Book Reviews. 



65 



material of his expeditions, if I may so express it, de Saussure 

 united in a high degree the qualities of mind and character 

 which, in all times and on any subject, make a writer interesting 

 and distinguished, those which, both from the form and from the 

 style, attract most the sympathy of the reader, and captivate the 

 best, his attention. 



"That which I admire in these pages is that spirit of observa- 

 tion, at once lofty and naive, grave and good-natured, which 

 comprehends the grand features, and does not disdain the lesser 

 details ; that curiosity, philosophical and at the same time gentle 

 and smiling, which finds agreeable food about the rustic homes 

 seated on the flanks of the Mole, as well as grand reflections in 

 face of the icy solitudes of Mont Blanc; that imagination suffi- 

 ciently rich, sufficiently elevated to find always enough food in 

 the exact reality without exaggerating the beauties, without trans- 

 forming the accidental into phenomena, the curious things into 

 marvels, the singular into a miracle. 



"But with de Saussure the love of truth dominates and tem- 

 pers the most brilliant faculties, and in his description and 

 poetry is displayed the same fidelity, the same candor, as in his 

 science — a thing very rare, a phenomenon very curious, unique 

 with him. 



"That which interests me in these pages, in addition to the 

 traits I have already remarked, is an undefinable vigor, simple 

 and mature, displayed in the habits, in the tastes, and in the 

 methods of the traveler. That scholar, rich, accustomed to the 

 good things of life, as soon as he approaches his cherished moun- 

 tains grasps the knotty staff, relies on his seasoned muscles, 

 becomes a man of Chamouni, and in a country without hotels 

 and without resources adopts without disdain, with pleasure, the 

 rustic food and the rough shelter of his companions which he 

 has chosen. There is enough pure, active, elevated pleasure to 

 recompense him for some privation. He knows moreover the 

 grand secret that all know, but that few put into practice : appe- 

 tite is in the heights ; repose, soft, sound, and sweet, is in the 

 heights ; it is only necessary to go there to seek them. If it is 

 noble to know enough to prefer intellectual enjoyment to the 

 ease of a life of wealth, it is also noble to know how to exchange 

 lazy recreations for laborious pleasures. Since de Saussure the 

 trails are mapped out, hotels are opened even on the summits, 

 mules and litters have penetrated everywhere, and the grand 

 secret, preserved with the initiated few, is lost for the general. 



"That which pleases and delights me is to see a man unlike 

 myself, a superior intellect, recreate himself in my way, an illus- 

 trious scholar enjoy the things that please me, and, in thus plac- 

 ing himself in my class, sanction my manner of enjoyment. Even 

 more, — it is possible to learn from a guide so distinguished how 

 to travel, how to observe, how to interest one's self, how to 

 find in Nature so many charms, so much grace, so much fresh- 

 ness, so much mystery; how the discovery of an alpine plant 

 which blooms isolated at the edges of the eternal snows moves 

 and rejoices as much and more than a spectacle obtained at 

 great expense. 



"As for me, what I say here is less the praise of its truth 

 than of its information ; and for fifteen years that I have gone 

 to the mountains to greet the glorious days I have taken there to 

 enjoy only the little I have been able to grasp in this book, and 

 that little has been for me a great wealth. 



