262 FIRST JOURNEY IN EUROPE. [1839, 



place one may go to the Hospice of St. Bernard in 

 ten hours. I would have been glad to have seen so 

 famous a place, but as to scenery it is decidedly in- 

 ferior to much I had already seen. One may go to 

 Chamouni in nine hours, getting the superb view of 

 Mont Blanc from the summit of Col de Balme on the 

 way. Thinking it impossible to walk farther, I hired 

 a mule, and a person with him, and went up to the top 

 of Col de Balme (five hours), passing the vale and 

 glacier of Trient. Reached the summit at four 

 o'clock ; enjoyed a fine view of Mont Blanc and its 

 attendant peaks from top to bottom, or rather at top 

 and bottom, for there was a belt of cloud about the 

 middle, a most superb and complete view, Mer de 

 Glace and all. 



Quite satisfied without going to Chamouni, so re- 

 turned to Martigny at eight P. M. ; another good day's 

 work, particularly as I walked both up and down the 

 worst part of the road, being merciful to the beast. 

 On my descent obtained a splendid view of the Bern- 

 ese Alps. Much amused at looking over the register 

 at the hotel, where the travelers expressed their opin- 

 ions of the different hotels on the road, praising some, 

 and speaking of others in terms of great reprobation ; 

 good plan. I think if the proprietor of the hotel at 

 Sion (a very dirty hotel) could read all that is writ- 

 ten in his own book he would burn it. ... Lay down 

 and slept till midnight. 



Thursday, took diligence at one o'clock A. M. for 

 Villeneuve ; saw the falls of the Sallanches by moon- 

 light ; arrived at Villeneuve at half past seven, just 

 after the morning steamboat had left for Geneva ; 

 am confident we were delayed on purpose, to induce 

 us to go on in the diligence instead of the next boat. 



