LIBRARY OF THE UNIVERSITY OF ILLINOIS AT URBANA-CHAMPAIGN 914.94'- M96h 1879 The person charging this material is re- sponsible for its return to the library from which it was withdrawn on or before the Latest Date stamped below. Theft, mutilation, and underlining of books are reasons for disciplinary action and may result in dismissal from the University. To renew call Telephone Center, 333-8400 I y HANDBOOK TRAVELLERS IN SWITZERLAND, THE ALPS OF SAVOY AND PIEDMONT, THE ITALIAN LAKES, AND PART OF DAUPHEN& ^tvtontf) (L^Xrtttnu, Mebteetf* WITH TRAVELLING MAPS, PLANS OF TOWNS, ETC. LONDON: JOHN MURRAY, ALBEMARLE STREET; PARIS: GALIGNANI Sc CO.; BOYVEAU. 1879. The Right of Translation is reserved. THE ENGLISH EDITIONS OF MURRAY’S HANDBOOKS MAY BE OBTAINED OF THE FOLLOWING AGENTS. Belgium , Holland , and Germany . AIX-LA- } MAYER. LEIPZIG . BROCKHAUS. — TWIETMEYER CHAFELLE . j MANNHEIM . . BENDER & FONTAINE. — AMSTERDAM MULLER. — KIRBERGER. LOFFLER. — KOTTER. ANTWERP . MERTENS. METZ . . ALCAN. BADEN-BADEN MARX. MUNICH . MANZ. — ACKERMANN. — • BERLIN ASHER. — MITSCHER & ROS- KAISER. TELL. NtJRNBERG . . SCHRAG.— ZEISER. BRUSSELS . KIESSLING. PESTH . . HARTLEBEN.— G.HECKENAST. CARLSRUHE . A. BIELEFELD. — OSTERLAMM. — RATH. COLOGNE . GREVEN.— DUMONT.— EISEN. PRAGUE . CALVE. DRESDEN BURDACH.— PIERSON. ROTTERDAM . KRAMERS.— PETRI.— ROBBERS. FRANKFURT JUGEL. STRASSBURG . GRUCKER.— TRUBNER. GRATZ LEUSCHNER & LUBENSKY. STUTTGART •; . METZLER. — NEFF. THE HAGUE NIJHOFF. TRIESTE . COEN.— SCHIMPFF. HAMBURG . MAUKE SOHNE. VIENNA . GEROLD. — BRAUMtJLLER. HEIDELBERG MOHR. WIESBADEN . . KREIDEL. Switzerland. bale • GEORG. — AMBERGER, LUCERNE . KAISER. BERNE DALP. — JENT & REINERT. NEUCHATEL . GERSTER. COIRE GRUBENMANN. SCHAFFHAUSEN . HURTER. CONSTANCE . MECK. SOLEURE . JENT. GENEVA MONROE(METFORD).— SANDOZ. ST. GALLEN . . HUBER. — H. GEORG. ZURICH . . ORELL FUESSLI & CO. — MEYER LAUSANNE . ROUSSY. & ZELLER.— LEUTHOLD. Italy. BOLOGNA ZANICHELLI. PARMA . ZANGHIERI. ; FLORENCE . GOODBAN. — LOESCHER. PISA . . NISTRI.— JOS. VANNUCCHI. GENOA GRONDONA.— ANTOINE BEUF. PERUGIA . VINCENZ.— BARTELLI. LEGHORN MAZZAJOLI. ROME . . SPITHb'VER. — PIALE. — MO- ' LUCCA . BARON. * NALDINI. — LOESCHER. MANTUA . NEGRETTI. SIENA . . ONORATO PORRI. MILAN , SACCHI. — DUMOLARD. — TURIN . . MAGGI. — L. BEUF. — BOCCA IlOEPLI. FRERES. — LOESCHER. — ‘ MODENA . VINCENZI & ROSSI. BALFOUR. NAPLES . BRITISH LIBRARY (DORANT).- VENICE . ONGANIA. — COEN.— MEINERS. HOEPLI. — QUERCI. PALERMO . PEDONE. VERONA . MUNSTER. — MEINERS. France . AMIENS . CARON. LYONS • . AYNf. — SCHEURING.— MERA. ANGERS . HARASS E. MARSEILLES. . CAMOIN FRERES.— MEUNIER. ’ AVIGNON . CLEMENT ST. JUST. NANTES . . PETIPAS. — POIRIER LEGROS. ' AVRANCHES . . ANFRAY. — ANDRf. BORDEAUX . . CHAUMAS. — MULLER. — SAU- NICE . . BARBERY FRERES. — JOUGLA. ' VAT. — FERET. — GALIGNANI. BOULOGNE . . MERRIDEW. ORLEANS . GATINEAU. — PESTY. j CAEN . BOISARD. — LEGOST. — CLE- PARIS . . GALIGNANI.— BOYVEAU. RISSE. PAU . . LAFON. ' ‘ CALAIS . RIGAUX CAUX. RHEIMS . BRISSART BINET.— GEOFFROY , 1 CANNES . ROBANDY. — GIRET. CHERBOURG . . LECOUFFLET. ROUEN . LEBRUMENT. — HAULARD. DIEPPE . MARAIS. ST. ETIENNE. . DELARUE. DINANT . COSTE. ST. MALO . HUE. DOUAI . JACQUART. — LEMALE. ST. QUENTIN . DOLOY. GRENOBLE . . VELLOT ET COMP. TOULON . MONGE ET VILLAMUS. HAVRE . BOURDIGNON. — FOUCHER. — TOULOUSE . . GIMET ET COTELLE. BUYS. TOURS . GEORGET. LILLE . BEGHIN. TROYES . LALOY.— DUFEY ROBERT. Spain and Portugal. GIBRALTAR . . ROWSWELL. MADRID . DURAN.— BAILLIERE. LISBON . LEWTAS. MALAGA . DE MOYA. Bussia , Sweden , Denmark, and Norway. ST. PETERSBURG . WATKINS.— WOLFF. 1 ODESSA . CAMOIN. MOSCOW . GAUTIER. — DEUBNER. — CHRISTIANIA . BENNETT. LANG. | STOCKHOLM . . SAMSON & WALLIN. — FRITZ. Malta. Ionian Islands. Constantinople . CRITIEN.— WATSON. — CALLEJ A. CORFU . J. W. TAYLOR. WICK & WEISS. Greece. Alexandria and Cairo. ATHENS, KARL WILDBERG. ALEXANDRIA BOOK CO. Gift of MISS WILLIAN ADGER ATJG. 1930 iii * CjjLj f'-f IW § 22. ABBREVIATIONS, &c., EMPLOYED IN THE HANDBOOK. The points of the compass (not magnetic) are marked by the letters N. S. E. W. ( rt .) right, (/.) left, — applied to the banks of a river. The right bank is that which lies on the right hand of a person whose back is turned towards the source or to the quarter from which the current descends. Distances are, as far as possible, reduced to English miles ; when miles are men- tioned, they may be understood to be English, and feet to be English feet. Where there is a railway, the distances at the head of the chapters are measured from the first station or terminus. On other roads the distances are measured from each place to the next place mentioned. The names of Inns precede the description of everyplace. The best Inns are placed first. f Denotes a pier and landing-place for steamers. In order to avoid repetition, the book commences with a chapter of preliminary information ; and to facilitate reference to it, each division or paragraph is separately numbered. Each Route is numbered with Arabic figures, corresponding with the figures at- tached to the Route on the Map, which thus serves as an Index ; at the same time that it presents a tolerably exact view of the great and minor roads of Switzerland. Eng. Ch. S., English Church Service on Sundays. MAPS AND PLANS, Clue Map of Switzerland Travelling Map of Savoy and Piedmont Plan of B&le . . Falls of the Rhine . . Plan of Zurich Lucerne Map of Lake of Lucerne and Rigi Plan of Berne View of the Bernese Alps Map of the Bernese Oberland Section of View from Wengern Alp, &c. Panorama from Faulhorn Plan of Geneva . . Map of Engadine and part of the Orisons Map of the Italian Lakes No. 1 Map of the Italian Lakes No. 2 Plan of Paths to Monte Generoso Glacier of Macugnaga Map of Monte Rosa and surrounding valleys Panorama from the Riffelberg Map of the Northern Valleys of the Pennine Alps Plan of Aosta Map of Mont Blanc and surrounding valleys Mont Blanc from the Br event Map of the Cogne District Map of the Vaudois Valleys At the end of Switzerland . . . At the end ef the Book . PAGE to face to face 11 n ?> to face to face 11 ii to face ii ii to face 71 11 11 1 21 2S 40 42 67 69 73 82 87 166 269 307 311 318 338 358 361 373 390 411 418 439 499 PREFACE. Murray’s Handbook for Switzerland , Savoy , and Piedmont was the first systematic guide-book of English origin to those countries. It was based on the principle of personal knowledge of the routes described, and con- structed for the use of a generation of travellers, among whose interests the beauties of nature or historical associations took the first place. Since the publication of the first edition in 1838 two new classes of visitors have made Switzerland and the adjacent regions their summer resort. An eager band of mountaineers has explored the Alps in their most secret recesses, and conquered their proudest pinnacles. A much larger company of tourists circles yearly for a few weeks in autumn along a narrow and beaten track through two or three of the most beautiful districts on the northern side of the great chain. Their interests appear, in many cases at least, scarcely to extend beyond the practical details of travel — means of conveyance, inns, tariffs, bills, — and they have no desire to turn aside to see scenery which has not been already stamped with the approval of their fellows. It has not been thought expedient to remodel this work so as to^suit either class. It would be impossible to condense into one volume, in a form which would attract English readers, the minute details as to every byeway and glacier pass, or the interesting personal narratives of “ first ascents,” which distinguish the admirable ‘ Alpine Guide 9 of Mr. Ball. It seems, on the other hand, undesirable to limit the scope of these pages, and absurd to encumber them with long lists of tariffs and time-tables, which the next year, in many cases, must render inaccurate, and which could never be safely consulted without a further reference to the tables of the year, accessible in every hotel. The present Editor has endeavoured, therefore, to maintain the Handbook in its original character as a practical Traveller's Guide. In it English travellers will find, in one volume, a comprehensive account of the whole Central and Western Alps, in which every route of importance is described in detail, while bypaths and glacier excursions are briefly indicated. Plans of the principal towns are inserted, and a carefully-prepared route- map of Savoy and Piedmont. Besides the two route-maps, there will be found numerous district-maps. Of these four are new, and two have been re-engraved for the present Edition. An independent Index has been prepared for the Swiss section of the Handbook, as well as for the section relating to the Pennine Alps, Savoy and Piedmont ; and as each is furnished with a map, the two parts may be bound up separately for convenience, without injuring the completeness of either. VI PREFACE. The following are among the principal alterations and additions made in the text of this Edition. The Introduction has been re-arranged, and in great part re-written ; several new routes have been added ; others have been divided so as to make reference more easy; glacier passes, which require no apprenticeship in climbing, and have become frequented routes, are fully described ; while the principal ascents are, as a rule, noted. The whole book has been thoroughly and carefully revised, amplified, and methodised. Among the sections most largely altered and amended are those relating to Davos and the Engadine, Zermatt, the Pennine Alps, the Graian Alps and Dauphin e, the Lombard and the Maritime Alps. The Editor desires to acknowledge his special obligations to the Hand- books issued by M. Joanne, the ‘ Schweizerfiihrer ’ of Herr Ivan von Tschudi, and to the numerous local Handbooks published under the auspices of the Italian Alpine Club, and referred to in the subsequent list of authorities. He also wishes to thank the many Alpine Clubmen, Swiss travellers and residents who have put at his service their intimate know- ledge of particular districts, and thus enabled him, in spite of the enormous increase in the amount of the information to be gathered together since the book was first published, to maintain throughout its claim to be founded on the personal knowledge of the most competent travellers. SWITZERLAND (WITHOUT THE PENNINE ALPS.) CONTENTS. INTRODUCTORY INFORMATION. § 1. General Information for Travellers — Passports, Customs, Money, Measures, Post, Telegraph, Cir- cular Tours, and Tickets, Luggage . § 2. Modes of Travelling— Railway, Steamers, Diligences, Posting, Voituriers, and Cars, Horses, Mules’ Chaises-a-Porteurs § 3. Guides § 4. Accommodation— Inns, Pensions, Baths, Alpine Huts .' § 5. Directions and Requisites for Travellers— Season, Plan of Journey, Language, Outfit, Health, Expense ....... § 6. Directions and Requisites for Mountaineers— Moun- tain-Sickness, Frost-bite § 7. Alpine Clubs ..... § 8. Routes to Switzerland and Skeleton Tours | 9. Selected List of Books and Maps Alpine Art Page XVI xxi xxiii The Alps— Their Groups, Peaks, Passes, Gorges, anp Valleys Glaciers ....... Alpine Rivers, Lakes, and Waterfalls . Landslips, Avalanches, Snow Storms, Floods Alpine Fauna and Flora Population, Army, Education, Rifle Matches, Wrest- ling, Costumes, Towns ...... Chalets and Pasturages, Ranz des Vaches, * Swiss Husbandry ...... Goitre and Cretinism .... Lake-Dwellings ...... Historical Note and Table of Cantons Glossary ....... Abbreviations, etc. . xxviii xxxii xxxviii , xxxix xliii xlvii xlviii lvi lxiv lxv lxix lxx , lxxiii , lxxvi , lxxvii , lxxviii lxxxv lxxxvii LIST OF ROUTES. *** The names of many places are necessarily repeated in several Routes; but to facilitate reference, they are printed in Italics only in those Routes under which they are fully described. J J ROUTE^ PAGE 1 Bale to Berne, by the Munster Thai and Bienne ( Railway ) . 1 2 Bale to Olten, Soleure and Bienne by Oensingen ( Bail - way')— the Weissenstein . . 9 ROUTE page 3 Bale to Lucerne, by Olten ( Railway ) . . .12 4 Olten to Berne ( Railway ) . 15 5 Bale to Zurich, by Botzberg — ( Railway ) . . . .15 ROUTE PAGE 6. 01 ten by Aar an and Brugg to Waldshut ( Railway ) . . 19 7 Bale to Schaffhausen [Falls of the Rhine ] by Waldshut — (Railway) . . . .19 8 Schaffhausen to Constance (Railway) — Lake of Constance . 22 9 Schaffhausen to Zurich (Rhein- fall Railway) . . .27 10 Romanshorn to Zurich {Rail.) . 32 11 Constance to Winterthur, by Etzweilen (Railway) . . 32 12 Zurich to Berne (Railway) . 32 13 A Zurich to Rapper schwy l and Wesen by Rail or steamer . 33 b Zurich to Ziegelbrucke by Vale of Glatt (Railway) . . 35 c Zurich to Sargans — Lake of Wallenstadt . . .35 14 a Zurich to Zug and Lucerne (Rail.) — (Lake of Zug) . . 38 b Zurich to Zug, by Morgen . 39 15. Lucerne to Weggis , Vitznau, Brunnen t and Fliielen . . 40 16 Ascent of the Rigi (Railway and Mule-paths) . . .48 17 Ascent of Pilatus . . .55 18 Lucerne to Schwy z — the Ross- berg 57 19 The Pass of the Briinig. — Lu- cerne to Meiringen, or Brienz 61 20 Sarnen to Engelberg, Engst- len, or Meiringen, by the Melchthal . . . .64 22 Lucerne to Berne or Thun, by the Entlehuch (Railway) . 65 24 Berne to Thun . . .66 25 The Bernese Oberland. — a Thun to Lnterlaken . . 73 b Interlaken to Lauterbrunnen , Miirren . . . .77 c Lauterbrunnen to Grindelwald — Wenger n Alp — Faulhorn . 80 D Grindelwald to Reichenbach or Meiringen — Great Scheideck . 88 e Meiringen to Brienz and Interlaken — Giessbach Falls . 90 26 a Meiringen to the Rhone Glacier, Grimsel Pass . . 92 B Rhone Glacier to Hospen- thal — Furka Pass . . .96 27 Glacier Passes leading to or from the Grimsel: — A Gadmenthal to Grimsel Trift- limmi . . . .97 ROUTE PAGE b Grindelwald to Grimsel — Strahleck and Lauteraar Jock 98 c Grimsel to the Eggisch- horn — Oberaarjoch . .100 d To Meiringen, oyer the Lauteraar and Gauli Glaciers 100 28 Rhone Glacier to Brieg — Upper Rhone Valley . . 101 29 The Eggischhorn and Bel Alp . 102 31 Stanz to Altdorf, by the Sure- nen— Engelberg — the Titlis . 107 32 Susten Pass , from Meiringen to Wasen .... 110 33 The J och Pass , from Meiringen to Engelberg . . .112 34 Pass of St. Gothard , from Fliielen , on the Lake of Lucerne, to Bellinzona. . 113 35 Lauterbrunnen or Miirren to the Lotschenthal, by the Petersgrat y or to Kandersteg, by the Tschingel Glacier . 124 36 Lauterbrunnen to Kandersteg, by the Sefinen Furke and Diindengrat . . . . 125 t 37 The Gemmij Thun to the Baths of Leuk (Loueche), and the Valais . . . 127 38 The Lotschenthal and its Passes — A Turtman to Kandersteg, by the Lotschen Pass . . 134 b Turtman to the Eggischhorn by the Lotschlucke . . 135 c Turtman to the Bel Alp by the Beichgrat . . .^135 : 39 Pass of the Rawyl. — Thun, or Interlaken, to Sion or Sierre. The Grimmi . . . . 135 40 Frutigen to Adelboden , An der Lenk, Lauenen, Gsteig . The Hahnermoos , Triittlisberg , Chri- nen 138 41 Pass of the Sanetsch — Saanen to Sion .... 138 42 Thun to V evey, by the Simmen - that, Saanen , Chateau d’Oex , and Gruyeres ; Pass of the Dent de Jaman . . . 139 43 Chateau d’Oex to Aigle, by the Val des Oymnonts . . 145 44 Sepey to Gsteig, by Les Dia - blerets 146 45 Berne to Lausanne, by Fri- bourg (Railway) . . .147 IS' OF ROUTES. ROUTE PAGE 46 Soleure to Lausanne, by Moraty Railway — Avenches (Aventicum) . . . 151 48 Bienne to Neuchatel (Railway} 153 49 Neuchatel to Yverdon and Lausanne (Railway} . .157 50 Neuchatel to Chaux de Fonds and Le Locle (Railway) . 159 51a Pontarlier (in France) to Neuchatel ( Railway ) . .160 b Pontarlier to Lausanne ( Rly .) 52 Yallorbes to Lac de Joux . 162 53 Lyons, or Macon, to Geneva ( Railway ) . . . .164 55 Geneva to Villeneuve, by Lau- sanne , Vevey, and Chilian, Lake of Geneva [Railway) . 176 56 Villeneuve to Brieg , by Mar - tigny (Gorge of Trient) (Rail.) 187 57 Geneva to Martigny, by Tho- non and Meillerie , along the south shore of the Lake of Geneva .... 196 58 Bex to Sion, by les Diablerets and Col de Cheville . .198 59 Passage of the Simplon — Brieg to Domo d * Ossola . . . 200 61 Viesch to Premia or Tosa Falls, by the Binnenthal . . 204 62 Pass of the Gries — Ulrichen to Domo d’Ossola, by the Val Formazza (Pommat) and Falls of the Tosa .... 206 63 Pass of the Niifenen from Obergestelen to Airolo . 208 64 The Valleys of Ticino — (a) Locarno to Airolo, by Val Maggia and Val Lavizzara . . . 209 (b) Locarno to Tosa Falls, by l Val Bavona . . . 210 (c) Locarno to Faido, by Val Verzasca . . .211 65 Zurich to Rorschach by St. Gall (Railway) . . .211 66 Rorschach to Rag at z (Railway) — Baths of Pfaffers . . 214 67 Bregenz to Sargans (Railway), or Mayenfeld, by Vaduz . 219 68 Rorschach to Heiden, Gais , and Appenzell, with Excursions to Weissbad, the Wildkirchlein , and the Hoch Sentis . .219 69 St. Gall to Appenzell or Lich- tensteig, by Herisau . . 223 ROUTE PAGE 71 WyltoCoire — The Toggenburg 224 72 Wadensweil to Einsiedeln (Rly .)— Einsiedeln to Schwyz — Morgarten . . . . 226 73 Schwyz to Glarus, by Muotta , the Pragel Pass , and the Klonthal . . . .229 74 Wesen to Glarus and the Baths of Stachelberg — The Clariden Grat 231 75 Muotta to Stachelberg, by the Bisithal , or to Altdorf, by the Kinzig Kulm . . * 236 76 Stachelberg to Altdorf, by the Klausen Pass . . . 237 77 Stachelberg to Bissentis, by the Sand Grat .... 238 78 Stachelberg to Brig els, over the Kistengrat . . . 239 79 Glarus or Stachelberg to Reichenau — Richetli and Seg- ues Passes .... 240 80 Glarus to Ilanz, by the Pa- nixer Pass • • • ,241 81 Ragatz to Coire (Railway ) — the Grisons and Romansch language .... 243 82 Coire, up the Valley of Vorder- Rhein , to Dissentis , and across the Oberalp to Andermatt . 246 83 The Maderaner Thai — Kreuzli Pass 249 84 Dissentis to Airolo, by the TJomo Pass .... 251 8 5 Pass of the Lukmanier — Dissen- tis to Olivone, in the ValBlegno 252 86 Ilanz or Trons to Olivone — the Disrut and Greina Passes 253 87 Coire to Chiavenna — Via Mala — Pass of the Spliigen . • 254 88 Andeer to Casaccia, by the Averser Thai , For cellina and Septimer Passes . . . 261 89 Niifenen to Ildnz, by the Pass of the Valserberg , and St. Peters Thai .... 262 90 Reichenau or Ilanz to Spliigen, by the Savienthal and Pass of the Lochliberg . . . 264 91 Pass of the S. Bernardino — Spliigen to Bellinzona. . 264 92 Pass of the Julier , from Coire to St. Moritz . . . 268 93 Passes of the Schyn and Albula from Coire to the Engadine. 269 X LIST OF ROUTES. THE ALPS OF SAVOY AND PIEDMONT. ROUTE . ^ PAGE 94 a. Coire or.Ragatz to Davos - Platz , by the Prdtigau — 271 b. Davos to Lenz by the Landwasserthal . . . 274 95 Coire to Davos- Platz by the Strela Pass . 275 96 Davos to Sus by the Fluela Pass 275 97 Vorarlberg to the Pratigau — Passes of the Ehdtikon . . 276 98 Chiavenna by the Val Bre- gaglia to the Maloja Pass . 277 Index to Switzerland ROUTE PAGE 99 The Engadine — Maloja to Nauders and the Pass of Pinstermiinz . . .278 1 00 Samaden to Pontresina — Tours of Piz Bernina . . . 287 101 Pontresina to Colico, by the Bernina Pass and Val Tellina — Val Malenco — Val Masino 292 1 02 Zutz to the Baths of Bormio — The Casannd and Foscagno Passes 294 295* SECTION II. THE ALPS OF SAVOY AND PIEDMONT. (INCLUDING THE ITALIAN LAKES, THE PENNINE ALPS, AND PART OF DAUPHINE.) Preliminary Information and Skeleton Tours. — Page . 299 ROUTE PAGE 110 Val Tellina to Bergamo, by the Apr tea Pass and Val Ca- monica — Lago d'Iseo — The Bergamasque Valleys • • 307 111 Domo d’Ossola to Baveno — Borromean islands . .310 112 Bellinzona to Locarno {Ply.') k* — Lago Maggiore . . .312 113 Domo d’Ossola to Locarno, by Val Vigezzo , or to Ca- nobbio, by Val Canobbina . 316 114 Bellinzona to Lngano and Como, by the Monte Cenere — Ascent of Monte Generoso. 317 115 Baveno to Menaggio, by Luino and Lake of Lugano . . 320 116 Chiavenna to Colico and Como — Lake of Como . . . 324 117 Arona to Varallo . . . 329 118 Baveno to Varallo, a. by Monte Mot ter one > Lake of Orta and Col di Colma , b. by Val Strona .... 332 119 Varallo to Alagna — Val Sesia 334 120 Vogogna to Macugnaga — Val Anzasca .... 335 121 a. Macugnaga to Visp, by the Monte Moro and Saas . . 340 b. The Passes of the Fletsch - horn range . . . 342 c. The Passes of the Saasgrat 344 ROUTE PAGE 122 Varallo to Val Anzasca, by the Val Mastalone, or by Val Sermenta . . . 345 : 123 Macugnaga to Gressoney , by the Turlo and Col d’Ollen, or Col di Val Dobbia . . . 347 124 Biella to Gressoney St. Jean, by Oropa or Val Andorno . 352 125 Gressoney to Ch&tillon, by the Col de Ranzola , by the Betta Furca , or by the Bett - liner Pass .... 354 ' 126 Visp to Zermatt . . . 