SUBSCRIPTIONS TO PEACE OBJECTS. ENLARGEMENT OF THE PEACE SOCIETY'S PREMISES. THE Committee feel truly grateful to their friends, for the kind liberality with which they have responded to the Appeal on behalf of the above object. The building is now in progress, and, it is hoped, will be completed and fit for occupation in the course of a few weeks. The sum already promised towards the expenses amounts to about one-half of what is required; and the Committee venture again respectfully to call the attention of such of their friends who have not yet contributed, to the importance of avoiding either contracting a debt, or trenching on the annual income of the Society for this purpose. And as part of the builder's contract is already paid, and the remainder will be payable immediately on the 'completion of the building, it is desirable that there should be as little delay as possible in forwarding the necessary aid, so as to enable the Committee to take possession of their New Offices free from all incumbrance. SUBSCRIPTIONS TO THE BUILDING FUND. Anonymous, by Mr. Jos. Cooper... .... Morland, John, Esq. ...... A Female Friend, of Ipswich 5 .. 4133222121 0 Clark, Mrs. Elizabeth 3 0 0 Sterry, Joseph, jun... 00" A Peace Offering" ....10 13 Mr. A. R. Fewster ..... .. 0 Miss Emma Clarence quarters) 27 17 0 10 AUXILIARIES. Aberdeen, by Mr. A. Wigham. 29666650 0 10 0 10 Cash, Mr. Joseph..... Lincoln, by Mr. T. Pickslay. 0 0 0 0 0 Atkins, Mr. Arthur 9 Doughty, Mr. Penny, Mr. Pickslay, Mr. Thomas .... 0 0 2 0 .. Totton, by Mr. Samuel Neave. Sharp, Miss M. J. 0 Sharp, Miss F.. 0 Sharp, Mr. William 0 Miss Caroline Marriage .... 0 10 0 10 6 Sharp, Mr. Richard 6 Stevens, Rev. G. All Remittances should be made payable to Mr. ALEXANDER BROCKWAY, 19, New Broad-street, City. 0 Stanley, Mr. William, Horse 026 hay 0 10 .... 100 0 Stephenson, Mrs., Shrews bury Ward, Mr. John 0 5 0 10 Mary .... 0 10 0 10 0 10 6 0. 10 6 .... 1 0 THE HERALD OF PEACE. "Put up thy sword into his place: for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword.”—MAT. xxvi. 52. They shall beat their swords into plough-shares, and their spears into pruning-hooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more."-ISAIAH ii. 4. No. II. NEW SERIES.] THE CLENCHED-FIST ARGUMENT. AUGUST, 1850. We have promised to examine some of the objections most commonly urged against the principles of the Peace Society, or rather against the practical application of those principles (for few deny their abstract excellence) to the actual affairs of human life. There are some of them of a nature so peculiar, that it would be difficult to believe they can be seriously meant, did we not find that they are gravely employed by grave and reverend men, whom no one can suspect of either frivolity or fun. How frequently one encounters in society such an argument as this :-" No doubt Christianity teaches that we should forbear revenge, and suffer rather than inflict wrong; but suppose a robber were to break into my house, and plunder my property, or place in jeopardy my life, or that of my children, do you think I would not blow his brains out or run him through, if I had the means to do so? Yes!" exclaims the valiant and excited objector, striking his clenched fist with great emphasis on the table," that I would, and without any hesitation too!" Now the oddity of the thing is, that you will find Christian men who will use this kind of language with an air of triumphant complacency, and look round with an exulting smile, as though they had said something eminently wise and conclusive; as though they had, in fact, disposed of the whole question by this clenched-fist argument. If many intelligent and estimable persons whom we have heard indulge in this strain, were to see the reasoning here implied reduced to a naked logical form, they would be the first to acknowledge its extreme absurdity. For what, in fact, when divested of the sort of swagger which gives it effect, is its meaning and value? Why, just this-that they convert the presumed certainty of their doing a thing in given circumstances, into a sufficient proof that the thing itself is morally right. Is it not perfectly clear, that the brutal boast of the slavedealer, who says, in answer to your assertion of the essential equality of all men in the sight of God-" What! do you think that if one of my niggers were to attempt to place himself on a level with me, I would not flog him within an inch of his life?" has precisely the same kind and the same amount of force, as an argument, as the one we have first cited? Both proceed on the arrogant and preposterous assumption, that an act which they might be tempted to commit under the vehement impulse of passion, must necessarily be right and just. The answer is obvious and conclusive, and it is this-The question is not what you would do, but what you ought to do. It is a very striking illustration, indeed, of the ferocity of spirit produced by long