Connecticut western news., 1872-08-30
OUR EUROPEAN CORRESPONDENTS.
LONDON, Aug. 9th, 1872.

ing of regret that we left the beautiful It. tie city of HomburG for the second time on the 27th of June last, for trip into SwitZ- erland. Its broad. we'll arranged, and highly ornamented park, its clean and we'll ordered streets, and its effective waters had attached us quite strongly. But there is another home which was even then drawing usmore strongly, and Switzerland lay in the direction of that home Hence, we entered it's borders the more cheerfully. Our route took us through Heidelburg second time, and we took another look at it's old castle, which, in it's huge dimensions, was the work of several centuries. Notwithstand- ing most of it is in ruins, there are still re- maining carved mantles, window panes and cornices, which, though from three to six hundred years old. are almost as perfect as when first placed in position, and indicate skill in workmanship unsurpassed at the present time. A ride of l6O miles through a finely cultivated country brought us to the ancient city of B .sle, on the borders of Switzerland. And, as it is a border town at the junction of France, Germany and Switzerland, it maintains great commercial importance. The Rhine divides the city into two unequal parts, one of which, being quite elevated, commands a charming view, embracing the not far distant Alps. Like all the old European cities, the older parts include narrow, crooked streets with tall houses and few windows. But the new CT parts have broad, we'll built streets and many splendid private dwellings. The ob- jects of interest to & stranger are not nu- merous. The cathedral, the older parts of which were built in lOI0, has objects of in- terest In it, and the university founded in l460, was once famous chiefly from it's connection with the great name of Bras mus. Monuments, statues and fountains adornits streets. Another ride of 63 miles by rail through a fine country along the slopes of the Jura Alps, brought us 10 the city of Zurich on the lake Zurich. Along this route several old Roman ruins were to be seen, and occasionally the remains of cas- ties of more modern date. Lake Zurich, only some twenty miles long is the scene of quite an extensive commerce., as the city and the shores of the lake on either side are seats of silk, cotton and woolen manufac- tories. The shores sloping gradually up to the mountains, some of which are snow covered, are beautifully cultivated, and with many fine country houses overlooking the lake, present charming view from the little steamers that ply upon It. Our hotel situated immediately at the end of the lake and nearly surrounded with most charming pleasure grounds, furnished us with pleas. ant home for some ten days, and inclines us to pronounce it a lovely spot. From Zurich, Miss c. and myself accompanied some friends to lake Luzerne on an excur- sion to the Righi Kuhn. Luzerne is a wall- ed town dating from about A. D. 1000, and has many interesting features about it. as we'll as a notable history. Ike latter can not be entered into here. but some of the curious features of the place may be. The town is divided into two nearly equal parts by the river Reuss, the bright, sparkling rapid outlet of the lake. Over this river there are two very old wooden covered bridges. On the beams that support the roof of one of these there are about one hundred paintings in the form of triangles to conform to the shape of the roof, two pictures on each beam. These have been executed chiefly by native artists, and rep resent incidents or characters in the history of the town. The other and shorter bridge had some fifty or sixty pictures having the same form of frame work; the pictures themselves representing the dance of death. As you may imagine, they are quaint and curious. Near the side of one of these bridges, in the middle of the river, stands stone tower, several centuries old. For what purpose it was originally erected, I could not ascertain. IL is some 60 or 70 feet high and perhaps 25 feet in diameter. At present 1t is used as the town clerks office and for the keeping of the archives. There is also an ancient fortiication on an elevation in the rear of the town, which, though centuries old, is in very good state of preservation, and has on its walls several banners of quaint old forms, and varying in night from 40 to 70 feet. But the most attractive local object of the place, is the great lion carved by Thornaldsen out of the face of perpendicular rock. The face of this rock is perhaps 50 feet high and quite smooth. About twenty feet above the little basin of water at the foot of the rock, (which is surrounded by ornamented work, recess has been cut into the rock, in which is most perfect figure of lion, some eighteen feet long and of course of suitable proportions, and in reclining pos ture, the whole being part of the rock it. self The latin inscriptions surrounding it, were little beyond my rusty classics ard did not stop to study them out. But the whole is of remarkable workmanship, and is much visited. It is conceded that lake Luzerne is one of the finest, if not the finest of the Swiss lakes. The mountains rise very high on both sides, often running sheer down into the water from great nights
 and yet there are occasional hooks between them as we'll as more gradual slopes or their sides. The latter are covered witt grape vines and the former are filled witt villages. At one of the little villages VI left the steamboat in which we had beer on an excursion to the extreme end of tn, lake oposite Luzerne. and took tickets fo
 the ascent to the Righi Kuhn. on the mos remarkable railway I ever saw. The as
 cent is said to be a thousand fee
 to the mile. How that may be I can
 not say. but for the first half mile, 1t migh
 have been five times that and should nc
 have apprehended any more danger, for
 was quite sure that we were all to be pitct
 ed back into the lake to certainty. Ther
 are three rails on the track; the center on