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Show ~-~ I I ' ~ ' - 63 [ 243 j miles, whcti we suddenly reached its termination in one of the graud views, which, at every tnrn, 1neet the traveller in thi · umg11iliecnt region. Hem the defile up which we had travelled, open<.:tl out i11to a ~l\1a1l htwn, where, in a little lake, the :stream had its :sonrcc. There were some fine asters in bloom, but all the ilowcriucr plants appeared to seek the shelter or the rocks, and to be or lower growtil tlwn below, as if they loved the warmth of tile soil aud kept 01 1t of the way or tbe winds. Immediately at our feet a precipitous descent led to a confusion of uciilcs, and before us rose the mountain:; n we have repr 'sen ted ! hnu i 11 the annexed view. It is not by the plcudor of iitr oil' vi ·ws, which have lelll. such a glory to the Alps, that the ·e impn·ss the miud; b11t uy a gigantic disorder of enormous masses, atHl a tln.vage sublimity of naked rock, iu wonderful contra ... t ·with inuumerablc green ~pots of a riclt floral beauty, shut up in their stern rcce · ·c~. 'Their wiltlncss seems well suited to the character of the people who inhabit tl1c country. I determined to leave our animals I ~ere, and make the re~t of onr way on foot. ']'he peak appeared so ncar that there was no donht of our returlling before night, and a few men were left in charge of the nmles, with onr provisions and blankets. 'vVc took with ns uotlling but our arms and instruments, and as the clay had become wann, the greater part left our coats. Having made au early dinner, we tartcd again. W c were :oou involved in the most regged precipices, nearing the central elwin ,. ·ry ~low l y, and rising but little. 'rhc 11rst ridge hid n. ~ucces·iou of othc1., and whcu with great fatigue and cliHiculty we haJ climcd up five lltltHJred fel't, it was but to tnake an equal descent on the other s1de; all these intervenillg plnces were fi I led with small deep lakes, which 1uet tile eye in every d ircction, descending from one level to anotllcr, ~mmutimes under hridges fnnued by hngc fragment· of gran it<!, benea.tl1 whiclt wa~ heard the roar of the water. 'rhcse constantly ob ·tructed our path, forci11g- us to make long detuurs; freqnently obliged to r 'IIaee our ::;teps, and fr 'qncntly falling· awong tho rocks. Maxwell was precipitakcl toward the face of a prc·ripicr, and saved himself from going over by tilrowi ng lllmscl f 1lut on tl1e ground. \Ve clambered on, always expecting with every ridge that WB cros!:>cd, to reach the foot of the peaks, and a! ways disappointed, until about 4. o'clock when, pretty well worn ont, we tencl1 d the shore of a little lake, in wl1iclt there was a rocky island, anJ from which we obtained the view gi vc11 iu tho frontispiece. We remained here a slwrt tinm to rc ·t, a11d coutin ucd on around the luke, whi('.h had iu some plac sa beach of' white ~HtH.l, and in others, wn.s bonnd with 1ock::<, over which the way was dillicult aud dangerous, as the water from innumerable spriugs made them very ·lippcry. By the time we had reached the further side of tl1e lake, we found ourselves all exceedingly fatigued, and much to tlte ati:3faction of the \vholc party, we encamped. 'rhc spot we had cho, en wa · a broad flat rock, in some measure protected from the winds by the ·urrou1Hiing crags, nnd the trunks of fallen piues anorded liS bright firr.::. Ncar by wn~ a foan ting torrent, which tumbled into the little lake about I.)OC llltnclrPd and fifty feet below U8, and which, by way of di::::tinctio11, we ha\'c calkd bland lake. We had reached the upper lintit of tile piney region; ns, al>ove this point, no tree was to be seen, and palcil 'S of !:!now lay everywlt<;re around us on thr COld SiOeS Of the fOCkS. rrhe ilOfa Of the region \\'C haU tfi.l\'Cfed since le(l\Tif1g" our mules was extrcn1ely rich, and among the characteristic plants, the srnrlet flowers of the dodecatheon dentatum everywhere met the eye ill great abun - |
