Publisher's Synopsis
This historic book may have numerous typos and missing text. Purchasers can usually download a free scanned copy of the original book (without typos) from the publisher. Not indexed. Not illustrated. 1857 edition. Excerpt: ... Chillon," and there passed an enchanting day. We were rowed down in a small boat with a fanciful awning. The blue waters sparTHE CASTLE OF CHILLON. 179 kled like myriads of gems in the radiant sun-light, as we slowly glided along Clarens first claimed our interest, as the dwelling-place of Rousseau's "Julie," and around which Byron has also thrown the immortality of his verse. "Clarens, sweet Clarens, birthplace of deep Love! Thine air is the young breath of passionate thought: Thy trees take root in Love; the snows above The very glaciers have his colors caught, And sun-set into rose-hues sees them wrought, By rays which sleep there lovingly." Next came the Castle of Blonay, and the Chatelard, and the village of Montreux, said to be the healthiest town on the lake. For the population, fewer persons die there than in any other part of the world. The shores of Lake Leman are in striking contrast. On the north side, immense mountains crowd to the verge of the water; they are barren, and furrowed with great wrinkles; while to the south, the swelling hills and vine-covered slopes come down to meet the pretty little villages, chalets, and long avenues of old oaks. "Lake Leman lies by Chillon's walls; A thousand feet in depth below Its massy waters meet and flow; Thus much the fathom-line was sent From Chillon's snow-white battlement." The Castle of Chillon.--With feelings of almost reverence we crossed the wooden bridge connecting Chillon to the main land, and entered the time-worn walls of the Castle. Tt was built upon a great rock, near the south shore of the lake, in 1238, by Amedeus of Savoy, and used by him as a prison-house. A pretty blue-eyed Swiss girl, with a large straw flat upon her head, was our...