were displayed to us, one after another, as if the whole had been a sight too great for us to look upon. Sometimes the clouds opened, and the snows, sparkling in the sun-beams, were before us; at others, an enormous peak of the mountain would shoot its dark head through the mist, and, without visible support, seem as if it were about to fall upon us. Again, when we imagined ourselves hemmed in on all sides by the mountains, and within a few feet of their rugged sides, a passing breeze would disclose the dark waters of the lakes hundreds of feet beneath us.
“Thus the effect of light and darkness, of sunshine and of mist, working upon materials of such grandeur as those near the Port of Venasque, was a sight well worthy of admiration, and one which is rarely to be seen. * * * * Excepting the intervals of light which the gusts of wind, by dispersing the mists, had bestowed upon us, we had hitherto, comparatively speaking, been shrouded in darkness, particularly for the ten minutes preceding our arrival at the Port: my astonishment may therefore be imagined when, the instant that I stepped beyond the limits of the Port, I stood in the purest atmosphere—not a particle of mist,
not even a cloud, was perceptible. The phenomenon was curious, and its interest greatly heightened from the situation in which it took place. The mist rolling up the valley through which we had passed, was, the moment that it could be said to reach the Spanish frontier,—the moment it encircled the edges of the high ridges which separated the countries, thrown back, as it were, indignantly, by a counter current from the Spanish side. The conflicting currents of air, seemingly of equal strength, and unable to overcome each other, carried the mist perpendicularly from the summits of the ridge, and filling up the crevices and fissures in its uneven surface, formed a wall many thousand feet above it, of dark and (from the appearance of solidity which its massive and perpendicular character bestowed upon it) apparently impenetrable matter.”
Undoubtedly the various phenomena of clouds may be seen to great advantage in mountain regions; and there is only one other method of seeing them to greater perfection, and that is from the car of a balloon. The following description of an aërial voyage, by Mr. M. Mason, in October 1836, will convey a better idea of the magnificence
of a cloudy sky than any terrestrial prospect could do. He says,—
“Scarcely had we quitted the earth before the clouds, which had previously overhung us, began to envelop us on all sides, and gradually to exclude the fading prospect from our sight. It is scarcely possible to convey an adequate idea of the effect produced by this apparently trivial occurrence. Unconscious of our own motion from any direct impression upon our own feelings, the whole world appeared to be in the act of receding from us in the dim vista of infinite space; while the vapoury curtain seemed to congregate on all sides and cover the retreating masses from our view. The trees and buildings, the spectators and their crowded equipages, and finally, the earth itself, at first distinctly seen, gradually became obscured by the thickening mist, and growing whiter in their forms, and fainter in their outlines, soon faded away ‘like the baseless fabric of a vision,’ leaving us, to all appearance, stationary in the cloud that still continued to involve us in its watery folds. To heighten the interest and maintain the illusion of the scene, the shouts and voices of the multitude whom we had left behind us, cheering the ascent, continued to assail us, (long after the interposing clouds had effectually concealed them from our eyes,) in accents which every moment became fainter and fainter till they were finally lost in the increasing distance.
“Through this dense body of vapour, which may be said to have commenced at an altitude of about 1000 feet, we were borne upwards to perhaps an equal distance, when the increasing light warned us of our approach to its superior limits, and shortly after, the sun and we rising together, a scene of splendour and magnificence suddenly burst upon our view, which it would be vain to expect to render intelligible by any mode of description within our power. Pursuing the illusion, which the previous events had been so strongly calculated to create, the impression upon our senses was that of entering upon a new world to which we had hitherto been strangers, and in which not a vestige could be perceived to remind us of that we had left, except the last faint echo of the voices which still dimly reached us, as if out of some interminable abyss into which they were fast retreating.
“Above us not a single cloud appeared to disfigure the clear blue sky, in which the sun on one side, and the moon in her first quarter on the other, reigned in undisturbed tranquillity. Beneath us, in every direction, as far as the eye could trace, and doubtless much further, the whole plane of vision was one extended ocean of foam, broken into a thousand fantastic forms; here swelling into mountains, there sinking into lengthened fosses, or exhibiting the appearance of vast whirlpools; with such a perfect mimicry of the real forms of nature, that, were it not for a previous acquaintance with the general character of the country below us, we should frequently have been tempted to assert, without hesitation, the existence of mountainous islands penetrating through the clouds, and stretching in protracted ranges along the distant verge of our horizon.
“In the centre of this hemisphere, and at an elevation of about 3000 feet above the surface of the clouds, we continued to float in solitary magnificence; attended only at first by our counterpart—a vast image of the balloon itself with all its paraphernalia distinctly thrown by the sun upon the opposite masses of vapour, until we had risen so high that even that, outreaching the material basis of its support, at length deserted us; nor did we again perceive it until, preparatory to our final descent, we had sunk to a proper elevation to admit of its re-appearance.
“Not the least striking feature of our, and similar situations, is the total absence of all perceptible motion, as well as of the sound which, in ordinary cases, is ever found to accompany it. Silence and tranquillity appear to hold equal and undisputed sway throughout these airy regions. No matter what may be the convulsions to which the atmosphere is subjected, nor how violent its effects in sound and motion upon the agitated surface of the earth, not the slightest sensation of either can be detected by the individual who is floating in its currents. The most violent storm, the most outrageous hurricane, pass equally unheeded and unfelt; and it is only by observing the retreating forms of the stable world beneath, that any certain indication can be obtained as to the amount or violence of the motion to which the individual is actually subjected. This, however; was a resource of which we were unable to avail ourselves, totally excluded as we were from all view of the earth, or any fixed point connected with it.
“Once, and only once, for a few moments preparatory to our final descent, did we obtain a transitory glimpse of the world beneath us. Upon approaching the upper surface of the vapoury strata, which we have described as extending in every direction around, a partial opening in the clouds discovered to us for an instant a portion of the earth, appearing as if dimly seen through a vast pictorial tube, rapidly receding behind us, variegated with furrows, and intersected with roads running in all directions; the whole reduced to a scale of almost graphic minuteness, and from the fleecy vapour that still partially obscured it, impressing the beholder with the idea of a vision of enchantment, which some kindly genius had, for an instant, consented to disclose. Scarcely had we time to snatch a hasty glance, ere we had passed over the spot, and the clouds uniting gradually concealed it from our view.
“After continuing for a short space further, in the vain hope of being again favoured with a similar prospect, the approach of night made it desirable that we should prepare for our return to earth, which we proceeded to accomplish accordingly.”
CHAPTER II.
effects of rain in mountainous districts—the district of moray—the great floods of 1829—commencement of the rain—the swollen rivers—disastrous effects of the flood—means adopted for the rescue of cottagers—kerr and his brave deliverers—rescue of funns and his family—floods of the rhone in 1840—overflowing of the mississippi.