STEAMBOAT TRAVEL IN EUROPE.
Compared with the United States the continent of Europe has a small
amount of inland navigation. Russia contains more rivers where
steamers may run than all the rest of Europe, and until within a few
years her steamboat interest was greater than that of her railways.
The Rhine is the most important stream of Western Europe, and the
Danube has the greatest navigable length of any river outside of
Russia. The Danube has a serious impediment at the Iron Gates, where a
succession of rapids and a channel full of rocks prevent the passage
of boats. From the days of the Romans to the present there has been
talk of a canal around the Iron Gates, and there are the remains
to-day of a canal that was begun by one of the Roman emperors, but
never completed. From the head of navigation at Ulm to its entrance
into the Black Sea the Danube has a course of more than seventeen
hundred miles, while the Rhine can only claim a navigable distance of
less than five hundred. The Rhone and its tributary, the Saone, are
classed as navigable streams, but their currents are so swift that
their steamboat interest has never been an important one, on account
of the great cost of making an ascending journey. Many of the smaller
rivers of Europe are navigated by freight-boats only; as a general
statement it is fair to say that the inland navigation available to
the tourist is comprised in the Rhine and Danube rivers, and the Swiss
and Italian lakes. In Russia he will find the Volga, the Don, and the
Dnieper rivers worthy of attention, and, if he is on the lookout for
more streams, he may venture on the Vistula, and one or two others of
lesser consequence.
All the Swiss lakes are well equipped with steamboats, and the service
is prompt enough to suit the most exacting. On the lake of Geneva, for
example, there are half a dozen boats each way, daily, the whole
length of the lake, some of them stopping at every landing, and others
making only two or three halts. The boats are long and narrow, and
present a most insignificant appearance when compared with the
steamers of the Hudson and Mississippi; the after part is reserved for
the first-class passengers, who can sit under an awning on deck, or
retire to a cabin below. The second-class is forward, and in fine
weather is preferable to the first, since the latter has all the
benefit of the smoke and cinders as they blow aft. The boats on the
Swiss lakes are for day service, and contain no sleeping-cabins, but
there are sofas and couches on which an invalid may recline, provided
the craft is not too much crowded. Meals are served _a la carte_,
and sometimes at a fixed price; the latter are not to be recommended
on the majority of the boats, though they are cheaper than meals _a
la carte_.
Tickets are bought at the clerk's office, and the traveler is advised
to visit that locality and settle his fare as soon as he goes on
board. No receipts are given for baggage, and if there is an excessive
amount it is charged for. There is an attaché of the boat who looks
after the baggage--expecting a fee as a matter of course--but even
with his watchfulness it behooves the stranger to keep an eye out for
himself, or he may find on reaching his destination that his trunk has
gone ashore by mistake at some other landing. In selecting a seat on
deck take one on the side of the boat opposite the sun, so at to avoid
the reflection on the water, and whenever you leave your seat for a
moment put a satchel or some other article in it. Fashionable
travelers on the Swiss lakes are not always respectful of the rights
of others, and will drop into an eligible locality the moment it is
vacated, even though they know your absence will be exceedingly brief.
The description of the Swiss steamers will apply in general terms to
those of the Italian lakes. The boats are for day service only, and
their models are very nearly those of the Swiss. Most of the attachés
of the boats, especially the waiters in the cabin, speak French, and
occasionally one may be found who can grapple with English. Some of
the boats are much finer than others, and the traveler will do well
to make enquiries before taking passage. When embarking at an
intermediate landing buy a ticket immediately, or you may be charged
for the whole distance from the steamer's starting point. This custom
is not altogether unknown in other countries; there have even been
occasions when it cost less to go from New York to Albany than to a
point half-way between those cities, as many an individual can
testify.
For a long time the steamers on the Rhine were of the model already
described, and the accommodations for passengers were decidedly
limited. But with the increase of travel there has been a great
improvement, and now there is a line of "American steamboats" plying
the river so famous for its crumbling castles and historic
associations. The steamers of the American rivers have been taken as
models for these boats, and some of them are finely fitted up and
contain many features of real comfort. They are fast winning the favor
of the Germans, and, of course, are patronized by Americans and
English to the neglect of the old boats. The traveler should make
sure of the name and character of a boat before buying his ticket and
embarking, or he may find himself delegated to an antiquated tub, with
limited accommodations and snail-like speed, when he had expected to
be on a floating palace.