356 l 127 Excursions , ascents , and passes from Zermatt . . 359 128 Zermatt to Chatillon — St. Theodule Pass . . . 370 ( 129 St. Niklaus, by the Turtman Thai , to St. Luc in Val d’An- niviers — Bella Tola . . 373 130 Sierre to Zinal — Passes from Zinal — Val d'Anniviers . 376 131 Sion to Evolena and Arolla — Val d’Herens — Val d’Here- mence 380 132 Aosta to Arolla , by the Col de Collon — Passes from the Valpelline .... 384 133 Evolena or Arolla, by the Glacier Passes to Zermatt . 386 134 Turin to Aosta and Cour - LIST OF ROUTES. THE ALPS OF SAVOY AND PIEDMONT. XI ROUTE PAGE mayeur , by Ivrea — The Val d? Aosta .... 387 135 Martigny to Aosta — Pass of the Great St. Bernard . . 398 136 Martigny to Aosta, by the Val de Bagnes , and Col de FenetreiO 4 137 Martigny to Courmayeur — A. by the Col de Ferrex . 408 b. by the Col de la Fenetre . 409 c. by the Col de Serena . . 409 138 Geneva to Chamonix — Excur- sions : Mont Blanc . .410 139 Chamonix to Courmayeur, by the Col du Bonhomme and the Col de la S eigne . .423 141 Chamonix to Martigny or Vernayaz — A. by the Tete Noire . . 426 b. by the Col de Balme . 429 142 The Glacier Passes of the Mt. Blanc chain . . .429 143 Geneva to Sixt— Chamonix to Sixt .... 432 144 Sixt to Champe'ry and Mon- they — Val d’Llliez . . 436 145 The Valley of the Dranse — Thonon to Samoens, Ta- ninges, Champery; or Morgin 437 146 Aosta to Ponte in Val d’Orco, by Cogne and Val di Soana . 438 147 Ponte to Villeneuve , by Val d J Orco and Val Savaranche 444 l47AAosta to Tignes by Val de Rhemes and Col de la Gailletta 448 148 Aosta to Bourg St. Maurice , in the Tarentaise , by the Val Grisanche and Col du Mont . 449 149 Courmayeur to Bourg St. Maurice, by the Little St. Bernard .... 451 150 A. Sallanches to Albertville , by Ugine — St. Maxime de Beau- fort; b. Annecy to Bonne- ville or to Flumet by the Col des Aravis . . .454 151 Geneva to Chamber y, by Aix les Bains ( Railway ) . .457 152 Geneva to Aiguebelle , on the Mont Cenis road, by Annecy 461 153 Lyons to Chambery, a. by Les Echelles; B. by Aigue - bellette .... 464 ROUTE PAGE 154 Chambery to Turin — Mont Cenis (. Railway and Pass ) . 467 155 Bramans to Susa, by the Little Mont Cenis and the Col de Clair ee . . .475 156 Chambery to Lanslebourg, by the Tarentaise — Col d’Lseran— Col de la Leisse . 477 156a The Valleys of Lanzo — Val Grande , Val d’Ala , Val di Viu 483 157 Moutiers Tarentaise to Lans- lebourg, by the Col de la Vanoise . . . .485 158 St. Jean de Maurienne to Bourg d’Oisans, by the Col d’Arves, and Col du Pre Nou- veau ..... 487 158ASt. Michel to the Col du Lautaret, by Valloire and the Col du Galibier . .488 159 Grenoble to Briangon , by Bourg d’Oisans and the Col du Lautaret . . . . 489 160 BrianQon to Grenoble, by Val Louise and La Berarde — The Glacier Passes . . . 494 161 Brian^n to Susa, by the Pass of the Mont Genevre . .498 162 Briangon to Pignerol , by the Col de Sestrieres . . .499 163 Pignerol to Mont Dauphin, by the Yalleys of the Vaudois and the Col de la Croix . 502 164 Mont Dauphin to Saluzzo, by the Col de la Traversette . 508 165 Abrids to Cuneo, by the Col di Vallante and Val Vraita or Val Maira . . .512 166 Cuneo to Embrun, by the Col d* Argentiere oxidiBarcelonnette 514 167 Eigne , in the Valley of the Durance, to Barcelonnette, by Colmar s and Alios . .518 168 Barcelonnette to Brian^on, by the Valley of the TJbaye and St. Veran . . . 519 169 Cuneo to Nice — a. by the Baths of Valdieri and Col delle Cerese . .521 b. by the Col della Finestra , 522 170 Cuneo to Nice or Mentone by the Col di Tenda . . 523 General Index 526 ( XU ) INTRODUCTORY INFORMATION* Sect. Page 1. General Information for Tra- vellers — Passports, Customs, Money, Measures, Post, Tele- graph, Circular Tours, Tickets, Luggage xii 2. Modes of Travelling — Railways, Steamers, Diligences, Posting, Voituriers and Cars, Horses, Mules, Chaises-a-Porteurs . xvi 3. Guides xxi 4. Accommodation — Inns, Pen- sions, Baths, Alpine Huts . xxiii 5. Directions and Requisites for Travellers — Season, Plan of Journey, Language, Outfit, Health, Expense • . . xxviii 6. Directions and Requisites for Mountaineers — Mountain- sickness, Frost-bite . . . xxxii 7. Alpine Clubs .... xxxviii 8. Routes to Switzerland, and Skeleton Tours .... xxxix § 1. General Information for Travellers. Passports— Passports are not at present (1879) required from ; English travellers in France, Switzerland, or Italy. In time of peace the tourist, who intends to keep to the beaten tracks of the Central Alps, will find a passport unnecessary, unless he intends to pass through the • German Empire, where, by a new regulation, passports are again required. Should he propose, however, to extend his journey to remote districts on the Italo-French or Austro-Swiss frontiers, he will do well to provide himself with one, since the government officials have a right to demand from any stranger proof of his identity, and a passport is the simplest and most generally recognised form in which such proof can be presented. The passport should be carried on the person, as it will be wanted, if at all, at some unexpected moment. Travellers should not resent too im- petuously any want of manners on the part of subordinate officials, with whom they may come into contact. The offer of a cigar will often have * The introductory information given here refers generally to the Alpine Districts described in this volume. Further information as to the Alps of Savoy and Piedmont, the Pennine Alps, and the Italian Lakes, is given at the commencement of the second portion of the work. Sect. Page 9. Selected list of Books and Maps xliii 10. Alpine Art xlvii 11. The Alps — Their Groups, Peaks, Passes, Gorges, and Valleys . xlviii 12. Glaciers lvi 13. Alpine Rivers, Lakes, and Waterfalls ..... lxiv 14. Landslips, Avalanches, Snow- storms, Floods .... Ixv 15. Alpine Fauna and Flora . . lxix 16. Population, Army, Education, Rifle-Matches, Wrestling, Costumes, Towns ... lxx 17. Chalets and Pasturages, Ranz des Vaches, Swiss Hus- bandry lxxiii 18. Goitre and Cretinism . . • lxxvi 19. Lake-Dwellings .... lxxvii 20. Historical Note and Table of Cantons lxxviii 21. Glossary ..... lxxxv 22. Abbreviations, &c. . . lxxxvii more effect than the most spirited remonstrance in bringing to a speedy close a difficulty arising from misapprehension of their character. A passport can be procured at the Foreign-Office, Downing Street, by leaving or sending a letter of recommendation from any M.P., or London banker, magistrate, clergyman, solicitor, or surgeon, and calling or send- ing the next day for the passport, for which a fee of 2s. is charged. No visas are required at present by the Alpine traveller. Those who have not time or a servant at their disposal should forward their letters of recommendation to Dorrell and Son, 15, Charing Cross, or to Lee and Carter, 440, Strand, who for a small charge will procure the passports and visas, and will also mount the passport in a case, which some travellers prefer. Customs . — The Swiss now levy import-dues only on a few bulky articles, and no examination of passengers’ luggage is made on entering or leaving the country. Examinations are made on entering France, Italy, Austria, or the German States. The officials, as a rule, are content with opening one article of each tra- veller’s luggage. Cigars, lace, and unmade-up stuffs for clothing are almost the only articles charged for. There are strenuous regulations against the transport of cartridges through France. There are vexatious rules against the importation of growing plants, which may interfere with the designs of a botanist, or of those who have collected a few ferns to carry home. Money . — Previous to 1850 there was hardly a country in Europe which had so complicated a currency as Switzerland. Almost every canton had a coinage of its own, and pieces that were current in one canton would not pass in the next. , By a decree of the Diet in that year, the currency was reduced to conformity with that of France. Francs and centimes are the current money, and the old Swiss batz is no longer a legal tender. The coinage is distinguished by the word Helvetia on the obverse, and is among the best in Europe. The silver coins consist of pieces of 5 francs, 2 francs, 1 franc, and i franc (50 centimes). The small coins consist of pieces of 5, 10, and 20 centimes, struck in billon (nickel and copper), and are much more con- venient than French or English copper. French twenty-franc pieces and francs, current all over Switzerland, are the best money the traveller can take with him ; but English sovereigns and bank-notes are usually taken at inns throughout Switzerland and on the Italian lakes, at a value of 25 francs. A safe and convenient method of carrying money is by circular notes issued by Coutts & Co., Herries & Co., the Union Bank, the London and Westminster Bank, and other banks, payable at all the large towns in Europe. They may be procured for any sum from 10£. upwards, and are changed free of charge by the bankers at all Swiss towns, and at the principal inns wherever English are well known. The security they ought to afford against loss is diminished by the frequent carelessness of innkeepers, in changing the notes without requiring to see the “ Letter of Indication ” the bearer is bound to present to prove his signature. The German gulden is exchanged in Switzerland at the rate of 2 francs 10 centimes: the Austrian florin at 2 francs 45 centimes. The Prussian thaler at 3 francs 70 centimes. The Reich s-Mark at 1 franc 25 centimes. S J..—JMLEASUKM The coinage of Italy is the same as that of France, but of late years has been displaced by a forced paper currency, which is at present depreciated to the extent of about 10 per cent. Should the present improvement in Italian finance continue, this difference will tend to disappear. At present the traveller, on crossing the frontier, should change into paper a sufficient sum to meet his expenses. This he may do in any town or at any respectable inn. Measures . — On the Federal map of Switzerland (the Swiss Ordnance Map) the heights above the sea-level are indicated in French metres. FRENCH MEASURES. To reduce metres to English feet, multiply by 3, and to the product add a 12th, of it and an 8th of that 12th. 1 metre = 1 kilometre = 1 Old French foot = 1 French league = 1000 metres — 8 kilometres 50 kilometres 1 kilogramme = 1 hectare = 1 Swiss foot = 1 Swiss league 1 _ or Stunde J ~ 1 Swiss Post = 1 Swiss arpent = 1 Swiss pound = 1 Piedmont mile = 1 Italian mile = 1 Italian Post = 3*2809 Eng. feet 0*628 Eng. mile 1*066 Eng. foot 2*485 Eng. miles 3280*9 Eng. feet 2*204 lbs. avoirdupois = 10,000 sq. metres = 3 feet 3| inches, nearly. 5-8ths of a mile, nearly. 1 foot, 1 inch, nearly. 2^ miles, nearly. 3281 feet, nearly. 5 miles, less 52 yards. 31 miles, 1 furlong, 57 J yards. 2 lbs. 3J oz. nearly. 2 acres, 1 rood, 35 perches, nearly. SWISS MEASURES. 11 inches, 10 lines, nearly. 2*983 Eng. miles = 3 miles, less 92 feet. 3*00 Swiss stunde = 0*89 Eng. acres = 1*102 lb. avoird. = 9 miles, less 92 yards. 9-10ths of an acre, nearly. ■J Fr. kilog. = l lb. 1£ oz., nearly. ITALIAN MEASURES. 1*503 Eng. mile = 1J mile and 57 yards. 1 mile, 1 furlong, 45 yards. 8 Italian miles = 9 miles, 1 furlong, 142 yards. Post. The postage on an ordinary letter under J oz. is 10 centimes. If addressed to a direction within 5 miles, half-price. Postcards are 5 centimes throughout Switzerland and 10 centimes to other countries included in the Postal Union. Unsealed packages containing no letters or articles of value pay 10 centimes up to 250 grammes. Letters under 5 oz. to all countries included in the Postal Union and to the United States of America cost 25 centimes. In addressing letters the name, and particularly the initial letter, should be clearly written, and the addition “Esquire” avoided. It is better when possible to have the letters addressed to an inn rather than Poste Restante* In many places of summer resort, particularly in the Engadine, the post- office staff is wholly unequal to the call on it, and letters are constantly delivered to the wrong person, or, having been placed under a wrong letter, refused when actually lying in the office. It is well therefore, in country offices, when exjDected letters are not received, to request to be allowed to look for oneself. When newspapers are expected they should be specially asked for, as they are often kept apart. Telegraph . — The electric telegraph wires are now carried to almost every town and considerable village in Switzerland, and to many solitary inns. Messages within the Swiss frontier cost, np to 20 words (inclusive of names and addresses), 50 centimes; 20 to 30 words, 75 centimes, up to 40 words 1 franc, and so on. A despatch of 20 words to London costs 7 francs, to country stations in England 8 francs. The name of the sender is put at the end of the message. By means of the telegraph, travellers, before starting in the morning, can secure quarters for the night, or even order their dinner beforehand. It is generally worth while to pay for an answer, adding, “ Beponse payee.” Telegrams from France to London cost 4 fr., to other stations in Eng- land 6 fr. From Italy to London 7 fr., to other stations in England 8 fr. Circular Tours and Tickets . — Of late years two new systems have sprung into existence to meet the case of persons more or less incapable, from want of experience in travel or ignorance of foreign languages, of taking care of themselves while abroad. The first is known as the “ Personally-conducted Tour; ” The tourist pays down a fixed sum, which, with very few extras, includes all his expenses. For this he is entitled to be taken round a predetermined route, in company with some 20 to 60 chance companions, and in charge of an experienced agent, who fills, as far as possible, the place of courier to the party. He has no bills to pay, no conveyances to hire, no arrangements to make ; in exchange for these advantages, he must of course surrender his freewill and make the best of his society. This is an arrangement suited only for those who would otherwise be altogether excluded from the advantages of foreign travel, many of which, however, are necessarily lost by such a system. The second arrangement is fit for more advanced tourists, and may occasionally be made use of with advantage even by old travellers, who are content to fix beforehand where they will go, and by what route they will come back. Circular routes are arranged in great variety, and in return for a pay- ment usually as nearly as possible equivalent to the ordinary fares, books are issued containing tickets not only for railways and steamers, but for coaches and horses, in the order in which they will be wanted on the tour, which as a rule is made reversible. Books of slips (called coupons) are also issued. Each coupon costs 8 shillings, and in return for it, at any of the hotels mentioned in the^. list given with the coupons, the traveller has a right to dinner, breakfast, and bed. The hotels designated are, as a rule, good, and the system may be worked so as to effect a small saving in money. The tourist, however, must beware how he indulges in extras, such as cups of tea or footbaths, as some innkeepers are quick to take an unfair advantage of such excesses. The agents for Circular Tours and tickets are Messrs. Cook & Co., of Ludgate Hill Circus, E.C., by whom they were established, and Messrs. Gaze, of 142, Strand, W.C.; the railway companies also issue through or return-tickets to most of the principal foreign towns. N.B. In travelling with through-tickets made up of many leaves, the tourist should be careful to see that the guard collects only the right one. Mistakes are common, and redress is the contrary, in this matter. Luggage . — There is a very convenient system in force in Switzerland, by which luggage can be forwarded from any post or railway station within the frontier to another, at a moderate expense. The traveller has only to leave his package, properly and clearly addressed, with the post-master, and in return he will receive a ticket, which he must keep. In making application for the luggage, it is well to present a card with the name of the applicant clearly written, and sometimes to ask to look over the packages in the office, as post-masters have been known to declare that luggage had not arrived when it was under their eyes. Mis- carriages, however, are very rare. Luggage can also be sent across the frontier, but in this case the key of each piece must be sent with it, if it is to enter France or Italy. The Swiss custom-house is satisfied with a written declaration that the contents are traveller’s luggage. Forms for this declaration are supplied at the offices. § 2. MODES OF TRAVELLING. Bailways . — Down to the year 1855 the only railway in Switzerland was a short line from Zurich to the Swiss Baden. The reason of this was not the extreme natural difficulty of the country, Switzerland being in fact, with the exception of the passes through the central mountains of the Alps and the Jura, not a very difficult country. The lowlands, or parts round Berne, Aarau, Neuchatel, Lausanne, &c., do not offer to the engineer such serious obstacles as many parts of the south of England ; and by means of the valleys of the Bhine and the Rhone, railways can penetrate deep into the Alps with remarkable ease. The real difficulty consisted in the extraordinary and incredible jealousies between not only; the different cantons, but the different communes or parishes, and the legal difficulties in obtaining the land. A change in government, however, having taken place in 1848, a system of railways was planned by the Department of Public Works, and has been carried into execution ; some of the lines being made by English engineers and with English capital. Northern Switzerland is now traversed in every direction by lines of railroad, connecting the principal towns. In a few years the Central Alps will be pierced by the St. Gothard Tunnel, and the commerce of Germany will thus obtain direct access to Milan and the Mediterranean at Genoa : on the Italian side the lines leading to the tunnel are being rapidly pushed on, and are already of service to the hurried traveller. For further particulars as to the lines in operation and the train-service, readers are referred to the foreign ‘ Bradshaw/ and the ‘ Indicateur des Chemins de Fer Suisses,’ or the c Reisebegleiter fur die Schweiz/ pub- lished periodically, and costing a few centimes. In German Switzerland the carriages are on the American system with a passage down the middle, i Here travellers, who do not object to occasional crowding, may travel with advantage second-class. In French Switzerland the carriages are very inferior, and the second- ! class company, particularly in Canton Yaud, is apt to be noisy and dis- agreeable. Excursion Tickets , and return-tickets, available for 2 or 3 days, may be \ procured in summer on many of the lines. steamboats— Diligences. xv The regulations as to luggage differ on the various lines. As a rule, little luggage is allowed without extra payment, and as on most Conti- nental railways, the traveller must pay for and see it labelled after he has taken his ticket. For this purpose it is necessary to be at the station at least ten minutes before the hour of starting. Swiss time is 27 minutes in advance of Paris, and 35 min. in advance of Greenwich time. Steamboats . — Steamers now run on all the principal lakes. Those on the Lakes of Lucerne and Geneva and on the Italian lakes are spacious boats, with upper decks and good restaurants on board. For fares and times, see ‘ Bradshaw’ or the local time-tables. Tickets are sold on board. Beware on some of the lakes of the touts for hotels or voituriers who infest the boats. Diligences. — Well-appointed Diligences traverse almost every road in Switzerland where railways have not been laid down, and connect the chief railway stations with the places in their vicinity. They belong to the Federal Government, and are attached to the post-office as in Germany. A list is to be bought at the offices and is also contained in the ‘ Indi- cates des Chemins de Fer.’ The regular diligences have a coupe in front with three seats, and a banquette , with the same number, on the roof be- hind the box. The interieur , or second-class compartment, has six seats and occupies the body of the cumbrous vehicle. The conductor has an outside seat in the rear, which will often hold two, and may be secured for a consideration. The fares are fixed by rules dated 1st January, 1874. In the lowlands 14 centimes by kilometre is charged for a seat in the interieur , 17 centimes in the coupe or banquette . In the mountains 17 centimes for the interieur , 24 centimes for first-class places. Return-tickets available for three days are issued at a reduction of 10 per cent. Each traveller is allowed 40 lbs. of luggage free : overweight packages are charged according to a moderate tariff. The pace along level ground seldom exceeds 6 miles an hour ; at the smallest symptom of a hill the horses fall into a walk : down hill they occasionally go fast ; and to those who have not become hardened by use it is rather a nervous thing to see the heavy diligence turn round the corners of the zigzags in the face of precipices, with the reins flying loose, and the horses apparently under no control. They, however, know the ■road, and accidents are seldom heard of. The conductors are generally civil ; the clerks, &c., at the diligence offices occasionally disobliging. There is a very convenient plan adopted as to places. At the Depots i or principal stations, they book any number of passengers up to a certain hour. When the time for starting arrives, all the luggage and as many passengers as the vehicle will hold are put into the diligence, and the rest of the passengers are sent by other carriages, called “ supplements,” or “ beiwagen,” of which there are often 3 or 4. A party of 4 can generally get a “ supplement” to themselves, and travel very comfortably, seeing the scenery well. At the Bureaux of smaller places the booking is contin- gent on there being room, but on the frequented passes a practically un- limited number of “ beiwagen ” are put on to meet a demand. Unless at the place from which the diligence starts, it is useless to take places for [Smtz.~\ h &.X 111 3 d i""i'UO 1 in u V the banquette or coupe, for at the intermediate stations they &te generally full. The advantages of diligences are economy and, in making a long journey, speed. The objection to them is that unless the traveller secures a place in the banquette or a “ supplement ” he sees little of the country. A solitary traveller may often avail himself of the diligence with advan- tage. A party of from 3 to 5 will find it better worth their while to travel post or in a hired carriage. On some of the most frequented roads immense covered vans known as “ Pavilion Postwagen ” have been put on, which afford a free view. Posting . — The Federal Government adopted in 1852 a general and uniform system of Posting (Extrapost), which has been introduced into all parts of the country, and the great roads are now supplied with post- horses, except where railways have been completed. Full information respecting the posting system may be obtained from the Official Swiss Post Book ( Tcirif Suisse de la Poste aux Chevaux ), or the smaller Extrapost Tariff to be obtained at every post-bureau. The prices are as follows. For each horse 2 francs 50 centimes per league (5 kilometres). For a carriage with 2 to 5 places 1 franc, with 6 places, 1 franc 20 centimes, with more than 6, 1 franc 50 centimes per league. The charge for the carriage is doubled when the vehicle is not changed at each post station. The driver’s fee is included in these charges. The horses and harness are generally good; the drivers tolerably skilful, but they get over the ground very slowly. The regulation 'pace is . a post in 1 hour 30 min., or 6 miles an hour, and is not often exceeded. Upon certain stages up-hill the tariff compels you to take an extra horse, or leader ( renfort , German Vor spanri), or to pay for it if not taken, sometimes with very little apparent reason. The chief objection to tra- velling post is the necessity of frequently changing carriages and repacking luggage. Voituriers and Cars. — The Voiturier (German, Lohnkutcher , Italian, Vetturino) is a coachman who holds at the service of travellers his own carriage with 2, 3, or 4 horses. In former times he was a most important figure in Swiss travel. On the great roads and in the districts frequented by travellers he still exists ; but, owing to the change in the mode of travel, he is rapidly changing in character. The “vetturino” of the old ' school, generally an Italian, was, as a rule, civil, obliging, and intelligent. He was in the habit of taking long engagements of several weeks for com- plete tours, and the preliminary bargain, in which he regarded himself at 1 liberty to make the best terms he could, once concluded, he served his employer with much fidelity. The new school are, many of them, mere drivers, who are hired from day to day at a fixed rate, are careless alike of their horses and their travellers, and are sometimes even of doubtful honesty. New Tariffs have been lately made in most of the cantons regulating, the hire of carriages. The prices in many cases are far too high, so that for those who do not mind the trouble of changing carriages, it is cheaper to travel post. Berne, Graubiinden, and Uri are among the cantons which have fixed tariffs, and they are in force on almost all the Alpine roads. Where no tariff exists, the price for a 2-horse vehicle varies from 30 to 50 francs for the day, but if taken for one or two days only, will be nearer the higher sum. A “ pourboire” beyond the agreed price is always expected, but the amount may be settled beforehand. The Railway termini are the head-quarters of the voituriers ; at all of them there are many persons who keep horses for hire, and will either conduct the traveller themselves, or send coachmen in their employ. Return horses and carriages are sometimes to be met with at cheaper rates. Before making an engagement, it is prudent to ask the landlord ol the hotel, or some other respectable inhabitant, to recommend a person of approved character. The landlord should be referred to apart, not in presence of the coachman, nor, indeed, with his cognizance. Besides ascertaining that the voiturier is a respectable man, that his horses are good, and his carriage clean and stout, it is desirable in many cases that he should speak French as well as German, and, in all, that he should be acquainted with the roads to be traversed. If the carriage is hired for a long tour, the engagement should, in the first instance, not be made for any specific time, at least not for a long period, until man and horses have been tried. It is better to take him on from day to day, holding out the prospect of his being continued if he behaves well. It should also be ascertained whether the well-mannered individual who addresses you as the proprietor of the carriage, and makes the bargain with you, will or will not be the driver. It is advisable, before setting out on a long tour, to have an agreement in writing drawn up. (See Forms of Contract in Murray’s Handbook of Travel Talk.) It will be important that the payment by the day, or for the journey, the time to be occupied on the road, the daily resting- places, the payment of the charge for leaders (Yorspann), and the question of back-fare, be all clearly understood and agreed to. Despite some disadvantages, voiturier travelling is the most comfortable for a family or party of 4 or 5 members on the carriage-roads. The usual speed is from 30 to 40 miles a-day, proceeding at the rate of about 6 miles an hour. Whilst on the road the voiturier goes nearly as fast as the diligence or post-horses, but it is necessary to halt in the middle of the day, about two hours, to rest. The distances which one pair of horses will achieve day after day, by means of walking up the smallest ascents, and using the break skilfully on all descents, are in- credible. Two travellers will find the pleasantest and most economical mode of conveyance in one of the one-horse caleches , or chaises, Einsjpanner , which are common in most parts of the Alps. They hold comfortably 2 persons, and are generally furnished with a hood affording shelter from sun and rain, while not shutting out the view. In front there is a seat for the driver, on which a guide will also find room. They go at a rate of 5 or 6 m. an hour, except on very hilly roads. The fare is about 1 franc an English mile ; and the driver receives 1 fr. trinkgeld for 8 or 10 miles. The luggage may be attached on a board behind. The cliar-a-banc, once the national carriage of French Switzerland, is nearly obsolete. It may be described as the body of a gig, or a bench, as its name implies, placed sideways upon four wheels, surrounded by leather curtains made to draw, whence it has been compared to a four- post bed- b 2 UND Ml stead on wheels. It is a very strong and light vehicle, capable of carrying two persons, or three at a pinch, and will go on roads where no other species of carriage could venture. It is convenient, from being so low that one can jump in or alight without stopping the horse, while it is going on ; but it is very jolting. Horses and Mules . — Previous to 1800, until Napoleon commenced the magnificent carriage-roads which will assist in immortalising his name, the usual mode of conveying either passengers or goods across the Alps was on the backs of men, or of horses or mules. Even now, upon the minor passes, the entire traffic is carried on by the same means. In other instances, where the beauties of the scenery attract an influx of strangers, mules are kept for their conveyance, even where they are not required for the transport of merchandise. The hire of a horse or mule throughout Switzerland, generally fixed by a printed tariff, ranges from 10 to 15 fr. a-day, and 1 fr. or 2 fr. to the man who leads it ; at Martigny and Chamonix it is 6 fr., but also 6 fr. for the man, and this often is not mentioned when you ask the charge for a mule. Back-fare must be paid if the animals are dismissed at a distance from home, and at so late an hour of the day that they cannot return before night. The horses used in the Bernese Oberland, on the Bigi, and in other parts of Switzerland, are clever animals, which will carry you up and down ascents perfectly impracticable to horses unused to mountains ; but they are perhaps excelled by the mules of Chamonix and other parts of Savoy. Of these the sagacity, strength, and sureness of foot are really wonderful. The paths which they ascend or descend with ease are steeper than any staircase, sometimes with rugged rocks instead of steps. Sometimes they are covered with broken fragments, between which the beasts must pick their way, at the risk of breaking their legs ; at others they traverse a narrow ledge, with an abyss on one side and a granite cliff on the other, In such dangerous passes the caution of the animal is very remarkable . he needs no rein, but will find out the best track far better than his rider ; and, in such circumstances, it is safer to trust entirely to his sagacity, than to attempt to guide him, for, by confusing the animal, there will be risk of his losing his footing, and perhaps tumbling head- long. The rider who mounts a mule or mountain horse must give up \ his preconceived notions, and let the reins hang comparatively loose. There are very few accidents from the falling of the animals ; the only instance within the writer’s knowledge happened to a gentleman who was a great horseman, and no doubt attempted to interfere with his mule. The chief danger in Alpine riding consists in the risk of a traveller being placed on the back of an animal hitherto accus- tomed only to inanimate burdens. This naturally arises most commonly in unfrequented districts, and especially affects ladies. Descending the passes on horseback is generally disagreeable, and sometimes dangerous, and the rider should always dismount when requested to do so by the guide. In fact, those who can walk fairly should, if they have not too much luggage, only hire the horses to the head of the pass, as they will be of comparatively little use on the descent. Each saddle has a flap or pil- lion attached, on which a knapsack or carpet-bag not weighing more than about 30 lbs. may be carried. In Switzerland horsey are generally let out ! § 3. — GUIDES. XXI by their owners, who, in their ow T n interest, refuse to allow their animals to he overloaded. Travellers may as a rule, however, accept the state- ments made as to the number of horses requisite, or the amount each can ♦carry. This remark does not apply to the refusal of some horse-drivers in I the height of the season to allow any package whatever to be attached to [a riding-horse or mule. A portmanteau requires an extra mule. Side- saddles are now to be found in all frequented districts ; in remote villages, and especially in the Italian Alps, ladies must take their own saddles, or be content with the best substitute that can be improvised. A tariff of the prices to be paid for horses is in many places to be seen at the inn. Chaises- a-porteurs . — Those who are unable to ride or walk may be carried over the mountains in a cliaise-a-porteurs (Germ. Tragsessel ; It. Portantina ), which is nothing more than an arm-chair^borne upon poles in the manner of a sedan. In the Bernese Oberland two bearers will sometimes undertake to carry a lady of light weight for many successive days over the ordinary passes ; but, as a general rule, two, in some places four extra bearers must be taken to relieve by turns, and each man expects 6 fr. a-day, and 3 fr. for each day of return. This was the customary manner of conveying travellers across the Alps, down to the latter half of the eighteenth century. § 3. GUIDES. Guides are, as a general rule, indispensable in ascending lofty moun- tains, in exploring glaciers, and in crossing the minor passes traversed by bridle- or foot-paths rarely used, and in many places not dis- tinctly marked, or confounded with innumerable tracks of cattle. Never- theless, travellers having a knowledge of the language of the country, in addition to some experience of mountain journeys, and provided with a good map, may cross many of these passes alone with impunity. In bad weather a guide may be required in situations where, under ordinary circumstances, his presence might be dispensed with, and the solitary traveller should always be very cautious in venturing alone on the hills where, far from human help, a sprain may have the most serious result. No one without thorough knowledge of the high Alps, should be foolish enough to trust himself over ice or snow without a guide. It is entirely a new world ; and when the slightest check occurs, an inexperienced person is utterly at a loss. He does not know what ice will bear him, where the crevasses run, where avalanches fall, or where the safe track is likely to be, and, with the best ordinary judgment, is quite as likely to run into danger as to avoid it. The “ expeditions without guides,” read of from time to time in the ‘Times’ or the ‘Alpine Journal,’ are made by parties consisting ex- clusively of men who have served a long apprenticeship in the Alps under the best guides. Guides abound in Switzerland, and at Chamonix, and may also be found in the Piedmontese valleys, and in Dauphine. They may be divided, roughly, into two classes, glacier guides and ordinary guides. The former are, or ought to be, competent to take travellers into the region of eternal snow, not only agile climbers, but also versed in the com- plicated rules of ice-craft. In former years, men of this class were mostly found in the great centres of Alpine travel, Chamonix, Zermatt, xxii § 3 . — GUIDES. and the Bernese Oberland. Lately, however, the number of travellers wishing to ascend some great peak, has led to the appearance in these districts of a set of men tempted to serve as glacier-guides by the high pay offered, but without the nerve, knowledge, or experience of tlTe true guides. To avoid such companionship is one of the chief difficulties of the inexperienced traveller, who will do well to attend to the advice given below on this point. First-rate guides are still found in the Alpine centres, but these are seldom disengaged, being secured months beforehand by their habitual employers. Thoroughly capable men may, however, be discovered in Switzerland by careful inquiry, and in less crowded districts and villages, in Dauphine, at Courmayeur, Breuil, Alagna, in many hamlets of the Pennine and eastern Swiss Alps there are now excellent glacier guides. As a body, despite the occasional misconduct of individuals, the guides are intelligent, trustworthy, and hard-working men. All who have fre- quently employed them can bear witness to their coolness, courage, and skill in moments of danger, on the difficult ice-ridge, in the intricate maze of an ice-fall, or when overtaken by sudden storm and fog. In such situa- tions the traveller fully appreciates their steadiness and knowledge, and the care with which, if they see need, they watch and guide his footsteps, and by judicious use of the rope render a slip impossible or harmless. A traveller who contemplates frequent excursions into the snow regions, does best by securing a guide for the whole tour. Many guides have now a large knowledge of the Alpine chain. But even if some part of the pro- , posed route is unknown to the guide, his general experience, with the aid ' of a good map or the local knowledge of the porter, who in glacier expe- ditions can seldom be dispensed with, will suffice. He is also frequently .1 useful as an interpreter, if the traveller is unacquainted with the lan- : guage ; he carries a knapsack, and will act generally as a courier, only at a far cheaper rate. In engaging a guide the best plan is to apply, before leaving England, to an experienced friend, and write in advance to the guide recommended. When this has not been done, some Alpine climber may generally be met abroad, to whom application can be made. Failing this, the traveller may safely apply to one of the famous guides, such as Christian Aimer j of Grindelwald, Melchior Anderegg of Meiringen, or Francois Devouas- ( soud of Chamonix, to recommend him a suitable escort. * There are a ,j few innkeepers, such asMons. Seiler, at Zermatt, M. Couttet, at Chamonix, | or the landlord of the Eggischhorn Hotel, who may also be trusted. Every ; guide is bound to carry a certificate-book, which may be usefully referred to : . the traveller should, however, be careful to notice by whom the certificates are signed, and only to give weight to the recommendations of experienced climbers. If these are present he may safely disregard the depreciatory remarks of unknown tourists, who, in their ignorance, will some- times disparage a guide on account of his refusal to lead them into danger. ! Glacier-guides are found in Dauphine [at La Grave, St. Christophe and Ville Yallouise, Yalgodemar and Yal Jouffrey], at Chamonix, Courmayeur, Breuil, at St. Pierre and Arolla in the Pennine Alps; in the Zermatt valley ; at Saas, Macugnaga and Alagna ; at the Bel Alp and Eggisch- horn, in the villages of the Bernese Oberland, in the Maderaner" Thai, at Stachelberg, Klosters in the Pratigau, and at Pontresina, § 4. — ACCOMMODATION — INNS, PENSIONS, BATHS. XX11I “Ordinary guides” are peasants fitted by honesty, intelligence, and local knowledge, to take travellers over the mule- and foot-passes below the snow-level. Such men are found in most Alpine villages. They are, many of them, pleasant companions, from whom the traveller may obtain much interesting information on Swiss life. They will carry a heavy knapsack, or a light one, and the provision sack, where the latter is a necessity. When the traveller rides, the guide leads his horse and tells him where to dismount. The established rate of hire per day for glacier guides is 8 to 10 francs ; for ordinary guides 6 francs for ordinary excursions, for which no special tariff exists. The charges for glacier expeditions are frequently fixed by tariff. Guides employed for a length of time by competent mountaineers are, as a rule, content with 14 to 20 francs for a glacier pass, and 30 to 40 francs for a difficult ascent. Any higher demand is excessive. For single expeditions the tariff prices are much higher, e.g. Mont Blanc 100 francs Piz Bernina 80 francs, Matterhorn 100 francs. Such a distinction is fair. The risk and labour of dragging an inexperienced tourist up Mont Blanc or the Wetterhorn deserves a different rate of remuneration to the compara- tively slight exertion involved in showing the way to a climber able, under ordinary circumstances, to take care of himself. If the guide is dismissed at a distance from home, the employer must pay 8 francs a day for his return home and his railway and diligence fares, unless he procures him a fresh engagement. The guide is expected to find himself out of his pay