are niany gardens, and even fields. On the south it is defended by a wall, on the north only by palisades. The entrance to Berlin is agreeable, though the country is flat and dusty, except where relieved by kitchen-gardens and moist-looking vegetables. The city itself is a long straggling, unsymmetrical, discrepant metropolis-a jumble of magnificent buildings and ruinous houses, the buildings low, alleys in the neighbourhood of palaces, the river a muddy canal. There is no lookout-of-door enjoyment in Berlin, but a great confluence of soldiers, porters, and trades-people in the streets, give them the bustling appearance of a mercantile town in England. Berlin has 15 gates. The streets in the best part of the town are straight, and well-paved; and there are several large and handsome squares, with pleasant walks; the houses in general are built of fine white freestone. The houses of the suburbs are almost all of wood: so well plastered, however, that they seem to be of stone. The royal gate of the city is defended by a halfmoon and two bastions covered with brick; it fronts the royal street, which is one of the longest and best frequented in the city. It is full of very handsome houses, especially those of the ministers of state. This street is crossed by five others, noble and spacious. On the stone bridge over the Spree, is an equestrian statue of William the great elector, esteemed an excellent piece of workmanship. Beyond the bridge appears the royal palace, a grand and superb edifice, four stories high, with extremely magnificent apartments. No palace in Europe, perhaps, possessed so great a quantity of superb plate. The furniture of the great apartments is extremely rich. There is also a handsome gallery, 50 paces long, adorned with pictures and paintings done by the best masters, especially one of Raphael, representing the Head of our Saviour, valued at 50,000 crowns. The royal stables stand near the palace, and front the great street. Externally they are of Gothic appearance, but within are magnificent and elegant. The mangers are of stone; and the pillars which divide the stalls, of iron adorned with the king's cipher. Over the racks are pictures representing the finest horses which the royal stud has produced. Above the stables are large rooms containing all sorts of horse-furniture, particularly the equestrian equipage of Frederic I., the metallic part of which is of gold set with diamonds. Besides these, there are handsome lodgings for the officers. The arsenal consists of four grand buildings which form a court in the interior; each front having three large porticoes. The opera house is an elegant modern edifice. The front has a noble portico supported by Corinthian columns, and a pediment adorned with basso relievos and statues. The columns that support the roof throw the whole into a grand saloon. It has three galleries, and is capable of containing 2000 persons. Schinkel, the great architect of Berlin, has built a beautiful museum opposite the royal palace. It measures 276 by 120 feet. An iron monument, in commemoration of the victories obtained by the Prussians over the French, in the late war, is erected upon the Kreuzberg, or Mountain of the Cross,' at the Halle Gate. This monument, which is in the Gothic style, and entirely of cast iron, is in the shape of a pyramid, with an iron cross at the top. Including the five steps, which encompass it in an octogonal form, it measures 61 feet; and weighs, inclusive of the statues, 2,297 cwt. 80 lb. A rampart and fosse separate Friedrichswerder from Dorotheenstadt, or the New Town, which is inhabited chiefly by Frenchmen. Seven great alleys or walks, divide this quarter into two parts. The middle walk is broader than the rest, and is surrounded with balustrades, having a grass plot in the middle for persons to take the air on foot. The alleys on each side are paved, and serve for those that come abroad in carriages. These alleys-which are three miles in length-are terminated with a bar that leads towards the park. The alleys with trees, are bounded with rows of houses. In one of these are the lodgings for the guards. Above these, are the apartments occupied by the academies of painting, and of arts and sciences: behind which is the observatory, which is well-furnished with astronomical and mathematical instruments,—the royal cabinet of medals, antiquities, and natural curiosities, the chemical laboratory, with its furnaces and