and forget
that it furnishes _pate's des fois gras_. We obtained some good
engravings of the churches and other points of interest, and, on a fine
afternoon, took the railroad for Basle.

Yours affectionately,

GEORGE.

Letter 44.

BASLE.

DEAR CHARLEY:--

We took the cars from Strasburg in the afternoon for this place. The
distance is eighty-six miles; and, owing to some twenty way stations, we
were nearly five hours on the rail; but the beauty of the scenery
reconciled us to a prolongation of the time usually spent on such a
journey. The general route was over a flat country, with sundry bridges
over small streams; but, off to our right, we were close to the Vosges
Mountains, which kept us company nearly every mile of the journey. I
suppose you know that Strasburg is very strongly fortified. We saw its
works to great advantage when leaving the city by the train. We were
much assisted in our knowledge of places on the mountains by a fine
panoramic volume of engravings which we bought at Strasburg, and which
really gives a capital idea of the entire scene of travel. I will just
name the principal places that we passed by and through, that you may
trace on the map and read about them, for some are important towns. St.
Erstein is a place of four thousand inhabitants; Benfield is very pretty
indeed; and close by is a fine-looking town, with a fine situation. We
saw a noble spire off to our left. Schlestadt has ten thousand
inhabitants, and is fortified. From it chimneys, we supposed it must be
a manufacturing place. The view of the Vosges here is very imposing.
They are generally with rolling summits; and upon some eminence, jutting
out, stands a castle. The Hoher Koenigsberg is the largest castle of the
range, and it was destroyed during the thirty years' war, in 1633. Here
we saw fine vineyards. Colmar looks like a very prosperous place. Its
manufactories make quite a show, and all around we saw well-built cotton
factories; and the entire spot had a Rhode Island look. Dr. C. turned
our attention to the village of Turckheim, about three miles off, where
Marshal Turenne beat the Imperialists in 1675. Egnisheim and its
three-towered castle is a small affair. Bolwiller is a perfect vineyard
all around, and the wines of this region are excellent. Nothing, hardly,
seems to be cultivated but the vine. Opposite to this place is the
loftiest of the Vosges; and my panorama makes it four thousand seven
hundred fee