Year: 1878

zer, too, was much above the ave


rage; and finally pulling cigar
from my pocket, I lay back in my
chair with feeling Of bliss which
made me imagine Paradise WAS not
far of. For the first time I noticed
that there was an air of uneartuly
quiet on the inside of the depot. I
looked out-every car had depart
ed. I bounced from the table like
an india-rubber ball and rushed ont,
when I was seized by an officer who
desired to know whether Monsieur
was going TO Schweizerkase.' I
shouted. No, Switzerland!' strug.
Cling to get away, when I dis
covered that the train had been
gone half-an-hour. My overcoat was
gone, one boot, my hat, four collars,
an indefinite number of handker-
chiefs, a travellers guide, and sew
eral other valuables. The telegraph
was called into requisition. There
was no other train for twelve
hours, so, calmly resigning myself
to my fate, 7 started to take look
at Dion. The buildings were old
and quaint, many of them, along
the principal streets, dating back
hundreds and hundreds Of years.
It has its triumphal arch, too,
erected long before the Oldest tri.
umphal arch Of Paris and around
the town are as lovely drives as can
be found in any city in France.
Near the outskirts Of Dion is q
beautiful monument, erected to
mark the spot where a devoted lit
tie band of French soldiers made
their last desperate stand against
the advance Of the victorious Prus-
slams. It was grand and heroic
sacrifice. No prisoners were taken,
they all fell fighting to the last ;
and to this Thermopyl@ of Dion
the citizens come on the sweet sum


mer evenings, to tell the proud
story Of her sons to the passing
stranger, who, if they could not
save their country from the invader,
at least knew how to die for her.


Three o'clock in the morning
brought another train and just
as the shadows of night were fall
ing, i found myself entering Gene


va. The scenery by the way had
been surprisingly grand, some of
the mountain gorges being magnif-
cent beyond description. The day
was stormy, and heavy masses of
clouds lay on the SUBMITS of the
mountains. Occasionally a clap Of
thunder would seem to shake the
very earth, and then it would roll
and reverberate away in the distant
mountains, till the sound was lost
IN a sort of hollow moan, miles and
miles away. My fellow voyager,
besides my friend Gubbs, was
comfortable looking Dutchwoman,
who had made some slight prof
cheney in foreign tongues, and was
| determined not to. hide her light
under a bushel.. At one point we
passed a wild cleft in the noun
tains, through which a foaming tor
rent roared and seethed, and finally
released itself from captivity by
a desperate leap into the valley
below. AS we dashed by it I held
my breath; there was something
almost awful in the scene and it's
surroundings. Even Gubbs, whose
mouth was seldom shut, was hushed
into momentary silence, when my
Dutch friend, whom I had quite
forgotten, gave me a poke in the
ribs with the end of her blue cot


ton umbrella, exclaiming at the
same time, in a voice like cracked
bassoon-I say, you Misther! don't
you dort dot dot vos poody?' Just
at that moment, when I was re-
fecting on the probable consequen.
ces Of numbering Dutchwoman, a
terrific clap Of thunder came to my
relief, and I INDUCED in the faint
hope that some vagrant bolt might
strike her. By this time we had
reached a wild pass, where beetlipg
cliffs lowered over us thousands of
feet. At one point a huge mass Of
rock hung almost suspended in the
air, and it looked as though the
hand fan infant could have launch
ed it on the valley below. I was
looking up in wonder, and had al
most forgotten my late villainous
interruption, when she broke in
again, giving me another dig in the