familiarity with the lex talionis, which the practice of war has substituted for the law of love and forgiveness prescribed by the gospel, that devout and religious men can bring themselves to gloat and triumph over such a contingency as the one supposed in the preceding argument, -the summary and violent slaughter of one of their fellowmen. One might ask such parties to reflect and analyse their own feelings at the moment when they are contemplating, with so much satisfaction, this hypothetical catastrophe which their objection assumes, and inquire, Whether the flushed countenance, and flashing eye, and dilated nostrils, and menacing gesture, which usually accompany and enforce such language, derive their inspiration from a Christian source, or from sources far other than Christian? Our great dramatic poet, with that admirable knowledge of human nature which gives to his poetical delineations the value and exactness of scientific facts, makes a warrior, in addressing his men on the eve of battle, say— "When the blast of war blows in your ears, Let it pry through the portage of the head Like the brass cannon; let the brow o'erwhelin it; There cannot be a doubt, that, for the accomplishment of his object, this military commander was perfectly right in exhorting his soldiers to assume as much as possible of the feelings and attitude of a beast of prey. But it has, we confess, awakened strange thoughts in our bosom when we have seen, for instance, a Christian minister, while imagining himself shooting or stabbing a fellow-man, "imitate the action of the tiger" swelling his chest, stiffening his sinews, grinding his teeth, and clenching his fist, and we have asked ourselves-Is the spirit that produces such effects as these that which pervaded the Sermon on the Mount? Is it in harmony, or in direct and palpable antagonism, we will not say with particular precepts, but with the whole tone and tenor of Christianity? Can we, by any effort of imagination, conceive of Him who gave us an ensample, that we might follow his footsteps, exhibiting such emotions and attitudes? Or, were it allowable to indulge such a supposition, can we doubt for an instant, that if He were personally to appear in the place, and at the same moment, where some of his own ministers are declaring, with inflamed countenances and elevated voice, how unhesitatingly they would shoot or stab the supposed robber, that his calm and gentle voice would be heard to repeat once more the rebuke-" Ye know not what spirit ye are of?" We have heard an anecdote related of two great men engaged in conversation on this subject,-Dr. Williams, of Rotherham, and the Rev. Andrew Fuller. The former held the principles of the Peace Society, and the latter engaged in a discussion with him on the point now in haud, and, sigབ nifying his dissent, exclaimed, "If a highwayman were to stop me on the road, I would shoot him dead on the spot!" "Any villain could do that!" was Dr. Williams's reply. This answer is not only witty and most pertinent, but it contains, in a few words, both a powerful argument and a keen rebuke. To shoot a man dead is, no doubt, a very summary method of solving a question of moral casuistry. But is it the distinctively Christian method? It is supposed that holding principles of a nature peculiarly elevated and spiritual, we, as Christians, by our profession, are liable to have the question asked, "What do ye more than others?” It is very clear that it requires no eminent Christian qualification to enable a man in an excess of cowardly terror to shoot or stab a human being. "Any villain could do that!" The most impious and unprincipled ruffian that ever breathed could perform such an act as well, nay, indeed far better, than the most religious and devout believer. For, notwithstanding the flourish and bravado with which good men declare in conversation their readiness to act thus, they would find that to spill the blood of a fellow-man, and send his soul, all reeking with crime and guilt, into the presence of God, was not so easy a thing for them to do. An instinctive horror of the deed would hold back their hand. There are, according to their belief, issues and consequences too solemn and momentous involved in the death of a human being, under such circumstances, to allow them really to feel that it is so trivial a thing as this sort of conversational braggadocio implies. "But supposing," we might go on to argue, "that you could do this with as steady a hand, and as cool and unconcerned an air, as the most practised assassin, is this anything of which you as a Christian can boast? Is there nothing which in such an emergency you can do, to distinguish you from the lowest ruffians of the race? Can you do this other thing, which the latter could not do? Can you control your own passions of terror and revenge? Can you, under the influence of high Christian principle, and in confident reliance upon Divine protection, command the