"We enter Vienna in a few hours, and the country is here extremely agreeable; the fine plains of the Danube began about thirty miles above, and continued down, through Austria, Hungary, &c. till it falls into the Black Sea. The river is very magnificent. Thus we have finished a very agreeable journey of 860 miles (for so far is Vienna from the Hague,) have past through many a prince's territories, and have had more masters than many of these princes have subjects. Germany is undoubtedly a very fine country, full of industrious honest people; and were it united, it would be the greatest power that ever was in the world. The common people are here, almost every where, much better treated, and more at their ease, than in France; and are not very much inferior to the English, notwithstanding all the airs the latter give themselves. There are great advantages in travelling, and nothing serves more to remove prejudices; for I confess I had entertained no such advantageous idea of Germany; and it gives a man of humanity pleasure to see that so considerable a part of mankind as the Germans are in so tolerable a condition." "_Vienna, 15th April._ "The last week was Easter week, and every body was at their devotions, so that we saw not the court nor the emperor and empress, till yesterday, when we were all introduced by Sir Thomas Robinson.[257:1] They are a well-looked couple, the emperor has a great air of goodness, and his royal consort of spirit. Her voice, and manner, and address are the most agreeable that can be, and she made us several compliments on our nation. She is not a beauty; but, being a sovereign, and a woman of sense and spirit, no wonder she has met such extraordinary support from her subjects, as well as from some other nations of Europe. However, the English gallantry towards her is a little relaxed; and the King of Sardinia is their present favourite. She begged of the general not to be so much her enemy as his predecessor, General Wentworth, had been. He replied, that a perfect impartiality was recommended him by the king, his master; and that he was resolved to preserve it, though he confessed that was difficult for a person who had had the honour of having had access to her imperial majesty.