fulated capital, from which you may furvey its manifold and lingular
beauties. Steeples, houfes, rocks, trees, lakes, and the-
caftle, which rears its head above the whole, prefent to the eye aj
moil interefting pidlure. But the point o f view which is more
llriking than all the others, and where every ilranger ihould Hop
and look around him, is the north bridge. Turning towards
the city, you have in front a view o f its whole extent, and o f the
forepart o f the caftle, which ilands on the brow o f a hill. This is
a work o f fuperb architecture, fimple indeed, but noble and ffla-
j e f t i c ; not incumbered with that load o f ufelefs ornaments,
which greatly disfigured the caftle or palace o f Copenhagen, as
may ftill be feen from the ruins that were left by the fire, which
has nearly deftroyed that magnificent ftructure. Thence, on the
right, your eye takes a wide range ; and perceives, among other
objedts, a number o f hills adorned with houfes or with fir-trees,
and refts with delight on a fmall ifland, embelliihed with a pavilion
or fummer houfe, which is reflected by the limpid furface
o f the water, and exhibits a moft pleafing appearance. Near to
this building, on the right hand, ftands the beautiful houfe o f
the Count de Bunge, where a club is held, diftinguifhed by the
name o f the Society. A profpedt as much diverfified, and not lefs
cxtenfive, is opened towards the eaft, comprehending at fome
diftance the ille o f Blafius, which communicates by means o f a
wooden bridge with Ships-ifland. T o the left you fee the theatre
or play-houfe, and to tlft north you obferve the Nordermalm of
north-place, in the centre o f which ftands a guilt ftatue in bronze
of
o f Guftavus Adolphus. On two fides o f this fquare, the right
and the left, are two edifices, the fronts o f w hich are in exadl cor-
refpondence and fymmetry with each other. One o f them is the
palace o f the princefs royal, and the other the opera-houfe. It
is much to be regretted that the houfes in this place are not built
in fuch a ftyle and order as to anfwer to thefe buildings. I f they
were altered and embelliihed in a manner analagous to the prin-
cefs’s palace and the opera-houfe, I will venture to fay, that there
are few cities which would afford fuch a magnificent point o f
view as the north bridge o f Stockholm would then afford. T o
this is to be added the effect produced on the imagination, by
the noife o f the water ruihing in a violent cataract through the
arches o f the bridge, which completes the romantic affemblage.
After what has been faid o f the fituation o f Stockholm, it will
be eafy to conceive what a change the appearance of the whole
fcene muft undergo by the oppofite feafons.
T he grand and moft diftinguifhed feature in the locality o f
that city, namely, being fituated on iflands amidft gulfs and
lakes, is deftroyed by the ice. T h e fame water which divides
the inhabitants o f the different quarters in fummer unites them
in winter. It becomes a plain which is traverfed by every
body. T he iflands are iflands no longer : horfes in fledges, phaetons,
and in vehicles o f all forts placed on fkates, fcour the gu lf
and lakes by the fide o f fhips fixed in the ice, and aftonifhed
as it were to find themfelves in fuch company on the fame element.
Thole lakes, which in fummer were brightened by the
clear