Austria-Hungary . robably not long survive. A few of these inns do indeed still exist but theyare far in the recesses of the country, and on thebeaten track have been replaced by hotels ofthe usual type in every district. On this the first journey the travellers did notreally make acquaintance with the Dolomites, theyonly saw them from afar; the first group they sawin the distance, needle-pointed, pale and altogetherweird-looking, soaring into the evening sky, be-witched the party, and they never rested till theycame again and yet again at intervals of years andgrew to know them familiarly. Re
Austria-Hungary . robably not long survive. A few of these inns do indeed still exist but theyare far in the recesses of the country, and on thebeaten track have been replaced by hotels ofthe usual type in every district. On this the first journey the travellers did notreally make acquaintance with the Dolomites, theyonly saw them from afar; the first group they sawin the distance, needle-pointed, pale and altogetherweird-looking, soaring into the evening sky, be-witched the party, and they never rested till theycame again and yet again at intervals of years andgrew to know them familiarly. Returning alone in 1860, Mr. Churchill was ableto penetrate the very heart of the district, approach-ing from the Botzen side. He gives a word-pictureof the famous Marmolata peak as he first saw it: This mountain—which might be compared in generalform to one of those mahogany cases for stationery whichare to be found in most counting-houses of the present day—has its slope, a very steep one, to the north. To the. THE DOLOMITES 179 south, east, and west it is perfectly precipitous and presentsnothing but walls of bare rock. Glaciers cover the greaterpart of the slope, and their melting supplies the springs ofthe Avisio which takes its rise immediately below them;... its height, variously estimated, but which may be takenat 11,200 feet, raises it far above its loftiest stands in a line of ridge that runs from north tosouth through the western Dolomite district and marksthe point where the divergent valleys of the Avisio andCordevole originate. Seeing it from the other side later he adds : From this side the Marmolata presents the most strikingcontrast to the smooth glacier and rock-slopes and bosseswhich are seen on its northern aspect. Not a particle ofslope except the profile of the flattish snowy dome isvisible ; all else is sheer precipice, presented cornerwiseto the eye, while its jagged edges retreat foreshortened tothe north-west and east till lost to view.
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1910, bookidaustriahunga, bookyear1915
