$1% JOURNEY OVER MOUNT GOTTR ARB. 



lions, fo that he feveral times got pretty deep. This 

 made riding too imeafy to me, and I determined, weak 

 as I was, to walk. But this was likewife very tirefome, 

 as I often fell down on entering rather deeper than or- 

 dinary, and lay in the maw. After a toilfome and 

 tedious way of ten ^or twelve miles, I at length came 

 about nine o'clock to the utmoft height of the road, 

 and entered the mcnaftery of the Capuchins, where I 

 was glad to reft. Here are two houfes. One of them 

 inhabited by two capuchin monks, who lodge travel- 

 lers Gf decent appearance. The other is an inn for 

 people of the inferior ckffes, particularly for carriers 

 who tranfport commodities this way on packhorfes, 

 here called chevaux de fomme. We met a number of 

 thefe carriers on the road ; and I learnt, but too late, 

 from them, how one may facilitate this journey over 

 the mow. Every carrier goes before his horfe with a 

 fhovel ; and where he finds the fnow to be weak, or to 

 have holes in it, he covers it with frefh fnow, which 

 he Damps down with his feet, and by this means his 

 horfe, though heavy loaded, feldom links in. 



This fummit, where the capuchins refide, is however 

 only a valley ; for on the two fides arife high mountains 

 of bare rock ; but the valley is pretty broad. In the 

 valley , not far from the capuchins, are feveral lakes. 

 From one of which flows the ftream towards the fouth, 

 which afterwards is the Ticino ; from another a ilmilar 

 iirearn runs northward. This afterwards becomes the 

 river Reufs, which rufhes into the Aar, in the canton 

 of Bern, not far from their confluence with the Rhine. 

 But now thefe lakes were not to be feen, as they all lay 

 deep beneath the fnow. 



I fliall 



