Page:My Climbs in the Alps and Caucasus.djvu/212

Rh by shouts for directions from the next man. Some considerable time was then taken in finding a rock to which the rope could be fixed for the aid and comfort of the last man, and altogether at least an hour and a half were expended on this two hundred feet of cliff. Whilst Slingsby and Collie were tying the lower end of the fixed rope to a suitable stone, so that we might be sure of finding it on our way back, Hastings and I started up the easy rocks into the crack. We soon found this latter was not all that could be desired, and we again put on the rope. Our companions quickly caught us up, and we then began the attack in earnest.

The first serious obstruction was formed by a smooth slab quite destitute of hold except for a perpendicular crack between it and the precipitous wall on our right. This crack was in parts too narrow to admit one's fingers, and at no point did it afford really satisfactory hold. Hastings gave me the usual lift, followed by a shove, but owing to the extreme steepness of the slab it was a matter of some difficulty to keep oneself from toppling outwards. Unfortunately the utmost limit at which he could help me was still some six feet from the top, and it became evident that a very serious struggle would have to be made. Moreover, it was impossible to tell whether hold would be found at the top of the slab. Unless there was such hold nothing could be done, for