LADY FEODORA AND SIR WILLIAM.
Hour after hour the storm-beaten party sat before a blazing fire in the
cottage of the German peasant. Their clothing was dry, and they were
quite comfortable. The only thing that disturbed them was the anxiety
of their friends at Friedrichshafen. Possibly something else disturbed
the young baronet, for the lady, ingenuous enough to talk and act as
she felt, seemed to be delighted with her gallant preserver. After they
entered the house, Shuffles heard Sir William call her Lady Feodora.
She also belonged to the nobility, and he soon learned that she was the
youngest daughter of the Earl of Blankville. Sir William's father was
dead, and though only eighteen, he was a baronet. They were travelling
with their friends.
Lady Feodora declared that she adored sailors, and Sir William was
afraid she spoke only the truth. They had been affianced by their
parents; but the young lady did not seem to feel a very deep interest
in the baronet; and on the other hand, she did seem to feel a deep
interest in the commander of the Young America. His courage, skill, and
energy had made a deep impression upon her; and the signal service he
had rendered called forth all her gratitude. She was only sixteen, and
perhaps had not judgment enough to see that it was perilous to cast
pleasant glances at a young American tar, and might disturb the
calculations of her prudent parents.
The wind howled, and the rain poured all night long; but the party were
in comfortable circumstances. They were too thankful to have escaped
the perils of the storm to complain of the rudeness of their quarters.
It was not possible to go to their friends either by water or by land,
till the tempest had abated, and they were disposed to make the best of
their situation.
"I was not aware that they had such heavy storms on these fresh-water
lakes," said Shuffles, after they had partaken of the simple fare set
before them by their host.
"Nor I," replied Lady Feodora. "If I had, I should not have gone so far
in an open boat. We went across the lake to Romanshorn, but Sir William
said he knew all about a boat."
"So I do, under ordinary circumstances," replied the baronet, rather
nettled at the implied censure.
"It was a very savage storm," added Shuffles.
"I never saw anything like it, even in the Channel," said Feodora. "But
you seemed to handle the boat just as easily as though the wind came
only in zephyrs."
She bestowed another glance of admiration upon the modest tar, who
explained that he had always been used to boats from his childhood, and
he felt more at home on the deck of a ship than he did in the parlor of
his father's house. They talked of the perils of the day till midnight.
A bed had been provided for the lady, but the two young gentlemen lay
on the floor before the fire. In the morning the clouds broke away, and
the sun rose bright and clear. The calm that follows the storm
prevailed upon the lake. The party ate their simple breakfast, and Sir
William paid liberally for their accommodations at the cottage.
The manner of reaching Friedrichshafen was thoroughly discussed. They
could go to Lindau, and take the steamer, or proceed in the sail-boat.
Sir William proposed to take Feodora with him, while Shuffles sailed
the boat back alone. The lady protested. She was not afraid to sail
back in the boat, if the captain would manage it; and this arrangement
was finally agreed upon, though the baronet was not at all pleased with
it. They embarked, and a little breeze came to their aid; but it was
eleven o'clock when they reached their destination.
"I do not know at what hotel our ship's company is stopping," said
Shuffles, as they landed.
"My friends are at the Deutschen Haus; and you must come there with
us," replied Lady Feodora. "My father and mother are there, and they
will be delighted to see you."
"Perhaps our people are there," added Shuffles.
They walked to the hotel named, and found that the American party was
there. As they approached the house, an elderly lady and gentleman
rushed down from the veranda, and grasped Feodora in their arms at the
same moment. They were her parents, and wept tears of joy over her safe
return.
"We thought you were lost," said the fond mother.
"I have sent boats in every direction to look for you," added the
father. "Mr. Lowington, the principal of the Marine Academy, who is
here with his students, assured me you were safe."
"I am safe, father, thanks to Captain Shuffles," replied Feodora,
turning to the young commander.
"His Lordship, the Earl of Blankville," interposed Sir William,
introducing the hero of the day.
The gentleman grasped the hand of Shuffles, and expressed his gratitude
in the warmest terms.
