London is a world in itself, as has often been written and, to such an impressible mind as that of Bayard, was a place, replete2 with pleasure and instruction. London instructs by two methods; one by agreeable, and the other by disagreeable examples. Bayard was equally taught by both. There was Westminster Abbey, with its numberless tombs of the talented and noble; and there was the Tower of London, with its dungeons4 and beheading blocks. There were the palatial5 residences of the West End, and there the hovels and holes of the Wych Street district. There were the great mercantile houses of Holborn and Regent Street, and there were the gambling6 dens7 of Drury Lane. There were the magnificent galleries of art, at the Museum, at the Palaces, at Westminster, and at Kensington; and there were the dirty, slimy exhibitions of marred8 humanity along the wharves9 of the Thames. There were the zo?logical wonders of the parks, and[68] there were the dog-shows, and cock-pits of the St. Giles Rookery. There was the palace of the Queen, and there the Old Bailey. There was the office of the “Thunderer” (Daily Times), and there were the attics10 from whence flowed the vilest11 trash that man ever printed. There were Hyde Park, Regent’s Park, St. James Park, and the broad squares; and there were the filthy12 alleys13 and narrow lanes about London Bridge. There were the Rothschilds, and there the poor Micawbers and deserted14 Nicholas Nicklebys. The richest, the poorest, the best, the worst; the most cultivated, and the most ignorant; the most powerful monarch15, and the most degraded fishmongers. Extremes! Extremes that meet in everything there. They all instruct by teaching the beholder16 what he ought to be, and what he ought not to be. One sees much in London that ought not to have been; and, strange to relate, many of the relics connected with such things, are exhibited with great pride. If there is any one thing above all others, for which the American should be thankful, it is for the fact that the dungeon3, the rack, the wheel, the thumbscrew, the guillotine, the gibbet, the headsman’s block, the deadly hates of royalty17, the cruelty of kings, and the jealousy18 of queens, have no place in the history of the Republic of the West. Yet there, somehow, the officials and guides who open to the public the records of the past and show visitors their institutions, give the most prominent places to deeds of horrid[69] cruelty and shameless murders, as if they took pride in such fearful annals. It would seem as if, had our rulers butchered in cold blood their sons and daughters; had they cruelly starved their friends and relatives, we in America would be ashamed of it. It would be regarded as very natural here, if an ancestor was hung and quartered and his head carried about on a pole, to speak of it as seldom as possible. It would appear consistent if, had our national government oppressed the weak, degraded the poor, killed inoffensive captives, and, for selfish ambition, laid waste the cities and fields of an innocent people, we should attempt to bury the remembrance of those deeds so deep as to make a resurrection impossible. But there, in Europe, they appear to revel19 in the hideous20 doings of their ancestors, and will show you where human heads or bands were exhibited, and where noble men and women were persecuted21 to martyrdom, with the air of the circus manager who announces the clown. Who can hear the guide on London Bridge, “Here was posted the bleeding head of Sir William Wallace, the Scotch22 warrior23 and patriot24, while the quarters of his body were at Stirling, Berwick, Perth, and Newcastle,” and not curse, with the deepest feeling, the people who murdered one of the greatest and best of men?
TOWER OF LONDON.
It is clear that these things made a strong impression upon Bayard, for we find him more frequently and more decidedly praising his own land, as he saw more[70] and more of Europe. He saw, also, many of the advantages which European nations enjoy in art, literature, and commerce, and failed not to suggest them to his readers. But, unlike those shallow tourists, who would ape European manners, and think all European institutions should be at once imported here, his patriotic25 regard for the institutions and people of his own land, increased with the desire to benefit them. How reverently26 he speaks of George Washington; how touchingly27 does he speak with the European peasants who accost28 him, of the home of the free beyond the great ocean.
