New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1871-10-02

will completed next month should doubt its being
opened however before the end Of the year. 1t ia i'll
wind that blows nobody any GOOD and hope this con-
TctempS will bring little profit to very deserving
though believe, unsuccessful enterprise, the Fell
Railroad. Between Modane and st. Michel the only
practical means Of communication is by the Fell line
and you only Ourneyng the Mont Cents for
your pleasure you need not regret the hours transit In
this most ingenious and picturesque Of railroads To
passengers in hurry, however and burdened with lug
sage, the interruption extremely veXatious. The linn
tied Of the Fell line In respect Of carriages
hourly tried by the crowd Of travellers which we
had pckcdup journey from Paris and was DUSK
before VIC left st. Michel dark before reached Mo-
dane We found shelter ut last in one OF the oidash
Toned Roulers INNS with which the villages on the
Mont Cents road abound not the Lion d Or, where
If remember rightly, Sterne's Sentimental Journey
came to It's abrupt end in the doubebedded room but
alter the fashion, and went to sleep TO the
sound OF heavy ran-rOps pelting against the WINDOW
panos. The clouds had besn gathering over the noun
tn%ops all day, and tho villagers prophecled wet Gay
| for tie mOrrOw.
| THE VILLAGE OF MoDANE.
| However when I woke this morning the sun was
shining brightly. The whole town had been awake with
cock GROW Indeed long before dawn the three drummers
Of the MOdane P0mpterS had been rubadubbng up and
down the narrow winding street, which composes
the village AL the women were decked out In ribbons
Of the day. all the were shaved In the bar
bers shops with which the town full; and the law
for the suppression Of the National Guard not having
been yet applied to Savoy, the thOpkeepcrs had put
| on their civic uniforms. Still there was no
| great Stir crowd; as much about os
you would witness any brisk marketday. In fact,
the inhabitants of the Arc Valley have great love for
railway s--transApine or sub-Apine. They lived upon
the customs of the diliGences and wagons and mule
teams that 20 the Mont Gents pass In the old
days. and Cuct,;in decprooted conviction that rail-
WAYS mistake, and that sooner or later the world
will wake up the superiority Of coaches steam.
Yet, fancy, II there was, could be, such
anomaly in Savoy a pushing go ahead specua-
| tor, he might make fortune by investing in
corncr.lots at Modane. This station Is 10 be the
junction between the Italian and French lines Though
the French frontier lies nine miles further south,
Modane will be the railway boundary between the
two countries Here passports will he inspected, lug
examined and the passengers oven If they have not
to change carriages will pass from the hands OF the
Alta Italia Company into those of the Paris and Lyons
line, vice Anyhow there is to be good
deal going here in times to come As yet however,
Modane is still unawake to the advantages OF Its
future and is in mourning the departure OF the
worcn who have been collected here for the tunnel
The position of the place is singulary beautiful The
pass here closes In to become almost gorge and
| thehigh rugged mountain peaks, covered with dense
pine forests, and streaked here and there with rare
patches Of snow, seem to shut up the valley on every
side the trough Of the valley close by the high road
|
station OF the mainline. Right behind this station, rising
almost from the platform, is an immense steep
! slope, the dcclivity Of which has been
| increased by art, looking at distance
bare aud smooth as wall Upon the side OF this prect
pice that seems to slope away angle of some so
degrees at distance feet above the station you
see q small dark hole. This hole is the northern mouth
of the SuAlpine Tunnel. As you look up at II from
below appears incredible that sEsta Can pSslply
descend this hole TO the level track on which you
Tho fao &c hat
n curve Won cannot see from below. By q gradual
incline il descends along the mountain side for some two
miles, then turns by sharp curve northward, and
desccnGs tho valley along the river Arc till 1t reaches
the junction station at Modane. or this, however
you seen nothing below, and 1t is difficult
to avoid sight feeling Of apprehension when you learn
your track lies along the brink Of that Steep overhangng
prCcipce upon whose slope you could scarcely
imagine o man could stand. The hillside has been
rendered far PERCEPTIONS than it was originally by
the immense quantities Of rock extracted from the
tunnel and thrown the slopes; but am not sure
how The eDanknent at its present angle will stand the
force Of the torrents which will come cousng down its
sides in the Spring time.
PREPARATIONS FOR THE PASSAGE.
At the station gathered all the foreign guests who
had been invited to the OTening There was company
Of French Chasseurs drawn up the PLATFORM and
band Of musicians; but other preparation there was
none Several members OF the Swiss Federal Council
doubt there were visitors in ALL Most Of these were
in evening dress and white neck-uesa costume which,
very hot dusty day Is not favorable to the appear
ancc Of the wearer especially If he has been
travelling all the night before There were perhaps haH
dozen ladies' very quietly dressed, the most conspcu
Gus among them, from her hight and figure being the
Countess Menabrca. With the exception OF the guard
on duty there was not uniform to be seen, and very
few stars Indeed what struck me most dur
ing the whole day the prominently civilian char
acter OF the whole proceedings The opening OF local
branch railroad home could scarcely have had less OF
military pomp or display.
Trial trains had been through on the Thursday and
Friday pre- vous so that there real for
iety Still people began 10 grow somewhat uneasy as
the time went by and there was no signal OF the ar
Of the train from Turin which to receive the
Vis;orS Nme o'clock had been the hour fixed for its
arrival But it was past 10 before the signal made
that the train could be seen from the Modane end OF the
tuunG. In few moments the train shoot out
Us were from the side Of the mountain above then
glide off 10 the left along the slope and disappear from
view. Ten minutes so, and the train came
pushing slowly into the station, its engines being
deckcd out with Italian and French tr-cOlors. The
people In the train waved their handkerchiefs
orr side shouted Viva and Herewith the ceremony OF
the reception, such as it was, was There
several OF the Italian ministers in the train, large
number OF deputies, and aidedecamp Of the King.
the Count Gambrey de la Tore who had been sent
represent His Majesty. People got out and spoke to
their friends and acquaintances; but the number Of
notabiites was small The chief hero of the day
Sgnor GrattOn the chief engineer Of the tunnel and
who, with the late M sommeiller-who died few
months before the completion Of his great enterprise
has constructed the works from their beginning M Graf
toni has bright and intelligent face, with pointed tea
lures and looks more like Of the world than stu
dent His manner is OF that soft ingraatinR kind 80
peculiar Italy bat as his sole occupation was in
shaking hands with everybody fast as he could was
only able to exchange very few words with him, In