resorted to for its saline baths. It is remarkable also for the mildness of its climate and the beauty of its environs. About three miles from Bex are extensive salt mines, which produce about 40,000 quintals of salt per annum. Tourists should not omit to visit them. The excursion from Bex will not occupy more than half a day. Three miles beyond Bex is St Maurice, where the railway from Bouveret to Martigny and Brieg comes in, see Route 115.

ROUTE 115.

LAKE OF GENEVA TO MILAN, BY THE SIMPLON PASS.

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PASSENGERS going over the Simplon may go from Geneva by the steamer along the south shore of the lake to Bouveret, and thence by railway to St Maurice, Martigny, and Brieg, or by the railway, via Lausanne, Vevay, St Maurice, and Brieg.

The journey from Geneva to Brieg by rail occupies about 6 hours (by boat to Bouveret two hours longer), fares, Geneva to Brieg, first, 25 francs 5 cents.; second, 15 francs 80 cents. At Brieg the railway ends.

Diligence, Brieg to Domo d'Ossola twice daily, 40 miles, time, 9 hours; fare, 16 francs 85 cents.; coupé, 20 francs 30 cents. From Domo d'Ossola to Stresa, 26 miles; twice daily, time, 6 hours; fare, 6 francs 30 cents.; coupé, 10 francs 50 cents.

Carriage with 2 horses, Brieg to Stresa (which is a most convenient and comfortable stopping place on Lake Maggiore, see,

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page 450), 145 francs. carriages at a lesser rate are sometimes to be found at Brieg.

The route from Geneva to Lausanne and Martigny by railway is described in Route 114.

The route by steamer from Geneva is along the south shore of the lake. The steamer passes Thonon, EVIAN, with alkaline baths and a large bath-house, a favourite summer resort of French people (Hotels: Evian, Mont Blanc). This place is opposite Lausanne. Soon after leaving Evian, the steamer passes Meillerie, close to the lake, made famous by Rousseau in his "Nouvelle Heloise," and soon thereafter reaches BOUVERET, at the south-east end of the lake, where passengers take the railway for Maurice, Martigny, and

St BRIEG.

Leaving Bouveret, and passing Vouvry and Monthey stations, we reach ST MAURICE, at which place the North-bank railway via Vevay, Villeneuve, and Bex, joins the other route (Hotel Ecu du Valais). It stands on the site of the Roman town of Agaunum, on the left bank of the Rhone. Its name is derived from the legend that the Theban Legion, under St Maurice, were here put to death by command of the Emperor Miximian, A.D. 302, for refusing to renounce the Christian religion. The Abbey is of great antiquity, and contains many valuable relics. Leaving St Maurice, we see, on the opposite bank of the Rhone, the Bathhouse of Lavey. On the right above the road stands the Hermitage of Notre Dame du Sax. Further on to the right is the chapel of Veriolez, commemorative of the Theban martyrs. A little way beyond, near the station of Vernayaz, on the right, the celebrated FALL OF SALLENCHE is seen pouring down one

of the mountains, at the right, a short distance from the road. VERNAYAZ (Grand Hotel de Gorge de Trient, close to the gorge.) Vernayaz is a good stopping place for persons intending to go to Chamouni or the Great St Bernard.

There is a road from this point to Chamouni, upon which there are small char a bancs drawn by one horse. Carriages may be had here also for Chamouni by way of Martigny, at rates quite as favourable as at that place. Distance from Vernayaz to Martigny by a beautiful road, three miles.

Excellent horses and guides may be had at Vernayaz.

Close to the hotel the mouth of the GORGE DE TRIENT is visible. Tourists, by remaining until the departure of the following train from Vernayaz, may visit the Fall of Sallenche and the Gorge. The latter may be explored without danger, bridges having been constructed so as to enable visitors to pass through this very remarkable chasm, which well merits examination. (Tickets, 1 franc.) Before reaching Martigny, La Batiaz, a ruined castle built by Peter of Savoy in 1260, is seen on an eminence to the right. It commands from its summit a fine view over the valley of the Rhone, and may be easily visited.

MARTIGNY (Hotels: see "HOTEL LIST.") It is situated near the confluence of the Dranse with the Rhone. Here is a convent connected with that of the Great St Bernard. Being upon the Simplon route, and one of the starting points for excursions to the Great St Bernard, and to Chamouni over the Col de Balme, or by the Tete Noire, Martigny is a busy town during

the summer season.

Five miles beyond Martigny

are the BATHS OF SAXON, at the foot of the Pierre a Voir (8123 feet.) Here is a small Kursaal, and baths used in cutaneous diseases. Shortly afterwards, crossing the Rhone, we see the towers of SION in the distance (Hotel Poste). This town is a very old Swiss bishopric, and contains several churches, a convent, and an hospital. The cathedral, in the centre of the town, is a handsome edifice, and the modern Bishop's Palace is adjacent. Each of the three hills near the town is crowned by a castle, two of which are in ruins, strikingly situated.

