapids of the river, having two distinct falls of eight feet, which at
+low water form themselves into foaming cataracts and over which the
+water falls perpendicularly, yet the scenery is comparatively tame. In
+the place of rugged and scarped precipices rising to a height of from
+1500 to 2000 feet, and hanging over the mighty stream like impending
+Titans, the mountains slope landwards, receding from the water’s
+edge. It is grand, however; and the little steamer, as it threads its
+dangerous passage between the rocks, sways from side to side.
+
+But at last the splendid Danube, having lashed itself into weariness
+over the reefs which extending for a mile constitute that portion of
+it known as the “Iron Gate Pass,” widens considerably, and flows on
+henceforth with calm and dignified demeanour, till, having fulfilled
+its noble career, it loses itself at last in the Black Sea.
+
+  [Illustration]
+
+
+
+
+                                LONDON:
+             PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED,
+                  STAMFORD STREET AND CHARING CROSS.
+
+
+Transcriber’s Notes:
+
+1. Obvious printers’, punctuation and spelling errors have been
+corrected silently.
+
+2. Italics are shown as _xxx_.
+
+
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 77586 ***
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+      Magyarland Vol 1 | Project Gutenberg
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+<body>
+<div style='text-align:center'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 77586 ***</div>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="frontispiece" style="max-width: 422px">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/frontispiece.jpg"
+     alt="">
+     <p class="p0 sm center">VALLEY OF THE FÜNF-SEEN.</p>
+     <p class="p0 sm right"><span class="smcap">Frontispiece</span>, Vol. I.</p>
+  </div>
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<h1 class="gesperrt">“MAGYARLAND;”</h1></div>
+
+<p class="center sm">BEING THE NARRATIVE OF OUR TRAVELS THROUGH THE HIGHLANDS<br>
+AND LOWLANDS OF HUNGARY.</p>
+
+<p class="center xs p2">BY</p>
+
+<p class="center sm">A FELLOW OF THE CARPATHIAN SOCIETY,</p>
+
+<p class="center xs">AUTHOR OF ‘THE INDIAN ALPS.’</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="title">
+     <img
+    class="p2"   
+    src="images/title.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p class="center sm">IN TWO VOLUMES.—<span class="smcap">Vol. I.</span></p>
+
+<p class="center xs">WITH ILLUSTRATIONS.</p>
+
+<p class="center p2 sm">LONDON:<br>
+SAMPSON LOW, MARSTON, SEARLE, &amp; RIVINGTON,<br>
+<span class="xs">CROWN BUILDINGS, 188 FLEET STREET.</span><br>
+1881.</p>
+
+<p class="center xs p1">[<i>All Rights reserved.</i>]</p>
+
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p class="center p4 xs">LONDON:<br>
+PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, <span class="smcap">Limited</span>,<br>
+STAMFORD STREET AND CHARING CROSS.</p>
+</div>
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p class="center p4"><b>Dedicated</b></p></div>
+
+<p class="center xs">TO</p>
+
+<p class="center">ALL WHO LOVE MOUNTAINS</p>
+
+<p class="center xs">BY</p>
+
+<p class="center sm">ONE WHO WORSHIPS THEM.</p>
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<h2 class="p4">CONTENTS OF VOL. I.</h2>
+</div>
+
+<table class="smaller" style="max-width: 50em">
+  <tr>
+    <th></th>
+    <th class="pag">PAGE</th>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER I.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">INTRODUCTORY</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_3">3</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER II.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE PUSZTA</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_17">17</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER III.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">A CAUTION TO SNAILS</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_30">30</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER IV.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">GIPSY MUSIC</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_44">44</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER V.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">WE ARE MET BY OUR GUIDE</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_55">55</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER VI.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">DÉLI-BÁB</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_66">66</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER VII.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE AGÁS OR HUNGARIAN WELL</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_78">78</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER VIII.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">DAWN IN THE ALFŐLD</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_92">92</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER IX.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE RACE</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_104">104</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER X.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">PEST</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_122">122</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XI.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE VOLKSGARTEN</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_136">136</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XII.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE ICE-CAVES</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_154">154</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XIII.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">A STORM IN THE MOUNTAINS</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_169">169</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XIV.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">SLOVAKS AND RUSNIAKS</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_184">184</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XV.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE SNOWY TÁTRA</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_196">196</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XVI.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">GOBLINS OF THE MIST</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_208">208</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XVII.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE MOUNTAIN HOME</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_222">222</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XVIII.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE GIPSY CAMP</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_239">239</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XIX.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE RED CONVENT</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_252">252</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XX.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">ZAKOPANE</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_265">265</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXI.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE CHAMOIS HUNTER</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_277">277</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXII.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">ZIGZAGGING</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_289">289</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXIII.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">YETTA</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_298">298</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXIV.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">THE MOUNTAIN FUNERAL</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_311">311</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXV.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">ANDRÁS IN DIFFICULTIES</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_325">325</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXVI.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">AFLOAT!</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_340">340</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXVII.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">A MOONLIGHT MEDLEY</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_353">353</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+<tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">CHAPTER XXVIII.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <td class="cht sm">SHOOTING THE CATARACTS</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#Page_366">366</a></td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="a0080_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/a0080_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<h2>LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS.</h2>
+</div>
+
+<p class="center sm">VOL. I.</p>
+
+<table class="smaller" style="max-width: 50em">
+  <tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">FULL-PAGE ILLUSTRATIONS.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Valley of the Fünf-Seen</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#frontispiece"><i>Frontispiece</i></a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">The Ice-caves of Dobsina</td>
+    <td class="pag"><i>Facing page</i>&nbsp;<a href="#p1542_ill">155</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <th class="header" colspan="2">SMALL ILLUSTRATIONS.</th>
+  </tr>
+
+  <tr>
+    <th></th>
+    <th class="pag">PAGE</th>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A young Hungarian Noble</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#a0080_ill">viii</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">View on the Gulf of Venice</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0160_ill">16</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Slovene Girl</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0170_ill">17</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Shepherd and Sheep on the Plains</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0260_ill">26</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Brigands</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0290_ill">29</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Old Hungarian Peasant</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0300_ill">30</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Peasants in Country Cart</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0320_ill">32</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Going to Church</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0340_ill">34</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">“Little Nell”</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0410_ill">41</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">“Carriages meet the Trains!”</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0430_ill">43</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Travellers bivouacking for the Night</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0510_ill">51</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Magyar Costumes</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0540_ill">54</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Our Guide</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0560_ill">56</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A Hungarian Village</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0580_ill">58</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Gipsy-tent</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0650_ill">65</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">The Threshold of Alfőld</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0720_ill">72</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Déli-báb (a Mirage)</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0760_ill">76</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Shepherd’s Hut and Well</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0910_ill">91</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Peasants at a Well</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p0950_ill">95</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Cottage Doorway</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1030_ill">103</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A Rainy Day</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1050_ill">105</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Our Guide’s Wife</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1110_ill">111</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Jözsef</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1210_ill">121</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Church Steeple at Pest</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1220_ill">122</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A true Magyar</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1330_ill">133</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Our Chamber-maid</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1350_ill">135</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Boat-house in the Volksgarten</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1430_ill">143</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A Magyar Lady</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1470_ill">147</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Under the Robinias</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1530_ill">153</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">The “Corridor” in the Ice-caves</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1540_ill">154</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">The Spitzenstein</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1570_ill">157</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Women washing in a Stream</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1650_ill">165</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Fetching the Milk</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1680_ill">168</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">An Inn Kitchen</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1760_ill">176</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Down the Mountain-side</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1810_ill">181</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A Corner in the Inn Parlour</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1830_ill">183</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Amongst the Slovaks and Rusniaks at Wernár</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1880_ill">188</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">“The last sweet thing in Hats”</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1900_ill">190</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A youthful Slovak in Tears</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p1950_ill">195</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Villa Sontagh</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2020_ill">202</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Tátra-Fűred</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2040_ill">204</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A Rusniak Brother!</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2070_ill">207</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Goblins of the Mist</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2080_ill">208</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Zigzagging</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2110_ill">211</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">“Minsh’s” Flight</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2210_ill">221</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">The Lomnitzer-Spitze</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2360_ill">236</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A Carpathian Cart</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2380_ill">238</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Kesmark</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2420_ill">242</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Old Magyar Woman</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2510_ill">251</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">The Red Convent</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2540_ill">254</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">By the Way-side</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2560_ill">256</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">The “Royal Hungarian Mail”</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2640_ill">264</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Peaks of the Northern Tátra</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2690_ill">269</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Lake in the Mountains</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2760_ill">276</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">The Herr Graf</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2770_ill">277</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Tátra Staff</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p2900_ill">290</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A Mountain “Gottesacker”</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3050_ill">305</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Way-side Shrine</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3100_ill">310</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Slovak Sympathy</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3190_ill">319</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Covered Cart containing Zipser Peasants</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3240_ill">324</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">More “Gentle Slovaks”</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3320_ill">332</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Greeting</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3390_ill">339</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Merchandise Boat on the Danube</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3400_ill">340</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A Swine-herd’s Hut</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3460_ill">346</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">The Scullery-maid of S. S. Szechenyi</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3520_ill">352</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Our Danubian Jeannette</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3610_ill">361</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A Slavonian Boat</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3650_ill">365</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">Castle of Golumbacz</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3700_ill">370</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">The Bosnian Brethren</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3740_ill">374</a></td>
+  </tr>
+
+   <tr>
+    <td class="cht smcap">A Hungarian Country Inn</td>
+    <td class="pag"><a href="#p3790_ill">379</a></td>
+  </tr>
+</table>
+ 
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_3">[3]</span></p>
+<p class="center xl">“MAGYARLAND.”</p>
+</div>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER I.<br>
+<span class="subhed">INTRODUCTORY.</span></h2>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">The sun has sunk to rest in the warm bosom of the plains, and the
+porphyry hills of Buda stand out blue against the sky. In the long
+green avenue of robinias which line the quay, the flowers, drooping
+from the fervid heat of noontide, now unfold their perfumed petals and
+scent the evening air. Zephyrs, Oriental in their softness, come borne
+towards us over the Southern waves of the Danube, while from the gilded
+balconies of the houses along the shore are heard the melodious ring
+of voices and merry laughter, where the Magyar ladies sit to enjoy the
+cool breeze. Above the streets and squares of Pest, the black-and-gold
+cupolas glistening in the ruddy gleam of expiring day look like
+sentinels flashing emblazoned sabres.</p>
+
+<p>What bright and pleasant recollections rise before us of the beautiful
+city as, in fancy, we visit it again and see its noble palaces that
+skirt the banks of the river casting the long reflections of their
+white façades in the deep waters beneath!</p>
+
+<p>Immediately opposite Pest, separated by the monarch of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_4">[4]</span> European
+rivers, lies Buda, linked to its sister-city by the most splendid
+suspension bridge the world yet boasts.</p>
+
+<p>Passing once more in fancy the grim lions that guard its entrance and
+crossing over to the other side, what stirring memories come crowding
+into the mind! What changes have come over this ancient city of kings
+since Imperial Rome sat proudly enthroned within its confines, and in
+her days of pomp and power erected this amphitheatre, enduring type
+of her greatness and her brutality! How varied and mighty have been
+thy fortunes, proud Secambria, since thy proconsuls celebrated in this
+arena their cruel fêtes!</p>
+
+<p>As the twilight falls, the busy hum and shouts of men, borne across
+the river, shape themselves in our present mood to the clamour of a
+barbarian camp. We catch the rumble of heavy chariots, and the tramp
+and neighing of their chargers, and we hear the triumphal strains of
+martial music that proclaim the overthrow of Rome and the erection of
+Attila’s iron throne.</p>
+
+<p>But the shadows deepen—and who are these, the pitiless heathen, that
+come sweeping up with the mists on the river, till they too reach the
+shores of the Danube and Buda’s embattled walls? <i>Hark!</i> It is
+Arpád and his chieftains from the North, who celebrate in their turn,
+on the ruins of Attila’s palaces, with the music of lyres and the clash
+of cymbals, the Magyars’ conquest of Pannonia!</p>
+
+<p>Slowly the moon rises, and lo! “a change comes o’er the spirit of our
+dream.” Turning our eyes to the citadel, crowned with its palaces as
+with a diadem, we catch the flicker of the Crescent above the gateways,
+see fluttering from the walls the pennon of the Moslem victors, and
+hear from the towers of the Christian churches, now minarets,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_5">[5]</span> the
+watchman’s chant, “For Allah is great, and there is no God but He.”</p>
+
+<p>Yet once more memory holds up its magic crystal, and, as the moon
+floats in placid triumph in the sky and the solemn stars stand ranged
+about her, there grows over the scene yet another change. The flicker
+of the Crescent pales and dies. The green pennon of Islam droops and
+disappears. For the conquering shadow of the Cross has fallen again
+upon the sleeping city, and, instead of the cadence of the watchman’s
+voice, there is borne upon the night air now, the pious music of
+Christian vesper-bells.</p>
+
+<p>Truly, a wondrous history!</p>
+
+<hr class="tb">
+
+<p>It was a lovely morning on which we stepped into the train that bore
+us in earnest and for the third time towards the land of the Magyar,
+a thoroughly old-fashioned May morning. The East wind had at length
+taken itself off to its own quarter, and the sun shone as benignly
+as if it actually meant to stay. It was just one of those rare days
+when a person of sanguine temperament might have been justified in
+entertaining a certain amount of confidence in the stability even of
+English weather. Nature had thrown off her dingy winter mantle, and
+clothed herself in a garb of fairest green. Everything seemed to say,
+“Summer is come! Summer is come!” The lark said it as he soared high in
+the azure depths: the blue-bell said it as she hung her head languidly
+in the high grasses in quest of shade: the bees said it as the perfume
+of the wild flowers called them to drink of their honey: the breeze
+said it as it fanned the slender stems of the ragged-robins in the
+hedgerows, and made billows of the emerald corn: the old<span class="pagenum" id="Page_6">[6]</span> gentleman
+said it who sat opposite, and who, puffing like a steam-engine himself,
+arrived upon the platform just as the train was about to start.</p>
+
+<p>What matter to us how the wind howl to-morrow, or the returning frost
+nip the newly-awakened spring-flowers? We are away, away! New costumes,
+new scenes, snow-capped mountains, foaming torrents, placid lakes, all
+chase each other through the brain in rapid succession like a perpetual
+dissolving view. At this distance no <i>contretemps</i> enter into
+our philosophy; no ferocious Hungarian officials who mistake us for
+Russian spies; no keen-sighted <i>douaniers</i> who look us through and
+through, as they demand whether we have anything to declare, awakening
+serious qualms of conscience concerning just that one little contraband
+something concealed in a mysterious corner of our belongings which we
+have determined <i>not</i> to declare; no days when we dine with Duke
+Humphrey and go supperless to bed. None of these things damp our ardour
+as we are borne through the smiling pastures of the West.</p>
+
+<p>“The channel’s as calm as a fish-pond,” remarked the fat stewardess
+on our arrival on board the steamer. “And there’s scarce the leastest
+swell on.” But—<i>exeunt</i> passengers the following morning,
+woe-begone, dishevelled, wan, but hopeful.</p>
+
+<p>On, past the quay, where the “merry fish-wives” cluster round the
+vessels, and bend under the weight of their large full creels. Through
+the quaint suburbs of the old Norman town, where more merry fish-wives
+sit surrounded by conical baskets full of red mullet, which at a short
+distance look like exaggerated pottles of ripe strawberries.</p>
+
+<p>On, on, for we tarry nowhere, till we reach the fair capital of “La
+belle France.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_7">[7]</span></p>
+
+<p>Here we linger for a day to call on a Hungarian merchant. He had
+promised to give us letters of introduction to some friends of his,
+who were landed proprietors in the north and south-east of Hungary,
+and which we believed would be very useful to us in that <i>terra
+incognita</i>. For such the greater portion of Magyarland still is to
+the ordinary tourist in spite of M. Tissot, for his interesting travels
+were strictly confined to Croatia, and the extreme west of the country.</p>
+
+<p>The common and direct route to Hungary, and the one by which we entered
+it on our two previous visits, is <i>viâ</i> Munich and Vienna. But
+partly because we pined to breathe once more the balmy breezes of
+sunny Italy and bask in the smiles of her people if for ever so short
+a period, and partly because, unless compelled to do so, we rarely
+follow the conventional routes laid down in guide-books, we decided
+to go through Venice, and make that place our starting point to the
+“polyglot” country whither we were bound; a decision that greatly
+astonished a little Frenchman whom we saw in the merchant’s office in
+question.</p>
+
+<p>“You should go to Munich,” said he, “and thence to Vienna, to reach
+Hungary.”</p>
+
+<p>“Why?” we demanded.</p>
+
+<p>“Oh! that is the regular route.”</p>
+
+<p>“Yes! but we do not care to go by the regular route,” we replied; “we
+wish to see Hungary in its byways as well as in its highways.”</p>
+
+<p>With a shrug of the shoulders, and an elevation of the eyebrows, as
+much as to say he hoped we should find the travelling to our liking,
+and muttering to himself “<i>que les Anglais sont originals</i>!” he
+turned away.</p>
+
+<p>Here another voice broke in, proceeding from a tall<span class="pagenum" id="Page_8">[8]</span> bony man, whose
+form, half hidden behind the sheets of <i>Galignani</i>, we had
+scarcely observed.</p>
+
+<p>“There are no <i>diligences</i>, and no carriages in Hungary worth
+mentioning <i>as such</i>,” he exclaimed, and then subsided behind his
+newspaper again.</p>
+
+<p>He pronounced the French word <i>diligence</i> as we pronounce our own
+familiar noun, and his speech betrayed his Transatlantic origin.</p>
+
+<p>“Most <i>Messieurs les voyageurs</i>,” rejoined the Frenchman,
+returning to the charge, and evidently unwilling to surrender his point
+to another—“Most <i>Messieurs les voyageurs</i> rest satisfied with a
+visit to Pest.”</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Vous avez raisong, mussoo</i>,” replied the American, without
+moving a muscle of his face, his eyes still fixed on the pages of his
+newspaper,—“Natur’ made Hungary a first-class country, but they’ve
+got a mode of locomotion there that whips all creation; as to railways
+they’ve none to speak of, and where you do find ’em the pace at which
+the lumbering old machines crawl along is a caution even to snails. If
+you want to do the Danube”—this time addressing himself to us—“take
+my advice and go <i>down</i> stream; you’ll do it in half the time:
+and if you’re thinking of doing the Carpathians, what I say is,
+<i>don’t</i>; you’ll soon get tired of cross-country work in Hungary, I
+can tell you, and as to the language——”</p>
+
+<p>Happily at this juncture the conversation was brought to an abrupt
+conclusion by the entrance of the merchant himself, who had been absent
+on our arrival, but who now gave us the letters of introduction of
+which we stood in need, assuring us we should receive much hospitality
+and kindness from the gentlemen to whom they were addressed,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_9">[9]</span> together
+with assistance on our travels, should any be required.</p>
+
+<p>A brief examination, before leaving England, of Bradshaw’s Continental
+map had shown us that railway communication is now open the whole way
+from Venice to Pest, a distance in an almost direct line of five or six
+hundred miles. But the pages of that useful guide proved “too many” for
+us in their bewildering complications, and we were obliged to postpone
+the all-important question of “how to get there” till our arrival at
+Venice.</p>
+
+<p>Arrived at that place, however, the question seemed as far from being
+solved as ever. The local railway guide conducted us as far as Udine, a
+comparatively short distance on our way, and then left us stranded high
+and dry on a shore of uncertainty. This being the case, we hail from
+the window of our hotel a passing gondola, and float off to the railway
+terminus to ascertain the matter for ourselves.</p>
+
+<p>The hot weather had scarcely begun, and the wooden covers, with their
+black hearse-like fittings, had not been removed to give place to the
+bright-coloured awnings. As we glide through the sombre and silent
+ducts, walled in by ancient palaces which frown down upon us on either
+side, and skim over the glassy surface of the Grand Canal, the rocking
+motion of our dismal craft produces within us a vague and dreamy
+sensation; other black gondolas are following in our wake, the bell
+of a distant church is tolling, and being English, and taking “our
+pleasures sadly,” we feel we must be on our way to our own funeral,
+till we are jerked into consciousness and life again by the grating of
+the prow on the mainland close to the terminus itself.</p>
+
+<p>The ticket office is of course closed, and there is not the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_10">[10]</span> shadow
+of an official to be seen anywhere. But wandering along to the great
+platform in the dim hope of finding some one there who can help us, we
+are at length cheered by the sight of a person in the garb of a railway
+official of some sort coming towards us from the farther end. His
+footsteps echo dismally in the vaulted space, and for utter loneliness
+in his surroundings he might have been “the last man.”</p>
+
+<p>Could he inform us what time the train left for Pest? we eagerly
+inquired as he approached us.</p>
+
+<p>“Pest! Pest!” he exclaimed, looking bewildered—he could scarcely have
+been more so had we inquired the way to the moon.</p>
+
+<p>“The capital of Hungary,” we suggested.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes! yes!” he knew it was in Hungary somewhere; but here his stock
+of geographical knowledge came to an end, at any rate so far as that
+particular branch of the subject was concerned, and, with a bow and
+polite wave of the hat, he passed on his way, leaving us more benighted
+than before.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst ruminating what next to do, we heard a quick step behind us, and
+he again appeared.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Perdono, Signore!</i> It strikes me that you must go hence to
+Vienna, and you will then have no difficulty in reaching Pest.”</p>
+
+<p>Now to travel due north to Vienna, when Hungary lay in an easterly
+direction, was quite beyond the endurance of any enlightened
+travellers, particularly that of such experienced and enterprising ones
+as ourselves. It was not to be contemplated for a moment, but as we
+strolled back to our gondola, we began to wonder whether after all we
+had not for once been mistaken in deviating from the orthodox route and
+in creating one for ourselves.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_11">[11]</span></p>
+
+<p>On mentioning the source of our disappointment to our swarthy Charon, a
+bright idea seizes him.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Ma ecco!</i> Why will not his <i>Eccellenza</i> go to the <i>Signor
+Inspettore</i> himself? He lives up those steps yonder”—pointing to a
+house close by.</p>
+
+<p>Why not indeed? Acting on our brave gondolier’s suggestion, we go at
+once in quest of him.</p>
+
+<p>The <i>Signor Inspettore</i> was fortunately at home, and greeted us
+with the pleasant smile and ready courtesy which one invariably meets
+with in the people of this land. We were, however, once more doomed to
+failure. He knew everything apparently but that which we had come to
+learn; he certainly did <i>not</i> know the way to Pest, but bidding us
+wait, he retired to an inner chamber, whence he soon returned bearing
+under his arm an enormous map, his radiant countenance proclaiming that
+he had at last solved the difficulty.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Perdono, Signore!</i> I have ascertained. You must go hence to
+Nabrisina. There you will have to wait two hours, when another train
+will take you on through Cormöns to the Hungarian frontier.” And by the
+way he spoke of Cormöns one would have supposed it to be the extreme
+limits of civilisation.</p>
+
+<p>“Not many strangers travel this way to Hungary,” added he.</p>
+
+<p>“But do not <i>your</i> people sometimes travel?” we inquired.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Ma no!</i>” was the reply, given in that sharp, incisive
+tone in which every Italian pronounces that latter monosyllable.
+“We do not often travel, and to Hungary never. <i>Basta!</i> the
+climate of Hungary <i>e una clima da Diavolo</i>;”<span class="pagenum" id="Page_12">[12]</span> adding with
+a shrug of the shoulders—the full significance of which we duly
+appreciated—“<i>Perdono, Signore!</i> Only the <i>English</i> go
+there.”</p>
+
+<p>The moon had risen a full round orb as, the object of our quest
+accomplished, we once more stepped into our gondola and, gliding away,
+soon formed one of the many black specks crossing her silvery pathway
+on the great Lagoon.</p>
+
+<p>The brilliantly-lighted shops in the colonnades of the Piazza di San
+Marco remind us that we have still something to do before we are
+fully equipped for our Hungarian travels. We had, as I have said,
+seen Hungary on two previous occasions; seen it, that is, in its
+highways. This time we meant to see it in its byways also; for which
+purpose it was necessary that we should equip ourselves for that
+cross-country travelling of which the American had hinted such dark
+things. Experience, too, that stern schoolmaster, likewise taught
+us the desirability of rendering ourselves independent, as far as
+possible, of the accommodation to be met with at small out-of-the-way
+inns. For these, however full of promise externally, are inwardly,
+except in rare instances, replete with disappointment; and black bread,
+<i>kukoricza</i>, bacon, and “<i>paprika hendl</i>”—a national dish,
+in which a fowl that, in blissful unconsciousness of the immediate
+future, has been picking up the crumbs that fell from the traveller’s
+table as he partook of his first course, may, at his last, appear in
+the form of a hasty stew, thickened with red pepper—are the only
+things to be found wherewith to fortify the inner man.</p>
+
+<p>In addition, therefore, to a case of hermetically-sealed provisions
+brought with us from England, we here invested in a number of small
+items in the culinary line necessary<span class="pagenum" id="Page_13">[13]</span> for our anticipated wayside
+bivouacs, including a singular contrivance for easy cooking, whereby
+the mysterious operation of roasting meat in a species of saucepan is
+accomplished; the vessel in question being called a <i>cazarola</i>.
+Besides these, there was yet one other item we had to provide ourselves
+with; namely, some dozen yards of stout rope, a very necessary adjunct
+to cross-country travel in Hungary.</p>
+
+<p>For the necessities of the outer man we were already well provided
+by the possession of a large <i>bunda</i>—a relic of our former
+travels. This magnificent garment of Hungarian invention is a glorious
+institution, than which in the whole sartorial art there is none so
+grandly adapted to its purpose, or to the climate of the country,
+where the changes are exceedingly rapid. The chill which immediately
+follows the setting of the sun often causes the temperature to sink
+20° Réaumur in the short space of two hours, and without this garment
+the traveller will very probably fall a victim to the Hungarian fever
+occasioned by the exhalation from the marshes. In fact, as the Venetian
+station-master delicately hinted, Hungary, like England, may be said to
+have “no climate, only weather.”</p>
+
+<p>The majestic Alfőld, or plains of Hungary—the European Pampas as they
+have been called—though hardly as boundless as the ocean, are scarcely
+less fickle: now soft and tender under a calm and cloudless sky as they
+slumber in the dreamy haze of sunny noontide, now all glorious in the
+resplendent hues of the out-goings and in-comings of Day; anon fierce
+and tumultuous, as a violent wind sweeps over them, which, meeting with
+no obstacle whereon to spend its fury, whirls shrieking in frantic
+circles like an angry demon, tosses the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_14">[14]</span> trembling and resistless
+hillocks of sand into billows, or, with a hissing noise, lashes them
+into fragments like ocean spray. Here also, in summer, as on the great
+African desert, the traveller crossing the sandy wastes is often misled
+by the delusive mirage. In the distance a lake, or village, or lonely
+<i>csárda</i> (tavern) lures him on, and causes him to lose his way.</p>
+
+<p>No landscape, however, is so impressive as that afforded by these
+plains—plains so vast that they appear to embrace the Infinite; where
+the sun at setting seems to sink into the very bosom of the earth, and
+the stars burn red to the verge of the horizon. Who can describe the
+awful grandeur and stillness that reigns over this boundless region,
+as Night comes hastening on, bringing with it the stars, to hang like
+silver lamps in the sapphire deeps; or the beauty of the heavenly arch
+when the “milky way” is stretched across the zenith like a spangled
+veil, and the planets burn with such a steady light that they seem to
+cast a path of glory athwart the plains beneath?</p>
+
+<p>Fitful as the climate is, there are however, happily for the traveller,
+two months in the year when he may almost depend upon fine weather,
+viz. May and June. The long winter’s frost and snow have at length by
+that time passed away; the intense heat of July and August has not yet
+begun, nor the autumnal rains which render the Hungarian roads (bad
+enough at the best of seasons) absolutely impassable.</p>
+
+<p>After two more deliriously happy days at Venice, spent in loitering
+about its colonnades, sitting in the beautiful Piazza di San Marco
+listening to the strains of the military bands and sometimes floating
+over the glassy surface of the canals, we bid adieu to the “Bride of
+the Sea.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_15">[15]</span></p>
+
+<p>In the railway carriage with us were two priests whom we had met at the
+hotel “Due Torri” at Verona, and who were, they informed us, to be our
+fellow-travellers as far as Udine. There was also a lady from Carniola
+on her way to Laibach, whose head was covered with a kind of Spanish
+mantilla and who spoke Slovenic, a dialect of the Wendish.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as the train had fairly started, the priests, taking off their
+broad-brimmed beaver hats and exchanging them for more comfortable
+skull-caps, began reading their breviaries, following the contents with
+a motion of the lips, but without utterance of the faintest sound.</p>
+
+<p>We now pass through an undulating country rich in cultivation, and
+olives and mulberry-trees take the place of vines. Our route leads us
+through the classic land of Illyria, a name rendered immortal by the
+poems of Virgil and Dante. After leaving Izonzo, we reach the ancient
+town of Monfalcone, situated within a few miles of the once famous city
+of Aquileia, where the Emperor Augustus often resided—a mere village
+now, but containing, in the time of the Romans, a population of 100,000
+souls.</p>
+
+<p>The train soon begins to ascend one of those barren and rugged hills
+which form the north-eastern boundary of the Adriatic Sea. Here all
+vegetation ceases except that of stunted herbage, and as far as eye can
+reach nothing is visible but rocky and conical hills.</p>
+
+<p>As the engine labours up the steep gradient the blue waters of the
+Adriatic suddenly burst upon the view. To the left stretch the marshy
+plains which, extending over a vast area, constitute the “Littorale,”
+or northern shores. Away, in the distance, rise the purple mountains
+of Istria,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_16">[16]</span> whilst below, embosomed in green hills, lies Trieste. The
+scene is calm, beautiful, and majestic in the evening light, recalling
+many a sad association connected with the life of the author of the
+“<i>Divina Commedia</i>,” as well as many an episode of early lore.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0160_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0160_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_17">[17]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER II.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE PUSZTA.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">“Is there anything to be seen here?” we inquired of a pretty Slovene
+girl, who, in short red skirt, velvet bodice, and top-boots, was
+stumping about the platform as we alighted from the train the next
+morning, and at last stood on Hungarian soil.</p>
+
+<p>Knowing just sufficient German to comprehend the nature of our
+question, she turned round, and pointing first in the direction of the
+desolate little station itself, then at a group of sheds opposite,
+and finally at a long straight road which apparently led nowhere, she
+showed two rows of pearly teeth, and looking up at us archly, burst out
+laughing at her own humour.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0170_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0170_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Pragerhof, the place at which we have just arrived—the junction of
+the Vienna and Trieste line—is in very truth a dreary spot to be set
+down at; but wishing to reach Sió-Fok<span class="pagenum" id="Page_18">[18]</span> the next day, it was necessary
+to break our journey here. Nothing could present a more utterly forlorn
+aspect, and why the spot should have been favoured with a name at all
+is an enigma, seeing that it consists solely—as our <i>naïve</i>
+little Slovene had intimated—of the station itself, three or four
+sheds, and the small <i>fogado</i> (inn). Probably, however, the
+signification may have reference to a town or village hard by; “hard
+by,” that is to say, in a Hungarian sense, for in this part of the
+country, where villages are few and far between, people often call men
+“neighbours” who live twenty, thirty, and even forty miles distant, and
+not unfrequently convey their farm produce to fairs and markets full as
+many miles away.</p>
+
+<p>We have now reached the threshold of the great plains, and, looking
+north, south, east, and west, not a sign of habitation is visible;
+nothing, in short, but the straight road already alluded to, and the
+long line of railway which vanishes only with the horizon.</p>
+
+<p>The lonely <i>fogado</i> in which we have come to anchor till the
+morrow forms a tolerable example of all wayside inns in Hungary, except
+in the position of the stranger’s bedroom, which, instead of being on
+the ground-floor, is in this instance approached by a movable ladder.
+The <i>salle à manger</i>, as is invariably the case, not only adjoins,
+but commands an extensive view of the kitchen; and the traveller
+can—if he feel disposed—watch as he sits at table the interesting
+process of the cutting up and frying of his cutlets, and stewing of his
+<i>paprika hendl</i>; as well as the slaughter of the innocent itself.
+For our present hosts form no exception to the generality of Hungarian
+innkeepers in the very open manner in which they carry into effect
+their<span class="pagenum" id="Page_19">[19]</span> culinary assassinations, and a scuffle, a sharp, piteous cry,
+followed by a “thud,” and the sight of a quivering victim hanging head
+downwards to a door-nail in full view, were our immediate welcome to
+the shelter of this solitary little inn.</p>
+
+<p>We are here plunged all at once into the very vortex of the Magyar
+language, which no other south of the Volga aids the uninitiated
+stranger to interpret, but which was, nevertheless, already spoken in
+this country by a Turanian people of kindred race at the Roman conquest
+of Pannonia.</p>
+
+<p>The landlord of the inn, who is a Magyar, can only just manage to
+render himself intelligible in German; whilst the young woman we
+addressed on our arrival at the station, and whom we find to be the
+waiting-maid, can only speak Hungarian and her mother-tongue, a Sláv
+dialect spoken west of the Hungarian frontier.</p>
+
+<p>The vast prairies we have now entered, so deeply interesting in their
+historical associations, cover the prodigious area of 37,400 English
+square miles, and the insular mind almost loses itself in contemplating
+their extent.</p>
+
+<p>Although Hungary contains within its embrace mountainous districts of
+vast extent, and beauty unsurpassed by any country in Europe, yet its
+principal characteristics may be said to be plains and rivers. In some
+portions of the former, which are as level as the ocean, the soil is in
+a high state of cultivation; others are mere sandy wastes; whilst in
+others again, Nature having spread a green and flowery carpet of her
+own weaving, thousands of wild horses and cattle are allowed to roam
+over it unfettered, and these, wandering about in immense herds, form
+one of the chief features of the <i>Puszta</i> landscape.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_20">[20]</span></p>
+
+<p>Here the sportsman may find ample food for his gun; for the marshes
+in the vicinity of the great rivers abound in wild fowl, particularly
+in the spring, when they are the haunt of storks, which may be seen
+pluming themselves all day long amongst the tall reeds and feathery
+grasses, or else leading their little family of storklings out for
+an airing on the confines of their watery domain. Flocks of noisy
+plovers too are everywhere seen, and not unfrequently a pelican; whilst
+throughout the length and breadth of the Alfőld, the harsh scream of
+the falcon is heard, wheeling overhead as it scours the air in quest of
+smaller birds, or swoops down upon a marmot.</p>
+
+<p>Scattered about these vast steppes, at long distances apart, are
+towns and villages. In the neighbourhood of the post roads they occur
+every three or four hours; but in other districts farther in the
+interior the traveller may often journey a whole day by carriage or
+<i>leiterwagen</i>, in going from one village to the next.</p>
+
+<p>No wonder is it then that this thinly populated region has ever been
+considered the El-Dorado of brigands, who until recently, that is
+to say until ten or twenty years ago, kept the otherwise peaceful
+dwellers of the plains in a perpetual state of terror and alarm. Many
+of the peasants and small landed gentry, however—paradoxical as it
+may appear—were known to harbour these “heroes;” thus encouraging
+brigandage whilst trembling for their own safety. In fact, so daring
+and numerous at one time were these robbers, that they often demanded
+board and lodging from the inhabitants as a right; whilst so lonely
+were the majority of the farmsteads, that the occupants, completely
+at their mercy, were compelled to yield without resistance to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_21">[21]</span> their
+demands. It was even customary a few years ago—a custom which,
+I believe, still exists in some remote parts of Hungary—for the
+inhabitants to pay what is called <i>felelat</i>, or “black-mail,”
+to these freebooters, to secure themselves from the plunder of their
+cattle, just as formerly existed in Scotland. Brigandage in Hungary is,
+in fact, of “noble” origin, for, intrenched within their strong castles
+and encompassed by fortifications, many of the nobles in the fifteenth
+century exercised the function of robber-knights, enlisting numbers of
+the peasantry in their exploits.</p>
+
+<p>Amongst these brigands of modern time were men of education and family;
+not only this, it has even been darkly hinted that magnates, who at
+one time held responsible positions under government, have been more
+than suspected of joining these marauders for the purpose of recruiting
+their enfeebled finances. The ruling powers have done their utmost
+to suppress these bandit hordes by offering large sums in the shape
+of “blood-money” for the capture of the leaders of the gangs, or the
+betrayal of their hiding-places to the police, but this has never
+been an easy task to accomplish in a country where so many of the
+inhabitants sympathise with the delinquents.</p>
+
+<p>The Hungarians are a manly, brave, and chivalrous race, but lately
+emerged from barbarism, for the Turks held the greater part of their
+country in possession until a comparatively recent date; and there
+no doubt exists to some extent, even at the present time, an innate
+disposition in the minds of some—a disposition not confined to one
+class of society in particular, but existing in the highest as well
+as in the lowest—to wink at, if not actually condone, all offences
+of whatever kind, provided they have been<span class="pagenum" id="Page_22">[22]</span> committed with valour and
+daring. These, of course, are very questionable ethics, but this state
+of things has always existed in Hungary; and far greater than the fears
+for their own safety has been the chivalrous feeling which has caused
+so many of the Hungarians to shelter these robbers, and treat them
+as heroes when pursued by the hands of justice. For this sentiment
+they are probably indebted as much to their past history as to the
+character of their surroundings. Men’s minds are much more influenced
+by external nature than we are often aware, and these limitless plains
+on which the Hungarians gaze from morn till eve have no doubt imbued
+them, unconsciously to themselves, with a notion of freedom of action,
+fettered by no boundaries and ruled by no human laws.</p>
+
+<p>So daring at one period were these robber-bands that they were
+occasionally known to attack caravans of merchandise even in broad
+day; whilst the extent to which brigandage prevailed only a few years
+ago may be inferred from the fact of there having been no fewer than
+twelve hundred of these robber-criminals imprisoned at the same
+time within the walls of the fortress of Szegedin—the capital of
+the Alfőld—amongst whom was the most daring and celebrated bandit
+modern Hungary has ever known; a man who rejoiced in the euphemistic
+appellation of Alexander Rose (Rózsa Sándor), and whose particular form
+of the profession was cattle-lifting, but who only eleven years ago
+attacked with his robber-band a train on its way through the plains,
+and is said to have murdered during his “brilliant career” upwards of
+a hundred persons. This “dashing hero,” who was pelted with flowers by
+the peasant girls when he was at length captured by the police, died,
+scarcely more than a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_23">[23]</span> year ago, a natural death in the citadel where
+he was confined, having escaped the punishment he so richly deserved
+by the clemency of the Emperor of Austria, who is said to possess an
+extreme dislike to signing death-warrants.</p>
+
+<p>The term often applied to these Hungarian brigands is that of
+<i>szégény légény</i>, or “poor lads,”—a term no doubt due, in the
+first instance, to the fact that many were originally fugitives from
+the Imperial conscription; whilst the romantic sentiment entertained
+concerning them and their lives arises from the intense and very
+natural repugnance to the Austrian army existing amongst all classes.
+The Magyars are radicals in all political and national affairs, hence
+their tolerance of, if not actual desire to shield, those who seek to
+evade the Imperial conscription, no less irksome to the inhabitants of
+this country than it was to the Italians when under the same yoke.</p>
+
+<p>Previous to 1848, a period that marks what the people of this country
+call the “War of Independence,” various forms of conscription were in
+force, some of which were especially obnoxious to the Hungarians. Many,
+therefore, fled from the hard fate it imposed, preferring freedom, with
+self-inflicted exile, to serving a foreign power. Some sought refuge
+in the wooded districts of the mountains, others in the vast fields of
+Indian corn found on the plains, in whose green labyrinths they could
+not easily be tracked. Concealed here until exhausted nature could hold
+out no longer, they at length crept from their hiding-places to begin
+a vagabond existence, begging of the peasantry as they wandered from
+place to place, with the shed of some lonely tavern, the favourite
+haunt of brigands, as their only shelter by night.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_24">[24]</span></p>
+
+<p>No wonder then that these “poor lads,” after pursuing for a time a life
+of vagrancy, should end in becoming robbers likewise, the more so as
+they knew full well they would be protected from the vigilance of the
+<i>pandúrok</i> by the peasantry, who, as I have said, were frequently
+known to conceal them in their houses when pursued by those officers of
+justice.</p>
+
+<p>The “poor lads,” however, differ somewhat from the orthodox brigand.
+The former plunder in order to live, and rarely commit murder, their
+weapons seldom consisting of anything more formidable than a bludgeon.
+But the brigand “proper,” besides being armed to the teeth, wears a
+cuirass, and carries in addition to his lance, loaded hatchet and brace
+of pistols, a lasso, in the use of which he is as dexterous as the
+Spaniards of South America, and forms in appearance, with his slouching
+“sombrero,” bronzed chest and flowing black hair, as noble a type of
+his order as any to be found in the mountain fastnesses of Calabria.
+But no matter whether he be an orthodox brigand or “poor lad,” when
+one of special notoriety happens to be captured he is, as in the case
+of Rózsa Sándor, pelted with flowers by the “<i>kisleány</i>,” or dark
+little maidens of the Alfőld, who always sympathise with these daring
+freebooters, of whatever type.</p>
+
+<p>During our present visit to Hungary some alarm was created by the
+announcement that three hundred banditti under the leadership of Milan,
+the notorious chief, had crossed the Danube from Servia, and were on
+their way to the Hungarian plains. A battalion of troops, however, sent
+to welcome them on the shores of the river, opposite Gradista, drove
+them back upon Belgrade by a more<span class="pagenum" id="Page_25">[25]</span> hasty retreat than they apparently
+expected, accompanied by an intimation in explosive terms that Hungary
+had quite as many brigands as she wanted without drawing upon the
+resources of Servia.</p>
+
+<p>The “<i>Alfőld</i>”—which literally interpreted signifies lowlands,
+in contradistinction to “<i>Felfőld</i>”—by which the Hungarians
+designate the mountainous districts of their land, is, strictly
+speaking, confined to that portion of the country which lies to the
+north of the river Marős and east of the Danube. It may however be
+appropriately applied to the whole of the plains, not excepting the
+“<i>Pettaurfeld</i>,” or “little Hungarian plains,” as the lowlands
+lying between Pragerhof and Lake Balaton are called, and upon which we
+have just entered. In the winter they are like a frozen sea—one great
+and boundless wilderness of white. The flocks that roam these rich
+prairies free and unfettered in summer-time are gone, and the tinkling
+of their bells is heard no longer; all are housed in huge clusters of
+sheds, where they low plaintively as they dream of the sunny herbage of
+the past. No sound is audible save the hoarse croak of the raven, which
+seems but to awaken the dreariness of the scene and make the silence
+live; whilst the very sun himself looks frozen as he peers forth from
+the pale blue sky.</p>
+
+<p>It is at this season that the stranger, unused to such scenes, is
+impressed with the awful loneliness and stillness of his surroundings,
+together with the profound majesty and immensity of nature, as his eye,
+wandering over the vast expanse of white, traces no boundary, and his
+ear detects no sound of living thing.</p>
+
+<p>In the spring, when the lingering winter snow has at length<span class="pagenum" id="Page_26">[26]</span> melted,
+and the warm sun showers his blessed life-giving rays upon the dormant
+earth, the shepherd with grateful and rejoicing heart once more wanders
+forth with his flock to the green pastures; and in the cultivated
+districts the husbandman, shouldering his simple and primitive
+implements of agriculture, just scratches the surface of the rich
+alluvial soil, which—as some one says—only needs to be “tickled” and
+sown with seed, to laugh all over at harvest-time with smiling grain.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0260_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0260_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>It is glorious summer now, and as we sit under an arbour of vines in
+the little sun-baked, sandy garden of our <i>fogado</i>, there come to
+us across the plains the plaintive sounds of a shepherd’s flute, and
+the pensive cadence of tinkling bells. Strolling off in the direction
+of the sound, we come to a large flock of sheep browsing on the short
+and tender herbage, whilst the shepherd, in his shaggy sheepskin cloak,
+wanders about amongst them, playing a small instrument here called a
+<i>telinka</i>, and looking, wrapped in his <i>bunda</i> with<span class="pagenum" id="Page_27">[27]</span> its
+long wool outside, strangely in keeping with the flocks he is tending.
+About half a mile distant is another shaggy, fur-clothed man watching
+a herd of long-haired goats, whilst farther still three dark spots on
+the silent landscape indicate the existence of a gipsy encampment, the
+shepherd and the gipsy forming two of the most marked characteristics
+of the Alfőld, the one giving to it a pastoral, the other, with his
+little colony of tents, an almost Eastern aspect.</p>
+
+<p>The shepherd’s life is a lonely and monotonous one. During the summer
+he remains night and day with his flock, and for whole months together
+holds communication with no one, except with some other of his class
+with whom he comes in contact, as he wanders from pasture to pasture
+with his woolly family. His life however, though lonely, is not so
+dreary as might be imagined; the Alfőld to him is a Garden of Eden, a
+smiling land of a bounteous heaven: his isolated and pastoral existence
+frequently leads him to be a poet, and to the idyllic music of the
+<i>telinka</i>, a little instrument he manufactures himself, and as
+primitive as that by which Pan of old awoke the stillness of the dawn,
+he composes rhymes full of simple poetry and pathos.</p>
+
+<p>We had wandered fully two miles across the vast and trackless plains,
+yet lingered till the sun began to sink below the horizon and the chill
+of evening warned us to return. It is in regions like these that the
+wonderful phenomenon of the <i>afterglow</i> is best seen. As the sun
+leaves the earth which it has gladdened with its smiles, and the last
+crimson streak fades slowly in the west, twilight’s shadows gather over
+the warm bosom of the plains, and a cold white vapour begins to rise
+from the marshes; the shadow lingers for a while, till suddenly, as if
+by the agency of a magician’s<span class="pagenum" id="Page_28">[28]</span> wand, there comes a wondrous flush of
+glory—<i>whence</i> none can tell—that once more bathes both earth
+and heaven in a flood of gold and amber. But soon, fainter grow the
+colours in the west, colder and more tangible the snake-like vapours
+ascending from the hollows, deeper the transparent arc above, till
+evening at length sinks into the embrace of night. As we turn our faces
+homewards all sound is hushed; the wild fowl have sought their nests in
+the thick sedges which border the marshes, the marmots their holes in
+the warm sand; and the shepherd, weary with his day’s watch, wrapped in
+his <i>bunda</i>, lies stretched on the darkling ground fast asleep,
+beside him his faithful dog, whose paws twitch spasmodically in an
+imaginary race after some erratic sheep that has doubtless disturbed
+his equanimity during the hours of day, and which he now chases in his
+dreams. From the distant camp the smoke curls idly upwards in graceful
+wreaths above the ruddy fire; in the foreground a group of oxen chew
+the cud, and everything is suggestive of repose.</p>
+
+<p>Beautiful, however, as are our surroundings in their wondrous breadth
+of calm, we are after all but gregarious animals, and two hours later,
+whilst sitting in the crazy wooden balcony of the <i>fogado</i>, I
+find myself sighing for the rosy fruit of the Lotus, that I may eat
+and again mingle with the gay and festive throng in the Piazza di San
+Marco, and catch an echo of the music that so delighted me when there.
+F., on the contrary, like Odysseus, casts his mind forwards to the
+Ithaka of his love, the region of the snowy Carpathians, whither our
+steps are tending. But we both retire for the night with the conviction
+that Pragerhof in its absence of human life and maddening isolation is
+just<span class="pagenum" id="Page_29">[29]</span> one of those places in which more than one day’s sojourn must end
+in suicide.</p>
+
+<p>That melancholy catastrophe was at any rate averted for the present,
+for we found ourselves still alive on the following morning, when
+the little waiting-maid came stumbling and stumping up the ladder,
+bringing coffee as a preliminary to toilet and breakfast; which
+ceremonies completed, we welcome as a rescuing angel the train that at
+a quarter-past nine draws leisurely up to the station.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0290_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0290_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_30">[30]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER III.<br>
+<span class="subhed">A CAUTION TO SNAILS.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">The day had dawned with a glorious awakening. How bright and fair all
+was under its glistening veil of sparkling dewdrops, as we sat by the
+open door of the <i>fogado</i> and partook of our simple breakfast!
+Beyond were the green plains and the distant sea-like horizon; near
+us broad vine-trellises, through which the sunshine flickered like a
+shower of gold. From afar came the distant lowing of cattle and the
+muffled bark of a sheep-dog; whilst all around us was so still, so
+very still, that we might have been in the vast prairies of the New
+World. The birds, playing at hide-and-seek amongst the reddening,
+dust-covered vine-leaves, or perched high up in the sooty eaves of the
+little<span class="pagenum" id="Page_31">[31]</span> station, chirped and bubbled over with song, as if their smoky
+and sandy domain had been the umbrageous aisles of some lonely forest.
+How grateful they were for their meagre mercies as they carolled forth
+their hymn of praise this dewy golden morning whilst we waited for the
+train, how glad they seemed to live, and what joy was there in their
+little lives as the Slovene waiting-maid scattered towards them the
+crumbs from the table-cloth of the restaurant!</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0300_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0300_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Our train was announced to leave at ten minutes to ten; but overdue,
+it did not arrive from Trieste until half-past eight o’clock, and how
+could any one be so unreasonable as to expect it to be got ready to
+start again in the short space of one hour and twenty minutes? At the
+time specified the engine-driver, seated on a heap of sand outside the
+platform, was dozing over his pipe, and the guard leisurely finishing
+his breakfast in the inn kitchen. And why not? No one thinks of
+hurrying himself in Hungary, where everybody has plenty of time for
+everything.</p>
+
+<p>The trains, punctual enough in their departure from large stations,
+are wholly indifferent as to the time they either arrive at or start
+from the smaller ones, which are generally situated in districts where
+persons take life easily, and with whom the railway authorities appear
+to think an hour or so out of the twenty-four can make no possible
+difference.</p>
+
+<p>Taking our places at last, and dragging slowly on, we pass here and
+there, at long intervals, true specimens of Hungarian villages, with
+their low-roofed one-storied houses, and cemeteries filled with small
+red, blue, and white crosses, which, just showing above the rank
+grass, look from a distance like wild flowers growing in a meadow. The
+traveller<span class="pagenum" id="Page_32">[32]</span> seems here to have been suddenly carried back to some remote
+period of the world’s history, everything is so heavy and so slow. At
+the stations at which we stop, curious-shaped vehicles are waiting to
+take the arrivals to towns and villages—who shall say how many miles
+away? Long waggons made simply of planks of wood nailed together, and
+others with open ladder-like sides, drawn by three horses abreast,
+or small light carts, called <i>szekérs</i>, to which, by a most
+uncomfortable arrangement, one poor, lean, miserable horse is harnessed
+to a pole. All are driven by strange-looking men in sheepskin cloaks
+or hussar-jackets called <i>mentes</i>, embroidered in divers colours
+of needlework, and wearing such full white trousers that they look
+like petticoats. Stranger people still get into these vehicles—women
+wearing sheepskin cloaks like the men, strange head-gear and
+top-boots—and, leaving the enclosure which surrounds the station, jog
+away over quagmires that seem to lead to nowhere, or to some distant
+world far beyond our ken.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0320_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0320_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Turf is burnt in the engine, so that the speed, as may be imagined,
+is not very alarming—its “linked sweetness long drawn out” scarcely
+exceeding ten miles an hour; besides<span class="pagenum" id="Page_33">[33]</span> which we linger at the various
+stations, time, as we have seen, being no object in this primitive
+country.</p>
+
+<p>Railway travelling in Hungary has in fact frequently been known to
+produce in the passenger—especially if he happen to have come from
+Western Europe—a species of temporary insanity; the particular form
+which the malady assumes causing the unfortunate sufferer to lose for
+the nonce all sense of his own individuality, and to imagine himself
+the “Wandering Jew,” destined to go on to all time.</p>
+
+<p><i>À-propos</i> of the slowness of the Hungarian locomotives, it is
+related that a certain peasant, when asked one day by a friend why he
+did not take the train to the market town, replied, “I have no time
+to-day; I must walk, or I shall arrive there too late.”</p>
+
+<p>As we wait, the villagers, leaning over the wooden palisades, gaze
+at us wonderingly, or gossip with the guard; the women clothed
+in the shortest of short petticoats, worn over a number of white
+under-garments frilled at the edges, and which, hanging a few inches
+below each other and starched almost to the stiffness of a board, are
+intended to serve as a hoop to keep the top skirt out.</p>
+
+<p>It is a festival of some sort, and, as we approach the villages,
+the cracked bells from the church towers are chiming away joyously,
+and all the people are dressed in their red-letter day attire, the
+women with black, red, or green bodices, full white sleeves and white
+chemisettes embroidered at the throat. Quaint children stand beside
+them, who, dressed in every respect precisely like their elders, even
+to top-boots, look like small men and women seen through the wrong end
+of a telescope.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_34">[34]</span></p>
+
+<p>Entering the district of the river Drave, we are all at once surrounded
+by low, undulating hills which rise out of the plains, and wherever we
+turn our eyes, we see persons on their way to distant churches; the
+men walking together in front, and the women following at a respectful
+distance. The roads are muddy, and the women gather up their voluminous
+petticoats over their top-boots in a most exemplary manner; whilst the
+children, emulating the example of their mothers and holding up their
+little petticoats likewise, form one of the most amusing spectacles
+possible.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0340_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0340_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Presently we reach a large town, situated in the midst of what
+appears to be a ploughed field, the houses so wretched that they
+seem not to have been built, but to have grown there like cabbages
+or mangel-wurzel, or to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_35">[35]</span> have been heaved up from beneath by
+ill-conditioned and untidy gnomes.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst staying at this place, persons arrive from distant and unseen
+towns far away beyond the limits of the visible horizon, in vehicles
+more strange even than any we have yet seen, and such as might have
+existed in the camp of Attila. A score of tired but patient men and
+women are lying on their bundles, waiting the arrival of the down train
+from Buda-Pest to take them to their destination, whilst others are
+standing or walking about the platform; women, whose heads and faces
+enveloped in dark-blue kerchiefs, and sleeves padded at the shoulders,
+give them a strange incongruous look, half-Turkish, half-European;
+men—what splendid fellows! with manly faces bronzed by the fierce
+summer sun of the Alfőld, and with limbs as muscular as those of
+athletes.</p>
+
+<p>The times of the arrival and departure of the trains are indicated in
+a somewhat primitive manner on a slate; and whilst we are wondering
+what on earth can be keeping us here so long, we see a carriage drawn
+by six horses and surrounded by a cloud of dust, coming along the road
+at a terrific pace, the horses galloping furiously under the lash of
+the driver’s long whip. Possibly it is for this we have been tarrying.
+A tall, graceful, and very pretty woman descends from the carriage—a
+kind of <i>calèche</i>. Two men, one of whom wears a feather in his
+hat, the other a bunch of wild-flowers—servants apparently, who had
+previously arrived with the luggage—stoop and kiss her hand as they
+see her into the train; and as soon as the engine-driver and guard have
+charged their pipes afresh, the heavy, lumbering machine slides out of
+the station, and we drag on<span class="pagenum" id="Page_36">[36]</span> again as though it were a matter of the
+most sublime indifference as to what time we arrive at the end of our
+journey—if we ever do.</p>
+
+<p>In process of time, however, we do reach Gross Kanizsa, where our
+line of railway joins that from Agram and Vienna. At this place,
+which contains twelve thousand inhabitants, the sandy enclosure of
+the station is so full of girls in holiday attire that it looks like
+a flower-garden, and we feel we are in Hungary indeed, the land of
+beautiful women. Was anything half so ravishing as those little
+scarlet leather top-boots embroidered at the side, and which, adorned
+with rosettes, look like scarlet clappers as they peep forth from the
+bell-like skirts? What little darlings are the wearers, with their
+demure but coquettish faces, some blonde, some brunette, the plaits
+of their hair—which hang loosely down the back—ornamented with
+many-coloured ribbons reaching almost to the heels! Near some of these
+Kanizsa belles stand their brothers or sweethearts, wearing embroidered
+cloaks or little jaunty hussar-jackets, thickly covered with bright
+silver buttons, and white plumes in their small caps.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst waiting at this station, we are reminded of a very different
+scene that occurred the last time we were here. We had just arrived
+by train from Croatia, and on going into the buffet, which we found
+already crowded with passengers, many of whom were not only Croatians,
+but Servians, Slavonians and people from Lower Hungary, we could not
+help observing that our entrance seemed to be regarded as an intrusion.
+Seeing vacant seats at a table near the centre of the room, round which
+our fellow-travellers were already partaking of a table-d’hôte repast,
+we also took our places,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_37">[37]</span> wondering greatly at the disturbance which
+our presence evidently created.</p>
+
+<p>In a few moments several persons who had been sitting near us, with
+a surly glance and muttered exclamation, withdrew from the table,
+and walked to the farther end of the room. It was impossible to help
+perceiving that an insult was intended, although, as may be imagined,
+we were perfectly ignorant of the cause.</p>
+
+<p>Shortly after this, as we were doing our best to swallow the affront
+together with our soup—a doubtful compound called <i>ungarischer
+sauerkraut</i>, consisting of cabbage cut into thin strips and
+immersed in a colourless liquid in which small slices of sausage
+were floating—and washing down the whole with draughts of consoling
+<i>badacsony</i>, made of grapes grown on a mountain near Lake Balaton,
+a gentleman came across from the opposite side of the table and took
+his seat beside us. Addressing us in Latin, the frequent medium of
+communication between educated Englishmen and Magyars of Central
+Hungary, he explained the cause of his countrymen’s behaviour, and
+apologised profoundly for the rudeness to which we had been subjected.
+They had, he informed us, taken us for Russians, the political
+feeling against whom was very strong during that particular crisis of
+the Russo-Turkish war, then just at its height, especially amongst
+Hungarians of the lower provinces; but having been in England himself,
+though not for a sufficiently long period to acquire the language, he
+had at once recognised to what nation we belonged.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Pileus ejus</i>,” said he, looking towards me, and alluding to my
+hat, which was of the species familiarly known as<span class="pagenum" id="Page_38">[38]</span> “pork-pie,” turned
+up with a broad band of fur—“the Russian ladies wear precisely such
+hats as the one you have on, and take my word for it, wherever you go
+in Hungary, you will be mistaken for a Russian, unless you change it
+for another.”</p>
+
+<p>Our train lingered here an hour, and whilst walking about the platform,
+we were more than ever struck with the variety of nationalities
+met with in this singular country. Standing round the door of the
+restaurant was a group of men, whose soft and effeminate tongue,
+delicate features, and supple figures, contrasting strongly with the
+manly energy and powerful physique of the Magyars, proclaimed them to
+be Yougo-Slávs from Croatia and Slavonia; there were others again,
+whose sandalled legs and feet, and lambswool caps the shape of mops,
+declared them to be Wallachs from Transylvania or the Lower Danube;
+besides Servians from their little colony in the capital, and men on
+their way to their homes in the Northern Carpathians, all of whom our
+previous acquaintance with Hungary enabled us at once to recognise.</p>
+
+<p>Amongst the many peculiarities which exist in this interesting country,
+there is not one that perhaps strikes the stranger so forcibly as
+the variety of races. By far the largest portion of it is inhabited
+by the Magyars, or ruling people; next to them in importance come
+the Wallachs, occupying the most eastern portion of the territory;
+whilst sprinkled here and there over the vast area which constitutes
+the Alfőld are little colonies of Germans, exclusive of the so-called
+Saxons and Szeklérs in the south-east, each of whom forms a distinct
+nationality. All the above-named races, however, inhabit the central
+and south-eastern portion of the kingdom; but, in the entire realm of
+the Magyar, no<span class="pagenum" id="Page_39">[39]</span> fewer than eight languages are spoken, not including
+the various Sláv dialects.</p>
+
+<p>In the south, divided from Bosnia and Servia by the river Save, lie the
+Hungarian provinces of Croatia and Slavonia, peopled by Croat-Serbs,
+whilst that portion of territory which extends south-west of the
+Northern Carpathians is inhabited by Slovaks, who border immediately
+on the Poles of Gallicia and the Tcheks of Moravia; the province
+south-east of the Northern Carpathians being inhabited by Rusniaks, or
+Ruthenians, there being no fewer than seventeen thousand Slavs in the
+dual-Monarchy. Besides these nationalities, there are also colonies
+of Greeks, Arnauts, and Armenians, spread over various parts of the
+kingdom.</p>
+
+<p>The chief cause of the existence of these various races is the frequent
+invasions, and final occupation of the greater portion of it by the
+Turks, who in the fifteenth century, penetrating into the very heart
+of Aryan Christendom, desolated the whole face of Hungary by fire and
+sword. Not only did these invaders and subsequent conquerors of the
+country lay waste the entire surface of the fertile plains, but by
+burning the towns and villages, rendered them wholly uninhabitable.
+To such an extent did the incursions of the Moslem hordes affect the
+region of the Alfőld, that it is only within the present century that
+the Magyars may be truly said to have begun to recover their lost
+ground.</p>
+
+<p>It is a common saying amongst Hungarians that “where the Turk treads
+no grass grows,” and so effectually was the country rendered desolate
+by the ravages of this foe, that after their final expulsion in 1777,
+by a series of battles nobly fought by the Hungarians, immigrants were
+called in, and encouraged by grants of land to re-occupy the ruined<span class="pagenum" id="Page_40">[40]</span>
+villages, and cultivate the soil rendered barren and unfruitful by the
+hated Moslem.</p>
+
+<p>Thus Hungary became what we find her to-day,—a country peopled by many
+nations, all subject to the parent State; each retaining, besides,
+its language, its own costume, and distinct characteristics; and
+continuing—and this is perhaps the strangest fact of all—as isolated
+in point of individuality of existence and territorial position as if
+each race constituted a separate nation in itself. Hungary is, in fact,
+unlike any other country in the world, and there is a novelty and a
+charm about it that fills the traveller with delight.</p>
+
+<p>“When I hear its name mentioned,” exclaimed a popular German author,
+“my waistcoat seems too tight for me; an ocean stirs within me; in my
+heart awaken the traditionary exploits of long ago, the poetry and song
+of the Middle Ages. Its history is that of yore; the same heroism lives
+within its borders, the names of its heroes alone have changed.” And
+he is right. There is an inborn chivalry and heroism in the character
+of the Magyars—traits evinced not only in their past, but recent
+history; the same noble and dauntless spirit that dwelt in their heroes
+of the Middle Ages lives in them now, and there is a bold and fearless
+independence, a straightforwardness, and high principle that cannot
+fail to win the love and admiration of all who really know them.</p>
+
+<p>Returning to our places in the train, we observe standing near the
+steps of our compartment a lady engaged in earnest conversation with
+a poor woman clad in the costume of the Alfőld peasantry, and holding
+in her arms a little golden-haired child of about four years old. The
+woman was weeping<span class="pagenum" id="Page_41">[41]</span> bitterly, and the fragile body of the child was
+convulsed with suppressed sobs.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0410_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0410_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Our interest in both mother and child was kindled in a moment, and we
+subsequently learnt from a German-speaking Magyar who travelled with us
+that the lady was taking the little creature—the child of one of her
+husband’s <i>földmevelök</i> (farm-labourers)—to the hospital at Pest,
+to undergo a surgical operation that might detain her there for several
+months.</p>
+
+<p>The parting of mother and child was one of the most touching things I
+ever witnessed. We could not understand their lip-language, but the
+heaven-born utterance of human love needs no mortal speech to express
+its meaning, and we <i>felt</i> all that their feeble, broken words
+conveyed.</p>
+
+<p>No sooner had the train left the platform than—the necessity of
+restraining her feelings past—burying her face in the cushions,
+“Little Nell” (for so we called her) gave way to a wild burst of grief.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Anyám! Anyám!</i>” (Mother! mother!) was her agonising cry.</p>
+
+<p>Poor child! like many another, she had entered all too soon within the
+portals of the “sanctuary of sorrow.” Did anything, I wonder, whisper
+to her heart that which on inquiry at the hospital we subsequently
+ascertained, viz. that she was not to see her mother again till they
+were folded in each other’s arms in Paradise?</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_42">[42]</span></p>
+
+<p>The Hungarian gentleman sitting opposite wiped his spectacles, whilst
+F., turning abruptly to the window, began taking a most unwonted
+interest in the features of the country, and I doubt whether there was
+a dry eye between us, so truly does</p>
+
+  <div class="poetry-container">
+   <div class="poetry">
+      <div class="stanza">
+        <div>“One touch of nature make the whole world kin.”</div>
+      </div>
+    </div>
+  </div>
+
+<p>But we are approaching our destination; and having passed through an
+immense forest of oaks, once notorious as the hiding-place of robber
+bands, and forming even yet a refuge for those <i>szegény legény</i>,
+or “poor lads,” over whom the popular sentiment of the country has
+thrown such a mistaken charm, we emerge again into the open plains, and
+see beyond us an azure lake lying calmly in the bosom of undulating
+hills. To the right stretches a vast tract of uncultivated land, roamed
+by wild horses, which with manes flying madly gallop away as we draw
+near, until they are almost out of sight and form mere dark specks
+in the distance, and we soon enter the swampy ground which marks the
+vicinity of the lake.</p>
+
+<p>The Platten-See, or Lake Balaton as it is often designated—both names
+being derived from the Sláv word “<i>blats</i>,” signifying swamp or
+marsh—is the second largest lake in Europe. Although bounded on the
+northern side by lofty hills, to the south it is almost shoreless,
+except here and there where fishermen, availing themselves of the
+gentle undulations of sandy soil, have erected rude huts of plaited
+reeds. In many places tall grasses eight or ten feet high cover the
+marshes in dense jungly masses, and the surrounding country is so
+inundated that the whole, save on the northern shore, presents an
+appearance of a series of lakes.</p>
+
+<p>Opposite Böglar, in the midst of vine-clad hills, rises the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_43">[43]</span>
+conspicuous mountain Badacson, from the grapes of which the celebrated
+wine is made; whilst jutting far into the lake a rocky promontory,
+crowned by an ancient abbey, stands boldly out against the fainter
+outline of the more distant hills.</p>
+
+<p>And then we reach Sió-Fok, and our railway journey is at an end at last.</p>
+
+<p>“Little Nell,” the golden-haired child, had long ago sobbed herself
+to sleep. That blessed nepenthe which mercifully follows childhood’s
+sorrow had folded her in the peace of heaven, and there was no sign of
+pain on her placid upturned face, as with an unspoken “God bless her!”
+we left the train for the steamer which was waiting to take us across
+the lake to Fűred.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0430_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0430_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_44">[44]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER IV.<br>
+<span class="subhed">GIPSY MUSIC.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">“Magyars! Magyars!” I once heard a lady exclaim, who was not quite so
+well up in the science of ethnology as she might have been in these
+enlightened days, and who evidently confounded them in a nebulous kind
+of way with the natives of Madagascar or some other out-of-the-way
+island in the Indian or South Pacific Ocean—“a very interesting
+people, I dare say, but as to myself I never could feel interested in
+those poor savage Blacks!”</p>
+
+<p>What then is the origin of these men of the house and lineage of
+Arpád—this non-Aryan people whom Voltaire describes as <i>une
+nation fière et généreuse, le fléau de ses tyrans et l’appui de ses
+souverains</i>, and who, constituting the only Turanian race that has
+ever been recognised as forming a portion of the great European family,
+are well worthy of careful study, yet of whom the majority of persons
+know so little, and some nothing at all?</p>
+
+<p>They are the descendants of a Finnish people, who, emigrating
+southwards through the passes of the Carpathians from their home in the
+far North, approached Hungary in 886.</p>
+
+<p>The word “Magyar” (pronounced Mad-yar), however, is of very ancient
+origin, and has baffled the wisest philological<span class="pagenum" id="Page_45">[45]</span> heads to determine
+its precise meaning. It was supposed in the Middle Ages to have been
+derived from Magog, son of Japhet, the popular superstition of that
+period recognising in these “pitiless heathen,” as they were called,
+“the Gog and Magog who were to precede the approaching end of the
+world.” Modern historians, however, have attributed to it various
+other origins, the most recent affirming that the word signifies
+“confederate.” But whatever may be its derivation, Max Müller, by
+the unerring guide of language, has traced the original seat of this
+interesting people to the Ural mountains which stretch upwards to the
+Arctic ocean; and pointing out the close affinity the Magyar tongue
+bears to the idiom of the Finnish race spoken east of the Volga,
+declares that the Magyars form the fourth branch of the Finnish
+stock, viz. the Ugric; and in his ‘Science of Language’ he gives
+striking examples of the similarity and connection which exist in the
+grammatical structure of the Magyar and the Ugro-Finnish dialects,
+particularly in the conjugation of verbs, which have aptly been called
+the “bones and sinews” of a language; and there is little doubt that
+the Magyars are none other than the same race that, under a different
+name, were called in the fourth century “Ugrogs.”</p>
+
+<p>Hungary—the “<i>beata Ungaria</i>” of Dante—has been peopled since
+the beginning of the Christian era, as we have already seen, by three
+distinct and separate colonies of barbarians, whose birthplace was
+in the regions of the frozen North. Here, led by Attila, the Huns
+established themselves between the third and fourth centuries, and
+hither a century or two later came the Avars, belonging to the same
+northern race, each destined to accomplish its <i>rôle</i> in the
+history of nations, to rise to its meridian and then decline, till
+finally<span class="pagenum" id="Page_46">[46]</span> overwhelmed by other warlike barbarians similar to themselves.