"We have heard part of the story, and we watched the boat till it
disappeared in the distance," added his lordship. "It was a terrible
hour for us all."
"Worse than death," sighed the countess, as she pressed her daughter to
her heart again.
"Mr. Lowington assured us that the young man who had so daringly thrown
himself into the boat would certainly take her to the shore. But we
could only hope, rather than believe."
"It was a heavy blow," said Shuffles.
"It was fearful!" exclaimed the earl, with a shudder, as he thought of
the anxiety and terror they had endured. "I owe you an everlasting debt
of gratitude."
"I only did what the occasion seemed to require of me, and I am as
thankful as any one can be, that I succeeded in getting the boat to the
shore," answered Shuffles.
"It was remarkably fortunate that you were at hand, for I don't believe
there is another person on the continent of Europe who could have
managed the matter so cleverly."
"Really, I think your lordship over-estimates my services."
By this time Mr. Lowington and the young America's party came out to
welcome Shuffles. They astonished him by giving three rousing cheers,
and the captain was again on the top of the wave of popularity. Mr.
Lowington said he was satisfied, at the time of it, that he would take
the boat to the shore, and save both of his passengers, so great was
his confidence in Shuffles. The earl acknowledged that his prediction
had been fully verified.
"You had a rough time, Shuffles," said the principal.
"Rather, sir;" and the affair was discussed at length.
"We have seen the town; but we cannot leave by train for Ulm till two
this afternoon. If there is anything here you wish to see, you must
improve your time," added Mr. Lowington.
"What is there to be seen?"
"Nothing but the Château of the King of Würtemberg, and some old
buildings. But Mr. Mapps is about to give a lecture, from which you
shall be excused if you desire it."
"No, sir; I think I will hear the lecture," replied the captain, as he
followed the principal into the coffee-room, where all the students had
collected.
Lord Blankville's party had been informed of the lecture, and desired
to attend. Shuffles had hardly seated himself when they entered the
room. Lady Feodora had hastily made her toilet; but she looked like a
queen, and the captain could hardly believe she was the same person.
Those who had attended the emperor's ball in Paris recognized her, and
paid their respects. Ben Duncan declared she was as "stunning" as when
she wore her white ball-dress. Shuffles gave her a seat, and had the
courage to take one by her side, before Sir William could secure the
enviable position.
"Würtemberg is a kingdom belonging to the Germanic Confederation," the
professor began. "It has an area of about seventy-eight hundred square
miles, varying but a few miles from that of the State of Massachusetts.
It has a population of one million seven hundred thousand, which during
the last ten years has diminished on account of the large emigration to
the United States. The government is an hereditary monarchy, and, like
so many English stock companies, 'limited.' Freedom of person and
property, liberty of speech, and liberty of conscience, are guaranteed
by the constitution; but liberty of the press, like the monarchy and
the stock companies, is also 'limited.' The legislature is composed of
two houses, the higher one being made up of princes and nobles. The
present king is Charles I., whose wife is the daughter of Czar Nicholas
I. of Russia. The royal family is quite numerous in its various
branches, and is connected by marriage with many of the royal houses of
Europe. The former Duchy of Würtemberg was made a kingdom in 1806, by
Napoleon, after having been enlarged by the annexation of several
smaller states. Stuttgart, the capital, is also the largest town,
containing a population of fifty thousand. I close this lecture, which
I think has not been a very tedious one, with this remarkable fact: In
1840 there was not to be found an individual in the kingdom, above the
age of ten years, who could not read and write."
"Is that all?" asked Lady Feodora.
"That's all this time; but sometimes we have to take it for a couple of
hours," laughed Shuffles.
"I'm sure I wish he had said more. What do you do now?"
"We go to Ulm at two this afternoon. After that we go to Stuttgart,
Carlsruhe, Baden, and then down the Rhine."
"We must go with them, pa," added she, turning to the earl.
"We shall be ready to go to Ulm this afternoon in the same train,"
replied her father.
"I am delighted!" exclaimed Feodora. "I hope we shall go with you down
the Rhine."
