probably be enabled to describe how we spent our || for my signature in the afternoon. On calling for Christmas and New Year's Day at Copenhagen.it accordingly, I, to my surprise, was informed that Meanwhile, I fervently waft you, dear reader, the good old wish of "A MERRY CHRISTMAS, AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR!" WILLIAM HURTON. AT ANCHOR IN A FIORD OF THE BALTIC, November 29, 1849. II. VOYAGE TO GLUCKSTADT (ON THE ELBE). During a few months in summer and autumn, steamers ply regularly from Hull to St. Petersburgh, and land passengers at Copenhagen. The last steamer sailed this year about the end of October; and as it was nearly the end of November when I wished to depart, it behoved me to consider well what means would be the best to reach Copenhagen, which I proposed for my chief, or, at any rate, my first winter residence. There were only two ways-one to go direct for Copenhagen by sea, in a sailing vessel; and the other to go by steamer to Hamburgh, and thence through SchleswigHolstein to Kiel, and so up the Baltic; otherwise, to go from Hamburgh to Lubeck, and endeavour to get a passage from the small port of Traffemunde, a few miles from the latter place. Now, with regard to the Hamburgh route, it is comparatively a very easy matter in summer time, but to the last degree difficult and utterly uncertain in winter. In the former season, steamers ply from Kiel to Copenhagen, and there are always plenty of sailing vessels also; but in the latter, there are no steamers, and no sailing vessels, big or little, to be depended upon, on account of the harbours, and sometimes vast tracts of the Baltic itself, being frozen up from an early period. Aware of this, I was very anxious to secure a passage direct by sea; and I wrote to Hull, as being by far the most likely place to secure me one in a vessel of any description, and of any nation, but received answer that not one was, just then, "lying on" for the Baltic way, the season being so late. No resource remained but to get to Hamburgh, and I arrived at Leith on Saturday, 24th of November, 1849, and sailed the same evening in the Martello steamer for Hamburgh (distant about 500 miles); myself and a Danish gentleman, named Lofgrén, being the only passengers. he would not make any charge; an unusual fact, which, I believe, I attribute rightly to his taking into consideration what my object in visiting the North of Europe was. At any rate, his kindness deserves acknowledgment. I dearly love the ocean; and mentally did I exclaim, as we swiftly left auld Scotia's shores"Once more upon the waters! yet once more; And the waves bound beneath me as a steed Yes, in the words of Hans Christian Andersen, whose personal acquaintance I hope soon to make"I love the sea when its stormy billows roar; I love it when its waves roll gently to the shore, And the pale moon-beams smile upon its blue expanse." To me the ocean never is monotonous-never presents precisely the same aspect. It was a glorious moonlight Saturday night, with a fine, keen air; and as the Martello dashed onwards, for her last voyage this season, her wheels churned the water into foam resembling snow-flakes, and the wavelets in her long wake glistened like quick, silver. On Sunday the wind blew in our teeth, and grew fiercer and stronger, until the ship pitched and tossed right merrily. I am no curled dandy; and, I am thankful to say, I can always sleep on a soft plank, bite hard biscuits, and relish salt junk—accomplishments which every puking valetudinarian would do well to take lessons in. Wrapped simply in my old sea-cloak, I stretched myself on a locker for the night, as I thought: ah! how many nights, on sea and land, have I enjoyed a sleep which kings and millionaires would envy, with no other bed than that dear old cloak ! things which accompany me in all my wanderings, and are ever by my side-my cloak, my Bible, and my Burns; all three the gift of that fond mother whose eyes will overflow with tears as they devour these lines. Never will I part with either; and perchance it may ultimately be with me as Eliza Cook sweetly sings of a sailor boy, who went to sea with a There are three cloak, his mother's gift, and when, many years afterwards, he was dying in a far-off foreign land, hugged it around him, and expired with the words, "My cloak-thou'rt warmest!" on his lips. I was saying, that, wrapped in my cloak, I had In my verse-making days (don't think that I am turned in for the night. The machinery was groanold now, for that matter, sweet lady), I remembering, the beams and bulks were creaking and shriekpublishing a "bit sang," commencing with the lines ing; the wind was howling, and mercilessly striking the vessel with the force of a battery of mighty sledge-hammers. Yet the only sensation I experienced was a decidedly pleasureable one. My spirits always rise in a storm, and now my soul felt proudly elate; for, somehow, it seemed as though I were brought into direct communion with Him who "holds the ocean in the hollow of His hand;" "A smile on your face, and kind word on your tongue, Will serve you as passports all nations among;" and true enough have I ever