+Lastly—though these have shared a better fate—came the Magyars, the
+great conquering army with Arpád at its head, in whom the Ugro-Finnish
+type once more reappeared in all its pristine energy, the same that
+is believed to have existed in the bands of Attila: a nomad people
+who, though also composed of savage hordes, became by their daring
+and warlike propensities the scourge of Aryan Christendom, and were
+destined not only to become a great empire and take their place amongst
+the civilised nations of Western Europe, but, by their arms raised
+against the enemies to its peace, to be in after-ages its surest
+bulwark of defence against Mahomedan aggression.</p>
+
+<p>A little red steeple, and a sea of mud through which the stranger has
+to plough his way to the shore of the lake, under the full apprehension
+that each succeeding step must cause him to disappear in its apparently
+bottomless depths, introduce us to the village of Sió-Fok, situated on
+a small river into which the Platten-See falls, and which, by means
+of canals, is made to drain many of the marshes of the surrounding
+country; the Sió, which winds away in a southerly direction, being in
+fact one of those nine streams that are supposed to flow underground
+and communicate with the Danube.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as we have embarked, the steamer—which, lying amongst tall
+reeds and willows, was almost hidden till we came alongside her—breaks
+from her moorings and goes bounding away into the beryl waters of the
+lake. Skimming over its glassy surface, we pass scores of wild fowl as
+white as snow, which, not the least disconcerted at our near approach,
+stand gravely pluming themselves on the low<span class="pagenum" id="Page_47">[47]</span> sandy islands just
+appearing above the water, or watch with the keen eyes of anglers for
+the fish that the wash of the steamer may chance to lay at their feet.</p>
+
+<p>The Platten-See is at its narrowest here, and the steamer takes us
+across to Fűred in rather less than an hour, where, after travelling
+over the nearly desolate plains, we seem to have arrived all at once at
+the very centre of civilisation.</p>
+
+<p>Fűred itself lies at the foot of a range of volcanic hills, and is much
+resorted to by the Hungarians on account of its mineral springs. In the
+summer months the little place is crowded, and it is then difficult,
+if not altogether impossible, to find accommodation at either of the
+hotels or boarding-houses unless rooms have previously been secured.
+Should the traveller have failed to do this, he can have recourse to
+Arács, a neighbouring village, where “casuals,” “for a consideration,”
+can generally be “taken in and done for.” The season, however, had as
+yet not quite set in, so that we entertained no fears concerning our
+shelter for the night.</p>
+
+<p>Arrived at the opposite shore, we are met by porters who quarrel over
+us; two lay hold of our portmanteau, one at each end, while a third
+seizes it affectionately round the centre. They scramble for each
+article as it is disgorged from the steamer. Walking-sticks, umbrellas,
+dressing-bag, binoculars, are all alike severally snatched from our
+grasp. The landlord of the hotel to which we are bound also meets us,
+and, foreseeing in our persons a long line of prospective tourists,
+almost embraces us on the spot. Scanning us from the crown of the head
+to the sole of the foot, to ascertain whether there is another mortal
+thing left to be carried, he at length espies a small sketching-block
+under my arm, on which a precious unfinished picture is reposing, and
+lays<span class="pagenum" id="Page_48">[48]</span> violent hands upon it. A struggle ensues for its possession,
+during which, holding on to my treasure as for dear life, I come off
+panting, but victorious.</p>
+
+<p>Calmness once restored, we proceed in hurried procession to the hotel,
+where waiters rush out upon us and repeat the ceremony. They help
+us up the steps, they insist officiously on brushing the dust off
+our travel-stained garments, they almost pat us on the back in their
+great joy at the arrival of—what we afterwards found ourselves to
+be—the first real live tourists of the season. Overwhelmed with this
+consideration, their feelings do not permit of their leaving us for an
+instant. They follow us up the stairs, where, as our footsteps echo
+through the empty passages, they are joined by other domestics, who
+appear suddenly and mysteriously from unseen and hidden apartments.
+The landlord, the waiters, the porters, the cook, the chambermaid, the
+slavey from the shades—who arrives upon the scene, beaming but out of
+breath, just at the last moment—one and all either precede or follow
+us into the very precincts of the guest-chamber.</p>
+
+<p>On descending to the <i>salle à manger</i>, we find covers laid
+for four persons at a side table, whilst in the middle stand other
+tables, round which, closely placed together, are chairs, arranged in
+readiness for the visitors whose advent is now daily expected; and as
+we sit awaiting the arrival of our repast, Fancy, in the stillness of
+the great chamber, conjures up the spirits of its future occupants,
+and peoples it with cheerful guests, till the walls resound with
+merriment and laughter. Pretty, piquante Magyar women and girls;
+Hungarian officers in stiff backs and much-padded uniforms; Hungarian
+civilians—heavy fathers in ponderous braidings<span class="pagenum" id="Page_49">[49]</span> and more ponderous
+manners; German and Hungarian Jews and Jewesses—all are once more
+before us just as we saw them gathered in this festive hall three long
+years ago.</p>
+
+<p>At this juncture of our imaginings, a merry laugh and light steps
+herald the arrival of two ladies, who, advancing to our table, take
+seats beside us. The long aquiline nose and protruding upper lip
+proclaim them at once to belong to the family of Israel.</p>
+
+<p>The external characteristics of this people are not so strongly marked
+here as in many other countries, but it is nevertheless impossible to
+mistake them. In Hungary alone they number upwards of 1,100,000, and,
+like the gipsies, are met with at every turn. The ladies above referred
+to—mother and daughter, I imagine, from the likeness they bore to each
+other—were both strikingly handsome. Indeed, whether belonging to Jew
+or Gentile, it is seldom one sees a plain woman in this happy country.
+They were from Presburg, they informed us, and had arrived soon after
+ourselves. Fortunately they could both speak German, or our limited
+knowledge of the Magyar language would have rendered conversation
+impossible.</p>
+
+<p>The repast that was at length placed before us was both good and
+abundant, with the exception of the renowned Fogas (<i>Perca
+lucioperca</i>), a fish for which the lake is justly celebrated, and
+which—O ye epicures!—was garnished with shavings of raw onions.</p>
+
+<p>Now, I hope we are not delicate to a fault in the matter of food,
+provided its ingredients be not unclean, and we have more than once
+partaken—unwittingly, it is true, but<span class="pagenum" id="Page_50">[50]</span> not without relish—of a dainty
+viand afterwards discovered to have been minced snails fried in butter
+and bread-crumbs, which, if you “make believe” very hard indeed, tastes
+like scalloped oysters; but boiled fish and onions, cooked or uncooked,
+I hold to be an outrage on the gastronomic art quite unpardonable in
+any civilised nation.</p>
+
+<p>The familiar French proverb, however, was never more strikingly
+exemplified than in this particular instance, for both our fair
+companions partook of the—to us—unsavoury combination, and were still
+enjoying their <i>bonne bouche</i> when, leaving them, we strolled out
+in the evening air.</p>
+
+<hr class="tb">
+
+<p>It is a lovely evening, and the setting sun, a ball of fire, floods all
+nature in a sea of glory. Away in the marshes, the lakelets are kindled
+into a harmonious mingling of vermilion and bronze, save where they
+reflect the pale soft azure of the zenith. Then as the fiery god sinks
+at last—as he appears to do—into the very bosom of the earth, what
+transcendent effects of light break like magic over earth and sky! What
+exquisite gradations of colour! What infinite depths of saffron and
+rose and violet stretch upwards, till they fade in the liquid purple of
+the arc above!</p>
+
+<p>Watch now the long lines of rich warm colour as they gradually stretch
+across the darkling landscape! Here and there some darker object still,
+a clump of trees or gipsy encampment, stands out black against the
+paler colouring of the “off-scape.” What is that dark mass yonder? The
+clear atmosphere, aided by our field-glass, at once declares it to be
+a party of travellers bivouacking for the night, reminding one of an
+Eastern caravan.</p>
+
+<p>What a statuesque group they make against the amber<span class="pagenum" id="Page_51">[51]</span> sky, and what a
+subject for an artist! Men standing in their long fur-lined mantles,
+others crouched on the ground making a fire or unpacking provisions
+for their evening meal; by their side lie numerous gourds and leathern
+bottles, just such as Hagar carried in the wilderness: while the rich
+colouring of their garments mellowed in the dying light, and the long
+shadows thrown across the golden sward, assist in forming a most
+picturesque combination.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0510_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0510_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>In these vast plains <i>csárdák</i> (inns)—a name no doubt derived
+from <i>csárdás</i>, the national dance, which is performed more
+frequently perhaps in these little places of doubtful resort than
+anywhere else—are few and far between, but the Hungarians happily
+are by no means dependent on them for shelter. That wonderful garment
+the <i>bunda</i>, with which every man is provided, renders him
+invulnerable alike to heat and cold, forming as it does his house, his
+bed, his protection both from the scorching summer sun and from the
+intense frosts and bitter, cutting blasts that in winter scour<span class="pagenum" id="Page_52">[52]</span> the
+region of the plains. During the latter season the fur is worn inside,
+the garment being reversed when the hot weather sets in. “My son,
+forget not thy bread in winter, nor thy <i>bunda</i> in summer,” is
+consequently a familiar and appropriate Magyar maxim.</p>
+
+<p>How strange, silent, and at the same time majestic, is the Alfőld at
+this hour; and how full of sentiment and repose, as twilight gently
+falling softens its lines and furrows, as slumber does a wrinkled,
+careworn face, smoothing all in a wondrous breadth of calm!</p>
+
+<p>A cold aguish mist now rising warns us to return. Looking behind us,
+the sapphire hills loom sombre against the evening sky. The stars peep
+forth timidly, and reflect themselves in the shadows of the lake. In
+the window of a villa along the shore a solitary light burns red, a
+little boat is making for the shore, and the far-off sound of music
+breaks the stillness with pathetic cadence.</p>
+
+<p>On nearing our hotel we find that it proceeds from a gipsy band,
+which, according to time-honoured custom, has come to serenade the new
+arrivals. The instruments consist in the present instance of three
+violins, a violoncello, double-bass, clarionet, and cymbals, and we
+hear once more those passionate strains, so full of pathos and beauty,
+which have lived in our memory ever since we first heard them at Pest
+four years ago.</p>
+
+<p>The Magyars have a perfect passion for this gipsy music, and there
+is nothing that appeals so powerfully to their emotions, whether of
+joy or sorrow. These singular musicians are as a rule well-taught,
+and can play almost any music, greatly preferring, however, their own
+compositions. Their music consequently is highly characteristic.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_53">[53]</span> It is
+the language of their lives and strange surroundings; a wild, weird,
+banshee music; now all joy and sparkle, like sunshine on the plains;
+now sullen, sad and pathetic by turns, like the wail of a crushed
+and oppressed people—an echo, it is said, of the minstrelsy of the
+<i>hegedősök</i> Hungarian bards, but sounding to our ears like the
+more distant echo of that exceeding bitter cry uttered long centuries
+ago by their forefathers under Egyptian bondage, and borne over the
+time-waves of thousands of years, breaking forth in their music of
+to-day.</p>
+
+<p>Gipsies, like the Jews, muster strongly in Hungary, and number more
+than 150,000. They are said to have taken refuge in this country from
+the cruelty of their Mogul oppressors, and to have been suffered by
+King Sigismond to establish themselves here under the title of “new
+settlers.”</p>
+
+<p>There are three classes of gipsies in Hungary, or <i>Farao nepek</i>,
+“King Pharaoh’s people,” as they are often called in derision: the
+musicians; the <i>sátoros czigánok</i>, or tented gipsies, by which
+is meant, those who wander from place to place; and those who, having
+a settled habitation, are the only blacksmiths in the country.
+Notwithstanding their vagabond appearance, the gipsies are often
+anything but poor, and have sometimes been known to amass considerable
+wealth. Besides being musicians and blacksmiths, they also frequent
+fairs in the character of horse-dealers, so that the Hungarian gipsy,
+viewed in his social aspect, is a much more important individual
+than his English brother, and is in fact, as he has been very aptly
+designated, the “hanger-on” of the Magyar. No festivity ever takes
+place without his being summoned to enliven it with his soul-stirring
+music, whilst in some parts of Hungary it is the custom, or was so
+until very recently,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_54">[54]</span> for a gipsy band to attend a funeral procession
+to the cemetery.</p>
+
+<p>Wherever one goes, the <i>czigány</i> (gipsy) is sure to be seen. With
+his long cart, on which, huddled together, sit his wife and ragged
+children, he travels from village to village, his destination usually
+being one of the numerous fairs which take place annually in this
+country; and whether travelling along with his little worldly all, or
+encamped with his tent under the blue expanse of heaven, he forms one
+of the most picturesque features of the Alfőld scenery.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0540_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0540_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_55">[55]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER V.<br>
+<span class="subhed">WE ARE MET BY OUR GUIDE.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">In a country where so many nationalities exist it is not easy to
+travel without some one who can speak at least three or four languages
+unfamiliar to civilised ears; and as we purposed travelling not only
+through Central Hungary, but through Transylvania and the Northern
+Carpathians also, a guide was absolutely necessary, who, in addition to
+German and Magyar, should be able to speak Wallachian and Slovak.</p>
+
+<p>Besides the letters of introduction given us by the merchant at Paris,
+we received before leaving England another to a gentleman residing in
+one of the midland <i>comitats</i> (counties), which before starting
+we forwarded with a letter from ourselves, asking the favour of his
+recommending a trustworthy person to accompany us on our journey, and
+if possible to send him to meet us here.</p>
+
+<p>We were seated at breakfast the morning after our arrival at Fűred
+when a little group of persons entered, a tall woman of forbidding
+aspect, leading a child by each hand, followed by a very small man,
+who, handing us a letter, proved to be one of our Hungarian friend’s
+own servants, whom he had sent in the capacity of guide, the letter
+assuring us he was<span class="pagenum" id="Page_56">[56]</span> thoroughly experienced in travelling, knowing how
+to make arrangements at country inns, etc. etc., and, in short, well
+versed on all subjects concerning what “to eat, drink, and avoid.”</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0560_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0560_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>It was somewhat alarming, however, to witness this little man’s
+belongings, and we began to wonder whether, amongst other strange
+things of this strange country, it was the custom for the guide’s
+family likewise to accompany the traveller. The bundles and small
+luggage also, which not only the woman but both children carried in
+their arms, and the travel-stained appearance of their garments,
+showing they had come from a long distance, were likewise circumstances
+tending to strengthen our very natural supposition. But our minds were
+soon set at rest on this matter by András himself, who informed us that
+his wife had relations in the neighbourhood of Fűred, with whom she
+purposed remaining with her children until his return.</p>
+
+<p>András was a good-looking man, with a bright and intelligent
+countenance. He wore white <i>gatya</i> (trousers) fringed at the
+edge, a braided hussar-jacket thrown across one shoulder, and a small
+round felt hat and feathers. On our asking him to what nationality
+he belonged, he drew<span class="pagenum" id="Page_57">[57]</span> himself up proudly until he almost stood on
+tip-toe, and with a look expressive of triumph replied, “<i>Én Magyar
+vagyok</i>” (“I am a Magyar”), and went on to inform us that he was
+the grandson of an unfortunate noble whose lands had been forfeited,
+but whose descent could be traced to the <i>honfoglalás</i>, as the
+conquest of the Hungarian fatherland by Árpád in the ninth century
+is called,—an event regarded by the Magyars in the same light as we
+ourselves view the Norman Conquest. At this juncture he was overcome by
+his emotions, but whether awakened by the remembrance of his defunct
+grandsire, or simply that of his own greatness, it was hard to say.</p>
+
+<p>Our guide’s wife was a head and shoulders taller than her lord and
+master, and could easily have carried him about like a baby had she
+been so minded. She was a fierce-looking woman with beetling brows, an
+appearance by no means lessened by her peculiar style of dress; for,
+besides her Turkish-looking head-gear, short skirts and top-boots, her
+sleeves were padded at the shoulders, which, by increasing the width of
+her already broad chest, imparted to her a mien truly Amazonian.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst András provided for the exigencies of the journey, we occupied
+ourselves in making short excursions in the neighbourhood. The lake,
+though fifty miles long, is at no point more than nine broad; whilst
+at Fűred it is even narrower still, the peninsula of Tihany, which
+stretches halfway across it, almost severing it in two. Besides the
+<i>fogas</i>, already referred to, it contains several kinds of
+fish—the fogas, which is found only here and in the Nile, being
+esteemed by epicures as the very best fresh-water fish in Europe.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_58">[58]</span></p>
+
+<p>The people living round Fűred are principally farmers and graziers. The
+houses of the former are clean; but those of the <i>földművelők</i>, or
+cultivators of the soil, synonymous with our agricultural labourers,
+are often little better than hovels, where the children, the goats,
+the poultry, and the pigs dwell together in happy-family parties. In
+one of these hovels we saw, suspended for safety to a beam under the
+roof, a baby lying in a trough in which the pigs had just been feeding;
+whilst in others we found the common sleeping-place to be a little nook
+behind the hearth, where the whole family huddled together in contented
+fellowship.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0580_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0580_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+     <p class="p0 sm center"></p>
+  </div>
+
+<p>One of the quaintest and most amusing things in the neighbourhood of
+these villages is to watch the kine returning at sunset from the plains
+whither they have been driven for pasture at break of day. At the sound
+of a horn, no<span class="pagenum" id="Page_59">[59]</span> matter how numerous they may be, each makes for its
+own village, some with slow and stately gait, others running, but one
+and all finding their way home unaccompanied to the very bosom of the
+family.</p>
+
+<p>It is then that these villages, so silent and deserted all the livelong
+day—during which the inhabitants have been working in distant fields
+or been otherwise busily occupied—are full of life and animation. The
+women, sitting at doorways, sew or knit, whilst the men, lounging on
+the benches beneath the gables, smoke the pipe of peace; meanwhile, in
+ragged and irregular procession, the kine come flocking in, together
+with the pigs, each scenting with discriminating nostril its own
+particular stall or stye, and making for it with glad, unhesitating
+stride.</p>
+
+<p>Wandering along the lake in the direction of Tihany, we find numerous
+shells of no known existing species, resembling goat’s hoofs, and
+by which name they are called by the peasantry. There is a singular
+tradition concerning the origin of these fossils, to which the
+imaginative Hungarians cling with characteristic tenacity.</p>
+
+<p>In the remote days of King Béla (1061), when the Tartar hordes pressing
+from the East menaced the country, the King, followed by his courtiers
+and the royal flocks and herds, fleeing for safety across the Danube,
+took refuge in the fastnesses of Tihany. The Tartars, however—so runs
+tradition—having overtaken him even here, compelled him to retreat
+still farther. Unable to save his flocks and herds, yet unwilling they
+should become spoil for the enemy, he caused them to be drowned in the
+lake, and the fossils found in it to-day are said to be the petrified
+remains of the hoofs of these animals!</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_60">[60]</span></p>
+
+<p>The rocks of Tihany also contain numerous other fossils, imbedded in
+the limestone; whilst in some portions of the plains, transported from
+the trachyte or volcanic hills, are deposits containing scoriaceous
+and earthy matters, in which not only pumice, but fossil and organic
+remains are found, consisting of opaline wood with impressions of
+shells and plants of various kinds.</p>
+
+<p>On the last day of our sojourn at Fűred, whilst F. went off to visit
+the monastery, accompanied by András, I sallied forth with my sketching
+apparatus for a climb over the hills.</p>
+
+<p>At our feet slumbering calmly, like an infant surrounded by diaphanous
+curtains in a downy cradle, lay the azure lake enveloped in a
+transparent veil of mist. Near the shore, the little fishing-boats
+floating on its surface in the direction of Sió-Fok appeared poised
+in mid-air, and, looming pale through the mist, looked like birds of
+morning or phantoms of themselves. To our right the abbey-crowned
+promontory of Tihany with its hermits’ cells was half hidden by a long
+stratum of vapour, which seemed to sever it in two; whilst Fűred, with
+its colonnades and white porticoes, looked like some fairy palace that
+must soon dissolve into thin air.</p>
+
+<p>Just as I had seated myself comfortably, and was about to make a
+sketch of the broad landscape beneath, the lake with its fringe of
+pampas-grass and flights of wild fowl, which frequently rose from
+the dense cover—for, the mists by this time having fainted away in
+the sun’s beams, the lake now reflected the deep sapphire of the arc
+above—I suddenly remembered that I had left my binoculars behind on
+one of the tables in the hotel restaurant. To go back for them and
+return in time to finish my picture would be impossible,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_61">[61]</span> and I did not
+like the idea of remaining alone in these wilds by sending András.</p>
+
+<p>Informing him of my dilemma, the good little man declared his
+willingness to descend the hill at once, but added that if we could
+only light upon a <i>czigány</i>, pilfering <i>Herrschaft</i> as they
+were in ordinary, he could be safely entrusted with the delicate
+mission.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Spricht man vom Teufel, so sieht man ihn gleich!</i>” exclaimed
+he, in the sentiment of our own familiar aphorism concerning angels
+and their wings, as looking behind him he descried a band of gipsies
+advancing in the distance.</p>
+
+<p>What a picturesque group they form, wending their way slowly
+along—three men, two women and half-a-dozen mop-headed children, the
+smallest of whom, seated on a heap of tent paraphernalia, is carried on
+the back of a shaggy brown pony, the very type of its owners!</p>
+
+<p>The moment they catch sight of us there is a general run, the women and
+children with hands outstretched—supplicating in whining, plaintive
+but importunate tones for kreuzers. A few choice expletives, however,
+administered by András in their own tongue in a commanding treble, soon
+send them to the right-about; and the whole party having passed in
+picturesque file, they begin to pitch their tent on a piece of level
+ground not far below us.</p>
+
+<p>András soon picks out his particular <i>czigány</i> for the errand, a
+tall thin man of about forty years of age, with a roguish countenance
+and legs like spindles, who certainly fails to inspire me with the
+slightest confidence in the safety of the commission entrusted to him,
+as nimble of gait he flies down the hillside like a spider descending
+by his web, and is out of sight in no time.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_62">[62]</span></p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile it is intensely amusing and interesting to watch the pitching
+of the tent, and its smoky, rich brown canvas forms a picturesque bit
+of foreground to the beautiful lake in the distance. In the fervour
+of their occupation they have evidently forgotten our presence, for,
+hark to the ringing laughter of these free, unwashed, bare-breasted,
+bronze-faced gipsies, as they utter their half-barbaric language, which
+defies the wisdom of philologists to interpret and the precise origin
+of which is unknown!</p>
+
+<p>No sooner is the tent pitched than the conventional tripod is erected,
+from which an iron pot is suspended. How the wood crackles and the
+sparks fly upwards as the little naked children, dancing like demons
+round the fire, throw on sticks to increase the flame! what shouts of
+laughter resound through the air from these sad melancholy-looking
+people who have no equivalent for the verb “to dwell,” and in whose
+vocabulary there are no words to express joy, happiness, or prosperity,
+although they have many indicative of sorrow, pain, poverty, and woe!</p>
+
+<p>Their mid-day meal of porridge flavoured with garlic is soon cooked
+and disposed of, but ere this our gipsy messenger has returned with my
+lost possession in perfect safety, and been cheaply rewarded and made
+radiantly happy by the bestowal of a florin for his pains. From the
+look of astonishment that rose to his large, sad, glistening eyes as
+I put the coin into his hand, he seemed to think himself the richest
+man in all the country; and as he descended to his people tossing it
+high in air and catching it again, there was general acclamation and
+rejoicing.</p>
+
+<p>Presently, waxing bold by degrees, one of the gipsies I had sketched
+came and stood behind me. He was a delicious<span class="pagenum" id="Page_63">[63]</span> specimen of pictorial
+tatters mellowed by every vicissitude of wear and weather. His brawny
+chest lay bare to the elements, whilst his broad and slouching felt
+<i>sombrero</i>, dragged into every possible degree of limpness,
+shading but not concealing his beetling brows, rendered him a fitting
+study for a Rembrandt. What a rich mingling <i>he</i> too forms
+of black, brown and amber, and how beautifully he “composes” with
+the background of azure lake! Holding it towards him, I called his
+attention to the representation of himself and his surroundings, which
+appeared to interest him greatly, and with wondering admiration he at
+once recognised the faithful rendering of a long tear in the sleeve of
+his outer garment.</p>
+
+<p>Of all the gipsies in Hungary the <i>Sátoros czigányok</i>, or those
+who wander about with tents, are supposed to be the very worst
+specimens of the race, and are compelled by government to change their
+place of bivouac every twenty-four hours. After the musicians, the
+most respectable members of the community are those who take up their
+permanent abode on the outskirts of villages, and are the recognised
+blacksmiths and farriers of the country.</p>
+
+<p>Whatever be the origin of this singular people, many of their customs
+are completely Hindoo, and the similarity of their language to Sanscrit
+is a well-known fact, their very name “<i>Czigány</i>” being taken,
+it is said, from a Sanscrit word. The Sanscrit name for snake is
+“<i>nága</i>,” “nag” being the one used by our English gipsies. The
+mouth they call “mui,” which in Sanscrit is “<i>mukha</i>.” “Shaster”
+(Hindoo Bible) is the only term they make use of to denote any kind
+of book, and “Shulam!” their form of greeting, is evidently taken
+from the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_64">[64]</span> familiar Oriental one “Salaam!” Whilst a horse, which in
+Hindustani is “<i>ghoṛā</i>,” is called by the gipsy “grea,” and so on
+<i>ad infinitum</i>.</p>
+
+<p>At various periods philanthropists have endeavoured to civilise these
+wandering children of the desert, but without success. Towards the end
+of the last century, Joseph II., hoping to induce them to relinquish
+their vagabond lives, dignified them with the name of “New Peasants,”
+and caused houses to be built for them; but instead of living in them,
+they used them as stabling for their wretched horses, and either
+pitched tents or erected hovels for themselves outside. Since then many
+benevolent and sanguine individuals have done their best to win over
+the offspring of these Bedouins to a decent mode of life, by taking
+them from their parents when very young; but so strongly implanted
+in the gipsy is the love of vagrancy, that no sooner are the little
+urchins old enough to break through restraint than some fine morning
+they are certain to be missing—gone back to their own or some other
+band of wanderers.</p>
+
+<p>No matter whether young or old, the orthodox thorough-going
+<i>czigány</i> is a creature not to be civilised, and he clings with
+the greatest tenacity, not only to his nomad, vagabond existence, but
+to all the ancient superstitions of his race.</p>
+
+<p>He believes the woods and forests are inhabited by gnomes, elves
+and evil spirits, but he has no God. For him death is annihilation,
+absolute and complete. He regards death with horror, and after the
+<i>pandúr</i> (policeman) it is the thing he most dreads. Like his
+English brother, the Hungarian gipsy pretends to be ignorant of
+all laws, and, though seldom or never guilty of great offences, he
+entertains an<span class="pagenum" id="Page_65">[65]</span> innate horror of this functionary, regarding him as the
+obnoxious embodiment of some superior power, the precise nature and
+essence of which he professes not to understand. But whilst maintaining
+his universal character for pilfering, the <i>czigány</i> has many
+redeeming qualities. He is strongly attached to the aged as well as to
+little children: and during the troublous wars which devastated Hungary
+in the last century, many instances of self-abnegation are recorded
+of these poor outcasts, and many romantic legends are possessed by
+the Magyars concerning them. But however much he may differ in his
+surroundings, in his consistent habit of humbugging and love of
+necromancy he is the same as elsewhere; and whether wandering over
+the great Alfőld or Felfőld of Hungary, or bivouacking as of yore in
+the green lanes of pastoral England, he is the same mysterious and
+mischievous waif, getting a living somehow, anyhow, by fair means or
+foul, as it suits his purpose at the moment.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0650_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0650_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_66">[66]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER VI.<br>
+<span class="subhed">DÉLI-BÁB.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">The ordinary travelling conveyance of Hungary is the <i>leiterwagen</i>
+or <i>szekér</i>, a long skeleton cart, with sides like ladders,
+already described, which, from the convenient habit it has of
+accommodating itself to the manifold vicissitudes of Hungarian travel,
+and of wriggling and writhing itself into shape under circumstances
+that would utterly break up any English vehicle, together with the
+capacity it possesses of being dragged through quagmires that in this
+country bear the name of roads, is admirably adapted to its purpose.</p>
+
+<p>They know only part of a country who study it merely in its
+outward aspects and do not acquaint themselves with the lives and
+characteristics of its inhabitants. Before leaving England, therefore,
+we determined to throw off our national prejudices and mix with the
+people as much as possible, becoming Magyars on the plains, Slovaks
+and Rusniaks in the northern and north-eastern Carpathians, Wallachs
+in Transylvania and Yougo-Slávs in Croatia. For this reason too we
+determined not to keep to the iron-roads, but to travel across country
+by <i>szekér</i>—curiously enough pronounced <i>shaker</i>—or any
+other conveyance to be met with. The <i>szekér</i><span class="pagenum" id="Page_67">[67]</span> is by no means so
+uncomfortable a vehicle as might be imagined, for well filled with hay
+in addition to a couple of air-pillows—which no traveller in Hungary
+should omit to carry—one may journey in it day after day without very
+much fatigue.</p>
+
+<p>Starting from so small a place as Fűred—where thus early in the
+season we feared nothing else could be obtained—our expectations
+at any rate did not soar beyond that humble means of locomotion
+even if our ambition took a loftier flight. But our guide, on the
+contrary, threw, figuratively speaking, cold water upon that modest
+vehicle—in fact, very cold water indeed—venturing to insinuate at
+the anomaly that would be presented by an august <i>Ángol</i>, and
+his <i>tekintetes asszony</i> (worshipful lady), as he persisted in
+styling us, travelling in so undignified a manner, and did his utmost
+to dissuade us from proceeding across-country by inducing us to return
+to Sió-Fok, and there take the train to Pest, at which place we could
+purchase a travelling carriage if we would, and journey through Hungary
+in a manner becoming an “illustrious family” from <i>Ángolország</i>
+(England).</p>
+
+<p>Talleyrand says somewhere in his philosophy that “the tongue was given
+to conceal the thoughts,” and András’s opposition to our travelling
+in a “shaker” bore, we felt sure, no reference to the maintenance of
+<i>our</i> dignity, but simply to that of his own. The Hungarians are
+proverbially proud, ostentatious and fond of display, and there never
+was a truer proverb than that of their own creation: “<i>Sallangos a
+Magyar</i>” (the Magyars are fond of trappings). This being the case,
+the prospect of sitting side by side with the driver on the bench of
+a <i>paraszt-kosci</i>, or peasant’s carriage, as a <i>szekér</i> is
+often designated—it was amusing to hear the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_68">[68]</span> scornful way in which
+he pronounced the word—was far more than so pompous an individual as
+a Magyar guide could view with complacency. It was to him therefore
+a source of no small chagrin that we intimated our intention of
+persisting in our contemplated cross-country journey to Pest.</p>
+
+<p>András in his ordinary attire, and András dressed in the livery of
+his master, were two entirely different personages. We could scarcely
+recognise him when he presented himself on the morning of the day
+on which we were to start, arrayed in the tightest of pantaloons
+of dark green cloth, braided with yellow, and hussar-jacket of the
+same. The livery was somewhat faded, it is true, but he presented,
+notwithstanding, quite a martial appearance; his moustache by the
+agency of some external application stood out perfectly straight,
+and, extending far beyond the region of his face, added a fierce and
+Mephistophelean character to his countenance.</p>
+
+<p>To the eyes of the English traveller the costumes or rather liveries of
+the servants of the “nobles” and gentry are very striking. There was
+a time however, and not so long ago, when they wore a full military
+uniform, resplendent with gold and silver lace, each gentleman having
+his valet, who was dressed and armed like a hussar, and who waited on
+him with the soldier-like accompaniments of sabre and spurs. The other
+men-servants of his establishment were similarly equipped; whilst the
+ordinary costume of their masters consisted of gay-coloured broad-cloth
+richly embroidered with gold, a velvet fur-lined mantle thrown over
+one shoulder, a girdle or sash of some costly material encircling the
+waist, and a hat adorned with splendid plumes.</p>
+
+<p>These beautiful “relics of barbarism” are, alas! fast dying<span class="pagenum" id="Page_69">[69]</span> out. The
+ladies have relinquished their national costumes for those of Western
+Europe, and the nobles only wear theirs on festive and grand occasions,
+unless they desire to make, as in 1870, a political demonstration
+against some Imperial laws, when to a man the Hungarians present
+themselves in all their former glory of plume, embroidered sash, and
+kingly mantle, and cause the streets of Pest to look like scenes from
+an opera.</p>
+
+<p>We were just starting for an early cruise on the lake, when András
+overtook us bristling with importance, his very hair standing erect
+in his eagerness to communicate something. He had that moment, so he
+informed us, by a piece of unprecedented good luck, heard of a britzska
+belonging to a dead Pole from Gallicia; that is to say, trying to
+correct himself, it had <i>once</i> belonged to a dead Pole. Here,
+getting hopelessly entangled in speech, and unable to right himself,
+he came to a standstill, till growing calm by degrees he at length
+explained that a Polish gentleman, who had sought health in the healing
+waters of Fűred, had not only failed to find it, but had committed the
+misdemeanour of dying in a certain inn in the neighbourhood before he
+had paid the bill. The britzska consequently became the property of the
+landlord, and was for sale.</p>
+
+<p>Although the sum demanded was four hundred gulden, he, András, believed
+that by judicious bargaining it might be obtained for three hundred.
+At any rate would “their Graces” only come and see it? It was in an
+<i>álás</i>, or shed, in the village hard by.</p>
+
+<p>Following him, we soon came to the place where it was reposing,—a
+heavy, time-worn, battered, and oppressed-looking thing, typical,
+doubtless, of the fortunes of its late<span class="pagenum" id="Page_70">[70]</span> owner, whilst so ancient was
+its general appearance that it might have conveyed Arpád or even
+Attila himself across the Carpathians when they and their conquering
+armies made their first entry into Hungary. It possessed, however, the
+modern luxury of a hood and glass shutters, and was constructed so as
+to enable the traveller to lie down in it at full length, and we were
+forced to admit that the whole did unquestionably form a very snug
+arrangement for journeying through a country like this, where there are
+such violent and rapid changes in the temperature.</p>
+
+<p>The paper currency of Hungary was at this time more than usually
+depressed. We obtained everywhere twelve florins and about eighty
+kreuzers in exchange for our English sovereign, so that three hundred
+gulden—a gulden being equivalent to two shillings—represented in
+reality only £25 10<i>s.</i>; we therefore informed him that if he
+could strike the bargain for that sum he might, and left him to do the
+haggling.</p>
+
+<p>We were doubtless not a little influenced in our compliance with
+András’s wishes by a conversation we had had that morning with a
+German, whom we happened to meet whilst walking on the shores of the
+lake.</p>
+
+<p>“Brigandage in Hungary,” he remarked, “is not yet a thing of the past.
+You will be journeying across the lonely Alfőld, and doing so in a
+manner befitting a person of distinction is, believe me, the only thing
+that will exempt you from an attack, should chance lead you in their
+way. You English have a proverb, ‘There is honour amongst thieves;’
+and it is one that might well have emanated from this country, for the
+innate pride of these Magyar ruffians causes them to regard with such
+respect and veneration all<span class="pagenum" id="Page_71">[71]</span> whom they conceive to be of pure blood,
+that instead of robbing them they will often afford them safe conduct
+through their fastnesses; and whilst a caravan of merchants crossing
+the Alfőld in broad day may fall a victim to their avarice, the haughty
+noble driving in his carriage, attended by one solitary servant, may
+travel in perfect safety throughout the livelong night. If you travel
+in your own carriage, you may be mistaken for one of these nobles; and
+rather than rob you, they will probably help you on your journey.”</p>
+
+<p>It is scarcely necessary to say that András succeeded in his
+negotiations, and in little more than an hour’s time—instead of the
+much-despised <i>paraszt-kosci</i>—our <i>britzska</i>, to which were
+harnessed four miserable-looking horses, quite in keeping with the
+equipage itself, drew up to the hotel.</p>
+
+<p>Our charioteer, a man of sinister appearance with deep-set eyes and
+raven hair, is smoking a pipe. He wears the usual hussar-jacket thrown
+rakishly over one shoulder and a bunch of flowers in his hat. Giving
+half-a-dozen flourishes with his whip, he tickles the ears of the
+leaders. The last bag has been deposited. The hamper containing the
+cold fowls, the yard of bread, the half yard of garlicky sausage and
+the bottles of <i>badacsony</i>, reposes safely in a net beneath the
+carriage. We take our places: a struggle ensues on the part of the four
+lean, long-tailed horses at starting, all of which manifest a decided
+will of their own—but suddenly we are off.</p>
+
+<p>Between Fűred and the mountains of Transylvania stretches an
+uninterrupted plain. The country in this locality, however, is less
+thinly populated than that of the Pettaurfeld, which we passed
+through on entering Hungary from Venice. On the road we meet waggons
+containing barrels and piles<span class="pagenum" id="Page_72">[72]</span> of merchandise drawn by beautiful white,
+meek-eyed oxen, and often driven by Jews, who all over Hungary are
+the “middlemen” between the producer and the consumer. It is to the
+Jews that the farmer sells the wool from his numerous flocks, and the
+“noble” the produce of his estates. They are Jews who buy the grapes
+and the wheat and the maize, and who drive hard bargains with the lowly
+peasant for his little plot of sunflowers, poppies or hemp, and who are
+the medium of nearly all the commerce in the country.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0720_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0720_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Our route now leads us in a northerly direction. At first the plains
+softly undulating are dimpled here and there with shady hollows; whilst
+like golden islands in an ocean of vivid green lie long stretches of
+yellow colza and ripening corn. On the gently rising upland yonder
+a dark round speck appears against the sunlit sky; gradually it
+elongates, and we hear a voice singing in a quivering treble some
+national idyll. It is a husbandman emerging from the hollow and
+trudging homewards along the crest<span class="pagenum" id="Page_73">[73]</span> of the undulation. Then all is
+silence and solitude once more, till coming to a standstill at one of
+the primitive wells by the roadside, we hear the distant rumble of a
+waggon as its wheels grind heavily along, the driver of it singing,
+as he goes, a melancholy ditty in the minor key. Then one by one the
+villages and solitary farms lying on the horizon die away; and we
+enter the boundless plains. How lonely we feel, and what tiny atoms of
+creation, with no objects to measure ourselves by save birds of prey
+and the white clouds sailing far up in the great, blue, glorious sky!</p>
+
+<p>Our carriage, though imposing only in the matter of size, proved very
+comfortable, its ponderous hood shielding us from the heat of the sun,
+save where, taking mean advantage of weak places in its constitution,
+it shot fiery arrows in upon us, scarcely less piercing than those that
+pour down upon the head of the traveller in the desert.</p>
+
+<p>The sun reflects itself in the white and dusty road. Above the soil
+on either side there is a flickering motion of the air like the haze
+from a lime-kiln. Everything is hot and dusty; not an insect is seen
+hovering about the low bushes which now and then skirt our pathway.
+All nature is taking its siesta in the dreamy noontide, and nothing
+is awake but the scarlet pimpernel that with wide-open unblinking eye
+looks straight up at the blazing sun. We now come to a marshy district,
+where a lonely heron is contemplating its lovely image in a small still
+pool, and then away we go again out into broad purple patches of newly
+upturned soil, bands of emerald corn, and speckled streaks of tobacco,
+with its large red and green leaves, and on through cool labyrinths of
+maize, till we come to vast tracts of uncultivated<span class="pagenum" id="Page_74">[74]</span> land, where wild
+horses with flying manes go scampering across its surface with all the
+natural grace of untamed things.</p>
+
+<p>As day advances and the shadows of the clouds begin to lengthen across
+the plains, a breeze springs up and plays about us softly, rustling
+the large white, surplice-like sleeves of the driver’s garment, but
+not sufficiently strong to stir his black and flowing locks, which,
+weighted with some unctuous matter, rest calmly on his shoulders. Our
+nearest town is Veszprim, but at the pace we are at present going we
+are scarcely likely to reach it before nightfall, if then. But what
+does it matter, when we have the whole of to-morrow, and the next day,
+and the day after that, aye, and our whole lives, to do the distance in
+if necessary? How delightful to enjoy for once the true feeling of rest
+in this world of hurry-scurry, where we are but too often compelled to
+live at high pressure! Let, oh! let us for once take life easily under
+the broad and peaceful canopy of heaven, and reduce the <i>dolce far
+niente</i> to a science!</p>
+
+<p>Borne leisurely onwards by the monotonous jog-trot of our steeds, the
+scream of a falcon now and then, as it whirls overhead, is the only
+sound that breaks the stillness. Nothing is here to remind us of that
+busy world which seems somewhere quite outside the atmosphere of our
+present lives, and which, so far as we are immediately concerned,
+might belong to some wholly different planet, even if it exists at
+all. Mother Earth here folds us in an entirely different lap; all
+the symbols of our old lives have vanished, and the present is far
+too vague and dreamy to be linked with any real memories. And as we
+recline languidly and luxuriously in the warm shade of our comfortable
+carriage, our past<span class="pagenum" id="Page_75">[75]</span> experiences are for the time buried in the Lethean
+stream; whilst the things of men—the tragedies of life and death, the
+deeds of cruelty and wrong, the hunger and struggle with hard times
+which exist in that world that lies beyond the circle of our visible
+horizon—seem no longer real, but only a hideous fancy.</p>
+
+<p>Presently we espy what in the distance appears to be a river.</p>
+
+<p>“Is it old Father Danube turning up unexpectedly?” we ask each other;
+exclaiming, after a pause, “No, it cannot be a river, it is a broad
+lake with a green island in its midst. See how the trees are reflected
+in the water!”</p>
+
+<p>“What is the name of that lake yonder?” we inquire of András, who is
+half asleep on the box. “It surely cannot be the Platten-See again; it
+is the wrong side of us for that, and we must have left all sight of it
+behind us hours ago.”</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Déli-báb!</i>” replied András laconically, in a drowsy voice,
+aroused from his half-somnolent state only to subside into it again.</p>
+
+<p>Amongst the numerous myths which the fertile imagination of those
+pastoral nomads the ancient Magyars conjured up, dwelling on these vast
+steppes surrounded by rivers, trees and the ever-recurring phenomena of
+nature, not one is so poetical or so philosophical in its conception as
+Déli-báb, the “Fairy of the South,” and the ideal personification of a
+mirage.</p>
+
+<p>How ingenious and at the same time suggestive is the parentage
+that is assigned to this national fairy of the Magyars!—“Daughter
+of old Puszta of the Alfőld”—her home; “Sister of Tenger” the
+sea—which form she most frequently represents. “Loved by Szél”—the
+wind, which,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_76">[76]</span> fanning the quivering haze—the chief cause of the
+phenomenon—perpetually changes its aspect.</p>
+
+<p>How often too has she furnished a theme to the Hungarian poets! Have
+not Eötvös, Vörösmarty, and the impassioned Petőfi, sung of the
+deceptive beauty of this land sprite when—scarcely less delusive
+than the Sirens of ancient Greece, who from their rocky island called
+so sweetly to passing sailors “Come and rest! Come to our cool green
+caves, O men of many toils and many storms! and we will charm your
+cares away”—she lures the weary traveller onwards many a mile, and
+then, mocking, fades away?</p>
+
+<p>It is impossible to travel far on the plains on a sultry day without
+observing this beautiful apparition. Often it pursues the traveller for
+many hours together, whilst not unfrequently it is seen to encircle the
+whole horizon. Now it simulates a steeple and houses poised in mid-air;
+now a river or a lake; but, generally, a broad expanse of ocean, with
+long stretches of sandy beach and narrow promontories of marshy shore,
+near which are masts of vessels, with tall trees and copses and stones
+reflected clearly in the water.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0760_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0760_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>We have nothing in prosaic England to compare with the poetical
+superstition <i>Déli-báb</i>; but the resemblance between some of
+our national fables concerning good and bad fairies and those of
+Hungary, which are of Finnish origin, is very striking. Not to
+mention Mermaids and others,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_77">[77]</span> which until the middle of the last
+century were believed to inhabit the waters of the Theiss, there were
+sorcerers who were invariably accompanied by the conventional black
+cat; whilst Satan (<i>őrdőg</i>), whose particular personification in
+this case is supposed to be of Tartar or Persian origin, is always
+represented—though of ante-Christian era—with large ears and a
+long tail; his abode <i>Pokol</i>, where, amidst a band of numerous
+subjects, he dwells in heat and darkness.</p>
+
+<p>We have passed the episcopal town of Veszprim, with its melancholy
+houses and grass-grown streets, passed its numerous vineyards, and once
+more, out on the broad and silent plains, see at long intervals little
+sleepy farms lying half-hidden amongst the green recesses of Indian
+corn, and surrounded by a blaze of wild flowers.</p>
+
+<p>At still longer distances we come to small villages, almost every
+one of which is called <i>Kis</i> or <i>Nagy</i>—<i>something</i>;
+adjectives signifying “little” and “great,” and which, when reversed,
+apply to villages far beyond our sight.</p>
+
+<p>All, whether <i>Kis</i> and <i>Nagy</i>, are exceedingly alike. Each
+house has a white gable pierced with its one small window; beneath
+which, on a bench placed against the wall precisely in the same
+position as that of its next door neighbour, sit peaceful women and
+girls knitting and gossiping. These benches, with one of which each
+house is provided, are called by the appropriate appellation of
+<i>Szóhordók</i>, “word-bearers.”</p>
+
+<p>This uniformity in the villages of the Alfőld is very striking and
+peculiar, and cannot fail to arrest the attention of all who, leaving
+the iron-roads which now link all the large towns and cities of Hungary
+together, travel across the open country.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_78">[78]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER VII.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE ÁGÁS OR HUNGARIAN WELL.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">The aspect of the Alfőld varies considerably according to the nature
+of the soil. In some places it is boggy; in others sandy and incapable
+of cultivation; in others again it is so marvellously fertile that
+it produces crops which by an English agriculturist would be deemed
+absolutely fabulous. In such areas shafts have been sunk five
+hundred feet for the purpose of ascertaining the depth of the soil,
+but even then without the bottom having been reached. In this rich
+alluvial deposit wheat, poppies—the latter grown for a kind of
+confectionery—sunflowers, buckwheat, hemp, flax, maize and tobacco,
+are all cultivated.</p>
+
+<p>In the cultivation of some parts of the Alfőld the method adopted is
+to plant or sow in strips of about eighty feet wide and several miles
+in length; and the stranger, seeing no habitation far or near as he
+plunges along in his <i>britzska</i> or “shaker,” is led to wonder
+where the people live for whom the roads are made and who they are who
+cultivate the soil, or whether benevolent earth spirits do not rise
+during the night to till the land, sow the seed, and hoe and weed those
+endless lines of golden maize and undulating corn.</p>
+
+<p>The soil being so fertile, the harvests, as I have said, are
+wonderfully abundant, and this, too, in spite of the drawbacks<span class="pagenum" id="Page_79">[79]</span> to
+which the crops are subject, arising from droughts on the one hand, and
+inundations on the other. The former are attributed in a great measure
+to the absence of trees, one of the first peculiarities that strike the
+traveller on entering the Alfőld.</p>
+
+<p>To remedy this evil to some extent, namely, the dryness of the soil,
+trees are being planted in great numbers in many districts of the
+plains, whilst in others attempts are being made to irrigate the land
+by means of canals.</p>
+
+<p>The inundations, however, are a difficulty that can never be overcome.
+Year by year a war offensive and defensive is waged by the waters of
+the Danube, and its tributaries the Marős and the Theiss, with the
+unfortunate inhabitants of the towns and villages situated on their
+shores. As the beds of these rivers rise, the dykes are raised also;
+but when there happens to be a sudden thaw in the higher Carpathians,
+no artificial barrier is strong enough to resist the great pressure
+brought to bear upon them, and the result is the bursting of the dykes,
+as in the case of Szegedin, and the inundation of the surrounding
+country.</p>
+
+<p>There is also another phenomenon prejudicial to the interest of
+agriculturists. The rivers flow subterraneously. In dry seasons they
+drain the soil by drawing down its moisture to themselves; while in
+rainy seasons the water of the overfull rivers, welling up through the
+light alluvial soil, converts the plains into a gigantic swamp. Nor
+is this all. The Danube is perpetually changing its course; in some
+instances it has left towns and villages many miles distant which were
+once situated on its banks; whilst it now flows close to others at one
+time far away.</p>
+
+<p>Geologists declare that at some pre-historic period the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_80">[80]</span> plains formed
+three inland seas, and it is quite impossible to travel in the vicinity
+of this greatest of all European rivers and its tributaries, without
+feeling that in Time’s great cycle the waters must once more submerge
+the whole district of the Alfőld.</p>
+
+<p>In spite of all these disadvantages, the Magyars love their plains just
+as the Swiss do their mountains, and see in them the embodiment of all
+natural beauty.</p>
+
+<p>Across these steppes the roads, which are often little better than a
+waggon track overgrown with grass, are occasionally given to being
+vague. Proceeding on our way we reach a point where two such roads
+meet. The driver is evidently puzzled which to take. That to the left
+appears to vanish in a corn-field, and the one to the right to lead
+to a farm lying half-hidden in low brushwood. Pausing to consider our
+bearings, we soon descried creeping lazily along the former, another
+long waggon, the only kind of vehicle we have passed since leaving
+Fűred.</p>
+
+<p>“Ho! Hi! <i>Soger</i>!” cries our driver—“which is the way to
+Stuhlweissenburg?”</p>
+
+<p>The word <i>Soger</i>, which in that sense meant German, was an
+unfortunate epithet, most insulting to a Magyar.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Brother!</i>” was the reply, uttered in a savage tone of voice and
+accompanied by what sounded like an oath, the waggoner at the same time
+giving a sharp tug to the reins that brought the waggon right across
+our path and landed his team in a bog at the side. Then, standing
+upright on the seat, he traced with his finger slowly and majestically
+the whole circle of the horizon and exclaimed, “<i>There!</i>”</p>
+
+<p>The Hungarians entertain a deep-rooted dislike to Germans individually
+as well as to everything German; and to pretend<span class="pagenum" id="Page_81">[81]</span> to mistake a Magyar
+for one of the hated race is a favourite and very effective mode of
+insult.</p>
+
+<p>After a delay of half an hour, during which the oxen are being
+extricated from the bog, and the waggon dragged into position again,
+we journey on once more and come to villages, the one-storied houses
+of which are so uniformly built that, with their white gables facing
+the same direction, they look from a distance precisely like tents. In
+fact, wherever the observant traveller goes in Hungary, he is struck
+with two peculiarities: one consisting in the relics of Orientalism
+possessed by the people, as exhibited in their costume, manner of
+cooking food, and many other domestic habits; the other, in the
+resemblance their dwellings of to-day bear—in form and arrangement at
+any rate—to those of their Turanian ancestors. The general features
+of the Hungarian villages exactly correspond to a military camp;
+and a stranger who travels merely from Pest to Presburg, or <i>vice
+versâ</i>, will see this statement amply exemplified. The railway
+skirts the Danube nearly the whole way, and looking across the broad
+and glassy stream he will here and there observe, as the train bears
+him along, what appear to be thousands of tents standing in groups at
+the foot of, or lying on, the slopes of the hills; and should it happen
+to be his first visit to Hungary, he will be under the full impression
+that the whole army is camping out, until he suddenly finds, on nearing
+a village, that what he imagined from a distance to be white tents are
+after all but cottages.</p>
+
+<p>The Hungarians are in very truth an odd mixture, here exhibiting traits
+plainly traceable to their Ugro-Finnish forefathers, and there those
+common to their former subjugators the Turks.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_82">[82]</span></p>
+
+<p>What, for instance, can be more truly Oriental than the <i>ágás</i>
+or Hungarian well, to another of which, as we continue to jog along
+the plains, we have just arrived? It consists of a deep shaft sunk
+in the soil, and enclosed by a low parapet or wall. The water is
+raised by means of a long cross-beam, fastened to a pole of equal
+length, to which a rope and bucket are attached; the whole forming the
+exact counterpart of the wells found on the plains of Hindustan, and
+doubtless the same as that at which Abraham’s servant met Rebekah and
+Jacob fell in love with Rachel on the plains of Mamre.</p>
+
+<p>These primitive wells are principally made for the use of shepherds,
+to enable them to water the flocks which graze on the uncultivated
+wastes of these vast plains. Unharnessing the horses, Jöszef leads them
+across to the one we have just reached. Hard by stands the shepherd’s
+hut, which is made of straw, its shape that of a beehive; whilst the
+shepherd himself, a tall man with a sheepskin cloak, who in his shaggy
+garment looks not unlike the sheep he is tending, comes out and,
+raising the water, holds the cool, dripping bucket to the noses of our
+thirsty team.</p>
+
+<p>After this we move on again as before, and pass lonely farmsteads,
+surrounded by wooden palings and sheds for cattle. Near these
+enclosures, and leaning wearily all on one side, may generally be seen
+a rusty iron crucifix, throwing its pathetic shadow across the path.</p>
+
+<p>Our Jehu, who has been smoking vigorously almost ever since we started
+in the morning, now takes his pipe from his mouth, and, placing
+it for safety in the leg of one of his top-boots, begins to doze.
+András, sitting beside him, also dozes, the horses doze, we doze, all
+nature dozes, in the sultry calm of eventide. The tired flocks cease<span class="pagenum" id="Page_83">[83]</span>
+to browse; the tinkling of their bells is heard no longer, and the
+shepherd—not he whom we passed an hour ago, and who gave our horses
+water, but another, his double—lies stretched upon his <i>bunda</i>
+fast asleep, his dog keeping watch beside him.</p>
+
+<p>On, through the same kind of pastures; the same waving corn-fields;
+the same villages with their twin churches—Roman Catholic and
+Calvinist—standing peaceably side by side; the same vague roads, which
+might be sheep-tracks, or anything, or nothing for that matter; the
+same dust, the same birds taking their evening bath in the white sand,
+the same sun, the same sky, the same everything. Yes! and I declare
+the same melancholy iron crucifix, all on one side, just as we left it
+whole hours ago behind.</p>
+
+<p>“Hullo!” cries F., opening his eyes, and giving Jöszef a sudden shake,
+that nearly overbalanced and knocked him off his seat on to the road,
+“we are not going to be deceived this time. This is no <i>Déli-báb</i>.
+We have been going backwards for an hour at least; what is the meaning
+of it, you rascal?”</p>
+
+<p>But, no: Jöszef, thus aroused—giving the horses an indignant reminder
+with his whip—observes that it is not Nagy-<i>Palota</i> that we have
+come to, “and which we left behind us long ago,” but Nagy—<i>something
+else</i>. But by what possible sign he knows a particular village when
+he sees it and gives it any name whatever is a perfect mystery, for
+one and all are as absolutely alike to our unpractised eyes, except in
+minute details, as two pins in a paper.</p>
+
+<p>At length reaching <i>Nagy</i>—whatever it may happen to be (it
+is quite impossible to catch the outlandish names of these small
+places)—just as the sun had set, and the plains,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_84">[84]</span> suffused in soft
+tints of opal, seemed dreaming of the morrow’s sunrise, we come to a
+halt, and decide to remain here for the night.</p>
+
+<p>Our entry into the village excited no small interest. At the sound of
+our horses’ hoofs, every man, woman and child, who did not already
+happen to be outside, either came to the doorways, followed by their
+equally inquisitive pigs, or peeped through the windows of their
+houses, to ascertain what could possibly be coming to disturb the
+equanimity of their pastoral retreat.</p>
+
+<p>No sooner had we come to a standstill than we were surrounded by an
+eager crowd, prompted—as we subsequently proved—not so much by idle
+curiosity, as by a sincere desire to welcome and be of service to us;
+but no Americans ever manifested more inquisitiveness, or a greater
+desire for information than did the dwellers of this small village. Who
+were we? whence had we come? and whither were we going? were questions
+which András had to answer all in a breath; whilst that ostentatious
+little Magyar, doubtless thinking he would shine by a reflected glory,
+was telling them in a “stage whisper,” and by a succession of small
+falsehoods, that we were very great people indeed—a great English
+family, compared with whom all their lines of Eszterházys, and Bánffys,
+and Keménys put together, were as nothing—not even chaff before the
+wind.</p>
+
+<p>We had scarcely alighted, when some one came hurrying towards us, to
+whom all gave place, and whom from his general appearance we had no
+difficulty in recognising as the <i>curé</i>. Without interrogating us,
+as his parishioners had done, he begged we would at once accompany him
+to his house, and make it our home as long as it suited us<span class="pagenum" id="Page_85">[85]</span> to avail
+ourselves of so humble a shelter—a suggestion echoed by the whole
+admiring crowd.</p>
+
+<p>As the Hungarians are known to excel every other nation in the
+virtues of hospitality, this invitation gave us no surprise. Our
+<i>ci-devant</i> host, however, was a priest, and as such may have been
+influenced by the apostolic admonition regarding the entertainment of
+“strangers.” Be this as it may, we were not destined to avail ourselves
+of his hospitality; for our guide—who had left us a few minutes
+previously to spy out the land and its capabilities—came hurrying back
+at this juncture with the intelligence that a tolerable inn existed
+in the village, containing decent accommodation for man and beast:
+whereupon, thanking the priest for his kindness, we proceeded thither
+at once.</p>
+
+<p>The <i>fogado</i> in question was a straggling building of which the
+kitchen formed the principal room, where men—waggoners, apparently,
+whose horses or teams of oxen we had seen reposing in the <i>álás</i>
+close by—were drinking <i>slivovitz</i>.</p>
+
+<p>In common with the generality of roadside inns in Hungary, there was an
+odour of garlic pervading the apartments.</p>
+
+<p>Garlic! Why should we turn up our insular noses at the classic bulb?
+Did not Socrates himself advocate its use in the Banquet of Xenophon,
+and the children of Israel hanker after it in spite of their manna?</p>
+
+<p>To the right of the kitchen, furnished in the most primitive fashion,
+was the guest-room, whose small windows, placed high in the wall, made
+it seem like a prison. The hostess was a Jewess, but the house was
+scrupulously clean, as are nearly all on the Alfőld.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_86">[86]</span></p>
+
+<p>In a corner of the room apart from the rest sat two men in the costume
+of the peasantry, who, taking off their hats, rose at our entrance.</p>
+
+<p>“They are nobles,” whispered the hostess as she led us to an inner
+room—“<i>bocskorosok nemesemberk</i> (Lords of the Sandal), as they
+are sometimes called in ridicule, because half of them have not
+wherewithal to buy <i>csizmák</i>” (top-boots).</p>
+
+<p>These aristocratic rustics, nicknamed “<i>bocskorosok nemesemberk</i>,”
+are in reality peasants, who have fought on the battle-field, or
+otherwise served their country, and have received letters-patent of
+“nobility”—a title, however, that merely gives them certain legal
+privileges.</p>
+
+<p>The <i>fogado</i> covered a considerable area. Where land is so
+abundant there is no need to economise space. Every room was on one
+floor, and arranged round a large courtyard, which was bordered with
+evergreens and flowering shrubs, growing in brightly-painted tubs.
+Beyond was a cluster of cowsheds, and beyond these again a clump of
+trees, beneath which a party of gipsies were bivouacking.</p>
+
+<p>Out in the plains, in the direction of the west and opposite the
+gipsies’ camp, a number of cattle were browsing peacefully; a man on
+horseback was driving home a flock of sheep, the outline of his form
+rendered vague and undefined by the crimson haze which flooded all
+nature; the trees stood out against the brilliant sky, now bathed in
+the afterglow, all golden towards their summits, and purple as they
+neared the ground; the smoke from the gipsies’ fire curled upwards
+in graceful wreaths; warm shadows lay across the greensward; a woman
+flitted to and fro with milk-pails, her dress a rich mingling of red,
+brown, and orange, and her head covered with a blue kerchief—the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_87">[87]</span>
+whole forming a beautiful picture of sympathetic colour and repose.</p>
+
+<p>These roadside inns are far less frequented now than they were, when
+the ordinary country roads formed the only communication between one
+town and another. The opening of railways must be an incalculable boon
+to the inhabitants of both Alfőld and Felfőld alike, for, until they
+existed, no towns in a state of siege could have been more cut off from
+the outer world than were those of Hungary in winter, when the roads
+become absolutely impassable, even for a light vehicle. The inhabitants
+were consequently obliged either to purchase everything they needed
+from a distance before the winter began, or to wait till the spring
+came to release them from their durance.</p>
+
+<p>Even yet, towns and villages connected by railways are few and far
+between; and very dreary, one would think, must be the people’s lives
+in places where none exist, when the earth has once lain down in the
+sepulchre of winter, and the frost has set its iron grip upon the broad
+expanse of plains. Locked in completely during this season from all
+communication with their fellows, how do they manage to live? They are,
+however, a contented, happy people, and their home joys greater far, it
+is said, than those of dwellers in towns and cities. Let us hope they
+are.</p>
+
+<p>In the long winter evenings, seated round their large high stoves,
+they read the passionate and patriotic utterances of their national
+writers, improvise rhymes to the <i>csárdás</i>, or compose those sad
+and plaintive melodies for the <i>telinka</i> which one hears in the
+open air in summer-time. It has been well said that external nature
+is the outer body of national life, and these dwellers of the great
+Alfőld, with its impressive<span class="pagenum" id="Page_88">[88]</span> breadth and silence, possess contemplative
+and poetic minds, as nearly all do who are continually surrounded by
+nature’s solitudes. Even in their most joyous moments there is, indeed,
+a tinge of melancholy always perceptible in the temperament of the
+Magyars.</p>
+
+<p>The bad condition of the roads, at all events those of the Alfőld, is
+of course mainly due to the absence of stone, and the enormous expense
+which bringing the necessary materials from a distance naturally
+involves. We were told by a gentleman with whom we once travelled from
+Pest to Nagy-Várad, that one of the roads across the plains had cost
+the Government no less than what represented in English money £20,000
+per <i>mile</i>; and when the vast area of the plains is taken into
+consideration, one no longer marvels at the quagmires that carriages
+have to drag through whilst travelling from town to town and village to
+village.</p>
+
+<p>Nor is the absence of stone the only disadvantage the dwellers of these
+steppes have to contend with, for wood is almost as scarce, and in some
+remote districts the villages, from these combined causes, consist of a
+mere cluster of mud cottages, thatched with the dried stalks of Indian
+corn; whilst the farmers, unable to procure material with which to
+build granaries, are obliged to bury their corn in holes in the ground,
+which are lined with straw for the purpose.</p>
+
+<p>As evening wears on, and the plains are swallowed up in shadow, fires
+blaze up here and there in the vast expanse, indicating in unexpected
+places the presence of gipsies or travellers bivouacking for the night.
+During harvest-time, in the month of August, they are to be seen in
+every direction. The nights being chilly, notwithstanding the heat of
+the day, the reapers, in the absence of wood,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_89">[89]</span> make their fires of
+wheat-sheaves—a thing thought nothing of in this region of cereal
+abundance—and sit round them in merry groups as they eat their evening
+meal.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst the corn is being cut and gathered in, the peasants do not
+return to their homes, the distance, in most cases, being too great.
+They consequently sleep out of doors for many weeks together, until the
+harvest season is over. In some parts of Hungary the reaping of the
+grain is accomplished by moonlight, and the scene is very picturesque.
+The ruddy glow of the fires lights up the bronzed faces of the reapers,
+as they fell the long straight stalks of the Indian corn heavy with
+their weight of golden grain, or plunge their sickles into the softer
+and more supple labyrinths of wheat and rye, and forms pictures that,
+once seen, it is impossible to forget.</p>
+
+<p>After the labourers have partaken of their simple meal, which generally
+consists of black bread and bacon, a period of rest ensues, when
+they crouch or lie at full length round their fires, listening to
+songs improvised by one of their party. He adapts rhymes of his own
+composition to some popular melody, accompanied by a companion on the
+<i>telinka</i>, a kind of Arcadian pipe; for the Hungarian peasant,
+like the shepherd, is in a small way not only a musician, but a poet.
+Occasionally they get up a dance; and should the <i>czigány</i>-folk be
+wanting, besides the <i>telinka</i> some one is sure to have brought
+his bagpipes with him, and to these strangely antagonistic instruments,
+the one so plaintive and pastoral, the other so wild and savage, they
+dance together in the moonlight. All are clad in sheepskin garments,
+the wool at that time of year being worn outside, and the whole scene
+reminds one of the days when Pan tended his flocks, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_90">[90]</span> fauns and
+satyrs danced to the music of his reed. In whatever phase, or under
+whatever circumstances one meets with the Hungarian peasant or labourer
+of the Alfőld, he is the same half-savage, noble, kindly creature,
+possessing an odd mixture of qualities wherein the good predominates.
+During harvest-time the Slovaks from Upper Hungary migrate to the
+plains, so that, although the area under cultivation is vast beyond
+anything we in England are accustomed to, yet the lack of labourers is
+seldom felt.</p>
+
+<p>As we sit on the <i>szóhordó</i> beneath the gable of our primitive
+hostel, we listen now to the rude cadence of a peasant’s song as he
+comes tramping home from work, and anon to the distant rhythmic beat of
+music proceeding from a cottage farther up the village. Let us follow
+up its strains; ten to one we shall find our friends the gipsies.</p>
+
+<p>Yes, there they are fiddling for dear life at the far end of the room.
+In their endeavours to leave as much space as possible to the dancers,
+just at this moment, in the very height and wild delirium of the
+<i>csárdás</i>, they have seated themselves on the high stove, in which
+exalted position, concealed, all but their Asiatic faces, by clouds of
+dust and tobacco smoke, they appear above the white wreaths like dark
+cherubim sawing away at violins.</p>
+
+<p>A wedding, christening, or some other domestic festival, is evidently
+being celebrated, for through the wide open doorway we can see into
+an inner apartment where a long table is spread, its numerous viands
+decorated with flowers. Half the village would seem to have congregated
+together, judging from the number of persons crowding the walls of the
+room where the dancing is taking place. What shouts, stamping of feet,
+and clashing of spurs is there<span class="pagenum" id="Page_91">[91]</span> as the men and their gentler partners
+whirl and twirl with the velocity of dervishes! How the long ribbons
+fly and the violet stockings quiver beneath the short red skirts, as
+the little feet of the Magyar maidens patter swiftly over the earthen
+floor!</p>
+
+<p>Outside, the frogs holding a deafening concert croak an indignant
+protest against these proceedings, and an insulted owl hoots from the
+tower of the church hard by. In the little cemetery the kindly moon
+keeps watch over the long green mounds upon which the crosses throw
+their shadows as if to keep them safe. Away, beyond the village, and
+out in the moonlit plains, the plaintive sound of a solitary sheep bell
+is heard, as some dissipated member of the woolly flock turning night
+into day nibbles the dewy grass.</p>
+
+<p>But the nights are always chilly in Hungary, no matter at what season,
+and as we make for our humble quarters we fold our wraps around us, for
+there is ague abroad on the air.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0910_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0910_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_92">[92]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER VIII.<br>
+<span class="subhed">DAWN IN THE ALFŐLD.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">Is there anything in all this sinful world so irritating,
+uncomfortable, and sleep-preventing as a Hungarian bed? Not only is it
+so short, that, unless the would-be sleeper happens to be far below the
+average height of ordinary humanity, he will find it impossible to lie
+at full length in it, but also, from the exasperating nature of the
+bed-clothes, the process familiarly known as “tucking up” is wholly
+impracticable.</p>
+
+<p>Regarded, however, from an external point of view, save in the matter
+of length, nothing could seem more luxurious. Even in these common
+roadside inns—“<i>Juden Kneipe</i>,” as András contemptuously calls
+them—the linen is of the finest, and the sheets and pillow-cases are
+embroidered at each end, but, alas! surely by the machinations of some
+mischievous sprite, the upper sheet is sewn to the counterpane; and as
+the latter is made the precise size of the bed, with nothing left to
+hang over the side, the whole thing subsides upon the floor, should the
+unfortunate occupant move ever so slightly during the night.</p>
+
+<p>Our <i>logement</i> at the various hotels in Hungary is generally
+described on the bill as <i>napi lakdij</i>, and there never was a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_93">[93]</span>
+more appropriate, signification so far as English travellers are
+concerned, to whom the rest afforded is at best but a series of naps by
+jerks, and, in consequence of the abominable custom above referred to,
+a lop-sided conflict with the bed-clothes all night long.</p>
+
+<p>In this “happy Arcadia,” however, even the mild term of <i>napi</i>
+was inappropriate, for we could get no sleep at all. By an unfortunate
+coincidence which befalls most things in this country of anomalies,
+the guest-rooms adjoined the stables, so that every time the horses
+kicked, they threatened to knock the wall in. Nor was this the only
+circumstance antagonistic to sleep, for the dragging of manger-chains
+throughout the livelong night and the hoarse shouts of the drivers
+making strenuous but ineffectual attempts to keep their animals
+quiet—they were evidently sharing the same apartment—were no less
+disagreeable. In the silent village a clock in the belfry tower tolled
+solemnly the hours which dragged wearily along, as they always do with
+those who are deprived of blessed sleep.</p>
+
+<p>Before dawn, looking out of my window which commanded the whole of the
+eastern horizon, I watched the fires of night burn low. A thick pall of
+cloud, black as Erebus, seemed hanging over the firmament, for neither
+moon nor star was shining, and nothing was visible but the flickering
+fires in the distance, and the tall straight beam of an <i>ágás</i>
+across the village green, just showing like a sable spectre against the
+sky. No tinkling of bells or lowing of cattle was heard as in the day.
