FRIGID DESPAIR. 3G5 



The snow-crust on the side of the hole I had made broke 

 away beneath my arms when I first tried to raise myself 

 on it, and it cost us all a long struggle before I was 

 hauled out and landed safely. 



The slopes now steepened, the cold grew more intense, 

 and the wind almost mibearable, so that altogether the 

 prospect was far fi-om cheering. The morning star aroused 

 us to a temporary enthusiasm by the strange accompani- 

 ments and brightness of its rising. Heralded by a glow 

 of light, which made one of the party exclaim, ' There 

 comes the sun ! ' it leapt forth with a sudden splendour 

 from amidst the flashes of lightning playing in the dark 

 cloud that lay below, shrouding the distant steppe. The 

 shock was but momentary, and we soon relaj)sed into a 

 state of icy despair, which was not diminished by the 

 sudden desertion of Paul, who, fairly beaten by the intense 

 cold, turned and fled down our traces. For hour after 

 hour we went on without a halt, hoping that the sun 

 would bring with it an increase of warmth. 



A sunrise viewed from a height equal to that of the toj) of 

 Mont Blanc is a scene of unearthly splendour, of which words 

 can convey but a feeble impression. A sudden kindling of 

 the eastern ranges first warned us to be on the watch ; in 

 a moment the snow upon which we were standing, the 

 crags above us, indeed the whole atmosphere, were suffused 

 with rose-pink. The cloud on the summit, which had 

 changed from black to grey as daylight dawned, now caught 

 the pervading flush, and suddenly melted away, like a 

 ghost who had outstayed his time. As the hues faded, 

 the sun's orb rose in the east, and flooded us with a stream 

 of golden rays, which were soon merged in the clear 

 light of day. There was no increase of warmth as yet, 

 and, despite the improved look of the weather, it became 

 a serious question whether we could go on. By 7.00 a.m. 