Sir William, for some reason or other, did not hope so. In fact, he was
rather dumpy and morose.
"Possibly you will," suggested Shuffles.
"What a happy life you must lead, captain!"
"Perhaps you would not think so, if you were at sea with us, when we
have to stand watch in the night and the storm, whether it blows high
or blows low."
"But you are the captain."
"I was a seaman. It is nearly an hour till dinner time; and I think I
shall take a run down to the Château of the king. Of course you have
been there," said the captain, suggestively.
"I have, but I should be delighted to go again."
A carriage was called by the earl. It had seats for only four, and
Feodora's father and mother had decided to go. So had Sir William; but
his lordship hinted that, as the baronet had already visited the
Château, he might stay at the hotel and play with her ladyship's poodle
dog. It would require too much space to narrate all that was said and
done on this little excursion; but the two young people were very much
pleased with the Château, after and very pleased with each other,
probably more pleased with each other than with the Château, though the
latter was a very beautiful place, as it ought to be for the summer
residence of a king. Captain Shuffles handed the noble young lady out
and in the carriage, handed her up various steps, into various grottos;
indeed, he handed her up and down everything that would afford him any
excuse for offering his assistance. Lady Feodora certainly appreciated
his kindness, and rewarded him with many a smile.
They returned to the hotel; and though the noble party were in the
habit of dining at the aristocratic hour of six, they took places at
the _table d'hôte_ with the republicans. The party hastened to the
railroad station after dinner, and at the appointed hour, were on their
way to Ulm. The compartment in which Dr. Winstock, Paul, and the
Arbuckles rode, contained one less than usual, for Captain Shuffles--not
entirely to the satisfaction of Sir William--occupied a place with the
party of the earl. The railway carriages in Germany are generally built
with a first-class compartment at one end, while the rest of the space
is devoted to the second-class passengers. The former is very
luxuriously furnished, the seats having stuffed arms and backs, with a
table between the two rows of seats, while the latter has about the
same arrangement as is found in the ordinary cars in the United States.
"We have lost our good friend Captain Shuffles," said Grace, with a
pleasant smile.
"Perhaps our loss is his gain," added Paul.
"Lady Feodora is very pretty."
"Very; and interesting, too."
"I really pity her every time I look at Sir William."
"Why?" asked Paul, curiously.
"Because she is doomed by her parents to be his wife; and he is a
selfish, supercilious fellow, if he is a baronet."
"Her parents seem to be very fond of her, and I am sure they will not
sacrifice her, if she don't like him."
"There are a great many considerations of policy which influence these
great families," replied Grace. "She seems to like the captain much
better than she likes Sir William."
"And I know that he likes her."
"Let us hope for the best," said Grace, gayly, as she glanced out the
window at the fine mountain scenery.
"How far is it to Ulm, Dr. Winstock?" asked Paul.
"Fourteen miles," replied the surgeon, with a twinkle of the eye which
seemed to mean something.
"Fourteen miles!" exclaimed Paul, glancing at his watch. "Why, we ought
to be nearly there by this time, then."
"The German trains rarely go more than four miles an hour."
"Why, that's no faster than a smart boy can walk."
"Rather, I think."
"You are joking, doctor."
"I never was more serious in my life. This train is not going more than
four miles an hour."
"I should say it was going at the rate of twenty."
"I am afraid you have not read your guide-book since you came into
Germany," laughed the doctor. "Perhaps it has not occurred to you that
a German mile is equal to about four and two thirds English miles."
"I didn't think of that."
"It is sixty-four and a half English miles from the point where we
started to Ulm; and the time is over three hours. We shall arrive there
at half past five," continued Dr. Winstock.
"I thank you for setting me right," replied Paul. "I have been bothered
with the German money."
