Mower County transcript. [volume] (Lansing, Minn.) 1868-1915, 1878-09-26
UNDER THE MOUNTAINS.

A Trip Through st. dothard Tunnel,
the Dark subterranesn Avenue Be-
tween Gold Switzerland and Sunny
Italy.
Mr.. s. M. Byers writes as follows to
Harper's Magazine:
Four of US with the engineer stood on
the little cow-catcher platform at the
front end of the engine, and were soon
hurled off into the darkness. The
screaming of the engine whistle right at
our ears was frightful, and the darkness
was 80 utter and the smoke 80 thick we
fancied we could feel them with our
hands. The gases began to be almost un-
bearable, and the miscellaneous noises
throughout the tunnel something terrific.
Ipresume our train was not running
fast, and yet it made 80 much noise, and
the surroundings we're 81 unusual, it
seemed as if / had never in my life
bounded along at such rate. I had
had many strange ride, too, before, but
never had / felt so completely helpless,
or more likely to be snuffed out by the
unseen should anything happen to the
rails, or to the novel machine on which
we were riding. As We rushed by drip
ping walls, and saw here and there
gho1llike figures with dim lamps hiding
behind rocks or in deep inches, I invol-
unfairly recalled what our conductor
had said of a glimpse of the bowels of
hell.
1t was impossible to speak and be
heard. I might as well have addressed
myself to the granite walls of the tun-
mel as to have attempted a word to
either of my companions. Suddenly
our locomotive gave one extra, unearthly
yell, and stopped. We alighted, got our
lam ps burning, and with little motion
on our own feet, soon felt ourselves
again. The engine sped bach, screaming
and rafting like the voices of Millions
damned.
We now started forward in the tunnel
on foot, and as we recovered our breath,
had abundant time to look about, though
there seemed something fatally wrong
with the perspective of the picture OF
which we formed part.
The air was so thick, lights could not
be seen twenty yards ahead of us, and
we all walked close together for fear Of
being lost or tumbling into some subter
ranean hole.
Far ahead of us we heard the dynamite
explosions, sounding like heavy mortar!
in the midst of battle. In some places
where we were walking the water wa
nearly foot deep, and again it came
through crevasses above our heads ikt
April showers. Our conductor tells vi
that on the Airolo side of the tunnel the
waters have sometimes come in at thu
rate of 1000 gallons per minute, and il
such torrents as to even upset the work
men and carry away the tools. Again,
an occasional spring would burst out il
a stream as thick as a mans arm, while
the track for the drills was frequently
laid in rushing water two feet deep
The water comes from springs in tn
mountains about us, and from eterna
snow-felds lying in the sunshine thou
sands of feet above our heads.
1t is very impressive to reflect that, a
we stand here in the dim light of the tun
mel, far above us are lofty mountain
and fields of snow, tumbling avalanche
and roaring torrents. Almost above u
are the peaks of the St. Gothard, reach
ing above the clouds; and there, too, i
the rapid, roaring river Reuss, with it
leaping waterfalls, and the Devil
Bridge, where French and Austrian sol
diers met in deadly conflict. Up there
too, are the bright sunshine and tn
cold snow of the winter, and the dill
gences and sledges filled with freezin,
passengers, while we are melting unde
800 Fahrenheit of heat, and the Italian
workmen are almost naked. There, too
above our heads, in the glistening gla
ciers, are the first ripplings of the bah.
Rhine. Behind US are the cold hills o
Switzerland. In front of us, and jus
outside those granite rocks, is sum,
Italy. How strangely we feel!
Our conductor stops us to name tn
:. strata of rocks through which we ar
walking. The first 1000 feet at tn
Goeschenen end had been through darl
gray granite or granite gneiss; then fol
lowed 1000 feet of schistous gneiss, lynn
in vertical lodges; then 500 feet of crystal
line limestone, with here and there
> streak of black serpentine, followed b
800 feet of micaceous schists, and som
10000 feet of gneiss rich in mica. Thi
is followed again by 5000 feet of schistou
gneiss, with threadsand Jumps of quartz
and nearly 10000 feet of mica schis1
ending on the Italian side with som
1000 feet more of mica schist nike
with gneiss and rich veins Of quartz
Such were the calculations made by tn
BIOLOGISTS from the mountains above tn
tunnel, and the boring so far has prove'
these observations to have been prett
nearly correct. But little gold, silver q
other precious ore has been met with
. and even stone coal has failed to put il
an appearance, much as it would be wei
coined by the Swiss, who have scarcely
pound of coal in their whole Alpin
, country.
The tunnel has about the same dimen
sions, except in length, as the Mon
Gents tunnel; that is, it is, in roun'
numbers, "a feet in width at sleepers, 2
feet wide at springing of arch, and 1
feet high between sleepers and center Q
arch. It starts into the mountain at
point 1853 feet above the sea, an
comes out at Airolo, on the Italian side
1857 feet above sea level.
On the north axis the tunnel ascend
one foot in every 172 feet, or. about IA
feet in traversing the distance of 24,46
feet. 1t then follows summit or leve
, line for the next 59l feet, when it de
sends to Airolo, 4,278 feet farther, at
gradient of one in 1000. The highes
point in the tunnel, hence, is 142 fee