mastery over your spirit so as to save it from that selfish panic, which is the parent not of courage, but of a mean and cowardly, cruelty? Can you, in such a moment of excitement and alarm, possess reflection enough to contemplate with compassion the moral depravity of your wretched assailant, and to anticipate with horror the eternal doom to which you must precipitate him if you take away his life? Can you expose your own life to hazard rather than run the risk of committing a murder, or incur the terrible responsibility of cutting short by violence the probation of an immortal being, and of carrying on your hands to the grave the rank smell of human blood, "which not all the perfumes of Arabia could sweeten?" Can you, instead of rushing hastily and rashly to the use of carnal weapons, which is far more likely to exasperate your antagonist than to prove any certain defence to yourself, calmly appeal to his reason and conscience, and thereby perhaps not only save a life, but save a soul? And all this failing, can you, when smitten, refuse to smite again, and say, in anticipation of impending death from the hand of wickedness, "Father, lay not this sin to his charge?" This were something for a Christian, we will not say to boast of, but to dwell upon with humble thankfulness and complacency. And, for our part, we are as convinced as we are of our own consciousness, that this course would not only be more worthy of a Christian's principles and profession, but far more safe. Violence begets violence; and there are instances innumerable where the midnight marauder intending only to rob, has, by resistance, been provoked to murder; while, on the other hand, the defenceless and unarmed have at least had their life given them as a prey, though they may have been despoiled of a portion of their property. Everywhere do we meet with illustrations that the words of our Divine Master had not a partial or local, but a universal and perpetual application-" Put up the sword into its sheath, for all they that take the sword shall perish with the sword." THE FRANKFORT CONGRESS. MOST of our readers, we may presume, are acquainted by this time with the outline of the arrangements for the Congress, so far at least as they have been published in the following circular. following circular. But that none may remain without the means of informing themselves of the necessary particulars, as well as to place the document on permanent record, we introduce it into the HERALD, in the hope that our friends will, without delay, decide on forming a part of this great demonstration in favour of Universal Peace. The Committee are supervising, with the most anxious care and watchfulness, all the arrangements for the delegation and visitors; and we can assure the friends of Peace throughout the empire, that nothing will be wanting on their part to render this Congress the most efficient and satisfactory of all that have yet been held :PEACE CONGRESS COMMITTEE, DEAR SIR, 19, NEW BROAD STREET, July 8th, 1850. THE direct authorization of the German Senate for holding the Peace Congress at Frankfort-on-the-Maine, having been obtained, and the time being fully come for making the arrangements for the appointment of a suitable delegation to that Congress, I beg to direct your attention to the following recommendations of the Committee, which will serve as a guide to the friends of the movement in the selection of proper persons to represent them on that occasion. There is reason to believe that the forthcoming Congress will be the most important one that has yet been held; it is consequently of the highest moment that the delegation from Great Britain should be such as will do honour, and impart efficiency, to that great assembly. The principle affirmed at the former Congresses will be the basis of the one to be held in Frankfort, and it is to be taken for granted that every gentleman elected as a delegate holds that principle, which is as follows: "That an appeal to arms for the purpose of effecting the settlement of differences between nations, is a custom condemned alike by religion, reason, justice, humanity, and the interest of peoples; and that it is therefore the duty of the civilized world to adopt measures calculated to bring about the entire abolition of war." The Committee respectfully suggest that, other qualifications being equal, it would be desirable to appoint gentlemen of local influence, whose character, abilities, and position may give weight to the delegation. It is also suggested that the following parties would be peculiarly eligible: Officers or representatives of Auxiliary Peace Societies or branches of the League of Universal Brotherhood, who may be appointed by their respective Societies. Ministers of religion, or members of Christian Churches, who may be deputed by the congregations with which they are connected. Delegates chosen and appointed at public meetings called for that purpose, in any