+All was silent under the drowsy spell of Night.</p>
+
+<p>Then, as soon as night had culminated in the most complete darkness,
+an indescribable change came over nature, a change which at first
+seemed scarcely more than mere<span class="pagenum" id="Page_94">[94]</span> sensation, a palpable silence as of a
+world not dead—until this moment—but only asleep. Then eastward the
+darkness lost its opaqueness and became transparent. Behind night’s
+dusky curtain a streak of light shone faintly through the veil, and in
+the hush of dawn, that cold mysterious hour, the curtain with unseen
+hands was drawn asunder and light became a living thing. The eastern
+sky began to palpitate, and out of the void form gradually appeared.
+The traditionary cock crew, and from that moment as if by given signal
+all animate nature awoke from slumber, and made itself perceptible,
+first by soft and peaceful murmurings, then by louder bleatings of
+sheep and goats. Dogs barked, cows lowed,—sounds followed in due
+course by the milking of those latter mammalia, which little domestic
+operation we also heard distinctly from our room. See how silently and
+mysteriously the <i>ágás</i> yonder throws its giant arm about, as the
+shepherd—whose form is hidden in the distance—begins to draw water
+for his flocks! And now the sun himself begins to rise from out the
+bosom of the plains; first sending upwards his <i>avant-garde</i> of
+crimson cloudlets with gold-embroidered edges. There is a sudden flash
+of glory, and lo! the fiery monarch comes forth with slow and stately
+majesty. Gradually, the golden lustre spreads itself across the plains
+till, opening wide his arms, the god of day encloses all within his
+bright embrace.</p>
+
+<p>By this time the villagers are not only awake, but surrounding the
+nearer <i>ágás</i> across the green; old women and maidens filling
+their crocks and pitchers for the day. A shepherd too is there, who,
+having deserted his little flock of shaggy sheep, is lowering the
+bucket for a Magyar dowager. The Hungarian, whether prince or peasant,
+is chivalrous,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_95">[95]</span> and the old and weak first claim the shepherd’s
+attention. In the fervour of his occupation he has doffed his hairy
+mantle, in which but a moment ago he looked like a huge ungainly bear.
+Observe how gently he takes the pitcher from that uncomely old woman
+who has just come tottering up, and offers to fill it for her; looking
+archly over his shoulder the while at a couple of merry, laughing
+girls, as much as to intimate that <i>their</i> turn—a sweet morsel
+he is reserving for the end—will likewise come ere long. What a smile
+bursts over his rugged sun-burnt countenance, as the old dowager thanks
+him for his kindness, and, bidding him “good morning,” totters away!</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p0950_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p0950_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_96">[96]</span></p>
+
+<p>Now comes the <i>kisbiró</i>, or little judge of the village, walking
+leisurely along in the direction of the rising sun. What a splendid
+carriage he has, and a quiet dignity of manner quite patrician, every
+line of his face expressive of deep thought and firm determination!
+Look, also, at that man yonder in his long, full, embroidered cloak. He
+wears it with such a stately grace that it might be the imperial purple
+instead of the skins of beasts begrimed with the mud of years! Or that
+group of peasants coming down the road: what a noble bearing they too
+have, despite their full-fringed petticoat and full white sleeves, as
+with their primitive implements borne across the shoulders they go
+forth to their toil with a step as proud as if every inch of Alfőld
+soil were theirs by right of ownership!</p>
+
+<p>The term <i>paraszt</i> (peasant), by which is meant agriculturist, is
+not necessarily applied to a possessor, or even to an occupier of the
+land, but refers in its primary sense to one who cultivates it, whether
+he be owner or tenant.</p>
+
+<p>Before the reforms of 1848, the peasantry only were taxed, the “nobles”
+being free from taxation of every kind. There are three distinct
+classes of peasants: those who <i>rent</i> land in small or large
+allotments, those who <i>own</i> it, and those who <i>cultivate</i> it;
+each class possessing a distinct social status amongst his fellows, of
+which the true Magyar is very observant.</p>
+
+<p>Yet although they are more highly taxed now than before 1848, the
+position of the Magyar peasant is far better than previous to that
+time, when the feudal system prevailed; during which, if not serfs
+in the strictest sense of the word,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_97">[97]</span> they were at any rate compelled
+by law to work on certain days of the week for the lord whose land
+they rented, as well as to pay him prescribed dues both in money and
+kind. The emancipation of the land from the forced labour of the
+peasantry was effected during this revolutionary period, together with
+the abolition of the exclusive right of the “nobles” to possess real
+estate. Before this, one nobleman could not sell any portion of his
+estate except to another nobleman, on account of all “noble-land” being
+free from seigneurial impost. It was this in fact which constituted the
+distinction between the nobleman and the peasant: the one possessed
+land and paid no taxes to government; the other occupied it, or
+laboured on it, and was subject to taxation. In like manner the money
+was wrung from the peasants for the various public works, whilst the
+“nobles” were exempt from any exaction whatever. An example of the
+unfairness of this law may be instanced in the bridge of boats at
+Pest which existed until 1849—when the magnificent suspension bridge
+that now crosses the Danube was completed—and which was open to the
+“nobles,” whilst the peasant and the beggar in his rags had to pay
+toll. All, “peasants” and “nobles” alike, are now equally taxed, and
+the former can even become landowners, a thing after which they strive.
+To possess a few <i>jochs</i> of land and some “<i>jószag</i>” (flocks
+and herds) to graze it, is the very height of the Magyar peasant’s
+ambition, the very aim and end of all he dreams of or hopes for in this
+life.</p>
+
+<p>Until 1848 the State, the Church, and the “nobles” were the only
+landowners in the kingdom. The peasants however were granted the
+hereditary use of certain tracts of land designated “session lands,”
+for which they had not<span class="pagenum" id="Page_98">[98]</span> only to pay tithes to the owner in the shape of
+the tenth part of their produce, but were also compelled to work for
+him a certain number of days in the week or year; which forced labour,
+called “<i>Rabot</i>,” practically reduced the condition of the peasant
+to one of serfdom. The estates of the “noble” consisted of land farmed
+by himself, the feudal lord, and also that which was held by the feudal
+tenants. Perhaps the very worst part of this system existed in the fact
+of the feudal lord holding the position of judge or chief magistrate
+over his tenantry; even the bailiff (<i>Ispán</i>) having the right of
+administering on the peasant the punishment of twenty-five lashes if he
+saw fit to do so,—a right which, no doubt, was often abused.</p>
+
+<p>Happily the feudal system in Hungary is a thing of the past. Already
+annulled in principle by the Hungarian Diet of 1848, it was practically
+put an end to in 1868 by a special law sanctioned by Ferdinand V.</p>
+
+<p>The labourers on the large estates are much better paid than ours are
+in England, each man receiving about £27 per annum, besides board and
+lodging in the farm. On smaller estates, however, they are often paid
+in kind, more especially in produce such as <i>kukoricza</i> (Indian
+corn). When this is the case, arrangements are frequently made between
+the landlord and tenant whereby the latter undertakes to cultivate
+the land, furnish the seed and house the crop, in return for which he
+receives half the yield.</p>
+
+<p>Journeying on through a boggy country, our carriage begins to lurch
+from side to side like a ship in an Atlantic storm. Some of these bogs
+abound with leeches,—a fact of which we were made painfully aware
+when bivouacking in the vicinity of one of those bogs on a previous
+visit. The Servians and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_99">[99]</span> Bulgarians carry on a considerable trade in
+these little creatures, which they collect principally here and in the
+districts of Bessarabia, whence they convey them to the chief markets
+of the West of Europe. At certain times of the year these merchants
+arrive from their southern provinces for the purpose; and, having
+collected the leeches, they preserve them in small tanks until they
+have a sufficient number to transmit to their several destinations.</p>
+
+<p>Passing a shepherd’s hut, we are greeted by a wolfish-looking dog,
+which follows us with threatening aspect, but is brought to reason by a
+stick thrown after him by the shepherd. These dogs are sometimes very
+dangerous, and are known to attack the unoffending stranger. The sheep
+here, in consequence of a disease engendered by the marshy nature of
+the soil on which they graze, are nearly all lame. It is curious to
+observe how instinct teaches them to shield themselves from the fierce
+rays of the sun. About two o’clock, having ceased to browse, and the
+sun no longer vertical, they form a close circle, and, lying down one
+behind the other, each places its head in the shadow cast by the body
+of its nearest neighbour.</p>
+
+<p>Away in the distance, faithful to her character, Déli-báb, “fair
+daughter of the Puszta,” presents her delusive objects to our view, and
+invites us towards her by the cool and refreshing scenes of placid lake
+and ocean shore which she spreads so temptingly before us. But we give
+no heed to her seductive charms, for the most poetical of travellers
+becomes prosaic when he is hungry, and the approach to a small village
+suggests a halt.</p>
+
+<p>Our guide, whom we soon found to be great in the commissariat line,
+had replenished our larder at our last restingplace<span class="pagenum" id="Page_100">[100]</span> with a couple of
+roasted fowls, some Hungarian sausage, and a variety of other little
+et-cæteras, together with a bottle of excellent red wine, with the
+distinctive merits of which he was thoroughly conversant. We ourselves
+therefore were well provided for, but our tired horses wanted both rest
+and provender.</p>
+
+<p>The village, however, at which we have just arrived, proves almost as
+illusory as the fair daughter of the Puszta herself, for on András
+going off to reconnoitre he ascertained there was neither inn nor
+<i>álás</i>. Besides which, the whole place seemed deserted. There
+were the whitewashed cottages on each side of the dusty highway; there
+were the empty “word-bearers” beneath each gable; there were the pigs
+lying down in the dust which they had hollowed out to fit their long
+lean forms; the poultry was swarming about the courtyards, and running
+in and out of their funny little straw coops, the precise model of a
+shepherd’s hut; but where were the inhabitants? Not a vestige of human
+life was visible.</p>
+
+<p>Presently, just as we were about to drive away, hoping to be more
+fortunate at the next village, a door opened and a woman holding a
+distaff appeared, with whom, after some little parley, András returned
+with the gratifying intelligence that there was a shed behind the
+woman’s cottage at which the horses could be put up, adding in his
+usual pompous and grandiloquent style, that if the <i>Tekintetes
+két</i> (worshipful pair) would condescend to alight from their
+chariot, and, plunging their feet into the unworthy dust, honour with
+their presence the humble abode of the widow of a <i>bérlö</i>, etc.
+etc.; which rodomontade we understood to signify, in plain English,
+that, if we would get out of our<span class="pagenum" id="Page_101">[101]</span> vehicle, and, scrambling over the
+pigs, enter the dwelling of a defunct farmer, we should be able to rest
+there whilst the horses were being baited.</p>
+
+<p>Yielding to his suggestion, we do plunge ankle-deep into the dusty
+road, and, scrambling over the pigs in question, enter the cottage; the
+woman, who meets us at the doorway, stooping to kiss our hands.</p>
+
+<p>A Hungarian household of this description is prosaically and
+unpictorially clean: no delicious mingling of rich brown tints, no
+mud and muddle dear to the eye of an artist, greets the traveller as
+he enters. Everything is provokingly and unsentimentally neat. In the
+apartment into which the door opens, the first thing that will arrest
+his attention is the high stove in the centre; the next, a small
+bedstead, generally standing in a corner, supporting feather-beds,
+which are enclosed in the cleanest and prettiest linen casings, and so
+numerous that, piled one above the other, they reach the ceiling. So
+far as I could ascertain, these beds, of which the housewife is very
+proud, are simply kept as ornaments, and seldom or never used; their
+number being supposed to indicate the prosperity of the household. The
+windows, whose sills are painted bright green, contain flower-pots,
+half hidden by neat muslin curtains, whilst on the walls hang
+bright-coloured prints, depicting events in Hungarian history, and,
+if the dwellers are Roman Catholics, a picture of the Blessed Virgin
+and a crucifix. In addition to all of which, in this instance, hung
+a portrait in full Magyar costume—evidently executed by some local
+genius—of the defunct <i>bérlö</i> himself.</p>
+
+<p>As we sit by the open doorway, the plains beyond the village seem to
+dance in the fervid heat. In the parched,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_102">[102]</span> sun-baked garden the tall
+reeds of the pampas-grass bow their plumed heads, and wave and rustle
+in the sultry air; butterflies and insects hover about the homely
+flowers; zephyrs wafting in upon us fan our cheeks, and then his away
+again to the corn-fields to fulfil the task allotted them by nature,
+and fertilise with soft pollen the young and tender blades.</p>
+
+<p>By the time our horses are harnessed and we are jogging along the road
+again, shadows are lengthening. By windmills turning their endless
+somersaults; by salt marshes in which the corn-crake clacks a greeting
+as we pass; by sandhills, which the wind creates but to destroy, till
+suddenly a dark object appears above our heads. How majestically it
+cleaves the azure deeps, as with motionless outstretched wing it sails
+in the cloudless sky! It is an eagle which has caught sight of some
+prey; for see! it begins its downward flight by describing circles,
+which, wide at first, grow less and less, till from its dizzy height it
+falls to earth to settle on its trembling victim.</p>
+
+<p>Only a few minutes ago from out the clover fields quails were rising
+here and there in peaceful coveys, and hawks scouring the translucent
+air, whilst in the marshes wild ducks and geese were paddling in and
+out amongst the green reeds and sedges, and dipping their snowy heads
+in search of tadpoles and smaller game. Where have they all gone? Not
+a bird is seen in air or water, not a sound is heard; the plovers have
+ceased to chatter, the hawks to scream; all are hushed in terror, every
+living thing has sought to hide itself from that piercing eye.</p>
+
+<p>This monarch of the air—the imperial eagle—is very common in the
+plains, but is migratory, and roosts in forest<span class="pagenum" id="Page_103">[103]</span> trees, its favourite
+food being marmots, young foxes, and deer. Many of the forest birds in
+the plains of Hungary are very beautiful, and almost Oriental in the
+splendour of their plumage, the brilliant colouring of some surpassing
+any met with elsewhere in Europe. These, however, are songless, but in
+some districts the woods are full of nightingales that trill a carol
+all the livelong day and night.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1030_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1030_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_104">[104]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER IX.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE RACE.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">It is a sultry evening, and there is a stillness in the air that
+forebodes a storm. The leaves of the robinias hang down languidly
+against their stems, and clouds which have rapidly risen from the west
+obscure the sun. All Nature holds her breath expectant. Presently large
+drops begin to fall, creating dusty globules on the thirsty earth.</p>
+
+<p>“Patter, patter!” down it comes at last in real earnest and puts
+Jözsef’s pipe out, and high time too, for that <i>Träger Kerl</i> has
+been smoking every mortal moment of the day. The rain pours down the
+windows of our <i>britzska</i> in winding streams, and fills the broad
+brim of Jözsef’s brigand-like hat, out of which the tall crown rises
+like a wet island, till, overflowing its borders, it trickles in a cold
+shower down his neck.</p>
+
+<p>In a short time a large town comes in sight, and a very important one,
+judging from the number and variety of the steeples and towers which
+rise above the low one-storied houses; and Jözsef, removing the pipe
+from his mouth which he is still pretending to smoke, and pointing with
+it in the direction of the town in question, slowly utters the words,
+Székes Féjévar, as though he had been introducing to our notice some
+great metropolis.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_105">[105]</span></p>
+
+<p>As we draw near to this our second restingplace since leaving Fűred,
+there is nothing in its outward appearance, although so imposing from a
+distance, to impress us in its favour; it would seem on the contrary to
+be situated in the centre of an immense bog, and presents a very spongy
+exterior as, at length approaching the town itself, we rattle over the
+stones and dash through its outskirts. We always enter the towns and
+villages at a gallop, the little strength which the wretched horses
+possess being economised on the road for these displays of Jehuship,
+dear to the heart of a Magyar driver.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1050_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1050_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>In rounding a corner, we manage to wrench from a shop doorway a
+signboard, which according to Hungarian custom was placed there to
+advertise the merchandise within, and at another corner nearly run over
+a group of small children in top-boots and <i>gatyas</i>, occupied in
+the manufacture of mud pies, till finally coming to a sudden stop, that
+nearly brings the wheelers on their haunches, we are almost jerked out
+of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_106">[106]</span> the carriage, and into the very arms of the landlord of the hotel.</p>
+
+<p>I have long ago discarded my fur hat for a broad-brimmed one of white
+straw, but, notwithstanding this, strange to say, we are here, as at
+Gross Kanizsa on our former visit, mistaken for Russians—Julinka, the
+chambermaid, as she arranges our room, addressing us every now and
+again as <i>Muska</i> (Muskovite); and upon our informing her that we
+are <i>Ángolok</i>, she elevates her eyebrows in astonishment.</p>
+
+<p>At this juncture an old woman enters the room, who had evidently
+overheard the colloquy.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Ángolok! Ángolok!</i>” (English people! English people!) “<i>Jó
+Isten!</i>” she exclaimed, apostrophising the Magyar deity, as though
+we had told her we were visitants from some other planet, adding,
+after a pause, that she thought she had heard the priest read of the
+<i>Ángolok</i> one Sunday in the Gospel. From which observation we
+augured that neither missionary nor “schoolmaster” was “abroad” at any
+rate in Székes Féjévar.</p>
+
+<p>The town which rejoices in the imposing appellation of Székes
+Féjévar—what a language is the Magyar for accents!—is the capital of
+the <i>comitat</i>, or county, of the same name. It contains 23,000
+inhabitants, was founded in the eleventh century by King Stephen I.,
+and is interesting to the archæologist from having been built on the
+site of an old Roman city, said to have been the “Roman Floriana,”
+whatever <i>that</i> may be.</p>
+
+<p>In consequence of having been so frequently destroyed by the ruthless
+Turks, to which it surrendered in 1543, under Solyman the Magnificent,
+the town contains no relics of the ancient city, but is not devoid
+of other objects of interest;<span class="pagenum" id="Page_107">[107]</span> namely, the cathedral and St. Mary’s
+Church, both of which were built by that indefatigable monarch St.
+Stephen, whose original name was Waik—the first Christian king of the
+illustrious line of Arpáds.</p>
+
+<p>For many centuries Székes Féjévar was the place at which Hungary’s
+sovereigns were crowned, and no fewer than fourteen are here entombed,
+amongst whom are several of her mediæval kings, viz. St. Stephen, St.
+Ladislaus, and Matthias Corvinus. Its name signifies “White fortress of
+the throne,” and it is consequently often alluded to as “Alba Regalis.”
+Up to the end of the seventeenth century it remained in the hands of
+the Osmanlis; and on their expulsion in 1777, the Empress Maria Theresa
+constituted it an episcopal see.</p>
+
+<p>The day following that of our arrival was Sunday. Taking a survey
+through the window, early in the morning, we found small improvement
+in the state of affairs so far as the weather was concerned. The
+streets were wet and miserable, and there was a general sponginess
+about everything that made Székes Féjévar look like a huge fungus.
+From earliest morn however the church-bells had been twanging, and the
+sturdy Magyars, notwithstanding the rain, had been tramping to and from
+the various places of worship.</p>
+
+<p>There exists in Hungary not only a diversity of nationalities and a
+confusion of tongues, but an equal variety in matters religious. Thus
+there are Roman Catholics, Greek Catholics, Lutherans, Calvinists,
+Unitarians, Sabbatarians, Moravians, Jews, Nazarenes, Adamites,
+Johannites, and doubtless Hittites, Hivites, and Jebusites as well.</p>
+
+<p>The Magyars for the most part belong to one form or<span class="pagenum" id="Page_108">[108]</span> other of
+the Protestant faith, the greater number being Calvinists. Many
+however belong to the Lutheran Church—“Evangelists of the Augsburg
+Confession,” as they are sometimes called; whilst others, again, are
+Roman Catholics.</p>
+
+<p>The Hungarians who follow the Greek rite are principally found amongst
+the Wallachs occupying the whole of Transylvania, the Rusniaks dwelling
+on the eastern slopes of the Northern Carpathians, and the Slavonians
+and Croat-Serbs inhabiting the provinces which skirt the banks of
+the Save, the votaries of the numerous sects I have enumerated being
+generally found in the former, viz. Transylvania.</p>
+
+<p>The natural result of this variety of religious opinion is complete
+toleration amongst all classes in matters of faith, and it is curious,
+when passing through the towns and villages of the Alfőld, to observe
+how closely the Roman Catholic and Protestant churches are built
+together. In such friendly fellowship, in fact, do they stand to each
+other as to situation, that the faithful adherents of the one not only
+jostle those of the other on their way to their respective places of
+worship, but the lusty singing of the Protestant not unfrequently
+drowns the monotone of the priest in the adjoining temple, creating a
+rather unseemly jumble.</p>
+
+<p>In Hungary the whole Christian body, embracing every sect and party, is
+denominated under one head, namely, “The Church of God;” that branch
+of the Church Catholic called “Roman” in other countries, whilst
+acknowledging the Pope as supreme, has here never added “<i>Roman</i>”
+to its title, which is even forbidden by law. In vain do Popes
+attempt to impose ecclesiastical bulls upon these Hungarian clergy:
+they persist in promulgating their own laws, organising<span class="pagenum" id="Page_109">[109]</span> their own
+dioceses, and, whilst possessing a strong attachment to the tenets of
+their Church, have, so far as discipline is concerned, been from time
+immemorial very unruly sons of the Vatican.</p>
+
+<p>By ten o’clock, the weather having made up its mind to improve, we
+started for church. As good Protestants, we of course went to the
+one most nearly allied to our own in doctrine and practice. The
+Protestant religion as represented in Magyarland is, however, of a
+very unattractive character. Its buildings, painfully destitute of
+all ornamentation, are bare and wretched. The one we visited had
+whitewashed walls; the women sat on one side of the church, the men on
+the other; whilst the discordant singing we heard on that occasion, in
+the shape of hymns to the All-Supreme, was enough to turn one’s hair
+grey.</p>
+
+<p>On our homeward road, we happen to pass a Roman Catholic chapel.
+Leaving the “garish day,” we grope our way through the dark vestibule,
+into the dimly-lighted oratory, filled with the fresh fumes of incense.
+What a contrast everything presented to the “Reformed Church” which we
+had left, so bald in its surroundings! What earnestness was there in
+the devotion of the people! some of whom were kneeling, with clasped
+hands, others with hands outstretched in earnest supplication before
+the dark little shrines. How different! how pathetic! and, above all,
+how sad!</p>
+
+<p>Kneeling on the lowest step of a shrine at the side of the chapel,
+was a man gazing intently at a grotesque representation of some
+female saint, enclosed in a frame begrimed with the dust of ages. All
+around it hung smaller pictures, even more grotesque, representing
+deliverances wrought through her means.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_110">[110]</span></p>
+
+<p>“Do we not know that man?” inquired F., our eyes not yet accustomed to
+the “dim religious light.”</p>
+
+<p>It was Jözsef, his great ugly face looking almost beautiful, lit up as
+it was by an expression of veneration and love. It was no longer the
+Jözsef sitting on the box, doggedly smoking <i>his</i> long pipe, it
+was Jözsef actually with a soul, a spark of the divine love shining
+through even <i>his</i> usually stolid countenance.</p>
+
+<p>We watched him long, wondering what was the secret that
+brought him hither to kneel beneath the shrine of this—to
+<i>us</i>—unprepossessing saint. What miracle had she wrought for him,
+or his? or what was he seeking from her, in his honest, simple heart?</p>
+
+<p>He was still kneeling in the same position, evidently unconscious of
+all around him, when, leaving the hot, stuffy little chapel, we once
+more stepped into the street. It was now full of people returning
+to their homes, women in white head-gear, and short petticoats—oh,
+<i>how</i> short!</p>
+
+<p>Notwithstanding the limited dimensions of their garments, however, the
+devout Magyars are always seen in muddy weather to gather them up over
+their top-boots in the exemplary manner before depicted, the children
+imitating their elders here as elsewhere. The men invariably head the
+family procession, Hungarian <i>patres familiæ</i> of a certain class
+inheriting, amongst other precious legacies bequeathed them by their
+Eastern subjugators, that of regarding the female sex as inferior to
+themselves.</p>
+
+<p>Close to the hotel we met András, who, in reply to our inquiries as
+to which form of religion he belonged, replied that he professed the
+<i>Magyar Vallás</i>, thereby signifying that he was a Calvinist.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_111">[111]</span></p>
+
+<p>From his own subsequent description of it, however, his religion was
+not of a very intelligible kind; but then, as we have previously seen,
+András was occasionally deficient in the “art of putting things,”—in
+other words, he sometimes found it difficult to express himself;
+<i>his</i> idea of religion, he informed us, being that the Almighty
+was not so hard as He was said to be, and that the devil (<i>őrdőg</i>)
+was blamed for a great deal he did not deserve, and that if a man
+harmed no one, and was kind and gentle to women and children and such
+weak things, he would not find himself far out at the last. And our
+thoughts involuntarily turned towards András’s wife and her magnificent
+proportions, and we wondered whether he regarded <i>her</i> as a “weak
+vessel.” In fact, this theology in <i>gatyas</i>, whether Protestant or
+Roman Catholic, is of a very free-and-easy kind. It has nothing austere
+about it. Its teachers exact little self-denial or sacrifice; impose
+few penances, and indulgences are granted even without the asking.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1110_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1110_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Later in the day, the streets having dried up, the Magyars turn out in
+great force, <i>Magyar-Miska</i> and his “inferior half,” the latter
+in all the splendour of her Sunday attire, the two now walking side by
+side—<span class="pagenum" id="Page_112">[112]</span> an amiable concession made by her lord, by way, doubtless, of
+holiday indulgence.</p>
+
+<p>The beautiful Magyar girls too, the “<i>kisleány</i>” or “bright-eyed
+little Alfőld maidens,” trip along in their top-boots, the sides of
+which are not only embroidered, but ornamented with leather of various
+colours; their hair drawn behind the ears, hanging down the back in
+one long plait, and lengthened by numerous streamers of many-coloured
+ribbons. The beauty of the Hungarian women has not been exaggerated.
+Their features, as a rule, are not regular, but the type is refined,
+and there is a blending of the European with the Oriental, the traces
+of which are manifest even at the present day. They possess, moreover,
+in every movement, a grace and nobility of bearing, that make every
+woman one meets appear a lady.</p>
+
+<p>The rough, hard visages of the men, too, tanned by the scorching heat
+of summer, and furrowed with a thousand lines by exposure to the
+frost and bitter winds of winter, grow upon one marvellously, and
+the stranger soon learns to love these weather-beaten faces, and to
+recognise under a rugged exterior, and a manner sometimes brusque, real
+goodness and kindness of heart.</p>
+
+<p>The term “Magyar-Miska” is applied to a man of the precise type of
+our English “Hodge.” But let no one look down upon the homely garb
+of a peasant in this country, for though he wear a sheepskin cloak,
+huge white linen trousers (<i>gatya</i>), and a shirt that scarcely
+reaches to the waist—which part of the body is generally exposed to
+the elements—its wearer may be the owner of thousands of acres of
+Alfőld soil. The dress of Bagi Jözsef—a man not so named on account
+of his <i>baggy</i> nether habiliments, but Jözsef Bagi, as<span class="pagenum" id="Page_113">[113]</span> we should
+call him, the surname in Hungary being invariably placed before the
+Christian—is none other, although his income is not less than half
+a million florins a year. These <i>gatya</i> are so full that they
+often consist of ten and sometimes fifteen yards of linen; and it is
+in this costume, together with the short jacket-like shirt with its
+voluminous sleeves, that Bagi Jözsef, the “Nabob of the Alfőld,” as
+he is appropriately called, wanders over his vast domain. Both sexes,
+winter and summer, wear by way of outer clothing a short sheepskin
+jacket, called a <i>kődmőny</i>, embroidered on the smooth side with
+bright-coloured silk or wool. But whatever be the outer garment, so
+far as the men are concerned, the sleeves are a purely ornamental
+arrangement, for the arms are seldom put through them, and the jacket
+is worn loosely over the shoulder.</p>
+
+<p>The costumes vary slightly in every town and village, each having its
+distinguishing mark whereby the wearer is at once recognisable as
+belonging to a particular place. These peculiarities, however, are too
+slight to arrest the notice of the traveller, and often consist in
+such insignificant signs as the position or number of the buttons on
+the <i>kődmőny</i>, some persons having one row, others two, others
+again wearing them in a pattern, instead of in a straight line down
+the front. But however slight the difference may be, the Magyar rustic
+never deviates from it, and is as proud of the distinction as a soldier
+of his badges, whilst a girl who is married to a man from another town
+or village continues to wear her own distinguishing dress as long as
+she lives.</p>
+
+<p>Notwithstanding our first impressions of the hotel, which were by
+no means favourable, and in spite of its plain exterior and homely
+internal arrangements, we found it<span class="pagenum" id="Page_114">[114]</span> exceedingly comfortable, and were
+entertained in it right royally.</p>
+
+<p>In Hungarian hotels, meals are never served in the visitor’s own room,
+and he is expected to descend for the purpose to the restaurant.
+Following the custom of the country, therefore, at the Gothic hour of
+two—the Magyar’s usual dinner hour—we made our appearance in the
+<i>speise-saal</i>, and were ushered to a table luxuriously arranged
+for us at the top of the room. In the centre of the table stood a
+large silver <i>épergne</i>, tastefully filled with forget-me-nots
+and white water-lilies; whilst two <i>talnok</i> (waiters) waited on
+us obsequiously in white cotton gloves. They also—and this to our no
+small annoyance—addressed us as <i>úr</i> and <i>úrnö</i> (lord and
+lady), as, indeed, did the landlord himself. We did not waken up to the
+full significance of all these proceedings and their practical bearing
+on our resources until we paid for our first dinner—a thing always
+done at once in this country, where the food is not charged for with
+the other items on the bill—when the truth all at once dawned upon us.
+András, in his usual ostentatious manner, had doubtless been impressing
+the good people of the house with false notions of our grandeur.</p>
+
+<p>Summoning him at once to our room, we talked to him very seriously
+on the subject. He was a truthful little man, and at once
+confessed the fact, adding in his chagrin that in these democratic
+“<i>tingle-tangle</i>”—a word used in the North of Germany to denote
+a low restaurant where music is performed, and which he persisted in
+calling this clean and well-appointed little hotel—they were incapable
+of recognising any distinction below the rank of “noble;” ending by
+saying, with tears in his eyes, that he wished his <i>édes<span class="pagenum" id="Page_115">[115]</span> uram</i>
+and <i>édes asszony</i> (sweet master and sweet mistress)—a very
+frequent mode of address made use of in Hungary, not only by servants
+to their masters and mistresses, but <i>vice versâ</i>—to be shown all
+the respect, whilst passing through his country, that was their due.</p>
+
+<p>The inns in Hungary are nearly always kept by Jews, but costly as
+was our dinner, viz. 30<i>s.</i> calculated by our English currency,
+the charge was by no means exorbitant, considering the excellence
+of the repast. We tried to make our guide understand, however, that
+unless he turned over a new leaf we must send him back to his master;
+that every English gentleman was not an <i>úr</i>, neither was every
+English lady an <i>úrnö</i>. We were, in fact, spending money with a
+prodigality which, if unchecked, would very soon bring us to the doors
+of a Hungarian workhouse, and his conduct forcibly reminded us of the
+friendly bear, who in attempting to brush away a fly from his sleeping
+master’s forehead is said to have knocked the top of his head off.
+After this serious admonition, András, I am happy to say, gave us no
+more annoyance of the like nature, but it was easy to see that it cost
+the proud little man many a struggle, if not many a tear.</p>
+
+<p>We were, however, less fortunate in the case of the landlord and the
+waiters, who, upon our assuring them we had no handle to our names,
+only bowed more obsequiously than before. Our attempts at lessening our
+own importance, instead of having the desired effect, only made matters
+worse, and I shall always believe to my dying day that they regarded us
+as a prince and princess travelling in disguise.</p>
+
+<p>In the evening, the sun setting crimson illuminated the domes and
+spires of this ecclesiastical little city; and as it wore<span class="pagenum" id="Page_116">[116]</span> by
+this time a less washed-out and bedraggled appearance, we walked
+round the square, where the demure but coquettish little Magyar
+maidens are walking in all their Sunday best, accompanied by their
+chaperons—grave-looking women, with heads muffled up in white
+kerchiefs—the honourable badge of the married state. The young
+<i>betyárs</i> too pace backwards and forwards in all the glory of
+their brand-new <i>csizmák</i>, or stand and make love to their “fair
+ones” beneath the statue of the poet Varósmarty—the Schiller of
+Hungary—quoting from his songs a description of the joys of home.</p>
+
+<p>The term “betyár,” which will often be met with in these pages,
+possesses a twofold meaning, and, whilst frequently applied to a
+brigand, is also a sobriquet used to denote a rustic who dresses
+himself gaily and endeavours to render himself attractive to the fair
+sex; in short, a <i>dandy</i>. He may generally be seen with his hat
+set jauntily on one side, in which is stuck a bunch of fresh flowers
+or plume of the beautiful flowering grass, which at a slight distance
+looks just like the tail of a bird of paradise. Just such a man is
+András, and, as we watch him in the square in front of us, it is easy
+to see that he is making a great impression on the Székes Féjévar
+belles.</p>
+
+<p>It has evidently been noised abroad that English persons have arrived,
+and our dress betrays that we are they. As the promenaders make room on
+the uneven pavement to let us pass they regard us furtively, with much
+apparent interest, and from more than one we hear the whispered words,
+“<i>Bival Jankó</i>,” that being the Hungarian’s euphonious appellation
+for that noblest of all animals, “John Bull.”</p>
+
+<p>By some management of his own, András had engaged the horses that
+brought us hither for the whole journey to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_117">[117]</span> Pest; but they were such
+sorry beasts that we insisted on his sending them back and procuring
+others here.</p>
+
+<p>Unhappily <i>vorspann</i>—a word derived from <i>Fő-ispán</i>, a
+commandant of a county <i>banderium</i>—has been abolished since the
+opening of the Alfőld railway. This method of travelling, universal in
+Hungary up to that period, consisted of an order from a magistrate to
+the Judges of the peasants, who were peasants themselves, and called
+in the Hungarian law-books <i>Judices plebeii</i>, to supply the
+holder with horses to transport him to the next station, the distance
+between each being about fifteen or twenty miles. In this manner even
+the journey from Vienna to Pest used to be accomplished, though it
+was one that occupied no less than a week. To obtain such an order
+was considered a great favour, it being vouchsafed as a rule to the
+military only, or to some one travelling on the public service. The
+conveyance consisted, as now, of a long country cart half filled with
+hay. On arrival at the various stages along the road, the traveller had
+simply to send his <i>vorspann</i> to the Judge’s house, who saw that
+the peasant whose turn it was to furnish a relay of horses fulfilled
+his duty.</p>
+
+<p>Although this obligatory state of things has passed away, we found
+little difficulty in obtaining horses, which are by no means an
+expensive luxury in Hungary, where they are often caught fresh from
+the <i>puszta</i> and harnessed to the traveller’s conveyance. On this
+occasion, however, the horses which András engaged to take us on to
+Pest came direct from the inn stables.</p>
+
+<p>It was a right jolly little team that we found waiting at the door of
+the hotel the morning of our departure, and this time we anticipated
+our journey with something<span class="pagenum" id="Page_118">[118]</span> like pleasure and satisfaction. Our
+departure was considerably delayed, however, by an altercation that had
+taken place between our new driver and another, engaged at the time in
+harnessing his team to an empty <i>leiterwagen</i>. We had witnessed
+the quarrel from the window of our room without understanding them, and
+had heard the angry words which passed between the two drivers, and
+which András interpreted to us as he strapped our rugs and portmanteaus
+preparatory to the start.</p>
+
+<p>The driver of the <i>leiterwagen</i> team had intimated to our Jehu
+that his horses were screws, and that with such a heavy carriage he
+would not reach Pest by nightfall. This was a challenge. As we took our
+seats we observed a dark cloud settle on the face of our charioteer,
+who, justly proud of his horses, will not take the statement as a joke.
+The two drivers shower complimentary expletives at each other, and then
+our coachman cracks his whip and drives through the archway at full
+gallop, and whizz past the shops, and over the rough paving stones
+until we reach the open country and pass through boundless fields of
+wheat and rye.</p>
+
+<p>Before many minutes are over we hear the clatter of hoofs behind us.
+The insulted Sándor—our new coachman—stands up and looks back over
+the hood of the carriage. He utters not a word, but as he resumes
+his seat, he pulls himself together significantly, “sits tight,” and
+gives a shake to the reins. He is a Magyar, and we know full well how
+passionate and determined they are when once aroused, and instinctively
+we realise what is about to happen. The <i>leiterwagen</i> gains upon
+us sensibly, but Sándor gives his sturdy little nags their heads and
+a sharp touch of the whip at the same time,—a double reminder, the
+meaning of which they fully comprehend,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_119">[119]</span> for we go flying over the
+ground at a pace that would astonish a sober English driver and make
+his hair stand on end, now plunging into a hole a foot deep in sand,
+now ploughing our way through boggy soil, but tearing along through it
+all at a maddening and ever-increasing gallop. Sándor “sits tighter”
+still, but turns his head round sharply now and then and utters cutting
+epithets between his clenched teeth at his antagonist, now close upon
+our heels, or sharp savage cries to the horses.</p>
+
+<p>The <i>leiterwagen</i> overtakes us quite, and we race side by side
+for a few seconds. Its pilot is skilful and its weight light. We come
+to a quagmire, and here the <i>leiterwagen</i> has the advantage
+over us; great are its contortions, but, possessed of a snake-like
+vertebræ, it has the capacity of writhing, twisting and doubling itself
+up without being the worse for it, and overcoming by its plastic
+nature all difficulties. It is ahead of us now by fully fifty yards,
+its long supple body swaying from side to side. Our carriage, on the
+contrary, is heavy, and its draught is beginning to tell severely
+upon our willing steeds. The lines about Sándor’s mouth contract,
+and his aspect grows more fierce; he will die rather than surrender.
+Seconded by our guide, we shriek, implore, expostulate, but entreaties
+and remonstrances are alike unheeded and unheard; Sándor regards
+us no more than if we had been children. He stands up now, and his
+countenance is fierce like that of a wild Indian hastening on to
+battle, as he urges his horses onwards by gesture, expletive, and force
+of the lash. Crack, crack, hi! hi! jolt, bump; we once more overtake
+the <i>leiterwagen</i>, and the contest grows hotter and hotter each
+instant. There is a deep hole before us, and we hold our breath, for
+surely we <i>must</i> upset this time. But no;<span class="pagenum" id="Page_120">[120]</span> a severe jolting, and
+a violent struggle on the part of our team to extricate themselves,
+and on we go again, but—<i>alone</i>, for on looking back we find
+our opponent has come to ignominious smash; one of his leaders having
+fallen. Then reining in his plucky steeds, whose flanks are steaming,
+Sándor once more looks over the hood of the carriage, and, taking off
+his broad-brimmed hat, exclaims as he regards the signal overthrow of
+his antagonist:</p>
+
+<p>“So my horses were screws, were they, and we shan’t get to Pest by
+nightfall, shan’t we? <i>Teremtette! Ejnye!</i>” he continued, with a
+derisive laugh; “you won’t call a man’s horses screws again, I take it.”</p>
+
+<p>Whilst giving the horses rest, Sándor slowly draws from his boot his
+long pipe, and taking from his pocket his leather pouch, filled with
+home-grown tobacco-leaves coarsely cut, begins smoking the well-earned
+pipe of peace.</p>
+
+<p>As we proceed on our way again, we are more than ever impressed both
+with the wonderful fertility of these plains and the thinness of the
+population—in some districts that we pass through, vast tracts of
+uncultivated land many miles in extent, consisting of soil so rich that
+it only needs to be turned and sown with grain to yield rich increase;
+and as we gaze from horizon to horizon and see only one solitary
+farmhouse, we marvel that English colonists do not emigrate here
+instead of exiling themselves to the Antipodes.</p>
+
+<p>Our approach to the Hungarian capital is indicated by the Danube
+spreading itself out over its low sandy shore, against which numerous
+rafts and floating water-mills are moored. But first we reach
+Promentorium, with its curious subterranean dwellings hewn out of the
+limestone rock, and then pass through the outskirts of Buda. Splash,
+jolt, creak,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_121">[121]</span> crack, shake, bump, rattle, bang, screw—eugh! the hood
+of our unfortunate carriage is nearly wrenched off this time. Squeak
+go the wheels as they grind heavily through the mud, for it has been
+raining here also and the road is little better than a ploughed field.
+Past one-storied houses in which lights shine brightly, for the sun
+set long ago, and day has succumbed to night. Over a good road now,
+and dashing down a hill we enter a long tunnel which passes under the
+Schlossberg. Here other carriages meet us, thundering and rumbling on
+their way to the railway station, and we make our exit close to the
+suspension bridge, where the great lions couchant look grimly forth
+upon the night.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1210_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1210_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_122">[122]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER X.<br>
+<span class="subhed">PEST.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">How astonished would the traveller be, how utterly flabbergasted and
+dumbfounded, were he set down suddenly at Pest without having been
+previously informed of his whereabouts! How puzzled, as he threaded
+the clean and handsome streets, and looked at the names over the shop
+windows and doorways, to conjecture at what part of the globe he could
+possibly have arrived! One can fancy his rubbing his eyes and imagining
+himself half asleep, or else that the odd arrangement of the letters
+of his once-familiar alphabet, bristling all over with accents like
+porcupine quills, must surely be some post-prandial jumble that will
+come all right to-morrow morning, and that as to himself he must be
+suffering from some temporary lapse of memory as to the proceedings of
+his own immediate past.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1220_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1220_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>As he walks along he will see such names as the following: Mészáros
+Imre, Stőszer Ignatz, Miskolczy Testvérek, Vadász<span class="pagenum" id="Page_123">[123]</span> Ferener, Szép
+Ferenz, Lápossy Jankó, Vértessy Sándor, and a thousand others equally
+outlandish. If he wants to buy mineral waters, he will probably do
+so at the shops of Édeskuty Lajos, or grocery either at Messrs.
+Radocsay and Bángay’s or Szenes Ede’s; whilst if he happen to be a
+person of a literary turn of mind he will probably go to <i>Ráth Mór
+Könyvkiadóhivatala</i>, who will publish his book on the shortest
+possible notice, in spite of his long superscription.</p>
+
+<p>Occasionally however, like roses amongst thorns, he will come upon such
+modest and familiar names as Jones Thomas, Hill Robert, or Brown John,
+for the surname as we have seen always precedes the Christian name in
+this strange country.</p>
+
+<p>Nor will the stranger be less astonished, if he takes a stroll along
+one of the beautiful quays in the evening, at the extraordinary number
+of pretty women gracefully pacing the asphalt promenade, accompanied
+by their duennas. Where else can one see so many lovely faces or such
+ravishing toilettes?</p>
+
+<p>Hardly even in Paris can we hope to find such a quiet and delicious
+harmony of tints, or such perfect refinement of style, as in the dress
+of these Hungarian ladies; and nowhere indeed such lovely combinations
+and simple elegance. And as we gaze at them admiringly, we wonder
+who the goddesses can be who invent such charming costumes, and
+make them fit so beautifully the graceful and slender figures, and
+whether they are Manaszterly and Kuzniek, who announce themselves as
+<i>Hölgyruhakészítő</i> (ladies’ dressmakers).</p>
+
+<p>What a bright, clean, beautiful city, it is with its noble mansions,
+the very type of the Magyars themselves! Here there is no sham, no
+struggle to keep up appearances under false pretensions, no stucco
+that will crumble away and lay<span class="pagenum" id="Page_124">[124]</span> bare in a few years the miserable
+counterfeit behind; all is real and what it seems. Its palaces not only
+look like palaces, but are built of solid stone, to defy the ravages
+of Time the destroyer; whilst the magnificent position of the capital,
+situated as it is on the banks of the Danube, with the rock-built
+city of Buda facing it and the majestic Blocksberg rising above it,
+constitute, to my mind, the most beautiful place I have ever seen.</p>
+
+<p>Walk along the terrace of the embankment on an evening in early summer,
+when the robinias are in bloom! The odour of the flowers, the beauty of
+the women, the fresh breeze blowing from the river; the noble mountain
+buttress opposite, rising out of the water a sheer precipice of eight
+hundred feet; the setting sun illuminating the black-and-gold cupolas
+above the houses and suffusing the waves of the Danube with a crimson
+dye,—all form as perfect a whole as can well be imagined on the earth
+this side of Paradise!</p>
+
+<p>The evening must be fine, however, and the weather warm, for the
+butterflies do not spread their wings and come forth at other seasons;
+and, ah me! how cold it is at Pest sometimes! It freezes one’s blood
+even to think of it! But we will banish the remembrance of the nipping
+blasts that blow over the ice in winter and spring. It is June now, the
+best month of the whole year in which to visit Pest: the robinias are
+decked in their fairest green, the fountains plash, and the butterflies
+are abroad in all their glory.</p>
+
+<p>Pest, which threatens one day to rival Vienna in size as it already
+does in position, has greatly changed even within the last four years;
+and when one considers the peculiar difficulties against which its
+people have had to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_125">[125]</span> contend from first to last, the progress it has
+made is marvellous.</p>
+
+<p>Situated on a quicksand to begin with, the very ground on which
+the houses stand had to be thickly covered with cement before the
+foundations could be built, besides which the absence of stone in the
+Alfőld has naturally been a very serious drawback. Before the days of
+railways, and when the now obsolete <i>vorspann</i> was almost the only
+means of travelling through Hungary, it is said that when a postboy
+happened to see a stone or pebble on the road he would stop his horses
+to pick it up, and, placing it carefully in his pocket, carry it home
+as a curiosity, or something very precious, to be kept as an heirloom
+in the family and handed down to successive generations!</p>
+
+<p>In spite of all these disadvantages, Buda-Pest with its splendid
+river embankments is, as I have said, one of the most beautiful
+capitals in the world. The Magyars are a most patriotic people, and
+contribute nobly to all national institutions, responding liberally
+to every object that is undertaken for the benefit of their country.
+Occasionally, however, they embark in almost more than so young a
+nation—which thirty years ago had scarcely emerged from the barbarism
+of the Middle Ages—can afford; and their notions of splendour and
+eager desire to embellish their beloved metropolis are sometimes,
+it is to be feared, too mighty for the state of their finances. The
+National Museum, a very large and handsome building, was erected partly
+by private subscription. The Magyars likewise contributed voluntarily
+a million and a half of gulden for the endowment of the palace of the
+Academy of Sciences, a beautiful edifice completed in 1865, at a cost
+of 800,000 gulden; while the Redoute, a splendid<span class="pagenum" id="Page_126">[126]</span> building in the
+Moorish style near the river, which contains a spacious ballroom and
+restaurant, was erected at a cost of no less than 600,000 gulden.</p>
+
+<p>Although comparatively few English travellers come to Pest—“fewer and
+fewer each year, <i>mein Herr</i>,” the porter said, as he deposited
+our luggage in the room that had been allotted to us—we took care
+here, as we invariably do when “pilgriming” abroad, to avoid hotels
+recommended either by Murray or Bradshaw, preferring not only to mingle
+with the natives of the place rather than our own countrymen, but to
+fall in with the national customs as well. On our arrival therefore,
+we drove at once to the “<i>Jägerhorn</i>,” and, finding all its lower
+rooms occupied, took up our abode at the Hôtel —— in the Servieten
+Platz, one of the most completely Magyar hotels in Hungary. Although
+small, we are most delightfully situated at this hotel, and never can
+I forget its appalling cleanliness, the dusting and scrubbing that
+perpetually go on, or the exquisite texture and dazzling whiteness
+of the linen. I name these facts because the Hungarians are a
+much-maligned people, and are supposed to be behind the majority of
+other nations in the matter of cleanliness.</p>
+
+<p>That melancholy institution the table d’hôte does not exist in Hungary,
+and the traveller has the option of either taking his meals <i>à la
+carte</i> or ordering his meal beforehand. The Hungarian bill of
+fare includes wild boar, red deer, and, as the irrepressible Murray
+informs us, “frogs in the proper season!” Perhaps it may with propriety
+be questioned whether there does exist any “proper season” for the
+devouring of those little reptiles of the Batrachian tribe, or of
+snails either, another delicacy previously alluded to, to which<span class="pagenum" id="Page_127">[127]</span> Magyar
+epicures are much addicted; but, with the exception of these two items
+of the Hungarian school of gastronomy, we were quite willing to partake
+of anything which their cuisine afforded. But “<i>Si Romæ fueris Romæ
+mores sequeris</i>” being our motto when travelling abroad, we were not
+prepared to satisfy our hunger with anything so English as “ros-bif”
+or “bif-stek,” which the waiter—who had evidently discovered to what
+nation we belonged—informed us, on handing the day’s bill of fare, we
+could also have if we did not mind waiting for it.</p>
+
+<p>Now, as an Englishwoman, I object to the belief commonly entertained by
+all foreigners that in our island habitat we live and move and have our
+being solely by the agency of those two sources of nutriment. In France
+the notion does not surprise one; for is it not a creed amongst her
+people that it is by these means that “<i>Jong Boule</i>” has conquered
+one-half of the world and bullied the other? But here, not only in the
+heart of the Magyar capital, but in the seclusion of a Magyar hotel,
+where English persons so rarely come, to be thus reminded of our
+national weaknesses, and have them in a manner thrust down our throats,
+is more than provoking, and I am afraid we answer rather snappishly
+that we wish neither the one nor the other. At this doubtless we sank
+considerably in the waiter’s estimation, for how could we be true
+<i>Ángolok</i> and not require our <i>ros bif</i> or <i>bif-stek</i>!</p>
+
+<p>The sun is scorching in the city. But on the heights of the Blocksberg
+we shall enjoy a cooler air, to which end we must cross the suspension
+bridge, a triumph of engineering skill accomplished by an Englishman,
+Mr. Tierney Clarke; <i>Herr Clarkey</i>, as he is invariably called
+by the grateful<span class="pagenum" id="Page_128">[128]</span> Hungarians, who never fail to speak of him to the
+stranger when alluding to the bridge.</p>
+
+<p>Yonder flows old Danube, tearing along in desperate hurry, as though he
+had lost time somewhere in his wanderings farther north-west, and had
+to make it up, or he would be late in his arrival at the Black Sea.</p>
+
+<p>The magnificent structure spanning it, of which the Hungarians may well
+be proud, was erected at a cost of £460,000. The width of its central
+span is much greater than even that of the Menai chain-bridge, and its
+strength was tested in a very severe and singular manner, when, in
+1849, it was opened for the first time to admit of the Hungarian army
+crossing the Danube under the leadership of Kossuth when pursued by the
+Austrians. It is stated that during those first two days, no fewer than
+260 pieces of ordnance and 66,000 troops passed over the bridge; and
+the scene, as graphically described to us by an eye-witness, must have
+been one of the wildest tumult and confusion, the retreating army being
+closely followed by squadrons of Austrian cavalry and artillery.</p>
+
+<p>The last time we were here we happened to see the breaking up of the
+winter’s ice, and it was a wondrous sight to behold the great blocks,
+borne down by the swift current, heave and struggle and beat against
+each other, and then dash headlong against the massive stonework of the
+bridge, with a crash like that of a volley of musketry.</p>
+
+<p>The breaking up of the ice is always a time of especial anxiety to the
+immediate dwellers on the banks of the Danube, particularly to those
+of Buda and Pest, with the remembrance of the calamity of 1838 ever in
+their memory. Should a rapid thaw take place higher up the river, the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_129">[129]</span>
+pent-up waters, suddenly let loose, pour down <i>en masse</i>, and,
+bursting the ice, hurl huge blocks many tons in weight up into the air,
+not unfrequently throw them on to the shore, and wreck many a small
+craft moored to the river’s banks.</p>
+
+<p>So terrible indeed is the apprehension when a sudden thaw occurs that
+alarm-guns are fired to apprise the inhabitants of the threatened
+danger, while the ice itself is cannonaded in order to break it up and
+allow the imprisoned waters to escape.</p>
+
+<p>During the present century there have been no fewer than fourteen
+inundations, none however so disastrous in their effects as that of
+1838. Only three years ago one occurred which threw the citizens on
+both sides the river into a state of great consternation. The snow,
+which had melted unusually early in the mountains of the Tyrol, caused
+the Danube to rise to an alarming height, and the ice getting jammed
+a few miles below Pest, the blocks which the waters gathered in their
+progress hither heaped themselves one upon another and formed a
+complete barrier to all outlet.</p>
+
+<p>“It was like a great ice mountain,” exclaimed a German-speaking Magyar
+with whom we got into conversation as we leant over the bridge together
+and watched the unruly river tearing by.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Ach! lieber Himmel</i>,” he continued, “that too was a dreadful
+time. We scarcely went to bed for three nights. Buda was under
+water, and the houses could scarcely live in the surging flood which
+threatened at each instant to inundate Pest.”</p>
+
+<p>In fact, not only has the physical formation of the country<span class="pagenum" id="Page_130">[130]</span> rendered
+this “<i>beata Ungaria</i>” a perpetual anxiety to the children of
+her soil, but ever since the time of Constantine until the middle of
+the present century she has seldom been otherwise than in a state of
+anarchy and confusion from causes which have reached her principally
+from without. Five times has Pest been under the dominion of the Turk
+alone; and though her political horizon is now tolerably free from
+cloud, she has her own two great climatic evils perpetually hanging
+over her,—inundation on the one hand and drought on the other; so that
+nature and man seem to have conspired together to render this grand but
+unhappy country the sport of fortune.</p>
+
+<p>But we must loiter no longer on the bridge, or evening will have
+closed ere we can return. Before us in bold outline rise the porphyry
+mountains, on which shadows are already beginning to lengthen. Opposite
+rises the proud citadel of Buda, which bravely held its own during
+the twenty sieges that were laid against it in the course of three
+centuries, not only by Moslems, but by Christians also. On the summit
+of the rock, with its terraced gardens and magnificent flights of steps
+sloping at right angles down to the river, stands the Regal Palace,
+together with the ruins of a church, once dedicated to the Cross, but
+which, once and again, has borne on its sacred frontal the ensign of
+the infidel Crescent.</p>
+
+<p>Taking a droszky at the other end of the bridge, we make for the
+majestic Blocksberg. What a glorious and at the same time singular
+panorama greets us from its steeps! How beautiful looks Pest from this
+elevation, with its noble palaces, above which rise conspicuously its
+many cupolas and spires of ebon and gold! Below lies its sister-city
+Buda,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_131">[131]</span> a name said to be a corruption of Bléda, given to it by Attila,
+after one of his brothers—wearing such an odd old-world look that,
+forgetful of the long, long centuries that have come and gone, one
+can almost imagine the Huns still established here under their great
+leader, who is said to have fixed his court and camp on the spot where
+Buda now stands. A little above, on the site of the ancient fort,
+rises the citadel, bristling with cannon, in which a Turkish Pasha, to
+whom the half of Hungary was compelled to own allegiance, once ruled
+supreme. Nor was Pest the only city that owned his sway, for in 1529
+the conquests of the Sublime Porte extended to Vienna, where for two
+centuries the Crescent replaced the Cross on the cathedral there.</p>
+
+<p>The united population of Pest and Buda, the modern and ancient cities,
+is estimated at rather more than 200,000.</p>
+
+<p>From the heights on which we are standing we look down upon the citadel
+which has been the scene of so many sanguinary struggles. Ah! if
+those stones could but speak to us, what tales of bloody conflict and
+dauntless bravery would they not unfold! What a strange contrast, too,
+do these twin-cities present, the one so ancient, bearing in everything
+evidences of a bitter past, the other a splendid city of to-day!</p>
+
+<p>Between them flows the Danube. Who would suppose, looking down upon it
+now so calm and smiling, that it is in reality such an ill-conditioned
+river, and so absolutely without self-control, keeping the peaceful
+inhabitants settled on its inhospitable shores in such a frequent state
+of alarmed expectancy? Yes! there it goes! rolling on in majestic<span class="pagenum" id="Page_132">[132]</span>
+silence, coldly indifferent to the presence of friend or foe: invasion,
+conquest, bloodshed, flood and drought, are equally unheeded. Yonder in
+its arms lie peacefully the fair green islands. How like toys look the
+steamers that ply between them and Pest, as like some monster shuttle
+they “weave each together into closer and closer union”!</p>
+
+<p>In the distance rise the gentle vine-clad slopes of Buda, from the
+grapes of which various kinds of wine are made, amongst which are
+Ofner, Adelsberger, and another appropriately called “Turk’s blood,”
+which I should imagine the Hungarians, with their memories ever keenly
+alive to bygone days, must partake of with considerable relish.
+Beyond all stretch the sandy plains, the great Alfőld steeped in a
+rich mingling of varied hues which a hot tremulous vapour has blended
+and softened into one delicious harmony. In the remote distance the
+mountains of the Mátra, dimly floating in a dreamy haze, rest their
+summits against the azure.</p>
+
+<hr class="tb">
+
+<p>On first arriving at Pest, the traveller—who will doubtless have heard
+so much of the national costumes—will feel not a little disappointed;
+for the railways, which have already done so much to rob Switzerland
+and the Tyrol of a great part of their old charm, are slowly but surely
+doing their work here. The so-called civilisation of the West is
+likewise toning down not only the costumes, but the primitive customs
+of this part of Eastern Europe.</p>
+
+<p>The gradual extinction of the former is a source of intense regret to
+the Hungarians of the old school, who regard it as a sign of coming
+evil, attributing it to German influence.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_133">[133]</span> Occasionally in the streets
+a man with an immense round beaver hat and curious short jacket thrown
+across his shoulders may be seen, and there are plenty of sheepskins
+and fur-lined mantles everywhere; but to see costumes that once so
+astonished the traveller one must go some distance from the capital.
+The great fear that possesses the mind of a true Magyar—the very
+<i>bête noire</i> of his existence—is lest his country should become
+Germanised. The Magyars of the old school in all internal matters are
+strongly conservative: they do not object to progress, but it must
+wear the Hungarian costumes, speak the Hungarian language and think
+the Hungarian thoughts, and must be of that kind which opposes with
+clenched antagonism the faintest shadow of German innovation; for any
+sympathy with the Teutonic nation he looks upon as an evidence of
+national decadence.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1330_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1330_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>“There was a time within my memory, and not so long ago either,”
+remarked <i>mein Herr</i> Dulovics, the landlord of the hotel, an
+old man with a tow-coloured wig, who liked to have a quiet talk with
+the <i>Ángolok</i>, much as he disliked speaking the hated German
+tongue—the only medium of communication between us, for he knew
+neither French, Italian, nor Latin—“There was a time when even the
+nobles wore the <i>gatya</i> and a distinctive dress, and Pest was
+vastly different in those days. Now, on the contrary, even<span class="pagenum" id="Page_134">[134]</span> the
+servants wear <i>Schleppen</i> and <i>Hauben</i> forsooth (trains and
+bonnets), and the Magyars, who used to be so much sought after as
+making the best of servants, are now avoided, and we have to get them
+from Bohemia and Poland, and goodness knows where besides;” and the old
+man sighed heavily as he thought of the “good old times.”</p>
+
+<p>Not a lass however of the kind he had been describing, who wore a
+<i>Schleppe</i> and <i>Haube</i>, was the chambermaid of the Hôtel
+Dulovics, with her modest head-gear, a clean white kerchief crossed
+over her smooth, fair hair and tied under her chin. What a deft little
+woman she was, as she went trudging about with her duster and broom and
+neat checquered apron pinned over her bosom! No enterprising spider
+wove seductive webs behind the curtains where <i>she</i> reigned
+supreme, nor did dust attempt to evade her eye by collecting in remote
+corners; and as she tidied the room, the polished furniture gave back
+her bright little image as from a many-sided mirror.</p>
+
+<p>The waiters, on the contrary, wore the ugly garments of Western Europe.
+The head man, to whom appertained the making out of the bills and
+superintendence of the hotel generally, was a sort of black divinity
+in whose presence the importance even of Herr Dulovics himself was
+dwarfed. He also waited upon us, doing so as though we had been of
+royal blood, not obsequiously however, like our <i>tálnok</i> of
+Székes Fejérvár, but with a deference and dignity of manner quite
+perfect. I never saw anything like the stately bearing of this grave,
+broad-shouldered, handsome specimen of Magyar, or the amplitude of
+his embroidered shirt-front. He might have been, and probably was, a
+prince or “noble”<span class="pagenum" id="Page_135">[135]</span> in disguise. Nothing whatever brought the ghost of a
+smile over his countenance, and he was altogether so extremely solemn
+and correct that we almost lost our appetite as he waited on us. It
+seemed indecorous, somehow, to be hungry in the immediate presence of
+such deportment, and we often wondered whether that grave visage ever
+relaxed when, his duties ended, he retired within the secret recesses
+of his own lair, and whether he ate and drank and slept like mortals.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1350_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1350_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_136">[136]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XI.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE VOLKSGARTEN.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">Pest is a costly place to sojourn at, and our money absolutely flew, a
+<i>gulden</i><a id="FNanchor_1" href="#Footnote_1" class="fnanchor">[1]</a> scarcely going farther than a <i>franc</i> in Paris,
+or a <i>lire</i> in any part of Italy. No wonder is it then, as the
+porter told us on our arrival, that “fewer and fewer English travellers
+come each year.” Prices however vary considerably, according to the
+state of the currency; and are a barometer indicating the state of
+political affairs in Hungary, as well as external ones affecting the
+interest of the country, ascending with the depreciation of the paper
+currency, and descending as it increases in value. Thus the tradesman
+loses nothing by the fluctuations of the circulating medium; his gulden
+may not be worth so much at one time as at another, but he charges
+more for his wares, and thus keeps up for himself a wise and equitable
+balance.</p>
+
+<div class="footnote">
+
+<p><a id="Footnote_1" href="#FNanchor_1" class="label">[1]</a> Supposed to be worth two shillings, but averaging, in the
+depreciated state of the Austrian currency, only one shilling and eight
+pence.</p>
+
+</div>
+
+<p>What an aggravating and irritating currency is the Austro-Hungarian
+with its miserable kreuzers and paper gulden! Our purses will not hold
+sufficient even for our daily wants. Oh, to live in a world where there
+is no need of money! We have ceased to count the kreuzers, one hundred
+of which go to a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_137">[137]</span> gulden, and give them out promiscuously, a small
+handful of those little coins generally covering the cost of tickets
+for the steamers that ply all day between Buda and Pest, cab-hire,
+“pour-boires,” and the like.</p>
+
+<p>Ordinary hackney carriages—which are here called “comfortables,” just
+as in Transylvania they are designated, more oddly still, by the German
+name of “<i>Gelegenheiten</i>” (opportunities)—are however both cheap
+and excellent. They consist of small broughams drawn by one horse, but
+besides these there are carriages of other kinds, always to be found
+waiting for hire in the Gasella Tir, to which two horses are attached,
+the carriages of all kinds being nearly as good as private ones. Let
+us jump into one and go off to the Stadt-Wäldchen. We have lunched
+sumptuously at the Jägerhorn, to the sound of plashing water and the
+fragrant perfume of flowers, and are ready for anything.</p>
+
+<p>At what a pace the horses go, as they dash round the corners, and take
+us on through the crowded thoroughfares, into the long broad road which
+leads to the open country, at the end of which we can just descry,
+through the blue veil of atmosphere, the trees at the entrance to the
+People’s Park! It is a festival of some sort, and the streets are full
+of holiday-makers, in holiday attire. In vain the bells which with
+equal importunity summoned the faithful to church in the early morning
+now peal forth again, and clang and twang and nearly crack themselves
+in the anxious vehemence with which they strike against their clappers.
+The people refuse to hear the call, and still in never-ending stream
+make their way to the various piers, and crowd the steamers which
+every few minutes are seen cutting through the waters with a cool and
+pleasant splash to Buda, Alt-Ofen, or other places<span class="pagenum" id="Page_138">[138]</span> lower down the
+Danube, and, calling for passengers at Pest, come banging against the
+wooden framework of the piers and nearly knock them over.</p>
+
+<p>All is hurry, bustle, and excitement. The sun shines fiercely, but a
+refreshing breeze is blowing down the river. If ever a day was made
+for a holiday, surely this one is. The Hungarian flag has a rare time
+of it, and its red, white, and green stripes wave and flash, not only
+from the sterns and masts of steamers, but from every available spot.
+The open omnibuses—which are here like two Victoria phaetons joined in
+one—are passing and repassing by the score, filled with quiet happy
+people seated under the clean brown-holland awnings. Every mortal thing
+is clean in Pest. On through the Sugár út, with its bordering of gilded
+mansions and pretty Italian villas, till we reach our destination,
+where dismissing our droszky on payment of the magnificent sum of
+one gulden for the “<i>course</i>,” and an equally magnificent sum
+of twenty kreuzers to the driver, we hasten away to “Arcadia’s green
+bowers,” not proof however against the seductions of the vendors
+of delicious sweetmeats (<i>édességek</i>), which, lying in small
+white muslin booths, like babies’ bassinets, waylay the weak-minded,
+sweet-toothed pleasure-seeker at each step on entering the domain.</p>
+
+<p>This sylvan retreat, dear to the hearts of the people, as well it
+may, was not long ago a huge swamp, but, having been drained by
+an artificial lake, now contains “every requisite” for a pleasure
+resort. The sheet of water, with its swans and (moored to its banks)
+innumerable gaudily-painted canoes, is a great source of delight to
+the holiday-makers, who paddle about and fish for minnows and tadpoles
+with a gravity and perseverance quite astounding. Nothing short of an
+insurrection<span class="pagenum" id="Page_139">[139]</span> or an overflow of the Danube would prevent the Hungarian
+<i>bourgeois</i> from resorting hither on Sundays and week-day
+festivals: to them a tour in the “merry-go-rounds” and a saunter in the
+pleasant shady walks is a necessity of their lives, without which they
+could not digest their “<i>gulyás hús</i>” or “<i>paprika hendl</i>,”
+and would even lose relish for their “<i>schoppen</i>” of beer.</p>
+
+<p>As we proceed, the discordant sounds of music, the spasmodic beating
+of drums, and hum of many voices greet us; for in the deep recesses
+of the Wäldchen itself, the Hungarian world is <i>tout en fête</i>.