A whole week those young men searched the great city for valuable information. They slept and ate in the rudest of taverns29, and tramped the city with the workmen and the beggars, but they were gathering30 the forces for a useful life. Bayard was filled with the sublimity31 of the mighty32 human torrent33 that, like a tide, rolls into London in the morning, dashes about the highways during the day, and surges outward at night. He felt the grandeur34 of St. Paul’s, the conflicting and exciting associations of Westminster, the marvellous feat35 of tunnelling under the Thames, the enormous wealth of churches, monuments, halls, and galleries, and carried away with him to the Continent a very complete idea of the institutions and the queer customs of the great metropolis36.
From London, the party proceeded to Dover, and from thence to Ostend and Bruges. They travelled in[71] the cheapest manner, walking wherever practicable, and going from Bruges to Ghent in a canal-boat, thence by railroad across the border to Aix-la-Chapelle. Here was another treat. The description which he gave in his letters of his visit to the old Cathedral, where rest the remains37 of Charlemagne, was one of the most vivid recitals39 to be found in the annals of travel. For some reason, he so abridged40 it in his book, as to take away the finest and most original delineations. Every reader of his first narration41, who may never have visited Aix-la-Chapelle, can in imagination see the old Cathedral, with its shrines42, its antique windows, and the shadows of saints on the floor, and hear the sweet undulations of the organ’s solemn peal43. While to the traveller who follows him through those aisles44, and under those magnificent arches, his words give life and language to the pillars, altars, and luminous46 decorations. To the least poetic47 or sentimental48 of travellers, it is a solemn place; and if so to them, how deep and impressive must it have been to a soul so full of emotion as that of Bayard! There he wrote his well-known poem, “The Tomb of Charlemagne.”
This grand old pile was succeeded next day by the great Gothic Cathedral, at Cologne, which was not then finished, is not now completed, and will never see the end of the mason’s labors50, because the time taken in the construction is so long that the very stone decays, and must be replaced at the base by the time the delicate tracery of the towers is set on those skyward[72] heights. The structure must be constantly in process of reconstruction51, from the bottom, upwards52. When Bayard looked upon this wonderful building, which since 1248 had been in an uncompleted state, two hundred and fifty years having been spent in active labor49, he said it impressed him most deeply, by way of comparison. Two hundred and forty years before America was discovered, the foundations of that church were laid, and here they are working on it still! By such lessons is an American made to know his place in the history of the world. Had the history of these old lands been less barbarous and cruel, we should feel humble53 indeed. But in view of what the old folks have done, we may be thankful that we are young, and have our record yet to write. But the fact that we are not so old, so great, so artistic54, or so cultured as we have flattered ourselves, is wholesome55 information, and as taught by these old Cathedrals of Europe, is very necessary to the success of our young men. How deeply these things moved Bayard, is seen by the very frequent mention we find in his writings, of aisle45, or arch, or dome56, or spire57.
But one of the most attractive spots to that young voyager, in all his wanderings in Europe, he saw while going up the Rhine, from Cologne to Mayence. He viewed with satisfaction the vineyards and villages along the banks; he was charmed with the crags and crumbling58 towers of the innumerable old castles which ornament59 the tops of all the most prominent hills and[73] mountains. The walled cities, the legendary60 caves and grottos61, the most exquisite62 fables63 that account for the miraculous64 construction of cliff, and convent, and crusaders’ halls, all came upon him as he glided65 by them on the muddy river, as dreams come to the drinker of hashish. But beyond all these in interest to our young wanderer, was the little walled town of Boppart, whose feudal66 history is nearly lost, but whose romantic connection with Longfellow’s “Hyperion,” has given it a fresh lease of life. Bayard there recalled his life at home, and his days of anxious waiting; for, had not this same “Hyperion,” with entrancing interest, spurred on his hope to one day travel along the Rhine? Had not this same “Hyperion” given the impulse that started his cousin on such a great journey to the university at Heidelberg? And were not those houses in the town of Boppart, and was not that cottage the very Inn of the “Star,” and might not that woman, near the shore, be “Paul Flemming’s” boatwoman? Oh! grand and revered67 Longfellow! when we note how many a life, like these, has turned upon the reading of your inspired words, one feels as if to have seen your face and heard your voice, and to have been beneath the same roof, was an honor greater than kings could bestow68!