SIERRE (Hotel: Baur.) It is an old and uninteresting town. It contains a church and some good buildings.

On issuing from Sierre, the road enters the valley of Loueche, as that part of the great valley of the Rhone which extends from Sion to Brieg is sometimes called. The large fortress of Alt-Siders and the castle of Beauregard are situated on a rock at the entrance of the valley of Anniviers, on the opposite side of the Rhone from Sierre.

From SUSTEN (Hotel de la Souste) diligences leave twice daily for Leuk and the Baths of Leuk, the latter being reached in five hours.

Passing Tourtemagne, so called from its tower, now a chapel, we reach VISP, or Vispach (Hotels: Poste, Sonne), an unpretending village picturesquely situated opposite the village of Leuk, at the mouth of the Gorge of the Dala. (This is the starting point for Zermatt, see Route 120.)

BRIEG (Hotel: Three Crowns), 92 miles from Lausanne and 44 from Martigny, is the terminus of the railway. The Simplon diligences start from the railway station, a little way outside the town. Good restaurant at the

station. This town possesses nothing to detain the traveller. About two minutes' walk above Brieg the road passes by the bridge over the Saltine leading to Glys, leaves the Glyshorn on the same side, and makes a bend to the left. These bendings are repeated nearly to the summit of the pass. Another turn brings us to a point from which we look down upon the ravine of the Saltine. Rocks have been blasted, and excavations made, in order to form the vaulted passages through which the road leads in some parts of the pass most exposed to avalanches.

The construction of this road was carried out under the orders of Napoleon, who determined that his army on entering Italy to fight, if necessary, a second Marengo should not encounter the difficulties of the St Bernard Pass. It was commenced

on

both sides of the Alps in 1800, and engaged the labour of nearly 30,000 men, and the skill of M. Ceard, assisted by a most powerful staff of engineers, for six years. The smallness of the incline, one inch per foot, appears surprising when the steepness of the ground is considered: no expense, however, was spared to procure this advantage; terraces of gigantic size, galleries cut in the natural rock, bridges without number, and houses of refuge from the avalanches, make the Simplon road appear like the work of some Titanic race, rather than of a generation which has scarcely yet passed away. fuges are placed along the road, on the spots where the avalanches most frequently fall, in order to afford a place of safety for the traveller. The first refuge is at the upper end of the gorge of the Saltine, about an hour's walk above Brieg. Here the traveller

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can see the glacier near which the road reaches the summit of the pass. The second refuge is 35 minutes from the first, and 20 minutes beyond it is the third refuge, where there is a small inn.

The fourth refuge is a quarter of an hour beyond this. In clear weather some of the Bernese Alps, particularly the Breithorn, Aletsch-hörner, and Viescherhörner, are visible, with two strips of the Aletsch glacier. Twentyfive minutes beyond this is the Schalbet gallery, 95 feet long. The fifth, or Schalbet refuge, is 15 minutes further on. Vegetation here disappears, and we enter upon the wildest, and, at the same time, the most dangerous portion of the road. Within less than two miles there are three galleries, two refuges, and a hospice. Over the latter, called the Kaltwasser gallery, streams from the glacier of the same name pour into the gulf below The sixth refuge is within a few yards of the summit of the pass, which is 6594 feet above the sea level, and is marked by a wooden cross. The NEW HOSPICE, about half a mile from the summit, was founded by Napoleon. In 1825. the convent of Martigny, of which that of Saint Bernard is a branch, became possessed of the hospice on the Simplon, and made it a place for the entertainment of travellers. More than 15,000 travellers are entertained here every year, and are expected to leave a gratuity.

About 3 miles on the other side is SIMPLON (Hotel: Post). The bridge of the Lowenbach is five minutes' distance from Simplon. Beyond it, twenty minutes further on, we reach the confluence of the Krummbach with the Quirina, which flows down, through a wild gorge, from the Laven glacier, and after their

union is called Veriola, and lower down Doveria. The hamlet of Goterg, or Algabi, is ten minutes from this confluence, and five minutes beyond is the gallery of Algabi. Upon emegring from this gallery the road enters the gorge of Gondo, one of the wildest and most fearful glens in Switzerland. We now pass the eighth refuge, and a little distance beyond it cross the torrent by il ponte alto, near which is the ninth refuge. A little beyond is the famous gallery of Gondo, one of the finest witnesses to the skill and energy which constructed his magnificent road. In this gallery is a marble tablet with the inscription, "Are Italo, 1805, Nap. Imp." Just at the exit of this gallery the Frassinone leaps from a considerable height. A bridge is carried over the fall. The rocky walls rise almost perpendicularly on both sides of the gorge to a giddy height. About half an hour's walk further is GONDO, the last Valaisan village. Near the chapel, ten minutes beyond Gondo, is the Italian frontier, marked by a granite column, close by the road at the left; and five minutes below it is St Marco, the first Italian village. At Isella (Hotel: Posta) is the Italian Custom-house. The diligences drag heavily through the sand and debris for about eight miles, when the road crosses the Doveria for the last time by a bridge of two arches, 90 feet high, and reaches the village of Crevola. Here issues the River Toccia or Tosa, and we descend into the Val d'Ossola. Here the traveller immediately recognises by the climate that he is in Italy. We soon afterwards arrive at Domo d'Ossola (Hotel de Ville). The town is uninteresting, but the neighbourhood is beautiful, and affords many pleasant excursions. The road now goes along

