A Visit to the Holy Land, Egypt, and Italy

Moh?cs-The fortress Peterwardein-Discomfort and bad management on board the steamer-Semlin-Belgrade-Pancsova-Austrian so

ments at length admitted of my absence for at least a year, my chief employment was to prepare myself for this journey. I read many works bearing on the subject, and was moreover fortunate enough to make

"were obliged gravely to consider if they had physical strength to endure the fatigues of such a journey, and strength of mind bravely to face the dangers of the plague, the climate, the attacks of insects,

trength to set my house in every respect in order. I made my will, and arranged all my worldly affairs in such a manner that, in the c

March 1842, I commence

h. I was joyfully surprised by the presence of several of my relations and friends, who wished to say farewell once more. The

ng, as he had intended, with bag and baggage to Hungary, to return to Vienna in company of the police. It appeared he owed the gentleman 1300 florins, and had wished to abscond, but was

deas, like myself. Most of those on board were going only to Presburg, or at farthest to Pesth. The captain having mentioned that a woman was on board who intended travelling to Constantinople, I was immediately s

and remained on deck, in order to see the scenery between Vienna and Presburg, which, no doubt, appears lovely enough whe

its remarkable fortress, and farther on the large fr

e four quarters of the heavens, as a token that he is ready to defend his kingdom against all enemies, from whatever direction they may approach. Not far from this hill is situate the handsome inn call

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le island of Schütt, which is about forty-six miles long and twenty-eight in breadth. Till we reach Gran the scenery is monotonous e

aces, skirting the left bank of the Danube, and the celebrated ancient fortress and town of Ofen on the right, form a splendid spectacle, a

ehoves him to keep a careful eye upon the luggag

culously expensive. A little back room cost me 45 kreu

upt my journey. These symptoms were probably a consequence of the painful excitement of parting with my friends, added to the change of air. With some difficulty

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clock in the morning we were already at Feldv?r, a place which seems at a distance to be of some magnitude, but which melts away like a soap-bubble on a nearer approach. By two o'clock we had reached Paks; here, as at all other places of note, we stopped for

two battles. The fortress here is used as a prison for criminals. We could distinguish nothing either

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sured, however, that I had

robably been more asleep than awake, had given the ship an unskilful turn, in consequence of which, one of the paddles was entangled with some trunks of tr

Count Palffy's castle at about two o'clock. The castle of Illok, situate on a hill

s it is by hills which at this point confine the bed of the river. The Danube is here crossed by a bridge of boats, and this place also forms the military boundary of Austria. The surrounding landscape appeared sufficiently picturesque; the little town of Karlowitz, lying

d. Semlin is a fortified place, situated at the junction of the Save with the Danube; it

traveller to take a second-class berth on board a steamer belonging to the Viennese company. A greater want of order than we find in these vessels could scarcely be met with. The traveller whose funds will not permit of his paying first-class fare will do better to content himself with a third-class, i.e. a deck-passage, particularly if he purposes journeying no farther than Moh?cs. If the weather is fine, it is more agreeable to remain on deck, watching the panorama of the Danube as it glides past. Should the day be unfavourable, the traveller can go, without ceremon

hese men are accustomed to hasten from their third-class places to those of the second class, where their presence renders it immediately desirable to open every outlet for purposes of ventilation. What the traveller has to endure on board these vessels would s

might expect better accommodation. The first-class to Constantinople costs 120 florins, {23} the

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t, but of noise for us travellers.

every thing was done with so much crashing and noise, that we almost imagined the whole steamer was coming to pieces. Added to this, the cold wind drove in continually through the broken pane, and made the place a real purgatory to us. At length, at six

far as I could observe from the steamer, are built in a circular form, not very high, and surmounted by a cupola flanked by one or two minarets, a kind of high round pillar. The loftiest among these buildings is the palace of Prince Milosch. From this point our voya

the Danube, in the territory o

g most of the places at which we touch. At such times all is hurry and confusion; suddenly the bell rings, the planks are with

nd had to travel on foot for a day and a half to regain his home. A very pleasant journey of two hours from Pancsova brought us to the Turkish fortress Semendria, the situation of which is truly

around; and far and wide not a tree or a shrub appeared to rejoice the eye of the traveller or of the sojourner in these parts, under the shade of which the poor peasant might recruit

e. Much, however, remains to be desired; and the poverty that reigns around is here more to be wondered at, from the fact

d paces-an arrangement which has been imitated by the governments on the left bank,

I entered some of these huts to view the internal arrangements. They could scarcely have been more simple. In one corner I found a hearth; in another, an apology for a stove, clumsily fashioned out of clay. An unsightly hole in the wall, stopped

territory the soldier

arcely to allow it a passage; at other times it glides serenely onwards. At every turn we behold new beauties, and scarcely know

is nothing to be seen but a large store of coals for the steamer

litary rock Babakay, rising from the midst of the waters. Together with the

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comforts we have hitherto endured; but the weather is unpropitious. The driving snow sends us all into the cabin. The Danube is so fiercely agitated by the stormy wind, that

by the steamboat company, where we found capital fare, a warm room, and tolerably comfortable beds. This wa

re here shewn the vessel which was wrecked, with passengers on board, in 1839, in a journey up the Danube.

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nube is here more and more hemmed in by mountains and rocks, so that in some places it is not above eig

yage down the stream could indeed be accomplished without danger, but the return would be attended with many difficulties. The steamers, therefore,

little cabin, and should thus have missed the most interesting points of the Danube. As it was, however, I wrapped myself from head to foot in the fur cloak, took my seat on a bench outside the cabin, and h

all here, I should certainly never have suspected it to be the case. Between Lenz and Krems I did not find either the rocks or the power of the stream much more formidable. We had, however, a high tide, a circumstance which diminishes both the danger of the journey and the sublimity of the view.

k, we see the celebrated "Veteran Cave," one of the most impregnable points on the banks of the Danube. It is surrounded by redoubts, and is admirably calculated to command the passage of the river. This cave is said to be s

Road once existed. No traces of this work remain, save that the traveller notices, for fifteen or twenty miles, holes cut here and there i

st Austrian town on the military frontier of Banata or

devoted to the accommodation of travellers, as at Drenkova. Here, as at Presburg and Pesth, each passenger is required to pay for his night's expenses,-an arrangemen

l. Both men and women wear long garments of blue cloth. The women have on their heads large handkerchiefs of white linen, wh

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the "Golden Stag," we this morning embarked on a new craft, the Sat

ooked upon as unclean, and may not go on shore without keep

rsova we entirely quit

he Turks Demir kaju. Half an hour before we reached the spot, the rushing sound of the water announced the p

n minutes. Here, at the Iron Gate, the high ti

ad formed from reading descriptions, frequently of great poetic beauty. I wish to represent e

in the neighbourhood of which some fragments of

harply-defined lines of the Balkan range, rendered celebrated by the passage of the Russians in 1829. The villages, scattered thinly along the banks, become more and more miserable; they rather resemble stables for cattle than human dwellings. The beasts remain i

from an infected place to one pronounced healthy, the ship is brought to some forty or fifty paces from the shore, and each animal is thrown into the wa

xtent. Everywhere I noticed large herds of horned beasts and m

o hours, after which we embarked, opposite the

Callafat. It was intended merely to land goods here, and then to proceed immediately on our voyage; but the agent was nowhere to

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teward behind to watch over the goods. At half-past six in the morning the engines were at

rance. The interior of these towns, however, is said not to be quite so inviting as one would suppose from a distant view, for it is asserted that dirty narrow streets, dilapidated houses, etc., offend the st

ng we cast anchor opposi