Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume I.djvu/378

 354 ALPS peculiar to the Alps, and, with the eagle, com- mits serious ravages on the sheepfolds of the loftier pasturage grounds. Nearly one half of all the known birds, resident or of passage, in central Europe, inhabit the Alps. The number of reptiles is not large, but four or live species of them are not found elsewhere. In the valleys of the Hautes-Alpes, the Basses- Alpes, Isere, Aosta. and the Orisons, as well as some other of the narrow and ill-ventilated ravines of the Alps, a large proportion of the inhabitants are affected with goitre and cretinism. The Alps were formerly deemed almost impassable. Large bodies of men, hemmed in by the deep snows, perished miserably in attempting to cross them, and Hannibal's bold passage over them was considered for ages a more daring feat of military prowess than his subsequent victories. Now, however, nearly every portion is crossed by good roads. The principal roads crossing the Alps are over the following passes, of which the chief connect Switzerland with Italy: 1. The Mont Cenis, 6,773 feet high, built under Napoleon I. in 1803-'10, was crossed by diligences in eight hours, from St. Michel to Susa, connecting with the Chambery and Turin railway. The temporary Fell rail- way, opened in 1868, has been superseded by the celebrated tunnel, which lies about 16 m. from the Mont Cenis pass. It was begun in 1857, and inaugurated at Bardonnecchia, Sept. 17, 1871. On the Mont Cenis pass there is a hospice with 40 rooms. 2. The Little St. Ber- nard (hospice 7,076 feet high), one of the old- est and easiest passages, supposed to have been crossed by Hannibal, was designed by Napo- leon I. as a military road connecting Grenoble with Aosta and thence with Turin. There is a carriage road from Courmayeur to La Thuile, and a new road was opened in 1868 from the hospice to Bourg St. Maurice. The latter place is reached from Courmayeur in about 9J hours. The boundary line of France and Italy passes along the crest of the road. 3. The Col de Balme pass, 7,218 feet, from Martigny to Chamouni, is celebrated for its view of Mont Bhinc, though inferior in variety to the Tete Noire pass (23 m.), which leads over the same ground and is much frequented. 4. The Great St. Bernard, about 8,000 feet, from Martigny to Aosta, 47 m., connecting with Turin, and celebrated for its hospice and dogs. This pass was crossed by Napoleon I. with 30,000 men in 1800. 5. The Simplon, 6,628 feet high, a colossal work of Napoleon I., built in 1800-'6, extending from Brieg to Do- mo d'Ossola, 46| m., connecting Geneva with Milan. The carriage road formerly began at Sierre, but the distance between that place and Brieg, 23 m., is now passed by railway. 6. The new carriage road over the Furca pass, 8,150 feet, completed in 1867, and connecting the St. Gothard directly with tuf valley of the Rh6ne, has considerably increased the traffic across the Upper Valais, the Bernese Alps, and the Simplon. It runs closer to the glaciers than any other road excepting the Stelvio. The Schreckhorn, the Finsteraarhorn, and the range from Monte Leone to the Weisshorn, are seen from this road. 7. The St. Gothard. A railroad over the St. Gothard pass (6,936 feet) is in course of construction, Italy contrib- uting 45,000,000 francs, Switzerland 20,000,- 000, the North German Confederation 10,000,- 000, the grand duchy of Baden 3,000,000, and the other German states the additional cost. Until the completion of this railway, the road over the St. Gothard (built in 1820-'30) con- tinues to be crossed by the diligence from Flue- len to Bellinzona in about 15 hours, connecting Lucerne with Milan. The passage was known to the Romans. Avalanches caused great loss of life in 1478, 1624, and 1814, the road being unprotected against precipices. Suvaroff 's suc- cesses over the French in 1799 are recorded in an inscription on the top of the mountain. 8. Bernardino, 6,770 feet, built in 1822, ex- tending from Coire to Bellinzona, distance by diligence 16 hours, and thence connecting with Milan. A bridge over the Rhine, below the village of Hinterrhein, the Marscholhorn, and the Schwarzhorn, are the principal sights. The road was known to the Romans. 9. The Splugen, 6,495 feet, built in 1818-'22, crossed in about fourteen hours from Coire to Chiavenna, connecting with Milan. Macdon- ald's troops, while crossing the Splugen, Nov. 27 to Dec. 4, 1800, were almost buried by avalanches, nearly 100 men and as many horses being lost. 10. The Bernina, 7,672 feet, connecting the Engadine by way of Sa- maden and Tirano, 39 m., with the Valtellina. A footpath of 10 hours, up the Val de Fani to the Col of La Strella, leads to the baths of Bormio (Worms). The old path over the Ber- nina is so dangerous that horsemen prefer the huge circuit by Pisciadella. 11. The Julier pass, 7,558 feet, from Coire to the Engadine. The road begins at Churwalden and ends at Samaden. That by the Valbella pass meets the Julier road at Tiefenkasten, whence there are three passages, through the Julier, Val- bella, and Albula passes, to the celebrated val- ley of the Inn. 12. The Stelvio pass, 9,100 feet, connecting Milan with Innspruck. It is 1 the highest Alpine road practicable for car- riages. It was built in 1820-'25 from Stelvio (Stilfs), a village of Tyrol, to Bormio, in the Valtellina, and extended in 1825-'34 to Lecco on the lake of Como. This pass is remarkable for glaciers, especially of the Ortles range, for the gorge of Spondalunga, and above all for the scenery of the lake of Como. The damage done to the road in the Austro-Italian war of 1859 has been repaired. 13. The principal road connecting Tyrol with Lombardy is the railway over the Brenner, from Innspruck to Botzen, opened in August, 1867. The old road, known to the Romans as Mons Brennius, has been ac- cessible to carriages since 1772, and is crossed in four hours. This pass was one of the scenes of the Tyrolese rebellion of 1809. 14. The