found this, among people of foreign nations; but, unhappily, there the exists a State regulation, justly dreaded by all travellers, which requires a formal, written, signed, and sealed piece of paper, called a passport, in" whose way is in the sea," and "whose paths are which your person, address, and occupation are in the great waters;" who "speaks in tempests," described, with more or less accuracy. To secure and "who walks on the wings of the wind." I had mine, I went to the office of the Danish Consul- just fallen asleep, alone and in darkness, a little General at Leith, in the morning, and left him my before midnight, when a tremendous crash awoke French passport from which to make out one for Den-me, and at the same moment the water poured mark, which he politely assured me should be ready down the companion slide-which I had left open -in a perfect cataract, for a full minute. I felt|| Heaven must, indeed, temper both wind and hunger the ship quiver and collapse throughout with the to them! There is a little town perched upon it; stroke; and, knowing it must be a very heavy and during the present century it has sprung up sea she had shipped, sprang up, and with diffi- into considerable reputation as a visiting and culty groped my way to the ladder, at the foot of bathing place for the Hamburghers, who love which the surging water, on the floor of the dark to inhale the fresh air of the stormy North Sea cabin, emitted an extremely beautiful phospho- during the summer months. The dwellings are rescent light. It literally seemed alive with fiery said to be models of neatness, both inside and out; serpents, wreathing and disporting. On emerging and, as locks for doors are unknown, one would on deck, I had the satisfaction to stagger along presume that a primitive state of manners is preknee-deep through the water, to the galley, where valent; and, perhaps, even that blessing of blessings, I dried myself by the fire. the non-existence of any lawyer. Most of the inhabitants, who number two to three thousand, more or less, follow the sea as fishermen, pilots, &c., and have the reputation of being very indolent, and exorbitant in their demands for services. In 1807, Heligoland passed from the possession of Denmark to England, and has belonged to the latter ever since. A garrison of five hundred to a thousand men was maintained until 1821; but now there are, I believe, few or no soldiers, and only a governor During the remainder of the night, the decks were washed fore and aft every few minutes; and mingled hail, rain, snow, and frozen sleet came down on us with the storm-wind. But there was that on board which rose superior to the grandeur and power of the elemental strife-I mean the glorious INTELLECT OF MAN! It was at work also; and wheresoever it laboureth, the mightiest organic elements are conquered, and made blind servitors, instead of tyrannous rulers. Sooth, it is a||(par excellence) who was formerly a captain in the thought that ought, of itself, to elevato mortality beyond the peddling petty cares and figments of worldly life and strife; for oh, what sublime ideas doth it not shadow forth of our future state in the infinitely purer existence which awaits us beyond the grave! Although, ever and anon, the machinery fairly paused to gather strength for the next stroke, yet onward strided the iron ship-cleaving the pathless ocean, and buried, so to speak, in the awe-striking war of nature-her giant fabric sternly and unswervingly bore along perfectly uninjured, as though the Almighty's own finger upheld and guided her on her way. I could not but mentally contrast the present state of nautical knowledge, theoretical and practical, with that of some centuries bygone; and when I balanced this ship, and the way she was handled, with the vessels of, say four hundred years ago, manned by unskilful sailors-creeping along from shore to shore, from headland to headland, and distraught if they happened to get out of sight of land for a few days in the summer months-1 must say that I felt a thrill of proud emotion at the evidence of the noble progression manifest in this, as in every other pursuit to which the human mind has been continuously directed. navy, and has a salary of £1,000 a-year. There is also a clergyman, who is paid £100 a-year by the State. The civil administration of the little territory is said to be sufficiently despotic; but the dwellers are perfectly satisfied with it. As we approached the Elbe, the weather grew bitter cold, and the salt spray froze the moment it fell on board. We passed Cuxhaven, a little way up the river, which, at the mouth, is very wide, and had numbers of vessels, of all nations, sailing or anchoring about it. The coast on both sides the river is low, and apparently uninteresting. Byand-by we could discern the Holstein shore, clothed with snow; and the cold grew so palpably intense, that it became an anxious question as to whether the Elbe would not be found frozen ere we reached Hamburgh, which is eighty miles from the mouth of the former. Doubt was soon exchanged for certainty, for by passing vessels we learned that the river was frozen at Hamburgh