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GJES

272

THE EHINE SLOfES AND THE TIIHEE CASTLES.

view. First, a row of yellow mud-walled cottages slioots intosight—then the grey and cylindrical Römer-thurm (Romantower)— \>avt of the old town walls— appear; and ncxt popsout the Carmeliter-Mrche (Carmelite's Church), with its tinybelfry turret set like a mere pinnacle at the end of its roof.After this the fortress-like wall, with its picturesque gatewaysclose beside the water, Starts into view; and soon the tall,square, double towers of the Pfarr-Mrche (parish church), witha gallery joining the two crayon-point-like steeples, thatreminds you of the band uniting the Siamese twins; andlastly, the church-like donjon-turret at the water's edge, rightat the end of the town; while, perched xip on the hill-side behind,you see the long front of the old convent of Marienberg.

Indeed the approach to Boppard in this direction is aspretty a sight as there is upon the Rinne, for the little townitself is more like a museum of antiquities than a villageof the 19th Century; and it is a rare delight to behold itunfold itself, bit by bit, to your eye—its ancient Templars'house—its old Bayer-house—its many antiquated cloisters andwatch-towers—with the little village of Filzen on the oppo-site shore, at the foot of the sloping hill — all bursting forth inquick succession, as if it were some exquisite dioramic scenegliding swiftly past the sight.

bridge (of stone or wood) formerly existed here; this was probably erected bythe Romans, who are known to have coustructed such works across the Rhineat Engers and Cologne. Above Baeharach there is a small village called Die-bach (literally, the brook), and then to distinguish one Diebach from another wefind the terms Rhein-diebach and Ober-diehach, (that is, the Diebach by theRhine and the Upper Diebach). In the same way Boppard may have originallybeen styled Die-brücke, and then called Bau-diebrücke, either to distinguish itfrom another Die-brücke, or so as to signify that abuilt bridge was an extraordinarywork. According to the old " notitia imperii," belonging to the 12th Century,the " Prefectus militurn ballistariorum" had bis residence in Boppard, whilst thetiles found in the neighbourhood show that the 13th Roman legion used this townas their winter quarters.