The Hawaiian gazette. [volume] (Honolulu [Oahu, Hawaii]) 1865-1918, 1906-11-13
CASTLE ON
MATTERHORN

Harold castle son OF james u. CdN-
DE. Punahou graduate and dash
Ing member of the oahu polo team,
made three daring asecnts OF peaks In
Switzerland this summer. and luckily
escaped participation IN the many dis
astcrs reported from those dizzy
heights.
W H. Castle, who returned home last
week from European and mainland
tour. states that while IN switzerland
his party was Joined by Harold. While
in the glacier region Harold got tho
climbing fever and his first attempt
was on the Zermatt He surmountel
this great peak successfully. He went
to the summit Of the Zcnal Rothhorn
1900 feet above sea level, and was ac-
companied by two guides on that oc-
caslon. Mr.. Castle states that he
thought this one experience was enough
for the daring young man, but when
they reached Chamouni, Harold had
the same desire to climb. Mr.. Castle
describes his first view of the needle
points of the mountains. 1t caused
Dore's pictures accompanying Dante's
Inferno to enter his thoughts. The
peaks were tragic In their grandeur
Mr.. Castle and his party advised
against climbing any of these needles
but after surveying them Harold de-
cided he could make the trip. He Sc
lected two guides and started in the
afternoon The next morning they
were at the commencement of the final
ascent
Just then they met a file OF guides,
roped together as usual, descending the
mountain They had "A bundle swung
between two of them and this proved
to be the body of one of their number,
who had slipped and been killed only
the night before. Nothing daunted by
this tragedy, Harold continued the
ascent.
To reach the summit proved haz-
ardous undertaking. According to w.
II. Castle, 1t was "a frightful climb
on that trip Harold had taken Bea-
trice Castles little camera along with
him Reaching a perilous stage of the
ascent, Harold wished to take a photo
graph of the two guides, and he un
roped himself from his companions and
climbed to a dizzy perch from which
he could take an admirable picture.
With his teeth sunk into the straps
he held the camera. Suddenly his
foot slipped. and in endeavoring to
catch himself he lost hold of the cam
era which went crashing down 500 feet
into a crevasse and was presumably
smashed to smithereens.
After that experience young Castle
decided that he must crown his
achievements by climbing the Matter
horn. At the time the party went to
the little town from which all travel
ers start, it was past he season and
the snow was falling. Efforts were
made to dissuade Castle from making
the attempt but he persisted and made
the ascent, returning in safety. This
is 14000-foot mountain. There We're
already recorded eight deaths on the
Matterhorn. Nearly every day. says
Mr.. Castle, there We're reports of ac-
cidents on one or another of the Swiss
peaks.
w. r. Castle and family first went
to England, passing thence to France,
Belgium. down the Rhine and into
Switzerland and Italy. They made a
slow trip from Liverpool to London
and stopped for long time at Oxford,
at which place Mr.. Castle found, much
to his surprise, that no daily newspaper
was published. The groupings of the
oxford college buildings interested him
and he found much opportunity for
comparing the system of groupings
with that prevailing in the United
States. He was unable to learn any
thing about Rhodes scholarship for
/ 10, x.a IL No
season and he did not find the proper
official to present his inquiries on the
subject He learned later. however
that all these scholarships were now
full.
The Hampton boat-race course in
terested him. He did not see the Cam
bridge Harvard race, but saw other
races. What surprised him most was
the extreme narrowness of the stream
in places where two boats absolutely
could not pass. why you could take
long pole place 1t in the center of
the stream in places and vault across
it," said Mr.. Castle.
He did not think much OF the Paris
edition of the New York Herald. IT
was inane and did not compare Mt all
WIN bAhtI EliSIiSH JbuflldlS. lHtTt
We're few general items of news The
greater part of the paper was taken
up with utter frivolity."
II was very much interested In the
brother of ID. l.. Wilmington, who has
lived in Paris and London for about
thirty-five years" said Mr.. Castle.
His tastes are very artistic and anti
quarian. 1t was a rare treat to go about
Paris with him.
I'VE went to the Rue st. Honore,
where every step Of our way was re-
plete with historical "reminiscences. He
turned and pointed to the church of
San Roche and then showed the spot
where Napoleon planted his guns that
memorable day during the French rev
olution and began his great career
Then he pointed out II little white house
where Robespierre established himself
and whence he was led to his execu-
tion. Nearby was one OF the Paris mar
kets and there used to be the build
ings adjoining the rear of Robespierres
house where the Jacobins once ruled
And so he took me about the city.
I'm the great market | was told that
about 100000 people came daily to make
their purchases. People buy from day
to day, and not as We do by taking In
great quantities and storing them up.