Daily independent. [volume] (Elko, Nev.) 188?-1915, 1891-06-25
AN HISTORIC BRIDGE.
The Karlsbruclle Of Prague and
It's History.
For Centuries 1t Has Spawned the Mol
dau, but Recent Floods Have Rem
dercd Its Destruction
Necessary.

stated that the famous kGrlSbrucllc. or
Charles bridge, across the MOid2u ut
Prague was dooilCd u destruction by
the great foods which haze been Gre
ating such havoc in central Europe.
The paragraph was q brief one and
probably attracted little attention, but
no one who knows the pride with
which for hundreds of years the I'ohc
mians have regarded this bridge could
read the few lines without thrill of
sympathy.
TO write a history of the Karlsbrucle,
says the Chicago Post, would be tc
write the history Of Prague during the
past five centuries. This, indeed, werc
well worth the doin". for though the
old world is rich IN historic cities, few
arc moro interesting than this wonder
full old town with its stately buildings,
its quaint old houses and beautiful
gardens, and its memories of illUstri-
GUS men and wOmcn-of lIuss and
Wallcnstein. Of Maria Theresa and her
irnplacabl" encrny, Frederick tho Great.
How many times those and others
scarcely less famous have passed to and
fro over the KarlsbruclSc.
Prague was the favorite city of that
splendid monarch. Charles w, the
St@pfnthcr of tho empire, but the father
OF Bohemia" lie established her cclc-
DRAFTED university and beautified the
town in many ways, besides laying the
foundation of the KarlsbrrclIe IN 1857.
FOR one hundred and fifty years tho
worlS went on, and whom finally COM
plctcd, in 1907, it was justly regarded
rs triumph of the engineering skill of
ehe age.
Even to-day few bridges are worthy
of more admiration than the old
karlsbruclIc with its grand old Gothic
tower and its sixteen noble arches
spanning the beautiful Moldau. AS
time went on statues and groups Of
figures were placed on the buttrcsses
of the bridge. The oldest of these, 4
large stone craciiiX with images of the
Virgin and st. John, was built with
money Trung from the Jews, Short
services were occasionally held before
the cruciiX,
Another curious group, showing the
suffering souls in purgatory, commcm-
orat@d the dreadful visitation of the
plague. But the most interesting of
tho statues IS that Of st. John Of Nepo-
rn:,l1, the patron Of bridges and tho
saint whom al Prague delights to
honor st. John, SO the legend tells us,
was the confcssor of tho lovely queen
of bohemia and refused to reveal the
secrets of thc confessional to her ieal-
9Is husband. The cruel Wenzcl COM
m@racd him to be tortured, and after
ward he was thrown from the Karls-
bruclIe at night into the rushing Mol
dau. Whereupon the body of the good
priest, instead of sinking continued to
until taken from the water, while
five brilliant stars nOvcrCu over 1t. The
statue represents ali aScctic figure hold
ing Il cruciiix, and around the head are
arranged the five miraculous stars.
One fingers longest near the fine old
tower at the entrance to the bridge. If
by some spell like that used in the
Arabian tale we could unseal the lips
Of the sculpturcd figures who look
down so calmly from their lofty station,
what tragic tales they could tell of the
many times the tide Of battle has surged
across this bridge. During the stormy
days of the thirty years war it was tic
scene Of many conflicts, and for ten
years the heads OF twelve Of Bohemia S
Protestant mobiles swung in iron cages
from thc tower. Later, the citizens CT
lrnEuo rallied to It's defense against
tic Swcdcs and held it for three long
months, till the peace Of Wc6tphaliu
ended the w'Gr. When Frederick the
Great invaded BohCmia it was the scene
81 bloody struggle, and rs lately as
the revolution of 1913 n famous barrt
eadc was built there by the students
But thc dpys Of the Karlsbruclzc arc
numbcrcd. Recently three Of its arches
were carried away 10y the swollen river
siad the collapse Of u fourth littlc
Saeer renders it's destruction inevitable
l;'gun rs the night of the middle ages
was h2Ginning to roll away and finished
IN the downing light of the reformation
the old bridge falls just as the twcnti
eth century opens before the world