294 The Unknown River, 



teasing him for a quarter of an hour they left him to take 

 his lonely way in peace. 



Danger a-head ! O captain ! hearest thou not the 

 roar of the rapid ? 



It was time to cease gazing up into the unfathomable 

 blue ; it was time to get a firm seat, and grasp the paddle 

 well ! No more enjoyment of the poetry of the twilight, 

 only a wish for the ' light of common day/ wherein all 

 sweet illusions fade. 



It was a great rapid amongst boulders, the largest of 

 which were as big as the room you are sitting in, dear 

 reader. They were scattered to the right and to the 

 left, and one or two ugly fellows apparently barred the 

 way. The channels were narrow and deep, and the water 

 hissed and twisted amongst them like serpents. A yel- 

 low glimmer from the evening sky shone on the swift 

 currents, and said, ■ I show you all their complexity — 

 select ! ' 



After another rapid, apparently much less dangerous 

 than the first, and in reality (as often happens) much 

 more so, the author arrived at Etang, a little old village, 

 with two fine bridges and a railway station just built. 

 There were some good subjects for etching in this place, 

 especially the old houses near the river. 



A relic of great interest for me (who have a peculiar 

 weakness for tents and encamping) is preserved at the 

 house of a rich man in the neighborhood of Etang. It 

 is a fragment of the famous pavilion of Charles the 

 Bold, which fell into the hands of the victorious Swiss, 

 after the battle of Granson. The faded glory of its 