while at inns, but when out for the day or bivouacking on the mountains the employer provides food and drink for the whole party. Guides when taken to E. Switzerland, Tyrol, the French Alps, or other remote places where no distinction is made in prices between guides and travellers at the inns, often stipulate beforehand for an allowance, which should be readily made by the traveller, who gains by not having his guide’s expenses covered by increased charges in his own bill. Those fortunate enough to secure a first-rate guide should remember that such men are accustomed to be treated as companions by their ordinary employers ; and that, while willing to render any service asked of them, they are exceedingly sensitive to rudeness or random faultfinding, such as English tourists sometimes use towards those whom they consider their inferiors. For many years the guides of Chamonix have formed a corporation, and similar unions have sprung up in other districts. The disadvantages of such restrictions on free trade are partly compensated for by a fixed tariff and a certain control. Where such unions have been managed solely by their own members, great abuses have sprung up; the incompetent ma- jority have studied their own interests, and not those of their capable comrades, or of travellers. Latterly the Alpine Clubs have done their best to put these bodies on a sound footing, and to make them really useful by keeping out, or in a separate class, the inferior men. Their rules and tariffs have been in many instances revised by a commission of the Swiss Club under the presidency of Herr Ivan von Tschudi. The Chamonix corporation, however, is still full of abuses, and the “ guide chef” is seldom an individual to whom the traveller can profitably appeal either for advice or redress. § 4. ACCOMMODATION — INNS, PENSIONS, BATHS, ALPINE HUTS. Inns are recommended in this book from the best information that the editor can procure, but it is obvious that the information must be eight or nine months old at the latest, and in many instances much older. In the interval the landlord may have been changed, or may have become more careful from adversity, or careless from prosperity, and the inn may be completely altered. In the following pages the inns be- lieved to be the best in each town are mentioned first. Two centuries ago, the most important men in Canton Yalais were the innkeepers, and to the present day, in some parts of the country, they appear to be the only wealthy inhabitants. It is not uncommon to find an innkeeper who is a magistrate. Consequently, it is sometimes difficult to obtain redress against them for an injury or act of insolence, owing either to the interest they possess with the courts, or to their being them- selves the justices. As a rule, however, they are respectable men, and difficulties seldom arise. Switzerland is well provided with excellent hotels and inns. The great annual influx of strangers is of the same importance as some additional branch of industry or commerce would be. Many of the largest hotels are now in the hands of Joint-stock Com- panies. There are three classes of Swiss hotels. The palaces which border the lakes, inferior in luxury to no houses of their kind in Europe ; the comfortable but plain mountain hotels, found at such resorts as Chamonix, Zermatt, Grindelwald, or Pontresina ; and the mountain inns, rough, but generally clean, erected for the accommodation of mountaineers and lovers of Alpine byways. It may be laid down as a general rule, that the wants, tastes, and habits of the English are more carefully and successfully studied in the Swiss hotels than in those of any other part of Europe. At most of the hotels, in addition to the 1 o’clock dinner, there is a late table-d’hote at 6 or 7 o’clock ; and tea may always be had tolerably good. Several inn- keepers have gone so far as to build English chapels as an inducement to our travellers to pass the Sunday with them, and in many mountain inns an English clergyman is offered free lodging with the same object, and the guests of other nations are ejected from the public sitting-room while English service is performed. Cleanliness is to be met with almost everywhere, until you reach the S. slopes of the Alps, and even there of late years a great improvement has taken place. In Canton Berne, in ; particular, the inns, even in the small and remote villages, are patterns \ of neatness, such as even fastidious travellers may be contented with. < In the Italian valleys of Monte Kosa, the inns compare not unfavourably with those on the Swiss side of the mountains, and even in Dauphine ; insects and starvation are no longer the rule. The following list of usual Charges at the larger hotels may serve to guide travellers, and protect them from imposition. List of Charges of the first~class Swiss Hotels, Fr.fr. c. Fr.fr. c. Tea or coffee, morning or evening, with bread, butter, and honey (eggs, meat and fish are charged sepa- rately, a la carte , 2 or 3 portions are usually sufficient for 4 or 5 persons) . t . t . . 1 50 to 2 0 .—CHARGES AT HOTELS. XXV Fr. fr. c. Fr. fr. c. Dejeuner a la fourehette (table-d’hote) Table-d’hote at 6 . • 2 50 „ 3 50 4 0 „ 6 0 Dinner in private (ordered in advance in the public room) . • . . • . . . .60,, 80 Servants , board and lodging, 5 francs a day. 1 0 Bougie Bain de pied, hot or cold . . . . • . 0 50 Servants (service de l’hotel), by day per head . .10 With large families, who make some stay, special arrangements will gene- rally be made. The charges for Rooms vary, according to the floor and the views they command, from 2.50 to 6 francs. An apartment (that is a suite of rooms with salon) varies in the same way from 10 to 50 francs. The Salles-a- manger in the larger Swiss hotels are handsome, clean, and airy apart- ments. Smoking is not allowed in them, and in consequence of this, and of a higher charge being made for meals in private rooms, most persons take breakfast, tea, and supper in them. A party of 3 or 4 persons staying a week or more, even in a first-rate hotel, should not pay more than 10 or 12 fr. each, board and lodging, per diem. At Interlaken the charge in some hotels for good board and lodging is not more than 6 fr. a-day; and at some of the baths near Bex not more than 4£ fr. for those who remain some weeks. At some of the small inns in remote valleys the charges are extremely moderate. English travellers halting at an Inn about mid-day to rest their horses, if there be no table-d’hote at 12 or 1, should order a dejeuner a la fourehette (Gabelfriihstiick), for which they will be charged 2 to 3 fr. 50 c. per head. If they order dinner , they will be charged 4 or 5 fr. for the same food. French is almost invariably spoken at the inns on the high-roads, even in the German cantons, except in remote parts, as in the side valleys of the Grisons. Nevertheless, the German language or a French and Ger- man-speaking guide as interpreter is essential to the traveller’s comfort. English is spoken in the large hotels. All arrangements for the hire of carriages, horses, or guides, should be concluded over-night : he who waits till the morning will generally find either the conveyances engaged, or the price demanded for them increased, and, at all events, his departure delayed. Among the mountains, the traveller may obtain, in perfection, the small alpine Trout , which are of great excellence ; sometimes, also, chamois venison, which is far inferior to park venison, and generally badly cooked ; wild strawberries are very abundant, and, with cream or red wine, by no means to be despised. Tolerably good wine is made in the Cantons Neuchatel, Vaud, and Valais ; but the best is not often found at inns. French Beaujolais wine is found good in all first-class hotels. At many mountain inns there are in reality but two or three qualities of native wine; the colour of the bottle, the label, and the price, vary with the demands of the traveller. Wherever the list is headed Vin louche , Vin en tonneau , wine on draught is to be had at a cheaper rate. Yvorne is considered the best Swiss white wine ; Vin de Glacier is a sound white wine of some strength. Some persons like Swiss Champagne, which is refreshing, and the Vino XXVI § 4. — INNS EN ROUTE. d' Asti, a sweetish Piedmontese wine that tastes like perry, hut is rather more exciting than allaying to the thirst. The following inns are recommended as good halting-places outside the large towns, but it must be borne in mind that, owing to the multiplication of hotels, no list can pretend to completeness, aa are first-class hotels, a comfortable inns, b good mountain quarters. Alagna a An der Lenk a Aosta Arolla b Axenstein (Brunnen) . . . . aa Baveno aa Bel Alp Bergiin B Bernina Hospice b Bex Biirgenstock a Chamonix aa Champery A Chateau d’Oex and Neighbour- hood a Cogne b Col d’Ollen b Como Lake (Bellagio, Cadenabbia, Como) aa Courmayeur a Davos aa Diablerets a Eggischhorn b Engelberg a Engstlen B Evolena b Eobello b Geneva Lake, head of, hotels and pensions aa Generoso, Monte a Gervais, St a Giessbach a Glion aa Gressoney b Grindelwald a Heiden a Ilanz b Interlaken aa Kandersteg b Klosters b Lausanne aa Luc, St. . b Lucerne and Lake aa Lugano aa Macugnaga b Maderaner Thai b Maggiore Lake (Pallanza, Baveno, Stresa, Locarno) aa Meiringen . . *. . *. . . . b Mendrisio a Moritz, St aa Miirren a Orta b Pontresina a Le Prese a Ragatz . aa j Reichenbach a Rhone Glacier Hotel .... A Riffelhaus b Rigi Kaltbad aa Rosenlaui b Samaden ......... aa Seelisberg aa Silvaplana a Simplon b Sixt b Stachelberg a a St. Martin Lantosque . . • , ‘\b ' Tarasp Bad . a A Thusis a Yaldieri a \ Yal Tournanche b Yillard, near Bex a Waldstatterhof (Brunnen) . . . a a Wesen a Weissbad a Weissenstein (Soleure) .... a Z ermatt a Pensions or Hotel-Pensions are houses at which travellers who stay a week or more are lodged and boarded at a fixed sum per diem, varying between 4i fr. in some of the pensions near Bex to 10 fr. at Grindel- wald, and even higher sums at the great palaces on the lakes. Wine is generally an extra. This arrangement is very general, and of great advantage to families and travellers of regular habits ; its only disad- vantage is the necessity of being in to meals at fixed hours, as the hours adopted are not always those most agreeable to English habits. . — BATHS AND CURES — MOUNTAIN HUTS. XXVI 1 Baths and Cures . — The Swiss baths have been celebrated since the middle ages. In the sixteenth century fifty treatises, dealing with twenty- one different resorts, were published. So famous at this period was the Swiss Baden, that Zurich ladies are said to have insisted on a covenant in their marriage-settlements, that they should be taken there at least once a year. St. Moritz, which had been brought into notoriety by Paracelsus about 1539, was already one of the most famous Baths. Scheuchzer,inhis ‘ Itinera Alpina,’ published with the “imprimatur” of Sir Isaac Newton, speaks of “ Acidulas S. Mauritianas freqnentatas admodum a Rhsetis, Helvetis, Germanis, Italis.” In 1501 a Bishop of Sion built “ a magnificent hotel” at Leukerbad, to which the rich were carried up in panniers on the backs of mules. Brieg, Gurnigel near Berne, the baths of Masino, Tarasp, and Pfeffers, were also popular in early times. During the last twenty years, English doctors have awakened to the beneficial effects of the combination with mineral waters and a regular life of the pure air of high altitudes. The conse- quence has been a rush of patients to the Upper Engadine, comparable to the sudden fury for the seaside which seized our ancestors in the last century. Probably, as doctors acquire larger topographical knowledge of the Alps, and of the variety of climates they offer, and more experience of the different ways in which a high climate affects different constitutions, they will cease to direct all their patients to the same spot. Many visitors find the Engadine air too stimulating, and suffer con- stantly, until removed, from sleeplessness and headache. For these there are many bathing establishments, within the Alpine region, at a less elevation. In a descending scale may be mentioned Davos, Tarasp, Alveneu, Stachelberg, Ragatz, Seelisberg, and Axenstein above the Lake of Lucerne, Gurnigel near Berne, and Interlaken. This list is far from complete, and may be largely added to if the Italian side of the Alps is included. Those to whom iron-waters are an object, will, of course, have - to limit their choice. In the old-fashioned Swiss baths, which have not acquired any reputa- tion outside the country, the arrangements are generally rough, and the charges extremely moderate. At the principal baths (such as St. Moritz, Tarasp, Ragatz) the visitor will find all the comforts, and most of the luxuries he has been accustomed to at the great German baths. There are in Switzerland other cures, besides the water and air cure (Luftkur), in which faith is placed. In Canton Appenzell the patient is put upon a diet of the milk left after cheese has been made : this is called “ Molken kur.” Near Yevey the grape “kur” is popular. The white sorts only are used, and of these from six to seven pounds are not un fre- quently consumed by the invalid in one day. The grapes are eaten in the morning and forenoon, the other diet being chiefly animal; neither vege- tables, milk, coffee, nor wine are allowed. The grapes are supposed to improve the quality of the blood, and to act on the liver and mucous membranes. It might be imagined that the appetite would be palled by so large a quantity of fruit, but, on the contrary, it is said to be keenly excited : the “ kur ” is followed, during a fortnight or^three weeks, under medical surveillance. Mountain Huts . — For the convenience of mountain climbers, a consider- able number of huts have been built in high situations among the glaciers. Those erected by the Swiss Alpine Club are solidly built and fairly fur* mi nished, and most of them offer a tolerable shelter against the weather. By their means, many high ascents are brought within the reach of travellers not prepared to undertake days of prolonged exertion, and the sublime effects of sunrise and sunset may be witnessed at leisure from such lofty standpoints as the Col du Geant or the Gleckstein. Hay-beds and rugs are generally found, but provisions must, of course, be taken. The tra- veller will in every case do well to ascertain from the local guides the condition of the hut ho means to make use of. § 5. DIRECTIONS AND REQUISITES FOR TRAVELLERS. The first and most indispensable requisites for the Alpine traveller, are an observant disposition, a cheerful temper, and a determination not to be easily put out, or distracted from the admirable aspects of nature he has come to see, by personal trifles. In the words of Gibbon, “ He should be endowed with an active, indefatigable vigour of mind and body, which can seize every mode of conveyance, and support, with a careless smile, every hardship of the road, the weather, or the inn.” The tourist who, on his return home, can only dilate on the comparative merits of the hotels he has rested at, or on his disputes and misadventures on the road, has jour- neyed to very little purpose. Owing to the very imperfect education in natural science the majority of the present generation of Englishmen have received, our fellow-country- men do not, as a rule, succeed (as the Germans do) in interesting themselves • in any of the special natural pursuits, such as geology or botany, for which the Alps offer a tempting field ; and they show a singular indifference to , the political institutions of the Swiss Bepublic, and the questions which agitate its citizens. They find, however, a sufficient excuse in the variety of the scenery, which in Switzerland is enough to occupy those who have . any appreciation of natural beauty, during the few weeks usually allotted , to a summer tour. Season . — It is a common complaint that Switzerland is overcrowded. This is only true between the 1st of August and the 15th of September. The season for Swiss travel may be said to commence in June and to end in October. The carriage-passes are generally open for wheel traffic at some time between the middle of May and June, according to the weather ; the Wengern Alp, Tete Noire, and similar passes are, as a rule, i practicable for mules and tourists by the later date. Those who visit the < Alps in early summer, find the Alpine flowers in full beauty, the effect of some of the middle ranges added to by snow ; and, as the rush of travellers does not begin before the 1st of August, they obtain better accommodation i and more civility, in inns and on the road. The weather, however, is apt to be variable. In August it generally settles for a few weeks ; the snow- beds, which give trouble on the higher mule-passes, have disappeared, and the middle mountains, such as the Eggischhorn and Faulhorn, are easily accessible. September and October are often delightful months, and the latter is especially suited for tours in the Italian valleys. At this season the brilliant tones of the foliage, the long shadows, and the delicate mists, which, in fine weather, gather every night to disperse before the morning sun, afford a grateful change from the hard monotonous glare of midsummer. The pedestrian feels the heat less oppressive in the valleys ; but the climber is liable to find himself cut off from his pursuit by a heavy snow- fall, which the sun has no longer power to remove. Mountaineers frequent the Alps from June to September. Rock moun- tains, e.g., the Matterhorn, Dent Blanche, Finsteraarhorn, Schreckhorn, are easiest in late summer, when the snow and ice have melted off the crags. An ascent, which will he comparatively easy six weeks later, is often excessively laborious and dangerous at the beginning of July. Snow mountains and many high passes, on the other hand, are often easiest in early summer. The crevasses are well bridged, “ Bergschrunds ” in some cases unopened, and snow takes the place of ice on many slopes and ridges. These facilities are counterbalanced, however, by the increased danger from avalanches above the snow-level. One of the first English moun- taineers (Mr. Tuckett), in climbing with the best guides at this season, has had several narrow escapes. The early traveller, therefore, should take the best guides, consult them beforehand on the prudence of any ascent he contemplates, and implicitly follow their advice. Some enthusiastic lovers of the Alps have invented a new pleasure by visiting Chamonix or Zermatt at Christmas. The winter aspect of the Alps has other charms besides that of novelty. The want of colour in the landscape is relieved by wonderful depth and tenderness in the atmos- phere ; the waterfalls are converted into fantastic columns of ice, and the pine-forest in its snow mantle presents effects of singular beauty. Some of the loftiest summits (Mont Blanc, the Jungfrau, the Wetterhorn, the Schreckhorn) have also been attained at this season ; but such feats, if not more dangerous, involve naturally far more exposure and hardship than in summer, and are never likely to become popular. German doctors have discovered that, in some cases or stages of lung disease, a winter residence in mountain air has a most beneficial effect, and the discovery has' been acknowledged and adopted by English phy- sicians. Davos, in Canton Graubunden, is considered a very favourable spot, and the comforts required by invalids can now be had there. Over 1000 patients, of whom 200 were English, spent the winter of 1878-79 at Davos, and the number annually increases. The climate of the head of the Lake of Geneva is also considered favour- able to patients. It resembles that of the Cornice, with less sunheat, and an absence of sea-air, and is therefore suitable to patients who cannot bear an atmosphere so stimulating as that of Cannes or Nice. Plan of Journey . — In planning his journey, the inexperienced traveller may find some assistance in the Skeleton Routes subsequently given. In a first tour, he will probably yield to the natural temptation to see as much as possible in the time at his disposal ; as he grows older in travel, he will learn that the most vivid and enduring impressions are those that are gained by a stay of some duration near one centre, and that the pres- sure and worry of constant moving-on more than counterbalance the pleasure of novelty. Two or three days of comparative rest in the week should generally be allowed. It is wise to study a tour beforehand, so as to draw out a pro- gramme of the places to be visited, and the manner