The Washington union., 1857-05-06
pIRps-EYE VIEW OF EURoPE,-NO 5.



The first thing that strikes one ON landing at Geneva
AZ least what first attracted my attention, was the lake
vino its waters into the Mediterranean by the river
phone This river is as blue indigo, the natural APP
rance of the water but in glass is as limpid as any
ne water it gushes forth from the lake with boiling
brv Il is truly beautiful sight to behold it, as it is
here quite wide and deep. Geneva contains about 40 900
iubabitants of which the Protestants number about
% OOO the balance are Catholics There is much feeling
strife here existing between the two religions Geneva
Il hmed as the city of ProteDansn, the city where the
gret fathers of the dissentes first commenced their abo
and must naturally be hot-bed Of religious intolerance
on both sides saw but little in Geneva particularly to
interest ME as a city, excepting some ewery in the man
uactlrc of which this city excels.
The church of St. Pierre contains several monuments of
celebrated referners, and the canopy the pulpit is
tbe same under which Calvin preached his first
f frefornation The public library founded by Cal
vim Here are TO be the manuscript letters of Cal
one addressed TO Lady Jane Grey while prisoner in
the forty four volumes of his manuscript
uonsInany letters addressed to him volumes of let
tiers of Theodore Bear manuscript of the noble Lee
on-a vast work of the ancient Waldenses discourses
Of st Augustine of ST. Vincent dc Paul. of Rous-
sau &C. The Emperor Paul. in speaking of the dis
mites in Geneva, compared them to a tempest in
mmbler Of water In this town formed the
nucleus of faith that has spread itself far and
widc and made such extensive inroads upon the
Catholic religion. II was here were lighted those
fires whose flames spread with wild rapidity over the
island of Great Britain through Germany, Switzerland
rorons of France and of North America and which drew
forth the severe pap denunciations that were so rapidly
and vigorously issued from the Vatican against all herecs
Here too, were the bloody prescriptions which marked
the struggles Of Rome maintain and of the Professionals
to break down. her power and her faith 1t was here,
too that John Calvin, passing through the town fug
tive from Italy induced to remain by Fare to assist
him in promulgating the doctrines of the refomers Cal
vim soon obtained supreme power the inhabitants of
the city, and ruled it with iron despotism. This mild
former as he is often called became the president of the
consstory "Ihis council assumed authority (says
Protestant writer far more despotc than that of the bsh
OBS it exercised the power of nquisition to examine
into men, private lives and into the affairs of families
Of whatever rank. 1t also in this town that
this " mild and gentle reformer'' condemned
his brother reonmer, Servetus, to be burned at the
stake because he held doctrines--whch, however, he
did not disseminate different from those maintained
by Calvin What greatly enhanced this bloody act of ty-
nanny was the fact that Seyeus was not an nhabitant
of Geneva and therefore not amenabe to its laws
John Knox, driven from Scotland by the persecution of
here pomugang with zeal and true eloquence his doc
triuc he made many converts Jean Jacques Rousseau
was born here. He was the Of matchmaker and it
in this his native city, his book, Emilie ordered
by the council of Geneva to be burned in the public square
by the hangman and warrant issued for his arrest
The people of Geneva appear obe very industrious the
place has clean and neat appearance and crime is not
to very great extent, known here Thieying is very
Intending, now, to cross the Alps by the Sim
pon for Milan, we found the best way was to par
tally retrace our steps, and go up the Lake Geneva
by steamer to Villeneuve voyage of but few
hours. You pass in sight of Champagne Diodatte'
short distance from Geneva it the residence of By
in 1916, where he wrote Manfred and the third
canto of "Chide Harold We stopped at Yevay ccle-
bated by the writings of Rousseau. Speaking Of it in
his Confessions, he says: '.Jalla Vevay logger la
cle ct pendant deux ours que y resai voir per-
sohne e prs pour cctte vile fui ma suivi
dams tous voyages ct que my fat etabr enfn les
heros dc roman-Je dim volonters ceux qu ont
du gou ct qu sont sensibles Allez Vevay, vstez e
pays examiner les Sites lie lac ct dsez 81 la
nature ma pas it beau pays pour Julie pour une
Claire, ct pour un Saint Preux; mas ne les chercbez
pas The cultivation of the vineyards is carried in
Vevay with much and to great extent After
leaving Vevay you to the small town of Montreal
and about two miles further in the lake. the
shore, stands the celebrated prison of Chillon
''Chillon, thy prison, is holy place,
And thy sad floor altar for t was trod
Until his very steps have left trace,
Worn, as if the cold pavement were sod,
By Bonnevard; may none those marks etace!
For they appeal from tyranny to God
Poor Bonnevard, of whom Byron thus speaks,
confined in this prison, in of its deepest dungeons
tosix years he chained to of the pillars, and
the pillar and tho ring to which he attached still re-
main and the stone floor, far his chain would al
low him to walk is marked by his footprints in pacing to
and fro. He was the prior of st Victor, and was
leased by the Bernese who bcseged and conquered the
prison fortress Across of its vaults remains beam
to which the condemned formerly hanged On
OF the pillars of this prison may be the of
Byron, inscribed there by himself g II is in this castle
Rousseau has fixed the catastrophe of his IIeoise in the
rescue of her children by Julie from the water; the
shock Of which, and the illness produced by the INNER
SION, rs the cause of her DEATH AT villeneuvc left
Lake Geneva in diligence and took southery direction
oy Bex to Maurce passing through Maurice, directed
our course to Marny to rest for the night and prepare to
mount the Alps the next day short distance out of Mau
eyou pass the abbey, being the oldest Christian ioun-
cation to be seen in these mountains its ancient spre still
remains and upward of 300 years old being built in
The fifth century. 1t was endowed by Sgismond, King
OF Burgundy, in honor of St Maurice It's treasury con-
ans vase of Saraccnic workmanship, presented by
Vharlemagne chalice given by Queen Bertha of Bur
Bundy, and several other ancient relics At Martigny
we remained all night, and next morning hired private
carriage to make way Briegg situated at the foot
Of the Alps. Here, taking fresh horses commenced
ascending the mountain in slow walk. The road is
la batf l,lt Ia