"I have a copy of the last issue of Harper's Hand Book for Travellers,
which I obtained in Paris. It is a capital work for the tourist, for it
does not compel him to carry a whole library of guide-books, and is
complete enough for ordinary purposes," said Dr. Winstock, taking the
neat little volume from his bag. "In connection with each country, you
will find the value of its money in United States currency, and the
names and value of the several coins in use. In the Prussian states,
values are reckoned in _thalers_ and _silver groschen_. A _thaler_ is
about seventy-three cents. A _silver groschen_, of which thirty make a
_thaler_, is worth two and two fifths cents."
"What's a _florin_?"
"A _florin_ of Baden, Würtemberg, &c, is forty cents; but a _florin_ in
Austria is forty-nine cents. The former has sixty _kreutzers_, of two
thirds of a cent each, the latter one hundred, of about half a cent
each. In Prussian Germany, twelve _pfennings_ make a _silver groschen_.
Five pfennings, therefore, are about equal to a cent. Of course these
values vary with the rates of exchange, and even in the different
countries where the currency is used."
It was dark when the train arrived at Ulm, though the tourists obtained
an obscure view of the Danube, on which the city is located. After
supper, Professor Mapps gave a brief account of the place to the
students. It is a fortress and frontier city of Würtemberg, on the
right bank of the Danube, and has twenty-five thousand inhabitants. It
is largely engaged in linen manufactures, and snails are fattened in
the surrounding region, and sent into Austria and other countries,
where they are highly esteemed as an article of food. For three
centuries the town was an imperial free city, and one of the most
thriving in Germany. It is noted in modern times for the disgraceful
capitulation of General Mack, in 1805, who surrendered thirty thousand
men and sixty guns to the French.
The party slept at the Kronprinz Hôtel, and the next day, after a
glance at the minster,--which is ranked among the six finest Gothic
cathedrals in Germany, and is now a Protestant church,--the
excursionists resumed their journey, arriving at Stuttgart in two hours
and a half. This city is on the Neckar, and is situated in the midst of
a beautiful country, the slopes of whose hills are studded with
vineyards. The party, having no time to spare, immediately devoted
themselves to the business of sight-seeing, hastening first to the
palace of the king, said to contain as many rooms as there are days in
the year, though our arithmeticians did not count them. It is a grand
edifice, with a tremendous gilt crown over the chief entrance, so that
strangers in the city cannot possibly mistake the royal character of
the building.
Only a few of the numerous apartments were visited, which contained
some fine pictures by German artists, and sculpture by Thorwaldsen. The
palace may be said to be in both town and country; for while the front
opens upon the grand square of the city, the rear faces an extensive
park, which reaches far out into the rural region. The king's stables,
containing the finest Arabian horses in Germany, were visited by a
portion of the party. The public library next claimed attention. Its
catalogue of three hundred thousand volumes includes over three
thousand manuscripts, half of which are very rare and valuable. The
collection of Bibles, amounting to eighty-five hundred in number, and
in sixty different languages, is doubtless the most extensive in the
world. The museums of the fine arts and of natural history used up the
rest of the day.
The next place to be visited was Carlsruhe, the capital of the Grand
Duchy of Baden. It was only a three hours' ride from Stuttgart, and, as
the trains connected, the principal decided to proceed at six o'clock
in the evening, for he could not otherwise reach his destination till
noon the next day. The earl's party had taken apartments at the Hôtel
Marquardt for the night, and Shuffles sent word to them that he was
about to leave. He was invited to the elegant parlor occupied by his
lordship, where he proceeded at once to take leave of Lady Feodora.
"Probably we shall never meet again," said he. "If we--"
"Pray, don't say that, Captain Shuffles," interrupted she, with an
expression even more sad than that which the young captain wore. "I
hope we may meet many times yet."
"We may, but it is not probable that we shall," added Shuffles. "After
remaining a week or ten days longer in Germany, we shall go to Brest,
and from there sail for the United States."
"But your ship crosses the ocean again next spring, I think I heard the
principal say," interposed the earl.
"Very true; but I may not come in her--I don't know."
"I will not believe we are not to meet again. You must come to England
and visit us at Blankville. We shall all be delighted to see you."
All except Sir William.
"I hope I shall have the pleasure of meeting you again. If I do not, I
shall remember the hours I have spent with you as the pleasantest of my
life," continued Shuffles.
