The morning news., 1899-02-07
A DESIRABLE DUCHY,
Picturesque and Interesting Feat
ures of Luxemburg.
From the Pan Mall Gazette.

nACN VI
From the Pail Mall Gazette.
OF all the tiny sovereign states of Eu-
rope, that of Luxemburg-to which ow-
ing to the serious illness of the reigning
Grand Duke Adolphus, Duke of Nassau
and Count Palatine of the Rhine, and
of his only son and last heir the Grand
Duke William, a scarcely fictitious impor-
tance has just been given-is probably the
most interesting, as certainly it is one
which must some day exercise partic-
ular influence upon the future of West
ern Europe.
The reasons for this are to be sought
in the geographical and strateglcal position
of the little grand-duchy, the peculiar cir
cumstances under which the candle of
its dynasty is guttering down and flicker
ing to an end, and the keen rivalry for
its possession existing between Prussia
and France.
The travelling Englshman, as a rule, sees
little of Luxembourg. He passes through
il from frontier to frontier by the Basle
express in something under an hour; re-
membering it disagreeably going and re-
turning Gf his journey be by nighO. for
the fact that he is turned out at Bettin-
gen or Sterpenich for a perfunctory but
protracted examination of baggage by
travel by day, his annoyance will take
the shape of discovering that Middle Eu-
ropean time obtains at the railway sta
tions in the state. and that his watch is
consequently an hour out during his tran
sit across the duchy.
A few adventurous Englishman of the
walking tourist type make Luxemburg a
halting place, and are rewarded in SO do
ing; for more interesting or picturesque
of certainly 10
within so few hours of Charing Cross.
There is boar-hunting in the forests to-
ward Belgium, and trout fishing in the
river flowing by Ettelbruck, Diekirch and
Wasserbilig to the Noselle. There are
vineyards in the valley of the Sure, and
long, winding, well-surfaced roads lined
with plum and pear and apple trees, right
through the land. For those who are pi-
Gus there is Notre Dame de Luxembourg
in her little cathedral in the place of
the capital; or the curious Whitsuntde
procession at Echternach, in honor of St
Boniface and St. Wilibrod, who brought
Christianity from England TO these affor-
ested parts in extremely remote times.
There is the little hamlet of Engledorf
on the right bank of the Sure, where the
people are akin to those of our own East
Anglia. and have quite a striking number
of English words, differing totally from
their German equivalents, In their vocab-
ulary. They are locally repuied to be
descendants of colony of Angles planted
here by Charlemagne, aud their physiog-
nomy is of "a decidedly English charac-
ter
I,uxemburg Is situated at the point
whore ,throe empires meet" or al any rate
where the German empire Joins its borders
10 those of the Kingdom of Belgium and
The Republic of France. This Il is. togeih-
er with the configuration of the immediate
country. that gives Il so great a strategic
Importance an importance long enough rec
ognized. as the vast extent Of the now
disappearing fortifications by whose means
Vauban protected the capital, bears testi-
mony.
Under the treaty Of London the neutral