The Carbon advocate. [volume] (Lehighton, Pa.) 1872-1924, 1892-03-05

companied by the men of their party,
and intrusted to the care Of the doctor
Of the battalion. For time the road
was fairly good. An hours march
brought them to the woodcutters' camp,
a group Of huts inhabited by the men
who work for the forest. Here the
mules straps were tightened their shoes
examined and their burdens carefully
put in order, for the last part of the road
is the hardest. The woodcutters camp
is the last point where there is any wa
ter, and so, before starting. all the ami
mails are given drink, and all the pots,
gourds and other receptacles are filled.
The zigzag and very PERCEPTIONS path,
mounting up a steep incline formed Of
loose fragments Of rock, is hampered by
roots and branches of trees. Their step
shows that they are accustomed to the
mountain, its steep paths and its rarefed
air. Their lungs, like their muscles, are
strengthened by these repeated exercises
in the woods, on the heights and across
the glaciers all through the fine months
Of the year.
Farther on the ground gets bare; the
path runs over the rock itself; the zig
Gags are so short that they have scarcely
the length Of mule. The animals ad-
vance but very slowly, and by the time
the ambulance reaches the plateau the
soldiers have already been there some
time, and the bivouao has been rapidly
formed.
The officer in command comes for
ward to meet the tourists, and to their
great surprise proposes to conduct them
to their hotel. They follow him The
mules stop at the extremity of the pla-
teau, where the woods begin. Under
the trees a bivouac has been installed
for the tourists. A gourbi of pine
branches will protect them from the
coolness of the night The entrance is
decorated with bouquets of mountain
flowers.
"Here is your home for one day, mes
1ames,' says the officer 1--WE will send
you the mule litters, and with some fern
and rug you will have a fairly COM
Portable bed
eve accept the lodging, but not the
beds. We will not deprive your sick"
Il have no sick" replies the officer.
"There is nobody in the ambulance.
The ambulance is, so to speak. useless.
We have been on the march during the
past three months. We have not
marched six long spells without a rest.
We shall march again tomorrow and
then perhaps we shall take days rest.
My men are in perfect training, Now l
will leave you, mesdames. In an hour !
will come to take you to dinner"
At the appointed time the officer came,
and all the tourists followed him across
the plateau, admiring the splendid PAN
Drama spread out before them. From
the summit of the Aution 1900 meters)
they saw at their feet, like a gigantic
ditch, the valley of the Mimiera joining
the Roya at the east near San Dalmazzo,
and commanded by an Italian fort, the
most advanced of the works that defend
the Col de Tende, Beyond the depth Of
the Mimiera rose the last chain of the
Alpes Maritimes, throwing up heaven.
ward the ridge Del Diablo e, ,6S7 meters,
and the peak L'Abisso C2,775 meters), an
enormous mass, with its snowy covering
tinted rose by the setting sun--a grand
and striking spectacle, especially wher
seen from the midst of a bivouac, itself
always so curious and so attractive.
The sentinels watch as they pace tC
and fro. The mules browse the scant
but tasty grass of the high plateaus
Seated on old tree trunks the officers
finish their itineraries, complete theil
notes, draw up reports on the country
they have traversed, make sketches Of
the distant mountain silhouettes. The
soldiers sing as they clSn their arms
shout, run and amuse themselves witt
games. To see their movements ant
their activity you would never thinl
that they had marched twenty-five
miles and accomplished a maneuvel
amid all the obstacles of mountainous
ground. The Italians have reason TO be
proud Of their Alpine companies. Oul
chasseurs de montague are not one whi
inferior to them in tenacity and endur
ance.
Night closes in. Dinner is served OF
a table fopned Of wattled branches GOV
cred with howery turf. Old pine trunks
cut down in time of former wars, serv,
as seats. A big fire and torches formed
of pine branches light the guests at thi
original and rustic feast. At such al
altitude frugality is obligatory, never
theless the fare is quite respectable, Th'
chief dishes are red partridges and Give
de chamois, pine mushrooms, an ic'
made with ewes milk and snow, Will,
Strawberries. arbutus berries and vii,
| forest fruits. served in nests of moss
formed the dessert. The tourists are de
lighted, and thank the officers by drink
ing their health, and soon all retire t
rest.
At daybreak the battalion resumes it
march along the ridge, alternatel,
through woods and across meager pas
! turages. The solitude is absolute excep
for some pastorello guarding his goats
which seem literally to cling to the noun
tain side. The view is marvellous whei
the distance appears through a rent il
the opaline morning mist.
The road gets worse and becomes alb
solutely execrable at the point wher
the grand descent begins, and where tn
track is scarcely marked out Of tn
sinuosities Of the rocks. At one poin
great blocks oyerhang; at another sharl
projections have TO be turned; almos
all the way the road follows the edge o
a precipice.
One cannot imagine how the mule.
will pass with their burdens, or how
they can even get footing in this danger
GUS pass. The battalion passes withou
winling, as il it were the simples
thing in the world, and tho mountain
battery follows in its turn. But not tn
tourists; they find the danger too immi
nent and dismount, preferring to trus
TO their feet Meanwhile they wait i'll
the path is free, sitting ON a grant
promontory, and watching the whole bat
terry deflo along this track, which seem
impracticable even for the goats them
selves. Il is a work Of strength and pa
tience and requires as much skill as i
does GOODNESS.
The soldiers hold up the mules ans
even their burdens by means of ropes
Thus relieved, the animals glide alonl
rather than walk, stiffening their fore
legs and almost touching the groun
with their hind quarters. A few acci
dents happen, but, thanks TO the mani
fold precautions and to the care Of tn
drivers, they are rarely seriousi tn
mules that fan are soon put on thei
feet again. At last this long and perilou
pass is cleared; the battery and IN
ambulance reioin the battalion, AM
after a short halt the march is resume
and La Bollene is reached.
The tourists rushed into the hotel, dc
lighted TO find themselves once more i
a civilized place, and to be able TO res
for a few hours. The column, however
continued its march. Later on IN
tourists started for Nice in a carriag,
Toward the end Of the day they oven
; took the indefadgable chasseurs, VIII