"But I am not going to think of such a thing as not seeing you again,"
persisted Lady Feodora. "I shudder every time I recall the
circumstances under which we met. But for your daring courage and your
wonderful skill, both Sir William and myself would have been drowned."
The young baronet looked as though the actual situation was not much
improvement upon the possible one suggested by his affianced, if he was
to be "cut out" in this extraordinary manner.
"You over-estimate the value of my services; but however you regard
them, I shall always rejoice that I was able to serve you. I must leave
now."
"But we shall meet again, and very soon, too," said Lady Feodora, as
she extended her hand to the young officer.
The other members of the party each in turn took him by the hand. The
earl and his lady manifested a warm interest in the young hero, and
seconded the wish of their daughter that they might meet again.
"I am really sorry you are going," said Sir William; but it is doubtful
whether he was as sincere as his friends. "Couldn't you contrive it
some way so as to drop in upon us at Blankville? It would really be a
very great pleasure--it would, upon my honor."
"I am afraid it will be impossible," replied Shuffles, as he bowed
himself out of the apartment.
Perhaps Sir William was the only happy person in that group, for there
was no doubt that he was glad to get rid of the troublesome hero.
The ship's company took the train at the appointed time, and by ten
o'clock were in their rooms at the Hôtel Erbprinz, in the capital of
the Grand Duchy of Baden. As soon as it was light in the morning, the
students were scattered through the streets of the town, which, like
those of Washington, radiate from a common centre, where the king's
palace is located. The meals of the party at the hotels were usually
served separate from those of other guests, and at breakfast Professor
Mapps had an opportunity to say a word about the city. He told them,
what many of them had already ascertained, that it was a very pretty,
but very quiet place. It is of modern growth, being unable to boast of
much more than a century's duration. Charles, the Margrave of Baden,
built a hunting-seat on the spot in 1715, which, on account of the
seclusion of the place, he called "Charles's Rest." In the course of
time, his retreat was invaded by others, and a city grew up around him,
which was called Karlsruhe--the German for the name the Margrave had
given his hunting-seat.
The Schloss, or palace, did not essentially differ from a dozen other
similar structures the party had seen. In fact, palaces and cathedrals
were getting rather stale with them, and they coveted a new sensation,
which they were likely to realize at their next stopping-place. Before
noon the tourists reached Baden-Baden, and were pleasantly installed at
the Hôtel de l'Europe. As the season was somewhat advanced, there was
plenty of room, though the glories of the German watering-place were
not seen at their height.
The place is called Baden-Baden to distinguish it from Baden in Austria
and Baden in Switzerland. It is beautifully located in a lovely valley
surrounded by the hills of the Black Forest. Although it has but seven
thousand permanent inhabitants, not less than forty thousand visitors
have made their abode within its precincts in a single season. It is
the most fashionable, and at the same time the most attractive, of the
German watering-places. The nobility and gentry, as well as the
blacklegs and swindlers of all the nations of Europe, gather there. The
country around the town is romantic and pleasing, and with good roads
through the forests and up the hills, there is a great variety of
delightful walks and drives. Everything which nature and art could do
to make the place and its surroundings an attractive abode, has been
done.
On the rocky hills above the town are the old and the new castles of
the Grand Duke of Baden. The former is of Roman origin, and was
occupied by the reigning dukes in the middle ages. The latter is the
summer residence of the present sovereign. At the foot of the rocks on
which the modern structure is located are the hot springs, thirteen in
number, to which the town owes its origin as a health-giving abode.
This part of the place is called "Hell" on account of the heat of the
springs, which does not permit the snow, even in the coldest weather,
to remain upon it. The hottest of these springs has a temperature of
54° Réaumur, equal to 153-1/2° Fahrenheit. Their water is led by pipes
to the "Trinkhalle" and baths in the village, the passage having but
little effect upon its temperature. A kind of temple is built over the
principal spring, which furnishes the hottest and most copious supply
of water. There is sufficient evidence that the Romans used these
fountains for vapor baths, and other medicinal purposes. The water is
perfectly clear, has a saltish taste, and at the spring is not unlike
weak broth, though it has a disagreeable odor. It is beneficial for
dyspepsia, gout, rheumatism, and scrofulous diseases.
