Salzburg

“ After gazing awhile at these motionless sentinels, they went forth, and strolled throughthe public gardens, with the jagged mountains right over their heads, and all around them tall, melancholy pines, like Tyrolese peasants, with shaggy hair; and at their feet the mad torrent of the Inn, sweeping with turbid waves through the midst of the town. In the afternoon they drove on towards Salzburg through the magnificent mountain-passes of Waidering and Unken. ”

“ Seen either from the ridge of the Mönchsberg, the Kapuzingerberg, or from the castle walls, especially at sundown on a summer's evening, Salzburg presents a picture of great beauty and colour, and one which is not easily forgotten. ”

“ The Salzburg Country, northeastern slope of the Tyrol (Donau draining that side of it, Etsch or Adige the Italian side) , is celebrated by the Tourist for its airy beauty, rocky mountains, smooth green valleys, and swift-rushing streams; perhaps some readers have wandered to Bad-Gastein, or Ischl, in these nomadic summers; have looked into Salzburg, Berchtesgaden, and the Bavarian-Austrian boundary-lands; seen the wooden-clock makings, salt-works, toy-manufactures, of those simple people in their slouch-hats; and can bear some testimony to the phenomena of Nature there. ”

“ Before arriving at this little town, we beheld on our left a fine and magnificent view of the Schneeberg, and the Alps of Hallstadt and Aussee, and on quitting it we caught the first glimpse of the Salzburg chain, which we continued to behold increasing in grandeur and beauty the nearer we approached it. The next poste from Frankenmarkt is Neumarkt, and from hence we drove through many villages and hamlets, the road being now and then rather hilly, till, at about half-past one, we saw Salzburg lying before us in the broad valley of the Salza, backed by a gigantic rampart of Alps. ”

“ The quaint old city of Salzburg, Austria, built into the mountain-side, is a Mecca for all who love music, and admire the immortal Mozart. When he was alive, his native city allowed him nearly to starve; when he was dead, she built him a beautiful monument, and preserved his home, a plain two-story, stuccoed building, for thousands of travellers to look upon sadly and tenderly. ”

“ He poked fun at a lover of his sister who gaped at everything he saw in Munich, "so that one could easily tell he had only seen Salzburg and Innsbruck." He was never tired of telling of a Salzburgian who complained that he could not judge Paris satisfactorily, "as the houses were too high and shut off the horizon." "I detest Salzburg and everything that is born in it. The tone and the manners of the people are utterly unsupportable." He avoided society. ”

“ Yet it so chanced that the days spent in the lovely scenery of Salzburg were given up to gay mirth and feasting—not to sorrow and gloom; and that the irrepressible spirit of politics intruded on the brilliant company gathered round an open grave. ”

“ The trembling notes, like those of an old singer whose voice has become feeble but has retained much of its sweetness, float out upon the still evening air with a mystic appeal which few that have heard them can, we think, have failed to have felt. For ourselves it is one of the lasting and unforgettable memories of Salzburg as well as of its castle.
Nowadays the cable railway takes one to the summit in a few minutes, and one is spared the fatigue of the long climb up by the Nonnberg. ”

“ And when the loud bell shakes the spires And flame aloft the signal-fires, I go below and join the throng And swing my sword and sing my song: "I am the boy of the mountain!"
Salzburg lies on both sides of the Salza, hemmed in on either hand by precipitous mountains. A large fortress overlooks it on the south, from the summit of a perpendicular rock, against which the houses in that part of the city arc built. The streets are narrow and crooked, but the newer part contains many open squares, adorned with handsome fountains. The variety of costume among the people, is very interesting. ”

“ Salzburg, though lying some little distance beyond the north-eastern borders of Tyrol, is so historic and delightful a city that many who visit the "Land of the Mountains" make a point of visiting it. They are wise to do so; for of all ancient towns in the Austrian empire few are more picturesque or pleasantly situated, and scarcely any more historically interesting. We have never known any one disappointed in Salzburg who was capable of appreciating beauty and romantic associations. ”

