Tax LATE ASCENT OF MONT BLANC.

The ascent of Mont Blano by Mr. Albert Smith and- three other Eng- lish gentlemen was described last week, in a short letter from-the charge-

teristically rapid pen of Mr. Smith. This week, Mr. G. GI Floyd, ano-

ther of the party, has described the feat in a letterfhll of' picturesque details. The project was conceived by Mr. Floyd and two "reading friends," while rowing on the Lake of Geneva not long since ; and at the juncture when- the weather became fine Mr. Albert Smith joined the party : " to him," says- Mr. Floyd, " we owe a great deal• of the vast amount of pleasure that we enjoyed."

"It was half-past-seven o'clock when our party of four amateurs, sixteen guides, and several.-porters and volunteers, having assisted at a breakfast laid

out in the court of the hotel, started : and, malty it was a fine sight—the people of the hotel showing every imaginable civility, the peasants wishing us bon voyage,' and our guides (splendid fellows) leading the way with their long poles and various equipments." Breakfast was taken at the Echelle—" so called from a ladder always kept there to cross the crevices." The ascent was then continued to the point from which they crossed the glaciers. "The tremendous masses of green ice—the awful crevices--the

sky, from no darker contrast than the snow, looking a deep blue—the long file of-travellers, all tied with a rope-together—all made it a moetimpressive

sight, which I am glad to say I could perfectly enjoy, not feeling in- any

degree tired. Some of the crevices we crossed by a ladder being thrown across them, and walking on the cross-bars; some we crossed on little bridges of frozen snow ; and one was a very peculiar one—the ladder had to be placed nearly perpendicularly from the lower part on which -we stood, resting on a huge wall of ice, separated from us by a tremendous crevice, so that, risonuting on the ladder, you looked down into an endless depth below you, and, as the ladder was not long enough to surmount the walls, steps were cat from its top into the ice with a hatchet."

The Grande Mulets were reached at four o'clock; and the guides lighted fires with wood which they picked up on the lower walks of the mountain. "All the time, glasses had been directed towards us from Chatnouni ; and on placing our feet on the rock, we were saluted by guns below, which fired to announce our arrival thus far." After some rest, the Writer looked around him : he despairingly attempts to convey the faintest idea of "a sunset up here." " Fancy yourself on a rock descending nearly perpendicularly • sitting on a ledge ; snow above and snow below ; the shades gathering, the light turning from gold to purple, from purple to blue, from blue to green, to lilac, grey, in fact, to all colours the sky can assume ; the solemn silence only inter- rupted by occasional avalanches booming behind us."

When all was ready to attempt to sleeps the guides lit a fire before us ;

and I mused myself to sleep by talking, listening to the stories still going on around me, watching the flickering flame that lighted up the splendid figures- of our guides, who stood mend it singing choruses remarkably well ; occasionally raising myself on my elbow to catch a last glimpse of the re- maining lights in the IN eat; and last, not least, looking at the summit of that

Mont Blanc which had just caught the moon, changing all the mountains from a purple to a pure silver." " TWO of the guides went straight on with lanterns, to track out the snow and try it for our departure at twelve &Flock : and their lanterns glimmering in the snowy distance looked like spirits of the mountaime disturbed by our intrusion,"

At midnight, the ascent was resumed,- by moonlight. " Onward we toiled (for it really became toil, mad I mast honestly confess that neither the la- bour nor the danger of mounting Mont Blanc has been overrated) till me

came to the Grand Plateau, the only-flat path over which our path lay. (To give voa an idea of the steepness of the ascent, I will tell you that I threw a

bottle down, which went at such a rate that it cleared two crevasses, one after the other, each of which was at least fifty or sixty feet across.) One place I shall never forget. A huge square mass of snow—which, to say the

