The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1914-12-27
Travelling In the Eighteenth Gem
fury.

the mined seas for most Of us. favor
able time to read Mr.. W. T.. MEAp's
THE Grand Tour in the Eighteenth
Century" recently reviewed in THE
SuN. Travel was largely for the young
patrician. accompanied by his bear
leader. and in the latter part OF the cen
fury for the new rich. France. Switzer-
land, Italy. Germany and the Low Coun-
tries were the grand tour" Busy
folks with short vacations sometimes
look back with regret to the earlier
leisurely voyagers, but for the most part
they seem to have passed Il good deal of
their time in uncomfortable and some
times dangerous posting: they seldom
deviaied from a prescribed route and
most of them saw little.
The roads. save In England. France
and some parts of what Is now llc-
, land and Belgium. were cNccrablc be-
yond even the abomina beness OF too
many American roads before land too
often. alas. after the triumph Of til"
devil wagon. one man got to Auxerrc
from Paris in three days journey over
way ''impassablc almost for wheel
carriages" The railroad distance i
fifty-sevcn miles. Every rain made Il
slough of despond between Kenslngton
Palace and 81. Jamcs's. From Bologna
to Florence n litter ar n mule was the
choice. You couldn't even ride horse
back in the Nbruzzi or Calabria. In
Sicily the roads. bad enough even In our
own day. hardly existed; the chances
Of getting anything to eat from III"
natives were so slim that in 1884 Il
ROYAL swell. CHAIR rs OF BOURBON. went
| from the mainland to Palermo by sea.
, The Duke of HAMILTON could buy the
best. hut from Frankfort to Cassel his
/ six horse chascs had the speed Of
"hcarses" German post wagons made
! eighteen hours II day.
| BY water you went almost as leaden
| footed. Fontaincbleau 10 Paris. forty
eight miles. ten 10 twelve hours. Ar
THUR loUNG was fourteen hours going
! from Dover To Calais: four and half
was good passage over the Channel
by he same route. three hours was E."
record" as late as 1914. five was the
eighteenth century average. Down the
| Rhine You could 60 with great veloc-
/ lty" by water diligence. Lyons 10 Avi-
gnon. forty-clgbt leagues. In three days
Padua to Venice. the famous passage
along the Brcnta. past gardens and
villas of the Venetian mobiles, took eight
hours. Ferrymen were cxtortloners.
On guides watchful eye was kept
| by a paicrnnl Government. Those who
waded the Var. naked to their waists
on each side 81 the carriage. feeling
their way with poles. got six francs a
! trip. and were hanged without mercy
II any passenger was lost. Down the
Rhine YOU had cargo boats with cabins
| that would hold ten or twelve persons
very commudiously Will anybody get
A chance to go down the Rhine again.
q ancient quoters of "pon Juan" and
/ "Bingen ON the Rhine" quarters Of
| MOSele!
The post chaisc in which milo;I
fre,icd and sworc. the diligence he
loved for all It's faults 10y every honest
soul we're al their hcst IN France and
made good time. when all went well,
ninety miles II day. Mrs. PlozzI has
rainted for Ms the positions with
greasy nightcaps and vast jackhoots,
driving your carriage harnesscd with
ropes and adorned with sheepskins" ::
boots. another observer found. liter.
ally az big as oyster barrels and armed
with hoops of iron 10 save the leg In
case Of accidents" Supcrcilous chauf-
feurs. behold the majesty of your pr"l-
cccsSors. Lazy, lounglng, greedy, I'M
pertinent" positions. hot headed To-
BIAS SMoLIETr called them: intractabc
even II "chnstlsrd with sword, cane,
udgcl ar hnrScwhip" Notice this sweet
little regulation;
ut is a rule at Chamb"ry as in the rest
of Italy. that when one arrives by post
one must continue In the same fashion or
spend three nights IN the place IL one
wishes to take drivers"
You aud your people had to he armed,
for you were likely to he robbed. You
were sure 10 he robbed at innumera Bile
custom houses and octroiS aud M the
inns. \ precursor of BArDtKlR tells
tho ;rnYc!!cr "ir loneGpm" places -
show his firearms To the landlord in
Il familiar discourse Keep Il candle
Turning. "Pockct bolts in the form If
"a cross are applicable to almost al
doors and may on occasion save the
life of the traveller" Best lake bed
clothes with you. outside % The large
towns nm invalid cant sleep al an
inn without suffering, Throughout all
southern France, according To ARTHUR
YouNG. the inns, except in large cities,
were "cold. damp, dark, dismal and
dirty: the landlords equally dlsobllging
ana rapncious; the servants awkwa ri,
sutiish and slothful.' Two beds In n
room; as readers Of the sentimental
Journey" know. Water bad sanitary ar
rungrmcnts none or of the vilest must
take Aonr own knife and fork. still
there must have been. there were plenty
of good inns and cookery In France
even Ia small places, The splendOr OF
| IL. at l.na