PASSES AND ROUTES. The passage of the Western Alps is made by five principal roads: (1) The military road, La Corniche, a coast road at the foot of the Alps from Nice to Genoa, parallel to which a railway now runs. (2) The road over the Col-di-Tenda, between Nice and ('uneo, made in 1778; highest point. 6150 feet. (3) The high road over Mont Genevre, connecting Provence and with Turin; highest point, 6100 feet. (,4) The carriage road made by Napoleon in 1803, over Mont Cenis, connecting Savoy with Piedmont: high est point. 6850 feet. Near this the chain is pierced V the railway tunnel of Mont Cenis. (5) The pass of the Little St. Bernard, con necting Savoy and Piedmont; highest point 7150 feet. The passage of the Central Alps is made by eight principal roads: (1) That of the Great St. Bernard, connecting the valley of the Rhone with Piedmont; highest point, 8120 feet. It was crossed by Napoleon in 1800. (2) The magnificent road over the Simplon, which moun tain is pierced by the Simplon railway tunnel at a level below that of the St. Gothard tunnel, was constructed by Napoleon, 1801-06. and connects Valais with the confines of Piedmont and Lom bardy; highest point, 6590 feet. (3) Tile pass of St. Gothard, connecting Lucerne with Lago :Maggiore: highest point, 6936 feet. One of the great Alpine railway tunnels is the St. Gothard. (See Sr. GOTIL A I:D. ( 4 ) The San Bernardino Pass: highest point, 6770 feet. (5) The Spill gen Pass, connecting the sources of the Rhine with the Adda, highest point, 6945 feet. This pass was the one used by the Romans in their intercourse with the countries bordering on the Danube and the Rhine, and also by the German armies on their marches into Italy in the Middle Ages. (6) The Furka Pass, separat ing the heads of the Rhine and Rhone, and crossed by a wagon road at an altitude of 7992 feet. (7) The St•lvio l'ass (Stilfser Jodi), on the frontiers of Tyrol and Lombardy, traversed by the most elevated carriage road in Europe: its highest point, 9553 feet. (S) The Brenner Pass known to the Romans, on the road from Innsbruck to Trent and Verona, highest point 4409 feet. It is now crossed by a railway. Be sides these great roads, leading south into Italy, there are two which lead north from the valley of the Rhone, and cross the Bernese Alps, over the Grimsel Pass, 7103 feet high, and the Gemmi Pass, 7640 feet high. The roads over the Eastern Alps are much lower and also much more nmer ous than those in the :Middle or Western Alps.
The principal arc: (1) The road from Venice to Salzburg, crossing the .No•ie Alps at an ele vation of rather more than 5000 feet. (2) The road over the Carnic Alps. which divides into three branches—the first leading to Laibach, the second to the valley of the Isonzo, and the third to the valley of the Tagliamento. (3) The roads from the Danube at Linz to Laibach.
There are four railways crossing the 'Western and Central Alps: The Mont Cenis, conneeting, France with Italy; the St. Gothard, connecting Lake Lucerne with Lago Maggiore; the Sim plon, from the upper Rhone Valley to Lago Maggiore. and the Brenner, from Munich and Innsbruck to Verona and Venice. The Arlberg railway, which pierces the Alps in the Arlberg Tunnel, is the great highway between Switzer land and Austria. Besides these through lines, there are many extending into the heart of the mountains. From the upper valley of the Aar many lines extend southward into the Bernese, and Glarner Alps to Interlaken, Lauter brunnen, and Grindelwald, and to Brienz, ,lieir ingen, Lucerne, and Linthal. A railway up the Rhone Valley, with a branch to Zermatt, in the Pennine Alps. (In the Italian side several railways penetrate the mountains to considerable distances. The Eastern Alps are crossed by several railway lines, which subdivide and join, sending off ninny branches within the mountain area. Many of the points affording the grand est views in the Alps are now reached by moun tain railway:: the Gornegrat Railway. the highest railway in Europe, in the vicinity of the Matterhorn, climbing up to an elevation of 9908 feet. The most extensive panorama to be had from any easily accessible point is that obtained from the summit of the Rigi, a peak near Im eerne, less than 6000 feet high. As a pleas ure ground for the lovers of grand scenery and adventurous mountain climbers, the Alps are the most attractive region on the earth. It is a truism that the most valuable of Switzerland's assets is the scenery of the Alps. Not that these are the finest mountains on the face of the globe, but there are no others eomparabl• with them which are so accessible, and in which living and travel are so pleasant and easy. Railways and carriage roads traverse these mountains in all directions. At the best scenic points arc excel lent botch, and guides are provided for conduct ing visitors to all points. Hence every year tens of thousands of travelers visit the Alps from all parts of the civilized world.