“ It is through these modern developments that the life of Salzburg has so materially changed even within the memory of those who first visited it but, comparatively speaking, a few years ago. From a town of ecclesiastical and almost mediæval aloofness from the outside world, and from one which had for a considerable period seen its growth arrested and its life stagnant, it has sprung into being as a favourite summer and winter resort not merely for tourists, but also for those to whom the older portion of the town, its many historic buildings, castle, and fine churches, proves attractive. ”

“ The most prominent of all buildings in Salzburg, and the one which has for most visitors the greatest attraction, is the fine old fortress of Hohen-Salzburg set high above the older town upon a tree-enshrouded and rocky spur of the Mönchsberg. ”

“ As we approached Salzburg, we found the fields and green uplands near the town alive with people. Horse-racing was going on; and the whole population had poured out to see it, reproaching our dusty carriage and our fatigue by the gaiety of the equipages and the holiday trim of the spectators. I do not know anything more humbling to one’s self-conceit than arriving travel-tired and soiled amidst a crowd of well-dressed people ”

“ The cathedral church of St. Rupert is a fine building in the Italian style of architecture. It is built partly of free-stone and partly of marble. The streets of Salzburg, with the exception of the chief street, are narrow and generally ill paved, but the houses are clean and neat, and of a great height. The palace of the former archbishop is a spacious and magnificent [Pg 127] building, and before it is a beautiful fountain. Besides its public buildings, Salzburg has many large and elegant private houses.
On my return to the inn I found Sir Humphry already there, and that he had dined ”

“ Reichenhall, August 26.—From Salzburg we visited the mines of Hallein, into which we descended in full miner's costume—thick white trousers, smock-frock, cap, and a leathern apron behind. The guide gave us each a light, and marshalled us in single file through the narrow dark passages. On the summit of the first descent, we were all made to sit down upon our leathern aprons, to put our legs round each others' heads, hold a rope, and then slide off like a train into the dark abyss—alarming at first, and then very amusing. ”

“ As the train from Vienna descends into the valley of the Drave a change becomes perceptible in the scattered cottages and hamlets that fly past us. The dark wooden chalets of the Semmering valleys, that recall Salzburg and Tyrol and more distant Scandinavia, give place to meaner huts, less roomy, lower, paler, more rectangular. Rich maroon-brown beams that seem to have grown up with the pines around, dark projecting eaves that overhang the time-stained fronts as the shadowy fir-branches the primeval trunks—all these give place to wattle and daub and chilling whitewash. ”

“ Salzburg (28) , the capital, occupies a fine site on the hill-girt banks of the Salzach (crossed by 3 bridges) , 80 m. E. by S. of Münich; is a handsome and interesting city, with many fine old buildings, including a cathedral, archbishop's palace, imperial palace, monasteries, &c.; has a theological college, libraries, &c.; birthplace of Mozart; manufactures musical instruments, &c.
Salzkammergut (18) , a beautiful mountain district of Austria, between Salzburg (W.) and Styria (E.) ; salt mines and springs give a rich yield of salt. ”

“ We had now reached about the noon of the 17th of October 1808, when an escort or guard was appointed for our custody, and we were put upon our march for Salzburg. Our fate depended on what might be the momentary disposition of the Austrian Government towards England and America. We resolved to persevere in our American fiction, if nothing arose to induce us to the contrary. At about two we arrived at Salzburg.{264} This is a fine fortified city, the capital of the duchy of Salzburg, with a strong castle on the mountain. ”

“ The situation of Salzburg is strikingly grand and beautiful, and probably no town in Europe can boast of a finer. Lying as it were close at the foot of the lofty pyramid of the Watzmann, a mountain more than ten thousand feet in height, the town extends along the right and left bank of the Salza or Salzache, which separates it into two parts, the old and new town, which are united by a strong wooden bridge. On a hill on the right bank of the river, considerably elevated above the town, stands the fortress or mountain castle, a very strong and imposing fortification. ”

