foggy, and
the fog had penetrated into the cavern; but as soon as M. Soret began to
descend to the glaciere itself, properly so called, he passed down out
of the fog, and found the air for the rest of the way perfectly
clear.[63]

M. Soret states that he has not absolute confidence in his
thermometrical observations, but as he had more time than I to devote to
such details, inasmuch as he did not pass down into the lowest part of
the cave, I give his results rather than my own, which were carelessly
made on this occasion:--On a stone near the first column of ice,
0 deg..37 C.; on a stick propped against the column on the edge of the great
ice-fall, 2 deg..37 C.; in a hole in the ice, filled with water by drops
from the roof, 0 deg. C. approximately.[64] The second result is
sufficiently remarkable. My own observations would give nearer 33 deg. F.
than 32 deg. as the general temperature of the cave.

Christian was so cold when we had finished our investigations, that he
determined to take his second refreshment _en route_, and, moreover,
time was getting rather short. We had started from Gonten at half-past
nine in the morning, and reached the glaciere about half-past twelve.
It was now three o'clock, and the boat from Gonten must reach the
steamer at half-past six precisely, so there was not too much time for
us; especially as we were to return by a more mountainous route, which
involved further climbing towards the summit of the Rothhorn, and was
to include a visit to the top of the Ralligflue. On emerging from the
cave, we were much struck by the beauty of the view, the upper half of
the Jungfrau, with its glittering attendants and rivals, soaring above
a rich and varied foreground not unworthy of so glorious a
termination. There was not time, however, to admire it as it deserved,
and we set off almost at once up the rocks, soon reaching a more
elevated table-land by dint of steep climbing. The ground of this
table-land was solid rock, smoothed and rounded by long weathering,
and fissured in every direction by broad and narrow crevasses 2 or 3
feet deep, at the bottom of which was luxuriant botany, in the shape
of ferns, and mallows, and monkshood, and all manner of herbs. The
learned in such matters call these rock-fallows _Karrenfelden_. When
we had crossed this plateau, and came to grass, we found a gorgeous
carpet of the huge couched blue gentian (_G. acaulis_, Fr. _Gentiane
sans tige_), with smaller patterns pu