pes, pears; it
needed a little Northern enterprise to set things going. The travelers
were indebted to the Colonel for a delightful noonday rest, and with
regret declined his pressing invitation to pass the night with him.

The ride down the Swannanoa to Asheville was pleasant, through a
cultivated region, over a good road. The Swannanoa is, however, a turbid
stream. In order to obtain the most impressive view of Asheville we
approached it by the way of Beaucatcher Hill, a sharp elevation a mile
west of the town. I suppose the name is a corruption of some descriptive
French word, but it has long been a favorite resort of the frequenters
of Asheville, and it may be traditional that it is a good place to catch
beaux. The summit is occupied by a handsome private residence, and from
this ridge the view, which has the merit of "bursting" upon the traveler
as he comes over the hill, is captivating in its extent and variety. The
pretty town of Asheville is seen to cover a number of elevations gently
rising out of the valley, and the valley, a rich agricultural region,
well watered and fruitful, is completely inclosed by picturesque hills,
some of them rising to the dignity of mountains. The most conspicuous
of these is Mount Pisgah, eighteen miles distant to the southwest, a
pyramid of the Balsam range, 5757 feet high. Mount Pisgah, from its
shape, is the most attractive mountain in this region.

The sunset light was falling upon the splendid panorama and softening
it. The windows of the town gleamed as if on fire. From the steep slope
below came the mingled sounds of children shouting, cattle driven home,
and all that hum of life that marks a thickly peopled region preparing
for the night. It was the leisure hour of an August afternoon, and
Asheville was in all its watering-place gayety, as we reined up at
the Swannanoa hotel. A band was playing on the balcony. We had reached
ice-water, barbers, waiters, civilization.

IV

Ashville, delightful for situation, on small hills that rise above
the French Broad below its confluence with the Swannanoa, is a sort of
fourteenth cousin to Saratoga. It has no springs, but lying 2250
feet above the sea and in a lovely valley, mountain girt, it has pure
atmosphere and an equable climate; and being both a summer and winter
resort, it has acquired a watering-place air. There are Southerners who
declare that it is too hot in summer, and that the complete circuit of
mountains shuts