+There are open-air theatres, Blondin feats, dancing on the tight-rope,
+and something to suit all comers, not to speak of the aforesaid
+“merry-go-rounds,” each rivalling the other in eccentric design.</p>
+
+<p>Emerging from behind a group of trees, we find ourselves close to
+one of these popular sources of amusement and exercise, composed
+of an artificial menagerie—a “happy family” revolving in peaceful
+fellowship, as they carry their bold equestrians, male and female,
+whizzing in giddy circles.</p>
+
+<p>A few steps farther on we find an opposition one, and, judging from the
+crowd of lookers-on which stands outside the gaily-fringed awning, a
+great favourite.</p>
+
+<p>Managing to work our way through the throng of people, we behold
+the twelve signs of the Zodiac chasing each other with maddening
+velocity—objects sufficiently grotesque to send children both small
+and great back to their homes with a whole lifetime of nightmares on
+the brain. Farther still is another in which huge swans with gilded
+beaks are made to draw wondrous cars containing not only children but
+grown-up men and women of all ages, some sitting, some standing. So
+accustomed are the Magyars to this<span class="pagenum" id="Page_140">[140]</span> particular mode of exercise that
+they rotate with a speed positively astounding, doing so at the same
+time with the gravity of judges, scarcely the ghost of a smile breaking
+over the countenance of any one of them. Never can I forget one young
+woman in a pink dress with long golden hair flying out behind like
+a mermaid; as, standing bolt upright in one of the cars, her hands
+demurely folded and her eyes bent downwards, she managed to rotate
+about twenty times without moving a muscle of her body, or holding on
+to anything for support. In fact, so perfectly still was she, that
+we had just come to the conclusion that, like a figure-head at the
+bows of a vessel, she was simply placed there for effect, when the
+machinery came to a standstill, and she stepped out of the car with a
+pair of “understandings” of most unquestionable flesh and blood, and
+disappeared amongst the crowd. This part of the entertainment would
+seem to be regarded as a duty rather than an amusement; for still
+they go round and round to the grinding of an immense barrel-organ,
+the most popular instrument, seemingly, with the proprietors of these
+<i>divertissements</i>, combining as it does the greatest quantity
+of sound with the least possible motive power, and the people never
+stop—except to begin again.</p>
+
+<p>The whole scene was headachy and bewildering; whilst the jumble of
+barrel-organs, each playing different tunes in a different key, soon
+sent us off in quest of a more peaceful locality.</p>
+
+<p>Not far away, but a little out of the noise and tumult of voices, came
+the familiar squeak of the immortal Punch, sound irresistible at all
+times. But a <i>Magyar</i> Punch and Judy!—we <i>must</i> go and see
+it. Following the direction of the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_141">[141]</span> dulcet tones, we see before us, not
+the modest and itinerant arrangement of our childhood, but a permanent
+theatrical establishment. The performance proves to be a most elaborate
+and imposing rendering of the drama of the classic pair, consisting of
+a play in five acts, in which Judy leads the same miserable life, and
+receives the same number of wooden blows from the arms of her lord and
+master, who finally poisons her and marries again, but in which she
+comes to life again in the fourth act, and, imbued with supernatural
+powers, takes the form of a hideous monster,—a creature with huge
+jaws, half alligator, half shark, whose appearance frightens the little
+children, but preaches a wholesome lesson to Hungarian husbands, for
+it dodges the footsteps of the newly-wedded pair to such an extent,
+that the second Mrs. Judy takes leave of this mortal stage in a rapid
+consumption, and is buried with much pomp and ceremony, whilst the
+conscience-stricken Punch, after wasting to a mere shadow, is crushed
+to death in the animal’s jaws.</p>
+
+<p>This tragic and melancholy ending of the hitherto victorious hero was
+accompanied by the most dolorous music, extracted with much difficulty
+by a young female in long plaits, who ground away with both hands at an
+asthmatic old organ, which sent forth spasmodic gasps and groans highly
+appropriate to the occasion.</p>
+
+<p>At this juncture, the loud bell of the al-fresco theatre, about a
+hundred yards off, announces that another performance is going to
+begin there also. Let us throw our little heap of kreuzers into the
+greasy saucer which is now seen hovering above the heads of the people,
+and, having paid our modest tribute to the memory of the defunct<span class="pagenum" id="Page_142">[142]</span>
+Punch, follow yon hurrying throng in the direction of the theatre,
+take tickets at the rustic wicket-gate for the “dress circle,” and,
+entering, rest beneath the cool shade of waving trees.</p>
+
+<p>As fate would have it, the hero of the piece was the typical
+Englishman, and in course of the performance we were treated to
+an exposure—most graphically rendered—of some of our national
+traits, which, though not particularly flattering to ourselves, were
+at any rate highly appreciated by the audience, who greeted their
+representation with immense applause.</p>
+
+<p>In these al-fresco theatres the popular drama is not seen in its most
+<i>recherché</i> form, certainly; and the garish day, by laying bare
+many of its secrets, detracts not a little from its accessories, but
+there is seldom anything to offend eyes or ears the most fastidious.
+There are no coarse jests nor ribaldry. Everywhere there is merriment
+and happiness, but vulgarity and intemperance never; and the people
+greatly enjoy this source of amusement, often paying the price of their
+tickets over again, to witness a repetition of the same piece.</p>
+
+<p>The last time we were in Pest a troupe of Italian pantomimists were
+performing here; but they could scarcely have come to a worse place
+than Hungary to find an appreciative audience, for the phlegmatic
+Magyar <i>bourgeois</i> seems incapable of taking in the full meaning
+of mute gesture, of which the Italians are so fond and which to them
+has all the power of language. In vain the supple bodies of the
+“<i>mimi</i>” rocked to and fro in their endeavours at simulating
+passion, or quivered in every nerve under the power of strong emotion;
+in vain they emitted electric flashes from<span class="pagenum" id="Page_143">[143]</span> their finger-tips
+expressive of disgust and indignation; in vain the lines and muscles of
+their faces worked convulsively as they endeavoured to give expression
+to the various sentiments. Love, hate, sorrow, joy, indignation, and
+contempt, all came alike to the Hungarians, who can only comprehend the
+force of pantomime when exhibited in their national dance.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1430_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1430_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>On whatever side we gaze there is a stream of human life which has
+been augmenting each moment throughout the day. The greensward is
+covered with happy groups reclining beneath the shade of trees. Like a
+palace of the “Arabian Nights” lies the boat-house yonder, reflecting
+itself in the calm water over which swans white as snowflakes glide
+in spotless procession. Beyond all, in wavy curvature rise the hills
+of Buda. And now the little rustic bridges are crowded with persons
+crossing over to the island<span class="pagenum" id="Page_144">[144]</span> whence come the sounds of music, no longer
+that of barrel-organs, but of a gipsy band, and soon the broad surface
+of the lake is alive with canoes and brightly-painted boats, and the
+swans floating in graceful curves seem to keep time to its inspiriting
+strains.</p>
+
+<p>Outside the various restaurants the people sit at the small
+marble-topped tables under the awnings, and eat ices or drink coffee
+whilst listening to the music. This is the people’s day, and the
+<i>beau monde</i> do not appear; but in spite of this we see some
+lovely faces, as well as figures of exquisite contour. Look at that
+Magyar girl yonder, leaning against a tree, her hat resting against
+her lap. What makes her look so sweetly sad as the gipsy band rings
+out one of its speaking melodies, and what is she thinking of whilst
+the butterflies with spangled wings play at hide-and-seek amongst the
+branches, and the sunlight like a shower of gold lingers about her
+head as though it loved it? She is only a shop-girl probably, out for
+a holiday, but how pretty she is with her tiny features, and what
+modesty and reserve there is in her whole bearing! Quietness without
+insipidity, and dignity without pride.</p>
+
+<p>But now bidding adieu to this gay and festive scene, just as the fires
+of sunset are paling in the west, we jump into a droszky, scores of
+which crowd the entrance to the gates, and rattling off to the Danube,
+take a steamer to the fair green island of Marguerite.</p>
+
+<p>Here the holiday-makers are of a far different type, and, consisting
+of the <i>nil admirari</i> class, take their pleasures tranquilly, a
+military band being the only source of amusement provided. Walking
+through shady alleys skirted by noble forest trees, across broad
+stretches of velvet lawn and past<span class="pagenum" id="Page_145">[145]</span> well-kept parterres, we reach a
+large restaurant at the end of the island—and here we dine.</p>
+
+<p>This beautiful island of woods and flowers, which lies so peacefully
+in the Danube’s arms, belongs to the Archduke Joseph. Here in ancient
+days, so runs tradition, a lovesick maiden—the daughter of a king—was
+in the habit of retiring to pray. Her name was Margaret, that is
+“Pearl,” and it is after her that the island is so sweetly called the
+“Pearl of the Danube.”</p>
+
+<p>Seated beneath the lime-trees, amongst which hundreds of lamps are
+gleaming, we listen to the melodious rhythm of the orchestra, and seem
+to be in fairy-land. The soft evening air blowing from the Danube fans
+our cheeks, and our prosaic <i>Kalbs Schnitzel</i> and <i>Lämmerchen
+Braten</i> no longer taste like either. We are partaking of ambrosial
+food, our “Turk’s blood” converted into nectar of the gods. We fall to
+earth again, however, with one fell swoop, when, having asked for the
+bill, it is presented—but who would think of grumbling after such a
+happy day? Restaurant-keepers <i>must</i> live, and money was made to
+spend, whilst the <i>cuisine</i> was excellent and the wine direct from
+the Archduke Joseph’s cellars.</p>
+
+<p>To our right sit a group of buxom Germans, not dwellers in Hungary
+evidently, or they would have spoken Magyar; it being the highest aim
+and ambition of the German residents to be taken for the dominant race.
+So great, in fact, is the attempt of the Germans to repudiate their
+own nationality and pass for Hungarians, that they will often tell
+you they are Magyars, in a language which though Hungarian betrays a
+very unquestionable Teutonic accent, and swear that their ancestors
+came over with Árpád.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_146">[146]</span> The ladies in question therefore must be
+visitors to the fair capital, possibly from Vienna, where it is the
+fashion to speak ill of everything Hungarian, for they are abusing
+not only the country and its people, but all that is placed before
+them, in their harsh gutturals, and again and again we hear such
+words as “<i>miserables Brod</i>” and “<i>schlechtes Fleisch</i>;”
+but still they eat and drink, and we marvel at the quantity of
+“miserable” <i>Speisen und Getränke</i> (meat and drink) they manage,
+notwithstanding, to consume.</p>
+
+<p>To our left sit a trio of slim Hungarian ladies prattling softly
+in their expressive language. How gentle in manner are they, and
+how modest and demure! What a charming absence of vanity and
+self-consciousness is there about these Magyar belles! and how unlike
+in these attributes—may I be forgiven for saying so?—are they to many
+of our English girls of the period!</p>
+
+<p>In their beauty the Magyar women have been said to resemble the
+Circassians. Of this I have had no opportunity of judging. But lest
+it should be thought I have exaggerated, let me quote the opinion of
+a gentleman (M. Tissot) on the subject: “Those who want to see the
+true type of feminine Magyar beauty should come here (<i>Margarethen
+Insel</i>), seat themselves in the shade, and watch the women who
+pass by. What strikes one first among the Hungarians is the extreme
+freshness, delicacy, and purity of the complexion, whether they be
+brunette or blonde. Their wavy hair, as in all women of this race, is
+superb; in their large Oriental eyes, shaded with long lashes, reverie
+mingles with passion; their lips are the colour of roses, and their
+teeth have the brightness of pearls.... The figure is supple, the
+joints fine, and the feet arched and tiny. You recognise a Hungarian<span class="pagenum" id="Page_147">[147]</span>
+woman at once by her walk, so completely without affectation, so noble
+and full of ease. It is an indescribable stamp of aristocracy and of
+good manners, which makes the German women who live among them yellow
+with envy.”</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1470_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1470_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Amongst these Magyar sirens the stranger will often recognise a face
+that is decidedly Hebraic, and often the Grecian and even Spanish type
+is manifest; whilst immediately opposite us a lovely woman is sitting,
+whose type might be a mingling of all three. Her complexion is a clear
+brunette, with a tint like the damask rose just showing through the
+delicately transparent skin, and her wavy clusters of dark brown hair
+drawn back in loose bands. She too has taken off her bonnet and is
+fanning herself, for the evening is sultry. She has already caught
+sight of my sketch-book, and knows by my fixed gaze that I am sketching
+her, but looking up she smiles sweetly, then resumes the same pose,
+remaining perfectly still, the expression of her face imbued in its
+every line with that unconscious grace and charm of indifference to
+admiration which great beauty so often adds to its possessor.</p>
+
+<p>On the men of Hungary Nature has been less lavish in her gifts. They
+are tall, manly, and even stately in form, and handsome faces are very
+frequently observed, but they<span class="pagenum" id="Page_148">[148]</span> are not the rule, as amongst the women.
+Now and then, amidst these fine and well-formed people, one is seen who
+recalls to mind their Tartar origin, and anthropologists are puzzled
+not a little to account for the change which these once pastoral
+nomads—the Magyars dwelling in their northern steppes—have undergone
+both in face and feature since they migrated southwards and became a
+settled and agricultural people. They affirm that the admixture of
+Slavonian and other blood which has taken place from time to time is
+inadequate to account for the complete change of type evinced not
+only in external characteristics, but even in cranial formation. For
+whereas the Lapps and Finns, who have been ascertained by philological
+research, no less than by the guidance of ethnology, to form with them
+a common stock, still retain their ancient physical characteristics,
+and are “short of stature and uncouth,” with “pyramidal” skulls—a
+type which is said to distinguish in a great degree all the pastoral
+races of the North—the stature of the Magyars of the present day is
+stalwart, and the cranium has acquired the “elliptical” form, that
+denotes the dwellers in Western and Southern Europe.</p>
+
+<hr class="tb">
+
+<p>Twilight had drawn its veil across the sky and the stars were peeping
+forth by the time we turned our backs upon this “Paradise of Houris,”
+and, taking the steamer, made for Pest. A celebrated gipsy band was
+to perform that night at the restaurant of the “Jägerhorn,” and we
+determined to go and hear it, and thus conclude our exciting day.</p>
+
+<p>Entering the quadrangle of the hotel which formed the restaurant, we
+took our seats. The stars, dimmed by the lustre of the artificial
+lights, looked down upon us meekly,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_149">[149]</span> for we were seated in the open
+air. The fountain in the centre of the court merrily tossed its spray,
+and the gold-fish darted in and out of their miniature grottoes as they
+played at “hide-and-seek.”</p>
+
+<p>The soul-stirring, madly exciting, and martial strains of the
+“Rákótzys”—one of the revolutionary airs—has just died upon the ear.
+A brief interval of rest has passed. Now listen with bated breath to
+that recitative in the minor key—that passionate wail, that touching
+story, the gipsies’ own music, which rises and falls on the air. Knives
+and forks are set down, hands and arms hang listless, all the seeming
+necessities of the moment being either suspended or forgotten—merged
+in the memories which those vibrations, so akin to human language,
+re-awaken in each heart. Eyes involuntarily fill with tears as those
+pathetic strains echo back and make present some sorrow of long ago, or
+rouse from slumber that of recent time.</p>
+
+<p>Watch narrowly the countenances of the listeners one by one! Regard
+that phlegmatic and, as you thought but a few minutes ago, painfully
+prosaic man of threescore years sitting over his high glass of
+<i>Lagerbier</i>. See, he hangs his head and wipes away a tear! Now
+gaze furtively at the face of that fair one opposite, in all the
+rounded grace of early womanhood. What a look of pain is fixed upon her
+brow! how the eyebrows knit and the corners of the sweet mouth droop!
+And that younger form beside her, of a girl who has scarcely left her
+teens—what a pensive shadow passes over the expression of her face
+also; <i>hers</i> the unconscious foreshadowing of some future cloud!
+All are firmly held, grasped, enthralled as by a magic spell, every
+heart responding to those plaintive notes, and every<span class="pagenum" id="Page_150">[150]</span> sorrow stirred by
+the thrilling vibrations which hang upon the ear.</p>
+
+<p>And now the recitative being ended and the last chord struck, the
+melody begins, of which the former was the prelude. Watch the movements
+of the supple figure of the “first violin,” standing in the centre of
+the other musicians, who accompany him softly. How every nerve is <i>en
+rapport</i> with his instrument, and how his very soul is speaking
+through it! See how gently he draws the bow across the trembling
+strings! and how lovingly he lays his cheek upon it, as if listening
+to some responsive echo of his heart’s inmost feeling, for it is his
+mystic language! How the instrument lives and answers to his every
+touch, sending forth in turn utterances tender, sad, wild and joyous!
+The audience once more hold their breath to catch the dying tones, as
+the melody so rich, so beautiful, so full of pathos, is drawing to a
+close. The tension is absolutely painful as the gipsy dwells on the
+last lingering note, and it is a relief when, with a loud and general
+burst of sound, every performer starts into life and motion. Then
+what crude and wild dissonances are made to resolve themselves into
+delicious harmony! What rapturous and fervid phrases, and what energy
+and impetuosity is there in every motion of the gipsies’ figures as
+their dark eyes glisten and emit flashes in unison with the tones!
+whilst in the restaurant itself everything is once more stir and
+motion. Knives and forks clatter, corks fly, and the cool fountain
+plashes with a merrier sound.</p>
+
+<p>The deep-toned cymbals—a large kind of lyre laid flat upon a table and
+played with padded sticks—thrum and ring and vibrate; the strings of
+the double-bass thunder;<span class="pagenum" id="Page_151">[151]</span> the strains come thicker and faster, but in
+perfect time, till the performers, interrupting the regular measure by
+an inversion of the order of notes, glide into syncopated passages, and
+we think they must surely lose themselves in those intricate and subtle
+“quantities.” But no! “Thump, bang, crash, and squeak” rend the air,
+but in the din and clamour and fury of the wild rhythm they all come
+right again, and wind up in the greatest precision.</p>
+
+<p>The fiddles are now placed upon the table; the “loud cymbals” are
+hushed; the double-bass and violoncello rest against the green
+trellis-work with which the walls of the restaurant are covered; the
+clarionet lies hidden amongst a labyrinth of leaves, and for a brief
+space the <i>czigánok</i> walk about the quadrangle, and receive the
+congratulations of the audience. But they never really tire, and would
+seem to be endowed with the power of perpetual motion, for they soon
+begin again, and “men may come, and men may go, but” <i>they</i> “go on
+for ever.”</p>
+
+<p>No wonder is it that the Hungarians prefer their national music to any
+other, for the gipsies are not only gifted with an extraordinary genius
+for music, but their impetuous and passionate natures make them enter
+into it heart and soul; and this being the case, it is impossible for
+them to help communicating some of their ardour and enthusiasm to their
+impressionable listeners.</p>
+
+<p>The cymbals (<i>czimbalom</i>), the most characteristic of all their
+instruments, possess great tone as well as capability of expression.
+They emit as much sound, in fact, as that of a grand piano, the lower
+strings possessing immense depth and power. We are so accustomed to
+associate the word cymbals with the circular brass plates which are
+clashed together,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_152">[152]</span> that it seemed odd to hear any other instrument
+called by that name; but I never heard the gipsies’ <i>czimbalom</i>
+without wondering whether they had inherited them from their ancestors,
+and whether, under a more simple form, this stringed instrument, in
+universal use amongst the Hungarian Ishmaelites—so infinitely more
+capable of expression than the sharp ringing sound produced by the kind
+of cymbals familiar to us in our own country—be not in reality the
+“loud cymbals” with which David told the Jewish people to “praise the
+Lord.”</p>
+
+<p>Our last night in Pest has come for the present; our last bill is paid
+at the Jägerhorn restaurant; our farewell of the gipsy-band has been
+taken, and we return in regret to our hotel. Ascending the stairs, we
+meet Herr Dulovics, who demands our wishes concerning our early repast,
+previous to our journey on the morrow, observing—a fact we had already
+recognised—that the inns on the Alfőld are both few and indifferent.
+He suggests, therefore, the desirability of our fortifying ourselves
+with a substantial meal.</p>
+
+<p>Seeing that we hesitate for an instant, he breaks in hurriedly, as
+though seized by a happy inspiration—</p>
+
+<p>“Leave it to me; I will take care that you have a breakfast to please
+you,” and then disappears.</p>
+
+<p>On the following morning, descending to the <i>Speise-saal</i>, we
+see the snowy cloth spread in readiness for us, and at the sound of
+our footsteps, peeping through a doorway at the end of the apartment,
+mine host’s head appears. He looks hot and busy, and his wig is all
+on one side in the very fervour and excitement of his occupation. The
+cook, clad in white, stands hard by, his arms folded. He is not deemed
+equal to the occasion evidently. Herr Dulovics<span class="pagenum" id="Page_153">[153]</span> himself undertakes the
+important office of preparing a savoury mess—a parting blessing in the
+flesh-pot way—such as he thinks the soul of the <i>Ángolok</i> loves.</p>
+
+<p>The Magyars were called Ogres by the ancient Romans on account of a
+belief commonly existing amongst them that these heathen conquerors ate
+the hearts of their enemies and drank their blood, an idea possibly
+originating in the fact of their eating almost raw meat.</p>
+
+<p>Surely Herr Dulovics must have been imbued with a similar notion with
+regard to the descendants of the Ancient Britons, for in a few minutes
+he is seen approaching bearing in each hand a small round silver dish.
+No other hands, not even those of the “black divinity,” shall present
+to us those time-honoured morsels.</p>
+
+<p>“There!” he exclaims, a look of complete triumph animating his
+whole countenance, as removing the covers with a flourish he places
+before each of us a piece of half-cooked meat—“There! <i>Bif-stek à
+l’Anglaise</i>.”</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1530_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1530_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_154">[154]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XII.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE ICE-CAVES.</span></h2></div>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1540_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1540_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">From the south-east corner of Hungary, where they form the boundary
+between it and Roumania, and stretching upwards in one unbroken chain
+to the provinces of Bukovina and Gallicia, rise the noble Carpathian
+mountains, embracing two-thirds of the Hungarian plains as with a stony
+girdle.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1542_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1542_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+     <p class="p0 sm center">THE ICE-CAVES OF DOBSINA.</p>
+  </div>
+
+<p>At the foot of the highest group of the Carpathian chain lies the
+Comitat of Gőmőr, a district of singular beauty and variety, in
+which are mountains on whose summits grow the Arctic lichen and the
+pine: whilst at their base, not only the vine, but tobacco, melons,
+and Indian corn flourish in great luxuriance. It is in this county,
+within a few miles of the mining town of Dobshau—into which name
+the Austrians have Germanised the more euphonious Hungarian one of
+<span class="pagenum" id="Page_155">[155]</span>Dobsina—that the newly-discovered caverns are situated which form
+the heading of this chapter.</p>
+
+<p>The existence of an ice-cavern had for many years been suspected,
+a fissure having been observed to be constantly blocked with ice,
+although situated at the low elevation of 3500 feet, where snow rests
+on the ground during the winter months only. It was however left to
+a young Hungarian named Ruffiny, a youth of unwonted courage and
+enterprise, to be the first to enter these wondrous chambers, which
+Nature has fashioned for herself in the secret recesses of the earth.</p>
+
+<p>Having provided himself with everything that could be devised to
+insure his safety in the perilous task he had undertaken, this bold
+and intrepid adventurer set out for the fissure, two young friends
+accompanying him.</p>
+
+<p>Suspended to his girdle was a miner’s lamp and a stout rope many yards
+in length. To this rope a bell was attached, designed to serve as a
+means of communication if necessary with his companions above, whilst
+another rope was fixed to a windlass. In this way he entered the chasm,
+and working his way valiantly over blocks of ice, and a chaos of
+<i>débris</i>, which in the course of ages had found its way thither,
+he became lost for a time in the darkness of a new world.</p>
+
+<p>We can readily imagine what must have been the feelings of this brave
+young explorer as he entered alone those grim, silent, and unknown
+regions, from which he might never return, for we may be sure he was
+fully alive to the danger his enterprise involved. Curiosity however,
+and a love of adventure which is found to animate some minds, led him
+onwards, his feeble lamp doing little more than to render the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_156">[156]</span> darkness
+visible, as he surmounted first this icy barrier, and then that, at
+one time sliding down slippery inclines, at another unwinding the rope
+which encircled his body and plunging into yawning depths, till he
+reached at length a vaulted chamber, and stood on what appeared to be a
+frozen lake.</p>
+
+<p>What wonders of the Ice-world did not his glimmering lantern then
+unfold! Pausing a moment to feel quite sure that his senses did not
+deceive him, he clambered back with all speed to within some distance
+of the mouth of the cave, and shouted to his companions to follow.</p>
+
+<p>Thus were these icy solitudes revealed to man, and a tablet erected
+on the outer rock just above the entrance records the names of these
+youthful heroes, together with the date on which the caverns were
+discovered.</p>
+
+<p>It was a hot day, and the sun shining fiercely from his throne in
+heaven, when, having left our carriage at the foot of the Dusca, the
+mountain in which the caves exist, we commenced its ascent, and soon
+entered a cool forest of pines. Halfway up, through a natural opening
+in the forest, a beautiful view is obtained of the valley by which we
+had come and of the bold <i>Spitzenstein</i> rising abruptly out of
+it, near which—looking mere toys in the distance—lie the foresters’
+houses.</p>
+
+<p>Sauntering up a narrow zigzag path, between banks of moss interspersed
+with wild-flowers of every hue, we soon reach the plateau beneath which
+lies the cave. We are soon made aware of its proximity by a stream of
+cold air issuing from the chasm.</p>
+
+<p>Descending to it by a flight of wooden steps which are carried over
+huge masses of fallen rock, we signal for a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_157">[157]</span> guide, whose voice,
+answering from the depths below, comes rolling upwards with a muffled
+echo, his approaching footsteps sounding like the hollow boom of cannon.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1570_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1570_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>As we stood at the fissure waiting for him, it was curious to observe
+how, notwithstanding the warmth of the atmosphere, the outer face
+of the rock within a radius of thirty feet was covered with a thick
+coating of hoar-frost, having all the appearance of newly-fallen snow,
+each projecting shelf of rock being likewise fringed with long icicles.</p>
+
+<p>But the guide—whose footsteps reverberating through corridor after
+corridor, and hall after hall, we have heard in one continuous roar
+for the last fifteen minutes—at last reaches us; and following him,
+we descend the narrow flight of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_158">[158]</span> stairs, which, together with the
+balustrade that we cling to for safety, is also covered with a thick
+crystalline coating as white as snow. This leads us to the “Small
+Saloon,” where we find ourselves standing on a floor of ice environed
+by numerous ice-formations, to each of which the guides—attributing
+to them a resemblance to common objects in the outer world—have
+given a name. Thus in the centre of this chamber two almost square
+pillars of ice, rising perpendicularly from the ground, are called
+“<i>grabsteine</i>” (gravestones), whilst the most prosaic and
+unimaginative person would have no need to be informed that a splendid
+heap of frozen matter issuing in one great volume from a cleft in the
+limestone rock above, and bearing down in graceful undulating waves
+till it seems to splash on the icy floor, is designated a waterfall, so
+closely does it resemble one in every detail—its silence and absence
+of motion alone telling that it is but a vast and compact body of ice,
+and does not actually flow. As the guide illumines this beautiful
+object with magnesium light, the effect is altogether startling and
+superb.</p>
+
+<p>Leading out of this chamber is a narrow passage, hitherto unexplored
+beyond a distance of ninety feet, but which is supposed to communicate
+with other caverns. Following the guide, we now descend to the “Grand
+Saloon,” which is separated from the upper by a broad curtain of rock.
+As we proceed, the ice crunches beneath our feet, and we are obliged to
+walk with great caution, each step we tread being on ice as slippery as
+glass.</p>
+
+<p>Reaching the “Grand Saloon,” we are awe-struck at its impressive
+grandeur, beauty, and extent. Its height however is not in any degree
+commensurate with its length and breadth,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_159">[159]</span> the former being only
+forty feet, whereas the two latter measure 370 feet and 180 feet
+respectively. The walls of this vast hall are studded with thousands
+of ice-structures varying from a half to one inch in diameter, and
+which, thickly set together, resemble clusters of anemones and other
+flowers, whose imprisoned colours, changing each moment, scintillate
+like diamonds and glow with an unnatural splendour in the brightness
+of the magnesium light. On examining the crystals themselves which
+create these varied forms, we find them to be hexangular, and generally
+attached to the rock by one point only.</p>
+
+<p>These crystals, unlike the other glacial structures in the caverns
+which have a progressive growth, are said to be formed quite suddenly
+and entirely of vapour, the moist particles of which, floating in the
+cold air, get seized by the still colder surface of the rocks with
+which they come in contact and become instantly frozen.</p>
+
+<p>On first entering this vast chamber, its roof appears to be supported
+by three huge columns of ice, each of which measures from twenty-five
+to thirty feet in circumference. The central column stands on a
+shelving bank of ice; those on either side rise like stalagmite from
+the ground itself; whilst the whole is reflected in the icy floor as in
+a mirror.</p>
+
+<p>A death-like stillness reigns; no sound is heard save the unearthly
+echo of our own voices and the distant “drip, drip” of the water as it
+percolates through some rock; whilst the reverberation of the footsteps
+of another guide, lighting the lamps in a cavern below, reaches us like
+the thunder and rumble of an earthquake just beneath our feet. What
+billows of sound come swelling upwards, and passing by, go bounding
+off to remote corridors; and what strange articulations<span class="pagenum" id="Page_160">[160]</span> rise and fall
+upon the ear, and then wandering on, die away in the distance, till the
+mocking intonations, re-echoing our voices in various ways—according
+as the wave of sound now strikes upon a mass of solid ice and now
+against some hollow pilaster—seem to proceed from the hidden recesses
+of the rocks into which the light cannot penetrate, and we feel we must
+be in some nether spirit-world!</p>
+
+<p>Nothing can exceed the beauty, transparency, and iridescence of the
+pillars and larger ice-fabrics in this cavern, and we feel lost amidst
+the variety of forms which water—that patient labourer—has been
+creating drop by drop for unknown ages; which still tips each tiny
+ice-stalactite with moisture, and will doubtless go on working till the
+“fashion of this world has passed away.” The three gigantic columns
+are hollow, and entering one of them through a narrow cleft we stood
+surrounded by an almost translucent curtain.</p>
+
+<p>Resting by the side of the largest is a crystal cone resembling an
+Arab’s tent, which name it bears. Like the others, it is supposed
+to have originally formed a column, but to have been displaced and
+overturned at some epoch by a glacier-like movement, upon which it
+assumed its present shape.</p>
+
+<p>Upon careful examination the ice in these caverns is found to consist
+of two kinds,—that which contains minute air-bubbles, and that which
+is completely transparent. In the former case it is opaque, and
+resembles alabaster—a phenomenon accounted for by the learned as
+follows.</p>
+
+<p>When the water freezes quickly, the air gets seized before it can
+make its escape, the result being the formation<span class="pagenum" id="Page_161">[161]</span> of innumerable small
+air-bladders or cavities which cause the ice to look opaque. When,
+however, crystallisation takes place slowly, the air has time to
+disentangle itself from the freezing substance, and the result is
+perfect transparency.</p>
+
+<p>The temperature of the caverns of course varies considerably according
+to the time of year, but no atmospheric current is perceptible in any
+part of them, and the feeling is one of perfect stagnation of the air.
+There is, however, one very remarkable phenomenon connected with their
+action upon the compass, which is hitherto unexplained; the disturbing
+influences being such that the movements of the magnetic needle when
+placed horizontally become completely hindered; whilst if held in any
+other position it invariably points downwards.</p>
+
+<p>“We are as yet merely on the threshold of these wondrous caverns, and
+must move onwards,” exclaimed the guide, preceding us, and who seemed
+to think we had lingered here too long.</p>
+
+<p>A descent of a hundred and fifty steps, partly cut in the ice, and
+partly made of wood where the ice-walls are too steep to admit of their
+being continued, and two small bridges spanning yawning chasms, usher
+us to what is termed the “Corridor,” the most weird and impressive
+portion of the whole of these Regions of the Night, a shadowy gulf
+where huge rock-fragments lie on the ground like prostrate Titans, over
+whom watch white and shining forms created by the irregular dripping of
+water down the sides of the rock,—a “ghastly resurrection,” whose icy
+draperies hang drooping over their frozen sides as they stand in fixed
+immovability.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_162">[162]</span></p>
+
+<p>This corridor, which is 700 feet in length, is formed on the outer side
+by a rugged and uneven wall of limestone rock; the inner wall being
+a solid mass of ice, which stretches upwards to the height of 60 or
+70 feet, and covers the astonishing surface of 31,500 square feet of
+uninterrupted ice of the most varied kinds.</p>
+
+<p>As the guide crawls on hands and knees to illuminate these several
+objects, what wondrous things the light reveals! what graceful
+draperies and fringes! what waterfalls, grottoes and fairy palaces,
+fashioned in the darkness of eternal night, present themselves to view
+in rapid succession, mingling strangely with the grim rock masses
+opposite, and consorting ill with the solitude of these funereal
+labyrinths!</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Es ist einer der grössten Naturmerkwürdigkeiten</i>” (It is one
+of the greatest wonders in nature), remarked the guide, who evidently
+liked long words, as he lighted his magnesium wire opposite an immense
+rounded mass of ice, and allowed us to see its stratification.</p>
+
+<p>Here the ice is seen to have been formed horizontally, inch by inch,
+and layer by layer. And looking at this great old-world palimpsest, we
+seem to read off in serial record the silent and persistent processes
+of nature which have for ages been building up these giant walls. Some
+of the layers are clear as crystal, others opaque like alabaster,
+whilst between many of them lie thin layers of dust, all alike defined
+with marvellous exactness.</p>
+
+<p>In addition to these larger ice-creations are others suspended from
+them, of infinite beauty and variety; there being scarcely anything
+in nature which does not here possess its prototype: palms, ferns,
+flowers, strings of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_163">[163]</span> pearls, delicate filaments and garlands, all
+varying according as the water percolating through the limestone has
+been arrested in its fall by the different degrees of cold in the
+temperature.</p>
+
+<p>The ice in these caverns would appear to be slowly but steadily on the
+increase; that which is formed in the winter by <i>Wasserdampf</i>—as
+our guide expressed it, and by which I fancy he must have meant
+vapour—never melting entirely even in summer.</p>
+
+<p>The best time to view this masterpiece of nature is in May, before
+the ice begins to thaw, which it does to a slight extent always later
+in the season. The floors of the caverns are then wet, and many of
+the six-pointed crystals previously described, which form one of its
+most beautiful features, become detached from the rocks and melt in
+consequence of the increase in the temperature.</p>
+
+<p>It is generally believed that these caverns run right through the
+mountain, and also that they are drained by a spring which, making its
+appearance near its base, is supposed, from the extreme lowness of the
+temperature, to be formed of melted ice.</p>
+
+<p>It may be interesting to some persons to learn the conditions under
+which these remarkable ice-caves exist, and which are due, not so much
+to their elevation and northern aspect, as to the particular formation
+of the caves themselves. Had they extended through the mountain in an
+upward direction, the cold inner air during summer, in consequence of
+being more dense than the exterior atmosphere, would naturally press
+downwards towards the opening, and by creating a vacuum would permit
+the warm outer air to ascend, which possessing lower specific gravity,
+or, in other words,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_164">[164]</span> being lighter, would naturally have a tendency to
+rise, in which case by displacing the cooler air it would soon cause
+the ice to disperse. But inasmuch as the caverns slope throughout in
+a downward direction, the heavy external atmosphere of winter readily
+penetrating through the narrow entrance cools the inner air, and by
+reducing it to its own temperature not only hardens the ice which
+already exists within the caves, but favours the creation of more. On
+the other hand, during the summer months the cold inner air cannot
+escape upwards, neither can the lighter exterior air penetrate these
+icy labyrinths, the consequence being that their temperature is never
+so materially affected as to cause any great dispersion of the frozen
+matter.</p>
+
+<p>In the clefts of the rocks the bones of the brown bear (<i>Ursus
+Arctus</i>) have been found, and these, with the exception of
+butterflies, two of which we saw frozen to the walls just within the
+entrance, are the only indications of life which have at any time been
+discovered in any portion of these caverns.</p>
+
+<p>This region, like that of the Karst in Carniola, abounds in these
+subterranean phenomena, but, unlike that which we have been describing,
+neither possesses the conditions necessary to the formation of ice.</p>
+
+<p>The existence of caverns in this district, as well as that of the
+Karst, may generally be determined by the presence of what are called
+<i>dolinen</i>, a Sláv word signifying a small dell. The Hungarian term
+<i>tőbőr</i>, however, is far more suggestive of their true nature, as
+well as external form, <i>tőbőr</i> signifying crateriform depressions
+or hollows. They are in fact funnel-shaped holes occasioned by the
+action of water which contains carbonic acid or fixed air, and which,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_165">[165]</span>
+in consequence of dissolving the porous limestone upon which it drops,
+causes the earth to fall in.</p>
+
+<hr class="tb">
+
+<p>Dobsina lies embosomed in wooded mountains, which rise blue as the sky
+one above another. It is a clean little town, with curious old houses
+sloping outwards, the windows being so small and so high above the
+road, that each house wears the appearance of a miniature fortress.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1650_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1650_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>A long row of houses skirts the principal street to the right, the
+left side being bounded by a stream in which women, standing knee-deep
+in the water or kneeling on its margin, are thumping and beating with
+brawny arms—as only Hungarians can—linen into premature decay.</p>
+
+<p>Reaching the hotel—the best, if not the only one, the little place
+affords—we are conducted to our apartment across a narrow wooden
+balcony, which extends round the second story of the house. Our
+apartment can scarcely be said to be of the most luxurious description,
+containing as it does<span class="pagenum" id="Page_166">[166]</span> one chair and one table only, and being moreover
+wholly guiltless of carpet, but it is at any rate clean. Our modest
+dinner too is well cooked, though of a very limited menu, consisting
+merely of beef-steak and potatoes. Happening to pass the kitchen, I
+inquire of the clean <i>Mädchen</i> who evidently presides over that
+department, what her larder can furnish, and on being informed that
+the choice lies between a <i>hendl</i> (fowl)—a tough old bird, for I
+see it hanging up by its spurs to a door-nail—and “<i>bif-stek</i>” I
+choose the latter; upon which she demands laconically—</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Ángolhoné?</i>” (English?)</p>
+
+<p>“No!” I cried indignantly, remembering our experiences of “<i>bif-stek
+à l’Anglaise</i>” at Pest, and replied so brusquely to the poor little
+woman’s question that she was quite startled, and nearly fell backwards
+on to the stove—“<i>Nein! nein! nicht rau, aber ganz braun.</i>” (No!
+no! not raw, but thoroughly brown.)</p>
+
+<p>We had brought with us a letter of introduction to one of the directors
+of the cobalt mines in the neighbourhood, but on calling at his house
+found he was not at home. Late in the evening however, just as we were
+returning to our “<i>napi</i>” he returned our visit, and proposed
+meeting us there at ten o’clock the next day.</p>
+
+<p>Accordingly, hiring a <i>leiterwagen</i> the following morning—the
+only thing in the shape of a vehicle that could be obtained—we started
+on our excursion to the Femberg and Maria-Stollen mines. We had a hard
+climb before us, and the road, torn up by the torrents which during
+heavy rains scour the mountain steeps, was simply execrable. The roads
+would never seem to be mended, but, having once been made, to be left
+to the mercy of nature.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_167">[167]</span></p>
+
+<p>The mountains above Dobsina are absolutely honeycombed with mines of
+one kind and another; wherever we look, there are small openings which
+appear like little black dots on the steep declivities, and which,
+surrounded with heaps of earth, resemble gigantic ant-hills.</p>
+
+<p>After an ascent of an hour’s duration, we reach the place of
+rendezvous; and, entering the mines by a narrow aperture, pursue the
+adit for about 1500 feet. The stone in which the precious metal is
+enclosed is of a pale, reddish-grey colour, of scarcely any lustre, and
+is found only in connection with <i>Kalkspat</i>, a white substance
+similar to alabaster, or a species of very compact and delicate quartz,
+which permeates the rock like a white artery. This vein the miners
+carefully follow, for it contains the object of their search, silver
+and nickel being also found in conjunction with the cobalt. As we
+proceeded the hollow sound of the pickaxe reached us from the lateral
+adits, where the miners with their feeble lamps were extracting the ore
+from the vein.</p>
+
+<p>This mine was begun by the Romans, who for some reason or other
+abandoned it at about 350 feet from the entrance, probably driven from
+their occupation by the conquests of Attila.</p>
+
+<p>It is easy to see the exact spot at which they left off working, their
+manner of excavating differing so entirely from that pursued in modern
+times. As we observed the marks of the Roman chisel which bit by bit
+had chipped away the hard rock—and which, though accomplished at
+the very least 1600 years ago, is still as fresh and well defined as
+if it were but the work of yesterday—we marvelled at the energy and
+perseverance of that great people.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_168">[168]</span></p>
+
+<p>The stone in which the cobalt is found, and which furnishes the
+exquisite colour so dear to artists, has to be sent to England or
+Saxony to be smelted, it being in these two countries alone that the
+process of separating this valuable metal from its various surroundings
+is understood.</p>
+
+<p>It was hardly to be expected that we should survive the descent of
+the hill without an accident of some sort. In momentary fear of being
+precipitated on to the road, we were holding to the ladder-like sides
+of the <i>leiterwagen</i> with all our might, when a jolt of unusual
+violence snapped one of the straps by which the plank we were seated
+on was attached to the vehicle; whereupon, falling backwards, we
+subsided on to the bed of straw with which the <i>leiterwagen</i> was
+fortunately provided; and there, remembering that in lowliness there is
+safety, we remained for the rest of the journey.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1680_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1680_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_169">[169]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XIII.<br>
+<span class="subhed">A STORM IN THE MOUNTAINS.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">At the foot of the Tátra, and also in the county of Gőmőr, hidden
+deep in the lovely valley of Stracena, is a little brook from which
+the valley takes its name, “Stracena” being a Szláv word signifying
+“vanished,” or “passing out of sight.”</p>
+
+<p>Leaving Dobsina, we begin the ascent of the Langenberg, and soon look
+down upon the little town nestling at our feet, surrounded on every
+side by a glorious amphitheatre of mountains, wave after wave and
+summit after summit rising one above another till they are seen to fade
+away in the misty distance.</p>
+
+<p>A road to the left leads us to a wild and beautiful gorge, which we
+gradually descend through stupendous pine forests; a swift mountain
+torrent, clear as crystal, which follows the roadway, accompanying the
+jingling of our horses’ bells with a sweet and plaintive melody.</p>
+
+<p>Here beauty and grandeur alternate in singular contrast. Now we see
+before us huge rock-fragments lying by our pathway which have been
+hurled from the heights above, and, anon frowning down upon us with
+forbidding aspect, are rugged peaks. But all mingle with the gentler
+charms<span class="pagenum" id="Page_170">[170]</span> of soft lichen-covered pine, and grassy mead dainty with
+forget-me-nots.</p>
+
+<p>The air blows fresh, for it is early morning yet, and the dew still
+lingers on the grass, and drips upon us from the pine-branches, each
+stem and spine of which is tipped with a crystal bead; whilst on the
+mossy banks the lichen flowers peep forth from their soft green beds
+like fairy cups, and hold the moisture brimful.</p>
+
+<p>Presently we miss the murmur of the brook which discoursed such
+pleasant music as we wound along its margin; its waters grow less in
+volume, and it lingers on its way, as if it were flowing sadly. Watch
+it closely, for soon it becomes lost to sight and—as its German name,
+<i>Flören-seufen</i>, poetically implies—vanishes with a sigh!</p>
+
+<p>This is but another of the phenomena so common to the district. The
+bed of the stream, consisting of limestone, contains one of the
+<i>tőbőr</i>, or fissures, so frequently met with in that formation,
+through which the water discharges itself, to reappear through another
+fissure lower down the valley, till at length it empties itself in the
+river Göllnitz.</p>
+
+<p>We have hitherto been traversing the valley of the Graben (grave),
+whose name also has reference to the vanished brook, and do not enter
+that of Stracena until we reach the little village which bears its
+name, a mere cluster of wooden huts chiefly occupied by woodmen, and
+others employed in the ironworks belonging to the Duke August Coburg.
+To the right rises the singular Macskáshegy, or Cat’s Crag, to the left
+the pine-clad Hanneshőh, fit portals to the splendid defile we shall
+shortly enter.</p>
+
+<p>Through the gorge flows the river Göllnitz, swelled by the little
+<i>Flören-seufen</i>, now mysteriously come to life<span class="pagenum" id="Page_171">[171]</span> again; the former
+an impetuous torrent, lashing itself into spray over moss-covered
+boulders, as it winds along the roadway. On either side, tier above
+tier and pinnacle above pinnacle, like mighty battlements rise the
+cliffs, which, almost shutting out the sky, seem to close us in as with
+prison walls.</p>
+
+<p>Here leaving our carriage, and following a Slovak guide, furnished by
+the manager of the ironworks, we climb the crags by a narrow pathway
+between a chaos of rock and loose stones, and reach a beautiful
+oasis—a fertile meadow carpeted with Alpine flowers. We do not pause,
+however, except to take breath, till we reach a point where a truly
+Swiss landscape is spread out before us—the snow-capped <i>Tátra</i>,
+in all the glory of Alpine peak, cutting its rugged way into the very
+heavens; and here, throwing ourselves down upon a moss-covered bank, we
+indulge in well-earned repose, and enjoy the magnificent panorama which
+lies before us.</p>
+
+<p>Having rested after our climb, we visit a spot celebrated for its
+intermittent spring. On reaching the place, we observe a bowl-shaped
+hollow, rather deeper than it is wide, in which lie fragments of a
+calcareous nature. The water could only just have disappeared, for the
+pebbles in its channel were still wet, and we regretted much that we
+had not arrived a little earlier upon the scene. From the moment of its
+appearing it continues to increase in volume, until it has reached a
+certain height, when it gradually subsides, to return after an interval
+of two or three hours. Half an hour is the period of its duration, but
+its recurrence varies according to the season of the year.</p>
+
+<p>At the mouth of the spring once stood a mill-wheel, erected for the
+purpose of informing visitors to this wildly<span class="pagenum" id="Page_172">[172]</span> beautiful gorge that
+the waters were beginning to flow, the wheel being so placed that the
+stream caused it to revolve and set in motion a hammer, which, striking
+upon a metal plate, resounded through the valley. It is said, too, to
+have served also as a signal to the wild deer that abound in these
+forests, which, on recognising the sound, used to come down to drink!</p>
+
+<p>Soon after again starting on our way, we enter a narrow pass, the
+beauty and grandeur of which it is impossible to describe, language
+altogether failing in its power of expressing the endless variety
+of forms which the rocks assume, as like ruined ramparts they rise
+majestically above us. Skirting these mighty precipices, we tremble
+lest even the hollow rumble of our carriage, as it reverberates against
+the rocks, should shake them down upon us.</p>
+
+<p>As we descend further through the pass, the road becomes so narrow that
+there is only just room for our carriage, and we seem to have reached
+a <i>cul-de-sac</i>, for a lofty pyramid of rock we can almost touch
+completely shuts us in. A few more paces, however, and a sharp angle in
+the road shows that it has been tunnelled, and we reach the celebrated
+Felsenthor. We were just about to enter it, when, from a small fissure
+thirty feet above us, an eagle flew out and went sailing up the gorge,
+its wild scream echoing from rock to rock.</p>
+
+<p>It had been thundering slightly the last hour or so, but, our minds
+pre-occupied, we had taken little heed of its warning voice. Presently
+heavy rain-drops began to fall, then a loud clap was heard that almost
+seemed to shake the very earth.</p>
+
+<p>“We are going to have a storm,” cried András, descending from the box
+and putting up the hood of our carriage.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_173">[173]</span></p>
+
+<p>Contrary to our expectations, however, the rain after a short
+time ceased, and the sun shone out again, but there were heavy
+thunder-clouds still hanging about the ridges of the gorge that wore
+an ominous look, and there was that peculiar stillness in the air that
+foreboded a coming storm.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as we have passed the Felsenthor the road widening enables us
+to proceed quickly without danger; and the driver whipping the horses
+into a gallop, we go on at a rattling pace, passing a gipsies’ camp by
+the way, the first we have seen since leaving the lowlands. Emerging
+from the gorge, we drive through broad stretches of meadow-like
+pastures lying at the foot of mountains, which even here are densely
+clothed with enormous pines, reaching to their very summits. Oh the
+grandeur and beauty of these Carpathian pine-forests! In the distance
+slightly to our left, the heavens wear a leaden appearance, whilst a
+broad sheet of dark cloud, extending to the earth in perpendicular
+lines, plainly indicates that yonder it is raining in torrents.</p>
+
+<p>Our road fortunately leads us in a contrary direction, but should the
+storm overtake us we shall have a drenching. We therefore fly before
+it, and, our road soon making a curve to the right, we seem for a while
+to leave it behind. Yonder a long belt of pine-forest forms a perfectly
+black line against the livid sky. Above it we see the clouds open, and
+a flash of lightning, shooting downwards with sharp angles, pierces its
+very centre, as if attracted by the peak of some lofty pine rearing its
+head above its fellows.</p>
+
+<p>Meeting a Slovak, our driver stops the horses for a moment to inquire
+how far we are from shelter. The Slovak points onwards in the direction
+we are taking, and we go on again faster than before. But fleet as are
+our steeds<span class="pagenum" id="Page_174">[174]</span> under the heavy lash of the driver’s whip, the clouds,
+travelling still faster, overtake and almost sweep us with their ragged
+fringes.</p>
+
+<p>The wind comes with the clouds and sways the pine-trees to and fro.
+The crazy hood of our carriage rocks from side to side, and creaks and
+cracks as though each blast would send it flying through the air. And
+now large hailstones come pelting down upon us, striking the horses
+with such violence that it is with difficulty the driver urges them
+onwards. But as the centre of the storm gradually passes overhead, the
+hail ceases and gives place to heavy rain; and well protected from the
+outer elements as we flattered ourselves we were, the fond delusion
+is speedily dispelled, for the rain comes trickling in upon us at
+every point, as though the hood had been a sieve, and we discover that
+whatever else it was made for, our carriage evidently was <i>not</i>
+constructed to resist a mountain storm.</p>
+
+<p>Before very long we are consoled by András, who, looking over his
+shoulder, informs us from out of his sheepskin covering—with which he
+is enveloped even to his eyelids—that we are coming to an <i>álás</i>,
+upon which the horses are once more whipped into a gallop, and in five
+minutes we are under shelter.</p>
+
+<p>The <i>álás</i> in question, a long barn-like building, is full
+of teams of oxen, which have also been driven to take refuge from
+the storm. Near them stand the Slovak drivers in large felt hats,
+shoes made of hide, and their legs bound with thongs of leather;
+formidable-looking men enough, with their large knives stuck in their
+girdles, but in reality as harmless as mice.</p>
+
+<p>Having explored the beautiful valley, or rather gorge, of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_175">[175]</span> Stracena,
+our intention on starting in the morning had been to return to Dobsina
+by a different route. That intention however was destined to resolve
+itself into a strong determination not to move another inch to-night,
+if we could only find a room where we could dry our dripping clothes
+and get something to eat. Opposite the <i>álás</i> is a small inn, of
+the very humblest pretensions, so far as we can judge from its outward
+aspect; but experience of the byways of this country teaches us to
+expect clean mattresses at all events, and our rugs when dried can very
+well be made to supply other deficiencies in case of need.</p>
+
+<p>We are now in the North-West Provinces of Hungary, a district inhabited
+by Slovaks, a branch of that great Slavonic family which at one time
+doubtless peopled almost the entire eastern portion of Europe from the
+Volga to the Baltic, and on the south-west as far as the Adriatic Sea,
+and who in all probability inhabited the greater part of Hungary until
+the invasion of the Magyars drove them from their home on the plains,
+and caused them to flee for safety to these mountainous regions of
+the Felfőld: the term Slovak being simply adopted to distinguish this
+branch from their brethren the Slávs of Southern Hungary. Many of the
+Slovaks, however, inhabiting this north-western corner of the kingdom,
+are the immediate descendants of the Moravian Tcheks; this part of the
+country at the time of the conquests of Árpád having formed a portion
+of the principality of Moravia.</p>
+
+<p>Crossing the sea of mud that surrounded the shed—how I realised at
+that moment the appropriateness of the national top-boots!—we make
+our way valiantly towards the flight of steps leading to the house. A
+long stone passage<span class="pagenum" id="Page_176">[176]</span> ushers us into the kitchen, with its walls covered
+with bright copper vessels of various descriptions. Sitting on benches
+are Slovaks, quiet, pensive and contemplative-looking men, one of
+whom wears ringlets, and all, in spite of their strange dresses, are
+almost effeminate in appearance. The Slávs of Hungary, whether from the
+north or south, may generally be recognised at once, and form a great
+contrast to the Magyars with their manly and energetic bearing. Besides
+which they have soft features, generally blue eyes, and often golden
+hair.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1760_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1760_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>The house is prettily situated on the slope of a pine-clad mountain,
+and appears to embrace the double function of farm and inn; for the
+window of our chamber, commanding a near view of a shed across another
+sea of mud in the back premises, initiates us into the mysteries<span class="pagenum" id="Page_177">[177]</span> of
+sheep-shearing, an operation here performed by women.</p>
+
+<p>Never can I forget the woe-begone appearance of the sheep, as, shorn of
+the covering with which nature had provided them, they came forth from
+the hands of the shearers, and bleating plaintively, stood shivering in
+the rain, the most pitiable objects possible to conceive; so thin that
+they were nothing but skin and bone, whilst their flanks were quite
+hollow.</p>
+
+<p>The sheep in the North of Hungary are reared almost exclusively for
+their wool and milk, the latter being used for making Slovak cheese,
+a commodity met with all over Hungary, and a source of great commerce
+amongst the Slovaks. As we dry our wet garments by the kitchen stove,
+the sheep-shearers now and then come straggling in to partake of
+<i>slivovitz</i>, the favourite beverage, and bring with them a strong
+odour of sheep.</p>
+
+<p>Our host—likewise a Slovak, judging from his large broad-brimmed
+hat—speaks German, as do nearly all the innkeepers even in these
+out-of-the-way parts of Hungary. He is a young man of about
+five-and-twenty, and appears not a little disconcerted at our
+arrival, for it is evident that we are by no means the kind of guests
+who usually frequent his modest little inn, a fact which our guide
+doubtless for his own honour and glory had already taken care to
+impress upon him.</p>
+
+<p>Having purposed returning to Dobsina in time for dinner, we had only
+provided ourselves with a light luncheon to partake of in the carriage
+as we drove along; but the prospect of finding anything to eat here
+was the reverse of encouraging, for the bare idea of our requiring
+refreshment<span class="pagenum" id="Page_178">[178]</span> of any sort seemed a possibility that had not even
+occurred to the landlord, so great was his consternation at our mere
+mention of it.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Mittagessen! Mittagessen! es ist unmöglich</i> (Dinner! dinner! it
+is impossible). I have nothing in the house, absolutely nothing, and
+the noble strangers doubtless are hungry.”</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Paprika hendl</i>,” we suggested.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Ach nein!</i>” he cried, “miserable being that I am; the last
+<i>hendl</i> was cooked for a traveller who came this morning.
+<i>Ach!</i> why did I let him have it! it was such a beauty too, such
+a fine, fat-breasted, beautiful fowl, and only three years old, if the
+<i>Herrschaft</i> will believe me.” The tears stood in his eyes, and
+he almost tore his hair, as he thought of it, together with the feast
+which might have been the “illustrious strangers’,” but for his want of
+foreknowledge.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Wurst</i> (sausage) I have in abundance,” he continued, “of good
+quality and various kinds, but the <i>Herrschaft</i> may not care for
+that.”</p>
+
+<p>No, we certainly did not think we should, having tasted Slovak
+<i>Wurst</i> on our way to Dobsina, and found it unusually impregnated
+with garlic.</p>
+
+<p>“Have you no eggs?” we demanded, growing desperate, as we became more
+frantically hungry each moment, and the prospects of getting anything
+to eat grew less and less.</p>
+
+<p>“Eggs! eggs! Yes!” he replied, a smile of relief suffusing his whole
+countenance. “<i>Goose’s eggs</i>, they are plentiful, plentiful. See
+here!” reaching up to a shelf—“a whole basketful, which I bought just
+an hour ago.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_179">[179]</span></p>
+
+<p>Well, at any rate we shall not starve. “Goose’s eggs,” black bread,
+Slovak cheese, and—<i>slivovitz</i>. What a <i>menu</i>!</p>
+
+<p>Whilst we were partaking of the banquet, our host entertained us with
+his history. He was a native of Felka, a village lying at the base of
+the Tátra, and was consequently a Zipser, and not a Slovak as we had
+surmised. He had, however, married a Slovak girl from this district,
+and on the death of his father had migrated hither, bringing his little
+<i>jószág</i> and household gods with him. Like Kintu, the Founder of
+Uganda, who is said to have taken with him from the north “one wife,
+one cow, one goat, one sheep, one banana-root, and a sweet-potato,
+and journeyed south in search of a suitable land to dwell in,” he had
+established himself here in like manner, and having settled down, his
+widowed mother had followed him, and was living in a cottage close
+by. He had been married two and a half years, and his wife had that
+morning taken her baby and gone to visit her parents, to-day being its
+<i>Namenstag</i> (baptismal anniversary), but she would be home soon,
+very soon—and all this he informed us of in one breath.</p>
+
+<p>In the corner of the guest-room near the window stands a
+spinning-wheel, by the side of which are two small high-heeled shoes;
+what expression there is in a well-worn shoe, and how it seems to
+partake of the individuality of the wearer! Hanging to a nail just
+over them is a baby’s cap, which has retained the shape of the little
+round head. The picture is complete, and we feel we have made the
+acquaintance of the possessors already.</p>
+
+<p>An hour later, we hear the loud, harsh tones of a woman’s voice in the
+kitchen, and those of the landlord expostulating mildly. The woman is
+evidently his mother, from the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_180">[180]</span> words that pass between them. We cannot
+help overhearing through the thin wooden partition, and my thoughts fly
+pityingly to the owner of the fat little shoes in the corner.</p>
+
+<p>“She has the key of the <i>Schrank</i>, and how can the linen be got
+at? There are strangers here and no one to wait on them. It is not
+acting as <i>I</i> did when I was a young wife. She ought to have been
+home before.”</p>
+
+<p>“It is a long way, the road is heavy after the rain, and the old horse
+sometimes gets the <i>Schwindel</i>. She will be back before nightfall;
+there will have been a little merry-making over the baby,—that is what
+is keeping her so long.”</p>
+
+<p>“Merry-making indeed! what does she want more than her husband and her
+home, such as she had by birth no right to? She brought nothing with
+her to speak of, not twenty yards of house-linen, nothing but a pretty
+face. <i>Pfui!</i>” exclaimed she snappishly, turning away, “<i>es ist
+immer so.</i>”</p>
+
+<p>The rain had ceased by this time, and picking our way along the wooden
+<i>trottoir</i> which surrounded the house, we went for a stroll.
+The air was fragrant with the odour of the pine-trees, and the sound
+of many waters reached us, each ravine now having its own little
+watercourse, which, tearing down the mountain-side, hastened to swell
+the foaming river beneath. From a distance the bell of a church tolled
+the Ave Maria, and the line of shadow came creeping up the valley.</p>
+
+<p>Looking to our right, we see a cart wending its way slowly down the
+hill; the horse with bunches of flowers stuck in his bridle, and
+branches of fir ornamenting the cart. In it sits the happy young
+mother, with the setting<span class="pagenum" id="Page_181">[181]</span> sun glowing in her face as she looks down
+proudly upon the little child in her arms.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1810_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1810_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>The husband and mother-in-law come out to meet her, the latter with
+black looks and bitter words. Anticipating a violent action of the
+moral elements, and thinking that our presence might possibly break the
+fury of the storm, we also go to meet her.</p>
+
+<p>The moment she recognised the form of her <i>Schwiegermutter</i>
+(mother-in-law) her smile faded, and bending her head sadly over her
+sleeping child, she hurried into the house.</p>
+
+<p>In all this we learnt a history, and felt that we had gained an
+insight into the life of, at any rate, one Slovak family, which
+after all would seem to be identical with our own. Here in this
+peaceful region, far removed from the strife of men, is a little home
+tragedy being enacted—a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_182">[182]</span> tragedy of woman’s struggles and woman’s
+sorrows—everywhere the same.</p>
+
+<p>Just as twilight is folding all nature to sleep, András comes towards
+us, his face beaming with happiness, and communicates the prosaic but
+by no means unwelcome intelligence that he has got some <i>Forellen</i>
+(trout) for us, and also that he had succeeded in obtaining from the
+priest of the village a small <i>Kalbsbraten</i> (joint of roasted
+veal). The former we request him to have cooked at once, but to retain
+the latter luxury for our journey on the morrow.</p>
+
+<p>We find our guide particularly useful in this district, where, with
+the exception of the innkeepers, the people speak a language not a
+word of which we can understand. Without him it would be impossible to
+get on comfortably, if at all. There is often a difficulty in getting
+horses to take us on from stage to stage, besides which the drivers
+are occasionally not too civilly disposed. András possesses however
+a rather quarrelsome disposition, and is decidedly hostile to all
+innkeepers, driving hard bargains for rooms, etc., which we do not
+always approve of.</p>
+
+<p>As we were returning to the house, we saw through the window a sweet
+picture. In the corner of the kitchen near the raised hearth, the fire
+lighting up her figure with a ruddy glow, sat the little wife rocking
+the cradle. She had cried herself into comfort, for, although her eyes
+were still moist, she was singing softly, and her countenance wore a
+placid smile—the sacred mystery of maternal love manifesting itself in
+her whole attitude as, forgetful seemingly of all else, she looked down
+upon her child.</p>
+
+<p>I stood gazing at her long, thinking what a subject she would make for
+an artist; with the spinning-wheel behind her,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_183">[183]</span> which had evidently
+been taken from the inner room during our absence, the pictorial
+surroundings of the kitchen, the bright copper pans and long ladles
+hanging above her head, the fire on the hearth, over which hung an iron
+crock suspended from the ceiling, the deep warm shadow of her figure
+thrown against the wall—till I was awakened from my reverie by our
+guide announcing that the <i>Forellen</i> were fried to a turn and
+awaited us on the guest-room table.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1830_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1830_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_184">[184]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XIV.<br>
+<span class="subhed">SLOVAKS AND RUSNIAKS.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">It was on the second day after the events narrated in the preceding
+chapter that, leaving Dobsina, to which place we were obliged to return
+to pick up our luggage, we started on our way to Poprád, where, leaving
+our heavy carriage behind us, we purposed visiting the snowy mountains
+of the Tátra.</p>
+
+<p>During a great portion of the way, our route takes us through scenery
+differing little from that we have been passing for the last few days.
+The geological formation of these mountains of Gőmőr consists of a
+confused mass of gneiss containing beds of granite and mica-slate
+alternating with sandstone; the whole district containing valley
+after valley and gorge after gorge, varying but slightly from each
+other in their general characteristics. The flora, however, differs
+considerably, not only at the several elevations, but also according to
+the aspect.</p>
+
+<p>Ascending another beautiful defile, and following a swift mountain
+torrent, we wind through forests of pine mingled with birch and yew,
+the latter attaining an enormous size. The sun shines brightly, but
+gilds the summits<span class="pagenum" id="Page_185">[185]</span> of the mountains only, all beneath being in deep
+and solemn shade. No sound is heard save that of the woodman’s axe, as
+he fells wood for the charcoal-burners, or the rush of waters hurrying
+down the gorge. In this sheltered locality a delicate species of pine
+with drooping foliage, whose needles grow on stems resembling slender
+threads, takes the place of hardier kinds; and the higher we ascend,
+the larger become the yews, their dark glazed foliage and rugged bark
+forming a great contrast to the other trees.</p>
+
+<p>On this southern slope of the mountain we lose all trace of the
+familiar lichen which elsewhere draped the pines from top to bottom as
+with a white fringe; there is, too, a different feeling in the air;
+butterflies hover about the wild flowers which grow everywhere around
+us; whilst beetles, with outstretched bright metallic-looking wings
+of blue and green and gold, glisten in the sunshine; and at last we
+have reached the summit of the gorge. What beautiful glimpses we now
+gain of the Alpine region beyond, with its peaks all shrouded in snow;
+whilst casting our gaze downwards by a precipice of full two thousand
+feet, the narrow valley we have left behind looks blue and cold, and
+the pines stand silent, stern and motionless, imparting to it an air of
+grandeur and repose.</p>
+
+<p>The climb has occupied us just two hours; and beginning the descent on
+the other side, we again recognise our old friend the lichen, for the
+magnificent pines, which grow here to a height of two hundred feet,
+are covered as thickly with it as if it had been newly-fallen snow.
+The road is excellent the whole way, and we tear down it at a pace
+that absolutely makes us giddy, and takes our breath away when we look
+at the yawning gulfs that seem waiting to welcome us, as we turn<span class="pagenum" id="Page_186">[186]</span> the
+zigzags abruptly and the driver threatens to overturn our unwieldy
+vehicle.</p>
+
+<p>We soon however reach a smiling meadow, blue with forget-me-nots, lying
+in a hollow surrounded by mountains, and, arriving at an <i>állás</i>,
+are once more plunged into a sea of mud. The driver unharnesses the
+horses, and we are left in a perfectly helpless condition for the
+present; for, even had we wished, it would have been utterly impossible
+to alight from the carriage. It is true that at some period, probably
+anterior to the present century, a person or persons of sanguine
+temperament, and possessing no doubt longer legs than the men of the
+present age, had placed large stepping-stones wherewith to connect
+the shed with the roadway by a miniature bridge, but they were now so
+hopelessly embedded in the mud, that any attempt at crossing them must
+have led to the most disastrous consequences. A dog tried to accomplish
+it—possibly tempted by the prospect of crumbs, and succeeded in
+reaching halfway, where, after pausing a while, he wisely thought
+better of it, and turning round beat a slippery and disastrous retreat.</p>
+
+<p>It is difficult to give any adequate idea of these quagmires to the
+English reader. The Hungarians, as in every other particular, are
+conservative in the matter of roads, and have no notion of mending them
+even at their own doors. To do so in the plains is, as we have already
+seen, almost an impossibility, from the absence of stone. Here however,
+where it abounds, nothing is wanting but a little energy on the part
+of the people themselves. But everything comes to an end if you only
+wait for it; and in an hour’s time, which seemed like a century, the
+horses are again harnessed, and by the assistance of two powerful men,
+who, taking off their top-boots<span class="pagenum" id="Page_187">[187]</span> and tucking up their petticoat-like
+<i>gatyas</i>, plunge into the dismal swamp and seize the wheels, we
+are released from our undignified captivity, and once more landed high
+and dry on the roadway.</p>
+
+<p>Our route now lies through a broad valley, and the road henceforth—if
+indeed the word be not absolutely a misnomer—is execrable. It is a
+marvel how our carriage manages to hold together, as it leaps over
+the holes and ruts which beset our path at almost every step. Our
+bodies are shaken into jelly and our tempers into vinegar, and we
+are right thankful when we see before us a steep hill and find we
+have another mountain to climb; slow torture being preferable to the
+muscle-wrenching, rib-dislocating agony of the more rapid motion.</p>
+
+<p>As we ascend the mountain we leave yew-trees behind and enter an
+entirely new region, clothed with the yellow pine interspersed with
+spruce and larch of immense girth, whilst here and there we find a
+silver birch, which, emulating the height of the noble conifers with
+which it is surrounded, forsakes its own habit, and grows with a tall
+straight stem, branching only at the top; its trunk covered with a
+deep fringe of red-brown moss. On our way we pass waggons laden with
+charcoal and drawn by sleepy oxen, often six and eight in number, and
+lastly a herd of these splendid creatures, driven by three men with
+such immense hats that, when walking side by side, they could not have
+approached within four feet of each other without knocking them off
+their heads.</p>
+
+<p>Besides the Slovak race occupying the north-western slopes of the
+Carpathians, there is also in this district a sprinkling of Rusniaks,
+another branch of the Slavonian family. Both<span class="pagenum" id="Page_188">[188]</span> races belong for the most
+part to the Greek Church, which imposes on its adherents fasts grievous
+to be borne. Not only is there a saint for almost every day in the
+year, but it is infinitely more strict in enforcing the observance of
+fast days than the Roman Catholic, there being on the average four fast
+days to be observed in every week! The result of this is frequently
+demonstrated in the thin forms and pallid countenances of Slovaks and
+Rusniaks alike.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1880_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1880_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>At two o’clock we reach Wernár—a Rusniak village, and end our
+sufferings for the present at the inn. We enter it by the kitchen, an
+apartment shared by a juvenile calf, two geese, and sundry pigeons,
+and in which the <i>Hausfrau</i> is occupied in making bread. Even in
+this Arcadia there would not always appear to be the peace that might
+be expected; for there had evidently been some altercation between the
+husband and wife—possibly he had been beating her, an accomplishment
+to which Rusniak husbands are said to be not altogether strangers.
