The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1883-06-30

What day it was! Miss Winston and
Miss Blackburn, tall, pretty blonde and
sister to ''Sorrel Top" occupied the covered
seat at the back. Facing them were chum
and Blackburn. Winston had taken his
place beside the driver, and on clearing the
outskirts OF the village himself took the
rens and gave that functionary Valu-
able points on the management of four-in-
hand team, the principal of which seemed to
be to keep every horse doing its utmost all
the time Out past the romantic ruins OF
the castle of Unspunnen we whirl-too
prosaic in this broad sunlight to give US a
glimpse OF the mystical Manfred in his
lonely tower; again and again by rustic
bridges we crossed the foaming Lutschine;
sleeper and sleeper becomes the grade, and
wilder and more precipitous the fir covered
mountains that shut us in.
We are now ascending. the valley OF the
Black Lutschine with the precipces of the
Wetterhorn and the wild peack of the
Schreckhorn looming in the background.
ReachInga point where the increasing steep
ness of the way forced the horses to proceed in
walk, with frequent pauses for breath, Wins
ton resigned the reins to his professional and
| found fresh source OF amusement in dis
| tributng the small coin of the country to the
! Hook OF peasant children that continuously
attended us. Their ingenuity in the invention
| of small services to provoke this bounty was
| quite at variance with the reputation for
simplicity which the inhabitants of this val
| ley have borne. Some brought US punches
of delieately- tinted wild flowers which,
unfortunately, like the mountains upon
| which they grew, would not bear transla-
| ton. but withered and paled almost as
| soon as plucked. Others filled our laps
with the tasteless mountain strawberry. or
offered us a selection from baskets of quartz
| crystals. Each horse was attended by self
| appointed groom, who whisked off the flies,
and each wheel by a youth, who assumed the
| special duty of staying its backward roll in
| the intervals of rest, by block prepared for
that particular purpose. Here one would in
wade the Sabbath stiffness by noisy below
ings upon the Alpine horn, and further on
| another awoke a remarkable multiple echo
by firing small mountain howitZer. During
one of the pauses for breathing the horses,
Winston called our attention to four small
girls drawn up in line, with military preci-
sion, at the road side, some little distance
ahead. AS soon as we came within earshot
| they began doeful ditty, produced with
the mechanical, absolutely expressiopiess ex-
ecution of hand organ, and. hand-organ-
like, cut short in the middle OF a ear, to
scramble for Winston's shower of centimes.
Grindelwild was reached in time for an
early lunch. The plan had been to send the
carriage around to Lauterbrunnen by the
lower road, while the whole party walked
over that famous footpath across the Wen
germ Alp; but Winston already showed signs
OF fatigue-his pailor was extreme, and unre-
HGNeu DIV Ehe neCtlC HUSH L BaQ nOIlCeQ on
his cheeks the previous evening while his
eyes had duh, leaden look in startling con-
| trast to their former brilliancy He, there
fore, yielded passive obedience to his petite
sisters inperious demand that he should
make the Journey on horseback, only re-
marking: ''set it down in your mental arith
metic that a Homan's will is inwersely as the
square of the distance from her head to her
heels Bring forth the horse"
Shades OF Pegasus, Rosinante, and Blu
cephalus, what an animal! In color, flea
bitten and dingy white; in age, an indisputa-
bic antique in condition, emaciate; ia mien,
detected; aud in size colossal.
'Open the door in his side. and Ilium is
ours" commented Winston shall L climb
the mountain aud have him led alongside to
mount"
A step-ladder suficed instead and we set
out-the ladies, with Perkins and Black
burn, in advance; then the guide followed
| by Winston's horse, beside which | walked
when the narrowness of the way did not
prevent The path almost immediately
began to climb the mountain side, zigzag
ging back and forth, and in places was so
steep that steps had been improyised from
short transverse poles imbedded in the
rocky soil at proper intervals Finding
his horse on intimate terms with every foot
of the way, over which its nose continually
passed in close preliminary inspection, Win
ston gave his entire attention to the panor-
anna which was now rapidly unrolling itself
at our feet. Up stony slopes; through sparse
pastures with scattered clumps of withered
pines. we climbed until the chalets that dot
the valley became mere specks, and the little
patches of yellow grain growing on the
mountain side looked scarcely larger. though
wonderfully distinct through the thinning
atmosphere. The tinkie of cow-bells came
mysteriously up from some unseen herd.
The mighty ice-pin nacles of the Monch and
the Eger seemed reaching down to bid us
welcome.
Winston's gayety had given place to
though tful silence, in apology for which he
SAID: II have been here before, but the
scene did not so impress me as to-day"
We had been thus ascending with occa-
sional pauses for rest and retrospect some
two or three hours, when, suddenly reach
ing the top of considerable elevation,
which for time had shut out the view
ahead we found the advance guard of our
party standing quietly in the path, and
looking up and across the rolling alp to
where, towering terrace upon terrace, rose
sheer, abrupt from mighty chasm at its
foot, a vast expanse of glttering ice and
snow, terminating in two sharp peaks
which, from our position, seemed of about
equal height. We were face to face with
Jungtrau and her attendant, Silberhorn, and
so delusive is the thin, clear, mountain
air-it seemed scarcely stones throw to
their base.
Winston was strangely excited. Rising
impulsiyely in the stirrups, and waving his
hand toward the beautiful vision he sang in
a clear, ringing tenor:
In Elvezia non v'ha rosa
Fresca cara al par-die Jungfrau
cry of alarm from Miss Winston caused
me to turn quickly, just in time to catch her
brother in my arms as he sank upon his
horses neck. The guide sprang to my as
sstance. and together we lifted him gently
from the saddle Alas, that ruddy, froth
mixed flow from mouth and nostrils told the
whole story, but too plainly.
''Oh. brother brother! brother!" walled
Miss Winston, taking his head in her lap,
and with her handkerchief unavailingly
seeking TO stay the gushing life current The