A few minutes afterward I tied myself to young Peter, ran down after the others, and caught them just as they were commencing the descent of the difficult part.  Great care was being taken.  Only one man was moving at a time; when he was firmly planted, the next advanced, and so on.  They had not, however, attached the additional rope to rocks, and nothing was said about it.  The suggestion was not made for my own sake, and I am not sure that it even occurred to me again.  For some little distance we followed the others, detached from them, and should have continued so had not Lord Francis Douglas asked me, about 3 P.M., to tie on to old Peter, as he feared, he said, that Taugwalder would not be able to hold his ground if a slip occurred.

A few minutes later a sharp-eyed lad ran into the Monte Rosa hotel to Seiler,[49] saying that he had seen an avalanche fall from the summit of the Matterhorn on to the Matterhorngletscher.  The boy was reproved for telling such idle stories; he was right, nevertheless, and this was what he saw.

Michael Croz had laid aside his ax, and in order to give Mr. Hadow greater security was absolutely taking hold of his legs and putting his feet, one by one, into their proper positions.  As far as I know, no one was actually descending.  I can not speak with certainty, because the two leading men were partially hidden from my sight by an intervening mass of rock, but it is my belief, from the movements of their shoulders, that Croz, having done as I have said, was in the act of turning round to go down a step or two himself; at the moment Mr. Hadow slipt, fell against him and knocked him over.

I heard one startled exclamation from Croz, then saw him and Mr. Hadow flying downward; in another moment Hudson was dragged from his steps, and Lord Francis Douglas immediately after him.  All this was the work of a moment.  Immediately we heard Croz’s exclamation, old Peter and I planted ourselves as firmly as the rocks would permit; the rope was taut between us, and the jerk came on us both as one man.  We held, but the rope broke midway between Taugwalder and Lord Francis Douglas.  For a few seconds we saw our unfortunate companions sliding downward on their backs, and spreading out their hands, endeavoring to save themselves.  They passed from our sight uninjured, disappeared one by one, and fell from precipice to precipice on to the Matterhorngletscher below, a distance of nearly four thousand feet in height.  From the moment the rope broke it was impossible to help them.

So perished our comrades!  For the space of half an hour we remained on the spot without moving a single step.  The two men, paralyzed by terror, cried like infants, and trembled in such a manner as to threaten us with the fate of the others.  Old Peter rent the air with exclamations of “Chamounix!—­oh, what will Chamounix say?” He meant, who would believe that Croz could fall?  The young man did nothing but scream or sob, “We are lost! we are lost!” Fixt between the two, I could move neither up nor down.  I begged young Peter to descend, but he dared not.  Unless he did, we could not advance.  Old Peter became alive to the danger, and swelled the cry, “We are lost! we are lost!”