that morning, and our pilot decided on our going no further than Gluckstadt, which is on the left bank of the river, in the Duchy of Holstein, and about thirty English miles below Hamburgh. The Martello, accordingly, stopped off the town about 6 P.M., and boats put off from the shore for the passengers. As both myself and Mr. Lofgren were exceedingly desirous to get The weather remained nearly as bad the whole of Monday, but moderated somewhat early on Tues-on to Hamburgh that night if possible, we hailed day morning, although, in the words of the "Ancient Mariner," "And then there came both mist and snow And it grew wondrous cold." A few hours after daybreak, we beheld the first land since leaving Leith, being none other than the celebrated island of Heligoland, which lies far out at sea, and about twenty-five to thirty miles from the mouth of the Elbe. Its name is derived from Heilige-Holy Island. It is little better than a long, desolate rock, rising probably two hundred feet above the level of the sea, with a species of sandy beach on one side, which is parcelled out in a few fields and gardens. There was, a while back, only one cow upon it, but many Friesland sheep; though how they manage to live is a mystery. to know when the train left for the latter place- apparently there was no other means of landing, || a slight and perfectly loose bed, probably filled with as the river was frozen all the way beyond the pier. I climbed gaily enough, despite fingers tingling with cold, and then, stooping down, grasped the hand of my companion, and raised him by my side on the pier of Gluckstadt. III. GLUCKSTADT TO KIEL. down of the eider duck, mixed with feathers of other northern wild fowls. A pillow of the same description supported your head. There were no blankets or any other thing whatever than those I have enumerated; and the whole bed had a steep declination from head to foot. A more comfortable bed than this proved, I would not desire; but, as the reader will perhaps rightly conclude from other parts of my notes, I am any couch would have secured a sound repose after the preceding three rough, sleepless nights. "And having effected your characteristic land-by no means fastidious in this respect, and almost ing," saith my reader, "I suppose Mr. Wanderande Vogel, you were forthwith marched off to undergo the custom-house ordeal-a custom 'better honoured,' to your thinking, 'in the breach than in the observance,' eh?" Softly, dear reader; no such thing. By the blessed law of the Duchies, travellers whose destination is beyond the place they are landed at, are there subjected to no examination whatever, but may walk off, bag and baggage, just as they please. My destination was Copenhagen, and my companion's, Hamburgh; so we were both in the favoured category. Instead of starting for Hamburgh, I had resolved to proceed to Kiel by the first train in the morning; and the result of an overnight conversation with Mr. Lofgrén (a most intelligent young man, who spoke Danish, Swedish, Norwegian, German, and English, with equal facility), was, that he gave me advice and information, and a letter of introduction to his friend, Mr. Marolly, likewise a Dane, and British Consul at Kiel, and I started, accordingly, at 8 A.M., for the railway station, guided by my obliging host, whose house I can conscientiously recommend. * All My first impression on gaining the pier was a vivid idea of the extraordinary contrast of scenery which a few days' swift transit had enabled me to realise. Here I was literally in a new world. around was ice and snow. The latter lay to the depth of perhaps six to nine inches, was fine as dust, and creaked sharply beneath the tread. Overhead hung a cloudless sky, with a brilliant moon, surrounded by a slight halo; and, scattered few and far between, in the gleaming expanse of heaven, were stars of dazzling beauty, which sparkled in the keen air, and, through the purity of the atmospheric medium, seemed to the eye to be enlarged to an unusual size. The boatmen who conveyed us, joined by some amphibious-looking hangers-on, after a long gabble, apportioned our united luggage among themselves, and, so far as I could perceive, for each article there were two able-bodied men, all neine-ing and ya-ing, and stamping together. With this regiment at our heels, we accompanied one Heinrich Falck to his hotel, situated at no great distance from the harbour. Contrary to my expectations, the troop were not very exacting in their demands, and gathered round the bar to swallow the fruits of their labour. We were soon comfortably ensconced in a quaint apartment, with ceiling of planks overhead, and heated, as usual, by a stove. The kitchen strongly reminded me of an English one, and had its rows of plates of the English willow pattern, which is found all the world over. The room in which I slept was a narrow doublebedded one, the tenant of the other bed being a military officer. I may describe the bed, as it was a model of others which I saw in a very respectable hotel in Kiel, and I have no doubt all in the country are similar in fashion, It consisted of a frame, with deep sides of wood, and four posts