e), Rastatt, Carlsruhe, and Heidelberg, to Mannheim, distant from
Basle 167 1/2 miles by Railroad, and I presume considerably further by
River, as the Rhine (unlike the Railroad as far as Heidelberg) is not
very direct in its course. There is a French Railroad completed on the
other (west) side of the river from Basle to Strasburg, and nearly
completed from Strasburg to Paris, which affords a far more direct and
expeditious route than that I have chosen, as I wished to see something
of Germany. It is also cheaper, I believe, to take the French Railroad
to Strasburg, and the river thence by steamboats which ply regularly as
high as Strasburg, and might keep on to Basle, I presume, if not impeded
by bridges, as the river is amply large enough.

The Baden Railroad runs through a country descending, indeed, toward the
Rhine and with the Rhine, but as nearly level as a country well can be,
and affording the fewest possible obstacles to its construction. It is
faithfully built, but instead of the numerous common roads which cross
it being carried over or under its track, as the English Railroads are,
they are closed on each side by a swing-bar, at which a guard is
stationed--a plan which saves expense at the outset, but involves a
heavy permanent charge. I should deem the English plan preferable to
this, though men are had much cheaper for such service in Germany than
in America, or even Great Britain. The pace is slower than with us. We
were about nine hours of fair daylight traversing 160 miles of level or
descending grade, with a light passenger train. The management, however,
was careful and unexceptionable.

This Railroad runs for most of the distance much nearer to the range of
gentle hills which bound the broad and fertile Rhine valley on the east
than to the river itself. The valley is nearly bare of trees for the
most part, and has scarcely any fences save the very slight board fence
on either side of the Railroad. In some places, natural woods of
considerable extent are permitted, but not many fruit nor shade-trees,
whether in rows or scattered. The hills in sight, however, are very
considerably wooded, and wood is apparently the common fuel. The valley
is generally but not entirely irrigated, though all of it easily might
be, the arrangements for irrigation appearing much more modern and
unsystematic here than in Lombardy. The land is cultivated in strips as
in France--first Wheat (the great staple), then Rye, then