But Boppart, Lurlei Berg, Oberwisel, Bingen, and Geisenheim were soon left behind, and Mayence, with its Cathedral six centuries old, its walls and fortresses69, welcomed them to its monotonous70 shades.
[74]
A beautiful trait of Bayard’s character comes gracefully71 into view as we read his grateful acknowledgments of the kindnesses he received. On his first walk in his apprentice72 days, in Pennsylvania, having determined73 to see some mountains, although he had to walk two hundred miles to view them, he was kindly74 served at a well, on the way, by a farmer’s girl, who cheerfully drew the bucket from the well and ran for a glass, that he, a dusty, thirsty stranger, might drink without further fatigue75; and in his later years he records the fact in his book, with the sweetest expressions of thankfulness. So when he arrived at Frankfort, and was kindly received and entertained by Mr. Richard S. Willis, the American consul76, brother of Bayard’s old friend, Nathaniel P. Willis, he sits down at once, and in his letters to his friends, and in his public correspondence, he speaks of the generosity77 and thoughtfulness of his old friend, and the hospitable78 and cultured characteristics of his new friend. They were noble friends, who made for him a home at their fireside in Frankfort, and deserve the thanks of every admirer of Bayard Taylor. His thanks they had throughout a long life, and not only thanks, but grateful deeds.
It was Bayard’s purpose to go to Heidelberg, with his cousin, and give himself to close study, at the University, or with private tutors; but just how he was going to obtain the means to pay his expenses was something of an enigma79. It may be that his good fortune in the outset made him too confident and[75] careless in regard to other undertakings80. At all events, his stay in Heidelberg was much shorter than he had at first intended that it should be, and his studies were much more broken and superficial than his letters show he thought they would be. He was not constituted for close, hard, metaphysical study, and made but little attempts in that direction, after he arrived at Heidelberg. He loved the grand old Castle better than the whittled81 benches of the University. He enjoyed the Kaisersthul and the lesser82 mountains, far more than the monotonous recital38 of German theories. The river Neckar called him in its murmurs83, the clouds beckoned84 to him as they flew over the Heligen Berg, the wind called for him as it sighed around the vineyards of Ziegelhausen, and all thoughts of private, quiet study fled at the summons. So he climbed the mountains. It was always a passion with him to gain an altitude as high as possible, and look out upon the world. He tells how, when a boy, he ventured out of a chamber85 window in the old farm-house at Kennett, and seeing a row of slats which the carpenters had used for steps in ascending86 the roof, he sallied forth87, and there astride of the roof, gained his first view of a landscape. He said afterward88, that the roof appeared to be so high and the view so extensive, that he imagined he could see Niagara Falls. Whether this inclination89 to climb up came to him through the stories of his old Swiss nurse, whose bed-time stories were of the mighty Alps and their towering cones90, or whether[76] it was an hereditary91 trait in his nature, none may be able to decide. He was certainly prone92 to go upwards, and had a tendency, for horizontal motion equally as strong. He would not remain stationary93; hence, at Heidelberg, he inspected every nook and crevice94 of the picturesque95 old Castle, crouched96 through its conduits, rapped its ponderous97 tun, scaled its roofless and crumbling walls, rushed into the recesses98 of the adjacent thickets99, and tested the celebrated100 beer at the students’ resorts. He joined excursion parties which visited the neighboring mountains, and after he had been there a month, he knew the fields, rocks, trees, valleys, dells, and peaks, as well as a native, and appears to have loved them with a patriotic regard almost equal to the eldest101 burgher.
