o their delight, that one of
the largest of these--an enormous block of gneiss--lay right across the
crevasse, spanning it like a bridge, and looking as though it had been
placed there by human hands! This, however, would have been impossible,
as the block was full ten yards in length, and nearly as broad as it was
long. Even giants could not have built such a bridge!

A little examination showed where it had fallen from the overhanging
precipice--and it had rested on the glacier, perhaps, before the great
cleft had yawned open beneath it. Its upper end overlapped the ice for
a breadth of scarce two feet, and it seemed a wonder that so huge a
weight could be sustained by such an apparently fragile prop. But there
it rested; and had done so for years--perhaps for ages--suspended over
the beetling chasm, as if the touch of a feather would precipitate it
into the gulf below!

If Karl had been near, he might have warned his brother from crossing by
such a dangerous bridge; but before he had reached the spot, Caspar had
already mounted on the rock, and was hurrying over.

In a few moments he stood upon the opposite side of the crevasse; and,
waving his cap in the air, shouted to the rest to follow.

The others crossed as he had done, and then the party once more
deployed, and kept up the ravine, which grew narrower as they advanced,
and appeared to be regularly closed in at the lop, by a perpendicular
wall. Surely the deer could not escape them much longer?

"What a pity," said Caspar, "we could not throw down that great stone
and widen the crack in the ice, so that the deer could not leap over it!
We should then have it nicely shut up here."

"Ay, Caspar," rejoined Karl, "and where should _we_ be then? Shut up
too, I fear."

"True, brother, I did not think of that. What a terrible thing it would
be to be imprisoned between these black cliffs! It would, I declare."

The words had scarce issued from Caspar's lip, when a crash was heard
like the first bursting of a thunderclap, and then a deafening roar
echoed up the ravine, mingled with louder peals, as though the eternal
mountains were being rent asunder!

The noise reverberated from the black cliffs; eagles, that had been
perched upon the rocks, rose screaming into the air; beasts of prey
howled from their lurking-places; and the hitherto silent valley was all
at once filled with hideous noises, as though it were the doom of the
world!

CHAPTER TWENT