The Days of a Man CiSSi 



and was knocked senseless out of our sight, though 

 still held by the rope. We were all paralyzed for an 

 Victor instant, but John soon rushed down to me that I 

 J^f^?"^^ might give rope to Victor, who then hurried to 

 Gilbert's rescue. Happily his steel-brimmed hat, 

 sliced by the sharp edge of the rock, had offered a 

 momentary resistance, and so saved his life. 



We now moved very slowly, Victor half leading, 

 half carrying Gilbert, dazed and blinded with 

 A man blood but Still coutageous. ''Cest un homme fort 

 strong ^i brave," said John. As we descended, the treacher- 

 Trave ous charactct of the Swiss face became increasingly 

 evident and alarming. As a matter of fact, the whole 

 outer coat of the mountain is loose, scarcely a rock 

 anywhere being firmly attached. For into all the 

 joints of the strata, water from melting snow finds 

 its way, to freeze at night and thereby widen the 

 joints so that the outer blocks, large and small, are 

 daily pushed toward the edge. Thus nothing is 

 stable, and each year the Matterhorn ofi^ers every- 

 where a new face to the weather. But the dip of 

 the strata being strongly to the south, on the Swiss 

 side the loosened blocks remain poised on uptilted 

 Showers cdgcs Until throwu ofi^, when the fall of a single one 

 of stones ^jjj start 2. tcgular shower below. In the afternoon 

 the danger is most acute, the ice cement having 

 thawed and released the debris. On the Italian 

 front, on the contrary, a rock drops as soon as 

 loosened and so without starting a volley. 



Working along, we soon heard a terrible uproar, 

 and three or four rods away saw an immense ava- 

 lanche of rocks — a dozen of them as large as a 

 wagon, with hundreds of little ones yelping in 

 the rear. "C'esi une montagne terrible!'' exclaimed 



c 264 : 



