102 



KIDD'S OWN JOURNAL. 



There was a strange difference also in the 

 color and appearance of the lightning. Some 

 was like an immense sheet of living flame, 

 spreading in every direction. Then, most fear- 

 ful blue forked lightning was incessantly dancing 

 on the summits of the mountains; and would 

 every now and then leap into the middle of the 

 lake. The next moment, a semicircle of fire 

 would spring from behind the Alps or the 

 Jura, of a lovely pale carmine. The lake itself 

 had the appearance of molten brass, and seemed 

 by the roaring of its waters as though it waa 

 striving to drown the awful sound of the 

 thunder. The enormous hail-stones (of which I 

 had several in my own paw), dashing on the 

 tops of the houses, and against the outside 

 shutters, completed the horrors of a storm, 

 which, providentially, was ordained by its great 

 Author to last only forty minutes. 



At ten o'clock all was comparatively quiet; 

 and at eleven we thought we could safely retire, 

 and so we did. But neither I nor my brother 

 slept a wink all night. But now let me de- 

 scribe the ravages of this storm. 



" After a storm comes a calm," as I have 

 heard my old master say. But, alas ! what a 

 calm ! Before five o'clock on the morning fol- 

 lowing this terrible storm, we were most of us 

 in motion, to see if any, and what mischief, had 

 been done. It was as lovely a morning as ever 

 broke forth. The summit of the " Dent d'Oche" 

 was already gladdened by the cheering rays 

 of old "Sol." The "Mole," and the " Voirons," 

 were as clear as they had been yesterday obscure. 



'i he '' Jura " smiled in all its verdant beauty; 

 and even the " Roche d'Enfer" itself was all 

 loveliness. The lake had resumed its usual 

 placidity, but not yet its deep blue. The waters 

 were turbid, and mud-colored. All nature seemed 

 a contrast to the vast desolation caused by the 

 storm of forty minutes' duration. The first thing, 

 on opening the front door, we missed two-thirds 

 of a magnificent willow, that had proudly 

 towered, in all probability, nearly a century over 

 the entrance gate to our residence. The im- 

 mense trunk, and a few branches only, remained. 

 The remainder stopped up the road, now con- 

 verted into a river of muddy water ; having been 

 completely split off by the violence of the 

 storm. 



Before I proceed any further, I must mention 

 that this storm had been accompanied by a 

 tremendous " Trombe," which begun at St. 

 11 Sulpice," passed northward to " Ecublens," then 

 easterly to "Tidy," then as far as the north 

 of Lausanne ; from thence it took a south-east 

 direction, as far as " Paudex." Here its violence 

 appears to have been exhausted. It had, how- 

 ever, been most wofully destructive all along 

 its passage. Looking towards the garden, Ave 

 saw the farmer crossing the lawn with a market 

 basket. Oh, Mr. Editor, it would have made 

 your heart bleed to see it ! The basket con- 

 tained ninety -three sweet little birds, picked up 

 underneath one immense horse-chestnut tree, 

 where the poor dear creatures had gone to rest. 

 They were killed, doubtless, by the hail-stones. 

 Bombyx, I am sure, picked up as many more 

 pretty little lifeless warblers, in different parts of 

 the garden — if garden it could now be called. 



The paths, it is time, remained ; but they were 

 scarcely passable. As for vegetables, it was all 

 one vast mash. Cabbages, turnips, celery, 

 carrots, cauliflowers, cucumbers, &c. — all were in 

 one podge together. No means had we of dis- 

 tinguishing one from the other. It had the ap- 

 pearance of one vast carpeting of hashed 

 spinach. We now looked over the wall to our 

 neighbor's garden. There they were, with boats, 

 endeavoring to release the poor cattle from 

 their perilous position. The poor beasts were 

 standing breast high in water. The country 

 house of "La Caroline" had every thing smashed 

 in the same way, and the vines were totally 

 destroyed. A little lower down, towards " Vidy, ' 

 is the residence of an immensely rich old miser. 

 Here the vines were carried into the road, every 

 thing destroyed, and the garden one complete 

 ruin. The sorrow of the old gentleman was 

 not completed quite. His luxuriant orchard was 

 a perfect wreck — himself obliged to escape out 

 of his house by means of a ladder applied to 

 his bedroom window. The lower part of his 

 house was full of water, and the tubs of wine 

 were floating about in his capacious cellar. 

 Many of the best casks struck with such violence 

 against each other, that they burst ; and made 

 (I am told,) an excellent cellar-full of delicious 

 wine-and-water ! Well, Mr. Editor, I never 

 heard a word of pity or regret on his account. 

 So much for being a miser ! 



Every country-house on the line of the storm 

 was more or less injured, and the gardens and 

 vines were totally done for. Thos e which hap- 

 pened to be on sloping land were washed clean 

 into the road, and all huddled together. I need 

 scarcely say that eveiy green-house was terribly 

 injured. The most extraordinary destruction, 

 however, was between " Lausanne" and " Ouchy." 

 The high road was hollowed out into a complete 

 river, about four feet deep, by four to five feet 

 wide. Large kerb-stones were torn up bodily, and 

 thrown to a considerable distance. The gas- 

 pipes were forcibly rooted out. No communica- 

 tion between " Ouchy" and "Lausanne" (except 

 by pedestrians), was possible. At " Ouchy," the 

 water was so high, that the steamer might have 

 landed its passengers on the steps of the "Hotel 

 de l'Ancre." Vast stone walls were smashed 

 down as though they had been made of card. A 

 massive wall, " derriere les Terreaux," in the 

 town, was forced into the street. There was no 

 communication between the upper and lower parts 

 of the town through the accustomed channel — 

 the " Place du Pont" being a little lake, and all 

 " Messagers" from the " Hotel de Ville," " Gens 

 d'Armes," &c, &c, had to go round by the New 

 Bridge. The " Eoute dTtalie," by the " Mousse- 

 quines," was nearly as bad as the road to Ouchy. 

 Several fine walnut trees at " Vidy" were rooted 

 up ; and one poor gardener, of the name of 

 " Joseph," was sadly put out. A splendid green- 

 gage tree, full of luscious fruit, and on which he 

 had reckoned for no small profit, was taken up as 

 clean as a whistle, and deposited some distance 

 off. Frere Jean, too, missed some enormous 

 " courges" from his garden ; " derriere Marthe- 

 ray," which he found afterwards, and translated 

 to the " Campagne Villamont." 



In the cellars of the wine proprietors in t" e 



