SPA.

[Hotels: Hotel L'Orange; Hotel Pays Bas.]

SPA.-On arriving at this place, the stranger will notice with surprise the word hotel figuring over a number of small houses, Hotel de l'Europe, Hotel de Liege, &c.: these houses cannot be called hotels; but private apartments are to be had for the season. There are in addition well fitted-up hotels; the best are Hotel de L'Orange, in the centre of the town (good). Hotel de Flandre (in a good situation; the apartments are good): Hotel des Pays Bas, charmingly situated at the foot of one of the rocks which overhang the town.

Spa is a small town in the province of Liege, twenty-seven miles from the latter town and twelve from Verviers; it stands in a beautiful valley, surrounded by green hills, and is watered by the Wayai; population 3500 inhabitants. The origin of Spa is somewhat obscure; it is thought that the foundations of the present town were laid in the year 1327, by a smith, who purchased some lands from Adolphe de la Marck, Bishop of Liege. Augustino ac Venise, physician to Henry VIII., was the first foreigner who patronized the waters of Spa, and it was not until the end of the sixteenth century that their reputation increased to any extent. In 1575 the Duc de Nevers, two years after, Marguerite, first wife of Henry IV. of France, and in 1590 the celebrated Alexandre Farnese, were among the illustrious personages who came to enjoy the scenery and salubrious retreat which Spa offered. At the commencement of the seventeenth century, the waters of Spa were sent into England, France, and many parts of Italy. Charles II., when compelled to leave England in 1654, sojourned for some time at this peaceful retreat. Peter the Great visited Spa in 1717, when, after partaking of the waters, he felt so much benefited by them, that, after returning home, he ordered a Latin inscription to be cut on a marble slab, which is still to be seen above the entrance to the Salle de Pouhon. Notwithstanding the celebrity of the waters of Spa, it was not until 1750 that any step was taken towards affording accommodation to any number of visitors: no sooner were hotels suitably fitted-up, than there was a great influx of foreigners. Such is a short outline of the history of this favourite place of resort; we will now say a few words of the waters which have rendered this place so justly celebrated.

THE WATERS.-Naturally Spa abounds in fountains; they are to be seen in every direction throughout the town and its immediate neighbourhood. We shall here confine our notice to those more frequently used; they are, Le Pouhon, La Géronstère, La Souvenière, Le Groosbeck, and Le Tonnelet. Every tourist will be gratified by a visit to these fountains.

LE POUHON, or, as it was formerly written, Pouxhon, is the most celebrated and the most frequented of any of the fountains of Spa; and its waters are considered more efficacious. It was from this fountain that the water which has acquired an European celebrity, known as the " Spa water," was first procured. This water, when bottled and well corked, retains its medicinal qualities for years. The Pouhon is in the centre of the town. It is entered by a portico of the Tuscan order of architecture, above which is the following inscription-A la Memoire de Pierre le Grand. The ordinary temperature of these waters is eight degrees; its properties acid, chalybeate.

LA GERONSTERE, the next in our order, is scarcely inferior to the preceding fountain: it is about two miles from Spa, and the approach to it is by a road pleasantly shaded with trees. The fountain stands in the midst of a wood, surrounded by pleasant walks, the agreeableness of which is enhanced by a beautiful garden. The water gushes forth from a circular well cut in the rock. The waters here are less acidulated and sharp than those of the other springs the temperature is 7° 55".

LA SOUVENIERE and LE GROOSBECK are distant about two miles from the town. A double row of trees overhangs the road leading to the Souvenière, which communicates with the Géronstère by a road surrounded by delightful scenery. The Souvenière was formerly called Fontaine Ecclesiastique, in consequence of its being largely patronized by persons connected with religious houses. A mass used formerly to be celebrated close by, in a chapel called Salamanque.

