Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1898-09-01
LETTER FROM GERMANY.
An Interesting Letter Frcm Consul Julian
Phelps The Mourning fori,ismnrck.
Crcrold Gprmnnv Aur 9

gradual disappearance of these curious
old landmarks, | thought a short dcscrip-
ton Of this one might not be amas, now
tnat war news Is likely soon to become
thing of the past.
Our destination led US up the Rhine
about twenty miles or more to Il little
old walled town by the name Of IONS.
The walls of IONS are said to he in tn"
best state of preservation OF any of the
walled cities of the Rhcnlsh province and
are the equal of any in Germany. 1t was
Il fort on the old Roman way. which as
is well known existed In the early Chris
tian era. The walls as they now stand
wcre built several hundred years ago, ON
foundation made by the Romans, which
foundation seems to have been laid to
stand, and this seems to have been
Characteristic of much of the early work
of the old world Had not the Rhine pos
sessed some of the independence of our
own Western streams, perhaps the queer
old town of IONS would have gone the
way of all the world. the old have given
way to the new, and the dear, quaint lit
tie old village, have been nothing more
than the thousand other beautiful German
villages which everywhere please the eye
of the New World visitor. In order to
reach our destination, we LETT the train
shortly before reaching Cologne on the
road from Crcfcld at Dormagcn and enjoy
ed three-mile tramp through fields of
for the sickle. The golden heads of wheat
seemed to be noddng their greeting to
us as We passed, but we soon discovered
that they were merely touching their
hats To the dainty red poppy, the purple
corn flower and white daisy. standing so
thickly among the wheat as to make it
look as much like n flower garden. as Il
wheat field. This walk took me back to my
school boy days among the beautiful hills
of Vermont. where such scenes were COM
mon, and the roll Of the hills added beau
ty to the prospect. But time flies and be-
fore we Know IL We are very near the old
gate of the old walled town Of IONS, the
walls of which stand up before us prob
ably thirty feet high. surrounded by 4
moat one-thrd as deep. The quaint cos
tunes of the peasant men and women at
their haymaking In their old moat lend
picturcsuuenesS to the scene and are "A
more hitting foreground to the antique
picture. At each end of the wall on the
side which we are approaching stands u
watch tower perhaps twice as high as tho
wall itself, and true to the national in
stinct of utility the tower on the right
is made to do duty, by supporting an old
Holland wind mill. IONS is about eighty
rods square and stands wholly within its
walls, which are made mostly of brick
except that a portion of 1t az the bottom
is interspersed with n black basaltic rock
brought from the upper Rhine, the
foundation being composed of the same
material wholly These stones are about
the size of a large cannon ball and re-
semble one considerably, some of them
! being much larger. as hard as n prairie
! hard-head, and are laid so as to project
I beyond the brick. as If to protect them
| from the ravages of time, the enemy and
| the elements. At each corner is n watch
tower, similar to those described, with
little winding stone stairs within the wall
leading up into the tower, in which are
sr:all openings looking outward.
! AT the main entrance stands a massive
stone gateway, and at one side of 1t is a
queer little old chapel, with n queercr old
gallery and organ loft over the entrance,
and as we entered We heard chanting,
and soon learned that the gallery was oc-
cuplcd by two nuns chanting their devo-
| tions with hands clasped and eyes raised
! In alteration TO the image Of Mary and
the Child, which stands in u niche of the
old wall opposite. The walls show the
wear and tear OF time, by small breaks
in tho top, here and there and moss
everywhere. 1t was left unfinished mt
/ one side, tradition attributing that fact to
the appearance of the enemy before It,
sooner than was expected, and on the in
side OF the unfinished part are indenta-
tions in the form of half circle left in
the wall for the purpose of joining to It,
another brick wall, which was to be n
small oval topped brick covering for the
protection of tho city's defenders. The
forty acres more or less enclosed within
the walls, Is compactly built up with
shops and residences of all shapes and
sizes, some with white walls. and red tile
roofs, many Of them having queer old
gables overhanging the street The
streets vary in width from about thirty
five feet the dimensions of the principle
one running through the centre of the
- t.l.
barely admit of the meeting of the foot
passenger with the ever present dog-cart
The streets wind in and out among the
houses till they vie with the celebrated
labyrinthinc puzzle of Paris in their abll
ity to confuse the stranger. About one
third of the old city's site is occupied by
the buildings and grounds of the old cas-
tie OF IONS, to which card OF introduce
ton made us welcome, Our party of sis
dned at the little hotel which boasts o.
It's age of over three hundred years. En-
tering stone paved portico we pass VI
the Same old stairs which have done duty
since the year of sixteen hundred AN,
whose old aok balustrade terminates II
an old lions head. The dining hall /,
broad and low and the immense ole
beams overhead proclaim the great az,
of the structure. The small casemen
windows swing inward like door anC
from them across the marshy meadows
oHt mas ~ me Wow OF lUc lknlnc ana I'M
hills and groves beyond. A few step.
narrow and steep, lead up to the it'll,
cubby hole of an orchestra loft, who's,
; ceiling is 80 low that II is to be HOPED
: that the performers are chosen with the
: ability to make the sweetest possible
, music. with the least possible elbow room
) Wine and music always mlngle in tn
German heart and this queer old hall ha
I been the scene OF the festivities of man.
5 generations.
The plastering on the old stone wal
; is covered with strange devices and TIVE
: fire places let into the wall, now to dut,
: Ms receptacles for coal stoves. This hous
IL but one of the many which the old tow
contains. In all others we have Viste,
, the new blends with the old, but Zon
has nothing modern in it, A luncheon o
coffee, butter bread" and freshly lai,
' eggs and we are ready TO depart.
AS we parted company with the city o
IONS, | said to myself and to It, had no
the majestic Rhine shown more fore
, thought and reverence for the old an,
Q historic than humanity does, taken he
= commerce to other doors, and left yo
= high and dry you, too, would have give
5 way to the greed of man, your old watcl
t towers and walls would have been levele,
4 to the ground to make way for n Cologne
a Dusseldorf or n CoblenZ, of which tn
world is full, while If there is anothe
IONS we have neither seen nor heard O
!. II, Modern cities are made in a day, blu