in which time may be distributed. But to treat such a self-imposed scheme as an unalterable law, to be adhered to despite weather, fatigue, or better information, is a serious, though common, mistake. Alpine travellers may be divided into four classes : the Infirm > who are AAA limited to such, spots as can be reached in carriages or chaises-a-porteurs ; General Travellers , the largest class, including many ladies who can enjoy a day’s ride and from time to time a walk of several hours in Alpine air ; Pedestrians , who habitually prefer their own legs to any animal’s ; and lastly, Mountaineers , whose first object is to seek adventure and explore the strange beauties of the world of snow and ice. It is obvious that little general advice can be given applying equally to all classes. The expenses of those who constantly employ carriages will be the heaviest. The un- ambitious pedestrian will spend least, while the mule-hire of the “general traveller ” will be equalled if not exceeded by the sums the mountaineer must pay for guides and provisions. For carriage or general travelling, four is a good party. Pedestrians and mountaineers generally travel in twos or threes ; more than three travel- lers should not, as a rule, be on the same rope in glacier expeditions. Those who will start early in the morning are well rewarded. They enjoy the coolness and clearness of the first hours of the day, and, arriving in good time in the afternoon, have the first choice of rooms and time for an evening stroll. To walk along a high road in an Alpine valley is generally an unprofitable expenditure of time and energy : this remark does not apply to the carriage-passes. Expense is diminished, and the irksomeness of a possibly unwelcome companion avoided, by carrying one’s own knap- sack. On the other hand, the additional strain of a burden diminishes the pedestrian’s freedom of motion and power of enjoyment. A man with a knapsack unconsciously acquires the habit of plodding straight on, where, if unladen, he would turn aside to enjoy a view or secure a rare plant. On < a frequented pass a pedestrian may often find an opportunity of sending on his traps with the luggage of another party. A good compromise, where this is impossible, is to engage a porter as far as the top of the hill. Language . — A knowledge of the language of the country is, of course, of the greatest service to the traveller, doubling the profit and enjoyment of his tour. In the Central and Western Alps the languages spoken are French, Italian, German, and, in Canton Graubiinden, Romansch, an inde- - pendent Romance language. German or Italian is, however, generally under- stood at the inns in Romansch districts. The traveller who, being ignor- ant of German or Italian, proposes to leave the highroad, will do well to ■ engage a courier or guide who can speak the language of the country he is about to visit, as well as French. All languages are impurely spoken in the * Alpine regions ; those who suffer from shyness need not, therefore, be under ' any fear as to their pronunciation. In venting his indignation, however, the imperfect linguist will be prudent in confining himself to words of the 1 exact force and meaning of which he is assured. It is seldom necessary or expedient to resent an overcharge by such expressions as “ voleur,” or to swear at a foreign official. Outfit . — Portmanteaus are best procured in England. The general tra- veller can take what he likes in a capacious carpet-bag on his mule’s back. He should not omit a good bundle of cloaks in a mackintosh cover, and a luncheon-basket, not too cumbrous, may often prove serviceable. Parchment, or adhesive labels, for writing directions for the baggage ! (the managers of public conveyances abroad often insist upon each pack- age being addressed, before they will take charge of it) ; and one or two leather straps, to keep together hooks, coats, shawls, &c., or small parcels, will be found very useful. The following hints are addressed chiefly to pedestrians. The outfit described below is somewhat ample, hut, with what is carried on the person, may be contained in an ordinary knapsack, such as are sold in London. This should he as light as possible, made of oilcloth, with broad shoulder-straps. Mr. White has invented an improved frame for carrying the knapsack (supplied by Price, 33, Marylebone Street, W .). It is not, however, suitable for rock-climbing. Those who carry their own traps often prefer a bag hung in the hollow of the back, after the pattern now adopted for the army. The clothes should be a suit of woollen tweed, of medium thickness — better too thick than too thin, for the changes of temperature on the moun- tains are considerable, and it is easier to protect yourself against heat than cold. The pockets should be made to button up, one being expressly made to hold maps. The pedestrian who travels without a compass and the best map procurable of the district he proposes to explore, deserves any misadventure which may befall him. A light mackintosh or tweed water- proof can be strapped on the bag or knapsack. 2. A second pair of trousers (thin) to put on in the evening after rain. 3. Two flannel shirts, with a few linen collars. 4. Three pair of thick and soft woollen socks : the Scotch or Irish are the best ; and 2 pair thin silk socks for evening, 5. A night-shirt, not too bulky. 6. Pocket-handkerchiefs. 7. A pair of leather slippers, stout enough to stroll out in at evening. The boots and socks are all-important. The boots should be laced shooting-boots, with low broad heels and projecting welt, strongly nailed. When in use, they should be greased every night. Extra laces should be carried. Washing materials, brushes, razor, &c., are best carried in a small mackin- tosh roll. The hat should be a light felt (not black) broad-brimmed enough to protect the back of the head. The following small articles, or some of them, may be carried in the pockets or knapsack : guide-book, map, note-book, drinking-cup of leather or metal, flask, knife with cork- screw, needles and thread in a case, soap-cerate plaister, a field-glass, a compass ; an umbrella, useful both for sun and rain, is added by some old travellers. Diet and Precautions for Health . — Nothing is more conducive to health than the combination of exercise, pure air, and wholesome enjoyment which is found by a pedestrian in the Alps. Like most good things, however, an Alpine tour may be abused. Dr. Clifford Allbutt has laid down (‘Alpine Journal,’ vol. viii. p. 32) some elementary rules. If not already in training, be content to make very short journeys at first. After a fortnight’s practice you will learn your powers. Never start on an empty stomach, however disinclined for food. Take, during the day’s walk, frequent light meals, in preference to one or two heavy ones. Chocolate will often be found a useful substitute for meat, and cold tea or coffee, r made with milk and sugar, for wine. Some ingenious and sensible climbers carry a large india-rubber bowl, a lemon and some sugar. By adding snow or ice-water to their wine, they can make, at a moment’s Gi notice, aii excellent cup, less heating and more refreshing than pure wine. Beware how you drink of cold springs, when heated. Start at a slow, steady pace, and reserve any attempts at speed for the last hour or two. Arrange your tour so as to allow, as far as possible, intervals of rest be- tween the hard days. Immediately on your arrival, after a day’s walk, take some light refresh- ment (a crust and a glass of lemonade), wash with soap and tepid water, and change your linen. If at all fatigued, or if the circulation he hurried, lie down after washing and dressing, and try to sleep for a few minutes before dinner. When over-fatigued, it is sometimes better to take a basin of soup and go to bed than to add a heavy meal to the fatigues of the wearied body ; at such times weak tea is preferable to wine. A good restorative is egg-flip, made of brandy and egg ; and a tumbler of lemon- juice, water, and sugar, if sipped (not gulped down), materially allays feverishness. Lemons can often be obtained at the inns. For sickness and diarrhoea the most convenient and efficient medicine is chlorodyne ; but ordinary mild diarrhoea is often beneficial, and should not be checked. A doctor prescribes “ Carbonate of soda 20 grains, a tea- spoonful each of syrup of ginger and tincture of rhubarb, to be taken three or four times a-day. If the diarrhoea continues, 15 grains of prepared chalk, bismuth, and charcoal, may be taken in water as often. To this, ! in obstinate cases, 20 to 30 grains of laudanum may be added. Incipient diarrhoea may sometimes be checked by a good pull of brandy.” ( C . A.) Constipation should be met by the use of compound rhubarb pills, Seidlitz powders, divided into small doses, are a convenient and cooling < draught. Quinine pills are often useful. As a rule, the less medicine the traveller takes the better. In a few spots on the Italian side, and in some on the Swiss, especially the valley of the Khone, there is malaria in marshy places and about the embouchures of rivers, where they empty themselves into lakes, and travellers should avoid sleeping in such districts. Care of the Feet . — Wash them at night, when heated, with soap and luke- warm water, in the morning with cold. If there is any tenderness, soap them before starting, leaving the soap on. Blisters, if they form, must be ! pricked gently at the edges. Broken blisters and abrasions are best treated with repeated paintings of collodion. If walking is a necessity, paint first ' with collodion, and then cover over with soap-cerate plaister (to be bought at \ Bell’s, 338, Oxford Street), taking care to put on a piece sufficiently large > fully to cover the wounded part. Bruises are best treated with calendula. Expense . — The expenses of a tour naturally vary, according to the habits ; ; of the traveller, the means of conveyance he uses, and the amount of ground he passes over. In the mountains, his hotel bill may be kept down i to 10 to 12 francs a-day : in the towns it will rise to about 15 or 16 francs. A traveller who takes a guide adds about 8 francs a-day to his expenses ; those who use horses, 15 francs. A journey of a month to five weeks may be reckoned at between 30 1. and 40/. a-head, without extravagance, for an i ordinary tour. This sum includes railway fares out and home. The terms on which tourists can contract for circular tickets and coupons will 1 be found in the agents’ circulars. § 6. DIRECTIONS AND REQUISITES FOR MOUNTAINEERS. Mountain-climbing has been treated as unjustifiable, on the ground that’ it is dangerous. The danger is, as in yachting, doubtless real, but by care is reduced to a minimum, while the advantages are certain and lasting. Some critics occasionally ask “ What is the good of it ? ” a question justly irritating to the intelligent lover of mountains. It has drawn many replies but few better than the following, from a most distinguished mountaineer— Mr. Leslie Stephen. “People still sometimes ask (though they have often had it explained to them) What is the use of going up a mountain ? What more do you see at the top than you would at the bottom? Putting out of question the glorious exercise and excitement of climbing a mountain, it would be well worth any trouble to see such views as those which can only be seen on the highest peaks. No doubt there are many views downstairs more capable of being made into pictures. The vast cloudy panorama stretched below your feet from an Alpine summit makes an impression on your mind which can be described neither on canvas nor in writing. It gives an exhilarating sense of un- rivalled sublimity, which could no more be given in a painting than one of the scenes in ‘Paradise Lost.’ It is the constant presence befoie your eyes of such impressive though indescribable scenery which gives to Alpine exercise such absorbing interest. “ As for the theory that you ought to walk 10 m. a-day and meditate on the beauties of nature, it may do for poets and painters, but it is hard doctrine for a man with a stomach and legs. A man can no more feel the true mountain spirit without having been into the very heart and up to the verv tops of the mountains than he can know what, the sea is like by standing on the shore. It is just as easy to evolve the idea of a mountain top out of the depths of your moral consciousness as that of a camel. The small patch of glistening white, which you are told is a snow-slope, looks very pretty out of the valley to any one, but it will look very different to a man who has only studied it through an opera-glass, and to one who has had to cut his way up it step by step for hours together. The little knob which your guide-book says is the top of some unpronounceable Horn will gain wonderfully in majesty when you have once stood upon it, and felt as if you were alone in the midst of the heavens, with the kingdoms of earth at vour feet ; and if you meditate till doomsday on the beautiful lights and shades, the graceful sweeps of the mountain ridges, you will not be a bit nearer to the sensation of standing on a .knife-like ridge, with the toe of your boot over Italy, and the heel over Switzerland.” There are, it must be added, beauties of form and colour in the upper glaciers and snowfields, of which the ordinary tourist is utterly ignorant. In the panoramas from the loftiest peaks, the neighbouring mountain forms may sometimes be dwarfed into comparative insignificance. But such views have an unrivalled capacity for receiving various expressions from every change from morning to noon, or noon to evening light, and from every shift of cloud or vapour, and these, owing to the multiplication of mountain huts, it is in many cases no longer difficult to spend hours in watching with a certainty of regaining shelter before nightfall. Moreover, the early -rising forced on those who attempt snow expeditions introduces a traveller to many beautiful effects in nature he might otherwise never suspect. It is not, however, necessary to decide here whether the advantages and delights of mountaineering outweigh its dangers. [SwitzJ] c — M .We have to deal with the obvious fact that the desire to undertake difficult and adventurous expeditions in the high Alps is yearly becoming more common amongst our countrymen. By many hardy exploits they have proved their aptness for this new description of sport. But several fatal accidents, and a still larger number of hairbreadth escapes, have shown the necessity of insisting on increased caution to inexperienced tra- vellers who are liable to be led into danger by the spirit of imitation. Mountaineers who well understand their own pursuit, who have ascertained by continued practice the limits of their own strength and endurance, who know what the dangers of the high Alps are, and how they may best be avoided, do not require, and would not accept advice. Those who, with little or no knowledge and experience, wish to engage in a pursuit wherein they may at any moment risk, not only their own lives, but also those of their companions, may benefit by the teaching of their veteran predecessors, provided they will remember that no reading can dispense with the neces- sity for practical training, and some familiarity with the peculiar pheno- mena of the ice-region of the high Alps. The following paragraphs are condensed from the 18th chapter of 4 Peaks, Passes, and Glaciers,’ with such additions as recent experience has suggested. The dangers of Alpine expeditions may be divided into two classes — the real and the imaginary. Where a ridge or slope of rock or ice is such that it could be traversed without difficulty if it lay but a few feet above the level of a garden, the substitution on either side of a precipice some hundreds of feet in depth, or of a glacier crevasse, makes no real difference in the work to be done, though it may have a formidable effect on the imagination. Those who cannot remove this source of danger by accus- toming themselves to look unmoved down precipices, and to fix their attention exclusively on the ledge or jutting crag to which they must cling with foot or hand, should avoid expeditions where a moment’s nervousness may be a cause of danger. The real dangers of the high Alps may be reduced to the following : — 1, the yielding of snow bridges that cover crevasses, or of snow cornices overhanging precipices ; 2, the risk of slipping upon slopes of ice, rock, or even turf ; 3, the fall of ice or rocks from above ; 4, the slipping be- neath the feet of a traveller of the upper layer of a steep snow-field , which may bury him, or carry him over a precipice ; 5, the sudden approach of \ bad weather. It is a fixed rule of mountaineering, which can only be broken with risk to life, that on every steep ice or snow slope or snow-covered glacier, all the members of a party, including the guides, should be attached to- gether with a stout rope. The best rope for the purpose, selected by a committee of the Alpine Club after careful examination, can be procured of Messrs. Buckingham, Broad Street, W.C. The use of the rope in cross- ing glaciers was known to the commercial travellers of the 16th century. Simler writes, in 1574 : “Qui per Alpes iter faciunt peritos locorum qui ipsis przeeant conducere solent: hosce fune cingunt, cui etiam aliquot ex i his qui sequuntur se astringunt ; qui vero prasit longa pertica (pole) viam i explorat, et diligenter in nivibus hiatus hos scrutatur, quod si forte im- j prudens in aliquem deciderit, a sociis qui eodem fune cincti sunt sustinetur et exiranitur.” The first to apply the rope to “ mountaineering,” in the strict sense of § 6. — MOUNTAIN-CLIMBING. XXXV the word, were the guides of Chamonix, and it was their skill in its use which gave them their early pre-eminence as glacier guides. In remote parts of the Alps the local guide is still often ignorant of the proper use of the rope, and it is left to the traveller to insist on its adoption. From covered crevasses almost absolute security is obtained by means of this precaution. In the higher region of the glaciers, chasms of considerable width are often completely bridged over by a covering of snow, so that no indication of their existence is seen on the surface. The bridges often yield under the weight of a man’s footsteps ; in such a case an unroped man, unless he is arrested by his outspread arms and ice-axe, must fall into the chasm, in which case, if alone, his chance of life is faint indeed. But if several travellers are tied together with a stout rope, as it is in the highest degree improbable that a majority of them should fall at the same moment into the same crevasse, no appreciable danger from this cause need be incurred. Even two travellers tied together may with proper attention diminish this risk, but real security is obtained only when they are three or more in number. It is because he cannot be protected from this danger that a man who goes alone over the neve of a glacier incurs a risk which must be called unjustifiable. The rope , to he of any service , must he kept nearly tight , and its proper management requires teaching, but is soon learned. Its proper use is to check and prevent a fall, rather than to pull a man out of a crevasse. When a party consists of four persons or more, the interval should be 15 ft. between every two ; when of three, 18 ox- 20 ft. ; when two alone, 30 or 40 ft. One of the most terrible accidents of recent years, that on the Lyskamm in 1877, was caused by the giving way of a snow cornice, and narrow escapes from similar accidents have been frequent. This danger can only be avoided by care, constantly observing the character of the crest being traversed, and keeping, where necessary, at a distance from the edge. The leader may often be unable to see what he is standing upon, but the last man, from 40 to 100 feet lower down, can generally watch from moment to moment his advance, and give timely warning when he draws too near the danger. It is in descending that this risk is most to be guarded against. For surmounting steep ice-slopes by cutting steps the axe is the proper instrument. Considerable practice is required to use it for this purpose with effect, and comparatively few amateurs acquire much proficiency. The ice-axe, however, has many other uses and advantages. It is fre- quently of service in clearing out or deepening steps which the leader has made, and in ascending or descending steep ice or snow it is employed as an anchor. The novice should choose an axe with a broad blade, but should avoid burdening