National opinion. [volume] (Bradford, Vt.) 1865-1874, 1872-07-05
FOREIGN CORRESPONDENCE.
Scenes In switserisnd-An Old Castle. with
its Dungeon Horrors Tho Loveiiest OF
Swiss Lakes Geneva Washerwomen
at Work, eto., etc.
At noon, We took tho train for Lausanne,

At noon, we took the train for Lausanne,
where We arrived about 1870 =. NJ. Ilav-
ing to wait till o'clock for the train to
Chillon, we went 10 the Hotel Gibbon,
where we had lunch. Looking out of the
windows, we could see the garden in
which Gbbon, the historian, wrote the
concluding portion of his great work over
eighty years ago.
The day was hot, the streets filled with
lime.like dust, and not being able to
find carriage, had to walk up the steep
hill to the principal portion of the town.
We visited the Cathedral, which is gothic
edifce Of simple and massive construction,
and had fine view Of Lake Leman and
the vicinity from the tower. We wan
dered around the place until the train
started, and at $50 p NJ, were at the
depot at Neytaux Chillon.
We sent our trunks up to the Hotel DIES
Alps, and walked down the track to the
Castle of Chillon, which was about an
eighth of mile distant. Crossing the
bridge leading from the main land to the
Castle, we Were met by n guide, who
took us through the different portions of
it. Few objects in Switzerland are more
familiar, and might also say, hackneyed,
than this same Castle; so often has ii
been described by the poet, painted by
the artist, and written about by every
traveller who has been within its walls.
The Castle itself, is not striking object
it is neither massive, nor very picturesque
and the beauty Of the site is greatly di-
minishcd by the railway which runs close
to it. But the sad story Of Downward,
the prisoner of Chillon, and the innuner-
able poetlcal associations which cluster
around its antique walls, will make it
always an object of 1eep and perpetual
interest. The interior of tho Castle is
well worth visit. There is quite n gar.
rison attached to it, and when we went in
the courtyard, we found one of the drill
sergeants putting a company of raw re-
cruits, through the "goo.e STEP Over
the principal entrance are the following
words inscribed by the Bernese in 1913
"Gott der Herr segne den Elm und Aus
gang MAY God bless all who come in
and 90 ouD. We were shown a number
of dungeons cut out of the solid rock in
which the early reiormers and subse-
quently prisoners of state were confined
across one of the vaults, we noticed a
beam blackened by age, on which, the
guide said, the condemned prisoners were
formerly hung. In the dungeons are eight
pillars, one of which is half built into the
wall to these pillars the prisoners were
chained, and on the rocky pavement, the
steps of Downward and other illusrous
prisoners have left their footprints
Among the thousands OF names inscribed
on the pillars we saw those of Byron and
Dumas. a short distance from the Castle
is the Isle de Paix, small spot on which
three trees now flourish. Downward speaks
oft as follows:
"And then there was little isle,
Which in my very face did smile;
The only one In view"
We then returned to the hotel, where
we passed the evening viewing the lake
and the exquisite sun set, than which
nothing could be more beautiful. The
sky was covered with rosy light, which
most lovely appearance, which was re-
llected in the calm mirror like surface of
the lake, which lay at our feet | should
think one of the most agreeable ways of
spending a summer delightfully."-, would be
to put up at one of the iirst-class hotels
you find on Lake Leman, and from there
make excursions to different parts of
Switzerland.
During the summer, the Swiss hotels
are always crowded, and the stream of
travel often becomes a torrent; hence the
necessity of teegraphing for rooms. The
tourists are of all degrees and languages,
but the English and Americans seem to
be the majority after the natives them
selves; my own countrymen, am happy
to say, being generally popular on ac-
count of the liborality of their opinions,
their lavish expenditures, and the courtesy
of their manners. Large as is the travel |
on the Continent, and superior rs are the
Accommodations, nothing is more apparent
than that the people do not enjoy the
same advantages in their intercourse with |
each other, as they do in the United States |
The wealthy classes alone, constitute the |
Continental tourist, and you can quickly |
notice the difference between a watering
place in Switzerland, and a watering place
in America. At the latter, all is good
humor, hustle, and an absence of caste
whereas at the former, all is cold silent,
courtly and slow, each group or clique
keeping to itself; and even Americans
may live in the same hotel for q month
without making an acquaintance. One
of the most noticeable things we have
seen, is the fine appearance and good ad-
dress of the walters at the hotels. They
are the smartest looking, and best dressed
men we meet, and are always very atten-
tive, and usually speak two or three Ian
guages.
At $40 A. NJ. on the following day, we
left by steamboat for Geneva, stopping at
various towns and villages on the north |
shore of the lake to land and take on pas
sengers.
Lake Leman i. the largest in Switzer-
land, and in some respects, the most beau
tiiul. Its beautiful blue color is only to
be compared with that of the Blue Grotto
in the Bay of Naples. 1t has for centuries |
been a theme for writers in all countries.
Its connection with some of the greatest
names of modern times is universally
known. Voltaire and Goethe speak of it |
with enthusiasm; Rosseau makes it the |
scene of his imprisoned romance, the |
Nouvele Heloise; the exquisite poems of
Byron, who dwelt for some time on its
shores, family described its varied beau |
ties Alexander Dumas deems it worthy
of comparison with the Bay of Naples
indeed, the arts of the poet and the painter
have been exhausted to do Justice to this |