+Unlike our little Slovak, however, she did not let “concealment feed
+on her damask<span class="pagenum" id="Page_189">[189]</span> cheek,” but stoutly rated her husband, and proclaimed
+her wrongs to the company, as she diligently pursued her occupation and
+watered the bread with her tears.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst resting from our labours, and settling into something like shape
+again after the dislocating agonies of the journey, some other guests
+arrived in a long country cart drawn by five horses, the wheelers
+harnessed three abreast. Its occupants were a young woman and her
+grandfather, the latter informing us he was a tobacco-planter, having
+an estate in the lowlands of Gömör, and both were immensely amused on
+hearing we were English, the girl laughing heartily, as she exclaimed:</p>
+
+<p>“English! Then you live in London; and is it possible that you have
+come all the way to see <i>this</i> country, where there are no fine
+houses and shops and streets? What <i>can</i> you have come <i>here</i>
+for?” and she looked at us attentively, as though to feel quite sure we
+were not demented.</p>
+
+<p>We did our best to convince her that although we were English we did
+<i>not</i> live in London, but in a fair green country like this; but
+that we had no high mountains and deep gorges and majestic rocks such
+as are found here, and that the English loved to see these, regarding
+them as amongst the noblest works of God. But she only shrugged her
+shoulders, and looked as though she thought we must, after all, be
+Bedlamites.</p>
+
+<p>At this moment our conversation was cut short by the arrival of the
+drove of oxen we had passed on the road, upon which we ran out to have
+another look at the men with the big hats. The charcoal-waggons have
+also arrived with <i>their</i> drivers, and the large inn kitchen is
+soon filled with guests, consisting not only of Rusniaks, but Slovaks
+also from the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_190">[190]</span> neighbouring districts, all of whom are the most quiet
+and undemonstrative people imaginable, coming in noiselessly, taking
+their quota of the national beverage, and then journeying on again.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1900_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1900_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>What a contrast the Szláv peasants present to their Magyar
+counterparts! Their step slow and hesitating, their voices supplicating
+and sad, they wear the appearance of a crushed people. The Magyars,
+on the contrary, with their frank open brows, dilating nostrils, and
+majestic carriage, whose whole expression is one of pride and victory,
+bear witness to a noble lineage.</p>
+
+<p>According to the latest returns, there are 470,000 Rusniaks in the
+north-east portion of Hungary, and 2,000,000 Slovaks occupying the
+north-west; the former supposed to be the descendants of a band of
+Russians who “came in with Árpád.”</p>
+
+<p>During the two hours we spend here whilst our horses<span class="pagenum" id="Page_191">[191]</span> are being baited,
+we have ample opportunity of studying the exterior characteristics
+of both races. Their dress is almost identical, the only difference
+consisting in their head-gear. The Rusniaks, instead of the large
+“<i>sombreros</i>” which distinguish the Slovaks, wear ponderous
+caps made of black curly sheepskin, which from a distance look like
+the wearer’s own hair combed erect, and give them a very wild and
+incongruous appearance.</p>
+
+<p>Their garments consist of a loose jacket and large trousers, and are
+made of a coarse woollen material the colour of which is originally
+white, while their waists are encircled by enormous leather belts,
+more than half an inch thick and from twelve to sixteen broad, studded
+with brass-headed nails so arranged as to form a variety of patterns.
+In these belts they keep their knives, scissors, tobacco-pouch,
+a primitive arrangement for striking light and a number of other
+small useful articles, and their whole appearance is so perfectly
+irresistible that I immediately began sketching one of them on the sly.
+But he soon discovered my occupation, and turned away.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Stui!</i>” (stop!) I cry, hazarding a word I had heard when
+travelling farther North of Hungary, amongst a different branch of the
+Slavonian family.</p>
+
+<p>The expression is at once recognised, and I am instantly surrounded by
+a merry crowd, all eager to have a peep at my sketch-book.</p>
+
+<p>“Look at this fellow coming now,” remarked F.: “his hat is a yard wide
+if it is an inch. Try and get a sketch of him,” as another man walks
+gravely up the steps, and paces along the passage which leads to the
+kitchen—his hat so large that he passes the doorway by a mere shave.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_192">[192]</span></p>
+
+<p>The nature of my occupation is by this time understood by all; and no
+sooner is their attention attracted to the unusually large size of the
+head-gear of the new arrival—no doubt the “last sweet thing” in Slovak
+hats—than he is seized by two of his brethren, who, holding him fast,
+entreat me to come and sketch him then and there.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Stui! Stui!</i>” they all exclaim, as, taken aback at this summary
+and unexpected proceeding, he struggles to get free.</p>
+
+<p>As soon, however, as it is explained by András and echoed by a
+chorus of voices that I am “a great English lady”—András opening
+his eyes very wide at this juncture to give full importance to the
+adjective—“come all this way to take pictures of the Slovaks back with
+me to <i>Ángolország</i>,” than he stands as still as a statue, though
+I doubt whether this appalling information imparted anything definitely
+to his mind as to who I really was, whether the Queen of England or of
+the Cannibal Islands, or one of the saints in mercy dropped out of his
+calendar.</p>
+
+<p>Having already made a sketch of three men and their umbrella-like hats,
+I began to feel I had pursued art sufficiently for one day at any
+rate, and was about to close my portfolio when I heard a voice behind
+me saying in soft and plaintive accents, “<i>Io som Šlovinsky</i>” (I
+am a Slovak), and, on looking round, I saw another supplicating to be
+immortalised, who proved to be so importunate in his solicitations that
+it was impossible to give him a denial.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst I am busily occupied, the gravity of my “subjects” is often
+upset by proceedings taking place in a remote part of the kitchen. A
+long-haired patriarchal goat<span class="pagenum" id="Page_193">[193]</span> has also wandered in, prompted possibly
+by the prevailing curiosity, and is made by one of the company to
+pirouette to the music of the bagpipes, an accomplishment to which
+he would seem to be no stranger. I was just putting the finishing
+touches to the portrait of a very exacting “subject,” who insisted on
+the faithful rendering of every brass nail in his girdle, and which I
+trusted would really prove my last sketch for the day, when I observed
+the manner in which a more than ordinarily quiet and pensive-looking
+young Slovak tried to obtrude himself upon my notice, hoping thereby I
+would take him also, but evidently failing in the courage to ask me. I
+pretended not to see him however, and after finishing the one on which
+I was occupied to the entire satisfaction of the original—who went
+into ecstasies over the delineation of his pipe—I closed my book and
+abruptly walked away.</p>
+
+<p>Looking behind me ten minutes later, what was my surprise to behold my
+young Slovak in tears! Who could resist such an appeal? There is no
+help for it, and I am compelled to take him also; which task completed,
+neither tears nor supplications prevail with me any longer.</p>
+
+<p>Before leaving, we made ourselves very popular by treating every one in
+the room to <i>slivovitz</i>, which so worked upon the feelings of a
+lame old man with one eye, that coming up he seized my hand and kissed
+it reverently. I think he was bent on a somewhat warmer greeting, but I
+am thankful to say he suppressed his emotions.</p>
+
+<p>At that moment we could not help thinking what the stern Mrs. Grundy
+would have said, could she have witnessed our proceedings for the last
+two hours—the <i>Mesdames</i> Vernon Smiths and Ponsonby Joneses of
+Society; and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_194">[194]</span> their voices came wafted towards us over the Alfőld and
+Felfőld as they exclaim one to the other:</p>
+
+<p>“How dreadful, my dear! What vulgar people! We really cannot read
+any more of this horrid book. Fancy fraternising with those low-born
+savages the Rusniaks and Slovaks! So dirty and common, you know, and
+all that sort of thing!”</p>
+
+<hr class="tb">
+
+<p>There being nothing to be met with here but black bread, honey, and the
+milk of human kindness, we determined upon halting a little distance
+from the village, and enjoying our meal al-fresco of such things as we
+happen to have with us.</p>
+
+<p>Starting on our way, and reaching in half an hour’s time a shady nook
+close to a clear mountain stream, a fire is soon lighted, and we watch
+the boiling of our kettle and the stewing in the little <i>cazarola</i>
+of some unknown compound, which turns out to be mushrooms that András
+had gathered on the way, or rather a species of edible fungus, that one
+meets with so often in Italy, called <i>spongignola</i>, on account
+of its resemblance to a sponge. Nothing can be more delicious, for it
+far exceeds in flavour the ordinary mushroom. A roasted chicken formed
+part of our <i>menu</i>, but, alas! the salt had been forgotten, and
+the bread our larder afforded, though not black, was acid and flavoured
+with caraways. Oh! how I dislike these Hungarian combinations! but
+mountain air gives zest to our appetites, and there are no meals so
+pleasant as those we partake of in our carriage or bivouacking by the
+roadside.</p>
+
+<p>At five o’clock in the evening we reach Poprád, at which place, being
+bound for the snowy heights of the Tátra,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_195">[195]</span> we leave all superfluous
+luggage behind, and bid for a while a sorrowing farewell not only to
+our guide, but to our lumbering old carriage likewise which has carried
+us in safety—though with many a lurch—over hundreds of miles of
+plains, and through many a verdant valley and rocky gorge.</p>
+
+<p>There is a railway-station here, Poprád being situated on the Kaschau
+and Oderberger line.</p>
+
+<p>We were standing in the waiting-room whilst András was arranging for a
+carriage of some sort to take us on; when we heard a voice behind us
+saying in German:</p>
+
+<p>“Are the <i>Herrschaft</i> on their way to Schmecks?”</p>
+
+<p>Turning round, we saw behind us a gentlemanly man of about forty years
+of age. It was Dr. Nicolaus von Sontagh, so well known to all who
+visit this neighbourhood, and in whose villa—though a stranger to us
+then—we afterwards spent so many happy days.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p1950_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p1950_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_196">[196]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XV.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE SNOWY TÁTRA.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">Rattling, rumbling, jolting, bumping, and sometimes heeling over at
+an angle of 45° as we tear through the streets of Poprád, with what
+a magnificent spectacle of blue mountain and snow-capped peak are we
+greeted as they rise above the black but picturesque roofs of the
+houses!</p>
+
+<p>Running almost into a disabled bullock-waggon as we dash round the
+corner—left, Hungarian-like, in the middle of the road for any chance
+comer to stumble over—and nearly upsetting, as we take “a header” into
+an unexpected hollow, we rock and ride over the holes like a heavy
+unwieldy barque over the waves of the sea, till at length, reaching the
+open country, we see all at once before us, rising sheer out of the
+plains of Poprád like a monster crater, the glorious Tátra rearing its
+ermined summits proudly heavenwards till they seem to cleave the very
+sky.</p>
+
+<p>This lofty group of the Carpathians, called by the Hungarians “The
+<i>Central</i> Carpathians”—though for what reason I am at a loss
+to conjecture, except it be that they are situated at almost the
+extreme <i>end</i> of that chain!—are about seventy-two miles long
+by twenty-seven broad; whilst so completely do they rise out of
+the plains like a wall on<span class="pagenum" id="Page_197">[197]</span> every side, without what are designated
+<i>Voralpen</i>, i.e. lower intervening mountains, that a line could be
+drawn round almost their whole circumference.</p>
+
+<p>This singular region contains within its limits no fewer than a
+hundred and twelve lakes or tarns, which in the language of the people
+of the district—German colonists, who settled here in the twelfth
+century—are called “<i>Meeraugen</i>” (eyes of the sea).</p>
+
+<p>What a bewildering and indescribable fascination there is about
+snow-capped mountains! Nothing can be more imposing and impressive
+than those towards which we are journeying, with their bold and rugged
+peaks sharp as needles, their almost perpendicular sides scoured by a
+thousand watercourses, the region of cloud indicated by a long thin
+stratum of white vapour, which, hanging halfway between their summits
+and their base, seems to sever them in two.</p>
+
+<p>Having passed the villages of Félka and Schlangendorf, we enter a pine
+forest, through which a good road runs the whole way to Schmecks.</p>
+
+<p>In consequence of the Tátra being exposed to the north wind during
+the greater part of the year, vegetation is much retarded, and the
+elevation at which the various species of Coniferæ grow is considerably
+lower than that of Switzerland, varying in some instances to the extent
+of from 300 to 900 feet. For example, the zone at which the pine
+(<i>Pinus picea</i>) is found in Switzerland is 4077 feet, whereas in
+the Tátra it is only 3585; whilst the difference in the altitude at
+which the Scotch fir (<i>Pinus silvestris</i>) grows in the two regions
+is no less than 900 feet. The larch, on the contrary, strange as it
+may seem, is<span class="pagenum" id="Page_198">[198]</span> met with in the Tátra at almost the same elevation as in
+Switzerland, there being scarcely a hundred feet of difference in the
+limits of its growth in the two countries.</p>
+
+<p>Many of the deciduous trees in the outskirts of this forest have not
+yet awakened from their long winter’s sleep, and their brown dry
+leaves, red and sere, rustle and flutter strangely in the breeze, as if
+they were impatient of their bondage and were longing to find rest on
+the soft mossy ground, and to mingle with the marl of mother Earth, the
+destiny of all nature.</p>
+
+<p>As we gradually ascend the densely-wooded slope which lies at the
+extreme foot of this part of the Tátra, we get surrounded in mist; for
+that long thin stratum of vapour which we had observed in the plains,
+and which, glistening in the sunshine, looked so like a silver line
+drawn across them, now that we have at length approached it, turns out
+to be a cloud of many miles in width.</p>
+
+<p>The evening is rapidly closing in, and the impenetrable pine forest on
+either side adds greatly to the darkness. Since leaving Schlangendorf,
+almost two hours ago, we have not seen the ghost of a habitation, nor
+met any one on the road. Night has well-nigh overtaken us, and we
+are beginning to wonder how soon our journey will be ended, when our
+driver, taking us suddenly off the main road, strikes into the thick
+of the forest by a mere waggon-track to the left. Is he in league
+with the brigands, we wonder? We had all along thought him a wild and
+uncanny-looking fellow. I confess to feeling very uncomfortable, for
+the neighbourhood is quite new to us, and the silence, solitude, and
+gloom of our surroundings are beginning to influence us sensibly.</p>
+
+<p>The utterance of what I fear may have been rather<span class="pagenum" id="Page_199">[199]</span> unparliamentary
+language on the part of one of us, in a loud key, has the effect of
+bringing him to an abrupt standstill.</p>
+
+<p>There is nothing like loud speaking to a Hungarian driver when he is
+doing anything you do not like. It is a species of eloquence understood
+in all languages, and our present charioteer knows as well all we
+are saying as if we had been speaking his own mother-tongue; for,
+pointing with his thumb over the tree-tops straight ahead, he makes us
+understand that <i>it</i> is <i>there</i>.</p>
+
+<p>At this moment, gleaming through the mist, a welcome light is seen
+emanating from the windows of a châlet, then another and another,
+till a short drive over a gravel road brings us to the door of the
+“Sanatorium,” at which we pull up.</p>
+
+<p>How cheery, in this unknown land, is the sound of voices which greets
+us from the balcony! Surely lights never twinkled half so brightly as
+those which are brought to guide our footsteps up the broad wooden
+staircase leading to the house. How cheery, too, is the open fire in
+the little <i>salle-à-manger</i>, and how glad we are to sit beside it
+whilst our rooms are being prepared for our reception! We are now in an
+Alpine region at an elevation of 3258 feet, and the warmth of the fire
+is pleasant; for, the Tátra being situated so far north, the cold is
+much greater than it is in Switzerland at the same altitude.</p>
+
+<p>Having partaken of supper, we retire at once to our rooms, which are
+situated on the second story at the end of a long corridor, and in
+which fires are also burning. What music there is in pine-logs as they
+crackle in the open stoves! and how fragrant the perfume!</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_200">[200]</span></p>
+
+<p>“If you look out of your window early to-morrow, you will see the whole
+range: the peaks are generally clear at sunrise,” exclaimed the manager
+of the Sanatorium, on wishing us “good-night.”</p>
+
+<p>The Tátra was almost the only region we had not already explored during
+one or other of our previous visits to Hungary, and great was the
+pleasure we anticipated. We are worshippers of mountains. They possess
+such an irresistible and inexplicable fascination over me, that I could
+not sleep a wink for picturing them to my imagination, and thinking of
+the treat that the morrow was to bring. How many times, even when at
+length slumber overcame me, did I awake with a start, and opening my
+eyes expect to find I had overslept myself, and that it was already
+broad day.</p>
+
+<p>Five o’clock. “To-morrow morning” has come at last! I look out of the
+window, but surely I must be dreaming still, or have the pixies changed
+the room during the night? Where are the mountains and plains? There
+is nothing to be seen but murky sky. Ah! it is early yet, and the sun
+has not risen; it will be all right presently. I will watch for its
+appearing.</p>
+
+<p>Five minutes past five. No! it is <i>not</i> sky, after all, that I
+have been looking at, it is mist, for there beneath our windows are
+two pine-tops just showing through it like grey spectres. I get up,
+however. “Early to bed and early to rise” is the best of rules in
+Alpine regions.</p>
+
+<p>But the morning is chilly, as, stepping out of the window, which opens
+like a door, I stand shivering on the balcony that, in true châlet
+fashion, “runs” round the whole house; and I half regret having adopted
+the praiseworthy motto<span class="pagenum" id="Page_201">[201]</span> above mentioned, at any rate for this one
+morning. Re-entering the room, I shut the door quickly, but carry with
+me a ton of vapour at the very least, but enveloping myself in a warm
+rug, I try to “come out jolly” under difficulties, and overhaul my
+sketches.</p>
+
+<p>Seven o’clock. Delightful sounds of the clattering of cups and saucers.
+They are evidently laying the table for breakfast. But it is a long
+while yet before the bell will summon us to that welcome meal. Oh for
+our own particular and peculiar little tea-pot, and András to make us a
+hot cup of the “cheering” beverage!</p>
+
+<p>Heavy steps ascend the staircase and come stumping down the corridor,
+and then stop outside the door.</p>
+
+<p>“Rat-tat.”</p>
+
+<p>Disentangling myself from the mountain of rugs in which I have wrapped
+myself, I go to see who can be there at this early hour. What joy!
+Enter a young and rosy female, more beautiful at that moment than the
+most exquisite Alpine flower, bearing in her hands a tray of smoking
+coffee and appetising little butter-breads in the shape of half-moons.
+And what celestial coffee, too! for celestial is the only adjective
+in the vocabulary capable of expressing its delicate and perfectly
+delicious flavour and aroma.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst gratefully imbibing it, we wonder how it comes to pass that,
+not only in the lowlands of Hungary, but in these far-away mountain
+regions, such exquisite coffee can be met with, whereas in England it
+is seldom if ever drinkable, that is to say by those who, having once
+travelled abroad, have tasted of better things.</p>
+
+<p><i>Neu</i> (New) Schmecks, at which we are staying, consists of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_202">[202]</span> a
+cluster of beautiful châlets, erected in the heart of the pine-woods by
+Dr. Sontagh, who has created a Sanatorium in this picturesque spot.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2020_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2020_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Going down to the breakfast-room, he comes forward to greet us, and
+we immediately recognise in him the gentleman who had accosted us
+the evening before at the station, whither he had gone to accompany
+a friend, but did not return home until after we had retired for the
+night.</p>
+
+<p>“There is no chance of your having an excursion to-day, I fear, if this
+mist should last,” he exclaimed as we took our seat at his hospitable
+board. “But you can at any rate visit the Kolbach Fall; and if you will
+allow me, I will be your guide.”</p>
+
+<p>As the Fall is on the way to the Fünf-Seen, however, which we hope to
+visit ere we leave the neighbourhood, we decide to-day to potter idly
+about our immediate surroundings and spy out the bearings of the land.
+The mist, too, clears as the day advances; and though not sufficiently
+to admit of an extensive view, yet the winding walks through the pine
+forest to the smaller Falls close by, as well as to the little temples
+and kiosks which have been erected for the comfort and enjoyment of
+tourists, give us ample amusement for our first day’s sojourn in this
+beautiful locality, and afford us an opportunity of becoming acquainted
+with the general features of the immediate neighbourhood.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_203">[203]</span></p>
+
+<p>Ten minutes’ walk through a narrow pathway edged by crimson heather,
+moss, and Alpine flowers of every hue, brings us to “Bad Schmecks.”</p>
+
+<p>Most persons in these enlightened days understand German sufficiently
+well to know that “Bad” means a place where there are mineral springs.
+But what an ugly-sounding name for such an idyllic region!</p>
+
+<p>Let us ignore it, as I would all names which the Austrians have
+translated into their own language, and call it by its pretty
+Hungarian—though less commonly known—appellation of Tátra-Fűred.</p>
+
+<p>Having arrived at a finger-post on which its name is written in both
+languages, we follow a little pathway in the direction indicated, and
+soon recognise through the pine-branches, which almost sweep us as we
+pass, the red gable of another châlet, and reaching a small opening in
+the forest find, as at New Tátra-Füred, a whole cluster of them, but
+standing more closely together, and scarcely so picturesque a place.</p>
+
+<p>This place owes its origin to Count Stephen Csáky, who, in 1797, was
+the first to discover the mineral springs which have brought it into
+note. There are, however, three other springs in the vicinity, viz. the
+<i>Rainer</i>, the <i>Lautsh</i>, and the <i>Vámbéry</i>, besides those
+which pass under the singular if not classic sobriquet of Castor and
+Pollux.</p>
+
+<p>The bathing season begins on the 15th of May and lasts until September;
+but in addition to the bathing establishments, there are several
+dwelling-houses for ordinary visitors, amongst which are those
+passing under the euphonious titles of the “Adria,” “Flora,” and
+“Rigi,” together with the very appropriate ones of “Alpenfee” and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_204">[204]</span>
+“Sans-souci.” In every instance the Hungarian significations are also
+attached to the foreign names.</p>
+
+<p>In 1873, the “Carpathian Exploration Society” was formed for the
+purpose of investigating the mountains from a scientific point of view,
+of making and improving paths over the various passes, erecting places
+of refuge for travellers, as well as organising the proper training of
+guides. The Society meets twice a year; in the winter at Késmark, and
+in the summer in this place at a châlet called “Priessnitz.”</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2040_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2040_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>This little settlement is at present closed in the winter, but there
+is no doubt that as the climate of the southern slopes of the Tátra
+becomes better known—which may with truth be called the Hungarian
+Engadine—it will be open all the year round, as is the case with the
+Sanatorium of Dr. Sontagh. Meteorological observations show that the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_205">[205]</span>
+temperature of this side of the Tátra group is comparatively even,
+the heat never being great in summer; whilst the thermometer during
+winter ranges several degrees higher than in the plains. Fogs seldom
+visit this elevation during the winter months; and should they appear,
+they soon pass over. The air is generally clear and transparent and
+the sky blue. We were told by a disinterested observer that there are
+days in Tátra-Fűred, during the coldest season of the year, when the
+climate is enchanting, and that to those who have visited this region
+in the winter the impression left on the mind has been one never to be
+forgotten. The dark pine-woods, against which the peaks stand out in
+appalling whiteness; the deep blue chasms at their base; the soft and
+pearly shadows thrown by the snowy protuberances themselves; the sea of
+vapour lying all across the plains, which, rolling and surging as it
+floats, resembles a troubled sea, out of which the distant mountains
+of Gőmőr rise like a rocky, storm-beat shore—form a spectacle at once
+beautiful and majestic.</p>
+
+<p>The winter of 1879–80, which will be remembered as one of more than
+ordinary severity and duration throughout Europe, is said to have been
+an exceedingly mild one at Tátra-Fűred, the average temperature during
+the very coldest time having been from 54° to 60° Fahrenheit.</p>
+
+<p>In exceptionally mild winters, the cranberry with its small myrtle-like
+leaves may be seen growing luxuriantly among the green pines in
+company with ferns of the hardier kinds, whose bright green fronds
+mingle sweetly with the more sombre foliage of the non-deciduous
+sub-Alpine flora. At such times the <i>Veronica officinalis</i> with
+its small blue flowers and the <i>Geum montanum</i> blossom freely,
+each with<span class="pagenum" id="Page_206">[206]</span> the same bright hues which delight the eye of the tourist
+in summer-time; whilst in the lower Alpine world, clothing itself
+but scantily with its white mantle, the dark pines and scattered
+rock-masses form a pleasing contrast to the glistening snow-fields of
+the higher regions.</p>
+
+<p>It is difficult for the uninitiated stranger to realise the warmth of
+this elevation during winter, but meteorological observations carried
+over a series of years bear testimony to the fact. The circumstance is
+no doubt due to the extreme dryness of the air, and absence of rain and
+fog, together with the protection from the wind afforded by the higher
+ridges.</p>
+
+<p>The deciduous trees, however, lose their leaves, as well as the larch
+its spines, in the beginning of November, when, no longer able to make
+further resistance, they resign themselves to the dominion of the
+frost-king until the middle of March, when the first spring flowers
+once more announce the re-awakening of vegetation.</p>
+
+<p>Nowhere in the region of the Tátra are there any real glaciers, but
+lying in some of the valleys towards the north there are vast fields of
+perpetual snow, together with unmistakeable evidences of the existence
+of glaciers at some former period—of which more anon. The snow does
+not lie much on these peaks long after June, the reason assigned being
+that their extremely sharp declivities afford no flats or ledges
+upon which it can rest. The Alps of Switzerland are as a rule less
+perpendicular and pointed, from which circumstance the snow does not
+slide down and disappear when the thaw sets in as it does here.</p>
+
+<p>The principal element of these mountains is granite, though of a
+somewhat different kind from the ordinary<span class="pagenum" id="Page_207">[207]</span> crystalline rock of that
+name. This difference is not observable in small blocks, but is very
+marked in some of the rocky precipices,—for example, in those of the
+Lomnitzer group; a circumstance pointed out to us by Dr. Sontagh, who
+is not only a naturalist, but a geologist as well. Here where the rock
+forms an upright precipice, the parallelism of the strata, which often
+measure four feet in thickness, is very clearly distinguished. Its
+bed dips from east to west, slightly inclining from the ridge, which
+circumstance causes the small peaks or needles of this mountain to bend
+over and assume very singular and fantastic forms.</p>
+
+<p>The mountains of the Tátra constitute the most northern boundary of
+Hungary, and the natural wall dividing it from Gallicia or ancient
+Poland.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2070_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2070_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+     <p class="p0 sm center">A Rusniak brother!</p>
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_208">[208]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XVI.<br>
+<span class="subhed">GOBLINS OF THE MIST.</span></h2></div>
+
+  <div class="poetry-container">
+   <div class="poetry">
+      <div class="stanza">
+        <div class="ileft">“Who are these, a shadowy band?</div>
+        <div>Come they from the Spirit-land?”</div>
+      </div>
+    </div>
+  </div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">“You will have a glorious day to-morrow for your climb to the
+Fünf-Seen” (Five-lakes), exclaimed the Doctor. “Look! the Königsberg is
+quite clear,” pointing to a prominent mountain rising out of a valley
+to the right, and upon which the sun is setting with a crimson blush.</p>
+
+<p>“But the barometer has fallen considerably,” broke in the manager, who
+was standing by our side.</p>
+
+<p>“The best barometer we have is the Königsberg,” replied the former,
+clinging to his pet theory: “and see! there is not an atom of cloud
+hanging about its ridges anywhere; the barometer can only have fallen
+for <i>heat</i>, it cannot be for either rain or fog.”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_209">[209]</span></p>
+
+<p>Horses and guides are consequently ordered to be in attendance at 6
+<span class="allsmcap">A.M</span>., an early start being necessary, as we cannot in any case
+be home until the evening.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2080_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2080_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>At 6 <span class="allsmcap">A.M.</span>, however, such is the disappointing habit of
+mountain regions, nothing is to be seen but dark pines looming through
+the mist; and as we descend the wooden steps of Villa Sontagh and mount
+our steeds—whose breath pouring from their nostrils appears so like
+vapour let off from the safety-valve of a steam-engine, that we expect
+every moment to hear them whistle—we feel instantly enveloped in a wet
+sheet.</p>
+
+<p>Everything is moist, murky, and miserable, each hair of our guide’s
+moustaches and whiskers being furnished with its own particular and
+peculiar little globule of moisture, as well as those of the provision
+<i>Träger</i> who follows modestly behind. I observe that we are all so
+confident of its being fine, “by and by,” that we make no inquiry of
+our guide concerning the probable state of the weather in the heights,
+taking the fact of its clearing up quite as a matter of course.</p>
+
+<p>Forcing our way along the narrow pathway under the pine-trees, whose
+branches, heavy with their weight of moisture, hang their heads and
+sweep us as we pass, is not however quite so pleasant as it might
+be; and we are perhaps a thought more silent than is customary with
+persons starting on a mountaineering expedition. As we proceed, too,
+our ardour becomes damped together with our clothes. Still we jog on,
+and try to look hopeful at any rate, if not beaming, which is difficult
+when you feel the feather of your hat—that once possessed a lovely
+curl—hanging down behind your neck with a steady drip.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_210">[210]</span></p>
+
+<p>My horse—I give him this appellation for the sake of euphony, for
+he is a nondescript animal not easy to define—has not only a rough
+and disagreeable action, but I soon discover that all attempts at
+guiding him are unavailing. Possessing as he did a mulish desire
+to go directly contrary to the wishes of his rider, I have to pull
+persistently with the left rein to insure his going steadily to the
+right, and <i>vice versâ</i>; and the bit and bridle are evidently an
+ornamental arrangement, for the only thing he heeds is the voice of
+his master, who walks some little distance behind, and to which he
+instantly responds. His master, indeed, talks to him as though he were
+not only gifted, like Balaam’s ass, with the power of speech, but with
+understanding of the Zipser <i>patois</i> also—the language spoken in
+these mountains, a corruption of the German.</p>
+
+<p>“Now then, Minsh”—that being the creature’s name—“look out! see
+where you are going! mind that hole there! To the right, Minsh! to the
+right! keep back! don’t go so fast down the hill, the path is steep
+and stony;” and “Ah! Minsh, <i>dear</i> Minsh, don’t go so near the
+precipice, or <i>she’ll</i> be over,” were the warning and consoling,
+not to say complimentary, observations that often reached me from afar.</p>
+
+<p>“Minsh” had also a disagreeable habit of looking at everything he
+passed; he was a beast of inquiring mind, but the indulgence of that
+praiseworthy propensity is not always agreeable to the equestrian in
+localities like the present, where one false step might send both rider
+and steed tumbling into an abyss below.</p>
+
+<p>“Minsh,” however, was not destitute of good qualities, after all, and
+moreover possessed a great notion of his own<span class="pagenum" id="Page_211">[211]</span> importance, taking good
+care of himself when the road happened to be dangerous; and looking
+neither to the right nor the left whenever we chanced to be passing
+close to precipices, but picking his way right dexterously among the
+large boulders that often beset our path.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2110_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2110_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Our little cavalcade is headed by the guide, followed by the Doctor
+himself, who had volunteered to accompany us. He is clad in an
+appropriate and becoming costume of drab cloth, with a broad-brimmed,
+high-crowned hat to match. An ardent sportsman, he carries not only his
+gun across his shoulder, but his <i>Jägerhorn</i> hangs from his side;
+whilst in the band which surrounds his hat are stuck various trophies
+of the chase: a bunch of the long hair of the chamois, sundry black
+feathers from the <i>coq de bruyère</i>, and a bunch of faded wild
+flowers, gathered on some previous expedition. Next comes F., looking
+like a species of lichen with which the pines are enveloped, his dark
+clothes covered with an infinitesimal number of white particles of a
+dewy nature. So striking, indeed, is the resemblance that a spider
+mistakes him for it; and letting itself down by its tiny thread as he
+passes<span class="pagenum" id="Page_212">[212]</span> by, begins forthwith spinning a splendid specimen of cobweb
+on his hat. Then comes your humble servant, the chronicler of these
+annals, looking much the same; whilst last, but by no means least,
+comes the provision <i>Träger</i>, who brings up the rear.</p>
+
+<p>“It is a good sign when cobwebs are seen,” remarked the sanguine
+Doctor, not alluding to the patient little weaver still diligently
+plying his art in F.’s wide-awake, but to the number of webs clinging
+to the trees above our heads.</p>
+
+<p>But in spite of these auspicious indications, and the predictions of
+the Königsberg of the previous evening, the weather does <i>not</i>
+improve. We look up, but the mist comes down and hangs about the pines
+like wreaths of smoke.</p>
+
+<p>In half an hour’s time we reach a pretty little wooden hut or “refuge,”
+close to our pathway, called the Rosa-Schutzhütte, standing on a ledge
+of jutting rock whence a glorious view is obtained—when you can see
+it—of the beautiful valleys of the Little and Great Kolbach, together
+with the Lomnitzer-Spitze rearing its pinnacles heavenwards. In the
+distance, we hear the roar of the waters of the Great Kolbach Fall,
+and, after a quarter of an hour’s further scramble, come in sight of
+it, dashing over huge blocks of granite from a height of four hundred
+feet, and forming itself into numerous cascades and eddies till it
+leaps over an immense wall of rock and covers us with its spray.</p>
+
+<p>Climbing a large boulder, we have a fine view of as much as we can see
+of it, as it comes tearing down the gorge with thundering might. The
+vegetation on either side is<span class="pagenum" id="Page_213">[213]</span> very varied and beautiful; here and there
+a Siberian stone-pine (<i>Pinus cembra</i>) rears its head grandly
+above the deciduous trees which lean picturesquely towards the Fall, as
+if attracted towards it by some mysterious and hidden fascination.</p>
+
+<p>Following a little path to the left, we descend to the “Lange-Fall,”
+where the gorge becomes more contracted, and the water flowing over
+various shelves of rock has fashioned for itself numerous rounded
+cavities, or basins, similar to those often seen in Scotland, where
+they are designated “witches’ caldrons.” At the bottom of these
+cavities, besides a number of small round stones, a large one is
+invariably found, which is supposed, when the cascade is full, to be
+made to revolve by the water working itself into eddies and whirlpools,
+in consequence of which the rock, by the constant friction of the
+stone, gets worn away into these smooth, circular, and basin-like
+hollows.</p>
+
+<p>Mounting our ponies again, we continue the climb, and follow the
+magnificent Fall for a considerable distance, getting glorious glimpses
+of it every now and then through the pine-trees to our right; but the
+thunder of its waters is so deafening, that it is almost a relief when
+we find ourselves standing in a peaceful Alpine meadow, where, leaving
+our ponies at the Rainerhütte to await our return, we recommence our
+climb on foot.</p>
+
+<p>Above us to the left rises a perpendicular rock, two thousand feet in
+height, beneath which the <i>Kleine</i> (Little) <i>Kolbach</i> hastens
+to join its larger prototype, and accompany it in its mad career to the
+distant and peaceful plains.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_214">[214]</span></p>
+
+<p>Crossing the meadow, which is purple with the Alpine crocus, we pass a
+wooden bridge and follow the windings of the <i>Kleine Kolbach</i> over
+moss-covered boulders and under the spreading branches of the krummholz
+(<i>Pinus Mughus</i>), a species of dwarf pine growing three or four
+feet from the ground, and whose limbs, knotted and gnarled, assume—as
+its name (crooked timber) implies—the most angular and grotesque forms
+imaginable.</p>
+
+<p>This pine, which is never found in these mountains at a lower altitude
+than 5000 feet, forms a perfect zone of 1000 feet round the whole of
+the Tátra, entirely ceasing to grow at 6000. So rigidly, in fact, does
+it cling to its own particular circle, that Dr. Sontagh has never been
+able to induce it to grow at his little settlement, only 1500 feet
+below, his frequent attempts having invariably proved unsuccessful.</p>
+
+<p>As we ascend further, the pink <i>daphne</i> greets us with its
+fragrance; whilst the pale mauve <i>primula</i> with its rigid
+pinnulate leaves, growing close to the stones as if clinging to them
+for shelter, relieves the eye with its beautiful cushions of bloom. The
+mist has partially cleared by this time, and we journey on with lighter
+hearts, though with no small difficulty; for the loose stones over
+which our track leads us, and which is nothing more nor less than the
+dry bed of a watercourse, adds greatly to the fatigue of our climb.</p>
+
+<p>Everywhere around us there are footprints of chamois, but we are far
+too noisy a party for such shy game to show themselves.</p>
+
+<p>“There are certain to be plenty in there,” remarks the Doctor, as
+we pass a more than usually dense clump of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_215">[215]</span> <i>krummholz</i>, “and
+ten to one they are watching our movements narrowly through the dark
+green branches; they always take refuge in the thick recesses of the
+<i>krummholz</i>, on the first sound of approaching footsteps.”</p>
+
+<p>Game abounds in the Tátra. In the forests lying at their base nearly
+all kinds common to other countries are found, besides wolves, bears,
+and polecats. In the higher regions chamois and marmots abound, while
+the rocks are the haunt of the golden eagle and the vulture.</p>
+
+<p>At length, after two hours’ climb, during which we have been getting
+into deeper and deeper snow, the mist that had partially cleared now
+gathers over us again. We can scarcely see a yard ahead of us, and I
+lose all sight of my companions. They too had lost sight of me, but I
+soon heard a voice proceeding from the darkness shouting in stentorian
+accents “Where are you?” so close to me that I was quite startled,
+and, looking up, saw their shadowy forms looming through the mist like
+goblins, almost at my elbow. In a few minutes we recognise, crouching
+beneath an overhanging rock, the welcome form of the provision
+<i>Träger</i>, evidently engaged in making a fire, for we have arrived
+at the <i>Feuerstein</i>.</p>
+
+<p>We are now above the region of vegetation, except that of herbaceous
+kinds, and nothing is visible above the sheet of snow save the long
+coarse grass which hangs in brown and matted tufts from the more
+sheltered ledges of the rocks. The scene, surrounded as we are by an
+ocean of white, relieved only by blocks of granite, which appear black
+upon their bed of glistening snow, is dreary in the extreme.</p>
+
+<p>A great deal of <i>krummholz</i>, brought hither by a previous<span class="pagenum" id="Page_216">[216]</span> party
+of excursionists, is lying near us; for the <i>Feuerstein</i> is
+the invariable place of bivouac for ascending tourists. It is damp,
+however, and does not easily ignite, but we beguile the time meanwhile
+by unpacking the provision-basket, and spreading its contents before
+us, until, having shivered philosophically for the space of half an
+hour, our patience is at length rewarded by a blaze.</p>
+
+<p>During the time occupied by these interesting proceedings the guide has
+been on ahead in the direction of our further climb, for the purpose
+of ascertaining whether it is clear in the higher ridges, but he now
+returns with the intelligence that it is impossible to reach the
+Fünf-Seen to-day.</p>
+
+<p>I think that in our secret hearts, though each expressed the due amount
+of disappointment at the ill-success that had attended our expedition,
+we were all rejoiced at this announcement. Nothing in the whole world
+is equal to a really thick mountain mist for taking the “go” out of
+one, and we were wet, worn and weary.</p>
+
+<p>By this time the fire is burning cheerily, and crouching round it
+we form, if a dishevelled, at any rate a picturesque group. But
+<i>krummholz</i>, from its pungency, is not the most pleasant wood to
+burn, and we are nearly blinded from its effects; whilst an aggravating
+current of air blowing round the north side of the <i>Feuerstein</i>,
+drives it in our direction. But these little annoyances do not
+interfere with our appetites, and like real mountaineers we try to
+think everything is charming and delightful, though I fear, after all,
+with but a sorry counterfeit.</p>
+
+<p>Tourists often spend the night under the shelter of this overhanging
+rock to see the sunrise. It also enables them<span class="pagenum" id="Page_217">[217]</span> to have an early climb
+should they wish to ascend the Lomnitzer-Spitze, the second highest
+mountain in the Tátra, a feat which takes, starting from this point,
+from three to four hours to accomplish. Until a comparatively recent
+period the Eisthaler-Spitze, 8690 feet, was believed to be the loftiest
+of the whole chain. The latest measurements, however, declare the
+Gerlsdorf to be sixty-six feet higher still. The two most difficult
+mountains to ascend are the Eisthal and the Lomnitz. To climb the
+latter the tourist has to proceed in a northerly direction, when,
+after passing over a mass of shattered rock-fragments, he reaches a
+narrow cleft called the “<i>Grosse-Probe</i>,” on account of its great
+difficulty.</p>
+
+<p>The summit of the Lomnitz consists of a block of granite about
+forty-five feet in circumference, and the ascent is both dangerous and
+difficult, but the view from its summit is magnificent, and Tátra-Fűred
+looks a mere speck in the dark forest at its base.</p>
+
+<p>Dr. Sontagh, a bold mountaineer and “cunning” huntsman, was just
+entertaining us with an exciting account of a chamois hunt in which he
+took part a few months ago, when there was a shout from below.</p>
+
+<p>“Come down quickly, the clouds are lifting, and there is a glorious
+view of the Lomnitz and Eisthaler Spitzen.”</p>
+
+<p>It was the voice of the guide. Hastily leaving the <i>Träger</i> to
+“pack up,” we descend from our place of bivouac, where the overhanging
+rock above us had entirely shut out all view, and, looking upwards,
+what a magnificent scene presented itself to our gaze! Gradually, as
+though a giant but invisible hand were drawing aside a curtain, the
+vapour, which had previously shrouded all in mystery and gloom,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_218">[218]</span> rose
+higher and higher, disclosing one mighty cone after another, till with
+a final effort it rolled away entirely and displayed peak after peak
+in endless succession, but far too precipitous for any snow to rest
+upon—pinnacles and spires and mighty domes piled one above another,
+rugged, denticulated, and sharp as needles; the whole scene rendered
+all the more savage by portions of the mist itself, which in rising had
+become caught in the jaws of the inner pinnacles, where, unable to make
+its escape, it rested in the hollows, and, separating one cone from
+another, caused each to stand out single and distinct.</p>
+
+<hr class="tb">
+
+<p>It was long before we could take our eyes from this wondrous scene.
+Never even in the Switzerland of my affections had I beheld aught so
+wild, so majestic, or so perfectly <i>awful</i> in its grandeur.</p>
+
+<p>As we descend the valley, what a world of chaos greets us, everywhere
+hidden, when we climbed the slope, by the mist, which, partially if not
+wholly, had concealed it from our view!</p>
+
+<p>In regions like these how old the world appears, and what pigmies
+we feel ourselves to be as we stand in the midst of such primeval
+formations! We no longer regret our inability to reach the Fünf
+Seen—our destination at starting. We have seen enough for one
+day—enough, that is, for those who realise in their heart of hearts
+the appalling grandeur of such sights in nature, and who love to
+photograph them for ever on the retina of their memory. As we turn our
+backs upon them and resume the descent we endeavour to close our minds
+to all other impressions, and occupy ourselves in collecting Arctic
+mosses<span class="pagenum" id="Page_219">[219]</span> and lichen, and, at a lower altitude, small seedling trees of
+<i>krummholz</i>, hoping that although—jealous of its rocky mountain
+habitat—it has baffled the attempts of Dr. Sontagh to induce it to
+grow in Tátra-Fűred, it may yet do so in our English home.</p>
+
+<p>“Bestow one last look on the Lomnitzer-Spitze ere it fades entirely
+from our view,” exclaims the Doctor behind us.</p>
+
+<p>Thus summoned, we look back upon it once more. There it is, beautiful
+still, but how changed is its aspect! The mist that clung to the base
+of the cones and caused them to stand out solitary and alone has
+vanished into air, and a glory of sunlight is resting upon them; for,
+although hidden to us in the valley, the sun is shining full upon the
+summit of the mountain; but the scene has lost its mystery and weird
+grandeur, and we feel thankful we saw it as we did. Cloud and mist
+harmonise far better than sunshine with the savage spirit of such a
+scene.</p>
+
+<p>There is great variety in the colouring of this part of the Tátra
+region. The different shades of green, not only in the carpet of moss
+and lichen which we tread beneath our feet, but also in the small
+coniferæ which vegetate at the highest limits of the larger growth
+of flora; the rich dark green of the <i>krummholz</i> with its brown
+stems; the light and delicate green of the feathery and prickly
+juniper; the red trunks of the small pines above mentioned, and others
+rent in some instances from top to bottom lying upon the ground, or
+across the granite rock-fragments, bleached and wan—all form such a
+beautiful harmony of tints that there is no monotony anywhere.</p>
+
+<p>Just as we were completing the descent of the mountain, the mist,
+which had completely cleared away from the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_220">[220]</span> valleys and the base of
+the peaks, and concentrated itself into cumuli high above us, opened
+for an instant, and permitted us to behold the lofty summit of the
+Schlangendorfer-Spitze—the pearl of the Southern Tátra—and which,
+surrounded by billows of cloud, and clad with newly-fallen snow, looked
+almost too beautiful to belong even to this beautiful earth.</p>
+
+<p>Those who come only a fortnight later in the season miss a great deal;
+for these mountains are inconceivably grand when their summits are
+covered with their glistening mantles. On the other hand, many of the
+passes are closed to the ordinary climber, being still blocked by snow.</p>
+
+<p>Arriving at the Rainerhütte, we find our steeds already saddled in
+readiness for us.</p>
+
+<p>As a rule “Minsh” was not given to violent spirits, but he had been
+waiting long and patiently in the cold, and the thought of his warm
+<i>álás</i> forced itself on his mind, and in fancy he scented his
+provender from afar, so that I was no sooner on his back than,
+whinnying to his companions and shaking his head wickedly as much as to
+say to the others “I’m off home,” he cantered away, and endeavoured to
+take me by a short cut through the dense pine-woods. In vain I pulled
+at the reins as hard as I was able; all remonstrance on my part proved
+unavailing, till the voice of his master sounded from a distance in
+loud and deprecating accents.</p>
+
+<p>“Ah, Minsh! Minsh! Stop, dear! stop! <i>She’ll</i> be killed. The trees
+are close together! There’s no room to pass! She’ll be killed to a
+certainty. Ah, Minsh, may the Saints forgive you!”</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_221">[221]</span></p>
+
+<p>Minsh thus apostrophised could hold out no longer, and came to a
+standstill; when, retracing our steps, I rescued my hat, which was
+hanging to a branch at the entrance to the forest, and, soon rejoining
+the rest of our party, we reached Villa Sontagh without further
+incident.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2210_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2210_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_222">[222]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XVII.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE MOUNTAIN HOME.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">Tátra-Fűred, lying as it does both between and immediately under two
+of the loftiest summits of the whole chain, namely the Lomnitz and the
+Gerlsdorf, the most delightful mountain excursions can be made from
+it in all directions. But besides these—which must often be left to
+the more ambitious climber—are others within an easy distance, one of
+the latter being to the <i>Räubersteine</i> (Robber-stones), about an
+hour’s pleasant walk through the lovely pine forest.</p>
+
+<p>These stones consist of three colossal blocks of granite, whose
+existence can only be accounted for on the theory that they must
+have been brought from the somewhat distant heights by some glacial
+movement. Twenty paces farther on to the right is a smaller block, at
+which point a magnificent panorama of the plains of Poprád, situated
+3000 feet below, bursts upon the view, with a gracious wide-spreading
+landscape. How sweetly the little towns and villages dot the plains,
+the former so quaint and ugly near, but which from a distance look like
+toy-towns made of ivory—and sometimes even of silver, as a ray of
+sunshine gleaming upon the whitewashed<span class="pagenum" id="Page_223">[223]</span> houses and steeples causes them
+to glisten like veritable palaces of Aladdin. Surely never did distance
+lend such enchantment to the view!</p>
+
+<p>The plains surrounding the Tátra belong to what is called the
+<i>Zips</i>, a district covering an area of two hundred English square
+miles, and inhabited almost exclusively by the descendants of the
+German colonists who migrated hither in the twelfth century from their
+home in Lower Saxony; a fact which explains the seeming anomaly of
+the German language being spoken in this region of Northern Hungary,
+otherwise almost exclusively peopled by Slávs.</p>
+
+<p>Over these smiling plains the eye wanders until arrested by the
+bold outline of the Königsberg, the Baba, the Borzova, and the
+<i>Teufelshochzeit</i> (Devil’s marriage). From the former mountain the
+whole of the Tátra chain can be seen, and thither, on first arriving at
+these Northern Carpathians, the tourist often repairs—since it is an
+excursion that can easily be accomplished from Poprád in one day—in
+order that he may be able to form a correct idea of the characteristics
+and extent of the whole of the Tátra range, before penetrating into its
+interior.</p>
+
+<p>The immediate neighbourhood of Tátra-Fűred is in fact replete with
+beauty of every kind, and we never tired of strolling about its
+narrow winding paths, breathing the fragrant odour of the pine woods,
+and listening to the waterfalls, which, crossed by rustic bridges,
+come tumbling over moss-covered boulders quite close to the chalets
+themselves.</p>
+
+<p>Our favourite haunt, however, was the “Pavilion,” half a mile distant;
+a pretty kiosk, situated close under the Gerlsdorfer-Spitze, from which
+it is separated only by a belt<span class="pagenum" id="Page_224">[224]</span> of pines. To me no scene was ever more
+impressive than that afforded by the plains from this spot. Unlike that
+portion of them which is viewed from the <i>Räubersteine</i>, not a
+sign of habitation is visible, nothing but the plains themselves and
+the long deep belts of pines—undistinguishable from this distance
+except in colour—which create dark and sombre lines of greenish black
+across the landscape. Scarcely a bird or insect disturbs the solitude
+of this spot, and one feels completely separated from the world,
+and immersed in the lonely heart of Nature. The whole vicinity of
+Tátra-Fűred forms in truth one of the most romantic and sweetest places
+I ever saw, and one in which I would fain make my home for many months
+to come, so entirely do its surroundings content my taste.</p>
+
+<p>A fine day imbues us with a spirit of renewed courage for a climb, and
+we start for the Félka Lake, which being situated at a lower elevation
+than the Fünf-Seen, and consequently having less snow lying in the
+hollows on the way, we have every prospect of reaching.</p>
+
+<p>Just as we were standing on the balcony preparatory to our journey, a
+fine deer was brought in, together with a small animal with beautiful
+long reddish-grey hair, the size of a badger. The creature had
+evidently been just killed by some other animal that had doubtless
+designed it for its dinner, for there were no signs of shot-marks on
+its body, and it was still warm as it hung over the shoulder of the man
+who had found it in the woods hard by.</p>
+
+<p>Our way leads us by a steep and stony path through a forest consisting
+almost wholly of the red pine (<i>Pinus abies</i>), so called from the
+colour of its bark. These<span class="pagenum" id="Page_225">[225]</span> lordly trees are draped with two or three
+kinds of lichen, dark green, greyish-green, and white, which, hanging
+like tresses from each branch and stem, have, when stirred by the wind,
+a most singular effect, resembling witches’ hair.</p>
+
+<p>Almost all ferns common to England grow in the Tátra; the “beech” and
+“oak” ferns growing abundantly in shady nooks in the Kolbach valley,
+together with the “prickly” and the “thorny” ferns (<i>Aspidium
+aculeatum</i> and <i>Aspidium spinulosum</i>). Besides which the
+beautiful <i>Cystopteris fragilis</i> is found growing on the rocks,
+and the dark-stemmed <i>Asplenium trichomanes</i>.</p>
+
+<p>The forest solitudes are literally full of game; and occasionally, as
+our ponies pick their way over the stony path, an enormous bird with
+a green and bronze breast rises with a “whirr” from the thick covert
+which encloses us, and, stirring the air, startles our ponies with
+the fluttering of its great black wings. It is the <i>Auerhahn</i>, a
+most difficult bird to bag, only experienced “shots” being fortunate
+enough to bring them down, for they see at long distances, and have
+very sharp ears. There is, moreover, only one moment when the sportsman
+can entertain the slightest hope of aiming with effect, viz. when
+they <i>sing</i>. At this juncture, opening wide their great fans
+and throwing their heads far back, they can neither see nor hear. It
+is an affair of an instant, and the sportsman, already on the <i>qui
+vive</i>, must immediately fire, or he will do so in vain.</p>
+
+<p>The Tátra is said to be the only region in Europe where the
+<i>Auerhahn</i> (<i>Tetras Gallus</i>) is found. It is a much larger
+bird than the peacock, and has immense claws with barbed edges as
+sharp as needles. We often tasted it, in one form or other, whilst
+staying at Villa Sontagh; the flesh,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_226">[226]</span> though rather coarse and
+dark, being not altogether unlike goose. These forests also abound
+with the <i>Birkhahn</i>, the <i>Haselhahn</i>, the <i>Rebhahn</i>,
+and the <i>Kaiser-Vogel</i>, or “Emperor bird,” so called from the
+deliciousness and delicacy of its flesh, which resembles that of the
+turkey. In higher regions still the “Chamois Eagle” and the “King
+Eagle” are likewise met with, forming in all a goodly selection for
+enthusiastic sportsmen.</p>
+
+<p>As we pursue our way the mountain steeps are covered with flowers,
+conspicuous amongst which is the large Alpine anemone, whose size
+is much greater than that of the little pet of our own woods, its
+rigid foliage and tall inflexible stem covered with a coat of white
+down, with which kind mother Nature has furnished it to enable it to
+withstand the severer climate of this region.</p>
+
+<p>Our path has hitherto been that by which the Schlangendorfer-Spitze
+is approached, but we now strike off into one called the
+<i>Kreuzhübel</i>, which leads by a direct route to the Félka lake, and
+then pass along the ridge of a high tableland, whence we look down upon
+the peaceful plains of Poprád, lying at the foot of the southern slopes
+of the Tátra; whilst to the north the wild rushing Faelker torrent
+comes tumbling towards us.</p>
+
+<p>These heights are perfectly full of chamois. In the moist sand which is
+formed by the overflow of the torrent during heavy rains, as well as
+in the peaty soil on either side, we see their footprints everywhere
+as they flee before us. Not unfrequently we can trace them right into
+a clump of <i>krummholz</i>, or a group of granite blocks, where,
+entrenched as in a natural fortress, we feel quite sure they are hiding
+with beating hearts. We also pass, close to our pathway, several<span class="pagenum" id="Page_227">[227]</span>
+marmot-holes. This animal, which in the plains is scarcely larger than
+a squirrel, is here the size of a hare. During the winter months they
+sleep, and are then easily captured by the <i>Jäger</i>, who, wearing
+curiously-constructed snow-shoes, climb these dangerous steeps for the
+purpose.</p>
+
+<p>At length getting, even at this lower elevation, into deep snow, we
+leave our ponies behind; for, as the poor animals sink into unseen
+holes at almost every step, it is neither agreeable nor safe to ride
+them any farther, and by scrambling up a steep bank inaccessible to any
+quadrupeds but chamois, we hope we may be able to avoid the snow lying
+in the hollows.</p>
+
+<p>(I have hitherto forgotten to say that having forsworn “Minsh” and his
+idiosyncrasies for ever, I have for the time become the happy possessor
+of a sure-footed animal that carries me capitally, and has neither will
+of his own, nor any peculiarity whatsoever.)</p>
+
+<p>After struggling through mountain streams, clambering over granite
+boulders, and making our way through fields of snow in spite of all
+efforts to the contrary, we reach the <i>Zufluchtshütte</i>, or “hut
+of refuge,” recently built, the one previously standing on the borders
+of the lake having been destroyed by an avalanche a few years ago. The
+scene is both lovely and desolate, the perpendicular mountains, huge
+masses of fallen rock, a lovely little cascade, and the placid lake
+reflecting the heavenly blue, presenting a picture of alternate savage
+grandeur and gentle beauty.</p>
+
+<p>This exquisite little lake, or, more correctly speaking, Alpine tarn,
+lies at a little less than 6000 feet above the level of the sea. The
+colour of its water is brightest emerald, except near its shores, where
+it fades into the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_228">[228]</span> more delicate tint of beryl. Not a ripple disturbs
+its glassy surface—a death-like stillness prevails: and as we stand
+and gaze upon it, a spell seems hanging over it and us; its intense
+loneliness imparting to it quite an eery look, whilst its silence seems
+to hold us captive.</p>
+
+<p>Adding to the general desolation, close by stand the ruins of a stone
+hut that was shattered by an avalanche; but just within its ruined
+walls, in strange contrast to its surroundings, we observe blooming a
+lovely little yellow flower, sending forth its fragrance even here, and
+looking in its brightness like a wee scrap of sunshine dropped from the
+sky.</p>
+
+<p>Near this lake is the beautiful <i>Blumengarten</i>, which, rich in
+vegetation, contains many rare flowers peculiar to the Tátra. It is
+supposed to be situated on the bed of what was also formerly a lake,
+evidence of whose existence is seen in the <i>Wassertümpel</i> (pools),
+as they are called, of to-day.</p>
+
+<p>This sweet little pleasaunce is watered by a brook which, meandering
+through it, falls over a precipitous wall of granite 330 feet in
+height, and, forming a lovely cascade, empties itself into the lake.</p>
+
+<p>By this route the Lange-See may be reached, likewise situated at about
+6000 feet; a lake supposed to have formerly been much larger than it
+is at present, its size having been lessened by the immense number
+of stones and boulders which have fallen from the Gerlsdorfer-Spitze
+and blocked up its bed. Beyond the Lange-See, the Polnischer
+Kamm—Lengyelnyereg, as it is called in the harsh language of the
+Poles—is likewise approached. It is however a difficult climb, there
+being no pathway, and enormous blocks of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_229">[229]</span> granite, sixteen and twenty
+feet in height, have first to be conquered; but the patience and
+perseverance of the enthusiastic mountaineer will be fully recompensed
+by the superb view he will have of the various peaks of the Northern or
+Polish Tátra, as well as those of the South, together with the Zipser
+plains stretching away beyond.</p>
+
+<p>Lingering in the vicinity of the Félka-See, we search for garnets; one
+of the attractions of this lake being the “Granatenwand,” a purplish
+grey rock rising abruptly from it. The shore beneath this mountain is
+strewn with fragments in which the crimson stones lie almost as closely
+imbedded as currants in a plum-pudding, varying in size from a pea to
+half an inch in diameter.</p>
+
+<p>Immediately above the lake, forming in fact one of its gigantic walls,
+is the Gerlsdorfer-Spitze, its rugged outline cutting into an almost
+purple sky. Every Alpine traveller knows how in regions like these the
+sky as he ascends appears to come down to meet him, descending lower
+and lower as he climbs, till it appears to span him with a palpable
+and opaque arch, and also how intense and utterly indescribable is
+its blue. We had scarcely expected to observe this phenomenon at an
+altitude of little more than 6000 feet, but it is notwithstanding very
+marked to-day; and as we cast our eyes upwards towards the empyrean, it
+seems almost to touch us; whilst all around in the small <i>Alpen</i>,
+as the green patches are here called, the blue forget-me-not is paled
+almost to cold grey, in contrast with the dome above.</p>
+
+<p>On the western side, and 150 feet above the level of the valley, there
+exist evidences of glacial action in the bed of an ancient moraine
+a mile in length, containing pointed and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_230">[230]</span> jagged blocks of granite,
+which could not have fallen from the precipitous heights which rise on
+either side (these being formed of dolomite), and must therefore have
+been brought hither from a considerable distance by the slow but steady
+course of the glacier.</p>
+
+<p>As we stand looking at this mighty stone-stream, now inert, which,
+once imbued with motion, travelled silently and imperceptibly day by
+day, carrying on its back the <i>Schutthaufen</i>, or accumulated rock
+<i>débris</i> of ages, the whistling of the marmot—its little pipe
+echoed in many a rocky precipice—is the only sound that greets our
+ears.</p>
+
+<p>In descending we take a slightly different route, and get into a
+field of snow, frozen so hard that it is as slippery as glass. This
+frozen sheet of white covers a broad valley hemmed in on all sides by
+rugged pyramids and pinnacles of purple rock, and proves to be that
+which we had so often gazed at from below, where it appears but a
+small and slender line of white—a frozen artery zigzagging down the
+mountain side; whilst that huge cone in its centre, whose form we also
+recognise, and which looked from a distance but a mere stone, now turns
+out to be a pinnacle of rock several hundred feet in height!</p>
+
+<p>Presently we descend another valley, and our feet sink deep in
+yielding snow, which, though less dangerous than the previous ice,
+is far more disagreeable. Our guide this time is none other than the
+Doctor himself, who, ever ready for a mountaineering expedition, had
+accompanied us hither also—a circumstance that greatly added to our
+pleasure—for with his knowledge of the botany and geology of the
+district he proved a most interesting companion.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst descending this gorge, we observed close to us a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_231">[231]</span> track made by
+a number of chamois. They could only just have passed, for the powdery
+snow they had scattered still lay there, and the sand from their
+hoofs was still moist and fresh. Seeing footprints to our right, we
+fancy they must be those made by ourselves on our upward way, but on
+following them they lead us into serious difficulty, the snow masking
+under its deceitful mantle such crevasses and holes that we have to
+retrace our steps. Before doing so, however, a slight examination of
+the footprints convinces us that they are not our own, and at this
+instant a shot fired higher up the gorge betrays the presence of
+poachers, disquieting our host not a little, to whom the game of this
+part of the mountain exclusively belongs. Having been misled some
+distance by the intruders’ footsteps, it was a considerable time before
+we were able to regain our old track.</p>
+
+<p>Close to our pathway, which was formed by the dry bed of a mountain
+stream, we observed many holes fashioned in the sand at a safe distance
+from high-water mark. They were nests, and, looking down into one of
+them, I saw a number of brown eggs. I was about to thrust my hand in
+to take one out “to look at,” when I was checked by the kind-hearted
+Doctor, who said gently:</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Ne les touchez pas, de peur de troubler la mère. Laissez-les, je
+vous en prie.</i>”</p>
+
+<p>Before reaching the spot at which we had left our steeds, a thin streak
+of vapour that had been lying across the valley, and which we had been
+anxiously watching for some time past, began to ascend, and now wrapped
+all nature, far and near, within its gloomy curtain. In the distance,
+however, we hear the loud “cooey” of the muleteers, and, following<span class="pagenum" id="Page_232">[232]</span>
+the sound, see them looming through the mist. This soon turns into a
+drenching rain, and we arrive at our peaceful and hospitable châlet
+somewhat in the condition of drowned rats, but are consoled by the
+sight of large fires, made in anticipation of our returning in a moist
+condition; for we learnt afterwards that it had been raining almost
+ever since we started, although we, up in the heights, had fortunately
+escaped it.</p>
+
+<p>Dinner is succeeded by a pleasant evening spent in the company of Dr.
+Sontagh and his pretty and amiable wife, and, sitting over the cheerful
+pinewood fire, we listen to the daring mountain exploits of the
+former. All round the room the walls are hung with the accoutrements
+of the chase—guns, pistols, knives, large flat snow-shoes, a net,
+chamois-rope, <i>Jägerhorn</i>, etc.—together with its trophies, the
+heads of deer and chamois, and those of large birds; and as we hear the
+wood crackle and watch its merry blaze dance upwards, we feel for the
+moment that we must be in the mountain home of some ancient knight.</p>
+
+<p>Taking out the flowers which we have been collecting, we arrange and
+press them between sheets of blotting-paper; for Carpathian wild
+flowers will be a delightful novelty to our friends at home.</p>
+
+<p>There are various species of flowers which are indigenous to the
+Tátra only, amongst which are the <i>Saxifraga hieracifolia</i>,
+<i>Dianthus nitidus</i> (both of which grow on limestone), <i>Avena
+Carpatica</i>, <i>Gentiana frigida</i>, <i>Ranunculus pygmæus</i>, and
+the <i>Campanula Carpatica</i>; whilst the beautiful <i>Edelweiss</i>,
+which has been stated, most unaccountably, not to exist at all in the
+Carpathians, grows to an enormous size in many districts of these
+mountains,—a fact borne out by the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_233">[233]</span> splendid specimens we have of it
+in our collection of Tátra flowers.</p>
+
+<hr class="tb">
+
+<p>The morrow brings a lovely day. Birds carol in the pine-woods, which,
+saturated with moisture from the recent rains, give forth a fragrant
+odour as the sun shines hot upon them. The forget-me-not opens its
+sweet blue eyes wide to catch the light of heaven. The fragile
+<i>Polygala</i> erects its slender spikes, and the delicate <i>Dentaria
+glandulosa</i>, that yesterday almost fainted under its weight of
+moisture, now holds aloft its fairy-bells. The hoary lichen, which
+hung dishevelled like matted hair, dries its fringes in the sun, which
+filtering through the branches sparkles in the drops still lingering in
+the cups of the anemone.</p>
+
+<p>As we canter through the forest to the Cszorba-See, cataracts and
+mountain streamlets, swelled by the rain, come dancing, leaping,
+hurrying down each rocky gorge and shadowy ravine, till at length
+the broad and placid lake—which Nature has hidden deep in mountain
+fastnesses from the gaze of all but those enthusiastic lovers who
+diligently seek it out—bursts suddenly upon the view.</p>
+
+<p>Lying embosomed in its rocky cradle, the Cszorba-See is one of the
+most beautiful lakes of the whole range. Above it rises a glorious
+amphitheatre of mountain peaks. On the eastern extremity the
+Gerlsdorfer, and on the western the <i>Spitze</i> of the Krivan, rear
+their mighty crests, whilst in the centre are the giant blocks of the
+Bastei and Szolyiszkó, the whole forming a circle of twelve miles in
+extent.</p>
+
+<p>The lake itself, which lies at an elevation of 4355 feet above the
+level of the sea, is the largest in the Southern Tátra; and as we stand
+on one of the lofty and serried<span class="pagenum" id="Page_234">[234]</span> precipices of granite with which it is
+environed, we think no scene was ever so enchanting. The crystal bosom
+of the water mirroring the sky; the bright green tint of the centre of
+the lake; the ethereal blue of its surface where it reposes over the
+deeper hollows, and the dark pines on its margin, combine together to
+form a gem of mountain, wood, and water.</p>
+
+<p>Though this lake possesses a depth of between sixty and seventy feet,
+and is therefore one of the deepest in the whole Tátra, it appears to
+feed itself, there being no inlet visible to the eye. It is surrounded
+by granite boulders, and partly floored with them too, while the water
+is so exquisitely clear that even the pebbles lying at the bottom among
+the granite seem close to the surface, and we feel we have only to
+plunge the hand in to pick them from their watery bed. As we stood on
+its margin we saw numerous triton (<i>Triton cristatus</i>) darting in
+and out amongst the stones, small fish about three or four inches long,
+covered with bright red spots; whilst feeding on the green sedges were
+several gold beetles (<i>Philoperta horticola</i>) in their glistening
+coats of mail. No whistling marmots make their nests in the rocks round
+the Cszorba-See; but the visitor, as he sits silently on its shores or
+climbs the precipices which wall it in on every side, will not remain
+long without seeing a kingly eagle cleave the skies, or, crossing the
+region of the lake, reflect its majestic image on its glassy bosom.</p>
+
+<p>During a storm this lake is said to be covered with large waves,
+which dash over the rocks, and the scene must then, indeed, be one
+of wild grandeur. Its outlet lies towards the south, where, almost
+imperceptibly to the eye, it empties itself over moor and fen, even in
+the driest months of the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_235">[235]</span> year, always flowing, and proving therefore
+that, though unseen, it must have a continual inflow. Strange to
+say, the water from some cause or other is bitter, possibly from the
+pinewood, a great deal of which has fallen into the lake, and which
+lies at the bottom.</p>
+
+<p>Hungarian <i>savants</i> declare that this lake is the offspring of an
+ancient glacier, the upper end of which formerly extended to the ridge
+of the mountain lying between the twin rocks Bastei and Szolyiszkó, and
+which filled the valley between them, the base of the glacier resting
+on the space where the lake now fills, and which formed its reservoir;
+whilst the huge granite wall which is seen to enclose it on one side
+was the moraine which the glacier dragged with it in its progress down
+the mountain side. It is further believed that interesting remains
+exist in this lake similar to those discovered a few years ago in
+that of the Neusiedler in the west of Hungary. On this account it has
+been proposed by the Carpathian Society to draw off its waters, and
+the proposition may doubtless some day be carried out, when it is
+conjectured that relics of the Stone or Bronze Age will be brought to
+light.</p>
+
+<p>Our last evening at Villa Sontagh has arrived. Going out to bid
+farewell to the mountains which have at intervals behaved so badly to
+us, we find the Lomnitzer-Spitze rearing its head proudly above the
+dark pine-tops and bathed in a rich mingling of bronze and amber, its
+graceful outlines pencilled on a clear and mellow sky.</p>
+
+<p>At our feet lie the broad plains, flooded in the softened splendour
+of the evening light. The villages with their white spires, lying far
+apart amidst the expanse of ripening corn, which an hour ago were
+glistening like burnished<span class="pagenum" id="Page_236">[236]</span> gold, are now suffused with a faint and
+delicate flush of rose, for the sun is sinking in the crimson west.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2360_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2360_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Very softly, almost imperceptibly, the stately shadow of the mountains,
+marching with silent and stealthy steps begins to steal along the
+boundless plains, till the sun, lingering for an instant upon the
+highest peak as though it mourned to leave it, sinks at last to rest. A
+sombre shade passes over the landscape, like a sudden sadness over the
+human face—and thus our last day comes to an end.</p>
+
+<p>“You have been rather too early in the season to meet with fine
+weather,” remarked the Doctor, apologetically, as we sat round the
+fire for the last time, and the conversation had turned upon that
+never-failing resource of shipwrecked talkers, puzzled for a theme—the
+weather.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_237">[237]</span> We had alluded rather ungraciously, I fear, to the frequent
+rain and mist during our sojourn in these heights.</p>
+
+<p>“If you had come a fortnight later, or a month earlier,” he continued,
+“you would have been more fortunate, and, besides, this has been an
+exceptional year.”</p>
+
+<p>Now, I never remember having visited a new country, or returned to
+an old one, nor indeed gone anywhere whatever, but I have been told
+that the state of the weather is “exceptional.” Am <i>I</i> then the
+cause of these meteorological disturbances—these unseasonable and
+unexpected risings and fallings of the barometer—these abnormal rains,
+untimely frosts, and bitter cutting winds—these cut-throat fogs, and
+murky, sunless skies? As the appalling possibility occurs to me, I feel
+inclined to retire within my castle like Giant Despair, and leave the
+elements in peace and quiet for ever!</p>
+
+<p>Our visit to the Tátra had in fact been carefully timed, and we had
+come early by intention. About three weeks hence, Hungarians and
+Austrians will be fleeing to these Alpine regions from the scorching
+heat of the Alfőld; gipsy bands and the sounds of revelry will awake
+these majestic solitudes; the fashionable world will bring hither their
+toilets and their etiquette, all very well in their place, but so out
+of time and tune, so hideous, so forbidding, and so altogether contrary
+to the poetry of these picturesque surroundings, that in their presence
+our whole being would have been set on edge. Besides which, the lonely
+beauty of the Alps loses its true spirit when gazed at in a crowd.