himself with too heavy a weapon. After a few weeks in the Alps, he will be competent to select his own from among the approved models. A committee of the Alpine Club, in 1864, recommended three designs for an ice-axe. Tools so made are to be procured complete in London of Messrs. Mosely and Simpson, 27, Bedford street, Covent Garden, and Mr. Carter, 164, Oxford Street. Ice-axes can also be obtained in Switzerland, at Chamonix, and elsewhere. At Evolena a light and convenient axe is made. There are many ice-slopes where the fall of one of the party must in- evitably^drag down all his companions. The rope, it is sometimes assumed, XXXVI § 6. — MOUNTAIN-CLIMBING. in such cases only increases the general danger. This is a mistake, arising from an imperfect knowledge of how to use it. Properly managed, it arrests a slip before it has time to become a fall. The instantaneous check trives time to recover to the traveller who has missed his footing. This, of course, is only the case when the rope is handled by experienced climbers who knowhow to keep it almost taut, while allowing one another sufficient liberty of movement. Where slopes of this nature have to be traversed, it is for those concerned to consider the extent of the peril, and their own capacity. In doing this they should give full weight to the increased risk caused by inexperience in any one of them. There is, perhaps, no act ot prudence more irksome to the mountaineer than to decline to take with him, on an expedition of serious or unknown difficulty, an athletic youth who is new to the mountains. Whenever such a question arises, the lesson of the Matterhorn should be recalled to memory. The danger arising from ice and fragments of rock falling across the track may, to a great extent^ be avoided by a judicious choice of route. Ex- perienced mountaineers learn to recognise the positions where ice detached from a higher level descends over a precipice or a steep slope, lhey either avoid such spots altogether or are careful to pass them early in ; the morning, before the sun has loosened the impending masses, or late in the day, after his rays have been withdrawn. Several accidents, however, have occurred within the last few years from the fall of seracs and stones, in places generally held free from danger, which should induce great care in selection of a route by the guides, this danger, being often difficult to recognise, is sometimes unduly despised, both by guides and travellers. On slopes or crags, exposed to rockialls, the rope somewhat increases the risk, as it may be struck, or impede a traveller from suddenly leaping, and it may, therefore be dispensed with unless the danger of doing so seems greater than that likely to be mem red by its use. • . . The ordinary risks of Alpine adventure are seriously increased during bad weather, and new dangers may then assail the traveller. Masses ot rock are detached from their previously firm resting-places, and come thundering down across the track. Falling snow obscures the view ano. effaces the footprints, so that it soon becomes equally difficult to advance and to retreat. The new snow forms a coating on the steep slopes of ice , and rock, and renders them, for a time, highly dangerous. Worst of all, when snow is accompanied by violent gusts of wind, the tourmente or snow-whirlwind, bewilders the traveller, half-blinded by the fine dust-Like ; snow, and benumbs his limbs with its biting breath. A reasonable man will avoid bad weather in the high Alps whenever it can be foreseen or resort to an immediate retreat when unexpectedly attacked by it. Atten- tion to the bearings of the compass and to land-marks when the appearance of the weather becomes doubtful will generally enable a party to retrace their steps. The tendency of second-rate guides to put off facing the storm byrefusingtodescendatonce should be resisted. An error of judgment of this kind led, in 1870, on Mont Blanc, to the most fatal of all Alpine acci- dents. Bad weather may last for days, and those who cannot face it with unimpaired powers will scarcely find the effects of many hours exposure counteracted by the energy of despair. Few summer travellers have an idea of the possible terrors of the Alps in bad weather. Oil ^lacier expeditions a single traveller must take two guides, 01 a Rly. Lausanne, J Visit Vevey and Chillon, by steamer. Geneva. Sallanches. Chamonix. Montanvers . Flegere. Tete Noire to Martigny. Aigle. (Making an excursion to Sepey, and Hotel des Diablerets, in the Val des Ormonts.) Brieg (Rly.). Lucerne. Vitznau, by steamer. Ascend Rigi, and return. (Rly.) Fliielen, by steamer. Drive to Andermatt, and return. Lucerne, by steamer or road. Visit Engelberg. Meiringen, by Brunig Pass. Visit the Reichenbach and Giessbach. Steamer to Interlaken. Lauterbrunnen, and thence by Wen- gem Alp to Grindelwald; return- ing to Interlaken. Thun. Bel Alp . Domo d’Ossola, by Simplon Pass. Baveno. Borromean Islands. Luino, by steamboat. Lugano. Monte Generoso. Steamer to Porlezza; thence to Me- naggio, and to Varenna or (by boat) Bellaggio. From Chiavenna the route may be St. Moritz, by Maloja Pass. Pontresina. Drive to Bernina Pass. Albula Pass to Tiefenkasten. Schyn Pass to Thusis. Como and back. Chiavenna. Spliigen or Thusis by Spliigen Pass. Coire or Kagatz, visiting the Baths of Pfaffers. Wesen. Rapperschwyl, and steamer to Zurich. Schaffhausen. varied as follows : Visit Via Mala and to Chur and Ragatz. Visit Pfeffers Bad. Rail to Glarus, excursion to Stachel- berg. Rail to Zurich. Route by Bridle-paths and Carriage -roads, including, much of the fine scenery of the central Alps. Three months. It is assumed that wherever there is a good carriage-road it should be used. A few excursions partly on foot are given in italics. By dividing this route at Martigny it supplies two tours of ordinary length. Bale to Lucerne, direct; or by Schaff- hausen and Zurich. Ascend the Rigi from Arth [rly]. Descend to Vitznau [rly] or to W eggis. Return to Lucerne.— Ascend Pilatus and sleep. — Descend to Alpnach. By Stanz to Engelberg. Joch Pass to Meiringen. Baths of Reichenbach. Pass of the Great Scheideck. Faulhorn. Grindelwald. Excursion to the Lower Glacier of Grindelwald. Wengern Alp to Lauterbrunnen. Miirren and Fall of Schmadribach. Interlaken. Excursion to the Giessbach. Thun. Saanen, by the Simmenthal. Vevey, Montreux-Territet, or H. Rigi Vaudois, by the Dent de Jaman Pass. [Or from Thun to Kander- steg, over the Gemmi to Leukerbad, and down the Rhone valley to Lake of Geneva.] Castle of Chillon. Lausanne. Geneva. Excursion to the Saleve. Chamonix. Montanvers. Chapeau. Brevent . Martigny, by Tete Noire Pass. Orsieres. Aosta, by St. Bernard. Ascent of the Becca di Nona . Descent to Cogne. Ascent of the Pousset . Val Savaranche, by Col de Lauzon. Courmayeur. Ascent of the Cramont . Chatillon. Gressoney St. Jean. Inn on the Col d’Ollen. i Alagna. Varallo. Excursion up Val Mastalone. Orta, by the Col di Colma. Over Monte Motterone to Baveno. Ponte Grande in the Val Anzasca. Macugnaga. Excursion to Macugnaga Glacier. Mattmark or Saas , by the Monte Moro Pass.* Sion. * Those who fear to undertake the Pass of the Moro may vary the route by going from Varallo by Val Mastalone to Val Anzasca, returning to Baveno, thence by steamer to Locarno or Magadino, by Bellinzona to Airolo and over the St. Gothard and Furca Passes to the Upper Valais. From Viesch to the Eggisch- horn, thence to Zermatt, returning by Visp to Brieg, and thence by the Simplon to Domo d' Ossola. Evolena and Arolla. St. Luc, in Val d’Anniviers, by Col de Torrent. Zmeiden, in Turtman' Thai, ascending j Bella Tola on the way. St. Niklaus in the Yispthal, ascend- ing Schwarzhorn. Zermatt. Riffelberg and Gorner Grat. Ascent to Schwarzsee and Hornli. Yisp, in the valley of the Rhone. Bel Alp. Eggischhorn Hotel, by crossing the | Aletsch Glacier and Rieder Alp. Ascend the Eggischhorn. Visit M’arjelensee and Aletsch Glacier . Brieg. Domo d’Ossola, by Simplon Pass. • Canobbio, by Yal Vigezzo. Luino. Lugano. Excursion to Monte Generoso. By Porlezza and Menaggio to Bel« laggio, on the Lake of Como. Yaren na. Lecco, by the Lake. Como, by Erba. Colico, by steamer. Chiavenna. Andeer, by Spliigen Pass. Coire, by Via Mala. Ragatz and Pf'affers. Wesen, by Wallenstadt. Baths of Stachelberg. Excursion to Ober Sand Alp. Altdorf, by Klausen Pass. Brunnen. Glarus, by Muotta Thai. St. Gall. Rorschach. Eriedrichshafen. From Chiavenna the Engadine may be visited (see previous route), or from Bellaggio the following route may be taken. Como, by steamer. Lecco, by Erba, rail to Bergamo and Lago d’lseo. Steamer to Lovere. Drive by Yal Camonica to Edolo. Aprica Pass to Le Prese. Bernina Pass to Pontresina, &c. Tour for Moderate Pedestrians, keeping to the higher parts of the. Swiss and Savoy Alps. It is assumed that some days of rest should he allowed to intervene, and that the passes or ascents marked in italics should not be attempted without guides. Engelberg. Ascend the Titlis , and sleep at the Inn on the Engstlen Alp. To Im Hof, and Grimsel Hospice. Sidelhorn and Oberaar Glacier. Strahleck Pass to Grindelwald. Faulhorn. Inn on the Wengern Alp. By Lauterbrunnen to Miirren. To Kandersteg, by the Tschingel Gla- cier and Gasteren Thai. Leukerbad, by Gemmi Pass. Ascend Torrenthorn ; descend to H. Nesthorn in the Lotschenthal. By Ldtschliicke from H. Nesthorn, to the Eggischhorn. Eggischhorn, Aletsch Glacier. Bel Alp. Sparrenhorn. Saas. Excursion to Fee Alp ; sleep at Matt- mark. Macugnaga by Monte Moro. Excursion to Macugnaga Glacier. Sleep at Ponte Grande. Varallo, by the Baranca Pass and Val Mastalone. Alagna. Excursion to Pile Alp and Yal di Bours ; sleep at Col d’Ollen. Gressoney. Ascend the Grauhaupt. Breuil, by the Cimes Blanches , or in two days by Brussone and Chatillon. To RitFelberg Hotel, by the St. Theodule Pass . Excursions about Zermatt. Sleep at St. Niklaus. By Augstbord Pass (Schwarzhorn), to Zmeiden in the Turtman Thai. Visit the Turtman Glacier. By Zmeiden Pass, or Pas du Boeuf, with ascent of Bella Tola, to St. Luc. Zinal .Visit the glacier, or Arpitetta Alp. Evolena or Arolla, by Col de Torrent. Col de Collon to Preray en (or by Otemma Glacier to Inn at Mauvoisin, and next day by Col de Fenetre to Aosta). Aosta. Courmayeur. Tour of three weeks in Eastern walkers. Ascend the Cramont. To Chamonix, by the Col du Geant, Grands Mulcts . Cross Buet to Sixt. Col de Sageroux to Champery. Pas de Morgin to Thonon. Switzerland for riders or moderate Ragatz. and Promontogno. Davos, by Pratigau. Madriser Pass. Bergiin, by Sertig Thai. ; Avers Thai to Spliigen. Pontresina, by Albula. | Lugnetz Thai to Ilanz. [Piz Languard, Surlej Fuorcla, Fex Ascend Piz Mundaun. Thai, &c.] Drive! to Trons, Lavazjoch to Dis- Old Bernina Pass to Poschiavo. sends. Canciano Pass to Chiesa. j Sandgrat to Stachelberg. Muretto Pass to Maloja. VisitAlbigna | Elm, Segnes Pass, to Flims and glacier, and cross to Val Bondasca 1 Reichenau. Tour for good walkers, with a glacier guide. Geneva. Sixt. Over Buet to Chamonix. Grands Mulets. Jar din. Col du Tour, Col du Sonadon, Gla- cier Pass to Arolla, Col de Bertol to Zermatt (high-level route). Ascend Monte Rosa. Alphubel Pass to Saas. Zwischbergen Pass to Simplon. Ascend Monte Leone. Bel Alp. Ascend Aletschhorn. Eggischhorn. Ascend Finsteraarhorn. Monch Joch to Grindelwald. Lauteraarjoch to Grimsel. Or Bel Alp. Beichgrat to Lotschenthal. Petersgrat to Lauterbrunnen. Wengern Alp. Grindelwald. Monchjoch to Eggischhorn. Oberaarjoch to Grimsel, I Grimsel, by Galenstock, to Furka. Maderaner Thai. Clariden Pass to Todi hut. Ascend Todi, descend to Dissentis. Camadra Pass to Olivone. Cross Piz Yalrhein to Spliigen. By Averserthal to Promontogno. Bondasca Pass to Baths of Masino. Sissone Pass to Maloya. Pontresina. Tour of the Bernina. Lower Engadine, Piz Linard. Silvretta Pass to the Pratigau. § 9. SELECTED LIST OF BOOKS AND MAPS. The following works are selected from the long catalogue of works on the Alps as likely to interest and instruct Swiss travellers : — Beattie, W. — ‘ Switzerland/ illustrated by W. H. Bartlett. 1836. ‘ The Waldenses/ illustrated by W. H. Bartlett and W. Brocke- don. 1838. Berlepsch. — ‘ The Alps ; or, Sketches of Life and Nature in the Mountains/ Translated by Leslie Stephen, 1861. Bonney, Rev. T. G. — ‘ The Alpine Regions of Switzerland and the Neigh- bouring Countries/ 1868. — ‘ Outline Sketches in the High Alps of Dauphine/ London, 1865. Bonney, Key. T. G. — ‘ Lake and Mountain Scenery of the Swiss Alps, illustrated by G. Closs and O. Frohlicher, with text by T. G. Bonney. 1874 . Brockedon, W. — 4 Illustrations of the Passes of the Alps/ 2 vols., 1828. ‘ Journals of Excursions in the Alps/ 1843. Coleman, E. T. — ‘ Scenes from the Snowfields : being Illustrations from the Upper Iceworld of Mont Blanc/ 1859. Forbes, James D. — ‘ Travels through the Alps of Savoy and other parts of the Pennine Chain, with Observations on the Phenomena of Glaciers/ 1843. 4 Norway and its Glaciers, with an Appendix on the Alps of Dauphine/ &c., 1853. ‘ The Tour of Mont Blanc and Monte Kosa ’ (abridged from the * Alps of Savoy ’), 1855. 1 Occasional Papers on the Theory of Glaciers/ 1859. Forbes, Sir J.— ‘ A Physician’s Holiday/ 1849. Freshfield, Douglas W. —* * Italian Alps ; Sketches from the Mountains of Ticino, Lombardy, the Trentino, and Venetia/ 1875. Longmans. Freshfield, Mrs. H. — ‘A Summer Tour in the Grisons and Italian Valleys of the Bernina/ 1862. Longmans. George, H. B.— ‘ The Oberland and its Glaciers Explored and Illustrated with Ice-axe and Camera/ 1866. Longmans. Hinchliff, Thomas W. — ‘ Summer Months among the Alps, with the Ascent of Monte Kosa/ 1857. Longmans. King, Kev. S. W.— ‘ The Italian Valleys of the Pennine Alps/ 1858. Includes also many of the valleys of the Graian Alps. Murray. Latrobe, C. S. — ‘ The Alpenstock ; Sketches of Swiss Scenery and Manners, 1825-26. Morell. — ‘ Scientific Guide to Switzerland/ 1867. Smith and Elder. Buskin’s (Professor) ‘Modern Painters’ (vol. 4) contains the most eloquent j descriptions of Alpine scenery yet written. Smith, Albert. — ‘ Mont Blanc/ 1852. Stephen, Leslie. — ‘ The Playground of Europe/ 1871. Longmans. Tschudi, F. von. — ‘ Sketches of Nature in the Alps/ 1858. Tyndall, Prof. John. — ‘ The Glaciers of the Alps/ 1860. Murray, — ‘Mountaineering in 1861.’ Longmans. Forms of Water/ 1876. Macmillan. Walton, E.— ‘ Peaks and Valleys of the Alps, with text by T. G. Bonney. 1867. — — — ‘ Peaks in Pen and Pencil.’ 1872. ‘The Bernese Oberland, with text by T. G. Bonney. 1874. Wills, Alfred .— 4 Wanderings among the High Alps/ 1856.; Bentley. - -n ‘ The Eagle’s Nest in the Valley of Sixt, and Excursions among the Great Glaciers/ 1860. Longmans. The following works contain the history of the conquest of the Alps * Peaks, Passes, and Glaciers/ 1st and 2nd series, 3 vols., by Members of the Alpine Club, 1859 and 1862. Longmans. $ • Vacation Tourists/ vol. 1, for 1860, edited by F. Galton. Macmillan. ‘ The Alpine Journal,’ vols. 1 to 8 (continued quarterly), 1863-78. Whymper, E.— ‘ Scrambles in the Alps ’ (beautifully illustrated), from 1860 to 1869. Macmillan. ‘ The Alpine Guide/ by John Ball. A mountaineer’s handbook, admirably compiled and divided into 13 sections (2s. 6d. each). The introduction (a separate pamphlet, price Is.) contains a valuable paper by Mons. Desor on the Geology of the Alps. Longmans, 1876. A mass of information is contained in Dolfuss Ausset’s ‘ Materiaux pour xlv § 9 # — SELECTED LIST OF BOOKS. ’Etude des Glaciers ’ (8 vols.), and in the annuals of foreign Alpine Dlubs : — 4 Jahrbuch des Schweizer Alpenklub/ Berne. Dalp. ‘ Bollettino del Club Alpino Italiano/ Turin. Candeletti. ‘ Annuaire du Club Alpin Francis/ Paris. Hachette. ‘ Zeitschrift des Deutscher Alpenklub.’ Munich. J . Lmdauer. 4 Annuaire de la Society des Touristes du Dauphme. Grenoble, 4 . Ailier. The following French and German books are recommended . De Satjssure. — 4 Voyages dans les Alpes/ Partie Pittoresque; 1 vol.; Jullien, Geneva Dueier, o’.— ‘ Le Mont Blanc.’ Geneve ; Sandoz et Fischbacher, 1877. An excellent history of Mont Blanc. . x> Joanne’s Guides : 4 La Suisse/ 4 Les Alpes Francises, and La Provence, Alpes Maritimes/ Ponderous, but full of recent and accurate information Studer, G.— ‘ Ueber Eis und Schnee. Die Hochste Gipfel der Schweiz und die Geschichte ihrer Besteigung.’ Berne. Dalp, 1869-71. A complete summary of the history of mountaineering. . Studer Prof. B.— 4 Geschichte der Physischen Geographie der Schweiz bis 1815.’ An admirable handbook and key to old Swiss literature. Berne. Stampfli, 1863. # . Toppfer, A. — ‘ Premiers Voyages en Zigzag/ Pans. 4 Nouveaux Voyages en Zigzag.’ Paris. Humorous sketches of the travels of a Genevese schoolmaster and his boys in the days when Zermatt and Pontresina were remote and unvisited Tschudi, Iwan von. — i Schweizerf iihrer / A skeleton guide-book, full of ac- curate and minute information compressed into the smallest possible space. rucKETT, F. F.— ‘ Hoch Alpen Studien/ Leipzig, Liebeskmd, 1874. The collected papers of the well-known English mountaineer, not published m England in this form. ' The following are useful local Handbooks The sections of the 4 Alpine Guide/ Longmans. 2 s. 6d. each. ~ , ; Pontresina and its Neighbourhood/ by Dr. M. Ludwig. Stanford. 2s. bet. ; The Engadine/ by M. Gaviezel. Stanford. 5s. ■ Davos-Platz, by one who knows it well/ Stanford. 2s. 6d. For local Handbooks dealing with the Italian Alps, see the Introduction to die second section of this volume. The following foreign works on Swiss history can be recommended. No rood English 4 History of Switzerland ’ has yet appeared. Albert Killiet.— 4 Les Origines de la Confederation Suisse/ Georg. Geneve et Bale, 1869. 2nd ed. 7 fr. 50 c. An accurate popular summary of the early history of Swiss confederation, and of the legends connected with it. W. Vischer. — 4 Die Sage der Befreiung der Waldst'atte.’ Leipzig. Vogel, 1867. 4 fr. An interesting sketch of the growth of Tell legends. K.. Datjdliker. — 4 Lehrbuch der Geschichte des Schweizer-Volkes. ^ Schult- hess. Zurich, 1875. 2 fr. 50 c. Short and trustworthy handbook. t I. Strickler. — 4 Lehrbuch der Schweizer Geschichte/ Orell, Fiissli, and Co. Zurich, 1874. 2nd ed., 6 fr. More detailed than the last— the Swiss history for travellers and students. v A Daguet. — 4 Histoire de la Confederation Suisse/ Georg. Geneve et Bale, 1879. 