The Portland daily press., 1892-02-15
IN SUNNY ITALY.
The Gotthard Tunnel-Locano-La1ke Mag
giore-The Borromean Islands-Milan
and Its Attractions-Lake Como.


giore-The Borromean Islands-Milan
and Its Attractions-Lake Como.
Especial Correspondence Of the Press.]
BALE, SWITZERLAND, Jan. "a.
There is nothing finer in travel than
the route through Switzerland by Berne
to Lucerne.
just before you reach Berne the view
of the Bernese Alps, as seen from a dis
tance, is most glorious, especially at sun
set, when, in clear weather, there is what
they call the ''after-glow," which pre-
sents the mountains as in vast cont1a-
grafton, and suggests to the mind world
melting in fervent heat
THE GoTTHARD TUNNEL.
From Lucerne to Italy by the Gotthard
Tunnel the route is most fine. Years
ago, before the railroad was laid out
these mountains were considered SO inn
passable that this gate to Italy was al
most abandoned for the Mt. Gents route
and the Simplon or the route through
France by the Riviera.
But now there can be nothing more in
teresting than couple of hours on this
Gotthard road, which commences at Lu-
cerne and ends at Chiasso, the frontier
Italian station, and it also branches off
at Bellinzona, going to Locano.
This railroad cost three hundred and
fifty million francs, and furnishes great
studies in railroading, being succession
Of spiral grades, winding like cart
screw, and accomplishing in this way
what would otherwise be an almost per-
pendlcular ascent.
After penetrating this longest and
| most wonderful tunnel in the world and
remaining almost an half hour in the
bowels of the earth, you descend in the
! same artistic fashion, riding, for time
spirally, as if in the air, harnessed to a
flying steed.
| And when one finds himself again on
an ordinary level and breathes once more
air uncontaminated with smoke and un-
| derground vapors, he feels as if he had,
| in fact, visited Orcus and had passed
over gulf as complete as the river Styx.
| He has been musing in a Swiss land
with Swiss people and Swiss scenery,
but though nominally still in Switzer-
land, when he rolls into the station at
Bellinzona he realizes that he is now
| opening his eyes in an Italian land; and
the transition is, all atonce, very sudden.
But the complete change does not be-
come apparent until little later, when,
having taken the branch road to Locano,
one alights in that italian city in the
Swiss province of the Ticeno.
LocANo.
We habftually think OF the change
from one country to another in Europe
is very gradual, since the boundary lines
of the Old World are sometimes so indis-
| tinct and variable. But the English
Channel separates nationalities more
completely than the Atlantic Ocean, the
Gotthard Tunnel than the Great Lakes,
and each and all as completely, in some
respects, as trip to the moon.
One is charmed at once with Locano.
1t is a great novelty and brings freshness
with it after the bad air breathed so long
in the tunnel in reaching it.
The skies are clear above it, the air is
soft about it, and the beautiful waters of
Lake Maggiorc splash up and wash
around it. Churches and villas sit high
over it, like affairs and monitors to direct
one heavenward. But the people though
very amiable are of rather low class of
Italians. and seem to speak and under
have seen only few strangers, although
this is the only route by which to make
the entire detour OF Lake Maggiore.
There are also the important stations,
Luino and Laveno, lower down, where
on the way up the lake, whole boats
full of italian emigrants embark in
search of work, or sent by italian
smigrant societies, they are now on
the way to rid their country of a
surperfluous element, to the overcrowd-
ing of ours. The first class on these
steamers is very select, composed Of
pleasure seekers, but the second class
is like steerage, and on looking down
from the upper deck, it seems as if there
might be revelations as startling as came
to light when Commissioner Schulters
recently assumed the garb and affected
the mien of an italian steerage man on
recent European steamer across the At
iantic.
The Lake of Maggiore is fine enough
for anybody, the sail through it is one
long pleasure excursion full of informa-
ton as well as pleasure.
The tropical foliage on its banks makes
one imagine himself suddenly transport
ed into the boundaries of the forrid
zone.
The lake on one side for several miles
belongs to Switzerland and for a long
time, its color continues green, but be-
fore one is aware. he is sailing on italian
waters, as he has all the while been basl-
ing in the softness of Italian air and
and listening to the music of italian
sounds.
The villas and chateaus partake of
italian characteristics, all the houses
from the time you enter Locano being
built with verandahs all around each
story, with windows, like doors, opening
upon them. made rather to let in air,
than keep it out.
THE BoRRoMEAN ISLANDS.
AS you approach an angle of the lake
at Intra and Pallanza you spy three
rpooIyc of land which thau toll Won ORC