1807 } Account of the Fall of Ruffiberg, in Switzerland. 
Picture to yourself a rude and min- 
gied mass of earth and stones, bristled 
with the shattered part of wooden cot- 
tages, and with thousands of heavy trees 
torn up by the roots, aud projecting im 
every direction, In one part you might 
See a range of peasants’ huts which the 
torrent of earth had reached with just 
force enough to overthrow and tear in 
pieces, but without bringing soil enough 
to cover them. In another were mills 
broken in pieces by huge rocks separated 
frem the top of. the mountain, which 
were even carried high up the oppositeside 
of the Rigi. Larse pools-of water were 
formed in different parts of the ruins, and 
many little streams, whose usual chan- 
nels had been filled’ up, were bursting 
out in various places. Birds of prey, at- 
tracted by the smell of dead bodies, were 
hovering all over the valley. But the 
/general impression made on us by the 
sight of such an extent of desolation, con- 
nected too with the idea that hundreds 
of wretched creatures were at that mo- 
ment ahve baried under a mass of earth, 
and inaccessible to the cries and labours 
of their friends, was too horrible ‘to be 
described or understood. As we travell- 
ed along the borders of this chaos of ruin- 
ed buildings, a poor peasant, bearing a 
countenance ghastly with woe, came up, 
to us to beg a piece of money. He had 
three children buried under the ruins of 
ofa cottage, which he was endeavouring 
to clear away. A little further on we 
came to an elevated spot which ‘over- 
looked the whole scene. Here we found 
a painter seated on a reck, and busy in 
sketching its horrors. He had chosen 
a most favourable point. Before him, at 
the distance of more than a league, rose 
the Ruftibere,sfrom whose bare side had 
rushed the destroyer of all this life and 
beauty. On his right was the lake of 
Loweitz, partly filled with the earth of 
the mountain. On the banks of this lake 
was all that remained of the town of 
Lowertz. Its church was demolished, bat 
the tower yet stood, and the ruins, shat~ 
tered but not thrown down. The figures 
which animated this part of the dra wing 
were a few miserable peasants, left to 
grope among the wrecks of their village. 
The fore ground of the picture was a wide 
desolate sweep of earth and stones, re- 
lieved by the shattered roof of a neigh- 
bouring cottage. On the left hand spread 
the blue and tranquil surface of the lake 
of Zug, on the margin of which yet stands 
the pleasant village of Ath, almost in 
contact with the ruins, and trembling 
even in its preservation, 
4 
oo 
We proceeded, in our descent, along 
the side of the Rigi, toward’ the half bu- 
ried village of Lowertz. Here we saw 
the poor curate, who was a spectator 
of the fall of the mountain, tie saw 
the torrent of earth rushing towards hig 
vilage, overwhelming half his people, aud 
Stopping just before his door. What a 
situation! “He appeared, as we pussed, 
to be superintending the labours of some 
of ihe survivors who were exploring the 
ruing of the place. A number of new- 
made graves, marked with a plain pine 
cross, showed where a few of the wreteb- 
ed victims of this catastrophe had just 
been interred. ( 
Our course lay along the borders of 
the enchanting lake of Lowertz. Tlie 
appearance of the slopes on the eastera 
and southern sides told us what the val- 
ley of Goldau was a few days since; 
smiling with varied vegetation, gay with 
villages and cottages, and bright with 
promises of autumnal plenty. The 
shores of this lake were covered. with 
rums of huts, with farnituré and clothes,’ 
which the vast swell of its waters had 
lodged on the banks. As we were walk- 
ing mourntuily along toward Schwitz, we 
met with the dead body of a woinan 
which had been just found. it was 
stretched out on a board and barely co- 
vered with a white cloth. Two men, pre- 
ceded by a priest, were carrying it to a 
more decent burial. We hoped that this 
sight would have concluded the horrors 
of tins day’s scenery, and that we should 
soon escape from every paimtul vestige of 
the calamity of Schwitz. But we con- 
tinued to find relics of ruined buildings 
for a league along the whole extent of the 
lake; anda little above the two islands 
before-mentioned, we saw lying on the 
shore the stiff body of a peasant which 
had been washed up by the waves, and 
which two men were examining, to as- 
certain the place he belonged to. Our 
guide instantly knew it to he the body of 
one of the inhabitants of Goldau. 
If we hadnot been detained at Stras- 
burgh waiting for passports for ten days, 
we should have been in Switzerland on 
the $d of Septembes, probably in the vi- 
cinity of the lake of Lowertz; perhaps 
under the ruins of Goldau. Several, tra- 
vellers, or rather strangers, have been de- 
stroyed; but whether they were there on 
business or for pleasure, I. know not. 
Among them are several respectable in- 
habitants of Berne; and a young Ja- 
dy of fine accomplishments and ami- 
abie character, whose less ia much la- 
mented, 
The 
