•GERMANY. 749 



13. Manner of Building. In the modern architecture there is little to interest ii stranger, 

 in Germany. Generally, the old towns are dark, dismal, and mean in appearance. The mod- 

 ern cities are, some of them, spacious and neatly built. The gardens attached to country hous- 

 es are often in the English style. The Gothic churches are, some of them, wonderful monu- 

 ;nents of labor and art. 



14. Food and Drink. The Germans take more food than their southern neighbors, and of 

 a plain, substantial kind. The common people follow the plainest style of cooking, and are fond 

 of fat substances, which they use with sour cabbage. 



The ancient character is not yet extinct, for the Germans arc much addicted to intoxicating 

 liquors, especially in the north, where they consume great quantities of beer, porter, and ale. 

 Alehouses are but too well supported ; the sign over them in some of the States is, " Welcome, 

 friend," and few coachmen pass without taking schnaps. Smoke and beer make the atmos- 

 phere of a common German. Drunkenness, however, is most frequent in the north. In the 

 south is a more genial beverage, produced on the banks of the " Father of wine," for so the 

 Germans delight to call the lUiine. 



The wines of Germany are much esteemed. They are various, but the most celebrated are 

 the Hock and the Johannisberg. The Hock is produced so far rorth, that the river is frozen 

 for weeks in winter, and the vine would probably tlirive well in the United States. The .Jo- 

 hannisberg is not easily to be had. It is produced only on a small domain, the property of 

 Prince Metternich, and it is chiefly sent as presents to sovereigns. Those of the alliance are 

 probably the most favored. It sells on the spot for little less than two dollars a bottle. 



Smoking is almost an employment in Germany. The pipe is ever at hand, and it is seldom 

 out of use. The bowls are of porcelain, large and ornamenled with views of German scene- 

 ry, buildings, &,c. The atmosphere of an alehouse is so filled with smoke of numerous pi])es, 

 that the smokers are hardly visible. 



15. Diseases. These are generally the same that are common in the United States, though 

 there are fewer pulmonary complaints in Germany. 



16. Traveling. This is more expensive, and less expeditious, than in France. The coach- 

 es in some parts go little more than three miles an hour, and the sclinell wagcn or velocity 

 coach, which is established on some routes, goes but six miles an hour. The coche d^cuu or 

 water coach, which is found on the rivers, has little to recommend it but cheapness. " 



17. Character, JManners, and Customs. The Germans are descended from various tribes, 

 with similar features, languages, and manners, which anciently overspread nearly the whole 

 of what is now called Germany. They were rude and warlike, and successfully with- 

 stood the Roman arms. The legions of Varus were the sacrifice to German patriotism and 

 valor. The Germans held, that the brave only enjoyed the favor of the gods after death. 

 They were more attached to their wild freedom than to life. They were implacable to foes, 

 though kind and gentle to each other. They followed gaming to the most frantic excess, and 

 were much addicted to intoxicating liquors ; it was only when intoxicated, that they debated in 

 their public councils matters of general interest. 



The Germans retain, in a high state of cultivation, some of the traits by which they were 

 marked while they were barbarous tribes ; they are hardy, brave, and attached to their country. 

 They are distinguished for great individual and personal independence, and the word "Father- 

 land " never fails to touch the " electric chain," by which they are bound to their country. 

 They are faithful and sincere, and deceit is foreign to their nature. They are imaginative, 

 though they have great powers of labor and reflection. They were formerly thought to be 

 plodding and dull, but this was a great error. One of their writers has said truly, that while 

 the English have the dominion of the sea, and the French that of the land, the Germans have 

 the empire of the air. The national character is so much founded upon justice, that the public 

 never forgives a want of probity, as it sometimes does in Ital}^ or France. 



" With few but signal exceptions, Germany, even at this hour, is not a country remarkable 

 for the elegancies of domestic life. Its very palaces are of simple decoration ; its luxuries of a 

 homebred and inartificial kind, and its taste is rarely superior, and, indeed, not always equal to 

 our own. There is still a shade of the Gothic in the habits and opinions of this constant peo- 

 ple, who seem to cultivate the subtile refinements of the mind, in preference to the more obvi- 

 ous and material enjoyments which address themselves to the senses." 



The Germans are fond of titles, and exceedingly complaisant in bestowing them. A letter 

 to a count is addressed, to the high born Count, Count of B . To a plain citizen the ad- 



