The Argosy — page 69: what you’re looking at

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56 A Night in a Monastery, pitched upon this miserable day for the expedition. It had certainly heen cloudy even at the commencement; but H., who affects weather- wisdom, felt convinced, from certain signs he took much trouble to point out to me, and which I vainly strained eyesight to discover, that — the morning would tvra out splendidly. We started, with the result seen. — At St. Laurent du Pont we entered the café, whilst the omnibus- driver went in search of a vehicle to take us up to the monastery. It as his business to do this, not ours; the omnibus-office in Grenoble undertakes to convey you to the Grande Chartreuse, and to furnish the necessary means of doing so. In about twenty minutes, while indulg- ing in some of the liqueur manufactured by the monks, there was a rattling heard over stones, a sound of hoofs, and our carriage, with quite a fashionable dash and uproar, stood at the door. Of all the wretched vehicles ever drawn by pitiable cattle this was the worst. Something after the fashion of a French cabriolet. It went upon two wheels to begin with: and, in respect of comfort, it may be admitted, without argument, that, under certain conditions, two wheels for two people may be made to serve all the purposes of four. But the conditions were absent. No springs; a back seat, under cover of a hood, for messieurs les voyageurs ; a front seat, beyond the shelter of the hood, for the coachman ; the back seat stuffed, the stuffing wet; the front seat a board, the board soaked.. We had no rug with us, an | insane omission ; and they found a substitute that must have reposed 7 on the rooftop of the coach-house all the prévious night. Behind us, in the back of the machine, was a window, about nine inches square, ‘Seems draughty,” said H., when we had journeyed a few yards, shrugging his shoulders, and turning up his coat collar with a shiver. I thought so too, and, turning, touched the window. Nothing but empty space and air. It was a hole; the window was broken, and had been carefully removed, affording a perfect system of ventilation. « Lively,” said H. “Shan’t forget this in a hurry; especially if a fellow gets laid up with a six weeks’ spell of rheumatism.” , But for quite the first half of the journey no snow fell, and that was - something. It was a time to be thankful for small mercies. We had reached St. Laurent du Pont about ten o’clock, and by half- past ten were again en route. ‘Turning to the right we immediately entered the gorge leading to the monastery, and for nearly two hours were continually ascending a steep mountain pass. ! The pass is one of great interest. In a very few minutes we had left behind us all signs of life and habitation, and were alone with the mountains. To our left hand, at the commencement, the torrent ran over its rocky bed, and soon nothing but the running stream and the road separated the two ranges of mountains. The water, notwithstand- ing the weather, was of .a transparent emerald green of great clearness and beauty; beauty which yet must be considerably heightened Gomichbooks.com