City, Town, or District. Representatives of Religious and Philanthropic Associations, whether for local, national, or Foreign operations. Persons specially nominated by the vote of the Peace Congress Committee. Members of the British Legislature, and representatives of Civic, Municipal, and Literary bodies, agreeing in the principles and objects of the Congress. As there may be gentlemen, however, in every way suitable, and who are prepared also to take part in the Congress, but who may not be appointed by any public body, the Committee will be happy to receive proposals from such parties, in order to arrange for their admission into the general delegation. Tickets of admission as visitors will be provided for the ladies and gentlemen who may be disposed to accompany the delegation, and to be present at the Congress. The first sittings of the Congress will be held on Thursday, August 22nd. The delegates and visitors will leave London by special train, on Monday evening, August 19th, and proceed by way of Dover and Calais to Cologne, where they will rest for the night. From Cologne they will proceed by special steamer up the Rhine, and take the railway for Frankfort, at which city it is expected they will arrive on Wednesday evening, August 21st, They will most probably leave Frankfort, on their return, on Thursday morning, August 29th, again passing the night at Cologne, and arrive in London on Friday evening, the 30th. The estimated expense to each person for going and returning (including omnibuses, meals on the journey, bed, &c., at Cologne, and other small charges) will be-First Class, £5 12s.; Second Class, £4 12s. An arrangement will be made to secure the best hotel accommodations at Frankfort that can be obtained, and every facility will be afforded to those who may desire it, in availing themselves of this arrangement; but all the charges, with the order and number of the meals, &c., will remain to be determined between the parties themselves and the hotel proprietors. Every assistance will also be rendered to those who may prefer to go to, or to return from Frankfort by any other route. As under no circumstances will applications to join the party by the special train be received after Thursday, August 15th, the friends of the undertaking, with the delegates and visitors, will perceive the importance of communicating their intention on this point, to the Assistant-Secretary, at their earliest convenience, that no delay may be occasioned in completing the arrangements. The Committee are deeply sensible of the serious importance attaching to this undertaking, and of the necessity there will be for all the caution and prudence they can command in conducting the whole to a successful issue. But, encouraged by the results, and, they may add, success of the former Congresses-by the large amount of sympathy already expressed in favour of the forthcoming Assembly both in America and on the European Continent—and, above all, by the assurance that a blessing from above will not be wanting to those who sincerely seek to establish the kingdom of the Prince of Peace upon Earth; they commit the cause to Him on whose promised wisdom they shall not rely in vain, in the hope that the Frankfort Congress may prove the most efficient of all the demonstrations hitherto made on behalf of Permanent and Universal Peace. As it was deemed desirable that we should have an opportunity of consulting the Peace Congress Committees of Paris and Brussels, before proceeding to Germany, we reached the former city late on Saturday evening, the 22nd of June. On Monday morning we began our work in earnest, by making a series of calls on some of the leading friends of Peace in that city. Among those we visited were M. Girardin, editor of La Presse, who signified his full intention to be at the Frankfort Congress, M. Cormenin, M. Victor Hugo, M. Michel Chevalier, M. Lochefoucauld Leancourt, M. Coquerel, the Abbé Deguerry, M. Horace Say, &c. We were received, by these gentlemen, with great cordiality, who expressed their unabated interest in the great question of international peace. In the evening there was a meeting at our hotel, of fourteen or fifteen gentlemen, including the members of the French Committee, and several other distinguished and influential men. M. Coquerel was called to the chair. After a long and very interesting discussion, they resolved, at the suggestion of the indefatigable Secretary of the Congress, M. Garnier, to call a public meeting, with the permission of the Minister of the Interior, at the Hôtel de Ville, or the Chamber of Peers, or some other convenient building, in order to elect and appoint delegates from Paris, to the Frankfort Congress. Several of the gentlemen present expressed their hope of being able to accompany the delegation; so that we have reason to expect that France will be well represented there, both as to number and character. On Tuesday morning we started for