Durango semi-weekly herald., 1901-09-19

but they would be very much aston
ished and would make violent dem
onstration If anybody should attempt
to interfere with their hereditary priv
neges
The canals and basins have been
walled up with heavy blocks of stone.
and at frequent intervals. usually at
the head of each steps lead down to
the water. Bridges have been erect
ed wherever they are necessary, usu-
ally of heavy arched stone work. with
one span that Will turn or lift to let
the ships go through. Outside the
city the streams are crossed by pom
toons floating on the surface of the
water. which sauirts up between the
cracks in the planks as the horses
hoofs strike them. Where the canals
are wide little ferryboats. like steam
launches. are running constantly
back and forth for the convenience of
the public, and steamers OF various
sizes run from the center of the city
to all parts of the lake and ford
They have regular routes and run as
frequently as street cars, the fares be
ing about the same. They are, Of
course much pledsanter to ride in than
either carriage or street car. and you
can go within easy walking distance
of almost any place in the older part
of the city by the boats for 2Ia cents
| There are at least 200 Of these little
steamers in use,i the total length of
their combined routes being lS0 miles
They carry an average of 10000 pass
engers daily and about 10000 on Sun
day. the larger part of the traffic on
that day being pleasure-seekers who
go into the country Each morning
the passengers pour out of the little
steamers as from the suburban trains
at Van Buren station, Chicago. and in
the evening the streets leading to the
nuays are crowded with commuters.
who are hustlins along with pack
ages under their sarms or little hand
bags for fear they will fail to get a
seat If cozy little steamboats, start
ed every few minutes from Madison
street bridge of Twelfth stret viaduct
for Kenwood or Evanston the suburb
antics of Chicago would enjoy the
same blessing as those who live in
the neighborhood of Stockholm.
Freight is handled on barges by
water in the same way. 1t is dis
charged from an ocean steamer into a
barge in front OF the kings palace and
then towed around or rowed by doz-
en- men with ores eighteen feet long
to the back door of the wholesale de-
partment of the Marshall Field or the
Hibbard, Spencer & Bartlett of stock
holm. And if the merchants have
anything to ship by sea they send 1t
to the steamer in a similar manner in
stead of hauling it on wagon The
railways that enter Stockholm have
similar shipping arrangements, where
the cargoes of the freight cars can be
transferred directly into barges and
towed to their destination, which is
much cheaper, easier and more con
venient than by wagon.
The palace of the king and nearly
all the public buildings occupy islands
and are surrounded by water. They
are almost without exception of i'm
posing dimensions and artistic pro.
portions, although some look rusty
and out of repair, and the most OF
them are two or three centuries old.
new parliament house is now being
erected on an island opposite the rear
of the palace, and behind it on the re-
mainder of the island semieircu-
lar building of elaborate design and
ornate decoration for the use of the
government bank. Not only the pub
lie but the residential architecture of
Stockholm will compare well with that
of any city in Europe. There is no
city in the United States of similar
size with such pretentious archltec-
ture The foundation of the city is
the eternal rock, and in some places
streets have been blasted through at
great expense and labor. Neither
Paris nor Berlin nor st Petersburg
nor London nor Vienna can show finer
streets or handsomer residences. anr
perhaps only Budapest of all Europe
has better right to be proud of her
good looks than Stockholm.
Some business houses occupy an
entire island. The Mutual Life In.
surance company OF New York has one
all to itself opposite the parliament
house. and has erected handsome
| pulluinB.
The canals and lagoons upon which
Stockholm is built connect Lake Ma
lar with the Baltic sea. II is noble
and beautiful sheet of water. It's
banks are thickly dotted with villas
Some OF them have farms which run
back into the country. Others are
the homes of rich men of leisure
Nearly one-fourth of the business pop
ulation of the city reside in the coun
try during the summer months. ant
nearly every man Of wealth has
farm or country place within easy
travelling distance.
That section of Sweden which liei
around Stockholm is the most beau
tiful and has been the most prosper
Gus from the early settlement of th'
kingdom. and grim old Blrger Jarl
the earl that ruled these parts in tn,
middle ages, built walls and toweri
and castles upon the islands that nov
| farm the fitU nrpuGnf the hnrhDy y