‘Sumnut of Mount Blanc. 5 
and uncomfortable. While on the grand Mulet we observ- 
ed a beautiful butterfly, of the most vivid and brillant col- 
ours, making its way towards the summit of the mountain. 
At 6 P.M. Reaumur’s Thermometer stood at 4°,(41° of Fah- 
renheit) above freezing. With the aid of a blanket, and a 
sheet placed so as to keep off the wind we formed a tolera- 
ble tent, and lay down to refresh ourselves. Night soon 
closed upon us, and rendered our situation still more appall- 
ing :—the dead silence of darkness was broken only by the 
groans of the weary, or by the loud thunder of a fallen ava- 
lanche that roused us from an imperfect sleep. 
’ On the 12th at 2 A. M. the guides began to make prepa- 
rations, and at 3 we resumed our journey—A road had been 
cut for some distance the evening before, and the snow 
being hard, we advanced without great fatigue or danger, to 
the grand Plateau, a distance of 4 leagues : it isa plain, with 
a more gentle elevation extending about a league towards 
the summit. Here we rested some time, and one of the 
guides found himself unable to proceed. We however went 
on after taking some refreshment: the air was much rarefi- 
ed, and the sun exceedingly warm. At the end of the Pla- 
teau began the steepest ascent :—dreadful avalanches that 
seemed falling with their own weight hung over our way, 
while fearful chasms yawned beneath us. The elevation 
was too great to allow us to ascend in a straight line, our 
path therefore was in a zigzag course towards the top, every 
step being cut in the ice with a hatchet. The path was so 
diffieult and the rarefaction of the air so great, that even the 
stoutest guides could notadvance more than fifteen steps with- 
out stopping to rest—and Mr. H. found himself so much in- 
commoded, that we feared he would have to return. © His 
perseverance enabled him to proceed, and at 11 o’clock we 
arrived at the petit Mulet, a granitic rock that just shows 
itself above the snow; here some of the guides beg much 
fatigued we rested some time. From this rock the ascent 
is not steep, but very fatiguing, on account of the rarefac- 
tion of the air—we however reached the summit at half past 
12—and stood upon the highest point in Europe. ‘The top 
is formed by a ridge running N. E. and S. W. about 12 feet 
above the little plain that lies to the south. As to the depth 
of snow upon it we are unable to form a conjecture. Bo- 
naparte, after many fruitless attempts, succeeded in having 
