The daily Madisonian. [volume] (Washington City [i.e. Washington, D.C.]) 1841-1845, 1842-04-19
Foreign Correspondence.
PANS, 1872.

TAhiS 10 ~.
In my last letter left myselfat Mayence, on the d.
ydng line between the insipdiiies ofihe Rhine and it,
beauties. 1t had thus far proved dull and monoto-
nous TO an inIolerable degree | now about
TO enter upon that series Of and picturesque
scenes which render the Rhine celebrated for lis
beauties. The greater part Of this fine scenery lier
between RiDgen Cat the mouth of the Nahe) and
Coblentz There remain to be only few miles
more Of such scenery just above Bonn, and when the
traveller has these two portions Of the Rhine, "a
sail OF ten twelve hours in going down stream will
take him through the whole of it, he has seen all Of
the Rhine that is worth seeing, unless, indeed, he
choose TO visit at its source-at its glacier near the
ST. Gothad in Switzerland and in its course through
the awful gorge OF the Via Mala. The traveller who
wishes TO the Rhine TO advantage, and enjoy
with complete satisfaction its unequaled beauties
should go up instead of down, and make it voyage
of several days. In descending the stream swiftly
does the steamboat glide down with the current and
rapidly do the grand and striking objecs of the pa
norama succeed zach other, that is difficult to follow
them with the eye. A towering precipice, or a
ruined castle is hardly before it vanishes from the
sight and at the end of the magnificent picture whose
in such rapid succession is impossible recall the
IDEAS To dlstnctness and arrange them in the order of
the original. II is sort of waking dream, made up
Of pleasing images vivid though confused, but not
the less beautiful for their confusion.
The morning rather unpropitiousIy for the en-
joymen of all this fine scenery denser fog never
obscured the vision of u ysxed traveller ! waited
until the departure of second boat, and as the fog
not less inpeherable than before, was hesita-
ling whether to wait quietly for the sunshine, or to
embark in spite of the fog taking the chances for It's
disappearance when received the comforting assn
rance from felow-trnyeller, no Professed to be
knowing in the meeoroogy of the country, that a
foggy morning on the Rhine, the sign Of a
clear day set out on the faith of this doubtful
rance, though not without various misgivngs to the
result Of the pre,iicon But the wea.her-wise gen.
tleman had prophesied correctly, and just at the mo-
nent that he sopng and vine, covered banks began
give way to grand perspective OF rocks and cas-
tles the mist suddenly and revealed The anxiousy
looked for beauties which lay concealed beneath its
veil.
The Rhine you know, is as famous for its wine as
for lis scenery For many bundled miles OF It's
course from the mountains Of Switzerland TO the level
environs Of Cologne, its banks, in every favorable
situation are clothed with vines. Blu, il is near May
ence that begins the region which is most celebrated
for the exceency Of its wines; this is the Rheingau
a land which flows with wine, instead Of uk and
honey the "Bachanalian Paradise, as it has been
called, where the jolly god rules with undivided sway
From M ,yence to Bingen the Rhine flows nearly
and west, aud its right bank gradually slopng
rises at length into the high hills of Mount Taurus
Thus disposed the soil receives the rays OF the sun
almost perpendicularly, while It's surface Is screened
from the North wind by the heights which liuit il in
that direction These natur. advantages render the
Rheingau the best wine growing district on the
Rhine. In is midst stands Prince Metternichs Cha
teau Of Johannesburg, which gives It's name to the
most celebrated and Costly wine Of the district The
vineyard that produces this famous wine contains
than sixty Of ground, aud its annual pro-
duce is said to be worth about hIty thousand dol
lars Not far of is the village of Rudeshein, name
likewise famous in the catalogue Of what we call
Hook wines The Duke Of Nassau, within whose
dominions lies the district of the Rheingau, has
ceved the idea Of forming cabinet Of mines just in
Switzerland you collections of the st. Gothard
minerals or as We in our aside country form col
lections Of ea-shels. 1t is not bad idea of his
Hghn,ss but if all vsiters to his cabinet allowed
to taste as in other they allowed to see
il is to be feared that his specimens must require
frequent renewal.
The more level slopes Of the Rheingau affords ev-
cry facility for cultivation every advantage of ma
tural position. Lower down the river, on the con-
trary, where the banks become steep and preciptous
hnch ham ohl ue1 IN ,,nrrao
cultivation, which had been denied by nature to the
wine grower. The billy banks have been cut into
terraces, which rise one above another, like so many
steps of stair case, from the waters edge up to the
ridge of hills many hundred feet in height. By this
alone could the soil be retained in place There
is place on the Rhine, have heard, where vines
yard has been formed upon the perpendicular side of
naked precipce the soil being Contained in baskets
which placed in the crevices of the uneven rock,
and better grapes hus produced in situation shell
tered from the wind than in many vineyards having
every advantage Of surface and soil.
do not feel qualified to sing you the praises of the
Rhenish wines, because, in the first place. have no
skill as faster, and secondly, my sojourn in the
Bacchanalian Paradise" was too short to form the
intimate acquaintance Of that vinous family. | must
confess, however, tnat the peculiar navor Whch DIS
tinguishes that whole class of wines pleased my pa
late exceedingly, and the agreeable impression which
it left, made the sudden return TO my rn ordinare'
rather unpleasant But enough of vineyards and
wines it is time that should tell you something of
the visible beauties of the Rhine.
After flowing westward for some distance, the
Rhine makes sudden turn at Bingen, and resumes
its northward course At this point it enters gorge
or chasm, bounded on either hand by lofty and pre-
cipitous heights, through which it would seem Gf ge
ologsts will permit the expresson) to have broken
passage for itself The stream is narrowed down to
twothirds of its former width in its nassape ihrnurh