Ieast, considerably enlarged my ideas, though not sufficiently so to enable me to realize its massiveness—about as large as a hundred of the largest houses I ever saw, as it appeared, leant over our way : to give you a little idea of its size, if it had fallen it would have-completely covered the whole of our single file, consisting of about thirty-eight people, one behind the other at some distance, attached by ropes to each other. As I was regarding it in utter astonishment, my guide touched me; and, pointing to a crevasse

between it and us, whispereds 'There three guides were loerthe year before last'; and I heard- a guide-say to my friend behind, 'Here it was I lost my

father: You may imagine how all this tended to add the intenseet so- lemnity to the scene ; and, it anything was wanted to' increase it, it was found in the advice of my guides not to speak, for fear of bringing down an

avalanche,—though. this, I seeped,. . . The sun was now

risen, and glad.I -was to see his lighten. the height above. The party now assumed their blue and green spectacles to protect their eyes, guidon we went tin we reached 'the Route Rouge ; where we rested a few minutes in the sun. Here I became completely myself again ; having really suffered considerably, though I repeat I was never better in my.life than I am now. My two friends were also perfectly welL Mr. Albert Smith was perfectly done up, and had to be dragged the rest of the way. His courage was such as I have never yet seen. It.was curious to look at each other ; every one was per- fectly black in the face : of course I could not see my own, but once when I took off my lined fur glevea-my hands were as black as ink, though the curious effeet.was unattended. with pain; . the real diffieultybeing to reaist sleep, . whiCh-if you yielded, you. would. never awake. " Passing round. the Route Rouge, the. dome. of Mont Blanc, which is as regular as St...Paurs, came in sight; and I' felt as if I. could have climbed bizmwere he-twine aa far off. The whole of our steps were now cut with a hatchet in the ice ; and the being tied together was of the greatest use, having savedeach of our lives about three times,, for if you slipped you were immediately held up and saved from going down into some yawnitig_crevice. At nine o'clock in the morning; we stepped an the top,; and you must endea- vour to conceive the thrill of delight,--shaking hands all round, congratu- Wing each other, opening champagne bottles, lighting cigars, pulling chick- ensto pieces; and all the-effects of the. wildest transport: Hiving-partly re- fevered. from .this; I prooeeded to egamintithe•view ; of which I shall only sayi, had the appearance of se laege sea; of which the.wavea.were mountain,. tops, far, far below me,. eaehe mauntain like a. small wave, and yet each mountain oneof the highest in Europe. Without the slightest inesavenienee we stopped at the top about twenty-five minutes, filled with interesting thoughts ; and we were told that, the glasses having discovered that we were at the top, the cannons pealed away at- Chamouni to announce the fact, though we did not hearthenr. I.was also told below that Sir Robert-Peel had- watehed'us all night- (having arrived just after we started) with a glass, and kept all the peopleof the place drinking our healths all night. He had gone before we reached the bottom." The descent was rapid enough, "especially as we slid;. sitting. down when- ever items safe to do. so." "One.of.the guides all but slid into a crevasse; but not the slightest accident occurred, during the whole of our journey.: The sliding down was‘splendid fun after the work of walking. Some places were nearly perpendicular, and I am sure even in &railway I-never went so fast. Some ladies who watched us with the, glasses from Chamouni quite pee us up for lost ; saying, that they saw little dots falling with tremen- dous velocity down the precipices,—which must have been the effect-pro, duced, for in ascending the glasses could not perceive any progress in our dole. This will give you- some idea of our speed. In descending, the guides palled up to look at a very remarkable sight, through a tremendous wall of ice, which seemed to end in the sky ; a large natural arch had formed itself in the bluest crystal, through which you looked down a seemingly inter- minable depth of rallies till your.eye lost itself in the distance. This struck me as much as anything, particularly as the arch through which you caught the view was. comparatively of very small span, .or rather as small as things are.upin those regions, where.you. lose all idea of comparison." Crossing the glacier -ennui return was a ticklish affair. "We had:nearly to rum it being unsafe to continue in one position long, and jumping over small cre- one of these, the man who held me behind by the rope, in ed, the rope short, and.I.was suspended in the little crevice,

