748 



GERMANY. 



latitude, they ao not arrive a', perfection. The olive and silk-worm are successfully raised only 

 m that small j)art of Germany which lies south of 4G'-'. 



G. Soil. The soil is generally productive. The plains in the north have, indeed, much 

 arid land, hut along the rivers are rich and fruitful soils, yielding abundant harvests. In the 

 south, there is much barren or slightly productive land on the mountains, but the beautiful val- 

 leys and small plains rival in fertility the best alluvial lands on the banks of the northern rivers. 

 In general, the soil in the north is heavy, and best adapted for corn ; in the south light, and 

 best fitted for vines. The best soil is in the central section, between the mountains and the 

 sandy plains. 



7. Animals. The chamois is found upon the Noric and Rha^tian Alps. Foxes, martens, 

 weasels, polecats, and wolves descend from the mountains into Silesia and Moravia. Bears iu- 

 habit the Alps of Stiria, Illyria, and the Tyrol. Wildcats are common. 



8. Face of the Country. The southern districts are traversed by lofty and steep mountains. 

 Toward the centre of the country they decrease in elevation, till they gradually sink into a 

 plain. The northern parts are level, and exhibit immense peat marshes and sandy districts. 

 The coast is so flat, that dikes are required to keep out the sea. The southern part of Ger- 

 many presents every variety of romantic and picturesque scenery. The northern is a uniform, 

 undiversified level. 



9. Cavern. At Gailenreuth, in Franconia, is a remarkable cavern with several chambers, 



containing the bones of antediluvian 

 animals, buried in beds of gravel by 

 the waters of a flood. The entrance 

 is 8 or 10 feet in height, and is sepa- 

 rated by a pillar of stalactite from the 

 larger chambers. The floors are of 

 stalagmite. 



10. Inhabitants. The Germans 

 are descended from the ancient tribes 

 which formerly inhabited the forests 

 of the country, living in wild freedom, 

 and subsisting principally by the chase. 

 The Germans are hardy and robust, 

 and have generally light hair and com- 

 plexions, with blue eyes, especially 

 in the north. In Prussia, they are 

 tall, and the hair and moustache are 

 often so white, that they look like 

 cotton, when opposed to the glowing and ruddy cheek. There are generally four classes of 

 nobility, which are thus titled. Prince, Count, Baron, and Herr Von ; the latter is the first step 

 above plebeianism, and answers to the French addition of Dc. 



11. Dress. The lower classes dress in the manner the most convenient for their occupations, 

 and without any very distinguishing peculiarities ; the higher classes follow English and French 

 fashions. Caps are nearly universal with the men ; they are made of cloth, with low crowns, 

 two or three inches only in height, and have a small projection over the eyes. The female 

 peasants and domestics wear, on holydays, gaudy caps of gold stufls, and those who are too 

 poor to wear these, adorn their heads and ai-ms with a few flowers. 



12. Language. The Gierman language has several dialects, but the high German is that 

 which is spoken by all educated men in the different iStates, and in which the literatui'e is con- 

 tained. The low German is the Frisish, used on the shores of the German Ocean, and more 

 properly, the dialect used in Westphalia, Mecklenberg, Brandenburg, and Pomerania. The 

 German was hardly cultivated in Germany, in the middle of the last century. Science spoke 

 in Latin, and fashion in French. Voltaire, who always spoke in epigram, said, that he would 

 address his mistress in Italian, his friend in French, a dog in Dutch, and the devil in German. 

 The German, however, is a rich and copious language, containing more words than any other, 

 and having the power of making inexhaustible compounds. As the Latin was lately the lan- 

 guage in which scholars communicated, the Germans are more familiar with it, as a classic lan- 

 guage, than any other nation. French, also, is very common, and English is becoming a favo- 

 rite study. 



Section of the Cavern at Gailenreut/i. 



I 



