Travel Books

HAMMERSMITH The parish of Hammersmith is mentioned in Doomsday Book under the name of Hermoderwode, and in ancient deeds of the Exchequer as Hermoderworth. It is called Hamersmith in the Court Rolls of the beginning of Henry VII.'s reign. This is evidently more correct than the present spelling of the name, which is undoubtedly derived from Ham, meaning in Saxon a town or dwelling, and Hythe or... more...

CHAPTER I. The Secret of the Gulf—Ulloa, 1539, One of the Captains of Cortes, Almost Solves it, but Turns Back without Discovering—Alarcon, 1540, Conquers. In every country the great, rivers have presented attractive pathways for interior exploration—gateways for settlement. Eventually they have grown to be highroads where the rich cargoes of development, profiting by favouring tides, floated to... more...

BADDECK AND THAT SORT OF THING I "Ay, now I am in Arden: the more fool I; when I was at home,I was in a better place; but travellers must be content."—TOUCHSTONE. Two comrades and travelers, who sought a better country than the United States in the month of August, found themselves one evening in apparent possession of the ancient town of Boston. The shops were closed at early candle-light;... more...

CHAPTER XXI. We voyaged by steamer down the Lago di Lecco, through wild mountain scenery, and by hamlets and villas, and disembarked at the town of Lecco. They said it was two hours, by carriage to the ancient city of Bergamo, and that we would arrive there in good season for the railway train. We got an open barouche and a wild, boisterous driver, and set out. It was delightful. We had a fast team and... more...

CHAPTER IV.--Continued. FROM LEAVING NEW ZEALAND TO OUR RETURN TO ENGLAND. SECTION III. Range from Christmas Sound, round Cape Horn, through Strait Le Maire, and round Staten Land; with an Account of the Discovery of a Harbour in that Island, and a Description of the Coasts. At four o'clock in the morning on the 28th, we began to unmoor, and at eight weighed, and stood out to sea, with a light... more...

CHAPTER I. AN ACCOUNT OF THE VOYAGES UNDERTAKEN BY THE ORDER OF HIS MAJESTY GEORGE III. FOR MAKING DISCOVERIES IN THE SOUTHERN HEMISPHERE; AND SUCCESSIVELY PERFORMED BY COMMODORE BYRON, CAPTAIN WALLIS, CAPTAIN CARTERET, AND CAPTAIN COOK, IN THE DOLPHIN, THE SWALLOW, AND THE ENDEAVOUR: DRAWN UP FROM THE JOURNALS WHICH WERE KEPT BY THE SEVERAL COMMANDERS, AND FROM THE PAPERS OF SIR JOSEPH BANKS, BART. BY... more...

CHAPTER X.--Continued. EARLY VOYAGES OF THE ENGLISH TO INDIA, AFTER THE ESTABLISHMENT OF THE EAST INDIA COMPANY. SECTION XV.--Continued. Eighth Voyage of the English East India Company, in 1611, by Captain John Saris. SECTION 5. Farther Observations respecting the Moluccas, and the Completion of the Voyage to Japan. The 10th of April, 1613, the Spanish commandant sent me a message, requesting me to... more...

THREE FAMOUS CITIES IN THE STREETS OF GENOA BY CHARLES DICKENS The great majority of the streets are as narrow as any thoroughfare can well be, where people (even Italian people) are supposed to live and walk about; being mere lanes, with here and there a kind of well, or breathing-place. The houses are immensely high, painted in all sorts of colors, and are in every stage and state of damage, dirt,... more...

After one has left a country it is interesting to collect together the emotions it has given in an effort to define its particular character. And with Andalusia the attempt is especially fascinating, for it is a land of contrasts in which work upon one another, diversely, a hundred influences. In London now, as I write, the rain of an English April pours down; the sky is leaden and cold, the houses in... more...

I was brought up in Rome, from the age of twelve to that of seventeen, but did not return there for many years afterwards. I discovered it anew for myself, while knowing all its sites and its details; discovered, that is to say, its meaning to my thoughts and feelings. Hence, in all my impressions, a mixture of familiarity and of astonishment; a sense, perhaps answering to the reality, that Rome—it... more...