MIST ON THE MOUNTAIN. 315 



answered the other, " and near thick clumps of latschen. 

 Wait a moment," he added to me, " I '11 go straight 

 on, and do you, Neuner, keep the right. We shall 

 soon find it." 



Presently a whistle told me the path was found, 

 and going straight toward the sound, we all three 

 proceeded one behind the other. As we neared the 

 summit, the grey rock and snow appeared through the 

 dun clouds, and below us mists were floating, which 

 shut out the living world from view. 



The north side of the mountain, as is always the 

 case, wore a totally different aspect. The line of the 

 ridge was the boundary of two distinct regions. From 

 the summit we now looked down upon sharp points ; 

 all was broken and wilder in character than on the 

 side where we had mounted. We went downwards, 

 and wound along the slanting face of the rock ; here 

 and there stepping along a mere ledge, formed by 

 a projecting layer of stone, our bodies slanting out- 

 wards toward the rocks and away from the preci- 

 pice*. And now we mounted again, and reached 

 the top of Henneneck. The vapours had before par- 

 tially cleared away, but they now swept by beneath 

 our feet, and we looked down on cloud, on dimness, 

 and uncertainty. Close to us, a yard or so down- 

 wards, the traces of chamois were discernible in the 

 snow ; but they were old some days old perhaps. 



* The clouds were just below our feet, so that it was impossible 

 to see beyond ; but for this circumstance, it might have been less 

 pleasant to walk along that ledge. 



