The national era. [volume] (Washington [D.C.]) 1847-1860, 1853-09-08

down the street, ABUSING TIE Wnoio oonOoip,
generally. AS we get almost to our hotel our
cicerone makes up TO us. The organ Is gong
to play We rush back tumultuously-we gain
the church and our old seats and after another
season of meditation we gets it, Well, what
was it, after all | must say, then, that with
all the disadvantages of raised expectation, 1t
was very impressive. Such cataracts and ava
lanches of sounds--such mingling and blend
| ing OF all human and superhuman qualities OF
| tone-such wild, weird wailing, sobbing, half
MORTAL haifspiritual sounds had not I'M
agned before Now strain broke out, as II
| from the clouds-swelled, mounted, then rece-
ded into a long-drawn VISTA fine perspective
of sound Strange qualities Of tones seemed to
| talk with each other, and answer each other
from unreasonable distances We had been
reading, this morning, in our carriage, fine
account of the first hunter who assembled Mont
! Blanc, and who sat all night on the verge of
the great crevasse, waiting for daylight, and
hearing nothing but the cracking of the gla-
eiers and the thunder of avalanches. IL seemed
TO me that the music described storm thus
raging the high Alps at night-the winds bat
Ting, the avalanche laundering, and voices of
lamentation and wild, pathetic wailing, ming
ling between. In short, was almost in d state !!
There was but one disappointment-th sub
bass lit was not at all what expected.
GRINDELwALD, July 81.
To-day we have been in the Wengen Alps
the scenes described in Manfred Imagine us
mounting, about 10 O'clock from the valley of
Lauterbrunn, on horseback - our party Of
three-with two guides. We had first been to
see the famous Stanbaoh, beautiful though
not sublime object Up we began to 90 among
those beautiful green undulations which form
the lower part of the mountain. IL is haying
time-a bright day-all is cheerful the birds
sing, and men, women, and children, are busy
IN the fields. Up.we go-zig-zag-it grows
sleeper and sleeper. Now right below me is
field, where men are literally working almost
on perpendicular wall cutting hay; now we
are 30 high that the houses in the valley look
like chips. Here We stand in place two
thousand feet above the valley. There is no
shield or screen; the horse stands on the very
edge, and the guide stops, lets 90 his bride,
and composedly commences an Grafton on the
scene below. sob for mercy's sake, why do
you stop here ?0 | say; spray go on" He
looks in my face with innocent wonder takes
the bride in his arm, and goes on. Now we
have come to the little village Of Wengen,
whence the Wengen Alps take their name
How beautiful how like fairy land Up here,
midway in air, is a beautiful green nook, with
undulating dells and shadowy, breezy nests,
where are the cottages of the hay-makers. The
Detachable Mountains had no scene more love.
ly. Each house has its roof heavily loaded with
stones "What is that for?n | ask. "The
whirlwinds, says my guide, with a significant
turn of his hands This is the school-house,n
he adds, as We pass a building larger than the
rest. Now the path turns, and slopes down
steep bank covered with hay-cocks, to little
nook below, likewise covered with new hay IL
my horse is going to throw me any where,
wish it may be here; it is not 30 bad thing
to roll down into that hay. But now we mount
higher-the breezy dells, enamelled with flow
ers and grass become more few the great,
black pines take their place, though they still
occur occasionally. Right before us, in purest
white, as a bride adorned for her husband, rises
tho beautiful Jungfrau, wearing on her fore
head the silver horn and the snow horn. The
silver horn is peak dazzlingly bright, of the
purest snow, and it's crest is now seen in relief
against sky Of the deepest blue See, also,
how those dark pines of the foreground CON-
trast with it, like the stern, mourntul realities
of life seen against the dazzling hopes ofheaven.
There is something celestial in these noun
be q bright footstool of heaven, from which the
next step would be into an unknown world
That dazzling summit has never been profaned
by mortal foot, it is wholly inaccessible The
pines here begin to show that long, white beard
of moss, which | admire so much in Maine
Now we go right up over their heads--there,
the tall pines are under our feet. A little more,
and now above us rise the stern, naked rocks,
where only the channels and the wild goat live.
But still, fair as the moon, clear as the sun,
looks forth the Jungfrau. We turn to look
down. That Staubach, which in the valley
seemed to fall from such an immense precpice,
higher than we could gaze is now silver
thread, far from below our feet, and the valley
Of Lauterbrunn seems as nothing. Only bleak,
purplish erags, rising all around us, aud silent,
silver mountains looking over them.
"That one before you is the Monk, says one
of our friends, calling to me from behind, and
pointing to great snow peak.
Our guide, with animation, introdu ,ed us,
by name, to every one OF these snow white
genii-thc Falhorn, the Schirmhorn, the Wet
terhorn, the great Flyers, and cannot refnem.
Der what besides The guides seem to consider
them all as old friends.
Certainly nothing could be so singular, 20
peculiar, as this ascension. We have now pass
ed the limit of all but grass and alpine flowers,
which still, with their infinite variety, embroid-
er the way; and now the amberge is gained.
Good night, now, and farewell
That is to say, there we stopped. On the
summit in fair view of the Jungfrau wall Of
rock, crowned with fields of eternal snow,
whose dazzling brightness almost puts my eyes
out My head aches, too, with the thin air Of
these mountains ! thought | should like to
stay one night just to hear avalanches fall !;
but cannot breathe well here, and there is a
secret sense Of horror about these sterile rocks
| and eternal SHOWS. So, after dinner | gladly
consent to 90 down Grindelwald.
OF We start wslking-for, TO tell the
truth, have no fondness for riding, head first
| down path as steep in some places a. q wall !;
| leave that to -, who never fears anything
So | walked all the way TO Grindelwald nine
miles Of very rough road. There was lady
walking the same pass, with her husband, who
had come on foot the whole way from Lauter-
brunn, and did not seem in the least fatigucd.
My guide exhausted all his eloquence to per-
suade me that it was better TO ride; at last |
settled him by saying why, here is q lady
who has walked the whole route" SO he con-
fined himsetf after that to helping me find flow
| ers, and carrying the handkerchief in which
slowed them Alas! what herbarium Of hap
less flowers, laid out stark, stiff, and motonless,
like beauty on its bier; and with horrible long
names, written under them, can ever give an
idea Of the infinite variety and beauty Of the
| floral crown of these mountains
The herbarium resembles the bright, living
reality, no more than the morgue at st. Der.
nard's is q specimen Of mountain travellers.
Yet one thing herbarium is good for in
looking at it, you can recall how they looked
and glowed and waved in life, with all their
| ailvor crowned mountains around them.
After we arrived ct Grindelwald, tired "A
wa, made sketches of nine varieties, which
intend 10 color, ~ soon a. we rest long enough.
SO much did for love Of the dear little souls
One thing more, - 10 botanical names
What does Doase.s hoaapiska N afflict tho u,oat