A Tramp s Wallet - stored by an English goldsmith during his wanderings in Germany and France
143 pages
English

A Tramp's Wallet - stored by an English goldsmith during his wanderings in Germany and France

-

Le téléchargement nécessite un accès à la bibliothèque YouScribe
Tout savoir sur nos offres
143 pages
English
Le téléchargement nécessite un accès à la bibliothèque YouScribe
Tout savoir sur nos offres

Description

The Project Gutenberg eBook of A Tramp's Wallet, by William Duthie This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org Title: A Tramp's Wallet stored by an English goldsmith during his wanderings in Germany and France Author: William Duthie Release Date: March 13, 2009 [eBook #28320] Language: English Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII) ***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A TRAMP'S WALLET*** This ebook was transcribed by Les Bowler. A TRAMP’S WALLET; stored by AN ENGLISH GOLDSMITH during his Wanderings in Germany and France. by WILLIAM DUTHIE. dedicated, by permission, to charles dickens, esq. LONDON: DARTON AND CO., 58, HOLBORN HILL. mdccclviii. [The right of Translation is reserved by the Author.] TO CHARLES DICKENS, ESQ., This Volume is respectfully dedicated, in grateful acknowledgment of his sympathy and encouragement during the publication of the greater portion of its contents; and as a slight tribute of admiration for his unwearying labours as a public writer, to the advancement of the whole people, by his sincere admirer, THE AUTHOR. PREFACE.

Informations

Publié par
Publié le 08 décembre 2010
Nombre de lectures 35
Langue English

Extrait

The Project Gutenberg eBook of A Tramp's Wallet, by William Duthie
This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
Title: A Tramp's Wallet
stored by an English goldsmith during his wanderings in Germany and France
Author: William Duthie
Release Date: March 13, 2009 [eBook #28320]
Language: English
Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK A TRAMP'S WALLET***
This ebook was transcribed by Les Bowler.
A
TRAMP’S WALLET;
stored by
AN ENGLISH GOLDSMITH
during his
Wanderings in Germany and France.
by
WILLIAM DUTHIE.
dedicated, by permission, to charles dickens, esq.

LONDON:
DARTON AND CO., 58, HOLBORN HILL.
mdccclviii.

[The right of Translation is reserved by the Author.]

