21 miles further up the Rhine. It is the seat of the Freidrich Wilhelm
University, and contains about 26,000 inhabitants. The Poppelsdorfer
Allee, an excellent quadruple avenue of fine horse-chestnuts, three
quarters of a mile long, is the principal promenade of the town. At the
end of it stands the Schloss containing the University, with a library
(200,000 volumes) and a museum rich in Roman antiquities. The Münster (or
Cathedral) dates from the 12th and 13th centuries. In the Münsterplatz
stands a fine bronze statue of Beethoven, a celebrated German musician,
who was born in the Bonngasse, No. 515. This statue faces south, (as do
most of the statues that I have seen in Europe, except when the
surroundings are unfavorable). One side of the pedestal contains the
following inscription:

LUDWIG
VAN
BEETHOVEN
Geb. zu Bonn MDCCLXX.

The other three sides contain base reliefs representing muses playing upon
musical instruments.

Half a mile above the Poppelsdorfer Schloss rises the Kreuzberg (400 feet
high) crowned with a white church. This contains the "Holy Steps" 28 in
number, which must only be ascended on the knees, and are in imitation of
the Scala Sancta at the Lateran in Rome, piously believed to be the
identical steps of the Prætorium ascended by the Savior when he appeared
before Pilate.

The view from the tower of this church is one of the most beautiful on the
Rhine. After enjoying the scenery a while, with a party of ladies and