rly produced a whirlpool, in its
course among the rocks, which have now been removed by blasting. There
was also a rapid just above it, and the place was very perilous for the
long rafts, which were sometimes dashed to pieces upon the sunken
rocks. The bank of the river on the right rises abruptly to a great
height, and the precipice is called the Lurlei. It has an echo which
gives back fifteen repetitions of the original sound. It sometimes
makes intelligent replies; and wicked students put to it the question,
"Who is the burgomaster of Oberwesel?" To which it responds, "Esel,"
which, in English, means an ass. The burgomaster intends to have it
indicted for slander.

This echo, which repeats the sounds from below, and the wild character
of the region, have produced a legend that the place is haunted by a
beautiful but wicked water nymph, who lured the voyager, by her
witching voice, to the rocks and the whirlpool, where his boat was
dashed to pieces.

St. Goar and St. Goarhausen are opposite each other, on little shelves
under the brow of the continuous range of hills which wall in the Rhine
for miles. The railroad extends along the left bank of the river, in
the rear of which is Rheinfels Castle,--the most extensive ruin on the
river,--nearly four hundred feet above the water. The Mouse, on the
other side, is supposed to have some unpleasant relations with the Cat,
farther up the stream. On the right, opposite the small town of Salzig,
are two twin castles, which go by the name of the Brothers. Their
owners, bearing this relation to each other, unfortunately fell in love
with the same beautiful lady, fought for her, and both were killed.

"This is Boppart, a very old place, occupied by the Romans," said Dr.
Winstock, as the steamer made a landing. "You have noticed that the
shelf of land on each side of the river, grows wider and the hills are
farther from the stream. Between this point and Bingen, the Rhine makes
its passage through the mountains. Some suppose the river, at a remote
period, forced its way through the range, and formed the narrow gorge
which we have passed, and that the country as far back as Basle was a
vast lake, for various sea shells and fossils are found there.
Marksburg Castle, on your right, is very much like the one you saw at
Baden-Baden; and a walk through its deep dungeons hewn out of the rock,
its torture-rooms, and its subterranean galleries, is enough to inspire
a sensation novel."