rising a few inches above the said sides. The bottom of the bed was of planks, and the body was filled level to the top of the sides with straw. Over this straw was simply doubled a strong unbleached homespun sheet, on which you reposed, with a bottle of hot water at your feet, and for covering had One Gluckstadt is the capital of the Duchy of Holstein, and has about 6,000 inhabitants. From the superficial glance I had of it, it appeared to be in no respect remarkable. The most distinguishing feature of the neat houses, to me, was the great number of good-sized windows which each contained. The light of heaven cannot be taxed here. large and curious-looking building, full of large windows, on the opposite side of the harbour, attracted my notice, as we walked along; and I inquired of Falck whether it was not the Town Hall, or some similar building, but was astonished on being told that it was a place appropriated to the confinement of prisoners for life. I asked what crime they had committed to incur this dreadful penalty, and was told that most of them were convicted of manslaying. In answer to further particular inquiry, he assured me that executions for murder were exceedingly rare, and were only inflicted in very aggravated cases. I would willingly have acquired a knowledge of the species of discipline to which these lifecaptives were subjected, had time permitted. Many vessels, including two Greenlandmen belonging to Gluckstadt, were frozen up in the little harbour. At the station I paid for my carpet-bag and *The Duchies of Holstein and Schleswig, the names of which have so recently become familiar with the English public, comprise with that of Lauenburg, altogether a territory of above 8,000 square miles, and a population little short of 800,000 souls. Up to the period of the late war, they were an integral part of the Danish dominions, but speak dialects of the German language, and always have been governed by their own peculiar laws. The largest town in Holstein is Altona, the population of which is 30,000, and consequently next to that of Copenhagen. I do not wish to enter into any political disquisitions here, and need only observe, that at the time I write, a doubtful armistice in the late war, as is well known, by the vast power of Germany. subsists between Denmark and the Duchies, which were backed Their present condition is most anomalous. They, in fact, virtually constitute a republic, having the seat of its Provisional Government and representation at Kiel, and maintain an army has a very large force in these Duchies, but has just threatened of 30,000 men, as I am told on good authority. Prussia yet to withdraw it, and leave Denmark Proper, and the Duchies, to fight it out between themselves, expense. This matter arranged, we dined together at the table d'hote of the Stadt Copenhagen, kept by a good fellow named Carl Heinrich, who humorously described himself to me as being the first citizen of the state (staatsburger). The table was tolerably well supplied; and, with the exception of myself, the guests were nearly all military and civil employées of the Schleswig-Holstein government, who habitually dine there, and meet again for coffee in the morning. trunk, about twopence English each, receiving (as || (if necessary) on my passport, by the captain, it is the system on most continental lines), a ticket, was hoped I should avoid further detention and the corresponding number of which was pasted on them. I took a third-class fare for Kiel, a distance of about sixty English miles, the charge being three shillings English, or only one halfpenny per mile; and I assert, without exaggeration, that the carriages were decidedly more comfortable than secondclass ones generally are in England. In size and internal arrangement, they resembled English thirdclass, and were well lighted with glazed and tightly-fitting windows. The railway itself appeared an excellently made one, constructed, I was told, by Scotch engineers. On starting, the sun shone brightly; and feathery particles of snow drifted like glittering fragments of diamonds across its slanting beams. The rate of speed at which the train proceeded was slow. At Elmshorn, I had to change carriages for Kiel, and staid about half-an-hour at the station, the refreshment room of which is really most elegant; and, although the decorations are probably considerably less expensive (as likewise the structure itself), than those of most English stations, so much pleasing taste is evinced in them, that I wish my own countrymen would condescend to take a pattern. On the route to Kiel, the glimpses obtainable of the surrounding country most strongly reminded me of a well-cultivated flat English county. There were numerous fields, and neat wayside cottages, with occasionally little secluded hamlets. I believe that most Englishmen make the same observation, and say that in other parts of the Duchies the resemblance is still more striking and minute. After dinner, I went forth alone, for a ramble over the town, which is seated on a fiord or firth of the Baltic, and has a population of between 8,000 and 10,000 souls. It has a University, and