lumps of birch and beech, and dotted with brown
chalets; then below them rock again, and wood, but this time with more
deciduous trees; and then the valley itself, with emerald meadows,
interspersed with alder copses, threaded together by a silver stream;
and I almost fancy I can hear the tinkling of distant cowbells coming
down from the alp, and the delicious murmur of the rushing water. The
endless variety, the sense of repose and yet of power, the dignity of
age, the energy of youth, the play of colour, the beauty of form, the
mystery of their origin, all combine to invest mountains with a solemn
beauty.

I feel with Ruskin that "mountains are the beginning and the end of all
natural scenery; in them, and in the forms of inferior landscape that
lead to them, my affections are wholly bound up; and though I can look
with happy admiration at the lowland flowers, and woods, and open
skies, the happiness is tranquil and cold, like that of examining
detached flowers in a conservatory, or reading a pleasant book." And of
all mountain views which he has seen, the finest he considers is that
from the Montanvert: "I have climbed much and wandered much in the heart
of the high Alps, but I have never yet seen anything which equalled the
view from the cabin of the Montanvert."

It is no mere fancy that among mountains the flowers are peculiarly
large and brilliant in colour. Not only are there many beautiful species
which are peculiar to mountains,--alpine Gentians, yellow, blue, and
purple; alpine Rhododendrons, alpine Primroses and Cowslips, alpine
Lychnis, Columbine, Monkshood, Anemones, Narcissus, Campanulas,
Soldanellas, and a thousand others less familiar to us,--but it is well
established that even within the limits of the same species those living
up in the mountains have larger and brighter flowers than their sisters
elsewhere.

Various alpine species belonging to quite distinct families form close
moss-like cushions, gemmed with star-like flowers, or covered
completely with a carpet of blossom. On the lower mountain slopes and in
alpine valleys trees seem to flourish with peculiar luxuriance. Pines
and Firs and Larches above; then, as we descend, Beeches and magnificent
Chestnuts, which seem to rejoice in the sweet, fresh air and the pure
mountain streams.

To any one accustomed to the rich bird life of English woods and
hedgerows, it must be admitted that Swiss woods and Alps seem rather
lonely and deserted. Still