Notes & gleanings

Objekttyp: Group

Zeitschrift: The Swiss observer : the journal of the Federation of Swiss Societies in the UK

Band (Jahr): - (1922)

Heft 63

PDF erstellt am: 29.09.2021

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http://www.e-periodica.ch 516 August 19, 1922

NOTES & GLEANINGS. they clung to the face of the precipice trembling in every limb, the two Taugwalders sobbing like children. Eventually, urged by .Whymper, they recommenced the descent, which was accom- Switzerland is not the only country in the market for plished without further incident. holiday visitors from abroad; the competition with other Search parties recovered three of the bodies. That of Lord Francis lands favoured with an attractive exchange proves at times Douglas, however, could not be discovered, nor has it ever been found since. Somewhere hidden in the a serious handicap, but when gratuitous statements are made deep depths of one of the many fathomless crevasses of the great to the effect that hotel charges are still abnormally high, glacier the brave young man sleeps quietly to this day, frozen incalculable harm is done if these are not promptly chal- solid, his form and face as they were, in 'life, save perchance for often these the havoc that may possibly, have been wrought bv his terrible lenged. Very statements, on closer examination, fall." contain their own refutation, as, for instance, when a Corres- * * * pondent in 77/e 77/zzcw (Aug. 5th) asserts that " hotel ex- I wo of our compatriots have received notice in the " penses are at least fifty to sixty per cent, more than they English dailies. The one is a playwright,. Mr. John "were ten years ago." The writer evidently ignores the Knittel, whose forthcoming historical drama is referred to in theatri- fact that this increase is not even commensurate with the cal notices. Mr. Knittel has restrained us from general rise in the cost of living which obtains in all Euro- publishing particulars, but the TVzz/y Gvw/iA/c states that countries. We are to record (Aug. 8th) pean pleased that Mr. Arthur Maurice Moscovitch take the L. has will leading part in a play Jennings (TYwes, Aug. 8th) taken up the cudgels in entitled " Arnold the interest of truth and fairness. von Winkelried." * * * * * A long article in the GzzjezMe The PzcforAZ (Aug. 12th) relates afresh the (Aug. 11th) brings to public notice Mr. Buhrer, of story of mountain climbs that have taken their of human Upper Norwood, toll who is a well-known breeder arid trainer of Alsatian life, such as the first ascent of the in 1865, Dogs, now so fashionable in this country, and who has which is described as follows: — formerly trained these dogs in Switzerland for police work. " The Swiss , probably because they are compara- tively easy of access, take their toll of human life regularly .year after year. HERE AND Each separate peak has its own black record. You might THERE. fill a fair-sized graveyard with the victims of the Matterhorn By J. H. Corthesy. alone. The ' very first ascent of the mighty mountain—which for a long time was deemed unclimbable—was marked by a Down in the distant dreadful hollow someone was making accident. It also furnished one of the most marvellous veal in large escapes recorded in the history of similar quantities; and, fitfully on the warm wet wind, exploits. there to the Seven men in all constituted the party which essayed the came me expostulations of the. calves who did feat. Their names were , the leader; Lord not like the process. One there was, a lusty-lunged chap, Francis Douglas, a young man as years go, but a trained and A voice like, his ancestor.jof -Efyq.jwn^ in, i.p, tried Charles i mountaineer; the Rev. Hudson, also a famous awful funk. 'Bfaaaar! Braaaaaf! Aoooool ' words)-to, climber; Mr. a or I-Iadow, young athlete, but without rirucfi ex- that effect. perience of mountain climbing; and three guides, Croz, and I think it was his turn next by the row he the two Taugwalders, father and son. was making. Following a day and a half of strenuous climbing, the As I listened to the far-off sound of slaughter, all summit reached in and was safety, a flag which the party had my old love for veai-and-ham pie vanished like brought with them was hoisted there a the snow upon as signal to watchers the desert's and in the valley below that success had crowned their persevering dusty face; I was glad I had chosen a efforts. fried sole for breakfast. Fish hardly make any fuss when The little village of , at the base of the giant their time comes. mountain, was immediately ' agog with excitement. Work ceased "'Braaaar! Braaaaar! Aooooo! said for the day, and everybody was jubilant. 'Calves,' that is, the tramp, 'killing calves? Oh, see! You mean that Everybody, save one little lad of about twelve, who ' ' I would keep insisting that something very terrible had happened. Beroooomp noise But that is not calves. That's the He had, he said, while watching the summit his town band ' " through toy practising a new piece! ." telescope, seen an avalanche " fall from the mountain top on The effect to the auditory of a brass band exercising on great glacier four thousand feet below. stomachic As nobody else had seen anything of the kind, however, inclinations, as per the above from the pen of he was not believed. But he Mr. F. W. Thomas in the Saturday SAzr would be the " " was right, nevertheless; only the avalanche was not rock, nor frozen snow, but a roped-to- antithesis of that of music pleasing to the ear of Sir gether cluster of living men. Thomas Beecham Monsieur R. What had happened this: or Gaillard which would was The climbers, after spending soothe breast, about an hour on the summit resting and admiring the view', any savage or otherwise, or of music such had as that heard started to descend. They were, of course, all roped t.Q- at the. opening of the 28th season of the gether, Croz leading and the rest following in the order named: Promenade Concerts at Queen's Hall and conducted by Sir Hadow, Hudson, Lord F. Douglas, old Taugwalder, Whymper, Henry J. Wood, the of which and young Taugwalder. programme was immensely appreciated, a Hardiy had the downward climb commenced, however, although daring innovation in the way of when from some unexplained cause Mr. Hadow fell from the novelties was introduced. face of the precipice on to Croz, knocking the guide off his * * * feet These two dropped plumb down the perpendicular side Good music relieves mental raises of the mountain, and as the tension, the mind rope tautened, the weight of their to higher planes from the hard and falling bodies dragged down after them first Hudson, and then bumpus earthly " reali- Lord F. Douglas. ties " and leads us to think that the body ought to be able Old Taugwalder, seeing what was happening, stooped, and. to follow the mind in its ethereal excursions, as in dreams, quick as a flash, twisted the slack of the rope beneath his feet simply by will-power, that is, without round a projecting pinnacle of rock. This having to incur the manœuvre would cash expense inseparable from have saved the lives of the others if the rope had held. But travelling in aeroplanes— the sudden strain proved too much for it. It snapped. And however moderate it may be for the material value of this the four men were dashed to death. means of transport—for it can as be afforded The yet only by a three survivors were so paralysed, with fright and few privileged ones. horror that for a long while none dared move. For hours The public has always been patient. Patience has been