THE WORLD'S HIGHEST ALTITUDES 



499 



of the most difficult climbing feats of the 

 Alps, four years after his conquest of 

 Mount Saint Elias, and the year follow- 

 ing his notable success in securing the 

 ''Farthest North" for his polar expedi- 

 tion, that Prince Luigi of Savoy made 

 the first ascent of the second in height of 

 the Dames Anglaises and christened it 

 "Yolanda Peak." Later he made the 

 first ascent of the Aiguille Sans Nom. 

 It was with climbs of this type in mind 

 that the historiographer of the Alaskan 

 expedition could say concerning this as- 

 cent of Mount Saint Elias, whose con- 

 quest required nearly forty days' journey 

 over glaciers and neve nearly the entire 

 distance from the shore of an inhospi- 

 table sea to the altitude of 18,100 feet, 

 that "if the winning of Saint Elias only 

 meant the ascent of the terminal cone 

 . . . it might be compared with many 

 of the easier climbs in our own Alps." 



In determining, then, from a consider- 

 ation of hardship and sacrifice, what 

 comparative credit shall be accorded to 

 those who bring to us the knowledge of 

 the world's mysterious heights, we must 

 consider not only the inherent difficulties 

 offered by the type of mountain ascended, 

 but its remoteness from civilization ; the 

 character of the country to be traversed 

 in reaching its base ; the height of snow- 

 line; the climate, whether temperate or 

 affording such contrasts as those reported 

 by Doctor and Mrs Workman on the 

 occasion of their recent climbing (1906) 

 in the Nun Kun Himalayas, where, at 

 an altitude of over 21,300 feet, the mer- 

 cury in the tube of the solar thermometer 

 fell from 193 F. to 4 degrees below 

 zero within fifteen hours, or amid such 

 comfortless surroundings as those of 

 Doctor Cook and his single companion, 

 passing the last night of their four days' 

 ascent of Mount McKinley in a cavity 

 stamped out in the steep snow slope, with 

 a thermometric reading of ii° below 

 zero. Then there are such dangers as the 

 risks from savage or ill-disposed natives, 

 as in some of the valleys of the Caucasus 

 and beyond the English sphere of influ- 

 ence in the Himalayas, or insidious fever 

 and the deadly "sleeping sickness" of the 



forests of Equatorial Africa, to say noth- 

 ing of the vexatious problems arising 

 from the necessities of transportation of 

 supplies by undisciplined porters. Con- 

 sidering these things, even the ascents of 

 very lofty summits that look down upon 

 considerable towns, affording many "crea- 

 ture comforts," that lie nestled at their 

 already lofty bases, and where vicariously 

 panting mules may bear one comfortably 

 to the soaring snow-line, seem to call for 

 a less strenuous type of explorer. This 

 we set down, not that we esteem such 

 labors less, but the others more. 



To one who has kept in touch with the 

 increasing volume of alpine literature 

 during the past three decades, it has been 

 interesting to note in how brief a time 

 strange and outlandish names come to 

 have a familiar sound and acquire the 

 power to summon before the mental 

 vision some superb "mountain majesty." 

 This latter satisfaction is due to the for- 

 tunate circumstance that the development 

 of photography and the modern arts of 

 reproduction from photographs occurred 

 coincidently with this entrance of man 

 upon new and glorious scenes. Hence 

 the magnificent illustrations, that speak 

 far more eloquently than any human pen, 

 which make many of the voluminous 

 works that describe the newly visited re- 

 gions works of the highest art. 



The: Caucasus 



All this is particularly true of the Cau- 

 casus. To Elbruz and Kasbek, which 

 summed our earlier total of local nomen- 

 clature, there was suddenly added the 

 names of a whole series of supremely 

 beautiful glacier-bearing peaks : Dychtau 

 (17,054), Shkara (17,038), Koshtantau 

 (16,880), Janga (16,569), Tetnuld 

 (15,918), Ushba (15,400), and Adai 

 Khokh (15,244). These are the giants 

 of the central group. Mr Freshfield tells 

 us that "in a space some ten miles square 

 . . . are to be found not less than 

 twenty distinct summits of over 14,000 

 feet." And the chief of these were 

 climbed between the years 1884- 1895 by 

 English, Hungarian, and German al- 

 pinists. 