+How often have we crossed the great Swiss passes in sledges—the St.
+Gothard, Splügen, and the Simplon—ere they are open to the ordinary
+traveller,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_238">[238]</span> that we might enjoy Switzerland before the great rush of
+visitors begins! Never is it so grand as in the latter end of May
+or the beginning of June, when the snow is still lying in immense
+masses far down the mountain sides, and icicles still hang from each
+projecting rock and hoary pine. The scene may be desolate, but it is
+wild, beautiful, intensely Alpine, and, if I may so express it, <i>like
+itself</i>; and those who can see beauty in Nature, not only in her
+calm and placid moods, but in her savage and austere ones also, will
+gain far more than they imagine, by venturing to visit these sublime
+fastnesses before the season for the ordinary tourist sets in. They
+will then see the glorious Tátra as they are for eight or nine months
+in the year, and not during the two or three when they are all smiles
+and on good behaviour for company. And what eye does not perceive
+that sunshine is sometimes out of harmony with the spirit of mountain
+scenery? <i>Distant</i> mountains may look best in sunlight, but near
+ones are never so majestic as on a grey day, or when clouds passing
+over the face of the sun throw them into alternate glow and gloom.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2380_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2380_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_239">[239]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XVIII.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE GIPSY CAMP.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">An ordinary Hungarian coachman has little notion of time beyond that
+which has reference to the movements of the sun. The sun rises, and
+behold it is morning. It sets, and, lo! it is night. It is somewhere
+high up in the heavens, it is mid-day—but what time of day to within
+an hour or two he has not the faintest conception.</p>
+
+<p>Greksa Jankó, however, was not quite an ordinary coachman. He had
+long been under the influence of Tátra-Fűred civilisation, and was
+consequently only twenty minutes late when he drove up to the steps of
+Villa Sontagh as strong and jolly a little pair of cobs as could be
+found in all Hungary.</p>
+
+<p>There is a general leave-taking, very sorrowful on our part. The Herr
+Doctor comes out, and the pretty Frau Doctorinn; the manager, the
+little boy Simon, aged four, and the baby just five weeks and a day,
+all come out to see us off. There is much waving of the hand and cries
+of “<i>au revoir</i>” and “<i>auf wiedersehn</i>” from the balcony as,
+turning the corner, we get our last glimpse of the peaceful mountain
+home, and its pleasant and kind occupants.</p>
+
+<p>Away through the pine-woods by a broad pathway, and out into the main
+road which leads to the village of Félka,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_240">[240]</span> where we shall have to stay
+whilst the horses are shod, for we have a week’s hard work for them
+over mountain passes in the Northern Tátra, whither our steps now tend.</p>
+
+<p>I have already spoken much of the badness of the roads in Hungary, but
+nothing in all my experience comes up to the one we traverse, after
+emerging from the pine forest—through which, as I have previously
+said, it is good the whole way. It is my private opinion that one-half
+the cures which are supposed to be effected by the mineral waters
+of Tátra-Fűred are due as much as anything to the violent exercise
+to which the patients are subjected as a preliminary to the baths,
+and that “To be shaken before taken there” ought to be added to the
+programme of the bathing establishments.</p>
+
+<p>There is moreover a tradition of no very ancient date, that a dyspeptic
+old Magyar, believed to be suffering from enlargement of the liver,
+was so entirely cured on the journey between Poprád and Tátra-Fűred
+that he required no treatment on arrival, and simply turned round and
+went back again. The road in fact has never been other than a broad
+sand-track destitute of stones. We go down into holes and then ascend
+over hillocks, and the carriage rocks from side to side, and creaks and
+cracks, and strains in such a manner that we wonder it does not break
+up altogether, and that the plucky little horses do not give in and
+cease their efforts in utter despair. At last we reach Félka, and pull
+up at a blacksmith’s forge.</p>
+
+<p>The profession of shoeing horses in the Zipser district is evidently
+not affected by gipsies, as in other parts of Hungary, for the
+good-tempered-looking Vulcan who comes out smoking a long pipe, and
+at once commences<span class="pagenum" id="Page_241">[241]</span> the necessary operations, is not a gipsy; but not
+caring to take a lesson at present in the art of shoeing, we alight,
+and walking along to the quaint old church, make a sketch of it with
+its tall white tower and slender red cupola, which, rising from the
+centre of the roof, looks as though it had originally been a chimney,
+but in course of years had grown up and developed into a steeple.</p>
+
+<p>As I sketch, the people standing behind half-open doors or
+beneath archways—which might have been built in the time of the
+Pharaohs—watch me furtively, and then run into adjoining houses and
+summon their neighbours to come out and see what it all can mean.</p>
+
+<p>Passing through Poprád, we think it wise to stop and ascertain the
+safety or otherwise of our <i>britzska</i>, and find it safely reposing
+in the <i>álás</i> where András deposited it the day we left both him
+and it for the mountains. It looks more dusty, and worn, and battered
+than ever, and gazing at it we feel it is high time its work was done.
+Close to the wheels some geese are wading in the mud, and sometimes
+getting stuck fast in it with their broad webbed feet; whilst within
+the sacred precincts of the carriage itself a hen would seem to have
+serious intentions of making her nest.</p>
+
+<p>In two hours’ time we reach Kesmark, a straggling old town, or
+rather—I beg its pardon—a “Royal Free City,”<a id="FNanchor_2" href="#Footnote_2" class="fnanchor">[2]</a> and the most
+important place in Zips, containing 4500 inhabitants. It is situated
+on the river<span class="pagenum" id="Page_242">[242]</span> Poprád, at an elevation of 2115 feet above the level of
+the sea, close under and lying to the east of the Tátra. Its broad
+streets are lined with houses whose picturesque wooden roofs and
+gables overhang the road; each gable having attached to it an immense
+rain-shoot, sometimes even fifteen feet in length, made from a long
+straight trunk of a tree, which, hollowed out and projecting from the
+eaves, gives to the place a most singular and old-world appearance.
+Besides this, the gable and roof of each house is surmounted either by
+a wooden cross or ball, according to the religion of its occupants; the
+inhabitants being divided between Lutherans and Roman Catholics. These
+Zipsers, as they are called, are an industrious and thriving folk, well
+worthy the traveller’s attention, inheriting as they do the ancient
+characteristics and customs of their forefathers.</p>
+
+<div class="footnote">
+
+<p><a id="Footnote_2" href="#FNanchor_2" class="label">[2]</a> Although the laws existing before 1848 prohibited
+non-nobles from acquiring real estate, there were certain towns which
+in themselves were considered “noble,” and whose municipalities in
+their corporate capacity had the privilege of possessing and acquiring
+lands, not as individuals, but in the name of the towns they governed,
+such towns being distinguished from others not holding the privilege by
+being called “Royal Free Cities.”</p>
+
+</div>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2420_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2420_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>In the centre of the town stands the <i>Rath-Haus</i>, or<span class="pagenum" id="Page_243">[243]</span> Town Hall,
+erected in 1461, and within a hundred yards of it stands an interesting
+old castle, formerly belonging to the Szapolzag family, but now in the
+possession of Count Täköly, who has caused it to be beautified and
+restored.</p>
+
+<p>The most interesting object of all, however, is the ancient Gothic
+church, erected in 1444, and built entirely of wood. I wish I could
+describe this wonderful old edifice, with its numerous gables,
+pinnacles, and figures, all painted grotesquely in fresco. The altar
+and pulpit are of the most fantastic description, the latter supported
+by two pink angels with gilt wings, stout muscular angels with brawny
+arms—types of the Zipser maidens. The church in fact was so full of
+sculpture that we mistook it for a Roman Catholic edifice, whereupon
+the woman who showed us over almost screamed and told us it was
+Lutheran.</p>
+
+<p>It was sad to be told that this quaint old monument of a past age
+is to be destroyed to give place to a brand new one of stone, very
+ostentatious and ugly in design, which is being built close by, and
+which, overtopping the beautiful ancient one, seems to be looking down
+upon it with disdain.</p>
+
+<p>Kesmark is the head-quarters for various Alpine excursions, such as
+to the “Alabaster Caves,” and the Green, Red, and White Lakes; but
+we do no more on this occasion than bait our horses. Whilst waiting
+at the hotel for our carriage to be brought round, we see on the
+table before us a Hungarian newspaper, entitled “<i>Osszehasőnlitó
+irodalomtőrtenelnu Lapok</i>.” Fancy taking in a periodical afflicted
+with such a name, but, after all, I believe it signifies nothing worse
+than “Comparative Literary Journal”!</p>
+
+<p>After leaving Kesmark, we journey towards the mountains<span class="pagenum" id="Page_244">[244]</span> which tower
+grandly above us, and pass through sleepy and silent little villages,
+the houses of which are made of pine-logs, and whose interstices are
+filled with moss to keep out the cold. There are no chimneys, and the
+smoke issues “picturesquely” through the roof.</p>
+
+<p>By the wayside, in the neighbourhood of the villages, are little
+shrines containing images of saints, resembling gaudily-painted dolls;
+whilst close to a mountain stream we are just passing, and which is
+evidently given occasionally to overflowing its borders, we observe
+a niche attached to a high pole, in which stands the figure of St.
+John Nepomucensis—a saint who, though drowned himself, is supposed to
+possess the power of restraining unruly waters, and protecting others
+from inundation.</p>
+
+<p>Farther still we recognise the form of St. Philip, that hospitable
+saint, who, just “done up,” is radiant in every colour of the prism.</p>
+
+<p>As we approach the quaint little town of Béla, with its prodigious
+shoots extending from the gabled houses—and which, in length and
+ponderousness, far outdo even those of Kesmark—the snowy range is
+glistening like molten silver, the peaks piercing the sky with points
+like needles.</p>
+
+<p>Nowhere is the outer belt of this stately group of mountains more
+beautiful than from this point. At Poprád the whole length of the range
+is seen, but here we are nearer to them; and although they present only
+a foreshortened view, they are far more bold and rugged.</p>
+
+<p>What a heavenly scene it is!—the ermined giants veiling their
+foreheads in the fleecy clouds which here and there pass across them;
+the deep blue precipices at their base<span class="pagenum" id="Page_245">[245]</span> dreaming in the noontide haze,
+and the broad stretch of pine-clad plains in the foreground.</p>
+
+<p>In the undulating pastures oxen are ploughing in teams of four, and
+even six, as they lazily turn the rich brown soil. Yonder is a group of
+men and women reclining under the shadow of a waggon as they eat their
+mid-day meal; whilst near the roadway to our left stands another of
+those picturesque wayside shrines, beneath which some country-people
+are kneeling.</p>
+
+<p>Since leaving Poprád the roads have been excellent, and, soon beginning
+to ascend the pass of a mountain which separates the south side of the
+Tátra from its northern or Polish slopes, we again get into the region
+of primeval pine-forests, the banks of which are full of that most
+lovely of all Alpine flowers—the blue gentian—which, dwelling so far
+above the ordinary abode of men, and reflecting the deep colour of the
+zenith, seems to have tempted down bits of the sky.</p>
+
+<p>The birds sing sweetly, and our hearts beat high. Who does not remember
+to have experienced such moments when the mere fact of existence is an
+immeasurable delight—when the life-blood courses through the veins
+with a warmer glow, and each bodily sense vibrates in unison with
+external nature? The invigorating mountain air, fragrant with the
+breath of pines; the purple expanse of mountain peak beyond; the bright
+sunshine,—all kindle within the heart a new joy, which leaves no room
+for other and sadder feelings. Even the sorrows of the past that are
+common to the lot of all, come floating upon the memory with a gentler
+sadness.</p>
+
+<p>Now and then we meet a long waggon filled with timber<span class="pagenum" id="Page_246">[246]</span> on its way to
+the plains, driven by a mild Slovak, who sings as he comes along, for
+he too is joyous on this lovely day. Sometimes a pedestrian passes us,
+his hat adorned with flowers gathered by the wayside; he lifts it, and
+gives us an unintelligible but kindly greeting. Then as we approach the
+summit of the pass the ragged edges of a fleecy cloud get caught in the
+topmost branches of the pines, and for a few moments we are enveloped
+in mist, but the sun soon shines brightly as before.</p>
+
+<p>Having crossed the pass, which has occupied about two hours, we arrive
+at the straggling village of Altendorf, inhabited by our old friends
+the Slovaks—for we have left Zips with its German-speaking population
+far behind, and shall soon be in a district inhabited entirely by
+Rusniaks, or <i>Malo-Rossijantsi</i> (Little Russians), as they are
+sometimes called.</p>
+
+<p>There has been a fire here recently, for many of the houses are reduced
+to mere heaps of charred wood, which is lying about in all directions.
+Against each house a ladder is left standing, in readiness for the next
+conflagration: fires, we are told, being of very frequent occurrence
+at Altendorf. When one does take place, it is a marvel how any house
+escapes, for once ignited they must blaze like a box of matches,
+consisting as they do wholly of wood, and leaning almost one against
+the other.</p>
+
+<p>The Slovaks in this district differ slightly in appearance from those
+we saw in the <i>comitat</i> of Gőmőr, and wear, instead of the large
+round felt hats which had amused us so infinitely, smaller ones turned
+up at the brim, very peculiar in shape, but less striking at first
+sight than the former. In other respects their costume is precisely the
+same, and their<span class="pagenum" id="Page_247">[247]</span> features and manner are wholly unmistakable, as also
+is their voice, which is melancholy and low. We felt glad to be amongst
+the gentle Slovaks again, for there is a pathos about them and their
+simple lives which interested us greatly.</p>
+
+<p>Long before we had completed our repast, which consisted of edibles
+brought with us from Villa Sontagh, it became noised abroad throughout
+the village that a family from <i>Ángolország</i> had arrived, and were
+resting at the inn. Not that that noun suggested anything very definite
+to the ungeographical Slovak mind. But just as there are the moon
+and stars—spheres which they cannot reach or comprehend the nature
+of—so there are places on the earth, afar off, in a mysterious region
+beyond the Slovak horizon, or, it may be, in an altogether different
+world from that in which he has his being, where there are strange
+people speaking a strange language, possibly having tails or walking
+on “all fours,” and, for aught they know, possessing some entirely new
+arrangement of humanity. They consequently all turn out to behold with
+their own eyes these unknown entities and unexpected visitants to their
+hemisphere, and are no doubt greatly disappointed when they discover
+that we are men of like fashion with themselves.</p>
+
+<p>Walking down the village, we find on its outskirts a gipsy encampment.
+It consists of two hovels, formed of planks placed together tent-wise
+and partially sealed with mud. Close to these human kennels is a
+wretchedly old tent, whose canvas is seamed with many a patch and darn.
+In one of the hovels a small anvil rests on the ground, and from this
+we infer that they are the resident blacksmiths of the neighbourhood.</p>
+
+<p>I think it is Carlyle who says that “society is hung upon<span class="pagenum" id="Page_248">[248]</span> clothes.”
+These gipsies, however, possess in this matter a contempt for the
+superfluous common to their race, and, although residents of the
+village, they are not recognised as members of the Slovak community,
+possibly on the aforesaid theory. Be this as it may, no one had taken
+the trouble to impart to them the interesting fact of our arrival, or
+we may be quite sure they would long ere this have presented themselves
+clamouring for kreuzers, as is their wont on the advent of the
+stranger. But as soon as they see us, they begin to make up for lost
+time, and come pouring out of their hovels like a swarm of bees from a
+hive, thirteen women and children covered with the veriest rags, which,
+hanging upon them without shape or form, look like a hideous mockery
+of clothing, and cause them to present the saddest spectacle I ever
+witnessed. They were soon joined by two men, evidently of the party,
+hunger and oppression written in the faces of every one of them; whilst
+those of the younger wore an eager, wizened, hunted look. Not that they
+are ill-treated by the villagers,—far from it; but, descendants of
+a vagabond race, these “settled” gipsies seem no more civilised than
+their wandering brethren, and possess the same sad, oppressed, and
+down-trodden expression of countenance inseparable from their race—a
+heritage brought with them from the land of bondage, and which, like
+that of the Jews, has stamped them a separate and distinct people for
+ever, to be individually recognised in all countries and in all climes.</p>
+
+<p>As we look at them, clothed in their blackened rags which cling to them
+like cerements, we ask each other in dismay, Have these poor creatures
+immortal souls, and are they brethren? Are these amongst the number for
+whom<span class="pagenum" id="Page_249">[249]</span> precious blood was shed—these wild, half-savage-looking beings,
+with their secret language, their belief in elves and hobgoblins, their
+total disbelief in the immortality of the soul, and utter ignorance of
+every form of religion? Can <i>these</i> be brothers and sisters, who,
+more degraded than the South Sea Islanders, recognise the existence of
+no Great Spirit higher and better than themselves?</p>
+
+<p>The Austrian Government insists on the gipsies having their children
+baptized, but they have no notion of the meaning of the rite. In fact
+the Christian religion is a complete puzzle to them, especially in
+regard to the Holy Trinity; some labouring under the belief that God
+the Father has abdicated in favour of His Son, others that He is dead
+and that His Son reigns in His stead.</p>
+
+<p>It is marvellous that in the nineteenth century such ignorance should
+exist in any Christian country. Surely there is work here, amongst
+these 150,000 outcasts, for Christian philanthropists?</p>
+
+<p>“How do these people live?” we ask of a respectable-looking man, whom
+curiosity has prompted to join us, and who we feel sure, from his
+wearing the familiar costume of the West, will be able to understand
+the question we have put to him in German, and reply to it, if ever so
+imperfectly; moreover, in all probability he may prove to be a Zipser.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Gott allein weiss</i>,” he replied readily, shrugging his shoulders
+as if to give greater force and expression to the utterance, so full of
+sad and pathetic meaning. “<i>God only knows.</i>”</p>
+
+<p>“But what do they live on? what do they eat?” we inquired, anxious to
+come to the root of the matter.</p>
+
+<p>“Anything,” was the reply; “they snare birds, and eat<span class="pagenum" id="Page_250">[250]</span> rats, and snails
+and frogs besides; nothing comes amiss to the <i>czigány</i>. There are
+three more men belonging to this gang, but they are away, picking up
+a job here and there, and <i>möglicherweise mausen sie</i>” (possibly
+pilfering). “They manage to live <i>somehow</i>”—and regarding the
+slender anatomy of these poor creatures, I could not help thinking
+that the various species of esculent he enumerated could not be
+very nourishing food; and the word “<i>somehow</i>” in all its sad
+significance haunted us for many a day afterwards.</p>
+
+<p>“Would they wear decent clothes if they were given them?” I asked
+again, remembering with regret the number of travel-stained garments we
+had left behind us at Poprád.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes! they would wear them,” answered our informant, who we afterwards
+learnt was an officer in the Revenue Department. “But the Slovaks are
+poor, very poor; besides,” he continued, smiling sardonically, “who
+would think of giving clothes to a <i>gipsy</i>?”</p>
+
+<p>Whilst this colloquy is taking place, F., surrounded by a knot of
+peasants a little higher up the village, is making the boys run for
+kreuzers. Amongst them is a gipsy urchin, who he insisted should be
+permitted to take part in the race, but who so invariably came in
+first, that after a few times he had to be handicapped; whilst a
+juvenile specimen of the male Slovak, whose particular mission in life
+would seem to be to lug about a big baby, cried so pitifully because he
+was unable to join the sport, that he had to be consoled with kreuzers.</p>
+
+<p>Then the small fry—the little four-year-olds—are made to run. In
+vain the bell summons them to afternoon school. In vain the long-robed
+priest comes out to see what can be<span class="pagenum" id="Page_251">[251]</span> the reason of their absence. A
+complete state of demoralisation has taken place—the Slovak urchins
+heed neither the schoolmaster nor his Reverence, call they never so
+loudly, and so the afternoon has to be declared a general holiday.</p>
+
+<p>At length it was proposed that the men should compete, a race in which
+our Jehu joins. Jankó had evidently made a great impression on the
+minds of the gentle Slovak by his Sontagh livery, which consists of a
+scarlet waistcoat and blue hussar jacket and tights, embroidered with
+bright yellow braid. All the village turns out to see the fun, even the
+babies, who whine plaintively, and receive not only kreuzers, but extra
+shoves on the part of their small nurses, who are scarcely bigger than
+themselves. I think I never saw so many babies together in all my life
+as in this Slovak village; and had it rained babies and hailed babies,
+instead of the conventional cats and dogs, during a recent heavy
+storm, I doubt whether they could have been more numerous. The day’s
+excitement is at last brought to a blissful termination by a <i>feu de
+joie</i>, in the shape of a general scramble for small coins, and we
+gallop away amidst the blessings and acclamations of the multitude,
+whom we have made quite happy at the cost—divided into infinitesimal
+fractions—of the magnificent sum of four and a half gulden.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2510_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2510_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_252">[252]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XIX.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE RED CONVENT.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">In these northern localities persons are not only given to be a trifle
+vague in their measurement of time, but are also extremely patriarchal
+in their manner of computing distances.</p>
+
+<p>Thus, these simple Carpathian folk do not say a place is so many
+<i>miles</i> away, but a day’s journey, or half a day’s journey, and so
+on as the case may be. We were consequently told at Tátra-Fűred before
+starting this morning that Neumarkt was a <i>long</i> day’s journey
+off, but that if we made good speed we might reach it before nightfall.
+As however it was four o’clock by the time we lost sight of the village
+of Altendorf, which is scarcely more than one-third of the way, we are
+scarcely likely to see Neumarkt before to-morrow’s sunrise, even if we
+journey on from now till then.</p>
+
+<p>It is true that we had loitered in the company of those “little vulgar
+boys,” wasting our time and substance upon their amusement, but this
+only delayed us half an hour beyond the time required to rest our
+horses. The map showed that we should be passing several villages on
+the road, so that, although the prospect of putting up at a Slovak
+inn for the night was not very inviting, we pushed<span class="pagenum" id="Page_253">[253]</span> on, hoping for
+the best. We are so experienced by this time in the vicissitudes
+of Hungarian travel that, in the language of the Revenue Officer
+when alluding to the gipsy <i>menu</i>, “nothing comes amiss” to
+us; and if we cannot meet with an inn on our way, well, then we can
+“<i>out-span</i>.” Nor will it be for the first time, for we have
+done so on more than one occasion when travelling in the plains on a
+previous visit.</p>
+
+<p>We still continue to follow the post-road, and our spirited little
+nags, although they have already covered thirty-five miles of road,
+appear as fresh as possible as they trundle us along. It is wonderful
+what these Hungarian horses can accomplish with proper care and feeding.</p>
+
+<p>On our way, however, we meet the Royal Hungarian Mail, to which a horse
+of quite a different type is harnessed, and which, judging from the
+way it was progressing—being that moment engaged in the lively act
+of jibbing—was scarcely likely to reach Altendorf before to-morrow
+morning.</p>
+
+<p>To our left rises a bold and almost perpendicular cliff, densely
+clothed with majestic pines. At their feet flows rapidly but silently
+the Dunajecz—the river boundary between Hungary and Poland—with its
+waters, though perfectly clear, almost black, on account of the deep
+shadow thrown upon their surface by the sombre foliage.</p>
+
+<p>Crossing the stream by a covered wooden bridge, with its roof supported
+on enormous beams, through which we obtain, as in a rustic framework,
+exquisite pictures of rock and river and mountain peaks, we see
+immediately before us to our right a series of barren volcanic rocks,
+resembling gigantic cinders, and in colour almost vermilion. On their
+summits not a tuft of grass is growing; but on the highest<span class="pagenum" id="Page_254">[254]</span> pinnacle
+of all, perched on its extreme point, stand the ancient ruins of the
+<i>Rothe Kloster</i>, or Red Convent; whilst beyond the river, raising
+its crowned head proudly, lies the picturesque Kronenberg, so called on
+account of its jagged summit, which resembles a diadem. The whole forms
+the most striking scene in Hungary, and is in itself alone well worth
+coming all the way to see.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2540_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2540_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Ascending the steep rock on which the noble ruin stands, we are met
+halfway by a monk,—a stranger to this district, he informs us, like
+ourselves,—who turns back and accompanies us to the ancient building.</p>
+
+<p>From its red colour the castle is evidently built of the soft tufaceous
+stone found in the surrounding rocks, which would probably account for
+its massive walls being in such a complete state of decay, the cells
+and refectory having ceased to exist. Following our guide, we tread
+softly, recalling the time when the outer walls enclosed a tide of
+human life now in the land of silence; we hear the gentle<span class="pagenum" id="Page_255">[255]</span> footfall,
+and hushed voices of the saintly throng who once inhabited these
+cloisters, and a solemn and almost supernatural peace and stillness
+seem to hang about the place, as if long centuries had not been
+permitted to wrest them from its crumbling walls.</p>
+
+<p>As we stand gazing through an arch upon the wondrous scene beneath, and
+across at the Kronenberg, the “<i>Angelus</i>” tolls, and instantly the
+monk who accompanies us falls upon his knees.</p>
+
+<p>A visit to the Convent Church, which is still in a good state of
+preservation, concludes our ramble amongst these interesting ruins.
+They belong to the Bishop of Eperies, of the United Greek Church, and a
+pilgrimage is made to them once a year, when mass is said in Greek.</p>
+
+<p>Everywhere around us lie fragments of tufaceous matter, declaring
+the volcanic origin of this singular group of rocks, one of the many
+instances demonstrating the gigantic scale on which volcanic agency
+once operated in this country, there being no fewer than seven or
+eight mountain groups which are clearly distinguishable as owing their
+existence to that cause.</p>
+
+<p>Fain would we have lingered longer on these sacred heights, but day
+is on the wane, evening’s shadows are already beginning to fall, and,
+bidding the monk adieu, we journey on our way again.</p>
+
+<p>A little beyond the convent two roads meet; and uncertain which we are
+to follow, Jankó stops to ask the way of a woman who comes trudging
+along, picturesquely clad in a blue skirt, red bodice, and red kerchief
+round her head, and who forms the very object in the foreground which
+the eye needed to render the picture complete.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_256">[256]</span></p>
+
+<p>We are now in Poland, and already, though we have only just crossed
+the frontier, we perceive a great difference in the appearance of the
+villages, which are much cleaner than those of the Slovaks. The houses,
+too, are differently built, being roofed with long thin planks placed
+one upon the other instead of shingles; whilst to add to the danger in
+case of fire, the inhabitants must needs cover half of the roof with
+thatch.</p>
+
+<p>Rural life in Gallicia is very picturesque. At every turn, we pass
+little roadside pictures which in their colouring and composition
+remind us of Cuyp. At this instant we come upon just one of those
+scenes which the old masters so loved to depict—a rustic bridge
+standing out against an expanse of moorland, which stretches away to
+the distant hills. In the foreground a girl in an “arrangement” of red
+is tending sheep and goats, some of which are drinking from a trough.
+The sun is setting, there is a rich saffron glow in the evening sky,
+and the whole scene is full of tranquillity and repose.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2560_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2560_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>On past lonely wooden churches with open belfries, and more pastoral
+pictures—girls driving sheep, goats, and oxen, or flocks of geese,
+which crane their long necks as we drive by; past curious doorways,
+half Chinese, in which women stand or sit spinning; past melancholy
+little cemeteries, lying all alone under the darkening sky. Then we
+leave all villages behind and enter a broad valley, bounded on one
+side<span class="pagenum" id="Page_257">[257]</span> by low pine-clad hills, and on the other by a long range of
+barren mountains, which constitute the peaks of the Northern Tátra. By
+and by solitary groups of houses show black against the horizon, and
+lonely farms, from the small deep-set windows of which a light here and
+there burns dim, and then we begin to ascend a hill. Halfway up we see
+standing in the roadway three men wearing large slouching hats, such as
+are worn by the typical brigand. And my heart beats faster when I find
+they are keeping pace with us. Presently one of them lays hold of the
+iron rod connected with the box of the carriage, and begins talking to
+Jankó—but there is no harm in him. He and his companions are, after
+all, only dear, honest, tired peasants, returning from their toil in
+distant pastures, and they are asking him, by way of friendly greeting,
+where we have come from, for we hear him answer “Schmecks.” They speak
+Polish, of which Jankó happily understands a little.</p>
+
+<p>“How far is it to Neumarkt?” he inquires, and then turns round, and,
+leaning over the box, interprets their answer in German.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Zwei gute Stunden.</i>” (Two good hours.)</p>
+
+<p>Now, had the answer been “<i>Zwei Stunden</i>” only, we might, late as
+it was, have tried to push on, but when spoken by a German or Pole the
+small adjective <i>gute</i> becomes so indefinite in its signification,
+as we had many a time learnt to our cost, that we resolved to come to
+a halt at the next village. Our plucky little steeds, too, are at last
+beginning to give in, as well they may; the night is dark, and there
+are <i>of course</i> no candles in the lamps. Candles would have been
+an instance of forethought wholly unprecedented in a Hungarian coachman
+beyond the realm of Pest.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_258">[258]</span></p>
+
+<p>Such heavy clouds have gathered over the sky that neither moon nor
+stars are visible, but coming in a short time to a wayside farm, whose
+light gleams hospitably across the road, we pull up and inquire how far
+it is to the next village. The door opens, and a man comes out with
+long hair hanging over his shoulders and drawn behind his ears like
+a woman’s. He is followed by the buxom <i>Hausfrau</i> herself, clad
+in a black velvet bodice laced loosely over a scarlet stomacher, and
+large white sleeves. How pretty she looks with the bright light from
+within shining upon her! and what a sweet bit of concentrated colour
+she affords, very cheering to the eye amidst the surrounding darkness!
+Through the open doorway we can see into the room, which is clean and
+tidy; whilst nearly in the centre, not far from a table on which the
+evening meal is spread, is a cradle containing a small Polish baby fast
+asleep, pretty much like other babies, but it is the first real, live
+Polish baby we have seen, and we make the most of it.</p>
+
+<p>There is a village, they inform us, where we can find accommodation,
+ten minutes farther on, but will we not stay and take some refreshment?
+“the strangers have travelled far, they must be weary.” With the
+prospect however of shelter at last so near, we do not accept their
+proffered kindness. Then very gently, but not until we have really
+started, the door closes, and the darkness seems twice as great as
+before—not so much, we fancy, because of the contrast the light
+afforded and which had dimmed our vision by the glare, but by reason
+of the halo of happiness and comfort that appeared to surround that
+secluded home. The very remembrance of it cheers us on our way.</p>
+
+<p>On, till many lights gleam red in the distance, and we<span class="pagenum" id="Page_259">[259]</span> pass a
+turnpike,—a primitive construction, consisting of a pine-log,
+suspended over the road,—which brings another, similarly dressed but
+younger, woman out into the darkness, and we enter the village, the
+houses of which are much better than any we had seen whilst travelling
+through the North of Hungary. Within the fence that surrounds them,
+large fires are burning in the “open,” near which the people sit in
+groups; giving to the scene a very wild, weird, and un-European look.</p>
+
+<p>Presently we stop to inquire of two men crouching round one of these
+fires the way to an inn. They come towards us instantly, and bare
+their heads, holding their hats while answering the questions of the
+coachman, just as all had done on the road earlier in the day. They
+direct us to a house a little farther on, and volunteer to accompany
+us. It is a large one-storied building standing in a kind of yard.
+At the unexpected sound of wheels—travellers are evidently not very
+frequent here—a little knot of persons appear at the doorway, their
+figures standing out black against the bright light inside.</p>
+
+<p>“Have they a room, and can they accommodate us for the night?” inquires
+Jankó in Polish.</p>
+
+<p>A rather long parley ensues, It is not an inn, after all, there being
+in fact none in the village; but strangers are sometimes accommodated
+here. A woman comes to the carriage and addresses us in German. We are
+welcome to her roof, but the accommodation she has to offer is of the
+humblest description, and not suitable for “<i>hochgeborene Herrschaft
+wie Sie</i>.” But would we enter and see it for ourselves?</p>
+
+<p>The house was a rambling old place, built entirely of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_260">[260]</span> wood, and
+entered by a verandah raised some steps from the ground. The outer
+room was beautifully clean, the bright “<i>batterie de cuisine</i>”
+suspended from the kitchen walls smiling a welcome to us as we
+crossed the threshold. We are shown at once to the guest-room, which
+every moderately well-to-do family keeps ready for the stranger in
+this hospitable country as well as in Hungary. The furniture, as we
+anticipated, was of the most modest description, but perfectly clean,
+and we wanted nothing more. Outside the room was a sort of dairy, in
+which large pails of milk were standing, and there was a pleasant odour
+of cream and butter pervading the whole house. Beyond this was a large
+shed, in which were several cows with their calves, and into which the
+window of our room looked, apparently the only light it possessed. A
+lantern was suspended from a beam, and an old man was giving Indian
+corn to Jankó for the horses.</p>
+
+<p>On returning to the general room, a young woman comes forward out of
+the shadow of the inner porch and kisses our hands.</p>
+
+<p>“The <i>Herrschaft</i> are English,” remarked our trim hostess by way
+of introduction, to whom we had previously confided that interesting
+fact; “they come from the country where the sugar and the coffee grow.
+<i>Such</i> a long way off. <i>Ach!</i> I recollect learning all about
+it <i>in der Schule</i> when I was a child.”</p>
+
+<p>Saying which, she took from her capacious pocket a bunch of keys, and
+unlocking a <i>Schrank</i> (wardrobe) took thence a quantity of clean
+homespun linen.</p>
+
+<p>A cloth was already spread on a long table at the side of the
+apartment, and it was evident that we were expected to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_261">[261]</span> join the common
+meal. The evenings are exceedingly cold on the northern side of the
+Tátra, however hot the days may be, and there are only six weeks in the
+whole year when it does not freeze by night. The warmth of the fire was
+therefore very pleasant.</p>
+
+<p>Sitting by the broad hearth, we watch the movements of the two women,
+mother and daughter, as they trip about in their short petticoats and
+laced red bodices preparing supper, neither of them appearing in the
+smallest degree disconcerted at the presence of strangers. A place of
+honour is however set apart for ourselves at the top of the table,
+where a small white cloth of finer linen is spread, together with
+the best china, which the younger woman had reached from the shelf
+of a little glazed cupboard. As soon as the simple meal was ready,
+consisting of a huge dish of fried slices of potato, some kind of
+stewed meat and a <i>Pfannkuchen</i> (pancake), the old man whom we had
+seen in the adjoining shed came in, his white hair, drawn behind the
+ears, hanging over his shoulders in snowy locks. He also kissed our
+hands and welcomed us warmly, saying in German, in which more than one
+Sláv word was intermingled, “Happy are they who welcome to their humble
+roof the homeless and the stranger.” He was evidently a man who, like
+any other peasant, had spent his life in the labours of husbandry, but
+he spoke these words with a dignity and courtesy of manner that would
+have done credit to a “noble” with a pedigree of sixty generations.</p>
+
+<p>Then followed a short “grace” in an unknown tongue, at which all stood,
+after which we were invited to take our seats.</p>
+
+<p>Supper ended, and whilst the women were flitting about as<span class="pagenum" id="Page_262">[262]</span> they
+performed the household duties for the night, a priest came in, a more
+intelligent man than the priests usually are in these remote districts,
+and from him we were enabled to glean a great deal of information
+concerning the country we are now visiting.</p>
+
+<p>Gallicia, besides its own native population, contains no fewer than
+two millions and a half of Rusniaks, here called Ruthenians, a people
+speaking a dialect of the Russian, and belonging, like the Slovaks,
+to the Greek Church. The Poles however, as we had ample opportunity
+of ascertaining before we left this province, are the most bigoted
+of Roman Catholics, not only deeply attached to their Church, but
+most observant of its rites; a people full of religious zeal, and
+very intolerant of the faith of those who differ from them. Since the
+partition of Poland in the latter part of the last century and the
+occupation by Austria of Cracow (the ancient capital) together with the
+whole of Gallicia, the German language has been growing more and more
+general amongst the better classes; but the lower classes still cling
+to their Sláv dialects, occasionally, however, interlarding them with
+German words.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst we were conversing with the priest, two young men, apparently
+brothers, strolled in and took their seats on the other side of the
+hearth, but seemed rather taken aback on finding themselves in the
+presence of strangers. They appeared to have been expected, for no
+sooner had they arrived than a sweet warm drink, something akin to our
+national beverage “punch,” was handed round to each person, including
+the hostess and her daughter, who had now joined the circle. The latter
+was a young girl of about seventeen or eighteen, and she, avoiding
+the opposite side of the hearth occupied by<span class="pagenum" id="Page_263">[263]</span> the new arrivals, seated
+herself shyly on the settle beside her grandfather,—a circumstance
+which called forth a facetious remonstrance from the old man, which
+caused her to turn away her head, whilst a crimson blush suffused her
+whole countenance. There was an awkward pause, broken at last by the
+priest, who, evidently trying to restore the girl’s tranquillity,
+remarked with a twinkle in his eye:</p>
+
+<p>“Martcha! your <i>Gebräude</i> (brew) is not as good as usual to-night.
+Make another, and help us all again!”</p>
+
+<p>At this juncture, fearing our presence might be a restraint upon the
+little company, we retired for the night, feeling very glad that
+circumstances had compelled our remaining here, and afforded us an
+opportunity of making the acquaintance of a Polish family.</p>
+
+<p>Several hours’ sound sleep not only refreshed but made us feel equal to
+any emergency that might arise during our next stage. Dawn however was
+ushered in by a most unaccountable succession of noises, accompanied by
+the clatter of women’s tongues, with frequent titterings and mention
+of the name of Yetta, the reason of which we afterwards learnt was
+the young girl’s marriage, which was to take place that very day, the
+“happy man” being one of the village swains whom we had seen last
+evening.</p>
+
+<p>Although our inclination prompted us to remain and witness the novel
+spectacle of a Polish wedding, we feared our longer sojourn would be an
+intrusion, and at ten o’clock, our carriage being at the door, we took
+leave of these, to us, interesting people with their simple and idyllic
+lives. From the first we felt that they would make no direct charge
+for the accommodation afforded. We therefore placed, at the moment of
+parting, a gratuity in Martcha’s hand, but even<span class="pagenum" id="Page_264">[264]</span> this was declined with
+such a look of pain from each one that we saw it would be vain to press
+anything upon them; nor was it until after I had succeeded in assuring
+them it was not offered by way of payment, but as a <i>souvenir</i> and
+wedding present, that I prevailed on Yetta to accept a small trinket
+which I happened to have attached to my watch-chain.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Andenken! Andenken!</i>” (Remembrance! Remembrance!) “Ah, surely
+we want none to keep alive within us the memory of the <i>gute
+Engländer</i>. We will never forget you, never! never!” and with much
+kissing of the hand on their part, and expressions of gratitude on
+ours, we bid adieu to the village.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2640_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2640_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+     <p class="p0 sm center"><i>The Royal Hungarian Mail!</i></p>
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_265">[265]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XX.<br>
+<span class="subhed">ZAKOPANE.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">It is high festival at Neumarkt, and men, women, and little children,
+emerging from arched doorways, rosary and prayer-book in hand, are
+hurrying to church. In the green enclosure outside the building the
+people are kneeling in picturesque groups, old men with long white
+locks hanging over their shoulders, and decrepit old women in singular
+head-gear, all mumbling their prayers in a feeble monotone; whilst
+beside them kneel young maids and matrons in every gradation of red and
+pink, with broad white scarves covering the head and shoulders.</p>
+
+<p>Inside the church there is a throng of devout worshippers. And what a
+curious old place it is, with its side altars and unexpected alcoves,
+erected at the top of broad flights of stone steps, where the people
+are standing and kneeling in such numbers that, as we leave the garish
+day and enter the dimly-lighted sanctuary, the whole length of the
+wall extending from east to west appears to consist of a bas-relief of
+many-coloured life-sized figures, rather than a crowd of living men and
+women!</p>
+
+<p>They are singing in Polish the psalms for the day. There is no choir,
+so far as we can ascertain, nor instrument of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_266">[266]</span> any kind to lead
+them, but the congregation sing lustily, and make up in quantity for
+whatever shortcomings there may happen to be in quality. The men and
+women chant the verses alternately, and if their voices are not the
+most harmonious, their hearts are at any rate attuned to the grateful
+utterances of Israel’s great Poet.</p>
+
+<p>The psalm they were chanting when we entered, and which we were able
+to recognise from its refrain—“O give thanks unto the Lord, for He is
+gracious; and His mercy endureth for ever”—was the one hundred and
+thirty-sixth.</p>
+
+<p>It was beautiful to hear them with one accord singing this grand old
+psalm, whilst the faithful outside the church, standing with heads
+uncovered, united their voices to those within. I can not remember a
+more impressive sight. The strange costumes, the singular old edifice,
+and the devout attitude of the people, all looked more like a highly
+finished picture than anything in real life. Observing the entrance of
+strangers, they quietly made way for us, but there were no restless,
+wandering eyes, nor any idle curiosity evinced to know who or what we
+were. The form of religion which we profess may differ from theirs, but
+beneath the shadow of these ancient and glorious mountains, all minor
+dissimilarities vanish out of sight, and our hearts mingled with theirs
+as the grateful hymn of praise rose like incense to the Common Father
+of us all, and we felt that it was “good for us to be here.”</p>
+
+<p>Besides the costumes of the peasantry we noticed amongst the
+worshippers many pertaining to persons of the better class; and were
+made acquainted for the first time with the true <i>polonaise</i>, a
+long garment of black cloth, half tight,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_267">[267]</span> half loose, edged with broad
+gold lace, very handsome in itself, as well as becoming to the figure
+of the wearer.</p>
+
+<p>It is not however all <i>couleur de rose</i> at Neumarkt, or Nowýtarg,
+as the town is called in Polish. The inn at which we have taken up
+our temporary abode is of the dirtiest description. Standing in the
+narrow courtyard beneath our room, all amongst the kitchen and the
+stables, both of which are in the closest juxtaposition, are several
+repulsive-looking Jews in greasy black gowns extending to the heels.
+These Gallician Jews, although wearing the hair short behind, allow the
+front locks to remain unshorn, which they twist into long ringlets, and
+which, hanging down each cheek, give to the wearers a most unmanly and
+comic appearance.</p>
+
+<p>On descending to the lower apartments, we find the general sitting-room
+also full of Jews, talking in loud tones of <i>jochs</i> of land and
+<i>massen</i> of gold, and having already had a surreptitious peep into
+the shades where the cook reigned supreme, we determine to leave our
+carriage here for a few days to give the horses a thorough rest, and
+to hire another to take us on to Zakopane, a village lying at the foot
+of the Northern Tátra, where we hope to find, if humble, at any rate
+cleaner accommodation.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst waiting for a vehicle to be got ready for us, we again stroll
+out into the town, and are presently accosted by a Polish gentleman who
+had that morning arrived from Cracow.</p>
+
+<p>“Throughout Gallicia,” said he, in German, upon our mentioning the
+reason of our leaving Neumarkt for Zakopane, “the inns are invariably
+kept by Jews, who are not only dirty, but the very bane of our land.
+Those who have inns encourage the peasants who come to them for
+spirits<span class="pagenum" id="Page_268">[268]</span> or other intoxicating liquors to buy on credit, preferring
+the credit system infinitely to receiving payment at the time; for the
+wily Jew knows full well that each customer possesses as security a
+<i>joch</i> or two of land—an inheritance handed down to him for many
+generations. The Gallician peasant lives a hard life, and enjoys his
+glass of <i>slivovitz</i>, needing but little encouragement to exceed
+his intended quantity, and heeding little the cost of that which he
+does not pay for then and there. At length, though long deferred, the
+day of reckoning comes, and then money is wanting to pay the bill
+that has possibly been accumulating for years. One household treasure
+after another has to be resigned, and when these are exhausted the
+<i>jochs</i> have to be mortgaged. So frequently in fact does this
+latter happen, that in some districts whole villages are virtually in
+the hands of Jew creditors, who hold the entire population in bondage.”</p>
+
+<p>The Poles of this province keep their festivals as we keep Sundays.
+It was a considerable time therefore before a person could be found
+who would drive us; but a young Pole of elastic conscience was at
+last unearthed, and the landlord, chagrined at our speedy flight,
+informed us in no very civil tone that the <i>britzska</i> is ready.
+Notwithstanding this imposing signification, our vehicle is none other
+than a cart whose sides consist of two rough planks of unpainted
+wood. The seats however possess iron backs, an unusual luxury in this
+mode of conveyance, for which we feel truly thankful. The horses, two
+grey bony creatures, at least sixteen hands high, are ornamented with
+bridle-knots and streamers cut out of scarlet leather, so that with
+such a <i>tout ensemble</i> we are conscious of presenting a very
+commanding appearance as we rattle over the uneven<span class="pagenum" id="Page_269">[269]</span> pavement and go
+dashing out into the road that leads in a direct line to the mountains
+which rise above us—a majestic stretch of peaks, shrouded in snow.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2690_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2690_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>We pass a crucifix, and off goes our driver’s hat. Another, and off it
+goes again. A group of men come walking along the road, who also bare
+their heads in passing. I never saw so many crucifixes and shrines in
+any country in my life. Yonder is a piece of cultivated land; it too
+has its crucifix. They do these matters magnificently here, for all are
+painted in black and gold. Two roads meet, and guarding them is the
+image of a saint; whilst every little rivulet that comes trickling down
+the hillside “with a sweet complaining” is watched over by a St. John
+Nepomucensis. In fact, so frequently are these wayside shrines met with
+in this country, and so persistently do the people uncover their heads,
+that<span class="pagenum" id="Page_270">[270]</span> we begin to wonder they wear any hats at all; whilst in the
+villages saints may truly be said to swarm. Surely the crops can never
+fail nor barns be empty if the saints, whose spiritual presence would
+seem to be a great living reality with these dear devout Gallicians, do
+that which is expected of them.</p>
+
+<p>Here the traveller sees no images with blackened eyes and broken noses,
+nor any with dilapidated and faded garments, as in other countries
+nearer home. All are as spick and span as paint and gilt and varnish
+can make them; and the manner in which the faithful “shovel on” the
+colour is both exemplary and praiseworthy.</p>
+
+<p>A very favourite saint, if we may judge from the frequency with
+which shrines are devoted to his reception, is St. Nicolas; and if
+we might be permitted to express an opinion, it would be that he is
+very hardly used. None other than the St. Claus of our juvenile days,
+whose particular mission it is to slide down sooty chimneys and watch
+the behaviour of children both good and bad, it is nothing less than
+cruelty to expect him to look after <i>bees</i> as well. But here he
+is again, in all the majesty of gilt mitre and purple robes, standing
+in an alcove in which a number of bee-hives are reposing, watching the
+movements of those busy workers, and seeing that they “improve the
+shining hour.”</p>
+
+<p>It is only fair to say that the villages over which these titular
+divinities preside with untiring vigilance and unblinking eye do them
+no small credit. There are no signs of poverty apparent anywhere, and
+the low one-storied log-built houses are pictures of warmth and plenty.</p>
+
+<p>As we proceed, the distant lowing of cattle comes borne<span class="pagenum" id="Page_271">[271]</span> towards us.
+A church whose steeple we just catch sight of through the trees is
+tolling its little cracked bell for vespers, and there is in everything
+an all-pervading sentiment of happiness and peace. Responsive to the
+call, the villagers are hastening in its direction; the women in their
+beautiful costume, a short dark-blue under-skirt, over which are worn
+garments in various and distinct shades of brilliant red.</p>
+
+<p>This blending of various degrees of the same colour is exceedingly
+artistic, and the effect from a short distance both rich and
+harmonious. The women all wear the clean white muslin scarf over the
+head before alluded to, the ends of which are trimmed with lace or
+fringe, and which evidently constitutes their church-going attire.
+The costumes of the stronger sex however—whose privilege it is to
+be ugly—are seldom really picturesque anywhere, nor are they here.
+A long loose garment of coarse brown cloth, very baggy about the
+sleeves—indeed, very baggy everywhere—forms their Sunday garment.
+But even this shapeless gaberdine is not left unadorned in its elegant
+simplicity, but is ornamented with a very elaborate trimming of scarlet
+cloth, cut with infinite skill into strips one narrower than the other,
+until the thickness of half an inch is attained. The edge of each
+strip is scalloped, and the effect when new exactly resembles a heavy
+trimming composed of small red beads.</p>
+
+<p>In this particular, the outer garment of our driver is quite a study
+in its way, and one we have ample opportunity of pursuing as we jog
+along the road, until by a similar accident to that which befell
+ourselves on the way from the cobalt mines at Dobsina, he suddenly
+doubles up, and for a<span class="pagenum" id="Page_272">[272]</span> space becomes lost to sight amongst the straw
+at the bottom of the cart. By a series of jolts and jerks of more than
+ordinary violence, the box-seat had collapsed in consequence of the
+straps breaking which attached it to the side. F., alive to the danger
+which this catastrophe threatened, seized the reins, but, contrary
+to his expectations, instead of our fiery Arabs attempting to run
+away, they instantly pulled up short; for were they not accustomed to
+little <i>contretemps</i> of the like nature, and had they not been in
+momentary expectation of one occurring ever since we started? As soon
+as he has picked himself up and shaken himself into shape again, the
+driver, with the greatest calmness and deliberation, searches amongst a
+number of old chains and straps in a corner of the vehicle for a piece
+of rope, repairs the fracture as if it were the most ordinary episode
+possible, and we continue our route.</p>
+
+<p>By this time the vesper bells have ceased their chiming, and the late
+comers crowding the churchyard kneel close under the walls of the
+sacred edifice, till they surround it like a ring. On the mountain
+slopes women in blue and red—the “keepers at home”—are driving in
+the kine, for the nights in this region are always cold. Surely Nature
+herself must have taught these people how to dress! Where all is green,
+how pleasing to the eye is a little patch of red—its complementary
+colour—giving warmth and animation to the landscape!</p>
+
+<p>Wending their way through the pine-woods which we have now entered,
+these peasant women make the most ravishing pictures imaginable. But
+to-morrow they will lay their gay attire in the long coffer with which
+every house is provided, until the following Sunday or the next<span class="pagenum" id="Page_273">[273]</span>
+festival comes round again, and, donning their every-day garments of
+faded pink and red, will be seen working in the fields like men.</p>
+
+<p>Following the road through the thick forest, we now come to an opening,
+and see in front of us a splendid mountain, which seems to bar our
+further progress as it rises in bold bare bluffs above the ragged
+pine-tops at its base. Below flows the <i>Weisse Dunajecz</i>, clear as
+crystal, which at this point sometimes assumes all the appearance of a
+lake, but is to-day dwindled to a mere rivulet flowing through the deep
+channel of its white and pebbly bed. A turn to the right, and we find
+ourselves facing a large square stone building of one story, to which
+the driver first points, and then placing his open palm against his
+cheek, closing both eyes and leaning his head on one side, intimates by
+mute gesture that this is the inn where we are to sleep to-night.</p>
+
+<p>Dismissing him and his bony animals with a <i>pour-boire</i> with which
+he seems more than satisfied, we enter the house and find ourselves
+standing in a long comfortless stone passage, out of which lead rooms
+at right angles with each other. There is no lack of ventilation here,
+at any rate, and one would imagine that the dwelling must have been
+originally constructed with an especial view to the entertainment of
+the four winds of heaven, which I should imagine must be its only
+guests for at least three-fourths of the year.</p>
+
+<p>There is, however, a homely something about the place which is
+difficult to define, and a glimpse of the large kitchen adjoining the
+sitting-room convinces us at once of its perfect cleanliness, whilst
+a combination of savoury odours, suggestive of the familiar process
+known in the technical language of kitchens in general as “dishing
+up,” proceeds from that<span class="pagenum" id="Page_274">[274]</span> mysterious apartment, to which our hunger
+gratefully responds. Although we have been travelling since early
+morning, we have partaken of nothing save two hard-boiled eggs left
+from the provisions with which we were hospitably provided on leaving
+Tátra-Fűred, and the fossil remains of a piece of sausage, the relic of
+an even more remote repast; but who after this will venture to question
+the sustaining qualities of the classic garlic!</p>
+
+<p>The table is laid for four guests, who soon appear; a lady and
+gentleman from Cracow, and two Germans, one of whom is not only a
+Count, but a huntsman, judging from his style of dress, which was a
+kind of William Tell “get up,” and only wanted a bow and arrow to
+render his resemblance to that interesting hero complete. We could
+not ascertain from the conversation that ensued what had been the
+day’s success of this enthusiastic young sportsman, but there was a
+great talk of “<i>Gemsen</i>” (chamois), “<i>Hirsche</i>” (deer), and
+such familiar and domestic animals as “<i>Bären</i>” (bears), all of
+which we heard whilst sitting at another table close by. His clothes,
+evidently quite new, bore no honourable marks such as one would suppose
+his to possess who had encountered these quadrupeds in the chase;
+moreover his hands were as white as those of a woman, and his long
+thin fingers, adorned with a variety of large oval rings, gave rise to
+doubts as to whether so effeminate and dainty a creature could even
+have joined issue with a sparrow.</p>
+
+<p>After dinner they all went to the village some little distance off,
+where there is a billiard-room for visitors, and we were glad to be
+alone.</p>
+
+<p>“Ah,” exclaimed our host, a Pole from Warsaw, when he found that we
+were English, “a countryman of yours was<span class="pagenum" id="Page_275">[275]</span> the first to climb the
+Eisthaler-Spitze from Zakopane; his name was Ball; not many can
+climb <i>him</i>,” by which I imagine he meant the mountain, and not
+Mr. Ball, who, though renowned for his Alpine explorations, I never
+heard was a person of more than ordinary dimensions. “Ah! he was
+great, and noble, and brave,” alluding this time to Mr. Ball, and
+not to the mountain. “It is a long time ago now, nearly thirty-seven
+years, but there are some who still remember <i>der tapfere Englische
+Bergsteiger</i>” (the brave English climber).</p>
+
+<p>“There is to be a chamois hunt to-morrow, got up for the Herr Graf,”
+continued he, referring as we fancy to our friend of the William Tell
+costume. “But it was snowing on the heights yesterday, and they will
+have some tough climbing up yonder”—pointing through the wall to the
+great mountain outside. “You will not have much sleep, I fear, after
+four o’clock, at which hour they will be starting.”</p>
+
+<p>A chamois hunt! It was the dream of my childhood verified. A born lover
+of Alps and Alpine pursuits, has not my heart gone “pit-a-pat” many a
+time over the bold exploits of the chamois hunter? Ah! if I had only
+been a boy, I would have grown into a chamois hunter too, and lived in
+a lonely châlet beneath some snowy peak. And here I am at last in the
+very place of chamois hunters! We must rise with the sun to see them
+start; and who knows but that in our own climb to-morrow, we may come
+in for a little of the sport—from a distance, at any rate.</p>
+
+<p>Ascertaining which way they are likely to go, we order ponies to be in
+readiness at seven o’clock, determining to ride as far as we can, and
+then take to our feet, or even “all fours” if necessary. The mountains
+are very precipitous<span class="pagenum" id="Page_276">[276]</span> in the Tátra, much more so as a rule than those
+at the same altitude in Switzerland, and ponies we knew would not be
+able to carry us very far on the way, but to be saved even a couple of
+miles of road would be a comfort when we have a hard climb before us.
+A guide and provision <i>Träger</i> are also told off to accompany us,
+and I retire for the night feeling that one of the desires of my life
+is about to be accomplished.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2760_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2760_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_277">[277]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XXI.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE CHAMOIS HUNTER.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">The morning broke just as such mornings should, but so seldom do; the
+dark and sombre mountains, rearing their perpendicular walls of granite
+high into the zenith, stood out blue and sharp against the rosy sky,
+as the sun, still far below the horizon, sent upwards his crimson
+messengers.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2770_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2770_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Long before it was light, however—for dawn defers her coming in
+this mountain gorge—we were suddenly awakened from a sound sleep by
+hideous, unearthly, and perfectly indescribable noises outside our
+window, which we afterwards learned proceeded from a duet, if not a
+trio, of cow-horns. We had fallen asleep under the impression that
+we should be aroused from our slumbers by the sweet and inspiriting
+music of the <i>Jägerhorn</i>, but how cruelly was this fond delusion
+dissipated! We had hardly recovered from the effects of the first
+deafening blast, when another burst<span class="pagenum" id="Page_278">[278]</span> from the inharmonious trio
+of sound, followed by the snapping of rifles, awoke throbbing and
+reproachful echoes in the stern mountains, and this time brought the
+Herr Graf out of his apartment. <i>We</i> had also obeyed the rude
+summons, and, hastily attiring ourselves—elaborate toilets being at
+the best of times out of place in the mountains—were soon standing
+outside the barrack-like building in the chill morning.</p>
+
+<p>Mountain air is much more provocative of hunger than sleep, so that
+getting up in the small hours is not nearly so uncomfortable a
+proceeding as in one’s snug home in the lowlands. In any case it was
+well worth the effort on this occasion, if only to see the breaking of
+the morn, and to watch one beautiful object after another, rock and
+tree and flowing water, take shape and grow out of the dim chaos of
+night.</p>
+
+<p>The hunting party, consisting of about seven men, all either
+<i>Jäger</i> or <i>Treiber</i> (huntsmen or beaters), were being
+regaled with coffee before the start; besides whom were several
+provision <i>Träger</i> and porters for promiscuous baggage, which they
+carried strapped to their backs like knapsacks. At a little distance,
+talking confidentially to the landlord, is the youthful Count himself,
+in all the panoply of the chase, not a single accompaniment wanting. In
+addition to his hunting costume, he wears wound round his body a large
+net and rope. The use of the former was somewhat difficult to define,
+and left us in doubt as to whether it were intended for a hammock, or
+for catching fish in one of the Alpine lakes in the vicinity of which
+they were about to beat.</p>
+
+<p>“How do you manage to exist in these solitudes during<span class="pagenum" id="Page_279">[279]</span> the long
+winter?” we inquired of our host after they had gone, as he spread the
+snowy cloth for our breakfast.</p>
+
+<p>“What can one do?” replied the little man, with a look of sad
+resignation: “the time seems long, very long, but one must have
+patience, and then the summer comes, bringing with it the visitors.
+Ah,” he continued, with a sigh, “we are no longer at home in our once
+peaceful land. Where Russia rules, no Pole’s house is his own, and none
+can tell what we have to suffer. In Austrian Poland we are safe from
+persecution, but in <i>Russian Poland</i>——I am a self-imposed exile,
+and would rather be a peasant under Austrian rule than a prince under
+that of Russia.”</p>
+
+<p>Well fortified by an excellent breakfast for our own climb, we mount
+our ponies at the appointed hour, and crossing the foaming Bystre,
+at the ironworks of the Baron Ludwig Eichhorn, ascend a steep path
+through the forest; after leaving which we again reach the region of
+<i>krummholz</i>, which is growing in dishevelled masses on the abrupt
+precipice of the Thalkessel.</p>
+
+<p>Our ponies, unaccustomed for nine whole months of the year to carry
+human freight, have, as may be readily supposed, like my old friend
+Minsh, their respective idiosyncrasies, and I have a shrewd suspicion
+that the one on which I am seated has never before carried anything of
+greater importance than a sack. It manifests in fact such a spirit of
+antagonism to me personally, that before I had been in the saddle many
+minutes, it did its best to get rid of me entirely by running close to
+ledges of rock—where any presented themselves on the left side of the
+path—as well as against trunks of trees and prickly brushwood or any
+other obstacle of the like nature, evidently<span class="pagenum" id="Page_280">[280]</span> hoping thereby quietly
+to rub me off as it would have done a fly, or leech, or any other
+obnoxious and irritating parasite. I must say that considering their
+patriarchal titles—their names were Abraham and Sarah—they behaved
+very badly indeed, the former having an uncomfortable trick of keeping
+to the outer or precipice side of the narrow paths, causing one leg of
+his rider to hang over the yawning abyss immediately beneath, as if to
+give him timely warning of the kind of “promised land” <i>he</i> had
+to expect unless he took heed to his ways. Beyond this odious habit,
+however, Abraham pursued his course with austere dignity, looking
+neither to the right nor to the left.</p>
+
+<p>We are getting on fast with our knowledge of the Polish language. When
+we wish to go faster, we give the patriarchal pair a gentle reminder
+with a bramble—which has been furnished us in lieu of a whip—and
+exclaim in commanding tones “<i>Jedj prentko!</i>” and when we desire
+to stop, cry “<i>Stu-i!</i>” At length, after a climb of an hour and a
+quarter’s duration, we reach a grass-covered hollow lying between two
+mountains, and, leaving the ponies behind, continue our climb on foot.</p>
+
+<p>Following our guide and scrambling through the branches of the
+spreading <i>krummholz</i>, we soon stand at the foot of the
+Felsenkegel, from whence we have a magnificent view of the
+north-western portion of the Tátra chain, here called the Krapak. But,
+beautiful as it is, we do not linger at this spot, having a long climb
+before us to the Frozen and the Black Lakes, called respectively, in
+the Sláv dialect of the district, <i>Zamárly Staw</i> and <i>Czarny
+Staw</i>. Retracing our steps as far as the meadow where our ponies are
+grazing, we cross a babbling stream and begin to ascend the mountain<span class="pagenum" id="Page_281">[281]</span>
+by a more gentle slope, till we see the Black Lake before us, lying
+snug and warm in the lap of enfolding mountains, and which, next to
+the Cszorba-See, is one of the loveliest of which the Tátra boasts.
+To the west, floating still and calm in its oval-shaped basin, lay
+a small rocky island covered with the dark <i>krummholz</i>. Not a
+ripple disturbs the tranquil bosom of the lake, for here, as at the
+Félka tarn, perfect silence reigns, and not a bird or insect breaks
+the stillness. Above rises the Kóscielec-Spitze, reflecting its mighty
+walls in the clear black-green waters, its every outline and feature
+defined sharply as in a mirror.</p>
+
+<p>“In stormy weather,” exclaimed our Polish guide—who, fortunately for
+us, spoke German—pointing in the direction of the great peak, “he
+sends down huge pieces of himself into the lake. I saw him once in a
+storm of wind and rain when, overtaken in the mountains, I had to flee
+for shelter beneath that low overhanging rock opposite. It was an awful
+thing to see him then: the fragments came tumbling down his face, as
+though he had been a giant weeping tears of stone, and, plunging into
+the lake with a roar like thunder, sent the water halfway up his sides
+like a mighty <i>Springbrunnen</i>” (fountain)—and he spoke of the
+mountains, as so many Alpine guides are wont to do, as though they had
+been living, sentient things.</p>
+
+<p>These mountain lakes, so far removed from the abode of man, with their
+dark still waters, possess a weird and indescribable fascination, and
+always seemed to me to be the abode of some great Spirit, which brooded
+over them and held them as in thrall. In their silent presence a
+silence crept over us too—a spell which seemed to forbid the utterance
+of words. So greatly did this Black Lake impress me<span class="pagenum" id="Page_282">[282]</span> individually that
+I dreamt of it that night. I dreamt that I was standing here alone; it
+was twilight, as it nearly always is in dreams; when there came to me
+a presence, felt, not seen, and said, “All those who venture within my
+sanctuary and once behold my Spirit, I hold them mine for ever.” And
+instantly I felt my feet grow rooted to the spot. I could not move.
+Then in struggling to get free I awoke, feeling thankful it was, after
+all, “but a dream.”</p>
+
+<p>The Frozen Lake, lying at an elevation of nearly 6000 feet above the
+level of the sea, is approached from the eastern bank of the Czarny
+Staw. A short but steep climb over large boulders of granite brings us
+to a small plateau, whence we look down upon it, lying in its snow-girt
+cradle: and here again the scene is one of grandeur and sublimity
+impossible to describe. Surrounded by gigantic rock bastions, whose
+ravines and gullies are filled with colossal fields of snow extending
+to the lake itself, it seems held in their icy grip; silent, immovable,
+the most dreary and desolate but impressive thing in nature. As we
+stand looking down into its frozen depths, a golden eagle—the first we
+have seen in the Northern Tátra—flies out of a fissure in the rocks
+and with motionless wings cleaves the azure deeps, and then, swooping
+down again, seeks its solitary nest.</p>
+
+<p>No vegetation is here, not even <i>krummholz</i>, for no plant could
+find sufficient soil upon these barren rocks in which to germinate
+and spread its roots and grow. No lonely Alpine flower holds up its
+grateful petals to the light. All is barren, sterile, desolate, as if
+there had once been a curse upon the land that blighted it for ever.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_283">[283]</span></p>
+
+<p>Throughout this rocky labyrinth the eye searches long in vain for
+outlet. We seem shut in as by lofty battlements and prison-walls, but
+yonder, nevertheless, there is a narrow gorge through which we make our
+exit.</p>
+
+<p>The <i>Träger</i>, who for some time past had been loitering in the
+rear, and whom we feared might—in a paroxysm of hunger—be making
+a raid upon the provision-bag, now comes in sight. Our suspicions
+were incorrect however, for we soon find that that inestimable
+and much-injured individual, in a burst of benevolence and with a
+singleness of heart quite affecting to contemplate, has been collecting
+wood for us in some lower elevation, and now comes toiling breathless
+up the steep with a large faggot on his shoulders, filling our hearts
+with such remorse on account of our evil thoughts concerning him, that
+we inwardly determine to make it up to him by the bestowal of an extra
+florin on his leaving us at night.</p>
+
+<p>A few handfuls of dry moss, which he had also brought up with him, make
+the wood crackle and send up a hundred merry sparks playing amongst the
+grey and sombre rocks, and a bright fire soon burns cheerily. Throwing
+ourselves down before it, we dine like lords, and, after resting for an
+hour, journey on again with joyful countenance.</p>
+
+<p>The day is lovely. It is indeed a model day, a day of days. Not a cloud
+flecks the sky, which is of that intense, opaque, and sapphire tint
+known so well to all Alpine travellers, whilst the air is so clear,
+and so altogether intoxicating in its freshness, that we are scarcely
+sensible of fatigue as we climb yet higher, now over loose stones which
+give way beneath the feet, and now through wastes of dazzling snow,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_284">[284]</span>
+till we reach our goal,—a lofty ridge whence a superb view of almost
+the entire Tátra is obtained, and which extends as far as the Alps of
+Liptau.</p>
+
+<p>Below, at our feet, is the highest of the Fünf Seen, lying at an
+elevation of more than 7000 feet. Of the peaks, the Krivan is lord
+over these bleak territories, though not by any means the highest,
+the Eisthaler and Lomnitzer <i>Spitzen</i> carrying off the palm in
+this respect. But it is not the actual elevation of mountains which
+impresses the beholder, it is rather their shape, position, and
+altitude relative to surrounding objects; and I do not think I ever
+remember having seen, even in Switzerland, so truly wild and majestic
+a panorama as that of the Tátra and Krapak which is presented to the
+traveller from this point. In Switzerland the mountains, if I may so
+express it, are more civilised. In the Tátra they are wild, barren,
+savage; there is less of gracious beauty, but more of ruggedness in
+their formation. It is—as I have elsewhere observed—as though Nature
+had worked herself into a state of frenzy, and created them without
+either forethought or arrangement.</p>
+
+<p>The lowest of these mountains of the “Central Carpathians” is more
+than 1000 feet above the region of perpetual snow, whilst the highest
+is nearly 3800 feet above it; yet on neither, except in inconsiderable
+quantities, does snow rest much after the beginning of June,—a
+phenomenon all the more singular from the fact of their northern
+position, there being no less than 2½° difference between Switzerland
+and the Tátra region. The average temperature of Kesmark and Poronin
+shows a difference of 32·81°; whilst the difference in the elevation
+of these two places is 313 feet. If it be allowed that<span class="pagenum" id="Page_285">[285]</span> a decrease
+in temperature occurs in the upper region in the same proportion, it
+follows that the theoretical snow-line in the Tátra will be at an
+altitude of 6254 feet, according to which perpetual snow ought to lie
+everywhere under the lofty ridges; and yet, although there are ravines
+in which large masses of snow are found which do not melt even during
+the hottest summer, a peak covered with eternal snow is nowhere found.
