THE COASTS OF SICILY. 91 



our mules, and to climb on foot up the last portion 

 of the ascent which separated us from the casa. 



At the moment of our arrival, the sun which was 

 nearly hid behind the western extremity of the 

 island, cast the shadow of Etna over the Ionian sea, 

 and gilded with its last rays the plains of Catania 

 and Aderno. We paused for a moment to observe 

 this magnificent panorama, which was abruptly inter- 

 rupted towards the north by the cone of the great 

 crater, which rose in the centre of the Piano del Lago 

 to more than a thousand feet above our heads, but the 

 cold did not allow us to remain till the night closed 

 in. The thermometer had fallen below the freezing 

 point, and, as we entered the casa, we showered 

 blessings on the heads of those three brothers who, on 

 a plateau rising about 9600 feet above the level of 

 the sea, have provided travellers with a shelter 

 against the keen north east wind, that had been 

 freezing us to the very heart. Less fortunate than 

 ourselves, our muleteers were obliged to descend to 

 the foot of the Montagnuola in order to find a grotto 

 to shelter their mules, as the stable of the casa was 

 still blocked up by ice and snow. Our guide alone 

 remained in attendance on us, and in a few seconds 

 a narrow plate of lava had been converted into a 

 brasero, on which a charcoal fire was soon blazing, 

 around which we crowded with feelings of intense 

 satisfaction. Our lamps were lighted, and our pro- 

 visions spread on< the coarse, but clean table, and 

 while we were engaged in partaking of our frugal 

 meal, our guide was preparing our bed by spreading 

 a thin paillasse on the somewhat rickety planks 



