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in the morning for Chamouni, which we reached a couple
of hours before sunset. While walking in the neighborhood of
the village I looked with much curiosity at several women
who had goitres to their necks, and touched with my hand one
of the largest. There was objection however to this being done, and
I did not try it again. These women were in charge of herds of
goats who were then coming down the mountain, and they soon
afterwards disappeared. The place where we met them was
at the base of the glacier leading from the "mer de glace" known
I believe as "glacier des boissons". We found the hotel very full
and in the crowd at supper I recognised several acquaintances
whom I had met in Paris. After supper we proceeded to an office
near by where the guides for the neighboring mountain [ja?]
had their headquarters, and engaged one with three mules for
the morning.
Quite a number of tourists were ascending the "Mont en Vert"
after an early breakfast the next day, each party with a guide.
Mr Lucas and myself talked to several different people and
after a while a curious looking young Englishman, fresh from
London, joined us and was with us for the rest of the day. He was
very green and did not seem to suspect that we were not fellow coun-
trymen of his. Anyone at all conversant with the two nationalities,
English and American, could have seen at a glance where we
hailed from, but this good natured simple fellow thought du-
ring the whole day that we were English. We had a plenty of
fun at his expense, but he was particularly shocked when told
how complete would be failure of the British in their siege op-
erations against Sebastopol. He believed in the traditional
pluck of his people, and fancied that they would overcome all
the impediments of small numbers and mal-administration of
the various departments with which the war against Russia
had been commenced. Mont Blanc is difficult to see well from
Chamouni and its appearance is by no means impressive, even
from the heights on the other side of the valley, to which we went
after the mornings ascent. The discovery of the continual move-
ment downwards of all glaciers was a recent discovery then
with which I was entirely ignorant, and when I reflect upon the
purposeless way in which I observed the "mer de glace" and the
phenomenon that has given occasion to Tyndall to write his lucid
explanations of the elasticity of ice and its readiness to assume
different shapes under pressure, I feel that, observant as I was,
I was not sufficiently well read to take proper advantage of
the opportunity then offered me to visit those interesting localities.
I had left Paris with the intention of walking as much during
my short tour as possible, and bought a pair of walking shoes,
which, from not having been made to my measure, hurt my feet
and could not be used. I was in the habit of making long walks