Newport daily independent., 1903-12-30
TRAGEDIES IN THE ALPS.
The victims Are Mostly venturesome Persons Who Go Too Far
 Without Guides.

the successive climbing seasons were distinguished by new first ascents of in I terest and importance. From that linn ited point of view the sport lost most of ] its excitement at the end of the great campaigns against the Aiguilles of the Mont Blanc group; and now, when the t rare news of yet another first ascent does l reach us, only those whose knowledge l of Alpine topography is minute have ever heard the name of the conquered summit. Nowadays, in fact, states the London Field, the principal features which distinguish the climbing season 1 from another are the quality of the weather and the number and nature of the accidents.
 Whether the season new closing, if not closed, will, like the seasons of 1901 andS 1900, establish new record in the mat ter of accidents is question that can not be confidently answered until the 1 various Alpine clubs publish the statis- tics which they so carefully compile; 1 but, as far as the weather is concerned, l no climber, in whatever center he may have climbed is likely to wish to reserve f hAo JudSAtCnI- nOoS l1dNC WI y long memories indeed, who do not pro- nounce the summer the worst that they have ever known. Execrable weather in June was followed by execrable wealth 1 l CT in July. Just at the end of July things began to look little more promising.
 A first ascent was then made of the last remaining virgin summit in the ] Lauterbrunnen valley; the club huts 1 were as overcrowded as the Engadine 1 hotel, and some remarkable traverses, l including one of the Weisshorn, were accomplished But the clouds reformed, 1 and those who fingered, hoping for a fine August were disappointed A fort | nights fine weather in three months was one climbers estimate of the season | which na had endured from beginning to end; and it might be difficult to find | anyone who coslld boast that his ex- perience had been more fortunate. The climbing season, from that point of view, was like the London season or the sea- i son at any of the watering places.
 Concerning the accidents of the season 1t is, as has been said, a little difficult to generalize until the actual figures are presented; but one generalization is pos sible The accidents to serious noun taineess, engaged upon serious expedi- ! tions, were relatively few, while the ac- cidents which, being the direct result of l ignorance or carelessness, ought really | to be called by some other name, were comparatively numerous.
 The worst of all the real climbing ac- cidents of the season did not happen in 1 the Alps, but on Scawfell Pinnacle In part, this distribution of the casualties is, no doubt, to be attributed to the weather There were fewer accidents than usual belonging to the former class, l simply because there was less climbing. Tn part, however, it may be taken to represent a tendency that is likely to be- come permanent.
 The early climbers were pioneers who 1 had to learn the dangers of mountaineer- ing by experience. The modern climber can start with full knowledge of them acquired by the experience of others. He knows-or at any rate he may hire guides who know-where avalanches habtually fall, at what hours of the day certain gullies are likely to be raked by falling stones, under what conditions snow slopes can be safely traversed, and many other things upon the Knowledge of which the safety of the party depends.
 Such an accident, for example, as hap pened to Prof Tyndall, when he started an avalanche on the Pig Morteratsch, or l to MT. Gossett, when he did the same thing on the Haut de Cry, would be most unlikely to occur to any modern party with guide skilled in snow craft; and this science of snow craft, transmit ted from one generation of climbers to the next, cannot fail to diminish the per centage of catastrophes among noun 1 taineers who know their business.
 The danger for them begins when, out of bravado, they knowingly take unwar- rantable risks, after the fashion of the l late A. F. Mummery, or the party that ] fell from the Dent Blanche, in such tragic circumstances, few seasons ago
 The accidents of the other class, how ever, are more likely to increase than to diminish in number as the years go on, if only because the increasing facilities of continental travel bring so many en- i ergetic but inexperienced persons with in reach of the high and steep and dan. 1 gerous places. They want to be climbers without serving their apprenticeship to the craft they insist upon undertaking l tasks beyond their strength or they simp- ! ly walk carelessly in steep places, and 80 faii, because it has not occurred to them that t is necessary to be careful.
 Unique Cosmetic.