The diamond drill. (Crystal Falls, Iron County, Mich.) 1887-1996, 1890-12-27
swIrzgRLAND's RAILWAY MANIA



people who really understand or care
about mountain scencry--in the opinion
of correspondent Of the Pail Mall Ga
zefte. ''do not seem 10 be aware Of or
to quite realize with what fatal rapidi-
" the work Of destruction Is being
carried out in Switzerland. have
just recently returned from a visit to
The Alps--chiefly the Alps OF the Ber-
neso ObcrInnd--and have found the
changes effected or proposed during
the last three years in many WAYS al
most incredible. Thus. three years
ago Lautcrbrunnen WAS a quiet little
Alpine village overrun. doubtless.
during the daytime by excursionists
from Interlaken. bat still quite char
acteriStic and untouched in all its es-
sential features. Now. II the projected
plans are carried out-and there is lit
tie enough reason TO entertain any OPP
posite hope--it will soon be n junction
for no less than three mountain rail-
WAYS to Mnrren, over the Wcngern
Alp to Grindelwnld. and. last aud
worst. TO the summit Of the Jungfrau.
The line TO Lauterbrunncn itself
was opened on the LIST OF July; the one
20 Mprren will probably sbc ready by
next year. and already its sleepy
pitched yiaducts and hideously straight
lines have Scared and destroyed the
beauty of the Alpine pastures which
surround and haug over the Staub-
bach. The landlord of one Of the no.
tells at Murreu. however. regards IL.
naturally enough, MS very excellent
"A. tl.t,.l4. ssFfll lsas. IL "a
offensiycncss. because. steam being
DISCARDED for electricity, there will be
no smoke or noise.
AS for the Jungfrau, il is rnmored
that. according TO the latest design.
people are TO be shot up In pneu-
matte tube In fifteen minutes! The
Wcngern Alp railway is not recon-
mended. but the concession for II has
been granted granted, ~. rs a
Lausanne paper reports it, with uu-
conscious irony. sans debat.
Now the path over the Wcngern
Alp and Little Scheidegg is not in any
sense a route OF through communica-
tlon--such route already exists both by
road and rail between Grindelwald
and Lauterbrunncn- Is a pleasure
track pure and simple, which conducts
the traveller by the easiest OF roads in-
to some of the grandcst and most re-
tired OF Alpine scenes. Who exactly
il is that wants tho line made IL Is
hard TO say. OF the dozen tourists |
have questioned | have not met with
one who approves. The inhabitants
of Lauterbrunnen aud Grindelwald
can not want it, for it will ruin their
occupation OF guide and porter. At
Grindelwald indeed. hostile petition
was signed by 500 hatives-the large
majority | should imagine of the pop
ulation OF the valley. The well-known
family OF Boss. who keeps the Bar ho-
tel. opposed il bitterly. but to no eff
feet The powers that be considered
the opposition 'narrow-minded. and
the Wongern Alp is sacrificed sans
bchat.'
The business Of making mountain
railways goes on morrily. The Pilatus
line was opened last season with
maximum gradient of as in 400. A
short system extends up Mount st.
Beatus on the Thunder See. The
Niesen, the Sentis, the Bricnzcr Roth
horn are all 10 be invaded by the iron
iiend. Already people travel by rail
over the beautiful Brunig. and next
year. no doubt, we shall see the line
opened up to Zermatt. The latter
nc ievcment will not. however. be of
quite so objectional character as
some already mentioned. though peo-
pie who are whirlcd up TO Zermatt aud
back by train will scarcely gain such
true and permanent impressions OF IL
as those who approach II by the old
fashioned tramp or ride up the glorious
Nicholasthal.
Moreover. the railway spells run to
the hotel keepers at Staiden and st.
Nicholas perhaps To those at Visp.
too. | should not like TO weary the
reader by mentioning at length other
lines that are projected or talked Of
Simpion. the Splungen, the Randerstes
Valley. the Great st. Bernard. the Up
per Rhone Valley. the Cnamounix. the
lines of railway 20 he drawn around
the shores OF BrienZ and Thun and the
Lake OF Luccrne. In the meantime.
so far as these are purely tourists lines,
eau not discover for what purpose
they are TO made or who II Is that calls
for them. Switzerland indeed seems
Just now to be suffering from gigantic
railway mania aud the important
question is: viii such mania come
TO q crisis before all that is most ac-
cessibe and best worth seeing la the
country is hopclessly and uselessly in
juredgn