ALP 



A LP 



nine Alps, whicli, acconiin<^ to Polybius and Pliny, was 

 t'lat cf the Carthaginians, though Livy is of a difFerent 

 opinion ; this route is divided into that of the valley of Pc- 

 tiiia, which is the broadeft, and that of the vallies of Aolla 

 ntid Bardo, which is the loiigtll : the fixtli, through the 

 Pennine Alps by Adula, or Mount St. Gothard, and Beli- 

 fona : the fcventh, over the Rhitian Alps, by the Lake 

 Verhanus or Cofmo, which was the route of Drufus and 

 Tiberius, when they carried on the war in Rhxlia, and alfo 

 ofStilicho: the eighth, by which the Cimbri entered into 

 Italy : the ninth, by tiie Caniic Alps: and the tenth, by the 

 Julian Alps, whicl. was the ufual track of the Roman troops 

 into Pannonia and lllyria. 



The central part ot this chain of monntains, the mod ex- 

 tenfive and elevated of any in Europe, may be confidercd 

 as compofed of two ridges, which rnn alnioft parallel from 

 tlie foiith-weft to the north-eaft. The firft ridge is that 

 of the Helvetian Alpr. ; and its mod coni'picuous fummits 

 are the Guenimi, or Twins, the .Schelen horn, the Bhimlis, 

 t!ie Geifhorji, the Jungfi-au or Virginliorn, the Eigtr, the 

 .Schrcckhorn, the Grimfel, the Furca, the Badiir, the Gla- 

 ciers to tlie north of the Rlilne, and St. Gothard. 



The higheft mountain of the northern chain of the Alps 

 feems to be Jungfrau ; and the next in height are the 

 F.igpr, and the Sehrtckhorn, and the Finiteraar Horn. 

 According to Mr. Kirwan (Geo. Eff. 2 13, 21 7.) the lieight 

 of thefe mountains does not exceed I0,ooo feet; and he 

 obferves, that they confill of granular, or piimitive linie- 

 llor.e. SaulTure (vol. vii. p. 193.) fays, that the Schrcck- 

 horn, and Finileraar are about 13,218 feet high. Bourrit 

 informs us (vol. iii. p. 104.) that the Sehreckhorn is the 

 higheil of the Swifs Alps. The fummits confiil of gra- 

 nite ; and on the fides'appcar red flate and calcareous maffes. 

 To the fouth are large defarts and glaciers, and on the north 

 is the romantic lake of Kandel Steig, " whence (as we 

 learn from a modern geoprapber) there is faid to have been 

 a paifage to Lanterbrun araidil fingular glaciers, fometimes 

 rcffmbling magicy.l towns of ice, with pilafters, pyramids, 

 colunms, and obeliflcs, reflecting to the fun the mod brilli- 

 ant hues of the lineil gems." The fouthern chain of the 

 central Alps extends from Mont Blanc, and other emi- 

 nences to the wed, and bearing to the nortlieall compre- 

 hends the Great St. Bernard, Mount Maudit, Cnmbin, 

 Cervin, and Mount Rosa. It traverfes northward the 

 vicinity of the lakes Locarno and Como, under the varions 

 denominations of V'ogelberg, St. Bevnardinc, Spluger, Al- 

 bula, Bernini, 5:c. and dretchiug into the Tyrol, terminates 

 in the Brimner, or Rhaetiau Alps, on the fouth of the Inn, 

 extending even to Saltzburg ; and the firft chain to the 

 north of that river feparates Bavaria from Tyrol. This 

 chain of the Italian Alps, proceeding from Mount Rofa, 

 through the country of the Grilons to the Glaciers of Ty- 

 rol, and terminating in the Salzian Alps, fhould form the 

 boundary betvveen Germany and Italy, as they pafs thro-agh 

 the centre of Tyrol, and as the Italian Alps to the north of 

 the former Milauefe and Venetian territories, are of com- 

 paratively finall elevation. The higheft of the Italian Alps 

 belong to the country of Piedmont. 