TOCHARLES DICKENS, ESQ.,
This Volume
is respectfully dedicated,
in grateful acknowledgment of his sympathy and
encouragement during
the publication of the greater portion of its contents;
and as a slight tribute of admiration
for his unwearying labours as a public writer,
to the advancement of the whole people,
by his sincere admirer,
THE AUTHOR.
PREFACE.
During a stay of three years and a half in Germany and France, sometimes at
work, sometimes tramping through the country, the Author collected a number
of facts and stray notes, which he has endeavoured in these pages to present
to the public in a readable shape.
Of the twenty-eight chapters contained in the volume, sixteen originally
appeared in “Household Words.” They are entitled The German Workman;
Hamburg to Lübeck; Lübeck to Berlin; Fair-time at Leipsic; Down in a Silver
Mine; A Lift in a Cart; The Turks’ Cellar; A Taste of Austrian Jails; What my
Landlord Believed; A Walk through a Mountain; Cause and Effect; The French
Workman; Licensed to Juggle; Père Panpan; Some German Sundays; and
More Sundays Abroad. Several other chapters were published in a weekly
newspaper; and the remainder, together with the Introductory Narrative, appear
in print for the first time. For the careful and valuable revision of that portion of
his book which has appeared in “Household Words,” the Author here begs to
express his sincere thanks; and to acknowledge, in particular, his obligation to
some unknown collaborator, who, to the paper called “The French Workman,”
has added some valuable information.
The desire of the Author in writing the Introductory Narrative was to present to
his readers a brief outline of his whole journey, and a summary of its results;
and to connect, so far as it was possible, the somewhat fragmentary contents of
the body of the work. It was also hoped and believed that the statistical
information there given, although of so humble a character, would be valuable
as illustrative of the social condition of workmen in the countries to which they
refer, and of a character hitherto rarely attempted.
Written, as these chapters were, at intervals of time, and separately published,
each paper must be taken as complete in itself; and, as they are separate
incidents of one narrative, occasional repetitions occur, which could scarcely
have been erased, now that they are collected together, without injuring the
sense of the passage. For that portion of the book which has appeared in print
no apology will be expected; and, with regard to the remainder, the Author has
rather endeavoured to avoid censure than hoped to propitiate it.
In conclusion, the Author must add, in order that he may not stand self-accused
of misleading his readers with regard to his personal position, that good fortune
has so far favoured his own exertions, that, although still of the craft, he can no
longer lay claim to the title of a Journeyman Goldsmith. It was while in that
capacity that the greater part of the following pages were written: he cannot butbelieve that they may be of some practical utility; and if, added to this, their
perusal should afford to his readers some portion of that pleasure which their
composition yielded to him, his purpose will have been fully answered.
CONTENTS.
INTRODUCTORY NARRATIVE
Page
hamburg.—on tramp to berlin i
berlin and leipsic.—on tramp to vienna vii
vienna xv
on tramp to paris xxiii
paris xxix
Chapter
I. hamburg 1
II. altona.—a poet’s grave.—a danish harvest-home 6
III. “magnificence.”—at church.—the last headsman 9
IV. workmen in hamburg 15
V. plays and piccadilloes.—“hamlet” in german 19
VI. the german workman 24
VII. hamburg to lübeck 36
VIII. lübeck to berlin 41
IX. berlin.—our herberge 51
X. a street in berlin 56
XI. police and people 62
XII. the kreutzberg.—a prussian supper and carouse 65
XIII. fair-time at leipsic 70
XIV. down in a silver mine 76
XV. a lift in a cart 85
XVI. the turks’ cellar 94
XVII. a taste of austrian jails 99
XVIII. what my landlord believed 108
XIX. an execution in vienna 113
XX. a jail episode 116
XXI. a walk through a mountain 121
XXII. cause and effect 130
XXIII. greece and her deliverer 137
XXIV. the french workman 139XXV. licensed to juggle 149
XXVI. père panpan 152
XXVII. some german sundays 162
XXVIII. more sundays abroad 173
p. iINTRODUCTORY NARRATIVE.
HAMBURG.—ON TRAMP TO BERLIN.
There have appeared from time to time, in public print, sorrowful recitals of
journeys attempted by English workmen in foreign countries, with no better
result than the utter failure of the resources of the adventurous traveller, and his
return homeward by the aid of private charity or the good offices of his consul. It
is precisely because the travels about to be here narrated were financially a
success, being prosecuted throughout by means of the wages earned during
their progress, that it is thought they may be worthy of publication; not that it is
imagined many such examples may not be found, but because success in such
an undertaking has not hitherto appeared so often before the public as failure.
This narrative is necessarily a personal one; and as it is my especial object in
this place to present these foreign rambles in a pecuniary point of view, I trust I
shall not be misunderstood in stating minute items of receipt and expenditure,
as such details, however trivial they may appear, are of vital importance in
estimating the comparative position of the foreign and the English workman.
There was more than one cause which prompted me to seek my fortune
abroad; but it is sufficient here to state, that I had worked in the company of
Germans, and had thus become interested in their country, and, as great
depression prevailed at the time among the goldsmiths in London, I provided
myself with a letter of introduction to a working jeweller in Hamburg, and
prepared to start for this outpost of the great German continent. My whole
p. iicapital amounted to five pounds sterling; and, armed with a passport from the
Hanseatic consul, and provided with an extra suit of clothes, a few books, and
some creature comforts, I embarked for my destination on board the “Glory,” a
trading schooner, then lying in Shadwell basin.
I paid thirty shillings for my passage, including provisions, and could have slept
in the cabin, and fared with the captain, for two pounds, but in the weak state of
my finances, considered it only prudent to content myself with sailor’s beef and
biscuit, and a hard bulk and coil of ropes for my bed. After, to me, a rough sea
and river passage of eight days, marked by no greater incidents than belonged
to the vicissitudes of the weather, we crossed the sand-bar at the mouth of the
Elbe, and were soon safe at our moorings in the outer harbour of Hamburg. It
was Sunday morning; paddled on shore in the ship’s boat, I found myself in a
town utterly strange to me, armed only with a letter addressed to a person with
whom I could not converse, and written in a language I did not understand. My
chief comforts were three sovereigns, carefully wrapped in a piece of cotton
print, and deposited in my fob.
In the course of a ramble through the town, I discovered an English hotel, and
was there happy in making the acquaintance of a needle-maker of Redditch,
Worcestershire, who at once offered to be my interpreter and guide in search of
employment. We began our peregrinations on the morrow, and I was first
introduced to the only English cabinet-maker established in Hamburg, who,however, did not receive our visit cheerfully. He drew a rueful picture of trade
generally, but more especially of his own. The hours of labour were long, he
said; the work was hard, and the wages contemptible. He concluded by
assuring me that I had been very ill advised to come there, and that the best
course I could pursue was to take the first ship home again. As I was not yet
inclined to follow this doleful piece of advice, we continued our enquiries. In a
short time I was shaking hands with the jeweller to whom my letter of
intr

  • Univers Univers
  • Ebooks Ebooks
  • Livres audio Livres audio
  • Presse Presse
  • Podcasts Podcasts
  • BD BD
  • Documents Documents