“ The Mönchsberg and a walk along its ridge should not be missed by any one who has a little time to spare whilst at Salzburg. The explorer will be well rewarded for his toil. One is apt to estimate the Mönchsberg by its Hohen-Salzburg end, which so dominates the city. It is difficult, indeed, from down below in the narrow streets to believe that some 300 feet above one lie not only woods and tree-shaded walks, but even green, flower-bedecked fields. ”

“ To the west lies the delightful valley that leads to Salzburg, on each side of which, mountain rises over mountain, all richly covered with wood. On the east one sees Ischl, with its steaming saltworks, and beyond it the valley of the Traun, seemingly closed in by the wild and rocky Alps which form the shores of the Traun-See. ”

“ The oldest nunnery is that founded on the Nonnberg by St Rupert, the Gothic church of which dates from 1423 and contains some fine stained glass and some old frescoes. The single Protestant church in Salzburg was not built until 1865. A theological seminary is the only relic now left of the university of Salzburg, founded in 1623 and suppressed in 1810. The city is the see of an archbishop with a cathedral chapter and a consistory. Salzburg, situated at an altitude of 1351 ft. above sealevel, has a healthy climate and is visited annually by over 60,000 tourists. ”

“ The streets in the older quarters are narrow, crooked and gloomy; but the newer parts of the city, especially those laid out since the removal of the fortifications about 1861, are handsome and spacious. Owing to the frequent fires the private buildings of Salzburg are comparatively modern; and the existing houses, lavishly adorned with marble, are, like many of the public buildings, monuments of the gorgeous taste of the archbishops of the 17th and 18th centuries. ”

“ And in such old-world towns as Innsbruck (of many historical memories) , beautiful Salzburg, vi charming Bregenz, Botzen, and Meran the traveller with more artistic, literary, or antiquarian tastes will delight.
That Tyrol deserves to be better known few who have once come under the spell of its charms of scenery, and the frank hospitality and friendliness of its people, or have wandered amidst its lovely valleys and mountains, will deny. ”

“ We doled out K rations to our four packers, for we couldn’t take civilians into an Army mess.
After lunch I telephoned ahead to Salzburg to ask for an escort from there to Munich, requesting that it meet us on the edge of town, east of the river. The weather had cleared, and drying patches of water on the road reflected a blue sky. By the time we had sighted Salzburg it was actually hot. As we rolled into the outskirts we were enveloped in clouds of dust from the steady procession of military vehicles. We waited in vain for our new escort. ”

“ This is one of my chief reasons for detesting Salzburg—those coarse, slovenly, dissipated court musicians, with whom no honest man of good breeding could possibly live! instead of being glad to associate with them, he must feel ashamed of them. It is probably from this very cause that musicians are neither loved nor respected with us. If the orchestra were only organised like that at Mannheim! I wish you could see the subordination that prevails there—the authority Cannabich exercises; where all is done in earnest. ”

“ Salzburg (174) , a western province and duchy of Austria, borders on Bavaria between the Tyrol and Upper Austria; is woody and mountainous, especially in the S., where fine scenery is formed by the Alps; excellent meadowland favours a prosperous industry in the rearing of cattle and horses. The inhabitants, being Protestants, were severely persecuted by the Church, and 30,000 of them emigrated in 1730, and on the invitation of Frederick William of Prussia settled in Lithuania, that had been desolated by plague. ”

“ If it should come to happen that Austria would fall to pieces, why should we Germans, especially we of Salzburg, be afraid of it? If Salzburg is again attached to the main body of the German nation as it has been for a thousand years, it will be a part of Bavaria. What will become of the Salzburgers under Bavarian rule? At war time they will know definitely what they are fighting for, and at peace times they will not have Czechs among their officials, gendarmes and foresters ”