278 Professor Agassiz on the Glacier Theory, 



MODE OF LIVING ON THE GLACIER. 



I cannot conclude this article without saying a few words 

 on the kind of life we passed at the Hotel des Neuchdtelois ; 

 for I do not suppose that a correct idea can be formed of 

 it without possessing an exact knowledge of glaciers. At 

 first sight there is something extraordinary in the notion 

 of a prolonged sojourn in the midst of a sea of ice, at a 

 height of 7500 feet. It may naturally be imagined that 

 the cold must be excessive, especially at night, and I have 

 frequently been asked how I managed to escape being 

 frozen. The fact is, that it freezes there almost every night, 

 and the thermometrograph often indicated in the air — 4° 

 and 5° (and + 24.8 and 23° F.), and even — 6^° ( + 22°.l F.}. 

 But we were well provided with coverings ; and as our abode 

 was sufficiently small, the respiration of five or six individuals 

 sufficed to maintain a tolerable temperature. 



Notwithstanding its pompous name, the Hotel des Neuchd^ 

 telois is, in reality, but a very small hut about 12 feet long 

 by 6 broad, and 4 high, where its height is greatest. I have 

 already said, that this cabin is situated on the moraine ; it has 

 pure ice for its foundation, on which the broad stones of the 

 moraine have been placed so as to form a sort of flooring. A 

 bed of herbs gathered on the sides of the glacier served as a 

 mattress ; and to protect ourselves from moisture, we took care 

 to make use of a double covering of wax-cloth. The latter is 

 a precaution which it is important to take, and which I cannot 

 sufficiently recommend to those who wish to live on glaciers ; 

 for there, as elsewhere, humidity is much more to be dreaded 

 than cold. As our hut was merely formed of a dry stone wall, 

 we endeavoured to guard against violent winds, by stopping 

 up the interstices with bunches of grass. It nevertheless hap- 

 pened frequently, in spite of our precautions, that a hurricane 

 {Guxen) blew fearfully through the wall. As, however, we 

 were generally fatigued by our exertions during the day, we 

 did not sleep the less soundly. 



It was the rainy and snowy nights only which were really 



