The Rapids of the Danube by Esther Singleton

(_TURKEY_) / WILLIAM BEATTIE

A short way below Grein commences the rapid called "Greiner-schwall," where the river, suddenly contracting its channel, and walled in by rugged precipices, assumes a new aspect of foam and agitation; while the roar of its downward course breaks deeper and harsher on the ear. This rugged defile is the immediate inlet to the Strudel and Wirbel -- the Scylla and Charybdis of the Danube. This is by far the most interesting and remarkable region of the Danube. It is the fertile theme of many legends and traditions; and in pages of history and romance affords ample scope for marvellous incidents and striking details. Not a villager but can relate a hundred instances of disasters incurred, and dangers overcome, in this perilous navigation -- of lives sacrificed and cargoes sunk while endeavouring to weather the three grand enemies of the passage -- whirlpools, rocks, and robbers. But, independently of these local traditions, and the difficulties and dangers of the strait -- the natural scenery which here arrests the eye is highly picturesque, and even sublime. It is the admiration of all voyagers on the Upper Danube, and keeps a firm hold of the memory long after other scenes and impressions have worn off. Between Ulm and the confines of the Ottoman Empire, there is only one other scene calculated to make anything like so forcible an impression on the tourist; and that is near the cataracts of the Iron Gate -- a name familiar to every German reader.