, 1890-04-24

--gcntlyV'j he would half draw me
20 MS own safe station OF ascent.
Now and then we would find n few
| Yards OF almost level space. Again,
the course wonld wind nbout and
between Jagged curling frngcs ol
hvn, set thcrc like convolutions OF
wave-crcsts whirlcd upon end and In.
stantiy congcalcd. but everywhere
We're clndcr, grit, ice, snow, needle
pointed spears Of lava, powdered
sulphur, ashcs, pitfalls, and worse
than all, the danger of dislodging
the rocking masses above us.
on several occasions we had
parely pnssed, and pushed oui
weight from treachcrous scales of
mingled snow and scoriR, whcn
they cracked awaynnd went crumb-
ing behind, frequently dislodglng
othor erusts and projections, when a
combined crneh and laundering into
INC darkness would fellow. At
these Times my own bravery would
toFsake me, ! amafraid, and would
beg iSaihino for indulgio aud rest.
WIN he utmost suavity the little
old roll OF bones always nccedod;
ana, Tar above me. while my knees
pf ~ the cindcrn from my trowsois,
ana my chattering teeth ratified like
ciHtinets, chirp as n canary In the
groves behind Catania, this humnn
mountain Give would rumlnativcly
mum merry Sicllnn canzlone, now
ana ngaln letting n tcw lively,
though respectfully modulatod, bars
escape through his not wholly un-
musical nose.
A. ritE cTsATER's EDGE.
Perhaps an lrbur und II half was
consumed In this manner of climb
Ing. when, on being pulled up a par
ticulnrly precipltous and ugly slope
L stood on my feet beside Bnlblno,
and, even before he had sontcntious-
ly uttered the one wori "rrlonfow
saw the stars beyond jagged
Anass of black, and WAS conscious
that We were at last at the worry
crater's edge. After cropping about
with the greatest caution fora little,
Balblno found an angle Ia the lava
which offered fairly good shelter.
We crept into this, huddled closely
together, and, Watching the torches
which still ilickemd far below In the
Bosco, or Wooded Region, waited
for the dawn. II WINS eoric spot 10
rest. IL seemed darker than when
we left CASA degli Engiesi, nearly two
hours before. Innumerable times in
my life had read, heard or thought
about tho darkest hour being just
before the dawn. However familiar
one may bc with centurios-old
material or ethical truislns
there Is a ono time in each in.
dividual's life when individual
facts sweep into aud possess the ne
notest territories OF rcallzatlon. In
that way this familiar truism came
to me for the inst time, at the edge
OF Etna's crater. The atmosphere
was perfectly clear, rnrc aud crisp.
The slars weeapparently all visible;
hut film seemed to gradually over
come their former quality of pulslng
glowing. then TO remove their Pc
culiar globillur, dow-drop like form
aud tremulousncss, and finally TO
almost erase them from the hrma-
ment. Balbino's pnctlced eye COM
pretended all this In u material
sense, aud he said we had now but
little time Ia wait. Blit that little
time seemed very long. Fortunately
no wind was blowing, but il was
bitterly cold; and the cold seemed to
come In waves, each more intonse
thnn the preceding one. Inter
Inittent with these were apparent
pulsatiOns of warm air bearing an
odor ~ OF asaletida. These were the
eNhalatiOns of lstna.
Though we were now within "a
few feet of IL 900 fcot above the ssaa
level, / did not experience that diff |
iiculty in breathing which many
travellers lay great stress upon, al
though IAN actual condition of weak /
ness and wearine-s was continually
contended against, Tho most
marked blended physical and men
tnl experience in these extreme alti-
tudos Is, l think, an almost uncon-
trollablet impulse TO stop OH and
down to the greatest depths below,
coupled with dim sort OF fancy
thai one Is ready-wlngeL for such
descent; and even stcady-hended
Balbino had, or pretended to have,
any Number Of authentic rcminis-
cenoes where unfortunate persons.
unable 10 control similar fatal im-
pulses, had been dashed to pieces
upon the lava rocks below.
THE SUNRISE.
But even while he wus relating
these, the density OF the darkness
had given way, Through the
murky gray the 'horizon line of the
ionian sea and tine sky could be
family traced. We left our little
shelter and found solid footing In
the crust Of the crater's edge where
hc could cling tightly TO the tlinty
lobes, angles and ridges which some
former action of the boiling lava had
provided. Hardly was this done
before the stars were swept from
sight, and the entire sky hud
changed TO dark opalinc hue.
Then, as the first faint shimmcrings
of red quivored above the sen, as il \
to sweep the last yestigo Of night
from the carth's face, came such "A
blast of piercing wind rs hurled
showers OF lawl-grit whislliug before
IL, tore great rsusts of itsc aud luya