40 
TRAVELS 
clear tranfparency of their waters refle&ing every objeft on their 
banks, and prefenting the animated picture of fluffs, oars, and 
fmall fails, are now turned into a place of rendezvous for men 
and children mingling in one throng. They walk, Aide, fly about 
in fledges, or glide along on fmall fkates. In the exercife of 
fkating they difplay great dexterity and addrefs, and amufe the 
fpectators with the eafe and quicknefs of their various move¬ 
ments ; darting forward with the fpeed of arrows ; turning and 
returning, and balancing their bodies according to inclination 
and circumffances, in fuch a manner that it is fometimes diffi¬ 
cult to imagine what can be their principle of motion. There 
is no part of this great mafs of water that is not arreffed and 
fubdued by the frofl:, except the current under the north bridge, 
and on the fouth near the king’s Rabies. Here the water, which 
during the keenefl frofl; dailies and foams with great noife 
through the arches of the bridge, fends up majefliic clouds of va¬ 
pour to a confiderable height in the atmofphere; where, in the 
extreme rigour of winter, being converted by the intenfenefs ot 
the cold into folid particles, they are precipitated down through 
their weight, and prefenting their furface to the fun, affume the 
appearance of a fliowTr of filver fand, reflecting the folar rays, and 
adorned with all manner of colours.. In the interior of Stock¬ 
holm, throughout all its different quarters, every thing in winter 
in like manner undergoes a fudden change. The fnow that be¬ 
gins to fall in the latter w 7 eeks of autumn covers and hides the 
ffreets for the fpace of lix months; and renders them more plea- 
fant 
