The Thibodaux sentinel. (Thibodaux, La.) 1905-1912, 1912-03-23

" o get fair view OF things, the
novice ought to record his or
her first Impressions Of Swift
erland in wintel%h the train
@coming back. BY the time
you Edve settled down again at home,
and sit in your parlor to retail your
1oings to your admirinH md envious
friends, the disagreeablessSh any there
have been,o have faded into oblivion.
and the joys of even a bad Swiss win
:er. when contrasted witba the rigors
,f the 'old-fashioned" English article,
strike one SO forcibly that you can
only gasp out incoherences about
the time OF your life and the wicked
waste OF never having gone before.
But in the train, when you perchance
IAN still see from Eshe window the
peaks on which yodshave doated and
slid and tumbled. and with the pros
pect Of eight weary. dark hours jour
ney to Paris, you can put things
straight in your mind. writes X. N.
Morrison In Country Life. You are
not distracted by questions which
casual your observation has been.
You are not shamed into excuses and
aepreciations before your experienced
and expert friends, who have fed
the Swiss winter In contempt and
despair. You are not compelled to
go into the conventional ecstasies
over tho Alpine sunset In the train
your opinion 10 40 honest al nov
tce's naive and rapturous opinion
can be. Out Of all your experiences.
the sensations OF one day shine out
clear before all others. My most abid-
ing memory IN OF = dazzling, brilliant
day, of a three-mile ascent, skis in
hand, from the village to untrodden
and silent slopes, a walk 10 warming
that. the destination reached. ] was
glad to rest and lunch in the shade
I recall the quaint and mysterious
OBSERVATION-DISCLOSURES identified az
feers-fOund near the lunch tree and
remembrance Of n slope, five hundred
yards long, virgin snow TO the skier
| had been only three days a skier,
and successful ascent was still be-
sond my dreams. | fell, and with re-
lief and surprise noted that l did not
fulfill the prophecy OF breaking my
toes. l stood on the brow OF the
slope and pushed myself on with the
baton, after the uncouth style Of the
novice. For the briefest fraction OF
a second l feared that my pose was
Unbalanced and that | was fated to
fall. The next, l was given up to the
JOY of swift motion, of the sweeping
career through the air and sunlight,
until flew out OF the sun into shadow
and suddenly grew cool and blind.
! suppose everybodys introduction
TO skiing is very much the same
Everyone has to get over the inclina-
ton to lift his feet and turn out his
toes; most people have to fight down
The awful feeling OF terror which at
tacks them, not on their debut, but
On their second attempt: and not
few. ! hope, have the sense land the
knowledge Of French) to be able to
take in good part the fave com
1ten-year-old boys. to whom beautiful
skiing seems second nature, can
teach one much. although skiing is
not of the soil, but recent importa-
ton from Norway. BY the way fail
ing a native. the best tutor is an
English schoolboy, who. having no re-
gard for his own neck or yours, does
not flusteg or fuss you, but rather i'm
pels you to the most unheard of
feats.
As soon as one has Frtained the
smallest degree Of comfoFtdA nd grace
on skis, one despises *4e Juggling
which has hitherto seemed good
enough for anyone. Truth to tell,
Juggling Is all done on track, to
which ON is tied. while at skiing one
ran at least pretend to be travelling.
Again and again you take the fifteen
minutes walk up the track. dragging
your luge behind you like child with
Its toy, in order that you may whizz
down in a twentieth part of the time.
The absurdity OF this proceeding be-
comes apparent to the budding skier
as soon as he has got to the stage of
being able to get up when he falls,
and henceforth he scorns the chat.
good humor, spills and collisions
which make up the luger's day. 1t may
be remarked that the budding skier
aforesaid is the only winter sportsman |
who ever attempts or aspires to be |
aignified or scornful You can have a |
capital time on a luge, even il you |
have only two square inches to sit on,
and IL your feet, held fast by your
partner in front, are being used as
rudders At first 1t seems strange to
the novice that the proprieties are in |