Wisconsin herald, and Grant County advertiser. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1844-1845, 1845-11-15
Letter from Europe.


The Rhine is like a human life-a
long chain with a few bright links in
the centre-and the guide-books warn
you to expect nothing very attractive,
either above Mayence, or below Col
ogne. The principal competition of
steamers, accordingly, is between these
two places-the ascent from Cologne
Mayence being sort of New-York-
to-Albany trip, only with romance
into the bargain.
We left Cologne at six, and were to
reach Mayence at seven, tracking on
our way nearly all Of the river that is
familiar to US in story. But what Wis
IDLY happens in a steamboat passage
up the Rhine, is one matter, and the
hop-and-skip tramp of fancy along the
shores is quite another. The two trips,
though done with one ticket, are too
separate to be easily mixable on paper.
Which shall l describe to you? The
fancy-trip would be the easier, and
longer. If the Rhine were all ink, it
would hardly refill the inkstands that
have been emptied in its description
My surer way to amuse you, | think,
is to refer you to books for the poetry,
and give you in my letter, the prose-
You see by the blots and scratches.
however, that the argument between
me and my pen on the subject, has
been lively.
We dupon our sloppy deck, when
we started, some forty or fifty passen-
gers, most of them evidently travelling
for pleasure. The sun had slipped in
to a cloud, and the ladies sat shivering
and trying to keep their petticoats at
dry level. Prince Napoleon sat with
his legs crossed, and his elbows on his
thighs, the picture of a disconnected
man unshaved. There was az very
Scotch-looking Scotchman, with two
daughters, who were apparently taking
their first trip after being ''fnished" al
boarding school; there was a fa'
Frenchman who had clearly selected
me for his day'sacquisition of acquaint-
ance, and catechised me obstinately
as to my had-beens and goings-to;t here
were contented looking Germans, smo.
king, of course, and Disseminated look
ing Englishmen, of course, silent, and
wrapt up in looks OF sullen endurance,
Besides these, and group or two oil
mere lumber of humanity, there was a
party of five, who, though frolicksome
in their manners to each other, and
not very carefully drest, were unques-
tionably people of rank, highbred as
blood horses, and quite as forgetful Of
the fac. / took them to be Hungari-
ans. An officer-like man of forty-five
or Whereabouts, had them in charge,
and the others were a youth Of eigh-
teen, matron of thirty, and two
Young ladies. | mention this party
more particularly, because they struck
me as having the best part of two
kinds Of manners-the delicacy oil
fashionable people, and the love of fun
Of the vulgar-and | could wish to see
so happy a mixture more copied. The
youngest female Of the three was the
merry-maker. She was stout, healthy
and plain girl, who, if she were simply
stood against the wall, would not
probably be looked at twice by any
''Celebs," but she was soon watched
with admiring approval by the passen-
gers, and | thought for one, that she
was of that small number of plain
persons to whom beauty would have
been a superfuity. She did nothing
that was not in good taste, and her
friends seemed to have TO fear that she
would-yet she obeyed apparently
every impulse, quizzing, frolicking,
promenading, replying smilingly to
every stranger who spoke to her. full
Of action, talk and gesture, and inya-
riably natural and unconscious. /
found, in the latter part of the day,
that my friends the artists had admired
her as much as /. though one of them
had nicknamed her with a criticism
somewhat English. She wore a sort
of Polks-coat, made Of nankeen, and
the skirt beng slightly soiled with the
dust Of travel elsewhere, she went by
The funny name of Dirty Nankeen !!