7th ed. In 2 vols./B frs. a vol. Handsome edition of a well-known book, brought up to present standard of historical research. Vivid and interesting, with copious references to original authorities and recent i literature. xlvi § 9 . — ALPINE MAPS. Alpine Maps . The traveller who does not leave the high-road may be contented with a good general map. But the pedestrian and the climber will find them- selves well repaid in independence and in instruction for the slight trouble of carrying about the sheets of the Government Topographical Atlas con- taining the districts they intend to visit, or at least such a map as that lately issued by the Alpine Club (see below). The Federal Survey of Switzerland, in twenty-five sheets, executed under the superintendence of General Dufour, is a magnificent work, and renders intelligent travellers independent of a local guide. The Piedmontese and Lombard maps, executed by the Italian and Austrian Governments, are not trustworthy in the mountains above the region of paths and chalets. The new French map is generally excellent, though the glacier explorer will detect some serious errors in the ice region ; the ‘ Carte Militaire de la Frontiere,’ now being published on the same scale, has the advantage of taking in the Italian side of the chain, but in this it only follows the old and very incorrect Piedmontese map. Mr. Adams Reilly’s maps of Monte Rosa and the S. valleys of t the Pennine chain, and of Mont Blanc, are clear and accurate. The Alpine Club map in four sheets, is the only trust- worthy map of the Alps of Piedmont and Lombardy, and though on somewhat too small a scale, is necessary for pedestrians in these regions. The following details are extracted from the catalogue of Messrs. Stan- ford, of Charing Cross : — Swiss Government Map, scale 1 * 57 mile to an inch ; sheets, 35 by 26 inches, sold at 2s. 9 d. and Is. 6d. The above Map, geologically coloured, publishing in sheets at from 7s. 6cL to 56s. 6d. each. Swiss Government Topographical Atlas on the scale of the original survey : Alps, 1*26 inch to a mile ; lowlands, 2*53 inches to a mile ; publishing in 549 sheets, 17 by 13 inches; Is. 6d. per sheet. French Government Map, scale 1 * 26 mile to an inch ; sheets, 38 by 26 inches, sold at 2s. 6d. and 4s. 6d. each. Carte Militaire de la Frontiere des Alpes, scale 1 * 26 mile to an inch ; coloured, and with contour lines ; sheets, 18 by 13 inches, sold at 2s. each. Piedmontese Government Map, scale 1 * 26 inch to a mile ; sheets, 32 by 25 inches, sold at 3s. each. Lombard Government Map, scale P36 mile to an inch; sheets, 28 by 18 inches, sold at 4s. to 2s. each. The following general maps are recommended : — The Alpine Club Map of Switzerland, produced under the superintendence of the Alpine Club, including the Italian and French Alps within its limits. An admirable work, 4 miles to the inch ; in 4 sheets, 42s., coloured. Small Government Map, 3*94 miles to the inch; in 4 sheets, 3s. Qd. a sheet. An excellent map for those who do not intend to go beyond the Swiss fron- tiers, but not comparable outside them to the Alpine Club Map. Mayr’s Alpine Map, 7*10 miles to an inch; mounted in two divisions. In case, 18s. 6d. Leuzinger’s Map of Switzerland, 6*31 miles to an inch; in case, 12s. Ziegler’s Hypsometrical Map of Switzerland, 6 miles to an inch ; with letter- press and Index, in case, 17s. General Map of Switzerland ; with explanations in French and § 10. — ALPINE ART. xlvii German, and Alphabetical Index ; 6 miles to an inch ; 39 by 28 inches ; in case, 12s. 6d. Studer and Escher’s Geological Map of Switzerland, 6 miles to an inch ; in case, 20s. A smaller map by the same, folded, 3s. Reilly’s Map of Mont Blanc, in case, 12s. 6d. Map of Monte Rosa and the Yal Pelline, in case, 6s. § 10. ALPINE ART. How far mountains can be successfully dealt with by Art is a vexed and still undecided question. Turner and others have shown that below the snow-level the painter can fully succeed. But Prof. Ruskin (who, in 4 Modem Painters,’ * urged artists to attempt the delineation of snow, and has himself drawn snow mountains with wonderful success) has lately declared that the brilliancy of snow scenery places it outside the proper field of art, and many artists agree with him. Among our own countrymen who have seriously endeavoured to paint Alpine scenery, four water-colour painters, Messrs. G. Barnard, Elijah Walton, A. Croft, and J. W. Smith, deserve honourable mention. Mr. A. Williams’s drawings of snow-peaks and mountain-slopes show careful and delicate study with artistic power. Mr. Macallunp painted, some years ago, several Alpine landscapes in oil of great promise. At Geneva Calame painted with much technical skill and success Swiss mountains. His landscapes are, however, somewhat cold and conventional in feeling, as also are those of the prolific Munich school. He has been succeeded by Mons. Loppe, a French painter, who makes glacier scenery his special study, and has succeeded in rendering ice and snow with a vigour and fidelity hitherto unapproached. His only rival in this field is an English amateur, Sir Robert Collier, whose pictures show an inti- mate knowledge and 'appreciation of Alpine phenomena, in which most/ professional pictures of Swiss scenery are strangely deficient. It remains to be proved by time, whether painters when they become familiar with snow mountains in all their aspects will find none of them as capable of representation as some subjects they at present frequently attempt, e. g. an Egyptian sunset or a storm at sea. The following Hints on Sketching in the High Alps, from the experience of an artist, may be found useful by students. 44 Sketching in Alpine valleys can be carried on as easily as in England or Wales, but there are special difficulties attending painting in the High Alps. “ Travellers who, in crossing glacier passes or ascending the higher peaks, find themselves among scenes of strange and wonderful beauty, must, how- ever, often wish to make pictorial notes which will aid their memory as no writing can. A large number of people can sketch the forms of mountains with tolerable accuracy, but find these outlines prove uninteresting to their friends, and, when hurriedly made, they often become almost unintelligible to themselves. My practice in the Alps, when I could only snatch a few minutes on an arete to note the shape of a distant mountain, or the lines of a snow cornice, has been to sketch simply in pencil : in the evening, however, or on the next wet day, to clear up and develop this rough sketch with pale thin washes of colour, taking care that every pencil-mark should he visible . By this method I can see at any time what was done on the spot, and what was merely remembered. * See vol. i. pp. 281-4; vol. iv. p. 246; and ‘ Notes on Turner’s Drawings,’ p. 117. “ Adopting this plan, the amateur can bring out the forms of his peaks by tinting in the sky or cloud colour, and then with a few touches the rocky hones of the mountain will show out from the surrounding snows. Equally easy is it to define where the dark belts of forest end, and where the grass can no longer find sustenance among the rocks. The beginner will do well to use much blueish-grey in his distances, and to avoid all strong greens, except in the foreground, even although the distant hill may seem to his eyes verdure itself. If the sketcher has had little previous knowledge of water-colour, he should limit himself to a few quiet broken hues, giving himself more play in colour as he grows in power. “ The materials needed are a sketch-book or block, 8 or 9 inches by 6, and a colour-box, 5 inches by 2i, to hold a few half-cakes of moist colour. Some of the most useful colours are cobalt, light red, rose madder, indigo, crimson, lake, gamboge, burnt sienna, yellow ochre, Vandyke brown, and cadmium yellow. Of course, two or three brushes, a couple of pencils, and a piece of india-rubber will be also required. All, how- ever, can be easily pocketed, and are thus always available ; more bulky sketching apparatus will probably be placed on the porter’s shoulders, and not be so readily obtainable when wanted. “For the use of this system of tinted pencil outlines the highest authority can be quoted. Professor Buskin wrote in 1878 : ‘ Between the years 1840 and 1845 Turner went every summer to Switzer- land, finding, it seemed, new strength and pleasure among the scenes which had first formed his power. Every day on these excursions fur- nished him with many more subjects for complete pictures than he could > at all sufficiently express, and he could not bear to let any of these escape him. His way was, therefore, to make rapid pencil note of his subject on the spot ; and, it seems, at his inn in the evening to put so much colour • on this outline as would recall the effect to his mind.’ ” — A . W. Alpine scenery is peculiarly well-suited for photography, which has achieved some of its most complete successes in the high Alps.. The amateur who desires to try his hand will find full directions in the chapter on photography, by the Bev. H. B. George, in the ‘Hints for Travellers,’ published under the authority of the Boyal Geographical Society (Stanford, 1878). The best portable apparatus is supplied by Messrs. Murray and Heath, 69, J ermyn Street. § 11. THE ALPS— THEIR GROUPS, PEAKS, PASSES, GORGES, AND VALLEYS, j In order to travel with advantage in a country previously unknown, something more seems necessary than a mere detail of certain lines ot road, and an enumeration of towns, villages, mountains and inns. The following sections have been prepared with a view to furnish such pre- liminary and general information as may enable the traveller to turn his time to the best account. Switzerland owes its chief attraction, the sublimity and diversified beauty of its scenery, to the presence of the Alps — the loftiest mountains of Central Europe, the dorsal ridge or backbone, as it were, of the Continent. These run through the land, and occupy, with their main trunk and minor[spurs and offsets, a great part of its surface. They attain the greatest height along the S. frontier-line of Switzerland, and on the north of the § 11 . — THE ALPS* xlix Ittione valley. Opposite them, on the N., the minor chain of the Jura , forming the N.W. boundary of Switzerland, extends from Geneva to near Constance, in a direction roughly parallel to that of the greater range. Before the introduction into Switzerland of railroads, it was from the apex of this advanced guard, as it were, of the Alps, or from one of the inter- mediate outlying hills, that the traveller, on entering the country, obtained his first view of the great central chain. From the brow of the hill, at the further extremity of a landscape composed of undulating country— -woods, hills, villages, lakes and winding rivers — sufficient of itself to rivet the attention, he discovered what, if he had not before enjoyed the glorious spectacle, he would probably take for a fleecy cloud floating high above the horizon. The eye, unaccustomed to objects of such magnitude, fails at first to convey to the mind the fact that these white masses are mountains 60 or 70 m. off. There are many points on the Jura whence the semicircular array of Alpine peaks, presented at once to the eye, extends for more than 120 m., and comprises between 200 and 300 distinct summits, covered with snow or bristling with bare rocks, having their interstices filled with glaciers. The wise traveller approaching the Alps for the first time will not hesitate, in order to obtain this view, to give up a day or two to driving over the Jura. Before proceeding to give some details as to their principal features and phenomena, it is desirable to say a few words of the Alps themselves, and their division into groups. This great chain, the watershed of central Europe, extends from the Gulf of Genoa on the S.W. to the sources of the Save on the E. Within 40 miles of the Mediterranean its peaks rise to a height of over 10,000 feet, and throughout the portion of the range with which we are here concerned, the summits of the main chain seldom sink below’this level, and the gaps between them, or passes, none of them sink below 6000 feet. Owing, however, chiefly to the facilities afforded by'deep transverse val- leys, the Alps have never formed a permanent barrier, as the Caucasus did up to the present age, to the passage of commerce or armies. All arrangements of a chain into separate groups must be more or less arbitrary and unsatisfactory. The portion of the Alps included in this Handbook may, however, best be divided into the following groups : — I. The Maritime Alps, extending from the Col d’Altare on the Ales- sandria-Mondovi Boad to the Col d’Argentiere, at the head of Yal Maira. ii. The Cottian Alps , extending northwards from the Col d’Argen- tiere to the Mont Cenis Pass. iii. The Dauphine Alps , lying W. of the last-named, and between the valleys of the Durance and the Bomanche. iv. The GraianAlps, extending from the Mont Cenis Pass northwards to the valley of the Dora Baltea and the pass of the Little St. Bernard, and bounded on the W. by the valleys of the Isere and the Arc. v. The Pennine Alps ; the main chain from the little St. Bernard to the Simplon, including Mont Blanc and the subsidiary groups N. and W. of it. vi. The Bernese Alps ; the great range which extends parallel to the main chain from the Lake of Geneva along the N. side of the valley [SwitzJ] d I § 11. — ALPINE PEAKS* of the Rhone to the sources of that river. It is bounded on the E. by the gorge in which the Reuss descends from the St. Gothard. vii. The Glarus, or North Swiss Alps, form the natural continuation of the last-named group, and extend eastwards N. of the valley of the Yorder Rhein, from the valley of the Reuss to the trench of the Lake of Wallenstadt. viii. The Sentis , or Appenzell Alps, are a comparatively small and low group, lying between the present course of the Rhine below Sargans and the Lake of Wallenstadt. i x. ¥:The Lepontine Alps . The main chain between the Simplon Pass and the Spliigen is known by this name. It includes the Rheinwald group, which supplies the main source of the Rhine, and the ranges of Ticino. x. The Bhcetian Alps extend from the Splugen to the trench of the Adige. On the N. they are limited by the Arlberg Pass and on the S. by the valley of the Adda, and the passes of the Aprica and the Tonale. Only a portion of them is dealt with in this volume. xi. The Bergamasque Alps lie between the Lake of Como, the Yal Tellina, the Aprica road, and Yal Camonica. They are sometimes con- sidered as a section of the Lombard Alps, but are of a wholly different geological formation from the neighbouring Adamello group. Alpine Beales. — The following is a table of some of the most remark- able summits in these groups. The numbers indicate the district to which each belongs : — Rocca dell’ Argentera, I. Feet. 10,617 Einsteraarhorn, vi. . . Feet. 1 . 14,026 Cima di Gelas, i. ... 10,433 Aletschhorn, vi. . . 13,803 Aiguille de Chambeyron, n. 11,155 Jungfrau, Vi . 13,671 Monte Yiso, n 12,605 Schreckhorn, vi. . . 13,394 Pic des Ecrins, in. . 13,462 Wetterhorn, vi. . . . . 12,166 Meije, m 13,081 Galenstock, vi. . . 11,956 Ailefroide, in 13,000 Titlis, vi . 10,627 ( Mont Pelvoux, in. . 12,973 Todi, vn . 11,887 ; Roche Melon, iv. ... 11,621 Oberalpstock, vii. . 10,925 i Pointe de Charbonel, iv. 12,373 Glarnisch, vii. . . 9,584 « Grand Paradis, iv. . 13,300 Sentis, viii . 8,215 Grivola, iv. . 13,028 Monte Leone, ix. . 11,696 Grande Casse, iv. ... 12, 668 Piz Yalrhein, ix. . 11,148 Ruitor, iv 11,480 Blinnenhorn, ix. . . 10,932 Mont Blanc, v 15,784 Basodine, ix . 10,748 Monte Rosa, v. . 15,217 Piz Bernina, x. , . 13,294 Dom, v. . . . . . . Lyskamm, v. . * 14,942 Piz Zupo, x . 13,120 14,889 Piz Roseg, x . 12,936 Weisshorn, v. .... 14,804 Monte della Disgrazia, x. . 12,074 Matterhorn, v. . . 14,705 Cima di Piazza, x. . . . 11,713 Dent Blanche, v. ... 14,318 Piz Kesch, x. ... . 11,211 Grand Combin, v. 14,164 Piz Linard, x. . . . . 11,208 Grandes Jorasses, V. 13,799 Cima del Largo, x. . . 11,162 Aiguille Yerte, v. . . 13,527 Monte Redorta, xi. * . 9,980 Fletschhorn, v 13,176 Presolana, xi. . . 8,202 Buet, v 10,207 § 11. — alpine Peaks The following summits are easy of access, and command fine distant views of the snowy Alps Summits. Chaumont Generoso . Hohenkasten Moleson . Motterone . Niesen . . near Neuchktel. Lake of Como. Weissbad. Bulle. Baveno. Thun. Summits. Pilatus . Rigi . . . Salvatore Sentis . Weissenstein near Lucerne. Lucerne. Lugano. Weissbad. Soleure. Of the distant views the Rigi is the most accessible and very fine. . The following peaks command noble panoramas. Those marked with a t are the more laborious. None are difficult in the proper sense of the word : — Peaks. fCima di Gelas . Monte Frioland . Roche Melon . jGrandes Rousses Aig. du Plat • Becca di Nona Pousset . Cramont . Brevent . fBuet fPointe de Youasson fPigne d’ Arolla Bella Tola . Schwarzhorn tCima di Jazzi Gornergrat . •jMettelhorn Grand Toumalin near , S. Martino Lantosca. Crissolo. Lanslebourg or Susa. Bourg d’ Oi- sans. La Berarde Aosta. Cogne. , Courmayeur. , Chamonix. . Sixt. , Evolena. . Arolla. , St. Luc. . Zmeiden. . Zermatt. 77 Breuil. Peaks. Grauhaupt fPizzo Bianco Schilthom Faulhora . fTitlis . . Stockhom Torrenthorn Sparrenhorn Eggischhorn Sidelhorn . Sentis . fBasodine fPiz Centrale Piz Mundaun Schwarzhorn . fPiz Corvatsch Piz Ot . . Piz Languard Piz Chiampatsch Monte Nero Piz Sassalbo near . Gressoney. . Macugnaga. . Miirren. . Grindelwald. . Engelberg. . Meiringen. . Leukerbad. . Bel Alp. . Yiesch. . Grimsel. . Weissbad. . Tosa Falls Inn. . St. Gothard. . Ilanz. . Davos. . Silvaplana. . Samaden. . Pontresina. . Tarasp Bad. . Chiesa. . Poschiavo. For a near view of Alpine scenery, amidst the recesses of the mountains, the localities which afford a concentration of grand and sublime objects are the passes and valleys of the Bernese Oberland, those round Monte Rosa especially the valleys of Zermatt, Saas, and Macugnaga, and those round the base of Mont Blanc. It is in these three districts that the combination of fine form and great elevation in the mountains— of vast extent ot wlacier and snow-field, with the accompaniments of the roar ot the avalanche and the rush of the falling torrent— are most remarkable. In the Bernina group the ice scenery is singularly fine, and accessible even for the most moderate walkers. Dauphine redeems the barrenness of its valleys by the superb forms of its rock peaks, The Graian and North Swiss Alps contain varied and attractive scenery, and travellers who have visited the more frequented districts should not omit Stachelberg and ^Wherever the Alps break down towards Italy, a succession of the most delightful landscapes meets the eye. The foot of Monte Yiso, the Italian d Z lii § 11. — ALPINE PASSES. valleys of Monte Kosa, Val Maggia near Locarno, the valleys round the head of Lago d’lseo, display this class of scenery in perfection. Those who have 'not visited Monte Generoso have still to see the most beautiful of all subalpine views. Alpine Passes . — No part of the Alps is more interesting, either in a picturesque or in an historical point of view, than the passable gaps or notches in the ridge of the great chain, and in the minor mountain but- tresses branching from it, whereby this colossal wall of mountains may be scaled, and a direct passage and communication maintained between northern and southern Europe, as well as between one valley and another. It has been through these depressions that the great tide of population has poured since the earliest times ; from these outlets have issued the barbarian swarms which so often desolated, and at last annihilated, the Eoman Empire. There are more than 50 of these passes over the Swiss portion of the Alpine chain alone, or immediately communicating with the Swiss frontier.* In seeking a passage over the Alps, the most obvious course was to find out the valleys which penetrate farthest into the great chain, to follow the rivers to their sources, and then to take the lowest travers- able part in order to descend on the opposite side. The variety and sud- den transitions presented by such a route are highly interesting. In the course of one day’s journey the traveller passes in succession from one stretch of valley to another by a steep ascent and defile, from the climate of summer to winter, through spring. The alteration in the productions < keeps pace with that of the temperature. Leaving behind him stubble- fields, whence the corn has been removed and housed, he comes to fields yet yellow and waving in the ear ; a few miles farther and the crop is still green ; yet higher, and corn refuses to grow. Before quitting the region of corn he enters one of dark, apparently interminable forests of pine and larch, clothing the mountain-sides in a sober vestment. Above this the haymakers are collecting the short grass, the only produce which the ground will yield. Yet the stranger must not suppose that all is barrenness even at this elevation. It seems as though Nature were determined to make one last effort at the confines of the region of vegetation. From beneath the snow-bed, and on the very verge of the glacier, the profusion of flowers, their great variety, and surpassing beauty, are exceedingly sur- prising. Some of the greatest ornaments of our gardens, here born to blush unseen, — gentians, violets, anemones, and hare-bells, intermixed j with bushes of the red rhododendron, the loveliest production of the Alps, scattered over the velvet turf, give it the appearance of a carpet of richest pattern. The insect world is not less abundant and varied, — thousands of winged creatures are seen hovering over the flowers, enjoying their short existence, for the summer at these elevations lasts but for 3 or 4 weeks : a premature winter soon cuts short this brief season of animal and vegetable activity. Above this region of spring, with its gush of waters, its young herbage and vivid greensward, its hum of insects just burst forth, and its natural flower-beds glittering with rain-drops, that of winter in Lapland or * The late Mr. Brockedon carefully illustrated them, both with pencil and pen, in his beautiful work entitled ‘The Passes of the Alps,’ 2 vols. 4to. Their history has not yet been fully written in England. See, however, the * Jahrbuch fur Schweizerische Geschichte/ Hohr, Zurich, 18?8-9 * (article by Oehlmann). Siberia succeeds. The traveller may form an idea of the height he has reached by observing the vegetation. Vines disappear at 2000 feet, generally sooner; oak-trees and wheat at 3000 feet; beeches and barlcyat 4° 00 ^ to 5000 ft • pines and firs at 6000 to 7000 ft. Above 9000 ft. flowering plants are very rare, but up to 11,000 feet they are found m sunny crevices. Above 11,000 feet a few blackened lichens alone preserve the semblance of vegetable life. It must of course be understood that m favourable situations these limits will be exceeded ; in unfavourable situations they will not be reached. At the summit of a high pass and amongst the glaciers the rarefied air is icy cold, and exercise and quick motion are necessary to keep up the circulation of the blood. 