Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1872-09-20
BLANKEN BERGE.
Bathing Mt n Belgian Watering
Place.


A correspondent of the London Tele
graph writes as follows:
: At Blankcnberge the natives, the hew'
ers of wood and drawers of water, the
sailors and the wearers of the lace caps
have fairly been stamped out by the
sumner visitors. There arc no cottages
on the sand hills. The village is taken
up with hotels and boarding -housesi and
it is only after dark that an occasional
peasant ventures upon the broad, clean
pavement upon which Blankenberge has
been built along mile of noble sand
Blankenberge proper, they tell me, was
eRgulfed in the sea hundreds of years
ago; AID all that remains is a determined
and successful attempt to keep back the
sea, and to give to Belgium one of the
most charming watering-places that can
well be pictured.
But l have accidentally let out the
secret concerning the whereabouts oil
Blankenberge. The most extraordinary
ignorance prevails even in Holland con-
cerning its existence; and when, at Rot
terdam, asked if l could book through
here as we'll as to Ostend, the official
regarded me plaintively, as if ! were in
sane, and, on my persisting in the re-
quest, obtained the concurrence of the
whole railway office that no one nad ever
heard of Blankenberge. In spite, how.
ever, of the whitening manner in which |
was refused ticket at Rotterdam,
arrived here eight hours afterwards. For
the special benefit of Dutch railway off.
cials, may state that Blankenberge is
reached by a short branch line from
Bruges, and after a twenty minutes
ride through desolate, fat, treeless and
most melancholy country, and short
walk through a primitive village, the
traveller will mount up twenty or thirty
steps, and find himself on the Blanken-
berge embankment-that is to say,
in Blankenberge itself. Blankenberge
consists Of this smooth, bricked
chaussee, q mile in length and
thirty yards broad, which is bounded
on one side by a smart Alhambra-
decorated Kursaal, innumerable hotels,
cafes and restaurants, several private
lodging houses and sprinkling of
shops; while on the other side, under the
embankment, are the popular sand and
the everlasting sea. Plenty of sea-
wide, expansive, and uninterrupted by
any suggestion of land-and plenty of
sand, firm, clear, and innocent OF rock
or shiagle, will be found at Blanken-
berge. To my mind it is model water
ing place. If the weather be fine, prom
enading on the Chausee, bathing, dig
ging, reading, and fishing from the pier
far in the distance, occupy the daylight.
II wet, it is easy to turn in under the
yerandah of one of the dozen we'll
appointed cafes, and, still watching the
sea, to wish for fine weather again. So
capitally drained is the pavement prom
enade, that three minutes after the
heaviest storm it is dry as kitchen
qoor. Blankenberge dries up as quickly
as Brighton and the paving Of both
places appears to be on the same prin-
ciple.
/ must say something about
the Blankenberge bathing. Every man,
woman and child in all Blankenbergc
bathes from morning till night; and it
is considered so absurd not to bathe--
aud in the middle of the dsy-that such
a thing as hip-bath or sponge-bath is
not to be heard OF in all Blankenberge.
! have certain prejudiees on this point,
and this morning was driven into brib-
ing one of the servants TO bring me up
a great wooden tub in which the bottles
are washed. a balm dc siege being quite
out of the question. | suppose they
thought me mad not TO bathe at mid
dav in the sea; but had my tub and
bafhed in the sea all the same. The
BATHING here is not carried out on the
system--that Is to say, there IS
not, as in Holland, a separate section or
compartment of the sand for tho oppo-
site sexes. Machines are used, and,
failing the horses, which, as | said be-
fore, do not exist, they are pushed down
Inv hand TO the waters edge. All Blank
enberge bathes together. The gray
headed and somewhat rotund old cor-
nles tofter down 10 the ocean arm IN
arm; the husband lovingly escorts the
wife and shields her like noble spouse
from the attack of the great seventh
wave; brothers and sisters dance
round In the water in an amiable eirclei
large parties Join hands and net
the water; and the pretty girls, con-
scious that their admirers are IN their
immediate neighborhood, when they are
properly costumed peep modestiy out o.
the machine, with the door ajar, as Il
terrified at appearing in public " in such
a rig" and then encouraged BY portly
mamma and u whole crowd Of short
haired and bony-looking supts, bound
and iswn-ike across the sand,
and give themselves up as soon as posi-
BILE TO the embrace Of the fascinating
waves. Tau glad TO see that the pretti-