ledim. agein. (The reason of the increased danger was the The increase of visitors to Greenwich Hospital, Woolwich Dockyard, and the Thames Tunnel, this year beyond last year, ie enormous. In the three months of May, June, July, 1850, there visited the Painted Hall in Green- wich Hospita1.20,398 persons; in the same months of this year the number was 78,671. The visitors to other parts increased In a stillgreater propor- tion, so that the total, increase was 251,000 persons. The foreigners rose from 4640 to 60,890. At the Woolwich Dockyard the total number of visit- ors-for June, July,.. and August, 1860, was 6922; 91 of whom were foreign- ers. The total. number for the same period' this year is. 28,'926 ; of whom 3315 were foreigners. Attlie Woolwich Arsenal, the returns show a total of 9976 for the same three months of 1850; of whom 150 were foreigners. The numbers this year have increased to 28,250.; including 2072 foreigners. Upwards of 5000 persons have been landed daily from the Watermen and the Old Woolwich Companies' steamers during the last two months, to visit the Thames Tunnel. Th.: Greenwich and Woolwich steam-boat traffic during this season has exceeded that of last year by 346,000 persons.

M. Leon Faueherhas just performed a, need which indicates true progress. It is well known that there is a struggl • between the route by Trieste and that by Marseilles for the transport of the Indian. despatches. A service by electric telegraph 'has just been organized between Ostend and Trieste, which gives to the latter city the-advantage in point of celerity in the transmission of important news. In order to' ward off this blow and to sustain the strug- gle, hi. Mitchell, director of the company which uses the route by Marseilles, demanded authority from the. Minister of the Interior to transmit by electric telegraph.to Calais, passing by Paris, the news received by the Indian M. L5on Faucher accorded this favour with alacrity, and it will reestablish the advantage in favour of the line by Marseilles.—E Independence Beige, August 23.

vices. his.anxiety„ but directly, softening thawed snow, intow.hichwe sankta our waists at each step,)' At the Gaseade de Pelerina, "once more in the habitable world," a. large party came out to meet.them. " The.news of apart having ascended Mont Blanc brought hundreds of people to Chamouni; and, sadly against our will, we.were forced to enter on. mules. in triumph. (As,bir. Albert Smith re- marked, We. are once more on the Grand Melee) Ton may imagine the enthusiasm wheal. tell you, that directly we mate in. sight cannons were fired in a manner regardless of expense. If we entered a wood, we were

sure to be saluted_directly camel& sight ; again; if we turned a corner, ditto.; and two nice girti, otherwise shy; rushed. frantically and seized both my hands; all the streets of'Chamouni were crowded, bands of music; fire- works, cannons, all going off at-once ; and, having arrived at the hotel court, we saw.a regular little altar prepared with candles, flowers, and champagne, which the master of 'the hotel made us drink—to be• looked at—when I was uncommonly glad to escape and get into a bath and proceed to dinner. Next morning .I left Ohamouni, and really almost cried. whilst shaking hands all round with theguides—splendid fellows, with whom I could go anywhere." [The ascent on the same day., made. by Mr. Vansittart, was mentioned lest week. It appears- that this gentleman was accompanied not by " a large caravan of guides and porters," but by." three. guides, and by one porter for part of the way." He started four hours after the other party,"—profiting, perhaps, by their exploratory tracks on the midnight march by moonlight ; and arrived at the summit- "about the same time as the other party." Each party is-silent respecting the ascent made by the other. Mr. Vansittart, . refuung the assistance of the rope across the Glacier de Boissons, missed his footing, and nearly. went into an abyss, (bugging the porter and a. guide with. him. The guide saved them both. Mr. Vansittart lost the Una Othifl, eyes; for two. days, hutis now perfectly recovered.]

A lefty bent Vienna states that the railway from Mestre to Treviso in Lombardy has just been completed, and will soon be opened to the public.

The directors of the Peninsular and Oriental Steam-ship Company have given orders for the construction- of a class of iron paddle-wheel steamers, which they expect will surpass in speed and other qualities any of the exist- ing-ooean-going vessels constructed either on this or on the other side of the Atlantic. They are to be of 800-horse power, and are expected to make the passage between Southampton and Alexandria in from nine to ten days.

