Its Most Impressive Features Were The Frosty Clearness Of
The Sky And A Deep, Brooding Stillness Made All The More Striking By
The Thunder Of The Newborn Bergs.
The sunrise we did not see at all,
for we were beneath the shadows of the fiord cliffs; but
In the midst
of our studies, while the Indians were getting ready to sail, we were
startled by the sudden appearance of a red light burning with a
strange unearthly splendor on the topmost peak of the Fairweather
Mountains. Instead of vanishing as suddenly as it had appeared, it
spread and spread until the whole range down to the level of the
glaciers was filled with the celestial fire. In color it was at first
a vivid crimson, with a thick, furred appearance, as fine as the
alpenglow, yet indescribably rich and deep - not in the least like a
garment or mere external flush or bloom through which one might
expect to see the rocks or snow, but every mountain apparently was
glowing from the heart like molten metal fresh from a furnace.
Beneath the frosty shadows of the fiord we stood hushed and
awe-stricken, gazing at the holy vision; and had we seen the heavens
opened and God made manifest, our attention could not have been more
tremendously strained. When the highest peak began to burn, it did
not seem to be steeped in sunshine, however glorious, but rather as
if it had been thrust into the body of the sun itself.
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