Spiers: Memoranda of an autumn tour in 1836

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CONT. AUG. 15 MON.

the road skirting their base, or hewn out of their sides: then the banks recede - presenting a beautiful opening of rich fields and plantations and clustered cottages & distant towns." When to this sweetly & accurately written picture is added that the season in which he walked it was early spring instead of summer & that the consequent cheerfulness of the latter season increased its beauty no thing more exquisite can be conceived. The long avenues of graceful hop plants, the waving corn, here truly of a golden color - the tall sheaves piled one on each other, & the happiness with which the music & dancing of the fetes seemed to tinge everything animate or inanimate rendered this walk such an one as will not soon be obliterated from the memory. But it was not destined to end there, for on our approaching a wilder range of cliffs & rocks the thunder commenced its peals behind us keeping up a constant succession of rolling reverberations, increasing in volume & mingled with awful flashes of forked lightning. Two of our senses were much gratified thereby but as if it seemed unreasonable to the god of the elements to let us escape without feeling as well as hearing & seeing his power and majesty, for the last two miles of our walk did he pour down upon us his wrath drenching us almost to the skin. It was quite dark on our arrival at Schlayen but we discovered an auberge where we could be lodged. Our landlady had the good sense to light us up a blazing fire while we were changing our dress as far as our scanty wardrobe would allow and we enjoyed our coffee & black bread as we deserved. Our hostess was good humoured & comely with an infant of 15 months at the breast & 8 other children, some of whom waited on us & at some time or other of the evening came in to peep at the English gentlemen who seemed to be an unknown race here. The infant had 6 teeth & Edward could not

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