• Excursion and return tickets to the West Indies are now issued by- the Royal West India Mail Packet Company. Persons can visit Madeira, or any of the places included in the West India Mail Packet scheme, in the COM.- pan)es packets ; and if they embark on board any of the homeward, packets within six months from the date of issue of their passage-tickets, a consider., able saving is effected.

The Demerara steam-ship to be constructed by Messrs. Patterson and Co. at Bristol, for the Royal West India Mail Packet Company, will be very little inferior in size to the Great Britain. Her length between the perpen- diculars is 282 feet, over all 316 feet ; being about six feet shorter than the Great Britain ; breadth of beam 41 feet, extreme width front the outside of the paddle-boxes 751 feet ; depth to the main deck 26' feet 8 inches; depth of spar deck 7 feet. Tonnage, by the old measurement, 2318 tons ; by new measurement, about•3000- tons.

A.dreadful murder has been.committed at St. Sebastian. The victim is a young lady named Brunet, daughter of the British Vice-Consul there,.a Spanish gentleman- The murderer is an officer in the army, num, d Vito, who had professed an attachment for, her, but her parents were opposed to his paying his addresses to her. She- was. dancing at a. ball held at the theatre.on Friday night, with a son of the Marquis of Gay when the officer, who had come, from Onate to the ball, on her passing before him, suddenly drew forth .dagger, and. gave her two stabs, which laid her dead on-the spot. He was seized, and, will be judged by court-martial, and doubt- less shot. I believe that Senor Brunet, father of the unfortunate young lady, is .at present in England.—Ifedrid Letter.

As the time draws nigh when the Crystal Palace must be closed, and the meineries.of its splendid and peaceful triumphs fall into the domain of his- tory;—speculation becomes more andinore busy with the question as to what shall be done with the beautiful structure in which the industry of the world.has been collated and exhibited. Unfortunately, this question is no longer debated on.its own merits. Personal interests have been brought inte the arena of discussion; and perhaps an unnecessarily loud and vehement as- sertion of individual claims and merits—apt to appear intrusive in the face of so grand a Met as the Exhibition; and not altogether without a. suggestion of offence where so many talents and services have been laid under contri- bution—may have provoked hostility or induced apathy, in quarters whence support in an attempt to preserve the Glass Palace was to be'expected. The Government is under a formal pledge to the public to remove the build- ing next May from Hyde Park. Time has been given to allow the public to pronounce in favour of its retention; but, in all probability under the im- pression that no Minister would be so unthrifty as to think of takingdown a single pillar of the unrivalled edifice, the public has not hitherto spoken in such a way as to afford Government the necessary authority. On.the other hand, the Commissioners of Woods and Forests are believed to be anzious,,to have the building removed as soon as possible, and the Park, which is a part of the domain under their too aristocratic government, restored to its old apt, pearance. On these two sides, therefore, the prospects of the Crystal Palace are not very cheering. The Commissioners for the Exhibition have a large surplus fund in hand, which they are pledged by their own conditions to expend in objects strictly connected with the chief purposes of the indus. trial gathering. Is a winter garden strictly connected with the cultiva- tion of art and industry ? The point has been much debated ; and we believe we, are right in saying that they have come to an almost unanimous decision that a project for converting the Palace into a were winter garden has no claim whatever on the surplus fund. With or without the Crystal Palace, the great surplus fund must, we sup,. pose, be invested in such a manner as will aid. in the improvement of art and industry A great School of Design—a Picture Gallery—Collec- bone of Floriculture, Natural History, Botany; Entomology, Antiquities—Col- leges of Agriculture, of Manufactures, and of Art--may all be lodged here, and leave ample space for ornamental gardens, promenades, and other means of recreation. Why should the Commissioners think of-going elsewhere for the accommodation already at their disposal? To throw away the Crystal Palace would be a curious extravagance iu a people so wedded to ideas of economy as we are. But the people should themselves pronounce their wishes on the subject more distinctly.—Athenceum, August 30.