" It was referved," fays the modern geographer already 

 cited (p. 583.), " for this age of enterprife to difclofe tlie 

 fecret wonders of the Alps. The enormous ridges clothed 

 with a depth of perpetual fnow, often crowned with diarp 

 obelifks of granite, ftiled by the Swifs horns or needles ; 

 the dreadful chafms of fome thoufand feet in perpendicular 

 height, over which the dauntlefs traveller fometimes ftands 

 ■on a IJielf of frozen fnow ; the glaciers, or feas of ice, fome- 



times extending 30 or 40 »niles in length ; the failed 

 filence of the fcencs before inivifited, except by the chair.oii 

 and goats of the rocks ; the clouds, and fometimes the 

 thunder dorm, jjaniiig, at a great didance below ; the ex- 

 tenfive profpei\s, which reduce kingdoms, as it were, to a 

 map ; the pure elafticity of the air, exciting a kind of in- 

 corporeal fenfalion ; are all novelties in the hiftory of hu- 

 man adventure." 



From Sauffnrc we learn, that the higheft fmi'.mils of 

 thefe mountains confid of " a large grained granite ; the 

 mixture being white opakc felfpar, grcyifli, or wliite feini- 

 tranlparent quart/., and mica, in fmall brilliant fcales, forming 

 what is called the white granite. The colours vary ; and 

 fometimes hornblende, fchorl, ganiets, or pyrites aie inter- 

 fperfed. The c<iiftrudion ieems to confill of flat pyiumids 

 of granite. Handing vertically, difpofed like che fruit of the 

 artichoke ; thofe of the centre being moft upright, while 

 the others bend towards them. Thefe flat pyramids com- 

 monly dand, like the grand chains of the Alps, in a north- 

 cad and fouth -well diiettion. Beneath, and incumbent cui 

 the granite, efpeci;Jly towards the north, appear large malles 

 of flate, which are followed by exterior chains of high cal- 

 careous mountains." For a furtiier account of the Alps, 

 fee Coxe's .Switzerland, Sauli'ure, Bourrit, and the article.i 

 Blanc, Gothard, Rosa, &c. in this Dictionary. 



Alps, in Geography, befide its proper fignification, by 

 which it denotes a certain chain of mountains, which fcpa- 

 rate Italy from France and Germany, is fometimes ufed a» 

 an appellative to denote any mountains of extraordinary 

 height. In this fenfe, Aufonius and others called the 

 Pyrenean mountains, Alps ; and Gellius, the Spanifli AlpSy 

 Alpim Hifpan't. Sidoniws gives the fame appellation of Alpt 

 to Mount Athos. Other authors fpeak of Nonnan Aips-t 

 Alpes Arvenn^, Alpes AJior'tanfts, Alpes Dofrinn, Alpes Ro~ 

 mcuuit, Alpes Bojlermcd:. The Apennines are alfo called by 

 Johannes Viller.euf, Alp'i D'Apciwiiit. Tluis alfo the Britifli 

 Alps denote the higheft mountains in Britain ; fuch are the 

 Grampian hills, Ben Nevis, and other mountains of the 

 Highlands in Scotland ; fuch arc Snowden, &c. in Wales, 

 Wbariijtde, Sl'uh'.iv-v, and CrofsfcU, in England. To the 

 Afiatic Alps we may refer the Altay and Wkrterian 

 mountains; and to the American the Alleghany and 

 Apalachian of North America, and the Andes of the 

 South. 



Alps is alfo ufed to denote paftur;s on the mountains, 

 whereon cattle are ted in the Summer time ; or rather in the 

 vallies, and fpaces between the mountain tops. Some will 

 have this to be the primary lignificatlon of the word Alps, ' 

 which is fuppoied by thefe authors literally to denote the 

 ftreights or apertures between hills. 



Alps, Lower, Department nf, is one of the four com- 

 pofed out of the Ci-devant Fi\)vence, in France. It it 

 bounded on the north by the department of the Upper 

 Alps, on the eaft by Piedmont and the department of the 

 Maritime Alps, on the fouth by the department of the Var, 

 and the north-eall extremity of that of the mouths of the 

 Rhine, and on the weft by the departments of Vauelufeand 

 the Drome. Its chief town is Digne. Its fupcrficies ic 

 about 1,459,699 fquare acres, or 745,007 heftares ; its po» 

 pulation comprehends 144,436 individuals ; and it is divided 

 into five communal diftritts. 



Alps, Upper, Department of, makes a part of Dauphine, 

 which contains three. It ii bounded on the north by tlie 

 departments of Mont Blaoc and Ifere, on tlie cad by Pied- 

 mont, on the fouth by the department of the Lower Alps, 

 on the wed bv that of the Drome and part of that of Ifere. 



It* 



