The portrait may be seen now in the Lecture Hall of Judith, Lady Montefiore's Theological College, most suitably placed above a tableau representing a number of His Highness Roumanian subjects,—pupils assembled at a public school at Botuschau, Roumania, celebrating the one hundredth anniversary of Sir Moses' birthday.
We left Bucharest for Giurgevo in the evening, escorted by cavalry as a guard of honour. We had had similar protection at Bucharest, ever since the gathering of the populace took place, and soldiers and commissioners of police were posted in the hotel, some of them even near the apartments of Sir Moses. One of the soldiers was pointed out to us as being an Israelite, and a fine handsome fellow he was. The presence of these men did not prevent certain suspicious looking persons from entering the apartments of Sir Moses, unexpectedly, at very inconvenient moments. How that happened could not be explained.
We arrived at Giurgevo by eleven o'clock A.M. A large number of deputations were announced to Sir Moses, and he began to receive them, but the day was oppressively hot, and accompanied by a sandstorm, which made itself unpleasantly felt even in the room, so that Sir Moses was obliged to desist and take some rest. The next day he visited the German and Portuguese Synagogues, also several Jewish and Christian schools, leaving souvenirs for the pupils and teachers, and gifts for the charitable institutions. Two commissioners of police and a guard of honour remained with us night and day until our departure on the 24th September, when we went on board the Danube steamer, on our return to England. We cast anchor at Rustschuk, and remained there over night, Sir Moses having in this place also to receive many deputations, who brought information respecting their schools and charitable institutions.
Friday, September 6th.—We continued our journey to Thurn Severin, thence we steered our course to Sistova and Nicopolis. The situation of the town is very picturesque, Nicopolis resting partly on the brow of a range of cliffs and partly in the bed of a narrow valley. Sir Moses intended remaining there to rest on the Sabbath, but as it was still early in the day, he continued on board till we reached Drenkova, where, as soon as the boat stopped, he went on shore.
Sir Moses, as the reader will remember from what I stated on this subject before, was a great admirer of the beauties of nature. On his setting out on this journey from Pesth, he expressed great delight with the scenery at several places on the Danube, and he considered it a great compensation for the trouble, fatigue, and anxiety he had to endure in the course of the present Mission to be enabled to enjoy so grand a sight. As we went further up the stream, the scenery became still more beautiful. Near a place called "Palanka," the Hungarian Mountains in the Upper Banat almost touch the Servian Chain on the opposite bank, causing the bed of the river to contract to such an extent as to turn the latter into a torrent, which increases in impetuosity till the boat nears the famous rock of Baby Kaly. At this spot the roaring of the waters, the upheaved rocks, the flights of eagles ever hovering in the air in all directions, strike the ordinary traveller with awe. Sir Moses was the first to express his fervent devotion to the Creator of the Universe, and his rapturous delight at the sight presented by the wild grandeur of the country. "Emblems on earth," he calls them, "of rigorous justice, blended with calm mercy in the realms of heaven."
When our boat passed through the whirlpools, not far from the famous cavern "Piscabara," we were exposed to great danger. The bed of the Danube is here formed of numerous masses of perpendicular rocks, between which it is necessary to steer with the utmost caution. There was only one narrow channel through which vessels could pass, and then only one at the time, and had ours been met by another coming in an opposite direction, they would both have been carried away by the violence of the stream, and dashed to pieces by the water rebounding from rock to rock.
Every one on board anxiously watched the soundings of the pilot in silence. Whilst Sir Moses was looking down the narrow channel as the vessel glided along, the Captain accosted him with the words, "There is not more than a foot and a half of water now in the channel," to which Sir Moses calmly, in the words of Isaiah, replied, "It is the Eternal God, who maketh a way in the sea and a path in the mighty waters. When thou passest through the waters, I will be with thee, said the Lord, and through the rivers, they shall not overflow thee." He added, "I admire the mighty works of the Creator, but no fear of danger enters my heart."
His attention was called to the remains of the road cut by Trajan on the Servian side of the river, along the side of the rock, and to a tablet commemorating the conquest of Dacia by the Roman Emperor. It is in the form of a tablet, held by two genii, on each side of which is a dolphin, while in the centre is the Roman eagle. The words
"Imp. Caes. D. Nervae, filius Nerva Trajanus.
Germ. Pont.—imus,"