La Souvenière and Le Groosbeck are situated in the midst of a wood, surrounded by pleasant walks. In this wood may be seen the walk which was constructed by Louis Philippe, the late King of the French, assisted by Mdlle. Adelaide, his sister, and their young brother. The residence of these illustrious personages at Spa has been celebrated by Madame de Genlis, in a drama entitled "L'Aveugle de Spa."

By the side of the source of the Souvenière is seen an aperture in the form of a foot: it is called le pied de Saint Remacle. Some marvellous virtues are attributed to this sacred vestige, if the recipient fails not to place his right foot in the aperture while drinking the waters. The quality of the water of this spring is acidulated and sharp; its flavour is more agreeable, and it contains less iron than that of the Pouhon. Temperature, 7° 17′′.

LE TONNELET.-This fountain is one mile and a half from Spa, to the north-east of La Souvenière; its water is remarkable for the quantity of carbonic acid which it contains. This fountain derives its name from a ton, or barrel, which was formerly forced into the earth, and from the bottom of which the water rose.

BATHS. This extensive establishment is supplied from the Pouhon Spring. There are plunging, shower, and every other sort of bath provided at this establishment.

There are many agreeable walks in the town. The Place Royale and the Place des Sept Fontaines are the most sought after. The former is the rendezvous of the élite of the town, and is near the hill of Annette and Lubin, named after the two poor lovers, of Spa, alluded to by Marmontel in the "Moral Tales." The history goes, that an Englishman built these poor lovers a hut, as a shelter until they could find a better abode: the remains of this humble dwelling were not demolished till the year 1779. A Frenchman took the loving couple to Paris, where they were introduced into society, and had an opportunity of witnessing the history of their simple love represented on the stage. The Place des Sept Fontaines is planted with trees, the branches of which are so entwined as to form delightful arbours. On certain days in the week a good band plays here.

The Redoute, Wauxhall, La Maison Levoz, and La Maison des Bains (the latter already alluded to), are the principal public buildings we shall have to notice. The parish church contains nothing worthy of particular attention.

LA REDOUTE, which stands in the centre of the town, was built in 1763. Its exterior appearance is that of a large private house. The interior is well laid out, and includes a large ball-room, suitably though simply decorated; this communicates with a theatre, which, when occasion requires, is made to form a portion of the ballroom this is effected by means of a moveable flooring. Other saloons are devoted to cards and the like amusements.

LE WAUXHALL is a neat structure surrounded by an agreeable garden. The principal saloon is used for concerts and balls. The new arrangements at this place are suitably carried out.

LA MAISON LEVOZ is pleasantly placed in the centre of a neatly laid-out garden. The grand saloon here is longer and richer than either of the former ones.

AMUSEMENTS DURING THE SEASON.-The season, properly so called, is from the beginning of June till the end of September. During this period the amusements are numerous and varied. At the Redoute there is a musical performance every morning at eleven o'clock; on Wednesdays and Saturdays, a ball; dramatic entertainments on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays; and a well-supplied reading-room, always accessible. At the Wauxhall and La Maison Levoz, several dress-balls and first-rate concerts take place, of which due notice is sure to be given. A musical performance takes place at La Promenade des Sept Fontaines every Monday, Friday, and day, from six to eight o'clock in the evening.

There is a race-course at Spa. The Englishman will find the company far more attractive than the quality of the racing.

In the private collection of curiosities belonging to Mr. Body, there are some rare and curious antiquarian remains, found in the neighbourhood of Spa, and also some articles of furniture belonging to the ancient chateau of Franchimont. The chief commerce consists in the exportation of the Spa water; there is also another article of trade of some considerable importance, and scarcely less known than the water. We allude to the various articles manufactured from the Spa wood. Scarcely any one visits Spa without purchasing some article made from the Spa wood, either as a present to a friend, or as a souvenir of the place. The town is indebted to a person named Dagley for this branch of its commerce, no inconsiderable one, for the annual sum returned is estimated at 120,000 francs.