The tariff of fares is carefully arranged, and is posted at the window
of each ticket-office, so that there can be no doubt as to the proper
sum to be paid. In most instances tickets are sold at the offices on
the docks, but it is well not to purchase at an intermediate landing
until the boat is in sight; boats are liable to detention from various
causes, and, if a tourist is in a hurry, he can take the railway,
which follows the bank of the Rhine, or very near it, all the way from
Dusseldorf to Mayence.
On the Rhine steamers meals are served _a la carte_ and at fixed
prices, but there has been a tendency of late years to abolish the
fixed-price system and serve only _a la carte_. On most of the
boats there is a table d'hote breakfast or dinner at certain hours,
and a notice thereof is given by the ringing of a bell. The waiters
are fond of delaying the collection of a passenger's bill till just as
he is going on shore; by so doing they have a better chance of
imposing on him than when his memory is quite fresh as to the items
with which he can be properly charged.
Baggage is not checked unless an extra price is paid, but there is a
free allowance of one hundred pounds for each passenger. The charge
for guaranteeing the safety of baggage varies from two to ten cents a
parcel, according to its size and estimated value; when this amount is
paid the company is responsible for loss, and will indemnify the owner
according to a fixed tariff. Everything goes by tariff on the Rhine,
except the fees to the waiters, and the current of the river, and the
wind.
On the Upper Danube, from Ulm to Linz, and from Linz to Vienna, the
steamers are small and the accommodations limited, but on the lower
part of the stream there is a different state of affairs. The Danube
Steam Navigation Company has some large boats elegantly fitted up, and
though they are deficient in several things they remind the American
of home. The sleeping accommodations are rather limited, as there is
only a common cabin with two or three tiers of berths, unless a high
price extra is paid for a private room. The dining-saloon is airy
and well lighted, and the table generally excellent. There are two,
and sometimes three, classes of steamers; the fastest is the
"Accelerated," which makes only the few principal landings, and leaves
the other boats to perform the details of the service. On the
"Accelerated" boats meals are included in the fare, and the payment
for them is compulsory, while on the other steamers the traveler pays
only his passage, and the meals are an extra that he may take or leave
alone. There is a Hungarian line with its headquarters at Pesth, and
on the lower part of the Danube there is a Turkish line that has
periodical fits of suspension, and once in a while disappears for
months at a time. There is a considerable amount of travel between
Central Europe and Constantinople by the Danube route; a traveler from
Vienna goes as far as Rustchuk by the river, and then proceeds (in
about eight hours) to Varna by rail. From Varna is a run of fourteen
hours by steamship through the Black Sea, and down the Bosphorus, till
the domes of Saint Sophia's Mosque rise to view.
The steamers on the Russian inland waters leave much to be desired in
the way of personal comforts, and the most that can be said of them is
that they are better than no steamers at all. On some of the rivers,
especially on the Volga, there are some boats that are fairly
equipped, but the cooking is not the best in the world, and the
passenger must expect to do a good deal of roughing it. The
first-class travel is not sufficient to pay for anything like a good
service and liberal table, and if one is on the hunt for luxuries he
will keep away from the steamboat service in the land of the Czar.
On the Siberian lakes and rivers there is a steamboat service of very
limited character. The great rivers, with the exception of the Amoor,
flow into the Arctic Ocean, and consequently their only business is a
local one. There are only two or three steamers on the Obi, and the
same number on the Yenesei; the commerce of the Amoor maintains from
twenty to twenty-five steamboats, and there are less than half a dozen
on Lake Baikal and its outlet, the Angara. All these steamers are
small, compared with American boats, and their accommodations leave
much to be desired. The first cabin is usually an open room, with wide
sofas running all around it, and on these sofas the traveler makes his
couch with his own bed-clothing, none being provided by the boat. The
ticket does not include food, and the table is supplied by the
captain, at an expense of about a dollar a day for each passenger. A
traveler across Siberia must expect hard fare and poor accommodations,
and find the compensation for his privations in the novel scenes the
journey affords.