380 Refiections on a Ramble in Germany. [^OcT. 



prince, and his mistress ; the foreign diplomat, and the native statesman, 

 tired of conferences and protocols ; the rich Jew banker, from Frank- 

 fort or Leipzic ; crowds of foreigners from every clime ; hosts of counts 

 and barons, soldiers and students, merchants and mechanics, black-legs 

 and davies de moyame verlu — all congregated in some beautiful romantic 

 spot, ardent in the pursuit of health, or its antithesis — dissipation. The 

 class of artistes who form the base of this Corinthian pillar, outnumber 

 the votaries of pleasure, in the same ratio as the camp-followers of an 

 Indian army exceed the combatants. Actors from Berlin and Vienna ; 

 prima-donnas from Venice and Milan ; opera-dancers, cottirieres, gaming- 

 house-keepers, and cooks from Paris ; watch-makers from Geneva ; 

 pipe-makers from Frankfort ; Tyrolean glove-makers ; fiddlers and 

 jugglers ; — in short, every art that can administer to luxury and dissipa- 

 tion are found assembled, actively employed in reaping, from the exer- 

 cise of their avocations, a rich and plentiful harvest. This singular 

 melange, and the activity and bustle they occasion, would alone present 

 a wide field for observation and amusement; but add to all this, romantic 

 scenery, fetes-champetres, balls, concerts, enchanting society, beautiful 

 women, piquant adventures— and in such a place may the ennuye safely 

 write in his note-book, " Invent portion .'" — at least so I thought ; for, 

 leaving behind me the far-famed romantic banks of the Khine, I did 

 not halt until I found myself in comfortable quarters at the Hotel de 

 Russie, at Ems, in the duchy of Nassau — one of the most fashionable 

 watering-places in Germany. 



Nothing can be more beautiful than the approach to Ems from the 

 Coblentz road. As the traveller descends the valley of the Lahn, this 

 romantic little place bursts suddenly upon him. The tranquil seclusion 

 of the spot forcibly impresses on the mind its appropriateness as a foun- 

 tain of health. 



Ems, on my arrival, was crowded with visitants. In the first rank stood 

 the Grand-Duchess IMaria-Helena— now the magnet of attraction at Chel- 

 tenham — and her suite, composed of several Russians of distinction — the 



hereditary Prince of Orange — the Polish Prince K y, well known in 



the fashionable circles of London — and a long list of other distingues. The 

 grand-duchess entered freely into all the amusements of the place. Titled 

 hauteur was laid aside. I repeatedly saw her of an evening in the bazaar, 

 simply dressed and almost unattended, conversing in the most affable 

 manner with the ladies of her circle. The personal appearance of this 

 princess is extremely interesting. Delicately fair, with soft blue eyes, 

 and a profusion of auburn hair, the expression of her countenance was 

 sweetness itself; her mild, amiable character, and her graceful manners, 

 were the theme of universal admiration. She was in a very delicate 

 state of health, and was usually carried up and down stairs, on a cushion, 

 by two of her attendants — her slender, sylph-like form, and transparent 

 complexion, forming a beautiful contrast with the bare necks, long 

 beards, and wild, savage appearance of her Russian porters. Her hus- 

 band, the Grand-Duke ]\Iichael, commanded at that time the Russian 

 army of reserve in the Turkish campaign. 



Between two and three hundred guests sat down daily to dinner at 

 the Curhaus, formerly a hunting-palace of the Grand-Duke of Nassau's, 

 but now let out by his highness as an hotel for the accommodation of 

 the bathers. The bustle and confusion of such a scene, and the Babel- 

 like confusion of tongues which prevailed, may be readily imagined. 



