The Salt Lake herald. [volume] (Salt Lake City [Utah]) 1870-1909, 1897-05-23
VIEW OF MOUNT ST. ELIAS.

charge of gun vii loften dislodge a
/ hanging cornice- with its mantle of
snow, and even the clapping of the
hands has been known to turn a bed of
! peacefully lying snow into the raging
! and tempeStuous avalanche. A step
too low on the mountain slope may
/ likewise dislodge movable bank and
convert it into a sWift-fying avalanche.
In the passage of the Piz Morteratsch
by Professor Tyndall, an avalanche
carrying his party down the side of the
mountain seems to have originated
in the mere slipping of one of the
members. Many accidents and escapes
from the fall of an overhanging cornice
are chronicled among the archives Of
Alpine mountaineering. OF the latter
there is no more remarkable one tnan
that of Mr.. A. W. Moore. experienced
in a descent of the Monch with Mel
chior and Jacob Anderegg, the first
named famed as one of the best of
Swiss guides. To use his own descrip-
ton, LAS far as the point of bifurca-
ton the inclination of this southern
arete is very moderate; beyond that
point it becomes sleeper. 1t is as mar
row as an arete can be. On the left
hand it is an absolute precipice. on the
right a slope which might be called
precipitous falls to the Aletsch glacier
The quantity of snow on the ridge was
enormous and the sun had begun to
tell ON it. We knew too much to at
tempt to approach the upper edge, and
kept at a distance of some Il feet below
it on the Aletsch side. Lower down
we dared not go, owing 10 the steep
ness of the slope and the danger of
starting an avalanche. With Melchior
in front it is unnecessary TO say that
we moved with the greatest caution.
No man is more alive than he. to the
danger arising from a snow cOrnice.
He sounded with his ak at every step,
and we went steadily along. anxious,
but with every reason TO believe that
we were giving the cornice a wide
berth. Suddenly came a, startling cry
from Melchior; at the same instant l
felt myself stagger, and instinctively 1
swinging ever so slightly to the right. !
found myself the next moment sitting
astride on the ridge. With a thunder
ing roar the cornice on our left for a
distance of some 200 yards went crash
ing down to the depths below, sending
up clouds of snow dust which COM /
pletely concealed my companions from /
me. 1t was only. by the absence of all |
strain on the rope that knew. though |
at the moment l scarcely realized the |
fact, that they were, like myself. safe" I
GLOOMY GLACIAL CREVASSE.
Few there are, probably. among
active mountaineers who have not had
experiences of one kind or another. with I
a glacial crevasse. Slowly climbing or
descending steep outer mountain face
On the back of a glacier, with glacial +
crevasses zigZagging through it at near {
may be anything but pleas
int sensation, especially to him who is
lot adequately provided with alpine
'ope, AK and hob-nails of creeoers as
part of his footgear. A fall, slip and
away you are hurried, possibly to eter +
lity. Some of these crevasses are hum
ireds of feet in depth. and their verti-
al sides of adamantine ice make es-
ape from their lower DEPTHS impossi-
de. 1t has not infrequently happened
hat human bodies accidentally pre-
.ipitated into these riffs have been re-
covered only after intervals of years,
when washed out from the under sur
ace of the extremity of a glacier. The
,assage of the creVasses by means of
atural snow or ice bridges constitutes
ne Ct the sources CT chief CANCER to
he mountain climber. Weakened by
netting through the suns heat, they
re treacherous pathway and lead
he unwary to steps that incline to Ill
innate destruction. 1t is in such cross
lgs taa- the experience OF good guides
'econles necessity. and many an ugly
lunge that might otherwise have re-
ulted fatally has been turned to an
overture of hardly more than laugh
BILE proportions. Mr.. Edwin Swift
'alch. an experienced American noun
aineer. thus describes the sensation
mild crevasse adventure: sIum-
ling into a crevasse. il you are roped.
a very small matter, although the
ensation. if you fall completely
trough. is unique. The most curious
art of the feeling is the inability to
ut your feet anywhere, the sensation I
utter helDlessness that it gives YOU
} be kicked around trying to get your /,
aet onto something. From being on
lie ice and snow in the light, you sud-
emily find yourself in semi-darkness. {
he dark green blue ice rises in front
YOU, lot of very cold snow falls
own the back of your neck, your hat q
0es down from you, and you are half ;,
'ushed by the rope, until the people
no have not gone in haul you out by
ain force and YOU are landed in a
infused heap on top of the glacier. Y
THE IMMINENT STORM : :
There are few, except those who have I