A Girl's Holiday BY AMY NEALLY ILLUSTRATED NEW YORK E. P. DUTTON & COMPANY 31 West Twenty-third Street 1892 Copyright, 1892 By E. P. Dutton and Company...

One day in the early spring, Alice Winter came home from school, and, after the usual question at the door, "Is mamma at home?" rushed upstairs, and found to her great surprise that her papa was at home, talking very earnestly to Mrs. Winter. When Alice came into the room, Mr. Winter stopped talking, and she wondered very much what they could have been talking about so earnestly, as all she heard was her papa asking, "Do you think we had better take her with us?" "Why, papa! What is the matter?

Mr. Winter having telegraphed for rooms, found them ready for him; and on going down to dinner they were delighted to see the corridors and dining-room crowded with people, many of them public characters whom he could point out to Alice, who was so excited she felt the entire evening as if she were in a dream. Of all the prominent men there Alice was the most interested in General Sherman, with his kind, rugged face. The "Etruria" sailed at noon on Saturday, and Mrs. Winter and Alice spent the m

"Come, Alice," said Mrs. Winter, "we will go down to our state-room and unpack our trunks while we are in smooth water, for to-morrow morning it may be so rough we cannot get out of our berths at all." Alice went with her mamma and helped put everything in order, but there were so few hooks and no bureau she did not know at first where to put anything. Mrs. Winter decided to sleep in the lower berth and have Alice on the sofa, which gave them the top berth for a bureau, and they found themselves

Queenstown was soon a thing of the past, and when they went to their rooms the packing was finished, so that the next morning all the time could be spent upon the deck until they landed. It was a clear, bright morning, but very cold and windy, when the steamer was left to take the tug. On leaving the tug, Alice and Nellie were very careful to each put her left foot first on the dock, as they had been told it would bring them good luck. There was not much to interest our party in Liverpool except

Sunday our party rested, but on Monday morning they started for Westminster Abbey, hardly looking at anything on the way, though they went by Trafalgar Square, with the high column erected to Nelson, which stands there so proudly, with its beautiful lions made by Landseer lying so quietly at its base. A pleasant morning was passed at the Abbey, and the Poets' Corner proved to be their greatest attraction, as it is with most Americans. The chair in which Queen Victoria sat when she was crowned wa

Monday morning was bright and clear, and Mr. Ford said, "This looks like a pleasant crossing of the Channel." The ride in the cars to Dover was very interesting, and the view of Canterbury Cathedral was quite fine. Quite a large boat was waiting for the train, and the water looked so smooth Alice said,— "I guess the people who are sick crossing this Channel do not know much of ocean discomfort." Like a good many travellers who see the Channel for the first time, she thought it must always be qui

On Monday, Mr. and Mrs. Winter and the girls said "good-bye" to Mr. and Mrs. Ford and started for Cologne in the gayest of spirits. The trip was found very interesting, as they followed the Meuse River a great deal of the way. Between Liège and Verviers the country was wonderfully picturesque, with the pretty winding river, which they continually crossed, and little villages with the mountains in the distance. The Meuse has been called the miniature Rhine. Verviers is the last Belgian station, a

Both girls jumped to their feet, for of course they were interested to see that famous rock where the water-nymph Lore was said to have lived. She would appear on the top of the rock, clothed in wonderful garments, and a veil of the color of the sea-green water reaching to her feet, to lure wicked people to destruction by her singing. The people who came to the foot of the rock were swallowed in the waves, while those who tried to climb to the top were either thrown back into the water or led th

Mr. Winter as usual had telegraphed to Mayence for rooms, and found very comfortable, large rooms ready for them in a new, pleasant hotel near the station. After resting a little while Mr. Winter said, "Who wants to go with me and take a drive around the city?" The entire party, even Mrs. Winter, who had thought she was too tired to go out again, said they would like to go. What a delightful drive they had, at the close of a warm, lovely day, around that interesting old city, with its wonderful

In the morning Mr. Winter said, "I will give one day to you for sight-seeing, and then I must attend to business. You will have to spend the rest of your time going around with a guide or by yourselves." Alice was delighted with the old moat which was opposite her window, and wanted to look in it at once. Nellie felt the castle was of more importance, and could hardly wait to get there. The moat surrounds the old city, and now is rented to gardeners, who live in the old towers and cultivate the

The following morning Mr. Winter left the ladies, who walked aimlessly, not caring much where they went, it was all so full of interest to them. Accidentally they visited quite an interesting place called the Preller House. It was built three hundred years ago by a Venetian nobleman, and is now used as a furniture warehouse. There is a chapel in it, and some of the old furniture still remains. The ceilings are very fine, and in two of the rooms were only discovered when the present occupants wer

Mrs. Winter was very anxious to travel to Paris by the way of Strasbourg, as she had always wished to see the cathedral with its wonderful clock. Mr. Winter made inquiries and found that was decidedly the best way to go, which was a great delight to them all. Our party left Nuremberg early in the morning, sorry to see the last of the most interesting city they had seen thus far on their trip. Nellie, who was looking forward to meeting her father and mother in Paris, was quite happy to make a mov

That evening after Nellie had told her mamma some of her pleasant experiences, Mr. Winter said, "Now we have just five days to spend in Paris, and you must decide what you would most like to do. Mr. Ford and I are entirely at your disposal." Guidebooks were brought out and studied, and after many discussions their plans were settled for each day. On Thursday morning they went to the Louvre, feeling there would be so many pictures to see they had better visit it first. How tired they did get slid