BERLIN TO HAMBURG 41 



from the chimneys of the numberless lighters and little 

 steamers, which are running up and down the river by 

 day and night, for work never stops. Vessels load and 

 unload constantly, as the saving of time as well as the 

 nature of the cargo very often demands immediate at- 

 tendance. The inclemency of the weather in winter-time 

 is particularly the cause of many hardships. On one 

 occasion, I am told, that the non-shipment of forty thou- 

 sand bags of potatoes cost the shipper a small fortune, 

 as his goods were destroyed by the intense frost which 

 set in, while awaiting storage in an English vessel. 



There are four unbroken lines of vessels from all na- 

 tions, of all shapes and build, four seemingly endless 

 chains of merchant fleets; all along St. Pauli and the 

 neighboring town Altona and far beyond it, one can see 

 them busily engaged in loading and reloading their car- 

 goes. As one hears at the Exchange languages of all 

 civilized countries, so does one perceive in this metro- 

 politan harbor flags of all nations of the earth, even Bra- 

 zilian and Chilean colors. And what beautiful vessels 

 one sees! They often resemble men-of-war rather than 

 merchant vessels, bent upon their peaceful and harmoni- 

 ous missions. There is, for instance, the "Gutenberg," 

 one of the Hamburg- American passenger liners near the 

 "Baumthor," which carries immense freights, besides 

 being one of the best fitted passenger steamers, recently 

 built after the most approved plans. It is named after 

 our "Johannes Gutenberg," the inventor of the first 

 printing press. There are many such beautiful vessels 

 in plain sight, though they are not all as large as the one 

 mentioned. 



Let us return to the "Stintfang View." One can only 

 see a. comparatively small part of the older city and the 

 quaint old buildings, which have little attraction for the 

 ordinary sight-seer. The other parts of the city are gen- 

 erally hidden from view at this time of the year, as the 

 prevailing fog obscures the so-called "new city," i. e., 

 that part which has been rebuilt after the fearful con- 

 flagration in 1S42; though the early spring sun may try 