Brussels, passing by Arras, Douai, Lille, Valenciennes, and other important towns, all of them strongly fortified, and abounding in historical associations, most of them of a military character; for what, alas! for the most part, has been the history of mankind hitherto, but a record of violence, robbery, and blood, inflicted upon them by war! These local associations, indeed, have a very pernicious influence, in perpetuating warlike reminiscences among a people. It brings and keeps in mind the remembrance of those acts of valorous daring and seeming self-sacrifice, which throw the magic mantle of poetic sentiment over the horrors of war. As an illustration of this, I may mention, that in a little French work I bought at the station, containing a description of the road between Paris and Brussels, the writer, on coming to Mons, having remembered that Jemmappes, the scene of the great battle that goes by that name, was in the neighbourhood, breaks forth into the following rapturous rhodomontade of false patriotism: "Jemmappes, whose name is one of the glories of the French army! Jemmappes, the prelude to those wars of the giants, when France, defying all Europe, astonished the world, by the blows it knew how to deal! Jemmappes, the first battle in which Frenchmen, after having liberated themselves, were engaged, and where, though very inferior in numbers, they compelled the Austrians to recognise their superiority! There General Dumouriez covered himself with glory; there Louis Philippe, then Duke of Chartres, a young man scarcely out of his teens, displayed the courage of an old warrior; there," &c. &c. I give you this as a specimen of the sort of influence under which Frenchmen are educated. And yet it is impossible not to feel, as the steam-engine rolls over these fields of blood on its iron path, sometimes penetrating, in head-long speed, through the very heart of these enormous fortifications, that there is a system at work, which is undermining these ancient strongholds of violence, with a surer if not speedier destruction than the crash of the battering ram, or the blast of gunpowder. We were welcomed on our arrival at Brussels, by our own warmhearted friend M. Visschers, and several members of the Belgian Committee, who invited us to meet them at dinner on the following day. There we found, to our surprise, a considerable company assembled, these kind friends having invited some twenty or more of the most respectable and distinguished of their fellow-citizens to meet us. Among those present, were MM. Bevinaire, De Perceval, and Roussel, Members of the Chamber of Representatives; Fortamps, membre de la Commission des Hospices, Watteau, avocat et conseiller communal de Bruxelles; Haman, Bourson, Duceptiaux, Lehardy de Beaulieu, &c. After a very sumptuous dinner, M. Visschers, who presided, rose, and in a few most kind and cordial words introduced us and our mission to the company. M. De Perceval, Roussel, and other gentlemen also expressed their sentiments briefly but very happily; to which we endeavoured to respond as earnestly as we could. The general question of Peace-and the Frankfort Congress in particular, became the subject of a very interesting and animated conversation. Among the suggestions thrown out was one upon which the Committee will probably act-to summon a meeting at Brussels, of delegates from various Belgian towns, to excite and extend as widely as possible an interest in favour of the Congress. After the meeting was over they all accompanied us in a body to our hotel, and took leave of us in the kindest manner with ardent and repeated wishes for the success of our mission. This unexpected testimony of the deep interest felt in the cause of Peace, by these gentlemen at Brussels, was most gratifying and encouraging to us, at the commencement of our arduous enterprise. We have reason to believe that public opinion is making rapid progress on this subject in Belgium; as a proof of which it was mentioned to us, that in the last session of the Chambers the motion that was made for a large reduction of the army, and which was supported by M. De Perceval, in a very able speech, which I had the pleasure of translating and inserting in the HERALD OF PEACE some months ago, was sustained by the votes of thirty-seven members out of one hundred and eight. Soon after, there was a new election, and every one of those who voted for that motion were returned to the Chamber; M. De Perceval coming in for his department after a sharp contest at the head of the poll. He is a very able and courageous man, from whom much may yet be expected for the cause of Peace. We left Brussels on Thursday morning; and as we are now on the route which our English delegation will take on their way to Frankfort, I shall be pardoned for describing it a little at large. In the course of the day we passed by Louvain, formerly renowned for its University-which was considered the first in Europe-and now