A Thousand Miles in the Rob Roy Canoe on Rivers and Lakes of EuropeMacGregor, John
History
A Thousand Miles in the Rob Roy Canoe on Rivers and Lakes of Europe
MacGregor, John
Canoes and canoeing -- Europe; Europe -- Description and travel; History -- Miscellanea; MacGregor, John, 1825-1892 -- Travel -- Europe
With some exertion we got it up by a better way, and safely locked it in
the cowhouse of another establishment, and there I was made thoroughly
comfortable. They said they had nothing to eat but kirchwasser, bread,
and eggs, and how many eggs would I like? so I said, "To begin with,
ten," and I ate them every one. By this time the priest had come; they
often used to send for the _prester_ to do the talk. The large room soon
got full, and the sketch-book was passed round, and an India-rubber band
made endless merriment for the smaller fry, all in the old routine, the
very mention of which it may be tedious to hear of so often, as indeed
it was to me to perform.
But then in each case it was _their_ first time of going through the
performance, and they were so kind and courteous one could not refuse to
please such people. The priest was very communicative, and we tried to
converse in Latin, for my German was not good enough for him nor his
French for me. But we soon agreed that it was a long time since our
schoolboy Latin days, though I recollect having had long conversations
in Latin with a monk at Nazareth, but there we had ten days together,
and so had time to practise.
Thus ended the 1st of September, the only occasion on which I had to
"rough it" at all during the voyage; and even then, it may be seen, the
very small discomforts were all the results of gross want of prudence on
my own part, and ended merely by a hard day's work with breakfast and
dinner merged into a late supper. My bill here was 3_s._ 6_d._, the day
before, 4_s._ 6_d._, including always wine and luxuries.
CHAPTER VI.
Day-dream--River Iller--Ulm--A stiff king--Lake
Constance--Seeing in the dark--Switzerland--Coloured
Canvas--Sign talk--Synagogue--Amelia--Gibberish.
The threatening rain had not come during the night, and it was a lovely
morning next day, like all the rest before and after it; and as we were
leaving this place I found it was called Gegglingen,[XV.] and was only
nine miles from Ulm.
[XV.] It will be noticed how the termination "_ingen_" is common
here. Thus in our water route we have passed Donaueschingen, Geisingen,
Mehringen, Tuttlingen, Friedingen, Sigmaringen, Riedlingen, Ehingen,
Dischingen, and Gegglingen, the least and last. In England we have the
"ing" in Dorking, Kettering, &c.
The lofty tower of the Cathedral of this town soon came in view, but I
noticed it without any pleasure, for this was to end my week on the
Danube; and in my ship's log it is entered as "one of the most pleasant
weeks of my life for scenery, health, weather, exercise, and varied
adventure."
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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