FRANKFORT-ON-THE-MAINE, GERMANY, _April 22, 1859_.
The free city of Frankfort is historically known since the eighth
century. It is the seat of the Deutsche Bund, or German Confederation.
In the old Roman Hall in the Rathhouse, or City Hall, where the German
emperors and kings were chosen, the full length portraits, in costume,
of the entire line are exhibited. In the Dom Kirche, or cathedral, is
found the monument to the memory of Kaiser (or Emperor) Gunther, of
Schwarzberg, dated in the year 1352; also the tombstone, under date of
1371, of the Ritter, or knight Rudolph, of Sachsenhausen, which little
town lies on the opposite side of the river Maine, connected by a stone
bridge twelve hundred and sixty feet long and thirty-three feet wide,
resting upon fourteen arches.
Strolling through the settlement the other day I found the streets
narrow, the town surrounded by a wall, the egress by the same gates
through which one goes in, and the language of the people almost
unintelligible and quite different from those who come in contact with
the world where pure German is spoken.
Last Sunday I found myself in the Protestant, St. Paul’s, Church,
consecrated in 1833, on the site of the old Roman Barfusse Kirche.
It is in an elliptical form, built of square freestone blocks. While
listening to the tones of the immense organ, my mind was carried back
involuntarily to the events of 1848, when I had seen this edifice used
for the General Assembly of nine hundred delegates, presided over by
the Grand Duke Johan of Austria, whom it was proposed to elect emperor
of all Germany. The torchlight and window illuminations of the city
upon his arrival was a striking feature, but it was all a flash in
the pan--an entire failure. The revolution was soon over. Austria had
gained the battle of Novara over Sardinia, and reinstated her power.
France was again quiet. The kings of Europe, who had in the presence
of the enraged masses promised constitutions and all else required,
soon found the people themselves disunited, and began to contract their
strength and forces, and finally refused to perform any of the acts
named.
The central position of this city gives it a decided advantage for
trade and commerce. The activity of the eighty thousand inhabitants is
striking in comparison with the ducal residence of Darmstadt, an hour’s
ride by railway, with its long broad streets and population of thirty
thousand, but looking dull and dreary as a village. The railroad in an
hour conveys one to Wiesbaden, in a half hour to Mayence, and in an
hour’s ride by omnibus and rail one arrives at Homburg.
The baths of the first and last-named places are now open for the
season, but it is too early for many guests. On festival days they are
full, and the sums of gold lost and won upon roulette and _trente et
quarante_ are scarcely credible. A Russian nobleman attracted the
attention of the numerous bystanders recently, as he used only gold
and one thousand franc bank notes, a pile of which he had before him,
and won and lost equal to one thousand dollars, our currency, upon the
turn of the wheel--now reducing his capital, and then increasing. The
bank of Wiesbaden paid its shareholders thirty-one per cent. dividend
the last year, after expending fabulous sums in the embellishment of
the gardens, fountains, magnificent Kursaal, and reading rooms; and
after giving semi-weekly balls, hunting parties at the close of the
season, &c., &c., besides paying to the Duke of Nassau a large annual
sum for the privilege of fleecing the public. It is an interesting
study to see how these things are managed at Homburg and Wiesbaden. In
addition to the immense expenses for laying out and beautifying the
grounds with trees and flowering plants, the best restaurateur from
Paris is employed to furnish a table d’hôte in the superb ornamental
gilded and frescoed dining hall at a moderate price, thereby attracting
strangers. The omnibus line receives a portion of the fare from the
bank, making it easier accessible. The entrance to the reunions is
gratis. Musicians, and even the police taxes, and other charges upon
passports are paid at the expiration of the season by the company. Many
families spend the winter at Homburg, where the bank is kept open the
entire year, and they enjoy without charge the use of reading-rooms,
with papers and periodicals in all modern languages. The managers,
however, calculate adroitly upon the general average. If the father or
mother do not play, the son or daughter, or friends perhaps will, and
they can extricate so much gain per head on the average. Ladies are not
free from the vice, large and small sums being risked by the fair sex.
The bank even employs them for that purpose as a decoy. The Landgrave,
or petty prince of this piece of land, about the size of one of our
small counties, receives a handsome annuity.
The system is immoral and wicked, and ruins many families; but as long
as Germany remains disunited, cannot be suppressed. At the close of
the last business season at Wiesbaden, there were, I learn, as usual,
many who had lost all, and could not get away. The bank in such cases
advances the means, takes a note or draft for the same, and if not
paid, the party does not return, consequently it is clear of them, and
don’t incur the odium of suicides through despair.
The old town of Frankfort, with its narrow, tortuous streets,
gabled-end projecting houses full of windows, is curious. Outside
the walls surrounding the city are magnificent shady walks, highly
ornamented with shrubbery and plants. The season is forward, and the
trees in full bloom add to the beauty of the promenades. The suburbs
are well laid out with broad streets and superb houses, occupied by the
wealthy. It has become a favorite residence for strangers, being so
central, and in connexion with so many attractive watering-places and
cities.
The Jews are here very numerous. Many of them are bankers, at the head
of which is the original house of Rothschilds. In the same neighborhood
has recently been erected an immense freestone synagogue.
In the Burger Verein, or Citizens’ Club, an institution established on
an extensive scale, I find among other correspondence some of our New
York papers.
Frankfort and Leipzic are celebrated in Europe for their fairs. Two
are held here yearly. The Oester Messe, or Easter Fair, now exists,
and lasts three weeks. The quay along the River Maine and the public
squares are occupied with booths filled with wares from all parts of
the country. The concourse of merchants and buyers from neighboring
towns gives activity to the place. Of course amusements are provided
for guests, and America comes in for a part. There is an immense circus
from Berlin, in which Jas. Robinson, the most celebrated bareback rider
in the world, is employed, making his summersets over star-spangled
flags and ribbons, backwards and forwards, with the agility of a cat.
Bands of volunteer musicians from other cities, and Tyrolese minstrels,
find themselves here, who make the rounds, and whose notes are heard
from morn until late in the night, and who adopt this method of picking
up the crumbs. The theatre is crowded; the flying horse machines and
puppet shows please the children; gaping crowds are listening to the
marvellous tales of outcriers at the entrance of travelling menageries,
museums, camera obscuras, and of the fat girl nineteen years old,
weighing six hundred pounds; the railroads profit by freight and
traffic, and lager beer, sausages, and cheese are in the ascendant.
The political situation of Europe exerts a baneful influence upon
all general trade. The complaint on all hands is prostration of
business. The game of chess now playing between France and Austria is
discouraging to all classes. They would prefer open hostilities to
indecision. The belligerent parties have gone so far that we must soon
see the bloody sword of war, or the olive branch of peace.