Rollo in Switzerland Part 12

Mr. George, while he was saying this, was taking out some small change from his pockets to give to the children. He gave a small coin apiece to them all.

Seeing this, the boys who had wished to guide him to the Staubach became more clamorous than ever.

"To the Staubach?" said they. "To the Staubach? Want a guide? Want a guide?"

Mr. George paid no further attention to them; but, saying "Come, Rollo,"

walked on.

The would-be guides followed him a short distance, still offering their services; but, finding soon that Mr. George would not have any thing more to say to them, they gradually dropped off and went back to the inn to try their fortune with the next arrival.

Mr. George and Rollo walked on along a narrow road, which was bordered by queer, picturesque-looking huts and cottages on either hand, with gardens by the sides of them, in which women and girls were hoeing or weeding. They met two or three parties of ladies and gentlemen returning from the Staubach; and presently they came to a place where, close to the side of the road, was a small shop, before which a party of ladies and gentlemen had stopped, apparently to look at something curious.

Mr. George and Rollo went to the place and found that it was a shop for the sale of carved toys and images such as are made in many parts of Switzerland to be sold to travellers for souvenirs of their tour through the country. There were shelves put up on the outside of the shop, each side of the door, and these shelves were covered with all sorts of curious objects carved in white or yellow fir, or pine. There were images of Swiss peasants with all sorts of burdens on their backs, and models of Swiss cottages, and needle boxes, and pin cases, and match boxes, and nut crackers, and groups of hunters on the rocks, or of goats or chamois climbing, and rulers ornamented with cameo-like carvings of wreaths and flowers, and with the word "Staubach" cut in ornamental letters.

Rollo was greatly interested in this store of curiosities, so much so, in fact, that for the moment all thoughts of the Staubach were driven from his mind.

"Let us buy some of these things, uncle George," said he.

"And carry them over the Wengern Alp?" said Mr. George.

"Yes," said Rollo. "They won't be very heavy. We can put them in the carpet bag."

"Well," said Mr. George, "you may buy one or two specimens if you wish, but not many; for the guide has got the carpet bag to carry, and we must not make it very heavy."

"Or we can send them in the carriage round to Grindelwald," said Rollo, "and not have to carry them at all."

"So we can," said Mr. George.

Rollo accordingly bought two Swiss cottages, very small ones, and a nut cracker. The nut cracker was shaped like a man's fist, with a hole in the middle of it to put the nut in. Then there was a handle, the end of which, when the handle was turned, was forced into the hollow of the fist by means of a screw cut in the wood, and this would crack the nut.

While Rollo was paying for his toys he felt a small hand taking hold of his own, and heard a voice say, in English,--

"How do you do?"

The English "How do you do?" is a strange sound to be heard in these remote Swiss valleys.

Rollo turned round and saw a boy look up to him with a smile, saying again at the same time,--

"How do you do?"

In a moment Rollo recognized the boy whom he had seen at Basle in the court yard of the diligence office while he had been waiting there for the horses to be harnessed. His sister Lottie was standing near; and she, as well as her brother, appeared to be much pleased at seeing Rollo again. Rollo had a few minutes' conversation with his young friends, and then they separated, as Rollo went on with his uncle to see the waterfall; while they, having already been with their father and mother to see it, went back to the inn.

Mr. George had recommended to Rollo not to buy too many specimens of the carving, not only on account of the difficulty of transporting them, but also because he thought that they would probably find a great many other opportunities to purchase such things before they had finished their rambles in Switzerland. He was quite right in this supposition. In fact, Rollo pa.s.sed three more stands for selling such things on the way to the Staubach.

Mr. George and Rollo continued their walk along the road, looking up constantly at the colossal column of water before them, which seemed to grow larger and higher the nearer they drew to it. At length they reached the part of the road which was directly opposite to it. Here there was a path which turned off from the road and led up through the pasture towards the foot of the fall. The entrance to this path was beset by children who had little boxes full of crystals and other s.h.i.+ning minerals which they wished to sell to visitors for souvenirs of the place.

Mr. George and Rollo turned into this path and attempted to advance towards the foot of the fall; but they soon found themselves stopped by the spray. In fact, the whole region all around the foot of the fall, for a great distance, was so full of mist and driving spray that going into it was like going into a rain storm. Mr. George and Rollo soon found that they were getting thoroughly wet and that it would not do to go any farther.

"And so," said Rollo, in a disappointed tone, "though we have taken the pains to come all this way to see the waterfall, we can't get near enough to see it after all."

Mr. George laughed.

"I wish we had brought an umbrella," said Rollo.

"An umbrella would not have done much good," replied Mr. George. "The wind whirls about so much that it would drive the spray upon us whichever way we should turn the umbrella."

"The path goes on a great deal nearer," said Rollo. "Somebody must go there, at any rate, without minding the spray."

"Perhaps," said Mr. George, "when the wind is in some other quarter, it may blow the spray away, so that people can go nearer the foot of the fall without getting wet. At any rate, it is plain that we cannot go any nearer now."

Saying these words, Mr. George led the way back towards the road, and Rollo followed him.

After retreating far enough to get again into a dry atmosphere, they stopped and looked upward at the fall. It seemed an immense cataract coming down out of the sky. After gazing at the stupendous spectacle till their wonder and admiration were in some measure satisfied, they returned to the inn, where they found an excellent dinner all ready for them. While they were thus employed in eating their dinner, Henry was engaged in eating his, with at least as good an appet.i.te, in company with the other guides, in the servants' hall.

FOOTNOTES:

[Footnote 8: See the map at the commencement of the first chapter.]

CHAPTER IX.

THE WENGERN ALP.

It was about twelve o'clock when Rollo and Mr. George, having finished their dinner, came out into the yard of the inn for the purpose of setting out for the ascent of the mountain.

"Well, Rollo," said Mr. George, "now for a a scramble."

Thus far the road which the young gentlemen had travelled since leaving Interlachen had been quite level and smooth, its course having been along the bottom of the valley, which was itself quite level, though shut in on both sides by precipitous mountains. Now they were to leave the valley and ascend one of these mountain sides by means of certain zigzag paths which had been made with great labor upon them, to enable the peasants to ascend and descend in going to and from their hamlets and pasturages.

The paths, though very steep and very torturous, are smooth enough for horses to go up, though the peasants themselves very seldom use horses.

A horse would eat as much gra.s.s, perhaps, as two cows. They prefer, therefore, to have the cows, and do without the horse. And so every thing which they wish to transport up and down the mountain they carry on their backs.

There were various other guides in the yard of the inn besides Henry: some were preparing apparently for the ascent of the mountain with other parties; others were bringing up carriages for people who were going to return to Interlachen. Henry, when he saw Mr. George and Rollo coming out, asked them if they were ready.

"Yes," said Mr. George. "Bring the horse. You shall ride first, Rollo."

Mr. George was to have but one horse for himself and Rollo, and they were to ride it by turns. He thought that both he himself and Rollo would be able to walk half way up the mountain, and, by having one horse between them, each could ride half the way.

Besides, it is less fatiguing, when you have a long and steep ascent to make, to walk some portion of the way rather than to be on horseback all the time.

There was another consideration which influenced Mr. George. Every additional horse which should be required for the excursion would cost about two dollars a day, including the guide to take care of him; and, as Mr. George expected to spend at least two days on the excursion, it would cost four dollars more to take two horses than to take only one.

"And I think," said Mr. George to Rollo, after having made this calculation, "we had better save that money, and have it to buy beautiful colored engravings of Swiss scenery with when we get to Geneva."

"I think so too," said Rollo.