metals, the anatomical theatre,—and the royal library, which contains 150,000 volumes, and is considered one of the most complete in Germany. Berlin has 25 churches, 26 printingoffices, 2 hospitals for invalids, a military academy, 4 colleges, 5 gymnasiums, and upwards of 250 places of education under the superintendence of nearly 1000 male and female teachers. Berlin possesses a beautiful botanical garden, a museum, established in 1820, and several deaf and dumb, and blind institutions. A most important institution is the Charity, which admits above 5000 sick persons, and is one of the most celebrated schools for young physicians and surgeons. There are also a missionary and a Bible society, and several almshouses. It has been calculated that 12,000 individuals are supported at Berlin on the charity of their fellow-citizens. The pleasures of Berlin-which is considered a very gay place are nearly the same as of other large towns; the royal theatre and opera house are much frequented, and the performers and singers are reckoned among the best in Germany. The national taste for music is very much cherished, and is supported by extensive establishments. Berlin is considered as the centre of civilization for the north of Germany. This city has several times felt the awful visitations of war. In 1757, and 1760, it was taken by the Austrians, who in the last capture totally destroyed the magazines, arsenals, and founderies, and seized an immense quantity of military stores, cannon, and arms, besides exacting a contribution of 1,900,000 German crowns. On the 24th of October, 1806, Berlin was captured by the French, after the fatal battle of Jena. Berlin is situated in Lat. 52° 31′ 30′′ N. and 13° 23′ E. Long. of Greenwich ; 68 road-miles E. of Wittemberg; 114 road-miles N.Ñ.E. of Leipsic; 97 road-miles E. of Magdeburg; 192 road-miles E. of Hanover, and 170 road-miles S.E. of Hamburg, and 300 N. by W. of Vienna. 2d. District of Potsdam.] This district contains 346 German square miles, and is divided into 13 circles, the united population of which exceeds 570,000. The city of Potsdam is one of the most elegant cities in the Prussian dominions. It is situated on an island 17 miles in circumference, formed by the Havel and some neighbouring lakes, and contains a population of 30,000 souls. The royal palace is an admirable structure; and in the market-place is an obelisk 75 feet in height, with marble statues of the Prussian sovereigns. Before the royal palace or castle is a grand square, ornamented with Roman columns, where the soldiers in garrison are daily exercised. On a barren hill in the vicinity, stands the palace of Sans Souci, erected by the Great Frederic, which is only one story high, yet remarkable for its grandeur and magnificence. The town-church, near this palace, is a fine structure. The garrisonchurch is large, having a marble pulpit, under which is the tomb of the Great Frederic, whose remains are enclosed in a wooden coffin, covered with copper; without any inscription, ornament, or trophy, to record the memory of his great and victorious actions. This city was also captured in 1760, by the Austrians; and by the French, after the battle of Jena. There is an important foundery for cannon here, as also manufactories of silks and velvets. It is situated 20 road miles from Berlin, 48 from Wittemberg, and 77 from Magdeburg.-Besides this city, the district of Potsdam contains the town of Spandau, a strong fortress upon the Spree, with 7000 inhabitants; the town of Fehrbellin, with 1,220 inhabitants, and remarkable for the victory of the elector Frederic William over the Swedes; Brandenburg, on the Havel, with 12,004 inhabitants, and probably the oldest town of the Mark to which it has given its name; Freienwalde on the Oder, a pleasant watering-place, with 2,750 inhabitants; and the village of Mögelin, celebrated for an agricultural institution, conducted by Mr. Thär, well-known on the continent by his works on agriculture. 3d. The District of Frankfort.] This district, which is divided into 18 circles, contains 364 German square miles, with a population of 638,600. The chief town, Frankfort, upon the Oder, with upwards of 16,000 inhabitants, possesses several manufactures, and conducts an animated commerce, specially by means of three large annual fairs, much frequented by the Poles. St. Cüstrin, at the junction of the Wartha and Oder, contains 6000 inhabitants, and is one of the principal Prussian fortresses. 