The Anderson intelligencer. [volume] (Anderson Court House, S.C.) 1860-1914, 1885-01-22

| S'"' oS tho ffeuCn, winch means ailEC
tdke of the -four cdntons Country districts)
Is called by US Lucerne. With its greer
waters so deeply imbedded between tn,
towering mountains which surround, il i.
incomparably the grandest of the Swis,
lakes.
A monument to Schiller may be seer
from the boat soon after leaving Brunnen
aud entering the Southern arm of the
lake called the "Urnes See." Tell.
Chapel is also point of interest further
Southwark on this arm of the lake.
The fear Of Cholera reduced the travel
in Switzerland very greatly. The quar-.
antine laws prevented us from visiting
lake Como and other points in Italy.
We travelled up the Great st. .Gothsrd
railway from lake Lucerne to the mouth
of the great tunnel.
The scenery along the line is indescriba.
bly grand, and the engineering skill dis
played in carrying the road up the valley
side by side with the Reuss in it's precipi.
tous course from the Gotthard to lake
Lucerne, is marvellous. qs
The reader has doubtless read of the
I device of loop tunnels along this line.
This is necessary in case Of q high water.
fall, where the train must make consid.
cradle rise ip short distance, in ORDER
TO regain the level of the river. Here
tue tunnel is built in circle at o very
considerable grade, enabling the train,
by climbing under ground, to reach the
valley above, from which we may, 10
many cases, view the entrance to the
tunnel below. In Italy, the train
descends Or ascends 302 feet by means of
two such spiral tunnels, one of the coils
being directly over the other in the form
OF winding staircase. The traveller
feels of course that the car is on consid.
erable grade and describing a curve, but
as it is all tunnel, he has little idea of
the stupendous skiil displayed in ito
construction.
After leaving the railroad at the
Gotthard tunnel, we pursued our journey
until we reached the lake of Geneva, on
the Soth day Of August, almost entirely
on foot, with the exception of using the
railroad in the Rhone valley between
Visp and Montreux.
We went the Go!therd route by the
'TeufePs Bruecke" devils bridge), leav.
ing it at Andermait, a village in the
Reuss valley just over the great tunnel,
which here runs thousand feet under
ground.
The tour over the Rhone glacier, where
the Rhone has its source, is very interest.
ing, very easy and not dangerous, though
an accident might occur, and it is hard
for Us to realize that there are many deep
and dangerous chasms beneath the smooth
surface of snow over which we pass.
This glacier shows very beautifully the
feature known as glacier mills" The
glacier mill' is deep shaft, few feet
In circumference, penetrating the icy
mass and aching az conduit for the lit
tie streams caused by the melting of the
snow and ice, conveying them from their
channels on the surface to depths below,
where they find All outlet If a rock be
thrown into shaft, one may hear it for
some moments, laundering on it's down.
ward course and showing that their depth
is CO.. siderable. Some are estimated at
over a hundred feet in depth. In walk
ing over this glacier one is attracted by
the deep fissures over the surface and the
peculiar green color which the walls of
ice show. Sometimes iridescence in the
icy caeerns is seen. The moraines here
are not 80 interesting as those of the
Corner glacier, which brings down much
more debrs-especially The central
moraine.
In the Hasli valley are two very fine
waterfalls. One is called the "Handeck"
fs!! end is formed By the Aa.s river,
which Is precipitated into very narrow
abyss 25O feet below, and the Aerlenbach,
which comes at right angle to the Aare
and precipitates itselfinto the same abyss,
the waters Of the two uniting about half
way down. AS the chasm il 30 narrow
and the volume Of water 60 considerable.
the view is much obscured by the rising
spray aud mists. The other fall is that
of the Reichenbach near. Meiriugen.
There are two falls here which are quite
handsome. :. t
On the way to Grindelwald, when
opposite the Wetterhorn, which rises very
perpendicularly from the valley, we heard
the Alpine horn and the magnificent
echo from the surrounding mouutains.
The Alpine horn is about six feet long
and is made from pieces of wood or bark,
sometimes held together by @ string
closely wound arolnd it, and sometimes
bound by metallic hoops at intervals of
y to 10 inches. 1t is small and straight
at first, being gradually enlarged to the
mouth where 1t is bent and widened like
atrumpet, the mouth being several inches
in diameter. Nothing but the simplest
cir can be played upon il, but the tone is
one Of the softest and sweetest quality.
Al the melody Is blown the returning
echo forms "second" part to It. The
clear, faint notes, reflected from the
snow. covered peaks above, come to us as
If from the very courts of Heaven, soft
and perfect, and grow even more enchant-
Ing as they are lost amid the far off
heights.