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66 RIESBECK’S TRAVELS THROUGH GERMANY.”
We left the whirlpool *, which is met with foon after the fall, about twelve to fifteen
paces on the right, without being affected by any of its undulations. Commonly there
is room for more veflels than one to pafs betwixt it and the fhore, without any danger :
fo that when the matter carries his paffengers through it, it is only done to imprefs them
with needlefs terrors. When the water is deepeft and ftrongeft, it cannot fuck in a
veflel carrying a moderate burthen; butis only dangerous to the {mall craft which, obfti-
nately perfift in going through it. As far asI could fee, it is not above twenty/ect in
circumference. ‘To fum up all, neither of thefe places are as dangerous as many parts
of the Mofelle, the Maefe, the Rhone, the Loire, and the Rhine, which yet are com-
monly pafled by without any apprehenfions.
A great variety of circum{tances concur to excite an idea of danger in both thefe parts
of the Danube. Low mechanics are fond of fpeaking of them, and magnifying the
danger, that they may increafe their own importance in having gone through it. Others
more fimple, who come to the place with ftrong conceits of what they are to meet with
there, are fo {truck with the wildnefs of the profpect, and the roaring of the water, that
they begin to quake and tremble before they have feen any thing ;—But the matters of
veflels are thofe who molt effeftually keep up the impofition. They make the paflages.
a pretence for raifing the price of the freight, and when you are paft them, the fteerf-
man goes round with his hat in his hand to colleé&t money from the paffengers, as a re-
ward for having conducted them fafely through fuch perilous fpots. When our mafter
(who yet very well knew how much it was for his intereft to keep up the credit of his
moniters) faw how little attention I paid to them, he affured me, in confidence, that
during the twenty years he had failed the Danube, he had not heard of a fingle acci-
dent. There is infinitely more danger from the many wooden bridges which the vef-
fels muft neceflarily pafs through. The arches of thefe are, for the moft part, fo clofe
to each other, that there is hardly room enough for a large veflel to pafs betwixt them.
The common paflage-boat, which has travellers and valuable wares on board, has nothing
to fear, both becaufe the fides of thefe veffels are fo high, that they cannot eafily fhip
water, and becaufe the people belonging to the veffel, and who are to anfwer for the
goods, take care that they fhall not be expofed to danger; but from the inn at Stein,
where we {topped to take a view of the cloifter of Molk, and the country round about
us, we faw three fhips laden with wood fink under the bridge. The few failors which
were on board jumped into a wherry, and endeavoured to take in as much of the wood,
with which the Danube is covered on every part, as they could. The fides of thefe
fhips are hardly more than a few inchcs higher than the furface of the river, and the
leait joftle they meet with makes them fhip water enough to fink them.
The gatherers of wood are miferable people, who can get nothing by any handicraft.
Their wretched fhips are of no value, and imcafe of accidents, the men can always fave
themfelves on board the finall boats, which they have in tow for the purpofe. Moft of
the mifcarriages are to be afcribed to their wantonnefs.
Throughout the whole of this journey, we met with very good and very cheap inns.
There are no men waiters in thefe parts, but their duty is done by young women, who
feem ready for more fervices than one. ‘There reigns throughout an exceffive cleanli-
nefs, and a high degree of eafe and profperity.
Paris by no means ftrikes the eye fo magnificently as Vienna does, when you approach
the latter by the river. At a diftance of a few miles you firlt difcover the high tower
of St. Stephens, in a narrow vale, through which the ftream winds. The windings of
* The German words are, Wirbel and Strindel, They probably mean one and the fame thing.
the
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