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122 ; RIESBECK’S TRAVELS THROUGH GERMANY,
populous than the latter. When you fee the farmer here force his nourifhment from
the almoft bare rocks, and think of the beautiful plains in Hungary that lay wafte and
uncultivated, the value of property and liberty ftrixes you in its full force. Thefe
countries and Auftria are not half as large as Hungary, and yet they not only yield a
much greater revenue than that does, but there is an appearance of eafy circumfiances
throughout, of which the Hungarians have no notion. O that governors would but
fee how much the intereft of the governed is united with their own!
The characteriftic of the inhabitants of all this country is ftriking bigotry, united with
ftriking fenfuality. You need only fee what is going forwards here to be convinced,
that the religion taught by the monks, is as ruinous for the morals as it is repugnant to
Chriftianity. ‘The Cicifbeos accompany the married women from their beds to church,
and lead them to the very confeflional. ‘The pilgrimage to Mariazell is a ceremony halt
religious and half profane, with which the ladies of Gratz are highly delighted. ‘Their
lovers generally accompany them there; in fhort, it is to the people of this country
what Bath, and the other water-drinking places, are to the reft of Europe. A friend
of mine bad the honour to accompany a lady who went there with her lover. As it
was expected that the next day, being the feaft of the Virgin, there would-be great
crowds at confeflion, the lady was afked, whether it would not be better to expedite
matters over night: “ No,” anfwered the, “ for if I do, I fhall have to confefs again to-
morrow morning, before I can go to the facrament with a pure confcience.” She was
preffed to anticipate a confeflion, but this it feems would not do. The women of fafhion
make no more {cruple of {peaking of their lovers in public companies than thofe of Vi-
enna do. A cici/beo is, it feems, as much the fafhion as Hungary water. The women
of this place are not like the French ones, who let their lovers languifh a great while ;
on the contrary, they are eafily gained. Their lovers are chiefly officers, or high
churchmen, between which orders, on this account, there is a conftant rivality and
jealoufy.
The bigotry of the public in thefe parts, which, from the mixture of gallantry with
it, is {till to be found even among{t people of rank, degenerates amongit the common
people into the grofleft and moft abominable buffoonery. ‘The Windes, who are mixed
with the Germans in thefe countries, diftinguifh themfelves by a fuperftitious cuftom,
that does little honour to the human underftanding, and would be incredible, if we had
not the moft unequivocal proofs of the fact before our eyes. Many years ago, they fet
out, in company with fome Hungarian enthufiafts, to Cologne on the Rhine, which is
about one hundred and twenty German miles diltant, to cut off the beard of a crucifix
there. Every feven years this operation is repeated, as in this {pace of time the beard
grows again to its former length. The rich perfons of the affociation fend the poorer
ones as their deputies, and the magiftrates of Cologne receive them as ambaffadors from
a foreign prince. They are entertained at the expence of the ftate, and a counfellor
fhews them the moft remarkable things in the town. I know not whether we ought to
laugh moft at the remote town of Cologne, or at thofe poor peafants. There is, in-
deed, fome excufe for the former, as the farce brings in large fums of money at {tated
times, and may therefore deferve political encouragement, but ftill, however, it is the
moft miferable and meanelt way of gain that can be imagined. ‘hele MWindes have
alone the right to fhave our Saviour, and the beard grows only for them. They firmly
believe, that if they did not do this fervice to the crucifix, the earth would be fhut to
them for the next feven years, and there would be no harvefts. For this reafon they
are obliged to carry the hair home with them, as the proof of having fulfilled their com-
miffion, the returns of which are diftributed amongft the different communities, and
4 preferved
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