The Washburn times. [volume] (Washburn, Wis.) 1896-1976, 1911-12-14

The dogs are aristOcratic as the kings
who in the middle ages sent them collars OF
gold; because the first Demands. their ances-
tors, were already on the spot, aiding trav-
elers in an amateurish way, when st. Bernard
de Mention went up from Aosta and founded
the Hospice, A. D. 962. Their ancestors, bear
fighting dogs of old Charlemagne's court, had
been left with certain mountaineer chiefs,
among other payment for aid and neutrality.
by an earlier Bernard, uncle of Charlemagne,
when he marched army by this route A. ID.
773.
Thus the great dogs of imperial court race
were the spot when St. Bernard and his
companions built their famous refuge at the
apex of the pass; and to understand their eve
lution-why the good monks began training
them not to be like other dogs-they must have
an idea of this majestic shortcut of antiquity
from north Europe into Italy.
Nowadays the tunnels take you through by
rail- in three-quarters of an hour but before
such modern engineering wonders it was diff
ferent. Why has Napoleon's-or Hannibal's--
passage of the Alps remained so striking? Be-
cause a great army with its baggage, camp
material supplies, cannons and ammunition
carts or yet more ponderous elephants, irrupted
unexpectedly on the fertile plains of the south.
They fell, really, from the clouds-the clouds
hanging round the snow capped wall of noun
tains! Otherwise, Napoleon must have led
his army round by the Mediterranean, inter-
minable journey that would have surprised
nobody.
Otherwise Hannibal, wandering with his
hundreds of war elephants from Spain up into
France would have been Obliged to wander
back or stay there. Instead he followed the
Rhine valley to the entrance of the Great st.
Bernard, climbed the grand old road, up, up to
its snow and ice, elephants and all. and de-
scended On the vines and fig trees of Capua,
TO the immense surprise of the Romans.
The first army to risk it was Gaulish one,
$50 years before Hannibal. The Romans used
1t as early as B. C. los; and the monks pre-
serve tablets that record the passage of vari-
Gus legions. After the foundation of Aosta
B. C. %, it became frequented by travellers and
Traders Temple Of Jupiter actually stood
at the top. where now rises the gigantic statue
of st. Bernard. Roman emperors improved
the road, notably Constantine, A. .. 339 Later,
barbarian hordes fell on the empire from it's
heights; but In the anarchy of the early dark
ages 1t became one of the most travelled and
securest routes of Europe. policed by noun.
tain chiefs taking moderate toll-whence the
big dogs OF Charlemagne's uncle.
So when ST. Bernard founded his Hospice
at the top, and collected a pack of the dogs
escendants-already evolved to precious
travellers at the critical point of a unique
highway in the clouds There were other
shortcut passes, but none so improved by art
and continual traffic. Even today, in spite Of
the railway tunnels, the Great ST. Bernard is
annually crossed by $1,000 poor pedestrians
In the early days, the richer the travellers,
the more substantially they showed their graft
tude During the middle ages the monastery
became very wealthy. Kings and emperors
made it grants. Passing mobiles and rich mer-
chants settled annuities on it. And princesses
embroidered collars in cloth-of-gold for the big
dogs-already of ancient descent from Charlie
magnes court-concerning whose unearthly
intelligence and goodness all kinds Of stories
we're rife.
Personal friends OF mine had an adventure
with the dogs last May. Hearing II to be a
sporting English" trip to go sleighng over the
Great ST Bernard after a considerable melting
Of the SHOWS makes the thing possible, they
started off. very Partisan trio-retired fashion
able ladies' tailor of the rue Royale, Paris,
his wife and his motheI-in-law, weight and
girth increasing in the order mentioned
At Martigny, in full bloom of peach and
cherry blossoms, they took four-horse
riage up the already dusty road through the
ravine of the Drance the rocky gorge, the ten
der spring buds and the woods' the tunnel, and
on up through embrancher-where the
stopped to cool with beer-past ruined cha
teaux and over old stone bridges, the ORANGE
away down below, often invisible, and all de-
ughtful. springlike, and their hearts sang as
they went up like the skylark They
exclaimed in wonder as they began to get
views of Mt. Velan with its glaciers and snow
fields merging into sn all-srow world begin
ming up there, just above them-so different
from the scene in August. On the great
curve beyond Liddes village, they felt chilly.
Beyond the Torrent de la Croix they struck
snow, and at Bourg st. Pierre the sleigh was
waiting for them.
The sleigh had been engaged by telephone;
and by the same means the good monks would
have hot dinner and dres all ready in their
bedrooms Jingiing gaiy across the Gorge OF