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Showing the Council House, where John Huss was tried and condemned.

of the grandest scenery, where 'Alps on Alps successive rise.' Such was the course which the writer pursued; and for the guidance of those who may wish to follow it, a short sketch of the journey by the Rhine may now be given.

It was a journey of upwards of 1000 miles, by river and rail, by field and flood, and it occupied nearly a week. Leaving Scotland on Monday morning, the 14th August, we reached London that evening, and set off on Tuesday morning for Brussels, the capital of Belgium. On arriving at Dover, it was evident that our passage across was to be stormy and rough. During the hour and a half of crossing, the rain poured down in torrents, the wind, which was contrary, blew a hurricane, and the waves dashed over the bulwarks and drenched all on deck. One tall gentleman, while exulting in his freedom from sea-sickness, and no doubt pitying his luckless fellow-voyagers, was cast down by a sudden lurch of the ship, and fell prostrate, ingloriously kissing the deck! On reaching Calais, we found the French people in a state of high excitement, flags flying, and soldiers rushing in all directions. It was the Fête Napoleon, when all France celebrates the memory of the first Napoleon, and also the memory of the Virgin Mary! Strange conjunction! but a skilful device of the present emperor to enlist Romish devoteeism in his favour.

Leaving Calais by rail, and passing Lille, we crossed the frontier between France and Belgium about 3 P.M. We were now in the celebrated Flanders, the land of the Flemings, so often the battle-field of Europe. It is a magnificent country, flat as a bowling green, well cultivated, and clothed with the richest verdure; while the vast plantations of hops, hanging in rich and graceful festoons, give variety and beauty to the scene.

In the evening we reached BRUSSELS, the capital. The streets are regular and clean, and many of them are of great length, as well as broad and spacious. The houses seemed to be all constructed of brick, but plastered

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Sketches of Swiss Scenery.

and painted white; and they have a substantial and elegant appearance. Many of the churches and public buildings are very fine. Early next morning I went into the church of St. James, which is a large and beautiful building. About thirty persons were kneeling before the altar, and the priest, dressed in the most gorgeous fashion, and attended by two little boys, was engaged in performing mass. Not a word was spoken that I could hear. Though he turned over many leaves of books, yet it was all dumb show, bowings, genuflections, etc. It was a striking exhibition of what Popery, as a religious system, really is—mere mummery, but no instruction to the people. The priest never turned round even to look at them, except once or twice to bless them, as they call it ; and he seemed virtually to say, 'Look at me, trust in me, and I will take you upon my shoulders and carry you to heaven!'

I then visited the magnificent cathedral. The interior put one in mind of a toy-shop. There were numerous wax figures of the Virgin and child, gorgeously dressed and glittering with gold and jewels, before which many devotees were kneeling with apparent earnestness. In one corner, there were a great many small models in wax, of legs, arms, hearts, etc., hung up in a row. It was a grotesque sight, and somewhat puzzling at first; but they were evidently designed as votive offerings to the Virgin Mary, for pretended miraculous cures of these members of the body. Such was our first view of Popery as seen in its native haunts.

Leaving Brussels on Wednesday, we proceeded by rail to COLOGNE, distant 150 miles. We arrived there in the evening, and obtained our first view of the RHINE, SO celebrated in German history. It is a magnificent sight, as its great volume of water sweeps past, deep and clear, to irrigate the many lands which are in no small measure indebted to it for their fertility and political The city of Cologne has little to boast of, except its splendid cathedral, commenced many hundreds

power.

Sketches of Swiss Scenery.

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of years ago, and still unfinished. Its dirty streets, squalid houses, and offensive smells, possess none of the fragrance of the celebrated Eau de Cologne.

On Thursday morning, we left Cologne by the railway which passes along the western bank of the Rhine, and reached Coblentz, a word derived from the Latin word confluentes, because here the confluence of the Moselle with the Rhine takes place. Here also is the celebrated castle of Ehrenbreitstein, from whose lofty summit we had an extensive and splendid view of the country, and especially of the valley of the Moselle.

At Coblentz, we found a steamboat ready to carry us up the Rhine to Mayence, and got on board. It was a voyage of about 100 miles over the most picturesque portion of that noble river. On each hand, the banks are high and steep, and rise often to the height of 1000 feet; and the slopes were covered with vines, which at the time were in full and luxuriant bearing, and giving promise of an abundant vintage. The sky was clear, and the sun shone forth in all his glory. Every ten minutes, one or more towns or villages came in sight, most of them having an ancient and interesting history, and suggestive of German life and medieval prowess. It was like skimming through fairy land; and the only drawback was, the manifest superstition of the people, as shown by the numerous images planted along the banks, and defacing the beauty of the scenery.

On reaching Mayence, we set off by rail to Frankfort on the Maine, the capital of the old German empire; where we visited the hall of the emperors, the Jewish quarter, and the birthplace of the Rothschilds, those great money-lenders to needy potentates, whose wealth may be counted by millions. The Jewish face was easily distinguishable, as the same that you see among the old clothes-men of London, or in the pictures discovered some years ago on the pyramids of Egypt. A singular people truly,-scattered and peeled, and yet surviving still; wielding a powerful influence in literature, politics,

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