Which our clustering grape calls up so well;
Of purple and gold our wreaths we twine—
Our’s is the Vine! Our’s is the Vine!
CHAPTER XXXIV.
Carlowitz—Peterwarradin—Bridge of Boats—Neusatz—The Journey of Life—The Chevalier Peitrich—Austrian Officers—The Hungarian Poet—Illok—The Ancient Surnium—Peel Tower—Intense Cold—Flat Shores—Mohasch—Földvar—Pesth—German Postillion—A Few Last Words.
Early on the morrow we were off Carlowitz, a cathedral town beautifully situated; of which, owing to the abrupt windings of the river, we had two distinct views. The Cathedral is a handsome edifice, with two light and graceful spires; having from a distance very much the appearance of minarets. The prevailing religion on the Sclavonian shore of the Danube is that of the Greek Church, which has also obtained considerably in Hungary; but the Roman Catholic worship is to be found everywhere along its banks. Carlowitz contains about twelve thousand inhabitants; and its shore was crowded with passage and fishing boats—while the whole height beneath which it is built was covered with vineyards and orchards, in the finest state of cultivation; the latter being principally composed of trees bearing a small blue plum, used in the distillation of brandy; which, we were told, was of a very fine quality. A short distance beyond the city, the tributary river Thuss empties itself into the Danube; offering extraordinary facilities for the transport of produce, in the very heart of a rich and prolific country.
A sudden angle of the river immediately after leaving Carlowitz, brought us within sight of Peterwarradin, a very fine fortress with strong and extensive outworks; and in its position greatly resembling Belgrade. It is garrisoned by three thousand Austrian troops; and on arriving opposite to the height on which it is seated, we observed the remains of an outwork, on an island in the centre of the river, that has been abandoned, owing to its annual destruction by the ice; the outlay necessary to preserve its efficiency having been considered greater than its probable utility was thought to warrant.
A second bold sweep of the Danube, which winds like a girdle about the hill-seated fortress, disclosed to us the bridge of boats that links Peterwarradin with Neusatz, a cheerful-looking town containing six churches; and here the Francis I. fired her three pigmy guns, ere she passed on to the wooden pier where she was to take on board her new passengers; and, greatly to our regret, to land our courtly and amiable friend the Chevalier, whose estate was situated within three leagues of the river.