road as far as the Hospice of St. Gothard, the building of which was used by them as fuel. Crossing and recrossing the Reuss several times, and passing Wasen, Wattingen, and Goschenen, with its glacier landscape, we enter the awe-inspiring defile of the Schöllinen, and arrive at the scene of wild and savage desolation, in the midst of which is situate the famous Devil's Bridge, so fitly described in Mr. F. A. Mackay's eloquent sonnet :

"Winding 'neath rocks impending, and o'er steeps
Dread in their awful altitude, the road

Leads through a pass whose grandeur is a load
Upon the awe-struck mind: the wild Reuss sweeps
From precipice to chasm, where it keeps
Boiling and fretting till it throws abroad

Mist clouds; then, chafed and flying from its goal,
Like fiery steed, o'er crag and crevice leaps.
The thunder rolls among the mountain peaks;
The echoes seem gigantic in their home,

(Now answering deep as voice Promethean speaks.)
Towering aloft where the fleet chamois roam,
'Mid pines and cottages the church oft seeks

To build its shrine where prayerful Switzers come.' Here a tremendous battle was fought in 1799, between the French and Austrians, numbers of whom perished in the abyss beneath. The bridge is a modern structure; the old bridge, the ruins of which, covered with creeping plants, being yet visible, was blown up by the Austrians while being forced by the French, during the conflict alluded to.

From the "Paradise Lost" of Milton, to the "Satan of Montgomery, the certain gentleman who haunts mysterious places, has been the burden of poets' song. The following

well-known lines are very graphic :—

"Called the Devil's Bridge:

With a single arch, from ridge to ridge,
It leaps across the terrible chasm
Yawning beneath us, black and deep,

As if, in some convulsive spasm,
The summits of the hills had cracked,
And made a road for the cataract,
That raves and rages down the steep!
Never any bridge but this

Could stand across the wild abyss ;
All the rest, of wood or stone,
By the Devil's hand were overthrown.
He toppled crags from the precipice,
And whatsoe'er was built by day
In the night was swept away;

None could stand but this alone."

Away, through the granite tunnel of Urner Loch, across the Valley of Uri, where winter reigns during eight months out of twelve, past Andermatt, and Hospenthal with its ancient tower; the mountain road becoming steeper as we ascend its numerous windings. The route becomes more and more impressive as we reach the summit of the pass, and the tourist's sketch-book is frequently in active requisition. At Albergo del St. Gothard, 6,500 feet above the level of the sea, we pass the famous Hospice, where superior Newfoundland dogs may be purchased, at somewhat high rates, by those fond of canine companions. It is in the St. Gothard that the Rhine, Rhone, and Reuss have their source.

Hepworth Dixon, in "The Switzers," says:

"Her cardinal peak is Galen-stock,--the peak now towering on our right, a fount of light and beauty in this sombre realm, which ancient shepherds, coming up the valleys of the Rhone and Reuss in search of fortune, called the 'Pillar of the Sun.' He is the Saul of the St. Gothard group,above the tallest of his brethren: Gerstenhorn, Lucendro, Mutt-horn, Spitzberg, Six Madun,-though all these mountains are of Anak breed. Three glaciers hang above his hoary neck, and shiver down his sturdy sides; the Tiefen glacier on his northern flank, the Siedeln glacier on his

southern flank, and the Rhone glacier (which has many feeders) on his western flank. These glaciers drip by different ravines, and descend to different seas. Above his summit floats a canopy of cloud, from under which at times leap fire, and wind, and hail-those rival demons of this upper air, which shake and daze the earth in their plutonic and magnetic strife. About his feet, low down among the ruts and wrecks of ice, lie caves of wondrous beauty and uncounted wealth. Three years ago a cave was entered by this Tiefen glacier, when the noblest crystals in the world were found. The rock was topaz. Fragments lay about in heaps, each broken piece a hundred pounds to two hundred pounds in weight. Some fifteen tons of topaz were removed from this great hiding-place of nature in a single year. What sage can count the marvels yet in lurking near this Pillar of the Sun?"

Crossing the Ticino, we approach the spot where the Russian General Suwarrow, seeing his grenadiers waver under the fearful fire of the French, caused a grave to be dug, declaring he would be buried at the place where, for the first time, his soldiers had retreated. The effect was electrical. With a loud cry they furiously charged the French, driving them back to Lucerne; the Devil's Bridge, destroyed a second time by the French, being crossed by means of planks suspended from the soldiers' scarves. Descending the Val Tremola, a wild and dismal valley in which avalanches are not uncommon, we reach Airola, where is an ancient tower more than a thousand years old, and where the sound of the Italian language reminds us that we are almost in another country. The route now becomes exceedingly beautiful; picturesque ravines, mouldering ruins, foaming cataracts, huge masses of rock, and other romantic features imparting fresh charms to the land

scape. The canton of Tessin, which reaches from the St. Gothard to the lake of Como, although forming part of Switzerland, is decidedly Italian in character, and it is difficult for the tourist to believe that he has not yet quitted the soil which produced a Tell. Passing Faïdo, the scenery becomes more Italian in appearance. The masses of snow which encumbered the roadside have completely disappeared, and everywhere the prospect reminds us of the artistic productions of Claude. The rich sunshine sparkles on the roofs of the numerous church towers, cascades leap in a thousand fantastic forms over the time-beaten cliffs, while here and there the mulberry, the fig, and the vine lend fresh attractions to the view. Passing in swift succession the towns of Giornico, where 15,000 Austrians were ingloriously routed by 600 Swiss in 1478, Bodio, and Poleggio, we reach Osogna, situated at the base of a rocky peak. Two or three small villages follow, then the Moësa is crossed, and the road, passing Arbedo, where in 1422, 3000 Swiss were defeated by 24,000 Milanese, brings us within view of the frowning walls and lofty turrets of Bellinzona. The position of the fortress-town was formerly one of great strength. Nothing can surpass the superb character of the landscape at this point. To reproduce it in full beauty is utterly beyond the skill of the artist, even were he possessed of the genius of a Turner. Near Cadenazzo we emerge from the charming valley of the Ticino, through which we have so long been pleasantly travelling, and, after passing through a rich chestnut wood, and past various mountains and villages, arrive at Lugano. We are now approaching the frontier. Passing by the east side of the Lake of Lugano, we arrive at Melide, where the lake is crossed by means of a stone dam, erected some years since at a cost of 700,000 francs. At Mendrisio is Monte Generoso,

"The Rigi of Italian Switzerland," and a favourite resort of the experienced botanist desirous of enriching his collection with specimens of the flora of the Southern Alps. Geological fragments are also plentiful. At Chiasso we take our leave of Switzerland, and in a brief period of time find ourselves resting in the hotel at Como, by the shores of its beautiful lake; where the smiling waters reflect the golden skies

"Cloudless as the depth of woman's eyes,

Ere love and all its cares have filled the hours
With hope and fear."

(For a fuller account of all the passes into Italy, see "Cook's Tourist's Guide to Italy.")