1 he agree- able murmur of falling water, which has hitherto accompanied the traveller incessantly, here ceases, — all is solitude and silence, interrupted only by the shrill whistle of the marmot, or the hoarse cawing of an ill- omened raven. The ptarmigan starts up from among the broken rocks on the ver°-e of the snow-field at the traveller’s approach, and the 1am- mero-eier (the condor of the Alps), disturbed in his repast on the carcass of a sheep or cow, may sometimes be seen soaring upwards m a succession of corkscrew sweeps till he gains the ridge of the Alps, and then disappears. Such are the remarkable gradations which the stranger encounters m the course of a few hours, on a single pass of the Alps ; but the most striking change of all is that from the region of snow and ice on the top of the mountain, to the sunny clime and. rich vegetation of Italy, which await the traveller at the S. foot of the chain. The works of Nature, however, will not entirely occupy the attention and wonder of the wanderer in such a pass ; at least a share will be de- manded for admiration' of the works of man. The great highways, pass- able for carriages, over the high Alps, are, indeed, most surprising monu- ments of human skill and enterprise in surmounting what would appear at first sight, to be intended by Nature as insurmountable These proud constructions of art thread the valleys, cross the channels of rivers on long causeways, skirt the edge of the precipice, with walls of rock towering over them, and torrents thundering below. Where the steep and hard surface of the cliff has not left an inch of space for a goat to climb along, they are conducted upon high terraces of solid masonry, or through a notch blasted by gunpowder in the wall of rock. In many instances a projecting buttress of the mountain has blocked up all passage for ages, saying thus far and no farther:” the skill of the modern engineer has pierced through this a tunnel or gallery ; and the difficulty is vanquished, without the least change in the level of the road. Sometimes an impediment is eluded by throwing bridges over a dizzy aorge, and shifting the road from side to side, frequently two or three times within the space of half a mile. Often the road reaches a spot down which the winter avalanches take their habitual course, sweeping everything before them, and which, even in summer, appears reeking and dripping with the lingering fragments of snow. Will not so irre- sistible an antagonist arrest the course of this frail undertaking of man t Not even the avalanche in such a situation the road either buries i itself in subterranean galleries, driven through the mountain, or is sheltered by massive arcades of piasonry, sometimes half a mue or 11V three-quarters of a mile long. Over these the avalanche glides harm- lessly, and is turned into the depths below. Every opportunity is seized of gaining, by easy ascents, a higher level for the road ; at length comes the main ascent, the central ridge, to he surmounted only by hard climbing. This is overcome by a succession of zigzag terraces, called tourniquets or giravolte , connected together by wide curves, to allow carriages to turn easily and rapidly. So skilful is their con- struction, with such easy bends and so gradual a slope, that in many Alpine roads the drivers, with horses accustomed to the road , trot down at a rapid pace. Sometimes as many as 50 of these zigzags succeed one another without interruption ; and the traveller, as he passes backwards and forwards, hovering over the valley, is as though suspended to a pendulum, and swinging to and fro. The road itself has a most singular appearance, twisted about like an uncoiled rope or a ribbon unwound. The travelling-carriage descends sometimes rapidly and without inter- ruption for hours. A drag of tempered iron is quickly worn down, in that time, as thin as the blade of a knife, so great is the friction ; and it is usual to substitute for the iron drag a wooden sabot, formed of the section of a fir-tree, with a groove cut in the centre to admit the wheel. The winter’s snow usually falls upon the Alpine passes more than 5000 ft. high about the second week in October (sometimes earlier), and continues till the first or second week in June. Yet even after this, the passage across the neck or Col, as it is called, is not stopped, except for a few days, until the snow can be cleared away. On some of the minor passes, indeed, traversed by a mere rough footpath or bridle-path, the traffic is much increased after the fall of snow, which, by filling up depressions and smoothing the way, permits the transport of heavy merchandise on sledges, which move easily over the surface as soon as it is hardened. Along the lines of the great carriage-roads strong houses are erected at intervals, called Maisons de Refuge , Case di Ricovero , occupied by persons called Cantonniers, who are employed in mending the road and keeping it free from snow, and are also paid to assist travellers in danger during snow-storms. As near as possible to the summit of the pass a Hospice is frequently erected, often occupied by a band of charitable monks, as in the case of the Great and Little St. Bernard, the Simplon, Mt. Cenis, &c. The direction : of the road across the summit of the ridge is marked by a line of tall poles, 1 which project above the snow, and, from being painted black, are easily recognised. Bells are rung in tempestuous weather, when the tourmente is raging and the mist and falling snow hide the landmarks, that the sound may aid when the sight fails. The morning after a fall of snow labourers and peasants are assembled from all sides to shovel it off the road. Where it is not very deep, it is cleared away by a snow-plough drawn by 6 or 8 oxen. As the winter advances and fresh falls occur, the snow accumulates, and the road near the summit of a pass presents the singular aspect of a path or lane cut between walls of snow sometimes 10 or 20 ft. high. Carriages are taken off their wheels and fastened upon sledges ; ropes are attached to the roof, which are held by 6 or 8 sturdy peasants running along on each side, to prevent the vehicle upsetting and rolling over the slippery ice down a precipice. More cpmmonly, however, travellers are transferred to light narrow one-horse sledges, each carrying two passengers, by which com- munication is kept up, except during storms, when no living animal can withstand the fury of the elements. In this manner very high passes are crossed in the depth of winter with little risk The spring is a season during which far greater danger is to be apprehended, from the avalanches which, then fall. . _ . , , , The Swiss are essentially a road-making nation, and had good roads when those of continental Europe generally were still execrable They bestow an amount of care and expense in avoiding hills and steep declivities which should make an Englishman ashamed of the state of things in the hilly parts of England. # The first carriage-road over the Alps was that of the Simplon, made passable for wheels by the Marechal de Catmat, at the end ot the 17 1 _i centurv and converted into a military highway by Napoleon m 180 In the Middle Ages travellers either rode or were carried m litters, and all commerce was carried on with mules or pack-horses. Ihe Mont Cems, the St Gothard, the Julier and Bernina, and the Brenner, were then the principal routes. In the 17th century the Simplon was also used, and most amusing accounts of their passage have been left us by Lassels in his ‘Voyage of Italy,’ and Evelyn m his well-known Diary. In earlier times, the Moro and St. Theodule were used for purposes oi commerce. The following are the principal carriage-passes over, the Alpine water- shed now in use in the part of the Alps Comprised in this volume : the Col di Tenda, Mont Genevre, Mont Cenis, Little St. Bernard, Simplon, St. Gothard, Lukmanier, San Bernardino, Spliigen Maloya, Bernma. The Col du Lautaret, the Brunig, Furka, and Oberalp; the Fluela, Albula, and Julier, in Canton Graubiinden, and the Apnea and Giogo di Gastellone, in the Bergamasque Alps, are fine roads crossing lateral ridges. The recently constructed road over the Col du Gabbier, between Bnancon and St Michel de Maurienne (8721 feet), surpasses in height all other roads m Europe except the Stelvio (9177 feet, Dufour ; but 9012 feet, new Austrian survey). . v The most frequented, or finest, mule-passes are the Col de l’Argentiere, in the Maritime Alps, the Col de la Traversette, under Monte Viso the Col de Lauzon in the Graian Alps, the Col de la Seigne and Col de Balrne, near Mont Blanc, the Great St. Bernard, the Augstbord Pass from the Turtmann Thai to St. Niklaus, the Eawyl, Gemmi, Wengern Alp, Great Scheideck, and Grimsel, in the Bernese Alps, the Joch Pass, near Engelberg, the Klausen, near Altdorf, the Gries Pass, m the Lepontine Alps, the Muretto and Canciano, in the Bernina group. The most famous glacier-passes are the Breche de la Meije and Col. du Sele, in Dauphine, the Col du Geant, those forming.the so-called High- level Koute ” from Chamonix to Zermatt, the Lysjoch (14,040 feet), the Col d’Herens, the St. Theodule, Alphubel and the Weissthor, near Zermatt ; the Tschingel, the Monch Joch, the Strahleck, and the Oberaarjoch, in the Bernese Oberland ; the Sandgrat, near the Todi ; and the Sella Pass in the Bernina group. Alpine Gorges and Valleys . — Especially deserving of notice are some of the avenues leading up to these passes ; in many instances mere cracks or fissures, cleaving the mountains to the depth of two or three thousand feet. The Schyn Pass and Via Mala* are two of the finest scenes of this kind among the Alps. As valleys shut in by towering precipitous mountains, the Lauterbrunnen valley, the Gasterenthal near Kandersteg, and Yal Bavona in Canton Ticino, are without rivals. The gorges of the Via Mala, the Schyn, the Lucmanier in the Grisons ; of Schollinen ; of Gondo ; of the Via Mala Bergamasca, in Yal di Scalve ; of Yal Yerzasca and Yal Canobbina, near Lago Maggiore ; and of Yal Mastalone, near Yarallo, deserve mention. The gorges of Pfeffers, of Trient, and of the Gouffre de Bousserailles, in Yal Tournanche, are singular narrow fissures. Beautiful Swiss Valleys are the Yale of Hasli, near Meiringen, the Sim- menthal, the Yale of Sarnen, the Kanderthal, the Pratigau, the valleys of Gruyeres, and Ormonts — all distinguished for their quiet pastoral character, and the softness and luxuriance of their verdure — “ The rock- embosomed lawns, and snow-fed streams,” spoken of by Shelley. And here it may be remarked that the traveller in Switzerland must not sup- pose that beauty of scenery is confined to the High Alps : the undulating country between the Alps and Jura, which, though still greatly elvated above the sea, may be called the Lowlands, abounds in unobtrusive beauties — hills tufted with wood, from which picturesque rocks project at intervals, slopes bursting with rills, and meadows which, by the aid of copious irriga- 1 tion, yield three crops of grass a-year, presenting at all seasons a carpet of the liveliest verdure, and of a^texture like velvet ; — such are the beauties of these lowland scenes. Therrequent hedge-rows, the gardens before the cottages, and the neatness of the dwellings — the irregular, winding roads, free from the straight monotony and everlasting avenues of France and Germany — remind one frequently of England. There are, besides, among the Jura, many scenes of grandeur; such especially are presented by the Yal Moutiers, between Bale and Bienne ; the pass of Klus, at the foot of the Ober-Hauenstein ; and the Lac de Joux, The most beautiful valleys of the Savoy and Italian Alps are referred to in the Preface to the second portion of this work. § 12 . GLACIERS.* Glaciers (Germ. Gletscher : Ital. Ghiacciajo ) are amongst the most re-j8 markable objects in nature : to them Alpine scenery owes much of its ^ strangeness and sublimity. A glacier may be described as a stream of ice, I descending into the valleys of high mountain-chains, fed by the snow * which occupies their tops and fills the hollows and clefts between their peaks and ridges ; what it loses by melting at its lowes end is supplied by the descent of new supplies from the upper region &. The snow which falls upon the summits of the high Alps is at first a dry and loose powder. The action of the sun by day and of frost by night gradually converts this into a granular mass, as the minute particles are aggregated together in irregular roundish grains. In this state the entire mass appears white * The best information respecting glaciers is to be found' in Professor Forbes’s 4 Travels in the Alps,’ already alluded to, in Agassiz’ 4 Etudes ’ and * Recherches sur les Glaciers,’ Tvndall’s * Glaciers of the Alps,’ and more recent works, and Forbes’s 4 Occasional Papers on the’Theory of Glaciers.’ Local names for glaciers— in Tyrol, Firn ; in Carinthia, Kas; in the Grisons, Vadret; in part of Italy, Vedfetto; in the Valais, Riegno; in Piedmont, Rui^e ; in the Pyrenees, Serneille. J *- — GLACIERS. and opaque, but the separate grains are transparent. In the course of successive years, as one layer accumulates over another, pressure begins to act on the lower portions. The separate grains being brought into contact adhere together, until the whole becomes seemingly solid ice. The accumu- lation of snow, partly transformed into ice, in the upper regions, may be many hundreds of feet in thickness, and the pressure on the undermost part is therefore enormously great. The glacier ice yields to this pressure, and is gradually forced downwards on the slopes of the mountain into the hollows which afford the easiest channels for its descent. The upper gran- ular and unconsolidated part is called in German Firn, in French Neve , the term Glacier (Gletscher) being applied to the lower limbs of more solid ice, which stretch down towards the valleys. The Firn, or Neve, is a region of complete desolation ; no animal intrudes upon it save the chamois, and only the scantiest lichens appear on the rocks around it. The Firn occurs only at a height where the snow which falls in the winter does not entirely disappear in the course of the following year ; while that which falls on the lower glacier is almost always melted in the course of the summer, and never combines with the ice.* Escher has computed the number of glaciers among the Swiss Alps at 600, and the extent of surface occupied by them at 1000 square miles : this, however, must be but a vague estimate. They vary from a few square acres to miles in extent, covering, in some instances, whole districts, filling up entirely the elevated hollows and basins between the peaks and ridges of the Alps, and sending forth arms and branches into the inhabited valleys, below the region of forests, and even below the level at which corn will grow. It is such offsets of the glacier as these that are presented to the view of the traveller from the villages of Chamonix, Zermatt, and Grindelwald. These, however, are, as it were, but the skirts and fringes of that vast ever- lasting drapery of ice which clothes all the upper region of the Alps. These fields or tracts of uninterrupted glacier have been called “ Seas of Ice ” (Mers de Glace, Eismeeren), and there t are five such among the central i and southwestern Alps, which merit especial mention ; that in the kDauphine Alps, that round Mont Blanc, that extending from Mont Yelan ^ to Monte Bosa, that round Piz Bernina, in Canton Graubiinden, and that of the Bernese Oberland, round the Finsteraarhorn. The last sends out mho less than 13 branches ; its extent has been estimated at 125 square m., "and it is supposed to be the largest field of ice in Europe. Extensive p glaciers are found also in tfie Graian, St. Gothard, Lepontine, and Glarus Alps. * A serious error is conveyed by the common expression, “ the line of perpetual snow,” or, “ where snow never m^lts.” There is no spot on the Alps, where snow does not melt under the influence of a summer sun at mid-day. It melts even on the top of Mont Blanc ; k but there, and on the summits of the other high Alps, the duration of the sun’s heat is so I short, that very little is melted during the year, and, for the same reason, there is very little moisture in the air, and, consequently, very little snow can fall : and the greater part of this is carried to a lower level by the storms which often rage round the mountain tops. What is called “ the snow line ” does not depend on elevation alone, but on all the circumstances which affect the quantity of snow that falls during a year, and the quantity that melts during the same period. It is the limit at which the quantity melted in the year exactly equals the quantity ’ that has fallen. Independent of a certain amount of variation from one season to another, it varies with the latitude, with the exposure to certain winds, and even on the two sides of the same mountain, being generally higher on the S. side than the N. The snow will likewise rest longer, and extend lower down, upon a mountain of granite than upon one of limestone, in proportion as the two rocks are good or bad conductors of heat, affd this is the case ever* iq contiguous mountains, members of the same chain. I 0 The greatest thickness of the glaciers has been commonly estimated at between 600 and 800 ft. The greatest depth of the Mer de Glace, on the N. flank of Mont Blanc, is estimated by Forbes at 350 ft. Saus- sure had calculated it at 600 ft. Agassiz assures us that there are holes in the Aar glacier 780 ft. deep. . Notwithstanding their great extent and solidity, the glaciers are under- going a perpetual process of destruction and renovation. The lower portions descending into the valleys are gradually dissolved by the in- creased temperature which prevails at so low a level. The summer sun, aided by warm wind, acts upon the surface, so that, in the middle ot the day, it abounds in pools, and is traversed by rills of water. The cause of the movement of glaciers has been much discussed and variously explained. De Saussure supposed that it proceeds from their weio-ht alone, and that they slide down the inclined surface of the valleys, aided by the ice melting below, in contact with the earth. . Others be- lieved that the descent was caused by dilatation of the glacier, in conse- quence of the water that penetrates the mass of ice, alternately thawing ; and freezing. The theory of their motion now generally accepted by scientific men is that of Professor J. D. Forbes, modified in some respects by the subsequent researches of Professor Tyndall.* Without adverting to disputed points, which are discussed in their works, it may be said that by the pressure of its own enormous weight the accumulated snow of the higher regions is converted into glacier-ice and moved downwards. It is plastic so°far as it yields to pressure, moulding itself to the form of the channel through which it moves, but it cannot be stretched : with tension ! it breaks, and thus crevasses are formed. The centre of the ice-stream moves quicker than the sides, which are retarded by the friction of the rocks, &c., and, for the same reason, the top moves faster than the bottom. ? The rate of progression varies very much in different glaciers, according to the slope and the mass of ice. Opposite the Montanvert the quickest moving part travels in summer about 30 inches a day, in winter 16 inches. TheVurface of the mountain, which forms the bed of a glacier, however hard is subjected to an extraordinary process of grinding and polishing from' the ice constantly passing over it. The harder fragments of rock, such as granite and quartz, interposed between the glacier and the mountain, act like diamonds on glass, and scratch deep and long grooves. { The seat of ancient glaciers, which have now entirely disappeared, may still be discovered by the furrows left behind them on the rocks. These furrows and the rounded polished surfaces (roches moutonnees) are very j remarkable above Guttannen on the Grimsel road. The motion of a glacier may be admirably observed at Kosenlaui, where tha foot of the glacier, bein