11. THE PROVINCE OF POMERANIA. This province embraces the duchies of Upper and Lower Pomerania, and several other districts. It is bounded on the N.-where the island of Rügen spreads out before it-by the Baltic; on the E. by Western Prussia; on the S. by Brandenburg; and on the W. by the two grand duchies of Mecklenburg. Physical Features.] Pomerania consi of a long narrow tract of coast-land, perfectly flat, and at some parts exhibiting small elevations here called mountains. Here and there the sandy soil is mixed with clay and mould, particularly in the district of Stralsund, to which belongs the island of Rügen, whose soil is reckoned the best in Pomerania. The Oder runs through the whole province and falls into the Frische Haff; the other principal rivers are the Peene, the Ucker, the Ihna, and the Rega. There are a great number of lakes, but none of them are of considerable size; the most remarkable is the Madue, on account of the excellent moränes of which about 30,000 are annually caught in it. The navigation on the coast of Pomerania is dangerous, there being very few harbours. Climate.] Pomerania has a cold climate on account of its high latitude, and its situation near the sea. The weather is changeable, rough, and damp. There are sometimes hurricanes on the coast. Productions. The principal productions are horses, cattle, fowls— particularly geese-fish, corn, vegetables, potatoes, fruit, wood, tobacco, salt, and peat. The soil and climate are unfavourable to agriculture, which, in spite of the industry of the inhabitants, has made very little progress, though the country furnishes more corn than it needs for 45 The moraene, or muraene, is a kind of fish of excellent taste, found only in this and a few other lakes. It resembles a salmon in form and size, and is the Salmo Muraena of Linnæus. consumption. Fruit, particularly apples, is an article of commerce. Pomerania has but few hands to devote to manufactures, which are of small importance. Commerce is animated, particularly by sea, Stettin being one of the most important sea-ports in Germany. Population.] The inhabitants are partly Slavonians, partly Germans. Only in the N.E. there is a tribe of Slavonians, the Carjulers, who have preserved their dialect and some ancient costumes. Most of the inhabitants are Lutherans; there are also Catholics, Calvinists, Mennonites, and Jews. There is one university, and several gymnasiums and high-schools; but the establishments for education are in general much behind those of the other Prussian provinces. This province contains, 1st. The District of Stettin.] This district extends to 243 German square miles, with 342,002 inhabitants. Stettin, the chief town of the whole province, and one of the strongest fortresses of the monarchy, contained 26,000 inhabitants, according to M. Balbi, in 1828. The islands of Usedom and Wollin belong to this province; the former extending to about 150 British square miles, with a population of 3,470 souls, and the latter to 90 square miles, with 3000 inhabitants. The population of both islands is almost wholly occupied in fishing. 2d. The District of Stralsund.] This district embraces part of Pomerania, formerly belonging to Sweden, the island of Rügen, and several other small islands, extending to 75 German square miles, with a population of 137,400. It is divided into 4 circles. The chief town is Stralsund, with 15,900 inhabitants in 1826. The fortifications of this city, which were formerly celebrated, have been taken down, and the ramparts are converted into public walks. The harbour is good, but has a very narrow entrance. Greifswalde, with 7,800 inhabitants, is the seat of a university founded in 1456, but now little frequented. 46 Island of Rugen.] The island of Rügen is the largest island belonging to Germany; its present superficial extent is about 370 British square miles, but it has been much larger, as a part of it— probably the larger part-was engulfed by the sea in the middle ages. It is divided from the main land by a strait of about a mile broad. Its form is very singular, being indented by the sea in many directions. In the N.E. a bay enters deep into the land, and forms two peninsulas. The peninsula of Jasmund is connected with Rügen proper, by a ridge of steep mountains called Prora, and by a long narrow wall of pyrites, granite, and porphyritic fragments. The N.E. side is covered by the Stubbenitz, a large