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oentlemen—Mr. John Randall [()\L])h Bean, of Baitimore—in with a Mr. McCorkimdale, a Scotch minister from Grourock, ascended the mountain with three guides and five porters. T'he weather was exceptionally fine, and the summit was reached without adventure. But suddenly a cloud descended., It was the falling of the curtain on the lives of all those cleven men. The cloud became a densce tog, and a fowrnicnte arosc. Night came, out the ill-starred caravan had not returncd to the cabance. During cieht days the storm continued, and the fog shut out everything. All attempts at succour were absolutely tmpossible. Men could no live on the crucel mountamm i that Zowr- menle, nor could they ind their way m the dense mist. At last, when the weather changed, a secarch ])alty went out. Lying in the snow, ncar the summit, and as 1f they were asleep, were ten bodies, m- cluding the three travellers) three guides, and four porters. They had all been frozen to death. "The body of the cleventh man

American and Mr.

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O DEATIL

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was never found. It is supposed he had made an endcavour to oct back to the cabanc to obtain succour, (m(l had perished N a crey In the pocket of Mr. Bean was a diary, in which he had continued to make notes until the cold had frozen his hands and feet and he could write no more. The Tast entry is terrible in its pathm — “We have nothing to cat ; my feet are already frozen, and I am dmng‘. I have only the stluwth to write a few morc

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words. I dic with faith in God, and my last thoughts are of you (his wife). Adicu to all. T hope we shall meet in heaven.”

The Teading guide was an intrepid fellow, named Jean Balmat, a descendant of t}u renowned family of guides. It was his forticth ascent but ’111 his experience and all his courage could avail nothing agains the mighty f(nu:x()t Nature. T'he mountain was in a sullen mood, and he exacted the penalty of all those Tives,

[t s pleasant to turn from this tragedy to a morce romantic page in the story. A voung lady, Miss Isabella Straton, who had ‘lllt'l(l\ made three summer Elb(,LH[.\, Was ambitious of gaining the summit in winter. Possessed of indomitable courage and extra- ordimary powers of endurance, xhc wWas un- deterred by the current stories of Isupport - able cold, and she started from Chamonix on the morning of January 28, 1876, accom- panicd by two guides—one of thun being Jean Charlet, \\}mh wl already greatly distin. oshed lnmscll as a mountameer—and two porters. They left Grrands Mulets the followimg morning, and had proceeded some distance when one of the porters fell mnto a crevasse. Alter considerable diificulty he was rescued, very con- siderably bruised and battered. The party were o con- scquently neces- sitated to return to the cabane and

spend another night there. A\ fresh start was

made on the fol- lowing day, the wounded porter beine lett behind. The swmmit was \ucccsslull} gained ; the dav bemne magnificent in its clearncss, but the cold was fearful, 20 dceerees of I\LZIUI]]UI being marked. Both Miss Straton and Guide Charlet were frostbitten, and only a few minutes could be spent on the dome. This mtrepid lady accomplished a double feat that day, for she won a husband also. She fell in love with her ouide, Jean Charlet

and married him, Jemg w caltl1\ and w Lll connected, she raised her husband from the