The Evansville journal. [volume] (Evansville, Ind.) 1866-1870, 1866-08-24

hill, and probably when the palace
was built Edinburgh could afford
only these alternatives.
We did the palace In the accustomed
sastyIe: going the round of the rooms,
listening to the explanations of an at
tendant (made in the hope of shil-
ling) concerning the tapestries which
Mary wore, and her bed, and her
kneeling- stone, &c. We saw. the Sc
cret stairway by which the murderers
of Rixzio came up, and the room in
which the latter was supping at the
d time with Mary, aud his blood at the
top of the staircase, aud all that; yet,
Ms | am sorry to say, the mercury of
sentiment was low in my thermome-
Ter, and refused to rise. The princi-
pal feeling had was this: Yes, it is
Just what | have read about all my
life-it must be So" And satisfied of
the truth of it, was glad to get away
from the palace, and obtain the mag
nlhcent views to be had from the top
of Arthur's Seat-where the city
spreads out from beneath your feet
where landscapes of beauty, dotted
ever with spots of historic note, ex-
tend afar to the long lines of noun
tains, and where the wide Firth, with
its harbOrs and ships, and enchanted
islands, loses itself in the everlasting
sea. ohif9ta s yrs
SCOTS monument near our hotel Isl
feast for ones eyes, for its architectu-
raj beauty. We never wearied look
ing at it and at the statue of the great
author, with his favorite dog, occupy
ing the central position under its
arches. Yet we could not leave Ed
lnburgh without visiting the very
home of Scott, and bringing ourselves
IN contact with the scenes most famil-
Lar to his eye. So we gave day to
rs ~ MELRosE ABBEY -
and Abboteford. These lie nearly
due south of Edinburgh, one of the
railways running directly through
Melrose. The ride is little over an
hour long, and all too short for the
full enjoyment of the beautiful
scenery. The country becomes more
broken as we advance, until, at Mel
rose. the hills rise about US almost
like the mountains Stopping at the
station, and walking through the vii
lage, we look in vain for the Abbey.
Where can it be? We naturally
think of such ruin as vast and
solitary, and standing prominently
forth to view. But like Holyrood
Palace, the Abbey stands on low,
fiat ground, and being in close prox-
unity to the village, it is much hidden
by various buildings. Once at it,
however, its uninjured walls and
arches rise before you into something
Of magnifcence, while the shattered
and fallen and moss-c covered portions
impress you with feelings of awe. |
can easily imagine that person in
meditatiye mood, wandering through
the ruins by moonlight, having fresh
IN mind SCOTS descriptions and allu-
sions, and the historical associations
of the building, might become either
entranced or enthusiastic, according
to his temperament We did not be-
come either; yet going quietly through
and around it, and looking upon it
from every quarter, and listening to
the talk of our guide hearing her say,
Underneath that small, round stone,
with sword rudely marked on its
euraee, lies the heart of Robert
Bruce; and standing by the graves
of many of Scotland's Kings and
heroes, we spent an hour which will
long he remembered, even without the
help If the ivy which we plucked
from the moldering walls and brought
away. Ta
y Abbotsford is about three miles from
melrose We came upon it unexpect-
eddy, from behind, and descending to
it, found that it was near the bottom
Of a long slope. bound by the river
Tweed. The grounds are very pretty
lat one end of the building, a flower
garden; In front, terraces down to the
+ river level, The building is fami. liar
to most people from engraYiDgs; yet it.
appears very different to the actual
sight from what it does in its repre-
sensations. 1t gives one the impress
sion of a new building sadly exposed
70 an atmosphere like. that of Cincin- /
matt, and well begrimed with coal
smoke. From the magnitude of its
/, surroundings, especially of the lofty,
hills which rise behind it, it appears,
especially from the opposite side Of
the river, at little distance, shrunken
and Insignificant. One cannot but
feel q lively interest in the building,
from its connection with its owners
literary labors. The building was his
pet-an expensive one-overwhelming
him in debt, compelling his literary
labors.. vi ,o.-,s 49,, -:..- -'9I
We were trottted through several
rooms of the house. These were
allied mainly with curiosities gathered
by Sir Walter, and presents made to
him. His study was the principal
attraction--the table by which he
wrote and the chair on which he sat. !
We we're shown the cast of his face,
taken the day after his death, in
which the upper lip appears longer