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1
relics
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| [pl.］n.遗物，遗迹，遗产；遗体，尸骸 | |
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replete
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| adj.饱满的，塞满的；n.贮蜜蚁 | |
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dungeon
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| n.地牢，土牢 | |
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dungeons
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| n.地牢( dungeon的名词复数 ) | |
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palatial
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| adj.宫殿般的，宏伟的 | |
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gambling
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| n.赌博；投机 | |
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dens
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| n.牙齿，齿状部分；兽窝( den的名词复数 )；窝点；休息室；书斋 | |
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marred
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| adj. 被损毁, 污损的 | |
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wharves
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| n.码头，停泊处( wharf的名词复数 ) | |
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attics
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| n. 阁楼 | |
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vilest
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| adj.卑鄙的( vile的最高级 )；可耻的；极坏的；非常讨厌的 | |
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filthy
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| adj.卑劣的；恶劣的，肮脏的 | |
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alleys
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| 胡同，小巷( alley的名词复数 )； 小径 | |
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deserted
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| adj.荒芜的，荒废的，无人的，被遗弃的 | |
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monarch
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| n.帝王，君主，最高统治者 | |
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beholder
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| n.观看者，旁观者 | |
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royalty
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| n.皇家，皇族 | |
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jealousy
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| n.妒忌，嫉妒，猜忌 | |
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revel
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| vi.狂欢作乐，陶醉；n.作乐，狂欢 | |
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hideous
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| adj.丑陋的，可憎的，可怕的，恐怖的 | |
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persecuted
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| （尤指宗教或政治信仰的）迫害(~sb. for sth.)( persecute的过去式和过去分词 )； 烦扰，困扰或骚扰某人 | |
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scotch
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| n.伤口，刻痕；苏格兰威士忌酒；v.粉碎，消灭，阻止；adj.苏格兰(人)的 | |
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warrior
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| n.勇士，武士，斗士 | |
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patriot
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| n.爱国者，爱国主义者 | |
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patriotic
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| adj.爱国的，有爱国心的 | |
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reverently
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| adv.虔诚地 | |
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touchingly
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| adv.令人同情地，感人地，动人地 | |
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accost
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| v.向人搭话，打招呼 | |
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taverns
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| n.小旅馆，客栈，酒馆( tavern的名词复数 ) | |
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gathering
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| n.集会，聚会，聚集 | |
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sublimity
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| 崇高，庄严，气质高尚 | |
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mighty
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| adj.强有力的；巨大的 | |
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torrent
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| n.激流，洪流；爆发，(话语等的)连发 | |
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grandeur
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| n.伟大，崇高，宏伟，庄严，豪华 | |
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feat
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| n.功绩；武艺，技艺；adj.灵巧的，漂亮的，合适的 | |
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metropolis
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| n.首府；大城市 | |
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remains
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| n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹 | |
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recital
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| n.朗诵，独奏会，独唱会 | |
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recitals
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| n.独唱会( recital的名词复数 )；独奏会；小型音乐会、舞蹈表演会等；一系列事件等的详述 | |
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abridged
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| 削减的，删节的 | |
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narration
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| n.讲述，叙述；故事；记叙体 | |
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shrines
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| 圣地，圣坛，神圣场所( shrine的名词复数 ) | |
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peal
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| n.钟声；v.鸣响 | |
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44
aisles
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| n. (席位间的)通道, 侧廊 | |
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aisle
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| n.（教堂、教室、戏院等里的）过道，通道 | |
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46
luminous
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| adj.发光的，发亮的；光明的；明白易懂的；有启发的 | |
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poetic
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| adj.富有诗意的，有诗人气质的，善于抒情的 | |
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sentimental
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| adj.多愁善感的，感伤的 | |
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49
labor
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| n.劳动，努力，工作，劳工；分娩；vi.劳动，努力，苦干；vt.详细分析；麻烦 | |
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50
labors
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| v.努力争取(for)( labor的第三人称单数 )；苦干；详细分析；（指引擎）缓慢而困难地运转 | |
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51
reconstruction
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| n.重建，再现，复原 | |
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52
upwards
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| adv.向上，在更高处...以上 | |
