In the Heart of the Vosges | Page 3

are well worthy of a sculptor's closest study, but it is rather as a whole
than in detail that this exquisite statue delights the ordinary observer.
All four sculptures are noble works of art; the fine, dignified figure of
St. Augustine somehow takes strongest hold of the imagination. We
would fain return to it again and again, as indeed we would fain return
to all else we have seen in the fascinating city of Nancy. From Nancy
by way of Épinal we may easily reach the heart of the Vosges.
[Illustration: GÉRARDMER]
How sweet and pastoral are these cool resting-places in the heart of the
Vosges! Gérardmer and many another as yet unfrequented by the
tourist world, and unsophisticated in spite of railways and bathing

seasons. The Vosges has long been a favourite playground of our
French neighbours, although ignored by the devotees of Cook and Gaze,
and within late years, not a rustic spot possessed of a mineral spring but
has become metamorphosed into a second Plombières.
Gérardmer--"_Sans Gérardmer et un peu Nancy, que serait la
Lorraine?_" says the proverb--is resorted to, however, rather for its
rusticity and beauty than for any curative properties of its sparkling
waters. Also in some degree for the sake of urban distraction. The
French mind when bent on holiday-making is social in the extreme, and
the day spent amid the forest nooks and murmuring streams of
Gérardmer winds up with music and dancing. One of the chief
attractions of the big hotel in which we are so wholesomely housed is
evidently the enormous salon given up after dinner to the waltz,
country dance, and quadrille. Our hostess with much ease and tact
looks in, paying her respects, to one visitor after another, and all is
enjoyment and mirth till eleven o'clock, when the large family party,
for so our French fellowship may be called, breaks up. These socialities,
giving as they do the amiable aspect of French character, will not
perhaps constitute an extra charm of Gérardmer in the eyes of the more
morose English tourist. After many hours spent in the open air most of
us prefer the quiet of our own rooms. The country, too, is so fresh and
delicious that we want nothing in the shape of social distraction.
Drawing-room amenities seem a waste of time under such
circumstances. Nevertheless the glimpses of French life thus obtained
are pleasant, and make us realize the fact that we are off the beaten
track, living among French folks, for the time separated from insular
ways and modes of thought. Our fellowship is a very varied and
animated one. We number among the guests a member of the French
ministry--a writer on the staff of Figaro--a grandson of one of the most
devoted and unfortunate generals of the first Napoleon, known as "the
bravest of the brave," with his elegant wife--the head of one of the
largest commercial houses in eastern France--deputies, diplomats,
artists, with many family parties belonging to the middle and upper
ranks of society, a very strong Alsatian element predominating.
Needless to add that people make themselves agreeable to each other
without any introduction. For the time being at least distinctions are set
aside, and fraternity is the order of the day.

I do not aver that my country-people have never heard of Gérardmer,
but certainly those who stray hither are few and far between.
Fortunately for the lover of nature no English writer has as yet
popularized the Vosges. An Eden-like freshness pervades its valleys
and forests, made ever musical with cascades, a pastoral simplicity
characterizes its inhabitants. Surely in no corner of beautiful France can
any one worn out in body or in brain find more refreshment and
tranquil pleasure!
It is only of late years that the fair broad valley of Gérardmer and its
lovely little lake have been made accessible by railway. Indeed, the
popularity of the Vosges and its watering-places dates from the late
Franco-German war. Rich French valetudinarians, and tourists
generally, have given up Wiesbaden and Ems from patriotic motives,
and now spend their holidays and their money on French soil. Thus
enterprise has been stimulated in various quarters, and we find really
good accommodation in out-of-the-way spots not mentioned in
guide-books of a few years' date. Gérardmer is now reached by rail in
two hours from Épinal, on the great Strasburg line, but those who
prefer a drive across country may approach it from Plombières,
Remiremont, Colmar and Münster, and other attractive routes. Once
arrived at Gérardmer, the traveller will certainly not care to hurry away.
No site in the Vosges is better suited for excursionizing in all directions,
and the place itself is full of quiet charm. There is wonderful sweetness
and solace in these undulating hill-sides, clothed with brightest green,
their little tossing