for brewing the best beer in Belgium (a rather abrupt descent from the sublime to the ridiculous)— Tirlemont, Liege, the great manufacturing capital of Brussels, the staple of whose productions, however, I am sorry to say, is fire-arms-Maestricht, which possesses one of the strongest fortresses in Europe, and of which it is said, with startling significance-especially to those who reverence the old maxim, That the best way to preserve peace, is to be prepared for war-" The great strength of this town has subjected its inhabitants to the misery of frequent sieges"-Verriens, the last town in Belgium, and Aix-la-Chapelle, celebrated as the birth-place and the death-place of Charlemagne, the bone of whose arm, discovered there some time ago, was supposed to indicate the gigantic stature of the man, until some unrelenting and unpoetical comparative anatomist declared, that it was not a human arm at all. The country through which we travelled to-day, especially the valley of the Vesdre, surprised us by its exceeding beauty, so different from what we anticipated in any part of Belgium. Not only is the whole land covered with a most luxuriant vegetation, but variegated by almost every form of romantic and beautiful scenery, lofty hills, cultivated to the very summit; rich and undulating valleys, teeming with gardens and orchards, flourishing in full bloom; and occasionally large manufactories, giving signs of commercial wealth and industry, that harmonise by no means badly (in spite of all that Lord John Manners, and the sentimental Young England may say to the contrary) with the natural glories by which they are surrounded. But it is most melancholy to reflect, that this country, clothed in such lavish loveliness by the hand of the Creator, should have been so frequently turned into a hell by the violence of human passion. Almost every spot we pass calls up some sad and sinister association of "man's inhumanity to man." This part of Belgium, I think it is, that has been called "the cock-pit of Europe." Everywhere has the war-demon left the impress of his bloody and brutal hoof. It is impossible to contemplate the smiling aspect of nature, and contrast it with the hideous scenes that have been enacted here, without feeling the appropriateness of the poet Wordsworth's exclamation, uttered in reference to some spot, not far from the neighbourhood through which we have travelled to-day, "What lovelier home could gentle fancy choose? Is this the stream, whose cities, heights, and plains, It is beautiful, however, to observe how nature, as if in shame and pity for man's infatuation, hastens to deface these marks of violence, by spreading her verdant garment over them, to conceal the scars inflicted on her fair and bountiful bosom by the wilfulness and folly of her sons. We should not have known that many a lovely prospect we admired to-day had once been deformed by the sweep of this sanguinary tempest, had it not been indicated to us by the stretched fore-finger of History. We reached Cologne about five o'clock in the afternoon, in time to take a hurried view of the city, and especially of its splendid unfinished cathedral. Here it is proposed that the deputation from England should sleep, on their way to Frankfort. On Friday morning we went on board the Concordia, a fine boat, belonging to the Dusseldorf Company, at a quarter before six, and in a few moments found ourselves afloat on the broad bosom of the Rhine. And what shall I say in regard to this celebrated stream! Did the reality equal one's highly-raised expectations? Assuredly not, for the first twenty miles. No one, unless previously forewarned, can fail to be greatly disappointed with the banks of the Rhine between Cologne and Bonn. It is as flat and prosaic as need be. But from the time when you reach the latter place, just opposite to which "The castled crag of Drachenfels Frowns o'er the wide and winding Rhine," nearly the whole way up to Mayence, a distance, I suppose, of nearly one hundred and twenty miles, no language can exaggerate its beauties. Single views one may have seen elsewhere, surpassing, whether in grandeur or loveliness, any particular spot that may present itself here. But where in the world beside can be found such a continuous panorama of successive and infinitely varied prospects? Besides the majestic river itself, so hallowed and consecrated by song, that it flows like a stream of poetry through enchanted land, reflecting on its bosom all the gorgeous hues of the past, there is nothing wanting, as we sail along its banks of natural scenery, or traditional interest, or romantic association, wherewith to delight the eye, and exalt the imagination. In the material landscape that rolls open endlessly on either side, as the boat glides onward, there is "A blending of all beauties, streams and dells, Fruit, foliage, crag, wood, corn-field, mountain, vine;" while there is scarcely a spot along the whole line on