is the seat of the present Governinent of the Duchies. It is celebrated for its noble canal, navigable by vessels of a considerable size, which connects the Baltic with the German Ocean. I found it a far more lively place than might be expected, with good streets (although rather narrow), and decent, but apparently scantily-stocked, shops of various kinds. The houses seemed well built, with abundance of windows, those on the ground floor being frequently of peculiar shapes. The first floors of the better sorts were generally fitted with folding wings, after the French fashion. The rooms are heated with stoves, and I question whether such a thing as a fire-grate in the English style is to be found in any sittingroom in the place. Some of these stoves are very elegant-locking articles. The large one in Mr. Marolly's sitting-room was about eight feet high, with a handsome gilt statue placed on its square top, and would not have disgraced a London drawing-room. Little stands in his room (which alto but for the snow seen through the large windows, I could have thought myself in a continental apartment in the summer season) sustained glass basins, &c., imbedded in moss and artificial flowers, which had a very pretty effect. Its floor, like all others which I saw in Kiel, was of polished hard wood, much after the Parisian fashion. The stairs were also of similar materials; and carpets are rarely used in any part of the houses. When I arrived at Kiel, I lost no time in going in quest of Mr. Marolly, and after some search suc-gether had such a light, cheery appearance, that, ceeded in finding his residence. By waiting there awhile, I had the pleasure (for such indeed it proved), of making his personal acquaintance. He is a young man, and, as I before mentioned, a Dane, but speaks good English, and is of very superior intelligence. After perusing my letter of introduction, he at once offered his best services, evidently in a most sincere spirit. Having explained to him the object of my journey, and my anxiety to get to Copenhagen as soon as possible, by any There is an immense church, built entirely of means of transit, he considered what to advise. He brick, with a huge square tower, and a very lofty said there were, he thought, only one or two very hexagonal spire. In the market square, foot sollittle vessels bound for Copenhagen, and forthwith diers were on parade, and the number of them to sallied out with me to make inquiries, Having be met with posted as sentinels in the streets, refound the captain of one of them, he bargained on minded me strongly of French towns. They apmy behalf for a passage, as the vessel was to sail peared to be nearly all very young men, being that evening. It was arranged that whatever doubtless levies raised during the late war. Their length short of five days the voyage might prove, physical appearance was good, and they were well I was to stay on board full that time; the Danish dressed, in neat uniforms suitable for the seaquarantine law being still in strict operation, by son. They wore bronze helmets, with a peak, and which not any traveller is permitted to land until brass ornaments. Their arms were musket and he has been five clear days from the last port he || bayonet, and a short straight sword, similar to left. Passing quarantine at Copenhagen, itself is that used by the French troops. Sledges of dif frequently a most expensive affair. Mr. Marolly ferent fashions, occupied by ladies, were rattling told me that in September he had himself to pass through the streets. Some of these elegant vehicles it there for a brief period, and that it cost, him in were drawn by one, and others by two horses, with fees and other expenses, £6 sterling. In some cases a handsome white net-work thrown over their backs, it is far more serious. By remaining on board the and each with a row of three or four little bells vessel five days, and getting the same certified || jingling from a frame on their shoulder-harness. Altogether, I should say that, in the summer season, Kiel must be a very agreeable residence for || those who can dispense with the bustle and luxuries of large cities. In the evening, Mr. Marolly met me by appointment, and brought news that the destination of Captain Pül was changed from Copenhagen to Rudkiobing, in the island of Langeland; whereupon I covenanted anew to go with him to that place, as I could thence manage to reach Copenhagen by sea and land in two or three days. He particularly begged I would be on board by ten P. M. that view I sent a man to take my luggage to the vessel at 8 o'clock; but, to my blank disappointment, he soon returned with the intelligence that worthy Captain Pül, not having the fear of broken promises With A leopard or a bear-skin apron is in front of the| vehicles, and behind projects a stout piece of wood, covered with leather, and about eighteen inches long, which a man holds on by, to balance, and, in some measure, guide the sledge whilst in motion. The children in the streets and outskirts had little rude sledges of their own, on which they were drawing and propelling one another; and, in some instances, a boy, standing upright