forest of beeches, containing a remarkable monument of Heathen idolatry, and terminates in the celebrated Stubbenkammer a chalk rock rising out of the sea in a very singular form, of which the highest point, 563 feet high, is called the Königstahl, or 'King's-seat,' and from which 600 steps, cut in the rock, lead down to the shore. With the peninsula of Jasmund is connected the peninsula of Witlow, a quite flat land, finishing in the N.W. in the Cape Arkona, the most northern point of Germany, in N. Lat. 54° 39′ 42′′, on which stood the castle of Arkona, once the temple of Suantevit, the principal god of the Obotrites, and the strongest fortress of the Rugians. The island of Rugen is much more fertile than the mainland; Jasmund and Wittow are its most fertile districts. It has 28,150 inhabitants, 2 towns, 2 boroughs, and 63 villages. The principal towns are Bergen, with 2,200 inhabitants; 16 It was here, probably, that the worship of Hertha, mentioned by Tacitus, Germ. C. 40. was celebrated. Sargard, on the peninsula of Jasmund, with 200 inhabitants; and Putbus with a castle belonging to the Prince Putbus, and a recently established bathing-place, which is annually visited by above 600 persons. 3d. The District of Köslin.] This district contains 23 towns, 5 boroughs, and 1,196 villages, with 280,600 inhabitants, who are principally Protestants. It is divided into 9 circles. Köslin, the chief town, contains 4,900 inhabitants. Colberg, on the Persante, has a harbour on the Baltic, at the mouth of this river. This place, which has a population of 7,511 souls, is remarkable on account of several sieges it has sustained, particularly that of 1807 in the French war, when under the gallant general Gneisenau it formed an honourable exception to the other Prussian fortresses, which almost all capitulated in a manner disgraceful to their commanders; it stood the siege, although almost all the houses were burnt down, till the moment when the news of the peace of Tilsit arrived. III. THE PROVINCE OF SILESIA. Silesia is bounded on the N.W. by Brandenburg; on the N.E. by Posen; on the E. by Poland; on the S.E. by Cracovia and Galicia; on the S. by Moravia or Austrian Silesia; and on the S.W. by Bohemia. History.] From the earliest times in which Silesia appears in history, we find it inhabited by Germans and Slavonians. The latter seem to have come to this country-then considered part of Poland—about the middle of the 6th century. By a division of that country among the sons of duke Bolislaus III., Silesia had, for the first time, its own rulers from the family of the Piasts. It was afterwards again divided into two duchies, from which arose the present division into Upper and Lower Silesia. The reigning family having been subdivided into several branches, of which there were no less than 16 in the beginning of the 14th century, calling themselves sovereign dukes of Silesia,-it was an easy matter for the kings of Bohemia to subdue this country, which, in the middle of the 14th century, became a fief of that crown, and was ultimately united with it, the dukes of the line of Piast having gradually been extinguished. Since that period Silesia remained united with Bohemia, till the peace of Breslau, in 1742, when it was ceded to Prussia. Frederic II. placed Silesia out of all connexion with the German empire, and took the title of its sovereign duke; but Frederic William III. joined it, in 1818, to those of his States belonging to the German Confederacy. The administration is now similar to that of all the Prussian provinces. Physical Features.] The Oder divides this country into two almost equal parts, very different from one another in soil and features. The German, or S.W. side is mountainous, but has an excellent soil. The N.E. side on the right bank, called the Polish side, is for the most part flat, sandy, and sterile. The country is highest to the S.E. and flattens to the N.W. The declination is northwards towards the Oder and the Baltic. The Sudetes run 200 miles on the boundaries between Silesia and Bohemia-the highest point is the Riesenkoppe, or 'Giant's Head,' 4,950 feet above the level of the sea. The Schneeberg, or 'Snow Mountain,' in the county of Glatz, is, according to the observations of the Abbe Felbiger, and Mr. Gerhard, 3,065 Parisian feet, above Habelschwerdt. This small village is 75 feet higher than Glatz, which is elevated 867 feet above the level of the sea; so that the total |