UP THE RHINE.
On Monday, Mr. and Mrs. Winter and the girls said "good-bye" to Mr. and
Mrs. Ford and started for Cologne in the gayest of spirits.
The trip was found very interesting, as they followed the Meuse River
a great deal of the way. Between Liège and Verviers the country was
wonderfully picturesque, with the pretty winding river, which they
continually crossed, and little villages with the mountains in the
distance.
The Meuse has been called the miniature Rhine.
Verviers is the last Belgian station, and Aix-la-Chapelle is the first
town of much interest in Germany.
From the train there was an excellent view of the city, which has seen
many changes since it was the favorite home of Charlemagne.
[Illustration: COLOGNE CATHEDRAL.]
For more than three centuries the German emperors were crowned there.
It was growing dark as Cologne was reached, but the girls, knowing
the cathedral was near the station, hurried outside to see it, and how
wonderfully high and beautiful the noble great spires looked in the
twilight no one can imagine who has never seen them.
Tuesday morning was spent in visiting the Church of St. Ursula (which
is reputed to hold the bones of eleven thousand virgins martyred by the
Huns) and the cathedral.
An excellent guide showed our party around, and pointed out the
beautiful windows which King Ludwig presented, costing eighteen thousand
pounds, English money.
The late King Frederick gave one elegant window, at the end opposite the
entrance.
On one side of the building were windows made by Albert Dürer,
considered Germany's greatest artist.
A large gold cross, presented by Marie de Medici, and costing an
enormous sum of money, Alice thought was more beautiful than the
windows.
On the way back to the hotel they met a company of soldiers who were
singing as they marched along. It seemed very inspiring.
Wednesday morning this happy party took the train for Mayence up the
Rhine, as the boats, they found, were not yet running.
Alice and Nellie had been reading up the legends of the Rhine, and could
hardly wait to see its beauties and wonders.
The Rhine was not reached until after leaving Bonn. The scenery was so
pretty they did not miss the river views.
In full view of the train was the famous avenue of horse-chestnuts,
three-quarters of a mile in length. There is a large university at
Bonn, and many other schools. As many of the students in their different
costumes came to the station and walked up and down the platform to show
themselves, the girls were very much amused.
The city is also noted as being the birthplace of Beethoven.
As soon as Bonn was out of sight, the river was beside them. At first
the entire party were disappointed, the river seemed so quiet, narrow,
and sluggish, compared to the rivers at home.
However, that was soon forgotten as its beauties grew upon them.
They soon saw the Seven Mountains coming into view, and wished they
could stay over one night to see the sun rise from the top.
Mr. Winter felt he must hurry on, as they had spent so much time in
Brussels, and see all they could from the train.
At Oberwinter, where there is the finest view down the Rhine, all the
party looked back to see it.
Coblence was the next large town, and the situation is beautiful, as
it is at the confluence of the Rhine and the Moselle, with the strong
fortifications opposite, the Castle of Ehrenbreitstein, often called the
Gibraltar of the Rhine.
Just after leaving Coblence they saw two castles, one the royal castle
of Stolzenfels on its "proud rock," more than four hundred feet above
the river. It was destroyed by the French in the seventeenth century,
but is now completely restored.
The other castle is directly opposite, above the mouth of the Lahn
river, is called the Castle of Lahneck, and has been lately restored.
Alice knew the legend of this castle, and told it to the rest of the
party.
"It was here, in the beginning of the fourteenth century, that the
order of Knights Templars, which had been founded for religious purposes
chiefly, was severely persecuted by Philippe le Beau of France and Pope
Clement V.
[Illustration: LAHNECK CASTLE.--_Page 54._]
"After many vicissitudes there was a long and desperate siege, in which
all the knights fell except one man. He held the commander at bay,
who was so overpowered by the knight's bravery he offered him life and
liberty if he would stop fighting and beg for mercy.
"The templar's only answer was to throw his spear among the soldiers,
and then was killed by throwing himself on their lances."
Boppart was the next town of any interest, it being a walled town of
Roman origin.
The wall had crumbled away in many places, and houses had been built on
the ruins.
On the opposite side of the river was Bornhoffen, with its twin castles
of Sternberg and Liebenstein, or "The Brothers."
Mr. Winter told this legend, which runs that once a rich knight, with
his two sons and one daughter, lived there, and were very rich in gold
and lands, which the old knight had gained through wrong and robbery.
All his neighbors felt sure that such ill-gotten wealth would bring him
anything but blessings.
The brothers inherited the avarice of the father; but the sister was
lovely and gentle, like her mother. When the father died the brothers
gave their sister much less than a third of the property. She gave hers
to the cause of religion and went into a convent.
The brothers, disappointed, disputed over their share, and at last fell
in love with the same maiden, who did not hesitate to flirt with both
and increase their jealousy. They finally fought and killed each other.
Just as Mr. Winter finished his story, the guard of the train put his
head into the car window, to say that the Lorely rock was nearly in
sight.