on a simple piece of plank, about a foot square, with two parallel smooth-edged riders underneath, forced himself over the frosted surface with an iron-spiked shaft, at a considerable speed. Throughout the town, merchandise of every description was being conveyed along on strong sledges. On a piece of frozen water, scores of youths were skating, most of them smoking cigars, which here may be had for a half-before his eyes, had actually sailed already without penny, equal to those which would cost from threepence to sixpence in England. The open air felt most exhilarating when walking briskly, and so keen was it, that five minutes' exposure sufficed to turn my mustache into a frozen mass, by the medium of my congealed breath. The feeling with which the people of Kiel regard the Danish quarrel seemed to me significantly expressed by the fact that, in numerous shop windows, there were various prints representing the explosion of the Danish ship-of-the-line, Christian VIII, and the capture of the Gefion, with appropriate letter-press. me. On this, Mr. Marolly sent for the captain of a Danish craft belonging to, and bound for, Svendborg, in the island of Funen, which was to sail that night. The captain promptly attended, but was evidently most reluctant to take me as a passenger. He started objection after objection; but my powerful friend combated them at every point, and I aided by every suggestion I could think of. Finally, he consented to receive the wanderande vogel aboard his ark for five days or upwards; but he hoped I would lay in a stock of food for myself, as he had nothing but his ordinary ship's provisions. This The lamps which light the streets are large, did not at all suit my views, as I particularly wished handsome oil ones, and are suspended from a light to avail myself of a genuine opportunity, which iron crane fixed to the walls. One end of a small might never occur again, of closely observing the chain, passing over sheaves in blocks, on the under every-day life and fare of that numerous class of his side of the crane, is attached to the top of the Danish Majesty's subjects who "go down to the lamp, and the other end of the chain goes round a sea in ships, and do business on the great waters." small roller, protected from the weather by a box|| I therefore most urgently said that he need not fastened to the wall, with an orifice for a key, by fear of failing to suit me, for I could eat anything, means of which the lamp is lowered or raised for and sleep anywhere. This last bulwark rethe purpose of lighting, &c.; thus obviating the ne- moved, and a bargain being struck on the captain's cessity of ascending by a ladder, which, in the own terms (viz., for my passage and food during slippery state of the streets during the long winter five days a sum equal to only about fifteen shillings months, would be very liable to slip out at the foot. || English, and so many Danish marcs for each day I was interested by this simple and ingenious method, beyond the five), he grew more cordial over a stiff which I had never seen elsewhere. In very narrow glass, and departed with the understanding that I streets, iron bars are linked across, and the lamp would be on board by ten o'clock. is suspended from the centre, and lowered and raised in a similar manner. When he was gone, Mr. Marolly (who frankly said that he himself should by no means relish such a voyage as I was about to undertake), told me that || probably part of the poor fellow's objection to taking me arose from the fact that men of his class frequently did a little smuggling, in which case the presence of a third party was, of course, no desideI laughed, and said I would pledge my word that, ere the voyage was ended, we should be fast friends enough. There is a beautiful promenade, planted with trees, leading from the side of the quay, far away along the shore of the upper part of the wide fiord. I walked a considerable distance upon it, and was pleased with the novel and beautiful prospects it commanded. In some places it rises to a consider-ratum. able height, the snow-wreaths fringing its sides, and the fiord itself, with the opposite shore, presenting picturesque features. Here and there, on the precipitous side next the fiord, are very handsome villas, painted with lively colours, and full of windows. On the promenade near the town was a considerable body of troops exercising. Two or three vessels were building near the quay, at which || of the name. lay a few brigs, and a number of small craft. The chorus of the sailors of one of the largest brigs, as they laboured at discharging her cargo, floated musically on the clear air; and, occasionally, the At the appointed hour, Mr. Marolly saw me on board; and I here cordially thank him for his most friendly exertions on my behalf. Should any British subject require advice or aid in Kiel, he will find in the above gentleman a British consul worthy IV. LIFE AFLOAT IN THE BALTIC-KIEL TO SVENDBORG, IN And what, thinks the reader, was the species of prolonged report of a sportsman's gun was wafted|| craft in which I was to make my first experience mellowly from the opposite shore. |