The Kenosha telegraph. [volume] (Kenosha, Wis.) 1860-1888, 1872-06-06
THE NEW PASS.
TBy the Author of "Barbara's History"

school and college friend, Egerton Wolfe.
Before going further, however. wish
to observe that this Is no dressed up mar
ative. I am plain, prosaic man; by
name Francis Legrice-by profession
barristeI-and think it would be dlffi-
cult to find many persons less given to
look upon life from romantic or lmag
NATIVE point of view. By my enemies,
and sometimes, perhaps, by my friends,
I am supposed to push my habit oil IN
credulity to the verge Of UNIVERSAL sk6p
ticism and, indeed, admit that be-
licve in very little that do not hear and
see for myself But for these things that
I am going tt relate, can vouch and
in SO far as mine is personal narrative,
am responsible for It's truth. What |
saw, I saw with my own eyes In the
broad daylight. [ offer nothing, there
fore, in the shape OF story; but simply
plain statement Of facts, as they hap
pened to myself
was travelling, then, in Switzerland
with Egerton Wolfe. It was not our frst
Iioint long vacation tour by good many,
but it promised TO be our last; for Wolfe
was engaged to be married the following
spring to very beautiful and charming
girl, the daughter ola north country bar
onet.
He was handsome fellow, tall, grace
full, dark haired, dark-eyed; poet,
dreamer, an artist-as thoroughly unlike
myself, in short, as one man having arlaS,
legs, and head, can bs unlike another
And yet we suited each other capitally,
and were the fastest friends and best
travelling companions in the world.
We had begun our holiday on this oc-
casion with a weeks idleness at place
which will call Oberbrunn-a delight
full place. wholly Swiss consisting OF one
huge wooden building, half water cure
establishment, half hotel, two smaller
buildings called dependencies, a tiny
church, with dubious stesple painted
J, green, and a handful of village, all perch
ed together on breezy mountain plat
eau, some three thousand feet above the
lake and valley. Here far from the
British tourist and the Alpine Club-man,
we read, smoked, climbed, rose with the
dawn, rubbed up our rusty German and
got ourselves into training for the KNAPP
sack 20 follow
At length, our week being up, we start
ed-rather late, on the whole, than was
prudent, for we had thirty miles walk
before Us, and the sun was already high.
For some distance cur path lay along
the mountain side, through pine woods
and by cultivated slopes where the lndi'
an corn Was ripeplng to gold, and the
late hay harvest was waiting for the
mower Then the path wound gradually
downward the valley lay between Us
and the pass W had laid out for our days
work-and then, through succession OF
soft green slopes and ruddy apple or
chards, we came to blue Like frIngad
with rushcs, where we hired boat with
q striped awning, like the boats on Lake
Maggiore, and were rOwed across by a
boatman who rested on his oars and sang
a jodsl~song when we were half way
across.
Being landed on the opposite bank
we found oar road at once begin to tend
upward and here, as the guide lnforme q
US, the ascent Of the Hohenhorn might be
said to begin.
"This, however, meme Herren," said
he, 'is only part of the old pass. 1t j!
ill-kept; for none but country folks from
Oberbrunn come this way now. But we
shall strike the new pass higher up
A grand road, meme Herren-as fine 8
road as the Slmplon, and good for car
riages all the way. 1t has only beer
open since the spring"
''The old pass is good enough for me
anyhow p said Egerton, crowding hand
full of wild forget me-nots under the rib
bon of his hat. cit like stray frag'
ment of Arcadia"
And in truth it was wonderfully lowell
and secluded-a mere rugged path wind
ing stesply upward in a soft green shade
among large forest trees and moss grown
rocks, covered with patches Of velvetJ
lichen. By and by, when we had beer
following this path for nearly an hour
We came upon a patch of clearing, in the
midst of which, stood rough, upright
monoIith, antique, weather stained, GOV.
cred with rude carvings like Runit
monument-the primary boundary stone
between the Cantons of Uri and Inter
walden.
"Let us rest here p cries EgertoB
finging himself at full length on the
grass "Ebue fugaceS land the hour:
are shorter than tho years. Why not en-
joy them ?"
But the guide, whose name is Peter
Kau1fmanR, interposss after the mannel
of guides in general, and will by ns
lMeans let Us have our own way. There
is mountain inn, he urges, now only five
miles distant-"an excellent little inn
where they sell good red wine" So we
yielded to the fate and Peter Kaufman
and pursued our way, COMING presently, al
he promised and predicted, upon bright
open space, and brown chalet on shell
of plateau overhang:ng a giddy preci
pice Here, sitting under vine covered
trellis built out on the very brink of the
cliff, we find three mountalneers discuss
= n a. 81 tl,a croo11 rod c~wa