102 THE ADVENTURES OF 



forward. The temperature, however, was refreshing, and ren- 

 dered our exertions less fatiguing. 



The chances of our journey brought us out once more upon 

 the plateau. All the mountain crests we could see were barren, 

 and a profound silence reigned on every side. We stopped to 

 take breath, and the sight that met our eyes impressed us with 

 its stern grandeur. It reminded Sumichrast of the Swiss 

 mountaias which he had so often traversed ; and some flowers 

 he gathered further recalled his home. While thus occupied, 

 two buterflies fluttered over our heads. 



" It is an Alpine species !" eagerly cried my friend. 



The locality prevented him from following these capricious 

 insects for any distance: for one moment he leaned over the 

 abyss, bristling up with rocks, and followed, with a longing eye, 

 the two winged flowers which had recalled to him a fleeting 

 image of his fatherland. 



A labyrinth of rocks brought us out in front of a stony ram- 

 part more than a hundred feet in height, and almost perpen- 

 dicular. This unexpected obstacle brought us to a halt. How 

 should we make our way over it ? Upon examining the spot, we 

 decided to incline towards the left, which seemed to us the most 

 accessible road. In parts the wall diminished in height, but we 

 tried in vain to climb it. A more successful attempt, however, 

 brought us nearly to the top, but not without great fatigue ; for 

 sometimes the rock appeared to hang over us. At length, by 

 climbing on to Sumichrast's shoulders, I managed to reach the 

 flat surface above ; I hoisted up Lucien here with the lasso ; next 

 I drew up Gringalet, who was only too pleased to submit to the 

 operation, and lastly Sumichrast and I'Encuerado. The terrible 

 obstacle was at last overcome ; beyond it the ground was, com- 

 paratively speaking, level, but covered with stones of a volcanic 

 nature. 



We still kept on our way, although it was four o'clock, in the 

 hope of finding some tree at the foot of which we could make 

 our bivouac. L'Encuerado put down his load to climb up a 

 needle-shaped rock, the extraordinary position of which reminded 

 us of the celebrated leaning tower of Pisa. When he had reached 



