George Ticknor, Life, letters and journals of George Ticknor
George Hillard, Ed.

[27] not at home last evening to receive us, hoped we had been comfortable, and so on; and it was plain he did not wish to be thought a mere monk. When I left him, the carriage was already announced. We went down the magnificent marble staircase; . . . . the venerable Kurtz, Stiltz, and two or three other monks followed us to the bottom; we found several more waiting, who had brought flowers for Mrs. T. and the children; and we drove away with their hearty good wishes following us.

Our journey during the forenoon was only twelve or fourteen miles, to Steyer, through most agreeable by-roads and a country not only much broken and diversified, but with extensive prospects, closed up by the Styrian Mountains. . . . . We remained there only long enough to dine, and then, through an uncommonly rich, well-cultivated country, we came to Kremsmunster, another grand Benedictine monastery, larger even than either of the others we had seen. We found it standing on a hillside, with its little village, as usual, gathered under its protection, the pretty, rapid stream of the Krems brawling below, and a wide, rich valley running up beyond, until it is grandly closed up by snow-clad mountains, grouped together in very picturesque forms.

We drove through a part of the irregular buildings that compose the wide extent of the monastery, and crossing two large courts,— where we found on all sides proofs that it was a gymnasium as well as a convent,—were brought to the part inhabited by the Prelate. We were carried at once to his apartments, and found him an old man, nearly seventy, or quite seventy years old, broken with age, and talking so imperfectly, from want of teeth, that he could not be readily understood. He received us very kindly, and the proper officer having made his appearance, we were asked how many rooms we needed, and were immediately shown to a suite of five excellent ones, large enough to make a dozen such as are used and built nowadays. After we had refreshed ourselves, we were invited to see the establishment. It dates from 770, but the buildings have been erected at different times, chiefly between 1300 and 1690, and are spread very irregularly over a wide space of ground. The number of monks is eighty-four, forty of whom reside in the house, and the rest are priests in parishes. The monastery has, besides, a gymnasium, where above two hundred and fifty young men are in a constant course of education, gratis, fifty of whom are entirely supported by the Emperor, and a part of the rest by the funds of the institution. We went first to the church. It was originally of Gothic architecture, as its proportions still show,