+The chief reason of its not remaining on the higher peaks and ridges is
+doubtless their extreme declivity and the absence of ledges or flats on
+which to rest; the consequence being that the first thaw causes it to
+slide away and leave the peaks bare.</p>
+
+<p>Not far from the ridge on which we have been standing is the pearl
+of all the Tátra lakes—the Fisch-See—and the rock pyramid of the
+<i>Meerauge</i>, but we feel we have had enough climbing for one day,
+and decide to rest on our laurels at this spot.</p>
+
+<p>Although it was not far from here that the <i>Jäger</i> were to beat,
+not a voice or sound of shot has reached us, and the mountains and
+gorges are as still as if the earth had reached that period when all
+life had passed away, and they stood alone in empty desolation.</p>
+
+<p>Looking down upon a field of snow, however, we presently see a small
+black dot—a mere fly it looks from this distance. F. raises his
+binoculars and has a look at it. It is a pedestrian, and carries a
+staff in its hand. How infinitely does this mere suggestion of human
+life seem to add to the loneliness of our surroundings! What poetry
+is there in that small black speck, and what a history Fancy weaves
+concerning it, as it threads its solitary way over the glittering snow!
+It is an aged pilgrim, perhaps, making his way to some<span class="pagenum" id="Page_286">[286]</span> holy well in
+the heart of these mountains, where so many streams find their rocky
+cradle, or perhaps one of those poor men who spend their time in these
+solitudes searching for gentian-roots.</p>
+
+<p>“Let us go down and meet him, it is on our way home,” exclaimed F. in a
+gush of benevolence. “Ten to one he is hungry, poor beggar, and we can
+give him the remains of the provisions; both guide and <i>Träger</i>
+have had as much as they can eat for one day, I’m sure.”</p>
+
+<p>Imagine our surprise when, descending towards the black speck which
+had so excited our sympathies as it toiled over the snow, we found
+it develop into no less a person than the Herr Graf himself, who had
+evidently been botanising all the time we pictured him to ourselves
+as circumventing the wily chamois. Not in the smallest degree
+disconcerted by our having lighted upon him thus suddenly in the mild
+and contemplative capacity of botanist, which he had exchanged for the
+excitement of the chase, of which we supposed him at that very moment
+to be the hero, he greeted us naïvely, saying:</p>
+
+<p>“I left the <i>Jäger</i> up there in the heights. There is a poetical
+endurance in the manner in which those fellows hunt, which we
+lowlanders cannot understand. I did not see the fun of perching behind
+a snowy pinnacle and freezing all day for a possible chamois, so that,
+having waited in that interesting attitude a full hour, and no game
+having showed itself, I came away.”</p>
+
+<p>He had not been idle, however, in his subsequent occupation, having
+collected more than twenty specimens of Alpine flowers, amongst which
+was one that we had diligently sought for on our way up, but sought
+in vain, the <i>Gentiana<span class="pagenum" id="Page_287">[287]</span> frigida</i>, which grows at the highest
+elevation of all the gentian tribe.</p>
+
+<p>Preceding us to the plateau whence we looked down upon the Frozen Lake,
+he led us over a small meadow to a group of sombre granite boulders,
+looking almost black in contrast with the dazzling snow-fields
+everywhere around, and pointed to a narrow shelf of rock. There in very
+truth was the lovely little flower in all its pure and simple beauty,
+looking down upon us from its shrine of sanctity all amongst the
+spotless snow—a whole tuft of it reflecting the cerulean blue. Beauty
+such as this is an awful thing. In that lowly flower there was a grace
+and purity not of earth’s devising, and I left it where it was, for to
+handle it seemed little short of sacrilege.</p>
+
+<p>Home at sunset to a dinner of <i>Auerhahn</i> soup, red deer served
+with cranberry sauce, and <i>Kaiser-Vogel</i> to follow, we feel like
+hardy mountaineers with a vengeance. The Russians have taken their
+departure, and some new guests have arrived, who have come hither from
+Schmecks to make the ascent of the Eisthaler-Spitze. They report a
+continuance of fog at the little bathing-place, and we congratulate
+ourselves on having escaped it on this side the Tátra.</p>
+
+<p>Going to the doorway, we find the moon shining brightly. It scarcely
+seemed night, but merely a spiritual and ethereal extension of day.
+Tired though we were, the temptation was too strong to be resisted:
+we must have a stroll up the gorge, for the beautiful mountain stream
+which came scampering from its frigid birthplace all amongst the clouds
+seemed to beckon us towards it. It was the same little brook which rang
+such a merry peal as we rode past it in the morning, and which, falling
+over mossy stones, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_288">[288]</span> running in and out amongst them, formed tiny
+bays and sandy shores, where the fairies might have bathed and then
+danced on its sands in the moonlight. It flows sadder now, though not
+less quickly, and its melody is more plaintive. Presently the moon,
+travelling on its pathway through the heavens, begins to cast a shadow
+from the highest tree-fringed summit of the gorge. Slowly it creeps
+downwards like a thing of life, slowly but surely. First the topmost
+branches of the trees are enclosed in darkness, then the rocks; and
+now it touches the little silvery torrent. It crosses it and begins
+the ascent of the opposite side. It is almost dreadful to stand and
+watch it, so like is it to the shadow that so passes over our own
+lives. On it comes relentless, never pausing, but creeping onwards,
+upwards; shutting out first this object, then that, till everything is
+encompassed in the gloom, and I almost shudder as the last light dies
+upon the topmost crag, and the spirit of the scene has fled, so like is
+it to death.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2880_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2880_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_289">[289]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XXII.<br>
+<span class="subhed">ZIGZAGGING.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">One more delightful and joyous day spent in climbing the pine-clad
+Nosol, and in driving to the beautiful valley of Kościelysko,
+terminates our stay at Zakopane.</p>
+
+<p>Starting for the former at 9 <span class="allsmcap">A.M.</span>, we are accompanied not
+only by a guide, but by the Herr Graf himself, who still wears his
+William Tell costume and looks meekly ferocious with his moustache well
+cosmetiqued for the occasion. At his side dangles a miniature barrel,
+filled, before leaving the inn, with some invigorating beverage in
+readiness for any emergency that might befall us on the way. He is
+likewise armed with his gun, for who knows but that a chamois or two,
+or a spotted deer, might cross our pathway, these animals being such
+very friendly game. Should either do so, it would be provoking not to
+have a shot at him. In addition to these equipments of the chase he
+carries on his shoulders a small scarlet flag, but for what purpose,
+other than that of effect, we are as greatly at a loss to determine as
+in the case of the net of the previous day.</p>
+
+<p>The noble pine forest up which we were slowly zigzagging is one of
+nature’s own gardens at this time of year, and our progress would have
+been arrested every moment as we<span class="pagenum" id="Page_290">[290]</span> stooped to gather the lovely Alpine
+flowers which were blooming in lowly beauty at our feet, had not our
+guide warned us that time is a fast fleeting substantive, and that
+if we went on loitering in that fashion we could never expect to be
+“<i>auf der Spitze</i>.”</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p2900_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p2900_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Climbing with the aid of the Tátra staff—a strong hatchet-headed
+stick, with which we are each provided, and which every one uses
+on this northern side of the mountains—we catch hold of roots and
+branches of trees, and ascend the precipitous mountain that would
+otherwise have been impossible to climb. As we approach the summit,
+the noble pines bear evidence to some recent tempest, for all is dire
+disorder; the tops of some, partially severed from their trunks, are
+upheld by the branches of the trees next to them, whilst others again
+that have succumbed to the fury of the storm-king are lying like
+prostrate giants where they fell, their beautiful foliage withering in
+the sunlight, whilst the young and feathery larches are either strewn
+about or bowed like withies almost to the ground.</p>
+
+<p>“Four hundred trees were blown down on this mountain alone during the
+storm,” remarked our guide, as he pointed to a splendid monarch of the
+woods that, torn up by its roots, was poised against another tree, and
+formed a pointed arch above us.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst travelling in the Carpathians it has been a constant marvel to
+us that any pines are left standing, for not only are these splendid
+primeval forests exposed to the ravages of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_291">[291]</span> the north wind, and
+ruthlessly cut down by the inhabitants, but it is the rarest thing
+possible to see young trees planted in their place. It is true that
+the forests being vast in extent, and the country thinly populated, it
+is scarcely likely there will ever be a lack of wood, but it is sad to
+see one of the most beautiful characteristics of this mountain land
+gradually dwindling away.</p>
+
+<p>In an hour and a half from the time of our leaving the valley, we
+stand on the summit of the Nosol. For the last twenty minutes of our
+way it has been a terribly hard climb, but we now find ourselves well
+repaid by a magnificent view of the surrounding country. Below lies
+the village of Zakopane, which contains 2500 inhabitants; its houses,
+which, after the Polish custom, are erected in groups, looking like
+mere toys. To the south rises the rocky summit of the Giewont, which,
+although of lower altitude than others behind it, far exceeds them in
+grandeur. Two peaks of this singular mountain form themselves into
+pyramids, which at one season of the year serve as a clock to the
+inhabitants of the village, the sun at noon standing almost immediately
+over a chasm which lies between them.</p>
+
+<p>The <i>Edelweiss</i> grows in great abundance on the Nosol, its
+silvery-white bracteal leaves and woolly flowers contrasting vividly
+with the blue gentian. I was sitting silent and alone, making a rapid
+sketch of the rocky labyrinth around, when something came behind me and
+threw a handful of these lovely Alpine flowers into my lap. It was a
+little child, who with another, scarcely older than herself, had come
+from the village below, both having scrambled up the steep face of the
+mountain, by a shorter<span class="pagenum" id="Page_292">[292]</span> way than that by which we had come—scrambled
+up, goodness knows how! Both were such perfect little rustics, and had
+such bright colours and rosy lips, that they looked like Alpine flowers
+themselves, as, wandering in and out amongst the rocks in search of
+the beautiful gentian and other flowers, they made them into bunches
+and stuck them in my hat, and then without the least shyness threw
+themselves on the soft grass beside me, prattling in their strange Sláv
+tongue, and watching me while I sketched.</p>
+
+<p>F. and the Graf, under the leadership of the guide, had gone for a
+further climb to a group of rocks on the extreme summit, and I was glad
+of the companionship of these little mountaineers. Presently out of
+the sweet melody existing in their hearts they began to sing, not in
+any regular succession of sounds modulated by art, but carolling like
+forest-birds, until, with the impulsiveness of childhood, they jumped
+up suddenly and were gone.</p>
+
+<p>I shuddered as I watched them zigzag down the dizzy height by the steep
+and almost imperceptible pathway, singing as they went and taking no
+heed to their footsteps. I watched them out of sight, and felt that
+the Angels must indeed have special charge over these mountain “little
+ones,” for one false step would have sent them rolling over and over to
+a depth of full a thousand feet.</p>
+
+<p>On the return of my companions, we go to visit the remains of a glacier
+moraine, which consists of blocks of granite and other <i>débris</i>
+forming the bed and sides of what must have been a broad glacier
+no less than a mile long. The surrounding rocks are of dolomite:
+consequently the stones, like that of the Félka valley, must have been
+brought hither from a considerable distance by ice-masses.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_293">[293]</span></p>
+
+<p>Some of the pines in this district are very singular, having no lower
+foliage at all, only little patches of green upon their tips and
+extreme points of the branches, and they look old—<i>so</i> old—with
+icicles hanging from their stems, that we are forcibly reminded of the
+primeval forests of the mountains in the far East, where they stand and
+lie by thousands, dead, and blanched by time, looking like phantoms
+of themselves. The cones which fall from these Eastern forest-trees,
+from some cause or other, have ceased to germinate; and there being no
+inhabitants in those wilds to replant the forests with young pines, the
+splendid primeval pine-woods will soon be quite extinct.</p>
+
+<p>Gazing at these fine weather-beaten old fellows as, winding round
+the mountain, they are perpetually presented to our view, our minds,
+as I have said, revert sadly to the Nemesis that has overtaken those
+in the more distant land; and we wonder whether, in that cycle which
+is silently weaving gradual but unmistakable changes in the world of
+nature, the same causes which so mysteriously affected the cessation
+of their growth and natural reproduction will—it may be centuries
+hence—operate here also, and many of these mountains be robbed of one
+of the chief features of their beauty, unless man intervenes to prevent
+the possibility, and plants them with young trees.</p>
+
+<p>We had left orders before starting that Abraham and Sarah were to be
+in attendance at two o’clock to take us on to the Kościelysko-Thal, so
+that we tarry no longer in the neighbourhood of the Nosol, but descend
+the mountain as quickly as we can. On nearing the inn, the first
+things which attract our notice are these interesting animals, already
+saddled and patiently awaiting our return; for we<span class="pagenum" id="Page_294">[294]</span> are nearly an hour
+later than we had intended. A meal hastily partaken of—for day is
+waning, and there is no time to be lost—and we are cantering off to
+the beautiful defile, a quadruple cavalcade, not only the Graf but the
+guide himself accompanying us <i>à cheval</i>, for the distance is too
+great to walk our ponies and admit of his going with us on foot.</p>
+
+<p>The road is excellent, and takes us through forests nearly the whole
+way. In the small clearings in the pine-woods what sweet pictures are
+seen! piles of newly-cut wood, and happy peasants in bright-coloured
+clothing, lighting up the dark green foliage and tall grey stems of the
+trees.</p>
+
+<p>The entrance to the valley is guarded by two rocks, which create a
+portal so narrow that we can only just pass in on our ponies; thus
+jealously does Nature secure from intrusion one of her grandest
+sanctuaries.</p>
+
+<p>On the other side of this natural gateway we find a small meadow, in
+which a cow and two goats are peacefully grazing. But no sooner does
+the former catch sight of the Graf’s red flag—who is some twenty yards
+ahead of us—than gathering herself up, with head and tail erect, she
+waits his nearer approach with menacing aspect, evidently ready for an
+attack.</p>
+
+<p>The effect of this bovine demonstration on the Graf’s weak nerves was
+startling. Paralysed with fear, he stood gazing at the infuriated
+animal for some seconds until, whether from pity or scorn, the creature
+forsook its threatening aspect and walked quietly across to another
+part of the meadow.</p>
+
+<p>Not far off is Alt-Kościelysko, where there is a hut in which benighted
+travellers can, when necessary, find shelter<span class="pagenum" id="Page_295">[295]</span> till the following
+morning. Proceeding farther still, we come to another pass, called the
+“Upper Gate,” scarcely broader than the former, there being only room
+for the pathway and the stream that flows beside it. It is at this
+point that the grandeur and beauty of the gorge may with truth be said
+to commence.</p>
+
+<p>On either side the rocks, rising almost perpendicularly, assume the
+most marvellous and fantastic forms, and to many of these names have
+been assigned. Thus, about half a mile from the Upper Gateway there is
+a narrow cleft called “Krakow,” on account of the resemblance the rocks
+are said to bear to some of the old buildings of the ancient capital of
+that name.</p>
+
+<p>Leaving a giant rock behind us, 3400 feet in height, on which the
+Browns, Joneses, and Robinsons of Hungary, Poland, and Germany have
+inscribed their names, and on which, to the inexpressible astonishment
+of our guide and the Herr Graf, I need scarcely say we did <i>not</i>
+immortalise our own, we pass on to another yet more magnificent group
+of rocks, and are not overtaken by the Graf—who has been enlightening
+future tourists with a long list of his titles—until we have entered
+a forest leading to a small lake which lies in its centre, and whose
+waters are almost black from the boggy nature of its bed. As we
+approach it, a flock of wild ducks rise from its margin and soar away
+over the tree-tops. F. shouts to our gallant sportsman, who is still
+slightly in the rear, but on his joining us we ascertain that he had
+brought every mortal thing with him with the exception of powder and
+shot. These it had escaped his memory to bring! So that, although the
+sedges are evidently full of game, we were not permitted to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_296">[296]</span> witness
+his prowess; a circumstance which I shall always feel was a most
+fortunate circumstance, so far as our own lives were concerned.</p>
+
+<p>We have a lovely ride home, the moon shedding such radiance over all
+things far and near that the night was once more almost converted into
+day. Not until ten o’clock did we espy the roof of our hostel, and
+recognise the hoary pate of the hospitable landlord, standing outside
+in the moonlight, watching for us anxiously and wondering what could
+have kept us so late. There were tidings for us, too, which the old man
+was burning to communicate. The <i>Jäger</i> had returned and brought
+down from the heights not only a chamois, but some smaller game,
+together with a bear. Great was the excitement in the inn, from which
+came the sound of many voices; for the <i>Jäger</i>, who had arrived
+only an hour previously, were being regaled with supper in the kitchen.
+Having been two days in the mountains, they were doing full justice
+to their well-earned meal, and formed an exceedingly picturesque
+group, and one which might have done capitally for a representation
+of freebooters or robber-knights, so thoroughly did they sustain the
+character so far as externals were concerned.</p>
+
+<p>The game lay in an <i>álás</i> opposite, whither one of the
+<i>Jäger</i> soon accompanied us. The chamois, which had received its
+shot in the neck, was one of only moderate size. It had been roused—so
+said the <i>Jäger</i>—at a place not far below the Frozen Lake;
+and had fled for safety to the peak beneath which the Graf had been
+stationed, having passed within a few yards of the very stone behind
+which he had been concealed, about two hours previously.</p>
+
+<p>The party slept in a <i>Zufluchtshütte</i> or hut of refuge, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_297">[297]</span> then
+beat a forest for bears. The one they had bagged was a fine shaggy old
+fellow, but very much mutilated, having received no fewer than seven
+shots,—a great pity, on account of the injury to its skin.</p>
+
+<p>The Count did not seem so chagrined at his absence from the sport as
+one would naturally have imagined, but took a very lively interest in
+its results. He is to depart early on the morrow to catch the morning’s
+train at Poprád, where, journeying by the Kaschau and Oderberger
+railway, he will return to the <i>Vaterland</i>, no doubt full of his
+daring exploits.</p>
+
+<p>As we leave the shed and re-enter the inn where our own repast now
+awaits us, we hear him giving directions for the head and skin of the
+chamois, together with that of the bear, to be forwarded to him so soon
+as they have been cured; after which they will doubtless be carefully
+suspended in the baronial hall, in the company of the William Tell hat
+and the various accoutrements of the chase, as a witness to successive
+generations of the valour of their ancestor.</p>
+
+<p>The story will be recorded of how one Ludwig von ——, in the year of
+our Lord 188-, did fight with a bear, how that he was seized in its
+grip, and hugged like a baby; but by the strength of his mighty arm,
+and without either gun or lance, or any weapon whatsoever, did overcome
+the powerful monster, and fell it to the ground, where it immediately
+lay dead before him. A bear erect, rampant, on a fess <i>gules</i>,
+will be added to the family escutcheon, and the name of Ludwig von ——
+will be immortalised for ever.</p>
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_298">[298]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XXIII.<br>
+<span class="subhed">YETTA.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">A year has passed since we stayed at Tátra-Fűred and Zakopane and made
+our journey across the plains. Since then we have been to England,
+and planted our <i>krummholz</i> and Carpathian flowers, nearly all
+of which are growing: even the former has taken quite kindly to its
+English home. And here we are back again in the Northern Tátra, for
+the second time, waiting for the <i>diligence</i> to take us on to the
+world-renowned salt-mines of Wieliczka.</p>
+
+<p>The faithful András is again with us, and once more awaiting our return
+at Poprád with the same old lumbering vehicle that accompanied us on
+our former travels through Hungary, but which, having been patched up
+during our absence, has entered on a new lease of life.</p>
+
+<p>In the square at Neumarkt the same Jews are standing idly about the
+pavement as when we were last here, and their sole occupation still
+appears to be to watch other people’s movements. Their interest
+however at the present time is centred in the departure of the yellow
+<i>diligence</i> in which we are just about to take our seats.</p>
+
+<p>There was no <i>coupé</i>, so that we were obliged to journey in the
+<i>intérieur</i>, our fellow-travellers consisting of a gaunt<span class="pagenum" id="Page_299">[299]</span> man—a
+Pole—and a young woman whose nationality we could not determine, but
+from whose general appearance we imagined to be Rusniak.</p>
+
+<p>The process of shaking down is one of no small difficulty, but we
+manage it at last, and are soon rattling along at the usual pace
+at starting. The young woman referred to was on her way to Lubień,
+wherever that place may be,—a fact made known to us by the name
+which was marked in scrambling letters on a large cardboard box
+that she persisted in carrying on her lap, and which half filled
+the <i>diligence</i>. I ventured to remonstrate with her on this
+proceeding, but she defended herself and her box so vigorously in
+her own particular vernacular, that if she had been carrying a
+boa-constrictor instead, there is not one of us who would have had the
+courage to make any further objection.</p>
+
+<p>The other passenger was a man of grave and sedate countenance—as are
+nearly all the Poles—who seemed to find it impossible to dispose
+satisfactorily of his feet and legs. They proved a source of intense
+irritation to the young female who sat opposite, and I should
+say—judging from the painful attitude he assumed in his endeavours to
+stow them away—of no small dislocation to himself. But they too shook
+down at last, and with the exception of an occasional flash from her
+dark eyes, as every now and then he involuntarily trod upon her toes,
+all things went on smoothly enough.</p>
+
+<p>The distance between Neumarkt and Wieliczka is forty-five miles, the
+latter being situated near the beautiful Vistula, which waters the
+plains of Gallicia, and which, hastening on its northern course,
+finally empties itself into the Baltic.</p>
+
+<p>It was on these fertile pastures that the progenitors of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_300">[300]</span> the Poles
+had their original seat, dwelling on the rich banks of the Vistula;
+the word Pole itself being derived from the Slav word <i>polska</i>,
+meaning a level field, or plain.</p>
+
+<p>The vast salt-fields of Wieliczka—which, according to a popular
+tradition, were accidentally discovered during a vigilant search made
+to recover a wedding-ring—lie immediately under the town of the same
+name; and, whilst extending to the great breadth of 10,000 feet in a
+north-easterly direction, penetrate to the depth of more than 1700
+feet, and consist of four distinct stories.</p>
+
+<p>Permission to explore this singular region was readily granted on
+application, and a guide and several boys carrying torches told off
+to accompany us. Having been solemnly robed in white cloaks, we took
+our places in a kind of lift, and were suddenly plunged into the mouth
+of the shaft, through which we descended to a distance of thirty-five
+fathoms, when we were landed on what may be called the topmost story
+of these wonderful excavations, and found ourselves standing in a
+vaulted chamber, which, but for the surrounding darkness, might have
+been the gigantic packing-room of some warehouse. Here men were busily
+occupied in filling barrels with salt for transmission to its various
+destinations. Our guide however, preceding us across this busy hive,
+led us through long galleries to inner halls and chambers hewn out
+of the salt-rock. There was no oppressive feeling in the air as we
+followed him through corridor after corridor; and the boy-guides
+illuminating our pathway with their broom torches lit up the white
+walls, which sparkled as though they had been set with myriads of
+gems. Neither was there any difficulty in our progress; we walked as
+comfortably as if we had been in the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_301">[301]</span> open air, till we reached a
+salt-lake, where we found a small flat-bottomed boat in readiness to
+take us across to the opposite side. As we stepped into it, clad in our
+white sepulchral vestments, and assisted by a dark and muscular Charon,
+it was difficult to believe we were not about to cross a veritable
+Styx: the black waters in which the torches were reflected; the curious
+dress of our attendants, with their singular Sláv physiognomies,
+together with our own ghost-like garments, all favoured the illusion.
+Occasionally a dull report was heard like the boom of cannon, which
+seemed to shake the very foundations of the earth as the miners blasted
+the rock in some distant excavation.</p>
+
+<p>The salt is exceedingly compact, and, as a rule, unmixed—except
+near the surface—with any extraneous matter. These mines have been
+worked without cessation for more than 900 years, and yet the work of
+quarrying has still gone on in the different stories, until some of the
+chambers have attained the size of from 1000 to 2000 feet in width and
+100 in height. Numerous fossils are continually being found imbedded in
+the rock, which is supposed to be of Tertiary formation.</p>
+
+<p>One of the most interesting objects connected with these subterranean
+perforations is the fine Gothic chapel hewn out of the salt-rock, with
+its statues, enormous crucifix, and altar formed entirely of the same
+substance. One of the statues represents St. Cunegunda, the owner of
+the ring whose search was followed by such wonderful results, and on
+whose annual festival, as patroness of the mines, mass is said in the
+chapel in the presence of all the miners.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_302">[302]</span></p>
+
+<p>As in Hungary, the salt found here is a monopoly of the Austrian
+government, the out-turn from these mines alone being from fifty to
+sixty thousand tons annually.</p>
+
+<p>On our return from Wieliczka, hiring a carriage, we start at once for
+the <i>Dunajecz</i>, which we were unable to visit on our last year’s
+sojourn in the Northern Tátra. As we bade adieu to Neumarkt, that place
+of sordid Jews and devout Catholics, the rugged peaks were beautiful
+in the morning light; not a cloud dimmed their outlines, which were
+sharply pencilled on the sky. The peasants of both sexes were at work
+in the fields, and all was pastoral and lovely. By this time, however,
+we were so frantically hungry that we fully endorsed Dr. Johnson’s
+sentiment that no view, however exquisite, is perfect unless it have
+an inn for its immediate foreground. There was, however, not one to be
+met with between this and Altendorf, a good four hours’ journey; and we
+decided therefore to stop at the house at which we slept last year on
+our way through this district, and where we were certain to meet with a
+hearty welcome.</p>
+
+<p>It was not long before we approached the outskirts of the village, and
+found ourselves standing in the porch of the rambling old dwelling with
+its black wooden balcony, rendered familiar by our previous visit.</p>
+
+<p>Entering the homely kitchen, we expected to be greeted like old friends
+and recognised with joyful acclamation, but there was no one in it but
+a young child and a priest seated on a settle, who rose as we entered,
+bowed, and, uttering the words “<i>Servus domine spectabilis</i>”—a
+form of salutation still frequently used by many of the priests of
+Hungary—left the room.</p>
+
+<p>“Where is Yetta?” we inquire of the child. She could<span class="pagenum" id="Page_303">[303]</span> only speak
+Polish, but at the mention of the name she pointed to the church nearly
+opposite the house; and I could see that she meant “dead.”</p>
+
+<p>“And the <i>Grossvater</i>?”</p>
+
+<p>Again she pointed in the same direction.</p>
+
+<p>“What! dead too?” I ask.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Nein! nein! nicht todt</i>” (no! no! not dead), she manages to say.</p>
+
+<p>At this juncture, however, the <i>Hausmutter</i> came in from an
+adjoining apartment and demanded what was our pleasure.</p>
+
+<p>“Martcha,” I cried, “do you not remember <i>die Engländer</i> who were
+here a year ago, and whom you promised never to forget?”</p>
+
+<p>She passed her hand over her forehead, as if to dispel some intervening
+mist and recall some long-forgotten memory, and then burst into tears.</p>
+
+<p>“Yetta is gone!” she exclaimed, so soon as her sobs would let her. “She
+died just three weeks ago, and her little baby lies with her in the
+<i>Gottesacker</i> yonder.”</p>
+
+<p>“And the old man, your father, what of him?” we inquire eagerly. “Is he
+well?”</p>
+
+<p>“Well, but quite childish,” was the reply. “Since Yetta died he
+has often wandered in his mind, and stands about the grave all
+day. We cannot keep him from it. Ah! if he would but go into the
+<i>Kapelle</i>, and say ‘Our Father,’ he might find comfort. But the
+trouble has hardened him. He will not think but that the good God was
+cruel to take her from him, and he so old.”</p>
+
+<p>All this she told us as she busied herself in preparing the coffee and
+spreading the cloth for our breakfast, after which<span class="pagenum" id="Page_304">[304]</span> we go over to the
+<i>Gottesacker</i> with Martcha, where she says we are sure to find him.</p>
+
+<p>He is leaning on a wall not far from a new-made grave, over which an
+iron crucifix has already been placed, and on which we can read, in
+bright gilt letters on the black, the name of Yetta Poschaska, followed
+by a word we cannot read and by the figures 19 and 1880.</p>
+
+<p>As we approached, he raised his cap slightly, but did not recognise
+us, and then resumed his previous attitude with an almost vacant look,
+nothing in the expression of his face denoting emotion of any sort.</p>
+
+<p>“I wish he would but come into the church,” whispered Martcha. “Perhaps
+he would, if you were to ask him: he has never been there since.”</p>
+
+<p>“Her spirit is not <i>there</i>,” said the priest, who happened to be
+passing by, and pointing to the sod, “but up yonder, <i>in dem blauen
+Himmel</i>” (in the blue heaven).</p>
+
+<p>“That is nothing to me,” he replied curtly; “I cannot see her there.”</p>
+
+<p>“Come, father,” said Martcha, shaking him gently by the arm, “the two
+<i>Engländer</i> are here again, and want to see the church; won’t you
+show it to them?”</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Lasz mich in Ruh’!</i>” (let me be!) he answered peevishly, “she
+would like to feel her old grandfather was near her. Show them the
+church yourself, can’t you?”</p>
+
+<p>As we went into the quaint antique building, however, he followed
+slowly, and half involuntarily, as though unconsciously to himself he
+was glad of the companionship of human voices. We were observing the
+curious pictures and other objects surrounding the walls, when, looking
+round, we saw Martcha kneeling at one of the gaily decorated<span class="pagenum" id="Page_305">[305]</span> shrines,
+whilst the old man, following her example, was kneeling also, but quite
+mechanically as it seemed, his face wearing the same stolid look as
+before.</p>
+
+<p>Leaving the church very softly, we wander across to the quiet territory
+of the dead. The great mountains, piled peak above peak as far as eye
+can reach, rise sheer from the village with its dark foreground of
+picturesque wooden houses.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3050_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3050_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>As we linger in the little cemetery, which is thickly sown with graves,
+and think of the once busy hands and loving hearts now lying at rest
+beneath, we wonder how <i>they</i> must feel who have no belief in the
+spirit’s unceasing consciousness, and how terrible must be the blank
+when those they love are wrested from them; how terrible, too, the
+contemplation of their own short and ever-fleeting lives. And there was
+something so still and beautiful in the surroundings of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_306">[306]</span> this spot,
+with the great mountains in their solemn majesty keeping watch over the
+long green mounds, that made one feel somehow nearer heaven.</p>
+
+<p>It was eleven o’clock by the time we bade farewell to Martcha, the old
+man, and the peaceful village, and were on our way again, through the
+broad valley that leads to the <i>Rothe Kloster</i>. As we approach the
+volcanic rocks, on one of which it stands proudly even in its decay,
+we discover that the whole scene is much grander when approached from
+the north than by the way we reached it from Altendorf. Opposite, on
+the other side of the river Dunajecz, on a lofty crag stands a castle,
+the two seeming to menace each other from their battlemented heights,
+whilst on the crest of the lower pinnacles are small chapels, each with
+its crucifix and shrine.</p>
+
+<p>Sending our carriage on to await our arrival at a place called
+Scyavnicza (pronounced Schevaniska), we walk down to the river, and
+find two men awaiting us with a raft which had been previously ordered
+by the landlord of the inn at Zakopane. They are Poles, but are dressed
+like Slovaks, with broad felt hats and immense leather girdles.</p>
+
+<p>The mountains of the Dunajecz here divide the Carpathian chain; those
+to the left being called the Pieninen.</p>
+
+<p>The excursion down the Dunajecz is one of the most popular of the whole
+Tátra, the river passing through a narrow cleft in a rock, which it
+entirely fills; whilst the mountains and precipices on either side are
+so precipitous that they rise sheer out of the water, and do not admit
+even of the smallest footpath along its margin. The sun is just in that
+position in the heavens when, without having sunk<span class="pagenum" id="Page_307">[307]</span> towards the horizon,
+it throws shadows deep and long, and the narrow gorge—one side of
+which is immersed in profoundest shade, whilst the other is golden in
+the blaze of sunlight—presents a marvellous effect as the raft, formed
+of two small flat-bottomed boats lashed together, takes us through its
+windings.</p>
+
+<p>The water of the Dunajecz is perfectly clear, the rocks and vegetation
+that rise above it being reflected in its depths with marvellous
+distinctness. In some portions the river flows silently along, and
+there is scarcely a ripple on its surface; in others, however, it
+becomes a rapid and boisterous torrent, covered with crests of foam.
+No one who visits the Tátra should fail to pass through this beautiful
+defile.</p>
+
+<p>Emerging from the gorge at its northern outlet, we reach the village of
+Unter-Scyavnicza. It is the custom at this spot for young Polish girls
+to await the arrival of the rafts, and hold boughs and flower-garlands
+over the heads of the visitors as they step on shore. Most gladly
+would we have dispensed with this “function” had it been possible, but
+they had completely taken possession of us, and accompanying us across
+the white and pebbly shore of the river—which at this point takes a
+sharp bend to the right—they help us to climb its steep banks to the
+village, laughing merrily all the while and chattering together their
+(to us) hopelessly unintelligible Sláv dialect. I never beheld such
+a group of merry light-hearted sirens, as having been rewarded by a
+“consideration” they went scrambling back over the loose pebbles with
+their naked feet in the hope of crowning with unearned laurels some
+other unsuspecting hero of the gorge.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_308">[308]</span></p>
+
+<p>Leaving the village, we climb a steep hill and find ourselves
+surrounded by châlets built in such a truly ornamental style, that they
+look like sylvan palaces. There are baths here, much frequented in the
+season by Prussians as well as Russians and Poles.</p>
+
+<p>On the top of the hill we recognise our carriage. The driver, having
+failed to find a place where he could bait the horses in the village
+below, had added to their fatigue by bringing them up the ascent in the
+vain hope of meeting with an <i>álás</i>; but, alas and alack-a-day!
+he was unsuccessful, and our only plan now is to take them on to a
+place called Kroschenko and there give them two hours’ rest; it will
+fortunately be on our way to Altendorf, where we shall now be compelled
+to pass the night.</p>
+
+<p>We soon get into a good post-road, which we follow until we reach
+Kroschenko, a large village lying amongst verdant hills.</p>
+
+<p>There are no fewer than 190,000 Jews in this province alone, and
+one would suppose from the number that are met with everywhere that
+the whole neighbourhood must be given over into the hands of the
+Israelites. Standing about the principal street, or sitting in groups
+on the benches beneath the houses, wherever we turn we see these
+black-robed gentry: old Jews with snow-white ringlets; middle-aged
+Jews with iron-grey ringlets; boy Jews with black ringlets—the last,
+dressed like their elders in the long greasy toga, forming the most
+incongruous-looking objects in the universe.</p>
+
+<p>Even in this little place there is a government lottery. As we walk up
+the street we pass a small shop where spirits are sold. Close to the
+door on an oval shield we notice the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_309">[309]</span> hideous black eagle on the yellow
+ground, near which is a board with the numbers last drawn. Entering
+this den of iniquity—for so in truth it might be named—we find it
+full of women of all ages drinking the coarse white brandy of the
+district, which is distilled from potatoes. Some of them had already
+imbibed too freely of the unwholesome beverage, yet the shopkeeper,
+an old man of unmistakable type, a Jew of Jews and Hebrew of Hebrews,
+still pressed them to take more. Hastening from the close, dense
+atmosphere into the pure and open air of heaven, we breathe again,
+and pass more Jews, none of whom seem to have any occupation, for
+they sit or stand about the place smoking their long pipes, gossiping
+and talking of money. Whenever we happened to be near enough to
+hear their conversation, the most conspicuous words invariably were
+“<i>tausend Gulden</i>,” “<i>hundert Gulden</i>,” “<i>Joch</i>,” and
+“<i>Kreuzer</i>,” and involuntarily a feeling of intense pity filled
+our hearts for the race, so degraded and fallen, who were once called
+“the elect people of God,” and whose glorious country, the country of
+David and Solomon and Jesus, is subdued, crushed, and trampled under
+foot by an infidel power.</p>
+
+<p>It was a relief to turn not only from the actual presence of these
+repulsive-looking Jews, but from the melancholy contemplation of their
+fallen estate, and find at the other end of the village a Christian
+church with its standard of the cross. Entering it, we gratefully
+inhale the fumes of incense which still pervade its precincts. No
+service is taking place, but the door stands open. Kneeling on the
+pavement here and there are lonely women, laying bare the secrets of
+their hearts to the Great Unseen, and who, having withdrawn for a while
+from the toil and business of their<span class="pagenum" id="Page_310">[310]</span> weary lives, have brought into the
+peaceful seclusion of these walls their many wants and burdens.</p>
+
+<p>Like all we have hitherto seen in Gallicia, the church is full of
+banners and grotesque pictures. Hanging on the north wall was the
+picture of a saint whom we had not hitherto recognised as belonging to
+the calendar, and who, clad in the costume of ancient Rome, with sword
+and helmet, was engaged in pouring water upon flames,—an extremely
+popular saint, I should imagine, in a country like this, where fires
+are of such frequent occurrence.</p>
+
+<p>As we pass once more beneath the Red Convent on our way to Altendorf,
+the sun is setting, and, blazing against its ruined walls, transfigures
+its blocks of tufa into molten gold. On the slopes of the serried
+hills, that glow like red-hot cinders, the small white patches of
+calcareous matter intermingled with the lava glisten like silver. But
+already the shadow thrown by the crumbling pile is creeping down the
+eastern slope, and, looking back for one last look as we cross the
+wooden bridge, the whole is swallowed up in gloom.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3100_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3100_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_311">[311]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XXIV.<br>
+<span class="subhed">THE MOUNTAIN FUNERAL.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">Twilight has drawn her curtain across the saffron sky, and the lights
+of day have died on the metal cupola of the church as we once more
+reach Altendorf.</p>
+
+<p>Alighting on its outskirts, we send our carriage on with the luggage to
+the inn, and walk through the village; in doing which we are greeted
+with many a nod and smile of welcome from the “gentle Slovak,” as we
+are recognised in passing. Within a hundred yards of our destination we
+behold our old friend Gretchen the hostess—whose acquaintance we had
+made on our former visit—hot in the pursuit of a flock of geese, which
+she is vainly endeavouring to drive home, and which evince such decided
+and unmistakable reluctance to return to the family mansion, that had
+we not arrived upon the scene at that critical juncture to render
+timely aid, it is doubtful whether it would have been accomplished
+before nightfall. Just as we were bringing our interesting occupation
+to a triumphal close by chasing the last unruly emblem of ourselves
+into its unwished-for shelter behind the inn, a Dunajecz raft-man
+presented himself to our notice, offering for sale a large fish, which
+he called <i>Lachsen</i>.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Lachs</i>” being the German word for salmon, we had some curiosity
+to taste what this fish was like; but inasmuch<span class="pagenum" id="Page_312">[312]</span> as its possessor
+demanded a florin a pound for it, and refused to part with any unless
+we took the whole, and moreover, although hungry, we did not quite
+think we could eat fourteen pounds of fish at one sitting, we declined
+further negotiations, and F., in the most polished German—which the
+Slovak, I fear, failed fully to appreciate—commended it to his own
+digestion, and expressed the hope that he might find it agree with him!</p>
+
+<p>The little “<i>Wirtschaft</i>,” or inn, kept by a worthy couple, was
+entered by the customary stone kitchen. Beyond it, however, was a small
+inner room in which a bright fire was burning, and from which the
+welcome fumes of coffee-roasting reached us; a cup of that invigorating
+beverage being the very thing we wanted, but a luxury we hardly
+expected to meet with in a Slovak village. In twenty minutes’ time
+however we are once more regaling ourselves with <i>café à la crême</i>
+such as cannot be conceived out of Hungary or the Sublime Porte, and we
+ascertain from the housewife, who speaks German, that the great secret
+in its manufacture lies, not only in grinding the berry just before
+it is required, but in roasting it also—exactly so much and no more
+than is needed for the moment, grinding it before it has had time to
+cool, then boiling and serving it immediately, with hot cream as an
+accompaniment.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst sipping leisurely this delicious nectar, which is far too good
+to partake of hurriedly, we are reminded of a popular American author’s
+recipe for German coffee; and if to <i>German</i>, how much more
+applicable to <i>English</i>:—</p>
+
+<p>“Take a barrel of water and bring it to a boil; rub a bit of chicory
+against a coffee-berry, and convey the former into the water. Continue
+the boiling and evaporation, till the intensity<span class="pagenum" id="Page_313">[313]</span> of the flavour and
+aroma of the coffee and chicory has been diminished to a proper degree;
+then set aside to cool. Now unharness the remains of a once cow from
+the plough, insert them in a hydraulic press, and when you shall
+have acquired a teaspoonful of that pale blue juice which a German
+superstition regards as milk, modify the malignity of its strength with
+tepid water, and ring up the breakfast. Mix the beverage in a cold cup,
+partake with moderation, and keep a wet rag round your head to guard
+against over-excitement.”</p>
+
+<p>Although destitute of every luxury attendant on civilisation, this
+funny little place is at any rate far better than the generality of
+inns in Hungarian towns, and especially that of Neumarkt. The beds
+are clean, and Jews with their corkscrew curls and frowsy Israelitish
+odour are happily absent. It is true that a pet fowl which had made
+a snug roosting-place in a corner of the stove insists on descending
+and having a share of our dinner, and that a calf keeps up a gentle
+lowing in the adjoining apartment. But these rustic accompaniments are
+rather interesting than otherwise, and for the rest we are thankful
+with small mercies, and can make ourselves quite contented with such
+things as we have. In the outer room, Slovaks, home from their labour
+in the fields, sit and drink their <i>Schnäpschen</i> (small glasses of
+spirits). The room is full of these wild-looking creatures, formidable
+even to us who know them so well, in their slouching hats, long hair,
+and broad brass-bound girdles, as night wears on and one cannot
+distinguish clearly the mild expression of their faces. They are,
+however, perfectly orderly and quiet, and we are disturbed by no noise
+or ribaldry such as would be usually heard in most country inns under
+similar circumstances.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_314">[314]</span></p>
+
+<p>At eight o’clock we stroll out into the village. It is bright
+moonlight, and the distant rhythmic beat of anvils in the direction of
+the gipsy camp invites us towards them, and assures us its occupants
+are still awake. We had not forgotten these wretched beings since last
+we saw them a year ago, and were just descending the little pathway
+leading to their wretched hovels when we were met by two gipsy women,
+who, instantly recognising us, cried—</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Inglesca! Inglesca!</i>”</p>
+
+<p>Beckoning both to follow, we returned to the inn, and bestowed upon
+them and theirs such things as cost us no sacrifice to part with, but
+which, if we might judge from their expressive voices as they thanked
+us in their unknown tongue, must have carried joy into their camp that
+night. And what sacrifice would not have been amply rewarded by the
+gratification of making for once in their lives these poor outcasts
+happy? Hastening back with their bundles, they left us, uttering their
+thanks in that sweet modulation of the voice that always seemed to me
+more like singing than the mere utterance of words.</p>
+
+<p>I have elsewhere spoken of the melancholy inflexion of the Magyar
+voice; the same may be observed in that of the Slovaks, and indeed to
+a greater or less degree in that of all the inhabitants of Hungary.
+It exists, however, to an incomparably greater extent in that of the
+Hungarian gipsies, particularly amongst their women, whose voices, once
+heard, linger on the ear, and can never be forgotten. They are sad,
+sweet, and low; qualities which, blended together, form a minor cadence
+often as melodious as the tones of an Æolian harp. I have sometimes
+tried to believe that these children of nature must have learnt to
+speak thus from the wailing of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_315">[315]</span> the wind, the sighing of trees, or the
+sad complaining of streams as they flow through tall grasses and murmur
+plaintively and mysteriously in the forest shade, but I fear that the
+sad inflexions of their utterance are due to the long centuries of
+oppression and misery to which their whole race has been subjected.</p>
+
+<p>Sitting on the “word-bearer” beneath the gable in the calm, soft
+moonlight, we gossip with our hostess Gretchen.</p>
+
+<p>“Do English people ever stay here on their way to the Northern Tátra?”
+we inquire.</p>
+
+<p>“Yes, we have before some years seen three English gentlemen,” she
+replied in her Teuton idiom, “and two ladies have been here also, but
+to what nation they belonged I cannot say; only as they were pleasant
+and good and <i>schön</i>, I think they must have been English!”</p>
+
+<p>As we sit here we watch the people of the village quietly entering
+or leaving the house, often taking their <i>Schnäpschen</i> without
+speaking, and going on their way again.</p>
+
+<p>Presently a flock of sheep come trooping by on their way to the distant
+plains; large, long-legged, bony creatures with spiral horns, and
+the longest, shaggiest wool I ever saw. They are accompanied by two
+shepherds, whom they follow, reminding us of the East; sheep in Hungary
+never being driven. They follow the shepherd as in ancient Scripture
+times.</p>
+
+<p>A great deal of Slovak cheese is made in this district, and the poorer
+classes subsist almost entirely upon it and, of course, black bread.
+However poor a family may be, they invariably have a few sheep which
+they keep for the purpose. The cheese is sometimes made by themselves,
+but far more frequently the little flock is made over, for certain
+months in the year, to a herdsman who has a sheep-dairy, and who<span class="pagenum" id="Page_316">[316]</span>
+contracts to supply fourteen pounds of cheese from the milk of each
+animal, reserving whatever else he may make above that quantity as
+his own profit. Sometimes these dairymen have as many as 500 sheep
+committed to their charge; indeed, the combined flocks of a whole
+village.</p>
+
+<p>The Slovak peasants are generally spoken of as being exceedingly poor;
+but this was by no means the impression we formed concerning them when
+travelling through their country on either occasion. That they have
+but little money I can readily believe, but of the kind of poverty too
+often seen in agricultural districts in England, where a labourer has
+to support his family on twelve or fifteen shillings a week, we saw
+none. Here every one works for himself, except in rare instances, the
+Slovak as a rule having inherited a <i>joch</i> or two of land from his
+forefathers, on which he grows rye for his black bread and potatoes.
+In addition to this, he owns a cow or two, together with a few sheep
+and pigs. The long wool of the sheep the women spin, and then have
+woven into material for their outer garments. Possessing almost every
+requisite for their simple lives, what need have they for money?</p>
+
+<p>The “gentle Slovak,” however, is greatly despised by his proud and
+haughty Magyar neighbour, who at one time designated him by the
+opprobrious title of “<i>tót</i>,” a word signifying “not a man at
+all.” “<i>Tót nem ember</i>” being a favourite motto of the ancient
+Magyars when alluding to the Slávs. The servant of no man, not only
+the haughty Magyar peasant, but the Slovak likewise, possesses a
+self-respect and quiet dignity of manner which are very pleasant
+to see, and I could not help wishing our own poor had but the same
+advantages joined to the same inherent thrift and industry.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_317">[317]</span></p>
+
+<p>There is, however, one virtue in which the Slovaks eminently fail;
+namely, cleanliness. Their wooden houses, surrounded on three sides
+by sheds containing their little live stock, are full of dirt and
+discomfort. The room in which they live, adorned with crucifixes,
+grotesque coloured prints and images bought at the neighbouring fairs,
+is ill-ventilated and ill-furnished, and seldom lighted by more than
+one small window, whilst the one room is used for all purposes.</p>
+
+<p>Unlike their Magyar sisters, the Slovak women are exceedingly plain.
+But a Slovak baby is, on the contrary, the wee-est and prettiest little
+creature possible. At three years old, they are such tiny atoms of
+creation that, clinging to their mothers’ skirts, they look mere dolls,
+and with their small round faces, large eyes, long eyelashes, and
+pensive expression are so irresistibly pretty, that I have often been
+seized with the desire to kiss them, until, having sought diligently
+for a clean patch on their faces for the purpose, I have had to
+relinquish that impulse in despair.</p>
+
+<p>The following day being Sunday, our intention had been to start at 6
+<span class="allsmcap">A.M.</span> for Kesmark, in order to attend the early service at
+the old Lutheran church. The carriage which brought us hither from
+Zakopane, however, to our great annoyance and surprise, had silently
+departed some time during the small hours of the night! It is true we
+only hired it in the first instance to bring us on to Altendorf, but,
+having ascertained on arrival here that there existed not the ghost
+of a conveyance, we arranged with our Zakopane driver, by the help of
+the fair Gretchen, who acted as interpreter, that he should take us as
+far as Kesmark, we on our part agreeing not only to pay extra for the
+use<span class="pagenum" id="Page_318">[318]</span> of the carriage, but promising him a handsome “<i>na vordken</i>”
+(gratuity) besides.</p>
+
+<p>Here was a dilemma! Left stranded high and dry in a Slovak inn, its
+charms grew wonderfully less as soon as the prospect of spending an
+indefinite period within its shelter was presented to our minds, or at
+any rate until some friendly vehicle passing—goodness knows when, a
+year hence, probably—might come to tow us off again. It was as much
+as even patient travellers like ourselves could endure with anything
+like philosophy. The miscreant had also sneaked off without even paying
+for the baiting of the horses. What could be his motive for playing us
+false? Unfortunately F., in the plenitude of his goodness and out of a
+full heart, had paid him at once on arrival, and bestowed upon him his
+“<i>na vordken</i>” besides, and he was gone, the fiend! <i>gone for
+ever</i>.</p>
+
+<p>“Had any one heard him depart?” inquired the landlord of a group of
+neighbourly Slovaks, who had already scented something unusual in the
+near horizon.</p>
+
+<p>“No!” was the reply from a chorus of voices, accompanied by a murmur
+to the effect that whatever time he managed to make his escape, and
+wherever he might happen to be at present, he would in all probability
+spend his future in a warmer climate than that to which he had been
+accustomed in the Northern Tátra for so deceiving “<i>die erwürdigen
+Engländer</i>” (the gracious English people).</p>
+
+<p>Our case received the sympathy of the entire Slovak population. Women
+left their cows and came to the fore. The gentle Slovak for once
+grew quite ferocious under the insult that had been offered to the
+“strangers.” Finally, the “fat boy” arrived upon the scene, panting
+under the weight of the big baby.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_319">[319]</span></p>
+
+<p>Now during our travels through this country I trust I have proved
+beyond all question that we do not regard our dignity as a thing of
+such light and airy weight that it can be taken off its balance by
+anything on wheels, but there <i>are</i> limits to indifference to
+appearances, as well as to bodily endurance; and, anxious as we were
+to quit Altendorf and proceed on our journey, we did not feel quite
+prepared to avail ourselves of a vehicle—although deeply grateful for
+the offer—which an amiable Slovak neighbour, who had gone back to his
+own premises to fetch it, now brought in triumph to our rescue. Neither
+did we feel disposed to invest in a pair of broken-kneed, half-starved
+ponies which another amiable Slovak offered to part with to <i>draw</i>
+the said vehicle, at the alarming sacrifice of sixty gulden each—about
+£5, the average price of such animals in this district.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3190_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3190_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>We had just decided to resign ourselves to our fate,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_320">[320]</span> until a carriage
+could be fetched from Kesmark, when a youthful Slovak Hodge, pointing
+in the direction of the road by which we had come from Zakopane, and
+opening his eyes very wide, gave vent to the laconic word in the
+<i>platt</i>, or colloquial Slovatian of the district, “<i>Posri!</i>”
+(Behold!)</p>
+
+<p>There in truth in the distance, surrounded by such a cloud of dust that
+not only the wheels of the carriage but the horses’ legs were quite
+hidden, came the object of our indignation and regret—the faithless
+driver, seated high upon the box above the white cloud, looking
+like some dark phantom poised in mid-air. He was repentant, then.
+Conscience, that faithful monitor, had pricked him on his homeward way,
+and he is returning to us with all speed, humbled and subdued. We would
+be magnanimous, and exercise forgiveness, that noblest of all virtues.</p>
+
+<p>A volley of Slovatian expletives more or less complimentary greeted his
+approach, but to our chagrin he seemed neither repentant nor subdued;
+on the contrary, giving a flourish to his whip and pulling the horses
+up short, he pointed triumphantly to their shoes, and said in Slovatian:</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Hotovo!</i>” (Done!)</p>
+
+<p>Then, and not till then, did it occur to us that he had spoken the
+previous evening about the necessity of the animals being shod in the
+event of our taking them on to Kesmark over more miles of mountain
+road. To this end he had arisen when we and the Slovak world were still
+in dreamland, and, having driven them to our friends the gipsies at the
+outskirts of the village, had had it done.</p>
+
+<p>At nine o’clock however, the driver having been made radiant by a good
+breakfast, we get once more under weigh.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_321">[321]</span> The morning is fine, but dark
+clouds hang ominously overhead, and occasionally obscure the sun. In
+the quiet little Slovak villages through which we pass, people dressed
+in their Sunday best are coming from church. But the gipsies, who meet
+us at the entrance to each, and to whom the day brings no rest from
+labour—the foretaste of that more perfect rest, when, these sad lives
+of ours, being over, that home is reached “where the wicked cease from
+troubling and the weary are at rest”—are at work as on all other days,
+lustily striking their small anvils. Gipsy urchins, too, run after us,
+turn somersaults, and indulge in various other gymnastic exercises, in
+the hope—vain, alas!—of engaging our attention. But at last, having
+to climb a steep hill, we pass through another village, where a little
+bevy of gipsy children keep pace with us; and two of them are carrying
+such infinitesimal specimens of babies, so small and so old-looking,
+and with such large brown, melancholy eyes, that they touch our hearts,
+and cost us unlimited kreutzers. Following them was a pretty little
+gipsy boy with immense black eyes, his skin almost as dark as that
+of a Hindoo, and whose only garment was a blue-and-white checquered
+handkerchief, tied by the corners round his neck, whence, hanging down
+square over his little back, and extending to his heels, it formed a
+sort of Spartan mantle.</p>
+
+<p>Stopping the carriage, we alight and put a kreutzer into each of his
+tiny hands, lest the older ones might rob him of his share of those
+we had already thrown to the whole party. But he stood silent and
+pensive. For him the possession of money seemed to bring no joy as to
+other children; he was one who looked as though he had been born with a
+weight of care upon his small shoulders, and<span class="pagenum" id="Page_322">[322]</span> was an atom of humanity
+that touched us to the quick. With a dull and heavy feeling at the
+heart, we left him standing in the road, and, re-entering the carriage,
+once more wandered on our way.</p>
+
+<p>Continuing the ascent, we see, not far below the summit of the green
+alp we have to cross, a long procession of white-robed figures, for
+such they appear to us from a distance, but as they come slowly
+zigzagging down the steep we find it is a funeral. On an open bier,
+drawn by two white oxen, is laid the coffin. Where not covered with
+chaplets of flowers, we see it is painted white with gilt panels, and
+yet it is evidently the funeral of some peasant. Following the bier
+are some fifty women dressed in the pretty costume of the district, a
+short woollen skirt of broad red-and-blue stripes, worn over a blue
+petticoat, the head and shoulders covered with a long white muslin
+scarf. It is a picturesque scene as they come pattering along the road
+with naked feet, and we do not lose sight of them till we reach the
+summit of the pass, and enter a forest of pines.</p>
+
+<p>We had scarcely proceeded another mile when the rain, which had been
+threatening all the morning, began to pour; and as we commenced the
+descent of the mountain on the other side, it increased with such
+violence that umbrellas were of small avail. In half an hour’s time
+we were reduced to the condition of sponges, and were so miserably
+water-logged that, approaching a woodman’s hut which stood a little
+above the road, we sent the driver up to see whether we could take
+refuge in it, and he soon returned with the gratifying intelligence
+that although empty it contained a large fire. The grass under the
+pines was long and thick,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_323">[323]</span> but it was impossible to be wetter than we
+were already, so we determined upon taking shelter in the hut until
+the storm should be over. It could not have been long vacated, for the
+fire, which had evidently been just replenished, was burning brightly
+on the raised hearth. A pile of wood also stood in a corner, and we
+heaped it on without ceremony until we had a splendid blaze, which soon
+dried our soaking, sodden garments. Until we reach Poprád we have no
+change of raiment whatever—the possibility of such a storm as this not
+having entered into our calculations when we gave our other garments to
+the gipsies—and I am afraid it just crosses our minds that “virtue”
+has hardly been “rewarded” in this instance quite as it might have been.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst we ourselves are revelling in the warmth of the hut, our
+horses—which have been unharnessed—are grazing in the forest hard
+by, and the driver is crouching by another fire which he has made for
+himself under an adjoining shed. And we wonder what the owner of the
+hut would think were he suddenly to return and find his dwelling thus
+taken possession of.</p>
+
+<p>The storm was of short duration, and in an hour’s time, leaving on a
+bench a small gratuity for the worthy woodman by way of remuneration
+for our having, during his absence, invaded his little domain, we go
+on our way rejoicing, and soon find that the storm had been so partial
+that there had been no rain whatever a mile farther on.</p>
+
+<p>Nearing Béla, we meet carts and waggons drawn by two, three, or even
+four oxen, filled with peasants on their way from church to their homes
+many a mile distant in the heart of the beautiful mountains, which
+again tower above<span class="pagenum" id="Page_324">[324]</span> us, and cut their rugged way into the deep clear
+blue. In many of these waggons, as the oxen crawl leisurely along,
+one of the peasants may be seen reading the Bible, for we are once
+more amongst the Zipser Protestants, whilst the others sit, with heads
+uncovered and eyes bent low, listening to the “word of life.”</p>
+
+<p>Having passed through the quaint old town of Béla, we cross another
+green alp, and from the summit of it gain a wondrous panorama of the
+plains of Zips and the southern slopes of the Tátra rising out of them,
+and then, descending further, we see Kesmark lying beneath us like a
+toy-town, its white houses glistening in the sun.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3240_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3240_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_325">[325]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XXV.<br>
+<span class="subhed">ANDRÁS IN DIFFICULTIES.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">We reached Kesmark in time for the evening service at the Lutheran
+church; the curious old building, with its grotesquely painted roof
+and walls, taking us back to mediæval times; whilst the officiating
+minister, wearing a costume of the sixteenth century, looked as
+though he had just stepped out of some old picture-frame. It was
+all exceedingly quaint and interesting, and we were glad to have
+witnessed a service in one of these ancient edifices—so few of which
+now remain—that connect the present with the past, and tell more
+eloquently than words of the struggles of the people in the cause of
+religious freedom, so hardly won. As we watched these honest Zipsers
+peacefully thronging to the church in which their fathers worshipped
+and who fought so nobly for their faith, and listened to their lusty
+singing, our minds could not help reverting to that troublous time
+when, at a Diet held at Buda in 1523, an edict was passed empowering
+the government “to hang or, if of noble lineage, to behead all Lutheran
+heretics and their abettors found in the Apostolic Kingdom of St.
+Stephen.”</p>
+
+<p>How bravely they held their own against the intolerance<span class="pagenum" id="Page_326">[326]</span> of the Roman
+Church of that period may be inferred from the fact of there existing
+no fewer than 1,100,000 Lutherans in Hungary at the present time,
+irrespective of other Protestant sects, which number in all 3,124,000
+members.</p>
+
+<p>The service ended, we were walking about the old building, when we
+were accosted by the woman who had been so horrified at our supposing
+the church to be other than Protestant. She asked us to walk into
+the vestry, just vacated by the minister, who, having doffed his
+ecclesiastical robes, now looked like an ordinary mortal of the
+nineteenth century.</p>
+
+<p>What a conglomeration of relics of a bygone era awaited us here! To
+enumerate them would be impossible. Suffice it to say that an antiquary
+would have gone mad with delight over the <i>bric-à-brac</i> which the
+room and its vestibule contained, and I doubt whether the contents
+of all the shops in Wardour Street could have produced a greater
+display of “art treasures,” in the shape of sacred vessels and other
+antiquities, of the Roman Catholic period. They are all so old that,
+in comparison, two ancient life-size portraits of the great Reformers,
+Luther and Calvin, appeared but the work of yesterday; and who,
+forgetting in the mellowing influence of three and a half centuries
+their bitter antagonism in matters of religion, here hang side by side,
+and ogle each other with Christian benignity.</p>
+
+<p>We found a letter awaiting us here from András, containing many
+expressions of devotion to our service, and informing us in somewhat
+florid German that he should hold himself in readiness to accompany
+us on our further travels from to-day. We had given him leave to go
+home during<span class="pagenum" id="Page_327">[327]</span> our absence in the Northern Tátra, a leave which extended
+almost a week beyond the present time, in consequence of our having
+purposed making excursions in the neighbourhood of Kesmark; but as he
+has already returned to Poprád, we decide to journey on to that place
+this evening.</p>
+
+<p>Having dismissed our Zakopane coachman, we hire another carriage to
+take us on, and bid farewell to this interesting old town at five
+o’clock. The roads are excellent the whole way; and the horses this
+time spinning along at an exhilarating pace, we have a splendid drive,
+and do not once lose sight of the Tátra, whose peaks, rising above us
+in lonely majesty, appear in the clear atmosphere to be scarcely more
+than a stone’s throw off. As we near Poprád, the sun is setting, and
+they tower above us bathed in all the tender roseate hues of evening;
+whilst the dense pine-forests reposing at their base, which cross them
+in one magnificent sweep, stand out blue and sombre and cold.</p>
+
+<p>Entering the town or village, or whatever Poprád may be called,
+the first person we recognise is András himself, looking more
+“<i>betyár</i>” than ever; his moustache—after the fortnight’s growth,
+and careful manipulation he has been able to bestow upon it during our
+absence—extending far beyond his cheeks, and twisted into a lovely
+curl at each end. Great at all times in ties and top-boots, he is so
+altogether “<i>chic</i>” now that he is out for a holiday, that as he
+walks down the street with that peculiar swagger which he invariably
+assumes when he is decked out in all his “war-paint,” the little
+children look up at him wonderingly with open mouths and reverently
+kiss his hand, thinking, as they see their small round faces reflected
+in his shining boots as in the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_328">[328]</span> bowl of a tea-spoon, that he is quite a
+superior being; whilst the Zipser damsels sitting out of doors in the
+cool evening air evidently regard him with unfeigned admiration, as the
+very perfection of a “<i>Magyar-miska</i>.” Although he had written to
+say he had returned to Poprád and was at our service, he had no reason
+to expect our arrival for several days to come, so he was not a little
+surprised when, pulling up, we made our presence known to him. But
+kissing our hands reverently, and expressing in Magyar idiom his great
+joy at once more beholding the face of his “sweet master and sweet
+mistress,” he mounted the box, and directed the driver to take us to
+“Hôtel Tátra.”</p>
+
+<p>Hôtel Tátra is well named, the only objects visible from its windows,
+besides the ugly little station of the Oderberg and Kaschau railway,
+being the great mountains rearing their jagged and denticulated summits
+into the purpling sky. We purpose remaining here, however, one night
+only, and starting early on the morrow for Neusohl, a few miles beyond
+which friends reside to whom we have a letter of introduction, and
+who have asked us to spend a few days with them on our way from the
+mountains.</p>
+
+<p>Whilst András was making the necessary arrangements for the journey,
+which chiefly consisted in procuring horses and driver, together with
+laying in a small store of provisions for our roadside bivouacs, there
+was a gentle knock at the door, and in response to our “<i>Herein!</i>”
+a tall man, dressed in shabby black, entered hat in hand. That we were
+greatly puzzled at receiving such a visit may readily be imagined; his
+appearance, too, added not a little to our wonderment. He might have
+been a tract-distributor, or a <i>colporteur</i>, if he had only had
+his pack; or a detective in<span class="pagenum" id="Page_329">[329]</span> disguise, or an “undertaker,” or Methodist
+parson. He looked demure enough for anything.</p>
+
+<p>It was not long, however, before he unfolded the object of his
+mission. Could we tell him whether the person in our service was
+<i>aufrichtig</i> (upright), and the kind of man to whom a devoted
+father would like to entrust his daughter’s happiness? This odd inquiry
+subsequently elicited the fact that András had not been spending his
+time during our absence in the bosom of his family, as we had all along
+imagined, but had remained here instead, lodging with our visitor, who
+possessed a daughter, to whom he was said to have engaged himself in
+marriage, and, to use the words of the “devoted father,” <i>sie waren
+verlobt</i>—they were betrothed.</p>
+
+<p>We were quite taken aback by this astounding and most improbable
+declaration. That András was a little prone to “butterflying” with the
+opposite sex we already knew by experience, but that there was any real
+harm in our little “<i>betyár</i>” we did not believe for an instant;
+for, having accompanied us on two of our previous journeys through
+Hungary, we had known him long. In vain we assured the demure man in
+black that he must be labouring under a delusion, informing him that
+our guide was married, and the possessor of several olive-branches.
+He insisted on the fact with such earnestness and gravity, and talked
+about compensation and redress in such a fierce and determined manner,
+that we began to fear it must be true.</p>
+
+<p>I need scarcely say, however, that we soon proved that our good little
+guide had been guilty of no such enormity. That he had been spending
+his time here <i>pour s’amuser</i>, and had not thought it necessary
+to impart to the fair ones of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_330">[330]</span> Poprád the fact of his being ineligible
+as a “partner for life,” I fear there is not much doubt; probably
+acting on the casuistic principle contained in the French proverb,
+“<i>On est obligé de parler toujours sincèrement; mais on n’est pas
+toujours obligé de parler</i>;” for, on the matter having been brought
+to the notice of the “<i>pandúr</i>,” to whom we were obliged to have
+recourse by way of intimidating András’s traducer—who we subsequently
+discovered to be a Jew, and who went so far as to threaten to prosecute
+him for his alleged fraudulent conduct—the whole thing fell to
+nothing like the fabled fox-track in the snow, which “dwindled to a
+rabbit-track, and then to a squirrel-track, and finally ran up a tree,”
+and was doubtless, as the “<i>pandúr</i>” hinted, only a device to gain
+money under false pretences.</p>
+
+<p>“Why did you not go home to your wife?” we inquired of András later in
+the evening, as—the unpleasant little episode over—he came to wish us
+“good-night” and receive the latest orders for the morrow.</p>
+
+<p>“Ah! if my sweet master and mistress only knew”—tears came into his
+eyes, and he sighed piteously—“if they only knew how Katicza treats
+me!”—all the starch and perkyness dying out of him at once as the
+image of that charming female rose before him in all her magnificent
+proportions. As it did so, he stood before us a wrinkled, cowed, and
+thoroughly submissive man; and we realised the situation in an instant,
+and regarding him under his changed aspect we learnt a moral. Here was
+a man, small of stature, it is true, and usually dauntless in spirit,
+who could hold his own, and assert himself with <i>men</i>, but who
+nevertheless, under the irresistible and all-powerful hierarchy of
+womankind, was reduced mentally to the condition of a subdued kitten.<span class="pagenum" id="Page_331">[331]</span>
+Poor András, thou art, after all, but an example of a judiciously
+henpecked husband!</p>
+
+<p>It was, however, impossible to allow this incident, so indicative of
+András’s weaknesses, to pass without “improving the occasion,” and
+bestowing on him a few platitudes relative to his general behaviour
+towards other goddesses than his own, and I sincerely trust that he
+retired to rest that night if a “sadder,” yet a “wiser” man.</p>
+
+<p>As gloriously as it had sunk to rest, the sun rose out of the plains,
+calling men from their slumber to the toils of day. We too were up
+early, and saw the rugged summits of the mountains start into awful
+life—the snows looking in the morning light like glittering flames of
+gold.</p>
+
+<p>We have broken our morning’s slumber so effectually by habitual early
+startings, that we can no longer sleep much after five o’clock; and the
+immortal “ode to the sluggard” can scarcely, therefore, be said to be
+applicable to ourselves, in <i>these</i> days at any rate. Distances
+are great in Hungary, and the fresh morning air breathed as we bowl
+along is well worth the effort of turning out—even if it <i>were</i>
+an effort, which in our case it has long ceased to be. Our hope is
+to reach Neusohl by nightfall, a distance of about sixty miles, to
+accomplish which we start to-day with four horses.</p>
+
+<p>Journeying towards the western slopes of the Tátra, we find that the
+mountains at their base have been ruthlessly robbed of their beautiful
+pine-trees, and they appear wretchedly barren after those we have left
+behind. And we tremble at the possibility of a day arriving when, the
+forests on the outer declivities of the Tátra once exhausted, the
+forest department may be compelled to have recourse to<span class="pagenum" id="Page_332">[332]</span> those of the
+interior, in which event the aspect of these wild and beautiful regions
+will soon be totally changed.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3320_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3320_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Having, to András’s intense satisfaction, left the district of the Zips
+behind—he declares that having shaken from his feet the dust of <i>das
+Land der Juden</i>, as he persists in calling that peaceful country,
+nothing shall ever induce him to enter it again—we find ourselves
+once more in the region of big hats, and reach a province inhabited
+entirely by Slovaks; our approach to each village being indicated by a
+steeple peeping above the gentle undulations. First appears the small
+round ball supporting the cross, then the metal cupola, shimmering like
+a star in the morning sun, then the tall white tower, and lastly the
+sleepy little village itself comes in sight, with its sombre houses,
+and semi-circular windows in the wooden roofs, like eyes half open.