After dinner the tourists commenced their explorations by a visit to
_das neue Trinkhalle_, or the New Pump Room, opposite the hotel. The
spring waters are conveyed to it in pipes, and in the season the place
is crowded with visitors, who drink them in the morning.
The _Conversationshaus_ is the grand centre of attraction. It is a
magnificent building, surrounded by splendid gardens. In front of it is
a Chinese pagoda, intended as a music stand for the band, which plays
there twice a day. It contains a large assembly-room, where the company
dance at times, a restaurant, a theatre, and other apartments. There
are also rooms for gambling, which is the staple amusement, not only
for the blacklegs and swindlers, who resort to the establishment, but
for the nobility and gentry. The _Conversationshaus_ is rented by the
government to a company, who pay fifty-five thousand dollars a year for
the monopoly of the gaming tables, and pledge themselves to spend one
hundred thousand dollars annually upon the walks and buildings. Of
course players must lose vast sums of money to enable the keepers of
the establishment to pay these large prices. All classes of people
gamble, and about one fourth of those who engage in the seductive play
are ladies--or rather women, though they include not a few of the
nobility.
Balls, concerts, promenades, and the theatre, as well as the exciting
amusement of the gaming tables, keep the visitors well employed during
the season; and when they weary of the din of gayety, a walk of five
minutes will lead them to the solitudes of the forests and the
mountains. There is a library and reading-room in operation, in the
midst of the scene of the revelry. The students spent the afternoon in
wandering through these brilliant halls; and some of them observed,
with a feeling akin to terror, the operations of rouge-et-noir and
roulette. No one spoke at the tables, and no one but players were
allowed to be seated. If any of the boys, after the exciting sport had
become familiar to them, were tempted to try their hand, they had not
money enough to make it an object, which proved the wisdom of the
principal's policy in managing their finances for them.
The next forenoon was devoted to a visit to the two castles above the
town. Only the ancient one has any special interest, and this is noted
for the curious dungeons in the rock beneath it. The castellan, or
keeper, conducted the party down a winding staircase, to an ancient
Roman bath, by a passage made in modern times; for originally the only
access to the dungeons was by a perpendicular shaft in the centre of
the castle, which is still in existence. Tradition declares that the
prisoners, blindfolded, and lashed to an armchair, were lowered through
this shaft to the gloomy vaults hewn out of the solid rock. The dark
and mysterious dungeons were closed by a stone slab, revolving on a
pivot, and weighing from half a ton to a ton. One room, larger than the
others, was the rack-chamber, which contained the instrument of
torture; and in the wall several iron rings still remain.
In a passage-way there is a deep aperture, now boarded over, but
formerly covered by a trap-door. The victim doomed to the rack was led
to the passage, at the end of which was an image of the Virgin, which
he was required to kiss. In approaching it, he stepped upon the trap,
and was precipitated into the depths below upon a wheel armed with
knives, upon which he was torn in pieces. The story is, that this
horrible pit was discovered in searching for a little dog which had
fallen through the planking, when the wheel was found, with its knives
rusty, the fragments of bones and garments still clinging to them. But
people who go to see sights ought not to be disappointed--and some
allowance should be made before accepting all the stories of guides and
keepers of mysterious dungeons. Doubtless these subterranean apartments
were the meeting-places of some secret tribunals, such as the Vehmic
courts, which existed in the middle ages in Westphalia. Scott and Göthe
have made use of these dungeons in their works, and our students
regarded them as a splendid field for the later writers of sensational
fiction.
The party walked through the upper portion of the castle, and obtained
a fine view of the surrounding country from its openings. The rest of
the day was spent in the gardens, assembly-rooms, and other places of
interest. In the first train, the next morning, the excursionists went
to Heidelberg, fifty-eight miles distant.