Bakewell’s Travels in the Tarentaise, §c. 
reader to another part of my work, for 
the further consideration of this subject. 
MOUNTAIN. FALL. 
What has been said of the structure of 
the mountains, in this part of Savoy, may 
serve to explain the cause of those great 
cboulements that sometimes occur. I 
shall, therefore, proceed to deseribe the 
present appearance of Mont Grenier, 
about five miles south of Chamberry, 
which we visited the day after our jour- 
ney toles Echelles. A partof this moun- 
tain fell down in the year 1248, and en- 
tirely buried five parishes, and the town 
and church of St. André. The ruins 
spread over an extent of aboutnine square 
‘miles, and are called les Abymes de 
Myans. After a lapse of so many cen- 
turies, they still present a singular scene 
of desolation. 
Mont Grenier is almost. isolated, 
advancing into a broad plain, which ex- 
tends to the valley of the Isere. It is 
several miles in length, and is connected 
with the mountains of the Grand Char- 
treux ; but it is very narrow. 
_ Itrises very abruptly upwards of 4000 
feet above the plain. Like the mountains 
of les Echelles, with which it is connect- 
ed, it is capped with an immense mass of 
limestone strata, not Jess than 600 feet in 
thickness, which presents, on every side, 
the appearance of a wall. The strata 
dip gently to the side which fell into the 
plain. This mass of limestone rests on a 
foundation of softer strata, probably mo- 
lasse ; but I could only examine it with 
my telescope from below. Under this 
molasse are distinctly seen thin strata, 
probably of limestone, alternating with 
soft strata. 
There can be little doubt that the 
catastrophe was caused by the gradual 
erosion of the soft strata, which under- 
mined the mass of limestone above, and 
projected it into the plain; it is also pro- 
bable, that the part which fell, had for 
some time, been nearly detached from 
the mountain by a shrinking of the 
southern side, as there is at presenta 
rent at this end, upwards of 2000 feet 
deep, which scems to have cut off a large 
section from the eastern end, that now 
“ Hangs in doubtful ruins o’er its base,” 
as if prepared to renew the catastrophe 
of 1248, 
Notwithsthanding a great part of the 
Abymes de Myans is planted with vines, 
they still present a mostimpressive scene 
of wide-spreading ruin, far exceeding in 
magnitude any of the eboulements that I 
saw elsewhere itt Switzerland or Savoy. 
589 
The aricient chronicles which preserved 
the record of this event, do not inform us 
whether the fall of the .mountain was 
preceded by any forewarnings, that al- 
lowed the inhabitants time to make their 
escape. To form some idea of the quan- 
lity of matter that fell, if we calculate 
only what covered the part now called 
les Abymes de Myans, the average depth 
of which cannot be estimated at less than 
six yards, spread over an extent of nearly 
nine square miles, this would amount to 
upwards of one hundred and fifty million 
cubic yards; and we may suppose an 
equal quantity of earth and smaller 
stones to have fallen near the foot of the 
mountain; these, together, would be 
more than four hundred million tons in 
weight. Such an immense quantity of 
matter, precipitated from the height of 
three quarters of a mile into the plain, 
mus thave produced a shock, inconceiva- 
bly vast and awful. 
MOUTIERS, 
Though Moutiers is the capital of the 
Tarentaise, there are only two inns in the 
place for travellers. The fact is, few 
strangers pass this way into Italy, to en- 
courage improvement in the inns, and the 
Savoyards are contented with their pre- 
sent accommodations. ‘This town con- 
tains about two thousand inhabitants. 
Montiers is badly supplied with water; 
he inhabitants are obliged to make use 
of the water of the Isere, which, by pas- 
sing over gypsum and limestone, is ge- 
nerally white and turbid. 
The mountains that surrounded Mou- 
tiers are very precipitous, and subject to 
eboulements. T'wo years before we were 
there, the upper part of a mountain of 
limestone fell down with a prodigious 
noise, and its ruins spread across the 
Isere, and formed a sort of dam oyer 
which persons might pass, but in a short 
time the river forced a passage through. 
The salt-works at Moutiers are par- 
ticularly deserving attention, being, 
perhaps, the best conducted of any in 
Europe, with respect to economy, 
Nearly three million pounds of salt are 
extracted annually from a source of 
water, which would scarcely be noticed, 
except for medical purposes, in any other 
country. 
VALLEY OF THE ISERE, 
The valley of the Isere, from Moutiers 
to the Bourg St. Maurice, is awfully wild 
and gloomy. Vines are cultivated in 
sheltered warm situations, as far as Bel- 
lentres, a village twelve miles beyond 
Moutiers ; and rye, maize, and hemp, are 
grown on the lower slopes, near the 
river ; 
