MOUNTAIN CLIMBING, formerly re garded as exploration or adventure, now rec ognized as one of the hardier outdoor sports. At first regarded as extremely perilous, moun tain climbing or mountaineering now claims hundreds of thousands among its devotees. The effort, endurance and skill required by the sport are in themselves physical virtues which carry their own rewards. Far beyond this is the profound mental invigoration from associa tion with nature in her most majestic phases and awe-inspiring moods. Mountain climbing may be properly viewed as of two distinct classes, according to the goal to be attained— the low mountains, or the high mountains. The ascent of the lower mountains like the White Mountains, the Adirondacks, or the Carolina mountains is a very common amusement for summer visitors in such regions, and demands no special adaptability. The slight rarefaction of the air at the elevation to which these sum mits reach do not seriously affect the untrained climber. But for elevations higher than 10,000 feet above the sea-level a special type of phys ical development is required, and as a rule a long and persistent cultivation becomes neces sary. There are a few individuals who are naturally fit, possessing the requisite qualifica tions without preliminary training. They are of the class who have at sea-level a pulse beat below the normal — about 60 beats to the min ute. This slow pulse will have risen to not more than 70 or 75 beats per minute at 10,000 feet elevation, while a normal pulse beat of 70 at sea-level will rise to 90 or 95 at 10,000 feet, with the consequent distress, requiring frequent and prolonged rests. But aside from this pecu liar physical disposition other qualifications are needed to make a successful and exultant mountaineer —a delicate sense of balance, cool headedness, fearlessness, imperturbability, be sides superabundant muscular strength. The course of training to which an ambitious mem ber of the British Alpine Club submits him self begins with rock and crag climbing among his home mountains; and then follow progres sively the Swiss mountains, the Caucasus, the Southern Alps of New Zealand. the Siberian
Atlas or the mountains of Chinese Turkestan, and last, the Himalayas. It is a fact, however, that several of the high Himalayas do not de mand as much real climbing as mountains much lower, for in not a few cases mules may he taken in the Himalayas to heights of 18,000 to 20,000 feet, leaving comparatively little toil to the mountaineer. On the more rugged mountains the ascent of 3,000 feet elevation is regarded as a full day's work.
While there are several rumored ascents of mountains which have gained through repeti tion a certain historical position, it is generally accepted that the pioneer of mountaineering as it is understood to-day was Jacques Balmat, who, with Michel Paccard, at the instigation of the scientist de Saussure, made the ascent of Mont Blanc in 1786. The following season Balmat piloted Professor de Saussure and a party safely to the same summit. Ascents of other Alpine peaks were soon recorded, but they were almost exclusively by explorers for scientific information. Amateurs began to be come interested in 'the sport soon after 1850, and a party of English tourists succeeded in as cending Mont Blanc without a native guide in 1856. But the systematic and scientific climb ing of mountains had its growth from the for mation in 1857 of the first Alpine Club in Lon don, which was organized to enlarge "the com munity of feeling among those who in the life of the High Alps have shared the same enjoy ments, the same labors and the same dangers.)) Alpine Clubs.—Alpine clubs and mountain climbing societies have since been organized in nearly all continental countries. The European clubs and societies have an aggregate member ship of over 120,000; the consolidated German and Austrian clubs having 75,000; Italian, 14, 000; French, 6,000; and Swiss, 12,000.