which history, poetry, or tradition, has not hung some wild tale of war, or love, supernatural wonder, or romantic adventure, which twine their ever-verdant wreaths around mountain and rock, tower and town, castellated fortress and hoary ruin. The number and variety of objects fraught with natural or historical interest, or both, which incessantly claim the gazer's eye, is perfectly bewildering. From the moment when the seven mountains swell in grand outline before your vision, as you approach to Bonn, until the steamer draws up beneath the splendid château of the Duke of Nassau, at Biebrich, within sight of the lofty towers of Mayence Cathedral, there is no intermission in the claim made on the traveller's attention. The friends of Peace, also, can abandon themselves to the enjoyment of these luxuries (for they are real luxuries to sensitive and cultivated minds), with not less freedom and fulness of delight than others. Mournful and pensive reflections will, no doubt, frequently come like a cloud over the sunny landscape, when they think of the enormous waste and abuse of human skill and power which the mighty monuments that everywhere line the margin of this great stream indicate; and when they call to remembrance how often, amid spots now rich with the delicate bloom of Nature's beauties, "Slaughter has heaped on high his weltering ranks," and made the glorious river itself to run crimson with human blood. But then they will also rejoice to observe, that those formidable haunts of violence are almost all in a dilapidated and ruinous condition; and will exult in the belief that, now they answer no other purpose (and it is a more innocent, and even a more useful, purpose than they ever served before) than to add, by their mantling towers and picturesque proportions, to the pleasure of the peaceful band of voyagers, who, sailing along the sanguinary trail of war, are bound on for other adventures than those pursued by the "robber-chiefs," who were wont to descend from those frowning fortresses, like eagles from their æries, in the evil times that are gone. But I am lingering too long on the Rhine, as it is indeed difficult not to do. We reached Biebrich about seven o'clock, where we landed from the boat, and proceeded immediately, by railway, to Frankfort, which is about an hour and a half's ride. Before proceeding to narrate what measures we have taken to prepare for the Congress, I will first say a few words about the place itself. Frankfort is a very fine city. Some parts are of great antiquity, as the quaint old gable ends and overhanging stories indicate. But the New Town is distinguished by its broad and spacious streets, and large, handsome houses. Those especially in the suburbs, and on the quays facing the Maine, are splendid mansions, giving proof of the abundant wealth which Frankfort possesses above any German town of the same size. It is replete with interesting historical associations, stretching back into the past as far as Charlemagne, and coming down into the present so near as the great central Parliament of Germany, held in St. Paul's Church two years ago, an assembly which excited such deep interest and expectation throughout the civilised world, and stirred up such lofty and thrilling aspirations of national unity through the entire heart of Germany. In the cathedral is shown the chapel where forty-six German emperors were chosen, and afterwards crowned before the high altar; and in the Townhouse, the banqueting-room, where the event was afterwards celebrated with loyal festivity. There are, however, three private houses here, which would probably rivet the attention of many men, far more deeply than these memorials of vanished imperial splendour. One is a quaint, old building, looking into an open space behind the cathedral, from the window of which Luther preached to the people, on his return from the Diet of Worms. There is a bust of him outside the wall, holding a Bible in his hand, and surrounded by the inscription, "In silentio et spe erit fortitudo vestra, Eray." It was a fine place for open-air preaching, and it requires but little effort of the imagination to fill that ample space with a sea of eager countenances, turned up in hushed and earnest gaze, to listen to that lion-voice (and yet with under-tones tender as a mother's) that roused all Christendom by its accents, and whose echoes are still heard, and will continue long to be heard, multiplying and reverberating far into the ages to come. The second house to which I referred is that in which the poet Goëthe was born, who of all modern men, has, by the inspiration of his genius, exerted the widest influence on German life and literature. It is a large and handsome building, indicating the state of comfort and affluence in which his parents lived. There are two very fine statues erected to the poet in this city, one in the open air, in the place called the Allée, and the other in the entrance hall |