The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1869-07-07
DAILY PRESS.
PORTLAND ni
Wednesday Morning, July Z, 1859.
Republican Nominations.
FOR GOVERNOR
JOSHUA L. CHAMBERLAIN,
H Notes by the Way.
BADEN, BADEN, June II, 1860.
OF BRUNSWICK.

the -Four Cantons, to Alpnach. In passing
ycu have fine view of the Rigi and Mont
Pilatus. At Alpnach you take the diligence
across the mountains to Brienz, and from
thence by steamer across the Lake. The trip
occupied ten hours, and was beautiful ex-
cursion through some of the finest lake and
mountain scenery to be seen in Switzerland.
had in the front Of the carriage in which
rode, as traveller, a Swiss gentleman.
resident of the Canton, who spoke English
| perfectly, and from him obtained some very
interesting information respecting the coun-
| try, its people and institutions. He said
| that there was a constant emigration going
on from Switzerland to the United States.
Cultivated lands in the valleys would sell for
| S400 an acre, and it was great inducement
to the owners to dispose of their small farms,
take the hard cash and with their families go
to the Western States, where with the pro-
ceeds of the sale of an acre here, they could
grants however return, especially those who
have acquired competency in the United
States. Their attachment to the place of
their birth is so strong, that they come back
to spend the remainder of their days amidst
their native villages and beneath the shadows
| of their snow-clad mountains.
| The principle crop grown is grass. Cattle,
shee and goats are raised, and large quanti-
ties of butter and cheese produced. As soon
as the snow disappears from the mountain
l o,,I he 10 r,trf fnrfl fI,a
cattle are driven from the lower valleys, up
the mountains to the highest accessible
points, where there is pasturage sufficient to
feed on. There they are kept during the
| summer, being tended mostly by women who
live up there in the rough chalets, and devote
their time to the making Of butter and cheese
which is sold during the coming fall and win
| ter. The arabic lands in the lower valleys
are turned into grass fields, and three crops
| OF hay are obtained during the season, by
which the cattle are sustained during the
winter. After the last crop of hay is gather
ed, and the weather becomes cold on the
mountains, the cattle are driven down, turn
edinto the fields, till the snow comes, when
they are housed for The winter. s'a slt l-ssi
| The houses or chalets of the Swiss are not
very attractive appearing residences; they are
built of square logs, of two stories or more,
the roofs roughly shingled, on which large
stones are laid, to prevent the winds from
carrying them away. The lower story is oc-
cupied by the cattle and the piles of manure,
and odors that meet your eyes and nostrils
are anything but agreeable. The inhabitants
themselves are clean and neat in their per-
sonal appearance. They are intelligent and
well educated, the school system of education
being compulsory. The German language is
mostly spoken, although in some Cantons
French and Italian are the common vernacu-
lar. The religion is Catholic and Protestant.
The Jesuits were some years since expelled
by law. :, &. ~ ..r. n "a, AZ - -
Interlaken is beautifully situated between
two lakes in valley surrounded by the high
est mountains, the Jungfrau with its eternal
SHOWS towering above all. 1t is much re-
sorted to during the summer months, its gay
society, and charming scenery, make it one
of the most attractive places in Switzerland.
As wished for an excursion among the
mountains in the vicinity 1 found that PEI
destrian tramp through these wildernesses
would give me the most enjoyment. Having
made the necessary preparations and engaged
| guide who spoke French, i started on Mon
day morning for a three days trip over the
"Wengen Alps" The guide carried my Sac
du Uoyoge.a am overcoat and an Alpenstoels
i VUo Grcf fl,a
Lauterbrunnen, to visit the Falls of Staubl
back, the highest in Europe-eight hundred
feet. A small body of water Is precipitated
over perpendicular precipiee, but the dis
tance is SO great, that before it reaches the
bottom, it becomes a sheet of spray blown all
about by the wind. 1t is called by Byron in
his Manfred aThe tail OF the white horse
on which Death was mounted.n The echoes
of the long wooden Alpine Horns, which were
sounded for our benefit, in expectation of a
contri button of KRIS, from different places
in the valley were very fine. Our next move
was the ascent of the lesser Scheideck, which
occupied five hours, bringing us before night
| to the hotel on its summit, where we had
good accommodations for the night, consider
ing that nearly all their supplies have to be
brought up on the heads and shoulders of
women, from the valley ten or twelve miles
below. The elevation here is $500 feet. The
| glorious views of sunset and snnrise well re-
| paid for the ascent. The Jungfrau is the
highest ofthe mountains to be seen and from
this point / had a clear and unobstructed
view of it, rising in all its glory 1900 feet
above the level of the sea, and covered with
perpetual snow. iat osq mir
The next morning quite early, we started
and descended towards the village of Grin
denwald, having view of the Metterhor
Immediately before us. 1t was two and one
half hours hard walk. At the bo.el where
we stopped to rest, the keeper said It would
be too warm day to cross the mountain
and 1 had better remain till the cool of the
next morning. Not placing much confidence
in his interested Judgment, we started and
made our way moderately up the great Schei-
deck, making detour to visit the glaciers Of
Grindenwald, which extend long distance
down into the valley. and reaching up to the
regions of perpetual snow. At the point
where first approached it from the valley, it
was twenty to fifty feet thick of solid ice, ex-
cepting the surface which was furrowed with
many cavities and quite dirty. Underneath
it was clear, and men were engaged in cut
ting out large blocks, which were as trans
parent as the best of Sebago. Farther up
| the mountain it was of clear blue, and the
surface of it resembled the waves Of the sea
after storm, as if they had been frozen in
their perturbed condition. The statement of
| the hotel keeper as to the weather proved to
be true; we found it quite uncomfortable.
After four hours walking and climbing in the
hot sun, we reached the summit of the great
Scheideck one thousand feet high, passing
along side Of the Metterhon which is per
pendicular mass of rock, raising its hoary
head above the clouds, down whose sides we
could see and hear the avalanches as they
poured their snowy torrents with thuncsr-
ing sound into the valleys below. Amer rest
ing while at hotel on the summit wneie 4
met two gentlemen from Chicago VINO We're
going over the same route on horseback Il
descended through the beautiful vale Of Ros-
enlau, going down steep paths and crossing
| by rough bridges the mountain torrents, to
the hotel "Bains du Rosenlau," where we
spent the night and the next morning con-