The visitor should not omit to see the celebrated Cascade de Con, which is nine miles from Spa, on a hilly road, passing by La Geronstère, the villages of Ru and Roanne, the scenery around which resembles very much that of Switzerland, more especially as the fall is approached, which is by a narrow path winding round the base of steep rocks. Soon there appears one of the most beautiful aspects that can be imagined. The Ambleue, which rises in Prussia, is seen pouring its foaming waters from a height of from twenty to twenty-five metres. The snow-like whiteness of the foam forms a striking contrast with the dark-green rocks upon which the waters fall. From the wooden bridge which is thrown across the torrent, those who are bold enough to venture upon it may enjoy a fine view, the most varied and extensive. We shall now conduct our traveller to one more of the marvels of Spa, and one, though last, not least

THE GROTTO OF REMOUCHAMPS.-The admirer of the wonders of nature-of which this is one of the most surprising-cannot dispense taking the trip to Remouchamps, which is nine miles south-west of Spa, and lies in a wild spot in a narrow valley, which is watered by the Ambleue. The entrance to this grotto is by an iron grating, the keeper of which will provide the visitor with a suitable dress for the expedition, and lights. On entering, one is struck with the extent of the caves, the height of the vaults, the wonderful formation of the petrifications, which resemble various animals, the shining substance with which they are covered, and the astounding whiteness of the stalactites. The largest cave is that called the Ruin, which is formed of a series of rocks one over the other. One of these rocks, which supports the vault, is 360 feet high. An English traveller in 1834 discovered a new grotto under the one described.

It is said to contain much that is curious and

interesting, but in consequence of the difficulty of access, which is only to be obtained by lowering oneself by a rope, it is seldom visited.

SPIER.

[Hotels: Hof.] SPIER, the old Noviomagus, Nemetæ, or Augusta Nemetum, is a town of rather more than 10,000 inhabitants. In the days of the Roman occupation, Spier, situated in the country of the pure German Remetæ, was a fortified town, and is often mentioned in the wars against the Allemanns. It was a Christian bishopric as early as the third century. In the partition of Verdun, A.D. 843, it fell, with Worms and Mainz, to Germany, as the treaty says, " on account of its wine." The place grew considerably under the dominion of the Salic kings, who had their residence at Limburg, near Durkheim, within easy distance of Spier. In 1831, Konrad II. founded the cathedral, as a burial-place for himself and his successors: his son, Henry II., and grandson, Henry IV., completed the structure. All three found their grave there-Henry IV., úpon whom the ban of Gregory rested, not until his corpse had lain five years unburied in the little Chapel of St. Afra, which he had erected. Henry V., the last of the Salic kings, descended to these vaults, which afterwards opened to receive Philip of Suabia, Rudolph of Hapsburg, Adolf of Nassau, and Albert I. of Austria, by whose hand Adolf had fallen. Henry V., upon the death of Albrecht, which immediately followed, had both the contending kings buried in the same vault, within a hand-breadth of each other. On the 31st of May, 1689, a desolating horde of Frenchmen entered the city, ransacked the houses of the dead in search of plunder, broke open the imperial vault, and scattered the remains; then drove out the inhabitants of the city, which they charged with straw and other combustibles, and then fired. The whole city fell a prey to the flames, and afterwards unheard-of cruelties were perpetrated by the soldiers of the Most Christian King.

Post; Adler, or Wittelsbacher Hof.; Europäischer

Only two Cathedral towers remain of the six which old descriptions speak of, and they face the Rhine. The new building was erected in bad taste, after the devastations of the French. The east front having been destroyed by fire in 1739, was restored in 1772, at a cost of 200,000 florins. The building is in the Byzantine style, massive, grand, and simple. It is the greatest ecclesiastical edifice existing in Germany at the present day, being 446 feet long and 178 wide in the choir. The cathedral at Cologne will be 50 square feet longer, on its completion. The interior has been restored in good taste since 1823. King Louis, of Bavaria, commissioned the