+Here and there in these villages we see women standing on high ladders,
+engaged in repairing the shingled roofs, plastering the corners of
+the houses, or otherwise busily occupied; for these operations, which
+in other countries pertain unto men, are evidently confided in this
+locality to the “weaker sex,”—if that term can with truth be applied
+to these Slovak matrons, whose muscular development is of the very
+highest order.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_333">[333]</span></p>
+
+<p>The pigs, too, afford instructive examples of the Darwinian theory
+of mental development by “hereditary experience,” their constant
+association with the creature man—with whom they live in close
+fellowship—having made them almost human. As we drive through the
+villages, they rise from their wallowing in the dust on either side
+of the road, droop their tails, and then with a peculiar squeak, half
+grunt, half speech, gallop off to their respective cottages to inform
+the dwellers therein that interlopers have arrived to disturb the
+tranquillity of their borders. These quadrupeds however, though in a
+high state of cerebral development, are, I should say, in regard to
+physical anatomy, the very lowest type of their class. Covered with
+scanty red hair, and possessed of an erect and scrubby mane which
+extends down the nape of the neck, an immense head, high back and short
+body, they resemble hyenas far more than the domestic and familiar
+mammal of our styes.</p>
+
+<p>Never can I forget the indignation of one of these animals, or the
+expression of its countenance, as we passed a little colony of
+charcoal-burners. First looking at us full in the face, as though
+about to charge, it almost swore at us. Then, as if thinking it would
+be hardly a match for us, it turned round with a look of injured
+innocence, and with a series of grunts, whose intonation was almost
+like that of the human voice, ran home to complain in the most
+deprecatory accents of our raid upon the village. We had often heard of
+the fine pigs of Hungary dignified with the royal title of “Palatine,”
+but we venture to hope that the Slovak species does not belong to that
+noble order.</p>
+
+<p>Passing now over a very bad road, our progress is exceedingly slow;
+the carriage rocking to such an extent that we<span class="pagenum" id="Page_334">[334]</span> tremble lest in its
+old age it should break up entirely and land us on the ground, which
+is covered with stones sharp as needles. Opposite, lashed to the front
+seat, is the provision-basket, in which stands a bottle of wine, and
+which occasionally takes such a leap into the air that we have serious
+fears, not only for the safety of its contents, but lest the quality
+of the wine itself be impaired by the perpetual churning to which
+it is subjected; a process which has caused us long ago to refrain
+from bringing milk, experience having taught us that that fluid under
+similar circumstances is without human agency occasionally given to
+exchanging its properties for those of butter.</p>
+
+<p>For some time past we have been winding round the buttresses of rugged
+mountains, whose trees have only recently been cut down; but on
+proceeding a mile or two farther, we welcome the existence of a nursery
+of young pines—seedlings just peeping above the soil, showing that the
+forest department are not wholly unmindful of their duty to the future.
+We are again surrounded by vegetation, and, coming to an unusually
+steep ascent, András jumps off the box and climbs the outskirts of the
+forest in search of <i>Pilzen</i>, or edible fungi, which abound in
+Hungary, and are of the most beautiful colour and form. In some places
+the mossy banks are thickly sown with what appear at first sight to be
+daisies, an effect produced by the white <i>Jungfernsschwämme</i>. In
+others it is covered with the golden <i>omphaleák</i>, which hold aloft
+their small and variously painted heads on slender, half-transparent
+stems. Besides these, there are the canary-coloured <i>Clitocybe</i>
+and the exquisitely adorned <i>Täublinge</i>, standing together like
+soldiers on parade, with their purple, green, or violet caps;<span class="pagenum" id="Page_335">[335]</span> whilst
+here and there, like gnomes amongst the elves, a fat <i>Cortinaria</i>
+may be seen, almost bursting through its leathery outer garment; nor
+must the scarlet <i>Fliegenschwämme</i> be forgotten, one of the most
+beautiful of all.</p>
+
+<p>These fungi, which in many instances are quite as splendid in both form
+and colour as flowers, are not all edible. The peasants however easily
+distinguish the one from the other; the edible, with the exception
+of the <i>maschlare</i>, the flesh of which is too soft, being much
+esteemed.</p>
+
+<p>András, who now rejoins us, bearing a quantity of <i>Pilzen</i>,
+which he informs us are of the best kind, calls our attention to the
+existence of a number of enormous slugs lying amongst the damp moss
+and lichen on either side of the road, with bright emerald-green heads
+and dark-blue bodies, which he declares to be a <i>Leckerbissen</i>
+(dainty), and recommends our trying them as an accompaniment to our
+<i>Pilzen</i> at the end of the journey, when he assures us our
+prejudices will vanish for ever.</p>
+
+<p>Zigzagging down the steep mountains come long waggons laden with
+charcoal, and driven by our old friends the Slovaks with the large
+hats. But we are nearing a larger village than usual, and our driver,
+lashing his horses, takes us bodily into the middle of an <i>álás</i>,
+where alighting we arouse the anger of a number of turkeys, who spread
+their broad fans and make for us with indignant gesture. It had
+occurred to us that we might possibly find something to eat at this
+place, but on going over to the adjoining inn we find they can as usual
+offer us nothing but rye bread and Slovak cheese. In a few minutes
+we are joined by our guide, who informs us that there is also some
+difficulty in procuring a relay of horses to take us on, and that he
+fears<span class="pagenum" id="Page_336">[336]</span> it will be some time before any are forthcoming, all the animals
+belonging to the village being engaged in the fields many miles away.
+This being the case, we request him to find a pleasant and retired spot
+for a bivouac, to make the fire and prepare our meal, and to leave for
+once the arrangements about horses to ourselves.</p>
+
+<p>Sending for the village “<i>pandúr</i>,” we ascertain that the
+inhabitants have spoken quite correctly; neither love nor money could
+procure horses for us that day; and upon his suggesting a yoke of oxen
+as the only possible solution of the difficulty, we set off together in
+search of a benevolent peasant who may be induced to lend us four for
+the purpose. For to-morrow’s journey the <i>pandúr</i> proposes sending
+a messenger over the mountains to the next village by a nearer route,
+to obtain horses there if possible, and have them ready for our arrival.</p>
+
+<p>As we walk down the village, so great is the curiosity concerning us
+that a face is peeping from every window or half-opened doorway; dogs,
+too, which appear to consider themselves a kind of rural police, rush
+out of sheds, show their teeth and bark at us furiously, until they see
+that we are already in the company of a functionary of the law, when
+they slink off again as though they felt they might safely consign us
+to his <i>surveillance</i>, and that in this instance the duty which
+they owed to their Slovak masters, in the protection of the village
+from the incursions of suspicious characters, no longer devolved upon
+themselves.</p>
+
+<p>At length, reaching the end of the long street, we observe a rustic
+leaning out of a window smoking a pipe. He is evidently the immediate
+object of the <i>pandúr’s</i> quest, for he accosts him, and after a
+short conversation, carried on<span class="pagenum" id="Page_337">[337]</span> in the Slovak language, he informs us
+that in an hour’s time a team of strong oxen will be at our disposal.</p>
+
+<p>Hastening back to András with this intelligence, we find him busily
+occupied with his culinary utensils, and looking—crouched round the
+fire and peering into his stew-pans—like a wizard engaged on some
+unholy philtre or mystic spell, whilst the <i>cazarola</i> was sending
+forth the most appetising odours.</p>
+
+<p>He had chosen for our refectory a sweet green spot under the cool
+shadow of a tree. What though on the journey the mustard had invaded
+the territories of the butter? What though the omelette, when it came
+smoking from the frying-pan, resembled Australian damper and was gritty
+from the all-pervading sand? What though the faithful András, cumbered
+with many things, had forgotten before starting to bring the salt? Our
+good appetites compensated for everything.</p>
+
+<p>The wine, however, though it had the tint of rubies, was both a
+delusion and a snare—whether from the exhilarating effects of the
+severe process of churning to which it had been subjected on the way,
+or from the nature of the wine itself, I know not. But I incline to the
+latter theory. Bad Hungarian wine, especially if it happen to be new,
+has a vicious habit of going at once to the head; and before either
+of us had imbibed more than half a glass of this, we are almost taken
+off our balance, and subjected to the humiliating consciousness of
+considerable difficulty in the power of articulation!</p>
+
+<p>Having seen that the wants of our excellent <i>chef</i> were well
+supplied, and taken care, by consigning it as a libation to the river
+at our feet, that he did not himself partake<span class="pagenum" id="Page_338">[338]</span> of the wine, we repair
+to the <i>álás</i>, where we find our carriage already attached to its
+novel team.</p>
+
+<p>Patriarchal and primitive as our wanderings have been hitherto,
+travelling through the country with a yoke of oxen is an entirely new
+experience. In all this “vale of tears” there is nothing so slow and
+dreary, and, crawling along the road in our lumbering old chariot, we
+seem to be carried back to a remote period of the world’s history, even
+to the drowsy old times of the ancient Seers. As we pass through the
+sleepy little villages, people come out of their houses and follow us,
+asking questions of András and the driver, who we are and whence we
+have come; the more intelligent addressing them in German, and taking
+no more heed of our presence than if we had been deaf.</p>
+
+<p>In process of time we reach the village where the horses were to await
+us, and, suddenly aroused by the stentorian shout of the owner of
+the oxen, who brings them to an abrupt standstill, we see three bony
+animals standing in the middle of the road.</p>
+
+<p>At eight o’clock we reach Neusohl, and are driven at once to the Hôtel
+——. We had stayed here with András on our previous visit to Hungary;
+and the moment he enters the inn to make the necessary inquiries as to
+accommodation, he is recognised. The landlord, a German Jew, embraces
+him with effusion. He is his “long-lost brother.” The landlady almost
+repeats the ceremony, but suppresses her emotions with a dignity and
+fortitude that do her credit.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Und die Engländer</i>?—They are here too? <i>Ach!</i> It is too
+much. Accommodation?” They should think so. The whole house was ours.
+The best guest-chamber, where the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_339">[339]</span> King himself had slept; and if the
+hotel had been full, why then we should have had their own. Yes! their
+very own room. “<i>Ach!</i>”</p>
+
+<p>The preamble happily coming to an abrupt conclusion with the utterance
+of this guttural, we are permitted to alight from the carriage and
+enter the hotel, which not being full, the hospitable alternative above
+mentioned had no need to be taken advantage of—a distinction which,
+having been favoured with it on our last visit, we did not appreciate
+sufficiently to desire its repetition on the present occasion.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3390_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3390_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_340">[340]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XXVI.<br>
+<span class="subhed">AFLOAT!</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">Far away from Hungary, in the Black Forest, and in that region which
+once formed part of the great Hercynian woods of the ancients, which
+in Cæsar’s time stretched to the boundless steppes of the North, is a
+shady nook which the fairies might even envy, where, cradled in the
+lap of luxury and surrounded by beauteous flowers of man’s planting,
+trickles forth a limpid stream discovered seven centuries before our
+era by the Greeks, who named it Ister. To it, in ancient days, men
+walking many a footsore mile came to pay homage, and bathe their
+wearied limbs and slake their thirst in its cool, refreshing waters,
+first mingling in the stream a goblet of red wine as a libation.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3400_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3400_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Hither marching from Lake Constance came the proud Tiberius, to do
+honour to that tiny thing—the infant Danube, which from such small
+beginnings was destined to become the main artery of Europe; for,
+however much those Montagues and Capulets of modern time—the St.
+Georgenites<span class="pagenum" id="Page_341">[341]</span> and people of Donaueschingen—may dispute the honour of
+giving the mighty river birth, the latter even quoting Tacitus in
+confirmation of their claim, there is little doubt that the nursed and
+petted rivulet which rises in the domain of the Counts of Fürstenberg
+is the veritable Danube. Still year by year the same controversy rages,
+and there is war to the knife between the men of Donaueschingen and
+those of St. Georgen touching the source of this splendid stream.</p>
+
+<p>Having arrived once more at Buda-Pest after a most pleasant visit to
+our Hungarian friends in the neighbourhood of Neusohl, we hire “a
+comfortable” at half-past ten <span class="allsmcap">P.M.</span> the following day, and,
+András having previously gone on with bag and baggage, we drive to the
+quay, whence start the Danube boats for Semlin and the Black Sea.</p>
+
+<p>The place of embarkation is crowded with motley groups, through which
+we fight our way. The steam is already up, and the last signals of
+departure are being given to those on shore. The decks are full of
+passengers of almost every shade of colour, from the dark-complexioned
+Bosnian to the fair-haired German. In the large saloon all is hurry
+and bustle, for the gentlemen are eagerly hastening to secure berths
+for the night—amongst whom we observe two natives of the Sublime
+Porte in scarlet fezes; whilst below, the ladies’ saloon is full to
+overflowing, and stewards, their arms laden with pillows, sheets, and
+counterpanes, are hurrying hither and thither, to appease the demands
+of those passengers who are willing to pay an additional florin for
+these luxuries.</p>
+
+<p>The first-class accommodation on board these steamers is excellent,
+but unfortunately all ranks of society above the very lowest have to
+avail themselves of it, that of the second<span class="pagenum" id="Page_342">[342]</span> class being occupied by the
+“great unwashed,” with whom only the “great unwashed” themselves can
+possibly mingle. For these latter, however, no accommodation whatever
+is provided beyond the bare deck of the forecastle, upon which, wrapped
+in their rags and <i>bundas</i>, many were already fast asleep.</p>
+
+<p>The <i>express</i> steamers now make the voyage to Belgrade in
+twenty-six hours; the ordinary—in one of which we are sailing—in
+thirty-two. But at the time of our departure the former had not begun
+to run.</p>
+
+<p>Eleven o’clock has struck—the hour advertised for the steamer to
+start; the last bale of merchandise has been taken on board; the last
+farewells have been spoken; the last passenger has crossed the gangway,
+and the “Szechenyi,” loosed from her moorings, goes bounding into
+mid-stream, and, after crossing to the other side to pick up passengers
+at Ofen, glides into the deep shadow of the rocky Blocksberg. High
+above us rises the bold perpendicular cliff, baring its summit to the
+moon. Lights twinkle here and there along the shore, the fringe of
+lamps at Pest grows fainter in its outline, till, rounding the reach of
+the noble river, the tall white houses of the fair city fade entirely
+from the view.</p>
+
+<p>The Danube, which at Pest is contracted within a comparatively narrow
+channel, now separates into two arms, called respectively the Soroksár
+and Promontár, and forms the island of Czepel, more than twenty miles
+in length.</p>
+
+<p>Passing the village of Promontorium, with its singular subterranean
+dwellings hewn out of the solid rock, in which, like the ancient
+Troglodytes, between two and three thousand persons have their being,
+we come to a large fishing town<span class="pagenum" id="Page_343">[343]</span> of nine thousand inhabitants, and,
+leaving this again and reaching a place called Paks, we commence the
+great windings of the river, and enter the morasses, which extend
+beyond its banks for many a mile.</p>
+
+<p>As far as the eye can penetrate, nothing is seen but a level swamp,
+covered with reeds and tall grass, save where the river, having
+overflowed its natural bed, has formed for itself a series of small
+lakes, which, reflecting the peaceful moonlight, appear like broad
+sheets of silver. But the stream soon enters the plains of Somogy, and
+as we are borne rapidly over its glassy surface it impresses us greatly
+with its awful power. It is master everywhere it flows, and seems to
+hold the whole surrounding country within its grasp as it rolls onward
+through the plains, deluging them at one time, and cutting new channels
+for itself at another, till, collecting in its progress the tribute of
+sixty navigable streams, it discharges its mighty waters into the Black
+Sea.</p>
+
+<p>It is one o’clock, and the night so balmy and delicious that, instead
+of retiring to our berths like the rest of mankind, we sit at the
+doorway of our cabin close to the stern, enjoying the great stillness
+amidst the crowd of human life which immediately surrounds us. No sound
+is heard but the heavy and stertorous breathing of the sleepers in the
+saloon below, and the measured tread of the ship’s officer on watch as
+he paces the distant quarter-deck.</p>
+
+<p>Occasionally, as we are borne rapidly down the stream, we come in
+sight of small towns and villages sleeping calmly in the moonlight.
+How strange and solemn it seems, to be keeping vigil in the great
+void night whilst all the world is slumbering! Here and there at long
+intervals are lights in<span class="pagenum" id="Page_344">[344]</span> lonely windows, suggesting wakefulness where
+all else is repose. What dramas of human life may not be taking place
+within those rooms which the outer walls exclude from mortal gaze!</p>
+
+<hr class="tb">
+
+<p>Two hours’ fitful sleep, and we open our eyes upon Mohács, at which
+place we have just arrived. All is tumult and confusion, for here we
+take in fuel. The morn has broken fair and bright, and the sun, rising
+scarlet, reflects its image on the river like a fiery pillar; whilst
+the Danube, which at Buta, higher up the stream, divided into two great
+arms, here once more forms an island of many miles’ extent.</p>
+
+<p>At Mohács we lose a good many of our passengers, who have been
+gradually diminishing in number ever since we started, those only
+remaining who are bound for more eastern ports.</p>
+
+<p>There are two Turkish ladies on board, swathed in white muslin
+bandages, with trousers tied round the ankle, and wearing large black
+silk cloaks, which present a most grotesque appearance from a back view
+when, the wind inflating them like a balloon, they are blown out to
+their fullest extent. There are several Turkish children also, whose
+little fingers are dyed with <i>henna</i>, and their eyes set in a
+deep framework of <i>kohl</i>, which adds to them a wondrous size and
+lustre. They all avoid the gaze of the “giaours,” and try to conceal
+themselves behind the deck saloon, which is just outside our cabin.
+There is likewise a young Bulgarian lady, dressed in a kind of paletôt
+or pelisse, worn over a long petticoat and apron, and encircled at the
+waist by an embroidered belt. Her head is adorned by a stiff scarlet
+cap, resembling in shape a fez, which is covered<span class="pagenum" id="Page_345">[345]</span> with gold and silver
+coins; her husband being dressed similarly to the Turks.</p>
+
+<p>There are three persons, too, on board, whose manly bearing and
+close-knit frames proclaim them at once to be Servians. They are
+gentlemanly men, dressed in the costume of Western Europe, and talking
+at the present moment to a group of Servian peasants squatting on
+the deck amongst the second-class passengers. They are all smoking
+and chatting familiarly together—for the true-born Serb, like the
+Montenegrin, entertains a high sense of personal dignity, every one
+being noble in his estimation who is industrious and imbued with
+courage and the manly virtues, all men being equal who possess these
+qualities, which are the only distinction they recognise in their
+social scale. They hold their heads erect, these men of Servia. The
+expression of their countenance is one of intelligence, and their
+manner easy and dignified.</p>
+
+<p>Gleaming all over like a russet apple in the setting sun, sits near me
+a stout old Servian lady, her head covered with a small fez, round the
+rim of which is a roll of scarlet cloth forming a kind of coronet, and
+amongst which her long grey hair is entwined. She looks quite regal in
+her black velvet jacket embroidered richly with silver, but she has no
+more shape than a tub, as she sits with her dimpled hands spread out
+upon what would have been her lap, if kind Nature had only permitted
+her to have one.</p>
+
+<p>The noble river continues to flow on in a southerly direction until
+it is joined by the Drave. Its character now changes perceptibly. Its
+waters become darker and clearer, and flow on in a more massive volume.
+Its bed also deepens; it winds less frequently, and is less often
+interrupted<span class="pagenum" id="Page_346">[346]</span> by channels; and we soon border the province of Slavonia,
+which occupies the right bank the whole way to Semlin.</p>
+
+<p>On a promontory stands the ruined fortress of Erdöd, with its massive
+towers, and presently we pass the town of Illok, and afterwards fertile
+villages, each of which possesses a dismantled castle, telling of
+former pomp and glory.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3460_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3460_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>The river here is more than a mile wide, and, instead of marshy shores
+fringed with tall reeds and willows, the right bank is covered with
+immense forests of oak, where roam innumerable herds of swine. Here and
+there we pass a swineherd’s hut, picturesquely placed against the trunk
+of a tree and raised on poles. Here and there, too, monarchs of the
+woods, loosened from the soil by recent inundations, lie prostrate on
+the banks, bleached white, like skeletons, with contorted and leafless
+boughs, resembling arms thrown upwards in the agonies of death. Like
+the wayside tavern in lonely places, the swineherd’s hut often affords
+shelter at night to brigands, the <i>kanasz</i> (swineherd) himself not
+unfrequently belonging to that honourable fraternity.</p>
+
+<p>One of the most singular and characteristic features of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_347">[347]</span> the Danube
+are the water-mills, which, floating sometimes almost in mid-stream,
+get run into by the steamers at night, and split to pieces like a box
+of matches. They are of the most simple and primitive description,
+constructed of two long boats moored side by side, to which the
+machinery of the wheels is fixed, the latter of course being turned by
+the force of the current. But besides these water-mills, other objects
+are seen floating on the river which puzzle the stranger not a little
+until he is informed of what they consist, viz. buoys, made by the
+fishermen of bundles of reeds, and attached to their sturgeon-nets.</p>
+
+<p>Perched on these primitive buoys may sometimes be seen a stork or
+pelican, but more frequently the white hawk, and now and then a heron.
+It is surprising how calmly these birds take our approach, seldom
+moving from their position, even though we pass quite near them.</p>
+
+<p>Everything is new and interesting. It is amusing to watch the
+antiquated craft which occasionally pass alongside—rafts of timber
+gliding down the stream, and flat-bottomed barges without keel, surely
+the most original thing afloat. On some of these rude contrivances
+stands a wooden house, and the whole device reminds us of the
+Noah’s-ark of childhood. Besides these, however, are somewhat more
+important boats, conveying pigs from the Servian forests to Pest and
+Vienna.</p>
+
+<p>Until a comparatively few years ago, the navigation of this mightiest
+of European rivers was accomplished in the most primitive manner.
+Although uniting, as the main artery of Europe, Hungary, Wallachia,
+Moldavia and Servia, with Russia, Turkey, and Asia Minor, the only mode
+of transport on these waters consisted of barges formed of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_348">[348]</span> planks,
+merely tied together with sufficient strength to enable them to sustain
+the downward voyage, after which they were broken up as waste timber.
+These strange “vessels” were provided with neither oars nor sails, but
+were floated down the current, there being scarcely any navigation
+up the stream. The first steamer was launched in 1830, but there are
+now on the river no fewer than 134, including steam-tugs for boats of
+merchandise. Yet whatever passes, the passengers as a rule take no
+heed, but either sit with their backs to the river, apparently wrapped
+in deepest thought, or gossip with their neighbours.</p>
+
+<p>There are three or four Hungarian ladies on board, two fair-haired
+Teutons, and several officers in Austrian uniform, and there is of
+course the same amount of coquetting going on which is generally seen
+under similar circumstances. The <i>dolce far niente</i> life on these
+steamers is highly provocative of the tender passion, or its tender
+imitation, for everything conspires for the time against the sterner
+rules of society, and he who “finds mischief still for idle hands” must
+surely have a busy time of it with idle hearts in the height of the
+season, when the steamers are much fuller of passengers than they are
+at present. The warm and languid breeze fanning the cheeks; the dreamy
+“lap, lap” of the water against the sides of the vessel; the loitering,
+whispering couples under the shady awning; the dalliance of the storks
+on the green or golden shore, that arch their long white necks and
+clatter their beaks together as the manner of them is when flirting;
+the young newly-married couple, evidently on their honeymoon, that sit
+so close together, cooing in the shade of the deck saloon—are all in
+sympathy together, this hot and lazy day. Shall I except<span class="pagenum" id="Page_349">[349]</span> the Turkish
+ladies, who seem to have scarcely moved a muscle since early morn, and
+who sit with their backs turned towards everybody, looking out drearily
+through their muslin bandages over the steamer’s wake? Yet once and
+again, as I passed in or out of our cabin, the younger lady drew aside
+her veil softly and almost imperceptibly as if by accident or by the
+natural stirrings of the wind, and displayed a pensive and somewhat
+pretty face. But did I not see thy small henna-tipped fingers give that
+gentle twitch? O thou daughter of Eve!</p>
+
+<p>András, who possesses amongst his other idiosyncrasies a rather curious
+and inquisitive turn of mind, has already made himself acquainted with
+their history, and informs us that this Turkish family are on their
+homeward way, having been on a visit to some baths in Hungary; that
+they are likewise rich, and live in the suburbs of Constantinople.</p>
+
+<p>We find our guide a very useful and cheap luxury here as elsewhere.
+We pay him a florin a day and his travelling expenses, an additional
+florin generally more than covering his outlay for food, for he is
+a creature of simple habits, and would be quite satisfied if he had
+nothing but “<i>kukurutz</i>” soup and black bread every day of his
+life. He brings us our coffee, straps and unstraps our portmanteaus;
+sometimes—shall I say it?—even washes a clean spot on the deck for
+me to sit on; superintends F.’s toilet, and patronises both of us in
+a variety of ways. He, too, is suffering from the pernicious effects
+of the <i>dolce far niente</i>, and is engaged at the present moment
+in turning the head of the little fat ball of a scullery-maid, who
+lives in a hot cupboard adjoining the galley, and who addresses him
+as “<i>per kend</i>” (your grace), as he stands on the threshold, and
+leans, in a Magyar<span class="pagenum" id="Page_350">[350]</span> “Dundreary” style, languidly against the doorpost.
+What a scullery-maid! There is not a clean patch about her from head
+to foot, except where a small portion of the skirt of her gown has
+by accident got soaked in a pool of clean water on the floor. She
+has just washed the salad for dinner, and now comes out, with the
+same bowl in which she accomplished that operation, to fetch coal. He
+endeavours—oh, for shame, András!—to make her pay toll, but this
+little Magyar Cinderella knows well how to hold her own, and gives him
+a smart box in the ear for his pains; but, a compromise being at length
+effected, she allows him to fetch the coal for her instead.</p>
+
+<p>At the savage hour of one, a bell summons us to table d’hôte. We are
+only twenty guests, the other first-class passengers having, I observe,
+brought their provisions with them, which they partake of secretly
+and at odd moments in out-of-the-way corners, producing them from the
+depths of mysterious and cunningly-concealed pockets or baskets; the
+particular species of esculent being, as a rule, a portion of sausage,
+which the possessor cuts into thin slices with his or her penknife, and
+consumes <i>ad infinitum</i>.</p>
+
+<p>We form at table a mixed gathering, consisting of Hungarians,
+Slavonians, Servians, and Germans. As we happened to lead the
+conversation at our end of the table in German, it is carried on by
+all in that tongue, out of courtesy, as we imagine, to ourselves. The
+fare is abundant: soup, fish of two kinds, boiled and pickled, the
+latter smothered in a creamy sauce composed of a mixture of capers
+and finely-scraped horse-radish—not by any means a bad compound,
+and one I recommend to my countrywomen as a novel adjunct to their
+<i>cuisine</i>. After this came boiled beef,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_351">[351]</span> also served with
+horse-radish sauce. This, together with red pepper, would appear to be
+a very favourite condiment with the Hungarians, who probably inherit
+their taste for highly-seasoned viands from the ancient Avars, who
+are said to have cooked their food with various aromatic spices. Then
+followed a variety of light dishes, too numerous to mention, succeeded
+by roasted chicken, to accompany which were handed preserved apricots,
+cherries, and greengages. A bottle of <i>Nicotina</i>—an excellent
+Servian wine, slightly resembling the Italian <i>Barbera</i>, and which
+creates an agreeable pricking sensation on the tongue—compensated in
+some measure for the garlic with which the cutlets were flavoured,
+and which we had unfortunately partaken of; whilst a dessert of
+splendid melons and grapes—taken on board at Baja, on the left bank
+of the river above Mohács, where a considerable trade is carried on
+in the various kinds of fruits for which the district is greatly
+celebrated—completed the repast.</p>
+
+<p>During dinner, the conversation turned upon German literature, chiefly
+sustained between an enthusiastic young German and a testy old Magyar
+who sat immediately opposite, both of whom drifted into an extremely
+warm argument on the respective merits of Schiller and Goethe; the
+Magyar condescending to express his strong admiration of the former,
+but declaring that the latter was too deep for him to appreciate.
+Whereupon the young German began quoting Goethe and talking loudly of
+his philosophy, a circumstance which called forth the rejoinder from
+the old gentleman—who grew quite scarlet on the subject—that he was
+but a mere <i>Spitzbube</i> (puppy), and did not know what he was
+talking about!</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_352">[352]</span></p>
+
+<p>This remark evoked another from F., who sided with the German; but a
+series of jerks and bumps which almost shook the glasses off the table,
+and a chorus of voices from the shore, announced the fact that we had
+arrived at another town or village, and happily brought the argument to
+an abrupt conclusion, for we all hurry up the companion to see what is
+taking place on deck.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3520_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3520_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_353">[353]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XXVII.<br>
+<span class="subhed">A MOONLIGHT MEDLEY.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">On looking over the steamer’s side, we see a youthful Jeanette and
+Jeanot in the agonies of parting. It was a sight both comic and
+pathetic: the grief of the former—a girl of scarcely more than sixteen
+summers—was so evidently real, as she clung passionately to her
+disconsolate but somewhat abashed swain. But much of the poetry of the
+scene resolved itself into very flat prose when—the time being up—a
+stern Hungarian official, not given evidently to encouraging weaknesses
+of the kind, thrusts her from the arms of her lover with a most
+unsympathetic shove, and hurries her across the gangway on to the deck.
+Her face, as she passes, is sadly disfigured with weeping.</p>
+
+<p>At this place we also take on board a Magyar noble and his servant; the
+latter attired in a gorgeous livery of green and gold, with a hat to
+match, and surmounted by a long and almost erect feather.</p>
+
+<p>We were taking a promenade on deck, F. smoking the cigar of peace, when
+the testy old gentleman passed us. He had evidently not yet forgiven us
+for the part we took against<span class="pagenum" id="Page_354">[354]</span> him, in the discussion at dinner, on the
+respective merits of Goethe and Schiller.</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Swab</i>,” I heard him mutter beneath his clenched teeth, as he
+withdrew a few paces from us—a term of contempt very frequently made
+use of by the Magyars when alluding to the hated German race.</p>
+
+<p>This word and the manner of its expression amused the fat old Servian
+lady immensely, who happened to be sitting near. <i>She</i> knew we
+were English, for we had had a long chat with her earlier in the day,
+and the mistake in calling us by the ignominious name of <i>Swab</i>
+she evidently regarded as such a good joke, that she laughed till she
+shook all over like a jelly, and could not steady herself for a long
+time afterwards.</p>
+
+<p>“You take us for Germans,” I said, confronting him boldly as he passed
+again.</p>
+
+<p>“And what else may you be, pray?” he demanded in a haughty tone,
+colouring to the roots of his hair, all his porcupine quills appearing
+in an instant, as, thrusting his hands into his pockets, he stood ready
+for the attack.</p>
+
+<p>“We are <i>Angolok</i>, by your leave, <i>mein Herr</i>.”</p>
+
+<p>“<i>Angolok?</i>” rejoined he. “Then I have indeed to crave your
+forgiveness”—all his testiness calming in an instant, whilst he
+extended his hand towards us, adding sadly, “Ah, you do not know what
+insults we Hungarians often have to bear from those <i>S—s—swab</i>.”
+And I could see that the mere utterance of the word itself was a relief
+to his feelings!</p>
+
+<p>After this little episode we became great friends. He was a Magyar of
+the old school, hating Austria and everything that had an Austrian
+tendency. He had been an active<span class="pagenum" id="Page_355">[355]</span> partisan of Kossuth, having fought for
+his country in ’49, and still carried the marks of a sabre cut on his
+forehead, of which he was not a little proud.</p>
+
+<p>Meanwhile our Danubian Jeanette sits disconsolate, fixing her eyes upon
+the fading shore, long after the gables and church steeples of the town
+have become invisible, looking down tenderly now and then on a flower
+which is hanging its head meekly in her bosom and languishing—as,
+alas! how soon her <i>love</i> did.</p>
+
+<p>An hour or two later, and her eyes and nose no longer red from crying,
+we find that she is quite pretty, and also that she has already
+attracted the attention of a spurred and top-booted Austrian officer,
+who appears to be of the same opinion. He takes his seat beside her,
+and then we see for the first time what large expressive eyes she has,
+and how blue they are. Ah! If Jeanot could only see his Jeanette now!
+Later still, they—the Austrian officer and she—are leaning over the
+bulwarks of the ship together; as he whispers “soft nothings” in her
+ear.</p>
+
+<p>Their faces are fronting up stream, and I wonder whether her thoughts
+are still travelling in the direction of the little, sandy, sun-burnt
+port where her lover dwells, and whether he too is casting regretful
+glances down the river’s course, or whether, on the contrary, he is
+whiling away the tedium of the evening and consoling himself in the
+presence of some other fair one!</p>
+
+<p>By this time we had ourselves attracted the attention of our
+fellow-passengers, and my small sketch-book had become the terror of
+some and the astonishment of all. At first I was able to sketch the
+various groups on board unseen—hiding behind friendly backs, sometimes
+utilising<span class="pagenum" id="Page_356">[356]</span> F. for the purpose, sometimes András—till one unlucky
+moment, taken off my guard, I allowed an inquisitive “native” to take a
+mean advantage of me and slip round behind us. Thenceforward I had no
+more peace. “The great unwashed” particularly manifested a most decided
+disinclination to be immortalised, half believing I possessed the gift
+of the “evil eye”—above all the Turkish ladies, who, when they were
+informed of my dangerous proclivities, drew their bandages closely over
+their faces till even their eyes were concealed, whilst the passengers
+on the forecastle crowded round me to such an extent that the Captain
+at last came to see what could be the matter. Some who happened to be
+too far in the rear to have a good view of my proceedings had climbed
+on to the ship’s bulwarks, where, holding on by the iron supports from
+which the boats were suspended, they not only had a good view, but felt
+secure from my dreaded machinations.</p>
+
+<p>I never saw people more excited, until it became noised abroad that
+“some one in the crowd knew all about it.” I was simply taking
+pictures for the Illustrated <i>Zeitung</i> (Journal) of Belgrade.
+This was regarded as so natural and likely a solution of the matter
+that henceforth—there being no longer any mystery—the interest in
+me gradually subsided, and I was permitted to pursue art under less
+difficulty.</p>
+
+<p>Count ——, the “noble” who joined us at Esseg, is a most intelligent
+and agreeable person; and as soon as he has ascertained to what
+nationality we belong, he comes up and addresses us in the familiar
+tongue. He speaks English very tolerably, but cannot, or at any rate
+<i>affects</i> not, to understand German. Immediately that he discovers
+we<span class="pagenum" id="Page_357">[357]</span> speak French, however, he gladly relapses into that language, being
+evidently more accustomed to converse in it than in English, although
+he has, he informs us, been in England several times.</p>
+
+<p>We soon discover that many Hungarians speak French both well and
+fluently, for just at this juncture a heavily-laden barge of more than
+ordinary interest passing alongside awakens a number of the first-class
+passengers from their usual lethargy, and brings a little knot of
+persons of both sexes to the part of the steamer where we are sitting;
+and after the excitement has subsided, conversation becomes general,
+turning—every one speaking French—upon the comparative merits of the
+various modern languages, all agreeing that the English and Magyar are
+the most reasonable, these being the only ones in Europe, so far as we
+knew, in which the three genders are philosophically applied.</p>
+
+<p>“Fancy!” broke in the testy old gentleman, glad to have a hit at
+anything <i>German</i>, and growing almost black in the face. “Fancy
+the bench (<i>die Bank</i>) upon which I am sitting being feminine,
+whereas the chair (<i>der Stuhl</i>) upon which the Count reposes
+is masculine. Why should not objects inanimate in every language be
+neuter, as in ours and yours?” (looking towards us.) “Hang it, sir,
+why should they have <i>any</i> gender at all? ’Tis monstrous!” and
+apoplexy seemed imminent.</p>
+
+<p>“Or the sun” (just then setting, like a fierce war-god stained
+with blood) “be <i>feminine</i>, whilst the placid, gentle moon is
+<i>masculine</i>!” broke in some one else, continuing the argument.</p>
+
+<p>“And the stars, the stars, oh! why should <i>they</i> be masculine,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_358">[358]</span>
+which twinkle so sweetly, and give us such a tender light?” added the
+voice of a Magyar girl, in melodious but rather doubtful French.</p>
+
+  <div class="poetry-container">
+   <div class="poetry">
+      <div class="stanza">
+        <div class="ileft">“Der Mond ist aufgegangen,</div>
+        <div>Die goldnen Sternlein prangen,</div>
+        <div class="i1">Am Himmel hell und klar,”</div>
+      </div>
+    </div>
+  </div>
+
+<p class="p-left">sang the young German in a clear and manly tenor, paraphrasing in verse
+the two last clauses of the discussion.</p>
+
+<p>This was the signal for a request for some music, to which however
+no one responded, till a Croatian gentleman, suddenly disappearing,
+brought from below a kind of mandoline, the national instrument of the
+Croat-Serbs, upon which he played some plaintive melody, and then sang
+in his native language, Slavonian, a ballad to its accompaniment.</p>
+
+<p>There is something very novel and delightful, as well as healthful to
+the mind, in the feeling which creeps over one on board these Danube
+steamers. Where else can one meet and converse, at one and the same
+time, with people of so many nations and climes?</p>
+
+<p>Even those poor, helpless lumps of humanity, the Turkish ladies, whom
+not even the strains of music have aroused from their lethargy, and who
+sit staring vacantly into the river,—I feel half-drawn towards them.
+Yet their apathy almost drives me mad, though I know it to be due to
+etiquette and not to choice.</p>
+
+<p>Going across to their children, however, I try to amuse them, and
+soon bring laughter to their melancholy eyes; till, growing bolder
+by degrees as twilight approaches, they even let me lead them to
+the forecastle, where a strange scene presents itself. Surely, with
+these singular surroundings,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_359">[359]</span> we cannot be in Europe, but in some
+Eastern vessel bound for Mecca or some other shrine with a freight of
+pilgrims. There are groups of Bosniaks—Bosnians, as we in England
+call them—crouching upon their bundles which contain their little
+worldly all, or sitting on the deck eating their evening meal of black
+bread and fat, uncooked bacon. There are manly Servians by the dozen,
+and bronze-faced Turks: men clothed in pictorial rags begrimed with
+cosmopolitan dirt; and the air terribly “Oriental” and frowsy with the
+odours of sheepskin and garlic.</p>
+
+<p>Here too are men of almost every religion, from the offshoot of the
+Reformed faith, in the person of a stern and silent Debricziner,
+priding himself in the exclusive doctrines of Calvin, to the
+unbelieving Hebrew; whilst yonder, at the prow, is a turbaned son of
+the Prophet, who, having spread his little island of carpet, is still
+salaaming to the west, although the sun set full an hour ago, and
+twilight’s shadows are gathering over all.</p>
+
+<p>Close by us is a stalwart, broad-shouldered, and burly Bulgarian,
+who, having spread <i>his</i> rug also, makes the sign of the Greek
+cross, and, drawing his fez over his eyes, lays him down to rest. There
+are Roumanians too of every degree, from the tall, effeminate, and
+sallow-complexioned dweller in Bucharest, to the wild and uncivilised
+shepherd from the Wallachian mountains in sandalled feet. Amongst
+all these, the poor down-trodden Jews sit alone, despised of their
+neighbours—outcasts even here in this motley assemblage—the “pariahs”
+of Europe.</p>
+
+<p>As I stand watching from a little distance this diversity of peoples,
+wondering whither they are going, and what kind of rustic homes will
+shelter them when their voyage is<span class="pagenum" id="Page_360">[360]</span> ended, I observe a haughty Roumanian
+pacing down the deck with measured strides, his curled lip and lofty
+carriage bearing witness to his arrogant claims of ancestry.</p>
+
+<p>He is smoking, and looking down disdainfully as he passes upon the
+swarthy groups covering the planks of the vessel. Presently his foot
+catches in a portion of the flowing garment of a poor, hoary-headed
+Jew. The rag was trespassing on the space that, by tacit and mutual
+consent, had been left clear the whole length of the deck, to enable
+the passengers to walk up and down. The Roumanian first regards the
+wearer with an expression of unutterable scorn, and then, muttering
+between his teeth what seems to be an oath, kicks him thrice, and bids
+him get out of the way.</p>
+
+<p>The Jew, however, instead of resenting both insult and blows, turns
+an abject gaze upon the imperious Gentile, and, quietly accepting the
+ignominy which is his heritage here, draws his garments more closely
+round him, and simply rolls over on the other side.</p>
+
+<p>The rock-built fortress of Pétervárad now comes in sight, standing on
+a promontory formed by the windings of the river. It has been called
+the Gibraltar of the Danube, and presents a formidable array of walls
+and bastions, rising tier above tier, perforated with loopholes for
+cannon, and from its ramparts the guns and bayonets of the sentinels
+glisten in the moonlight. The town at its base is interesting as
+being the place at which Peter the Hermit marshalled his soldiers for
+the first Crusade, and from whom doubtless the town has received its
+present name. It is long before we lose sight of this great fortress,
+commanding as it does, from its lofty position, the whole surrounding
+country,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_361">[361]</span> which, like a sphinx, it seems to guard, the river skirting
+it on three sides.</p>
+
+<p>At length its battlemented heights begin to fade from sight, but
+the moon still links its distant shores to the steamer’s wake by a
+tremulous chain of glory. The top-booted Austrian officer departed with
+the last gleam of the setting sun, and our little Jeanette, alone this
+time, is once more leaning over the steamer’s side and looking down
+upon the moon’s pathway. Is it guiding her thoughts back, we wonder,
+to her lover? We welcome, at any rate, weeping eyes and downcast looks
+as a good omen; and, passing by the deck saloon, we see that she has
+placed her withered flower in water, and that—typical of her love—it
+is holding up its head again!</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3610_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3610_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>We were due at Semlin at eight o’clock, but being three hours after our
+time in arriving at Pétervárad, we are scarcely likely to reach the
+former place much before midnight.</p>
+
+<p>As we sit languidly on the deck, and skim softly through the warm,
+voluptuous air, the discordant sounds of a horn reach us from the
+forecastle, probably that of a Wallachian shepherd.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_362">[362]</span></p>
+
+<p>We are now passing beneath lofty hills, which form the most
+south-eastern portion of the Fruskagora chain. They are clothed to
+their summits with primeval forest, but their lower declivities are
+cultivated with the vine. Every now and again we pass a Slavonian
+village, with its tall and slender steeple standing like a spectre in
+the moonlight, and gleaming white against the sapphire hills. Will the
+prophecy of a Panslavonic unity ever, I wonder, be accomplished?</p>
+
+<p>That portion of the Slavonic race known as Russian first came in
+contact with the Greek empire in 865, under the warlike house of Ruric,
+just before the Magyar invasion of Pannonia. Three times the Russians
+attempted to conquer Constantinople, the last occasion in 1043. The
+Greeks twice succeeded in defeating these barbarian hordes by means of
+Greek fire thrown from their war-galleys. Elated, however, by their
+previous successes, the Greeks, on the third invasion of their northern
+foe, pursued them too rashly, and were overpowered by the enemy. A
+treaty was entered into, but the terror which this third attack upon
+their capital created was greatly enhanced by the discovery that a
+statue in the square of Taurus had been secretly inscribed with a
+prophecy to the effect that <i>in the last days the Russians would be
+masters of Constantinople</i>.</p>
+
+<p>A singular prediction in connection with the former is also said to
+have existed amongst the Turks, viz. that they were to continue to rule
+in Constantinople 400 years, and that after that period their dominion
+over it would cease. They have, as is well known, already exceeded this
+term by some few years.</p>
+
+<p>More than one Greek priest with whom we conversed<span class="pagenum" id="Page_363">[363]</span> recognised, in the
+possible fulfilment of these prophecies, the partial realisation of the
+Panslavonic efforts; for, by the Emperor of Russia becoming likewise
+Emperor of Constantinople, the two branches of the Greek Church, at any
+rate, would be united under one head.</p>
+
+<p>Reaching Slankament, the waters of the Danube are augmented by those of
+the Theiss. At the mouth of it numerous vessels are lying laden with
+corn from the north, and into one of these we nearly ran, grazing her
+side and carrying away a portion of her bows.</p>
+
+<p>The moon shines brightly as we sit talking to the various races of
+people on board, sometimes speaking German, sometimes French, sometimes
+Italian or Spanish, and not unfrequently jumbling all together in our
+endeavours to sustain conversation and make ourselves intelligible to
+every one.</p>
+
+<p>All evince the same curiosity which we have met elsewhere in our
+travels in Hungary to know who we are, whence we have come and for what
+purpose—in fact, all about ourselves and our belongings—which seems
+the more remarkable, because one would suppose that English persons
+must often be met with on board these steamers on their way to the
+Lower Danube. They are not, however, met with frequently enough to
+cause them to cease to be <i>raræ aves</i> on these waters; and it is
+intensely amusing to listen to the cross-questioning to which we are
+subjected.</p>
+
+<p>“English! Is it possible? Then you live in London. Well, to be sure!
+<i>What</i> a long way off! How long have you been on the journey? and
+what cities did you pass through? Perhaps the illustrious strangers
+are on their way to Constantinople? No! Well, then, doubtless the
+gentleman<span class="pagenum" id="Page_364">[364]</span> is an engineer engaged in some public works undertaken by
+the Hungarian Government—railways, perhaps?” All open their eyes very
+wide when we tell them we are merely on a “<i>Lustreise</i>,”—that is,
+travelling for pleasure, and the announcement invariably calls forth
+the exclamation, “<i>What</i> a lot of money it must cost to travel so
+far! But the English are always, so rich, so <i>very</i> rich.”</p>
+
+<p>At Pétervárad we are joined by a young Bosniak gentleman. With the
+exception of a fez and a crimson satin waistcoat, he wears the
+ugly dress of Western civilisation; but his servant, a tall, fine,
+broad-shouldered old fellow—a perfect picture in himself—is clad
+in loose dark blue Turkish trousers, embroidered jacket, and crimson
+shawl girdle; the whole rendered quite splendid by a heavily-braided
+and fur-lined mantle worn loosely across the shoulders. András has
+already made himself aware of his existence, and the two have been in
+close conclave, no doubt imparting to each other the history, past,
+present and future, of their respective masters. At any rate, András
+is well up in that of the Bosniak, for I overhear him telling a German
+acquaintance that he has large landed estates in the east of Bosnia,
+and has six hundred labourers; that he cannot live in his own country
+on account of the climate being too severe, and that he is on his way
+to Adrianople, where he intends to settle.</p>
+
+<p>At eleven o’clock the lights of Semlin come in sight, and there is
+a general stir amongst the passengers, many of whom will leave us
+there: stewards are rushing after some who had not yet paid their wine
+bills: the decks are crowded with luggage. The second-class passengers
+shoulder their bundles and rugs, and, having shaken themselves<span class="pagenum" id="Page_365">[365]</span> into
+shape again, crowd the approach to the gangway till we come alongside.
+What a strange wild scene now presents itself, and what a Babel of
+tongues! Magyar, German, Greek, and Illyrian, or—I beg Mr. Max
+Müller’s pardon—<i>Windic</i>: and what savage, uncanny faces loom out
+of the darkness, faces of men whose acquaintance one would not like to
+make on a lonely road; men with closely shaven locks, wearing caps like
+fezes and Turkish trousers; others whose long-matted hair hangs over
+their broad high shoulders and half conceals their features! And how
+they rave and yell, and clamour for more, as the new passengers, whose
+luggage they bring on board, put a <i>douceur</i> into their hand to
+repay them for their trouble!</p>
+
+<p>“This—only this?” each seems to say in his own particular jargon as,
+extending with bitter scorn his greasy palm in which the silver coin is
+glistening, he asks for double. And witnessing these proceedings, we
+feel thankful that we are not to land, at night at any rate, amid such
+strange and wild surroundings.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3650_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3650_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+<div class="chapter">
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_366">[366]</span></p>
+
+<h2>CHAPTER XXVIII.<br>
+<span class="subhed">SHOOTING THE CATARACTS.</span></h2></div>
+
+
+<p class="drop-cap p-left">Having great things before us to-day, we once more shake off dull
+sloth and early rise. During the night we had passed not only Belgrade
+and Semendria, but an ancient Turkish fortress and many other places
+of interest, all of which we were sorry to miss; but even the most
+enthusiastic of travellers cannot always keep awake.</p>
+
+<p>Going out on deck, we find we are passing a long island, clothed with
+dense vegetation of fairest green, feathering down to the water’s edge.</p>
+
+<p>“How exactly this portion of our great Duna (Danube) resembles the
+Mississippi, which I visited last year!” exclaimed the Count—the only
+passenger as yet on deck, and who coming forward greeted us with a
+pleasant smile. “There is nothing wanting to complete the resemblance.
+No! not even the canoe—for see that strange savage-looking fellow
+yonder, paddling himself about in that small sandy creek—his boat the
+hollowed-out trunk of a tree! And those ‘snags,’ too, lying half-out in
+mid-stream. How like all is to the mightier river of the New World!”</p>
+
+<p>The island itself is full of wild-fowl—a “whir-r-r!” and away go a
+large flock skimming through the air, their<span class="pagenum" id="Page_367">[367]</span> white wings gleaming
+like silver in the morning light; whilst here and there web-footed
+“water-ravens,” about the size of a small goose, are still seen
+roosting on the trees or standing on sandy promontories watching for
+fish.</p>
+
+<p>The cold is intense, the climate having altered strangely since
+yesterday, when even before sunrise it was warm and pleasant. Yet the
+river’s course has been taking us steadily southwards since leaving
+Pest.</p>
+
+<p>“We are approaching the jaws of the defile,” said the captain, who,
+just then appearing on deck, observed me drawing my large “cloud”
+around me. “The wind is always rough there, even on the hottest day, no
+matter how calm it is elsewhere, and it will blow very hard to-day, for
+we can feel it even here.”</p>
+
+<p>We had lost the greater number of our fellow-passengers, for they left
+us at Semlin and Belgrade. The Turkish family, however, are still with
+us, together with the young Bosniak, who, by the way, has been joined
+by a brother. Both are resplendent in crimson satin waistcoats covered
+with silver chains and various kinds of ornaments, and they look very
+handsome as they pace the deck in their beautiful sable-lined cloaks
+and broad fur collars. There are several Hungarians who have also
+remained on board, including the testy old gentleman, who hospitably
+insists on our being his guests at breakfast this morning. That meal,
+however, is very hastily partaken of on this occasion, for there are
+too many things of interest to be seen on deck to admit of the most
+prosaic person lingering in the saloon longer than is absolutely
+necessary.</p>
+
+<p>There are three sets of steamers on the Danube, and we are fearing lest
+we may have to leave this one at Drenkova,<span class="pagenum" id="Page_368">[368]</span> on account of the lowness
+of the water. At some seasons the navigation of the Lower Danube is
+very dangerous, except for the smallest steamers; the narrow channels
+between the reefs, which in some places stretch across the whole
+breadth of the river and rise above its surface like alligators’ teeth,
+containing scarcely more than eighteen inches of water.</p>
+
+<p>Attempts have been made to remove these obstructions by blasting the
+highest of the reefs, but with ill success. They principally consist of
+a hard micaceous slate, which is very difficult to blast; and even the
+little flat-bottomed barges which are made expressly for the shallows,
+striking on the edges of these pointed rocks, are often sunk or broken
+to pieces. The most dangerous of these rapids, or <i>Cataracten</i>
+as they are called here, lies below Drenkova, where the reefs create
+a fall of eight feet. Across these the native boatmen dash heedlessly
+without steering, shutting their eyes to the danger, and appealing for
+protection either to Allah or the Virgin, according as their religion
+may dictate; their craft, however, not unfrequently coming to hopeless
+grief notwithstanding, whilst they occasionally lose their own lives as
+well.</p>
+
+<p>Having passed the island of Moldova, curious sandhills appear in sight.
+They are almost destitute of verdure, a tuft of grass here and there
+being the only vegetation seen upon them, and appear in fact to be
+formed of loose sand drifted hither by the wind. Yet these small and
+insignificant hillocks are in truth none other than the beginnings of
+the South-Eastern Carpathians, which soon enclose us on either side.</p>
+
+<p>At Moldova, a military frontier-post, the river widens<span class="pagenum" id="Page_369">[369]</span> considerably,
+and wears all the appearance of a beautiful lake, whose sandy shores,
+crimson in the rising sun, are backed by golden and purple mountains,
+veiled partially in the morning mist. As we proceed, however, we soon
+discern a narrow cleft in the high rocks through which the river forces
+its way. Through this narrow defile the wind tears madly, as if to defy
+our entrance.</p>
+
+<p>The pent-up waters are now covered with innumerable waves, as, flowing
+over reefs which lie only a few feet below the surface, eddies and
+whirlpools are formed which cause the steamer to rock from side to
+side. But this is by no means one of the really formidable portions of
+the Pass, and is but a small obstacle to the navigation of the river
+compared with those which we have to encounter farther on.</p>
+
+<p>The scene which now presents itself to our view is surely one of the
+most magnificent in the world. On either side are lofty crags, which
+rise precipitously out of the raging waters. On the topmost crest of
+that to the left stands the ruined stronghold of a robber-knight, now
+abandoned to eagles; whilst a little lower down, on the right bank,
+crowning the summit of an almost inaccessible rock—the two having once
+held the keys of the Pass—stand the splendid but crumbling ruins of
+the feudal castle of Golumbacz, with its nine towers and battlemented
+walls dominating the river. Its name is said to be a corruption of
+“Columba” (the castle of the Dove), for it was here that the Greek
+Princess Helena was imprisoned.</p>
+
+<p>This splendid ruin—called in Turkish <i>Gögerdschnik</i>—<span class="pagenum" id="Page_370">[370]</span> which
+was besieged by King Sigismund and afterwards taken from the Turks
+by Matthias Corvinus, is built on the site of an ancient Roman
+<i>castrum</i>, many historical events being recorded in connection
+with its imposing towers, seven of which are still in good preservation.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3700_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3700_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>Projecting about eighteen or twenty feet above the boiling stream,
+we now come in sight of a singularly-shaped solitary rock, called
+“Babacaj,” a word said to mean in the Turkish language “Repent,” and
+to which tradition assigns a strange history. For here—so runs the
+legend—a ruffianly Beh, seized with jealousy, brought his young bride,
+and having landed her on the rock, rowed away, and left her to starve
+and die, answering her piteous cries with “<i>Babacaj! babacaj!</i>”
+(Repent! repent!) And the shepherds watching their flocks on the summit
+of these mountain heights tell how in the “stilly nights” her voice
+reaches them above the restless wave, and how also on<span class="pagenum" id="Page_371">[371]</span> stormy ones, as
+the water dashes over the rock, piercing screams come echoing up the
+gorge.</p>
+
+<hr class="tb">
+
+<p>As we approach the rock “Babacaj,” a vulture perched conspicuously on
+its summit, solemnly regarding the surrounding scene, rose suddenly,
+and with a great flapping of wings, which measured fully seven or eight
+feet across, flew to his eyrie in a mountain crest on the opposite
+side of the gorge. These rocky precipices, perforated with clefts and
+fissures, are the abode of numerous vultures of a large species, as
+well as eagles.</p>
+
+<p>The largest of these fissures is called “the cavern of Golumbacz,”
+on account of its proximity to the ruined castle of that name, and
+was pointed out to us by a credulous Magyar as being the veritable
+cave in which St. George slew the Dragon, whose carcase—so tradition
+adds—still in process of decay, gives birth to innumerable
+“<i>Mord-mücken</i>” (murder-flies)—a very venomous species of gnat,
+known to naturalists as the <i>Furia infernalis</i>. However much the
+former part of the tradition concerning their origin may be regarded as
+a myth, there is no doubt that these terrible little pests do really
+inhabit this cave. During the months of June and July they pour forth
+like a living cloud, and are the terror of the shepherds and herdsmen
+on the heights of the Danube, who light large fires of green wood by
+night to protect themselves and their flocks from the ravages of these
+insects, which often prove fatal in a few hours even to horses and
+buffalo, and which, attacking the eyes, nostrils, ears and throat,
+create suffocation from the swelling caused by the poison of their
+sting.</p>
+
+<p>In vain the peasants have endeavoured to wall up the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_372">[372]</span> cavern; these
+poisonous gnats only force their way through other fissures. They are,
+however, scarcely likely to have any real connection with the cavern,
+and are doubtless bred in the marshes and swamps of the Danube, taking
+refuge in these rocks during the frosty weather, collecting into huge
+societies, and then pouring forth when the ice melts and the summer
+heat begins.</p>
+
+<p>After passing the first rapids, we find ourselves in calm waters.
+Looking back, the scene is perfectly sublime, and the Danube, hemmed
+in on all sides, as at Moldova, with precipitous mountains, once more
+wears the appearance of a lake, whilst here and there the windings of
+the shallow shore, showing black against the lofty crags, and cutting
+into their reflections with horizontal lines, create a picture the
+splendour of which it is impossible to describe. Beautiful as are the
+defiles of the Rhine between Bingen and Coblenz, they are but a mere
+toy compared with those of the Lower Danube.</p>
+
+<p>To the right, about half a mile below Golumbacz, are the ruins of the
+Roman fort Gradisca, the first visible tracings of the Via Trajana,
+while on the left or Hungarian bank of the river we now trace the
+magnificent modern road which was constructed by the Hungarian
+Government at the instance of its great patriot Count Szechenyi, whose
+name it bears, and to whom the navigation of the river, and many of
+the public works in Hungary, are due. This roadway is formed in some
+places—where the rocks, rising sheer out of the water, admitted of
+no pathway—of vast galleries which pierce the mountains; whilst in
+others, the road being carried along the outside of the rock, it is
+widened by terraces of masonry.</p>
+
+<p><span class="pagenum" id="Page_373">[373]</span></p>
+
+<p>Passing beneath one of these terraces, we see three figures wending
+their way along, the only signs of life we have observed on the banks
+to-day. They are Wallachian women, dressed in bright-coloured garments,
+with blue and red scarves wound round their heads like turbans, and
+contrasting very picturesquely with the sombre grey and brown tints of
+the surrounding rocks. They are driving a herd of yellow long-haired
+swine, but the whole procession looks so small as it skirts the giant
+ramparts, that they appear like tiny figures in a Noah’s-ark.</p>
+
+<p>We are now approaching another defile, and the wind blowing fiercely,
+as through the last, again defies our entrance.</p>
+
+<p>The captain having kindly offered me his place, a snug little corner
+on the quarter-deck, strongly framed-in with canvas walls and
+overlooking the forecastle and bows, I not only had an uninterrupted
+view of all around me, but, up to my shoulders at any rate, was well
+protected from the fury of the wind. But for this circumstance I doubt
+whether I should have been able to remain on deck. Looking behind me
+for an instant, I see F. and the other gentlemen staggering as they
+try to maintain their equilibrium, whilst below me, crouching in
+the forecastle, whither they have gone for shelter, are our Bosnian
+brothers, muffled up in cloaks and fur-lined hoods, the picture of
+abject misery, if not despair.</p>
+
+<p>Borne onwards by the swift current, we now approach the second defile
+at a pace that makes one giddy, the rate at which the steamer takes us
+being no doubt greatly exaggerated to our senses by the close proximity
+and height of the stupendous mountain buttresses which hem<span class="pagenum" id="Page_374">[374]</span> us in on
+either side. The wind blows against us with a deafening noise, and
+almost stuns us.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3740_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3740_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<p>It is impossible to remain any longer standing, and I am obliged to sit
+down and hold on tightly; whilst the gentlemen’s voices shouting to me
+from the deck to look, now on this side, now on that, as object after
+object of peculiar interest and beauty, and the stupendous bastions of
+rugged rock, unfold in rapid succession, seem like voices far away. I
+cannot hear, but the captain, leaving his position on the other side of
+the vessel and coming to the place where I am enclosed, interprets for
+them, and bids me turn my eyes to the left, for we are passing a series
+of Roman fortifications; and then, fastening my wraps more securely
+round me, tells me that the<span class="pagenum" id="Page_375">[375]</span> wind always blows fiercely always up this
+gorge, though not usually so madly as to-day. And now, rounding a rocky
+rampart which rises perpendicularly out of the water, the cataracts
+of Islaez and Tachtalia come in sight, two sister reefs consisting of
+hard porphyry, which, stretching across the river like dams, extend for
+a mile and a half. Here and there, piercing through the surface, are
+pointed rocks, round which the water rushing fiercely makes innumerable
+eddies, till we at length reach the monster whirlpool that so often
+proves fatal to small craft ascending or descending the river. Near it
+rises a fragment of rock called “the Buffalo,” beyond which long lines
+of white-crested breakers are seen stretching across the whole width
+of the river. Holding our breath, we pass by a mere shave through a
+narrow channel in the reef, more dangerous on account of its eddies
+and whirlpools than even the reefs themselves. We no longer steam: the
+current of the river bearing us along, whilst the captain stands on the
+bridge looking down anxiously on the boiling, seething mass.</p>
+
+<p>Navigation is fraught with the greatest danger to small vessels when
+the water is low. At such times also passengers are transferred from
+the steamers to peculiar flat-bottomed boats, constructed especially
+for this part of the river, which is then not navigable for boats
+drawing more than a minimum of water.</p>
+
+<p>The Romans, alive to the serious obstacles which these rocks presented,
+constructed a canal here, remains of which are still said to exist.</p>
+
+<p>As soon as we have safely descended the rapids and doubled a sharp
+promontory, the river begins to expand until it again attains the
+proportions almost of an inland<span class="pagenum" id="Page_376">[376]</span> sea; when it again becomes contracted,
+and we approach the formidable and perilous passage of the “Greben,”
+in the centre of whose reefs stands ominously an iron cross to warn
+boatmen of the dangerous Pass which has wrecked so many vessels.</p>
+
+<p>We have now crossed three of the great rapids, or <i>Cataracten</i>,
+of the Danube, with their tremendous breakers and currents, doing so
+in one instance through a gap only twenty yards broad and twenty-four
+inches deep. Over some of these weirs the steamer rocked as in a storm
+at sea, as it struggled against the eddies which, formed by the rocks
+beneath the surface, were driven back against the current.</p>
+
+<p>The river, freed from its present difficulties, now leaps forth
+exultant into a broad channel, like a monster released from bondage,
+and spreading out its arms embraces the Servian island of Porecz, where
+a Greek church has been erected, and above which rise bluff escarpments
+and walls of rock containing cracks and rents like loopholes of a
+Cyclopean citadel, and beneath which our steamer seems dwarfed to a
+mere speck upon the waters.</p>
+
+<p>At this point commences a line of Roman fortifications, which with
+little interruption form conspicuous objects on the left bank of the
+river for twenty miles, until, indeed, we reach the magnificent ruin of
+Tricule, with its triple-towered castle, one of the most beautiful of
+Roman antiquities.</p>
+
+<p>Immediately after passing this castle, we arrive at another imposing
+spectacle of the mighty Danube. Already the majestic limestone crags
+flanking its threshold are in sight; and we soon steam beneath one of
+the most glorious monuments of nature’s architecture—the “<i>Sterbeczu
+Almare</i>,” or<span class="pagenum" id="Page_377">[377]</span> “huge bastion of the Danube”—rocks which rear their
+summits almost perpendicularly to a height of over two thousand feet
+from the water’s brink. Beneath the rocks the narrow channel of the
+river, suddenly cramped to its smallest dimensions, rushes with a
+deafening roar, and, rolling its waves over its rocky bed with a noise
+like thunder, lashes the rugged sides of its obstructing enemies with
+furious spray. This is none other than the celebrated Kazan Pass; a
+defile so narrow, notwithstanding the depth of the river—200 feet at
+this point—that, as our pigmy steamer takes us through it, we tremble
+lest it should get foul of the rocks on one side or the other. And if
+this river presents such a wild and savage scene now, in its stately
+summer grandeur, what must it be in winter, when it becomes a mass of
+floating ice through which the narrow storm-tossed channel has to force
+its way! How wonderful and terrific must then be its aspect, as bearing
+down on its current huge boulders of ice, they knock and crash against
+each other, and then, hurling against the rocks, grind themselves to
+powder!</p>
+
+<p>At the termination of this last defile, and nearly <i>vis-à-vis</i> to
+the little village of Old Gradina, we arrive at Trajan’s <i>Tafel</i>,
+another interesting monument commemorative of the achievements of the
+Emperor whose name it bears, consisting of a tablet hewn in the solid
+rock, on which are inscribed his titles, together with the names of the
+legions and their cohorts by whom the road was constructed.</p>
+
+<p>This tablet, which stands on a niche sloping outwards from the
+vertical, is supported by winged genii and dolphins, the whole being
+surmounted by the Roman eagle.</p>
+
+<p>As we passed, a man standing in a clumsy kind of canoe<span class="pagenum" id="Page_378">[378]</span> was impelling
+himself by a pole close under the tablet, whilst another wild-looking
+fellow was sitting in the niche cooking his mid-day meal.</p>
+
+<p>At this point on the Servian side the rocks manifest very singular
+serpentine stratification—like metal that had twisted in the act
+of cooling. On the same side, too, we once more see tracings of the
+ancient Roman road, which, situated about ten feet above the river,
+extend for a considerable distance. They consist of a perfectly
+horizontal ridge, varying from two to four feet in width, beneath
+which, as previously observed higher up the river, are a number of
+square holes or sockets, placed at regular intervals, believed to
+have been made to support beams by means of which the narrow path
+was widened by a wooden platform which overhung the stream. In a
+climate like this, which is subject to such severe alternations of
+cold and heat—frosts Arctic in their rigour and heat little short of
+tropical—it is marvellous that these ancient memorials should not ere
+this have been either defaced and concealed, by Time’s obliterating
+mantle, or have crumbled beneath his tread; but there they are, as
+fresh as if the Roman workman had just left his hammer and chisel and
+would return to continue his work on the morrow; whilst in places where
+the rocky escarpment was cut to form the pathway, the stone is as white
+as if laid bare but yesterday, and its edge as sharp and angular as
+when first completed.</p>
+
+<p>Continuing our steam down the river, we meet for the first time
+with true specimens of Wallachian villages, with which, at a later
+period, we were destined to become so familiar in our travels through
+Transylvania.</p>
+
+<p>We descended the Danube thus far for the purpose of<span class="pagenum" id="Page_379">[379]</span> steaming through
+the renowned “Iron Grate Pass,” about twenty miles below Orsova; but,
+although it is said to be the most dangerous and formidable of all the
+rapids of the river, having two distinct falls of eight feet, which at
+low water form themselves into foaming cataracts and over which the
+water falls perpendicularly, yet the scenery is comparatively tame. In
+the place of rugged and scarped precipices rising to a height of from
+1500 to 2000 feet, and hanging over the mighty stream like impending
+Titans, the mountains slope landwards, receding from the water’s
+edge. It is grand, however; and the little steamer, as it threads its
+dangerous passage between the rocks, sways from side to side.</p>
+
+<p>But at last the splendid Danube, having lashed itself into weariness
+over the reefs which extending for a mile constitute that portion of
+it known as the “Iron Gate Pass,” widens considerably, and flows on
+henceforth with calm and dignified demeanour, till, having fulfilled
+its noble career, it loses itself at last in the Black Sea.</p>
+
+  <div class="figcenter" id="p3790_ill">
+     <img
+    class="p1"   
+    src="images/p3790_ill.jpg"
+     alt="">
+  </div>
+
+<hr class="chap x-ebookmaker-drop">
+
+
+<p class="center xs p2">LONDON:<br>
+PRINTED BY WILLIAM CLOWES AND SONS, LIMITED,<br>
+STAMFORD STREET AND CHARING CROSS.</p>
+
+
+<p class="transnote">Transcriber’s Notes:<br>
+<br>
+1. Obvious printers’, punctuation and spelling errors have been
+corrected silently.</p>
+
+
+<div style='text-align:center'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 77586 ***</div>
+</body>
+</html>
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diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt
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+This book, including all associated images, markup, improvements,
+metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be
+in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES.
+
+Procedures for determining public domain status are described in
+the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org.
+
+No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in
+jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize
+this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright
+status under the laws that apply to them.
diff --git a/README.md b/README.md
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+Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for eBook #77586
+(https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/77586)