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53
humble
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| adj.谦卑的，恭顺的；地位低下的；v.降低，贬低 | |
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54
artistic
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| adj.艺术(家)的，美术(家)的；善于艺术创作的 | |
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wholesome
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| adj.适合；卫生的；有益健康的；显示身心健康的 | |
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56
dome
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| n.圆屋顶，拱顶 | |
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spire
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| n.(教堂)尖顶，尖塔，高点 | |
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crumbling
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| adj.摇摇欲坠的 | |
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ornament
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| v.装饰，美化；n.装饰，装饰物 | |
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legendary
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| adj.传奇（中）的，闻名遐迩的；n.传奇（文学） | |
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grottos
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| n.（吸引人的）岩洞，洞穴，（人挖的）洞室( grotto的名词复数 ) | |
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exquisite
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| adj.精美的；敏锐的；剧烈的，感觉强烈的 | |
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fables
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| n.寓言( fable的名词复数 )；神话，传说 | |
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miraculous
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| adj.像奇迹一样的，不可思议的 | |
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glided
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| v.滑动( glide的过去式和过去分词 )；掠过；（鸟或飞机 ） 滑翔 | |
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feudal
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| adj.封建的，封地的，领地的 | |
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revered
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| v.崇敬，尊崇，敬畏( revere的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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bestow
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| v.把…赠与，把…授予；花费 | |
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fortresses
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| 堡垒，要塞( fortress的名词复数 ) | |
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monotonous
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| adj.单调的，一成不变的，使人厌倦的 | |
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71
gracefully
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| ad.大大方方地；优美地 | |
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apprentice
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| n.学徒，徒弟 | |
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determined
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| adj.坚定的；有决心的 | |
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kindly
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| adj.和蔼的，温和的，爽快的；adv.温和地，亲切地 | |
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fatigue
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| n.疲劳，劳累 | |
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76
consul
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| n.领事；执政官 | |
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77
generosity
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| n.大度，慷慨，慷慨的行为 | |
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78
hospitable
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| adj.好客的；宽容的；有利的，适宜的 | |
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enigma
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| n.谜，谜一样的人或事 | |
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undertakings
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| 企业( undertaking的名词复数 )； 保证； 殡仪业； 任务 | |
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81
whittled
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| v.切，削（木头），使逐渐变小( whittle的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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lesser
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| adj.次要的，较小的；adv.较小地，较少地 | |
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83
murmurs
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| n.低沉、连续而不清的声音( murmur的名词复数 )；低语声；怨言；嘀咕 | |
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84
beckoned
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| v.（用头或手的动作）示意，召唤( beckon的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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chamber
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| n.房间，寝室；会议厅；议院；会所 | |
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ascending
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| adj.上升的，向上的 | |
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forth
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| adv.向前；向外，往外 | |
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afterward
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| adv.后来；以后 | |
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inclination
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| n.倾斜；点头；弯腰；斜坡；倾度；倾向；爱好 | |
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cones
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| n.（人眼）圆锥细胞；圆锥体( cone的名词复数 )；球果；圆锥形东西；（盛冰淇淋的）锥形蛋卷筒 | |
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hereditary
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| adj.遗传的，遗传性的，可继承的，世袭的 | |
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prone
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| adj.(to)易于…的，很可能…的；俯卧的 | |
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stationary
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| adj.固定的，静止不动的 | |
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94
crevice
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| n.(岩石、墙等)裂缝；缺口 | |
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picturesque
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| adj.美丽如画的，（语言）生动的，绘声绘色的 | |
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crouched
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| v.屈膝，蹲伏( crouch的过去式和过去分词 ) | |
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ponderous
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| adj.沉重的，笨重的，(文章)冗长的 | |
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98
recesses
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| n.壁凹( recess的名词复数 )；（工作或业务活动的）中止或暂停期间；学校的课间休息；某物内部的凹形空间v.把某物放在墙壁的凹处( recess的第三人称单数 )；将（墙）做成凹形，在（墙）上做壁龛；休息，休会，休庭 | |
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99
thickets
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| n.灌木丛( thicket的名词复数 )；丛状物 | |
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celebrated
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| adj.有名的，声誉卓著的 | |
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101
eldest
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| adj.最年长的，最年老的 | |
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