the valley of the Tosa to VOGOGNA. Here we cross the Tosa, and recross it a little further on, near Ornavasso, in the vicinity of which are the marble quarries out of which were brought the stones of Milan Cathedral. In this neighbourhood were quarried the enormous pillars in the interior of St Paul, outside the walls, at Rome. We cross the Strona at Gravellona. This river works several cotton mills, which we may observe in the neighbourhood. At FARIOLO (Hotel: Lion d'Or) we obtain a glimpse of the Lago Maggiore, and the Isola Madre. Here are quarries of beautiful red granite, and felspar is found in abundance. We proceed to BAVENO.

Two miles farther is STRESA, a most agreeable stopping place on the lake, and the most convenient for visiting the Borromean Islands, which are seen on our left. The diligence stops at the excellent Hotel Iles Borromées at Stresa.

There are steamers several times a day from Stresa to ARONA (Hotel: Italia), the chief port of the lake steamers. (See Route 108.)

We now join the railway (distance, Arona to Milan, 41 miles in 24 hours; fares, first, 7 francs 65 cents.; second, 5 francs 35 cents.), and skirt the lake to SESTO CALENDE, passing which we traverse the plain of the Ticino towards the heights of La Somma. We have a beautiful view of the Alps, including Monte Rosa, as we ascend to SOMMA. We begin now to descend the eastern slopes of the Somma hills, and reach GALLARATE. Here a branch line goes off to VARESE, 26 miles distant. We pass some unimportant places, and arrive at RHO, where we join the line from Turin to Milan. The Triumphal Arch is seen shortly before enter

ing MILAN. (For a description of this city see Route 159.)

ROUTE 116.

BALE TO BIENNE AND BERNE BY THE VAL MOUTIERS.

(Distance to Bienne, 56 miles. Time, 3 hours. Fares, 11.30 frs. and 9.90 frs. Distance from Bienne to Berne, 21 miles. Time, 1 hour. Fares, 1st, 3.75 frs.; 2d, 2.65 frs.)

HE VAL MOUTIERS (in German, Munsterthal) is watered by the Birs, and is considered the grandest valley in the Jura region. It is a continual succession of gorges and defiles, the banks of which are covered with pine-woods, and of verdant meadows and picturesque villages. Since the completion of the railway through it, it has become the favourite route between Bale and the west of Switzerland. The principal stations on the route are Laufen, 14 miles, Delemont, 24 miles, a former residence of the bishops of Bale, 2 miles beyond which latter we enter the romantic Val Moutiers. In this part of our route, the engineering difficulties in the construction of the line were very great, the line being carried through the defile by numerous viaducts, tunnels, and galleries. Passing Moutier, we traverse another wide gorge, and pass Court and several smaller stations to Tavannes, 42 miles, a large town near the source of the Birs. The line passes under the defile of Pierre-Pertius by a

tunnel 1,500 yards long. Soon after we reach Sonceboz, 48 miles, where a line goes off to Chaux-deFonds.

[CHAUX-DE-FONDS (Hotel: Fleur de Lis), one of the great centres of the watch manufacturing industry of Switzerland, a large proportion of whose 20,000 inhabitants are engaged in that manufacture. The division of labour is here carried to a great extent, each part of the watch being made by a separate class of workmen, another class being employed in putting the parts together and finishing them. Five miles farther on, on the same line, is LOCLE (Hotel: du Jura), a town of about 11,000 inhabitants, most of whom, like those of Chaux-de-Fonds, are watchmakers. Twenty-four miles beyond Locle by rail is NEUCHATEL, for description of which see Route 123.]

Resuming our route at Sonceboz, we pass through the valley of Luz, and enter a narrow ravine, one of the most picturesque upon the line. Within a few miles there are four tunnels, beyond the first of which is a cascade formed by the Luz, and on the hill the ruins of a chateau. We now cross the ravine of the Luz upon a high bridge, and leaving the ravine have a beautiful view of the plains about Bienne, and at a distance, in fine weather, of the whole chain of the Alps, from Unterwalden to Mont Blanc. Descending through vineyards, we soon reach BIENNE, for description of which see Route 123.

The railway from Brenne to Berne crosses the Zihl, near Brugg, two miles from Bienne, and three miles farther on crosses the Aar At Lyss, seven miles from Bienne, is the junction of the lines to Lausanne and to Soleure. At Zollikofen we reach the Swiss