to Mr Thomson for the continued use of a room in his office for Club purposes, the business of the meeting was concluded.

THE ANNUAL DINNER was held in the St Enoch's Hotel, at the close of the General Meeting. The President, Mr H. T. Munro, occupied the chair, and Messrs R. A. Robertson and A. E. Maylard acted as croupiers. There were forty-four members and guests present. It was in every way a thorough success, and reflected great credit on the Dinner Committee. The front of the menu card was ornamented by a sketch of Coire na Creiche, Skye, from the pencil of Mr Colin B. Phillip, and the tailpiece was from a design by Mr Fraser Campbell, illustrating a boulder climb. The toasts of the "Queen," and the "Navy, Army, and Volunteers," were given from the chair, the latter being replied to by Colonel Wavell. Thereafter the Chairman gave the "Scottish Mountaineering Club" in a neat and telling speech, in which he related how much offended he had been by some American reflections he had heard on the highness of Scottish mountains, especially in hot weather. He referred to the proposed Guide Book, and showed what full and complete details would be required from a climber's point of view, and alluded to the starved information which had hitherto been published on the subject. "Kindred Societies" was proposed by the Rev. Dr Hamilton, and Mr Solly, in responding for the Alpine Club, touchingly referred to the sad loss that club had sustained in the death of Mr Mummery, and gave some pleasant reminiscences of his own experiences in the Caucasus. "The Journal" was proposed by Mr W. A. Ramsay, and replied to by the Editor. The toast, "The Guests," was given with great verve by Professor Ramsay, and Lord Dalrymple replied. Songs and recitations were contributed by Messrs J. M. Crawford, Hinxman, W. A. Ramsay, Rennie, and Wigan; and in accordance with use and wont the meeting resolved itself into a small party for the further exploration of the Whangie. This was last heard of late on Saturday afternoon in the neighbourhood of Aberfoyle.

NOTES AND QUERIES.

The Editor will be glad to receive brief notices of any noteworthy expeditions. These are not meant to supersede longer articles, but many members who may not care to undertake the one will have no difficulty in imparting information in the other form.

THE S.M.C. ABROAD IN 1895.-Mr H. C. Bowen experienced rather broken weather during his holiday in Switzerland. He crossed the Stockhorn in a snowstorm, climbed the Unter Gabelhorn from the Trift side, the Wellenkuppe, crossed the Adler Pass to Saas Fee, the New Weissthor to Macugnaga, and the Lysjoch from Alagna to Zermatt; had a delightful scramble on the Riffelhorn by a chimney to the left of the regular route from the glacier, and finally climbed the Gabelhorn. Mr Brant accompanied him in his expeditions, and they did most of their climbing for themselves, taking but one guide with them as part of their luggage.

Dr and Mrs Colin Campbell had a successful holiday among the Alps. From the Val de Bagne they crossed the Col de Fenêtre to Valpellina, without guides. On 15th July, from Cogne, Dr Campbell made the first ascent of the Grivola for 1895. Returning to Switzerland over the Col du Mont Brulé, he climbed for the second time the Aig. de la Za, by W. face. Afterwards, from the Schwarz See Hotel, in addition to several glacier and other excursions he ascended Monte Rosa, and, for photographic purposes, the Breithorn.

Dr Collie, as we all know, was a member of that ill-fated expedition to Nanga Parbat, which involved the loss of one of the most brilliant climbers of the day. With the memory of Mr Mummery's book fresh in our minds, the news of his death came with startling emphasis. The record of that ill-fated expedition to the Himalayas will be awaited with melancholy interest, but enough is known to make it certain that Mr Mummery perished whilst attempting an unexplored pass, and that he fell a victim to one of the hazards too frequently associated with fatalities in the higher mountains. It is fitting for this Journal to contain an expression of sincere regret that a valuable life has been forfeited under such circumstances. To those who knew Mr Mummery, the personal loss must be great, but these pages are more concerned with the loss to the cause of mountaineering,—a cause which perhaps received its ablest advocacy from Mr Mummery, and which was very Idear to his heart. He leaves a fitting, and we believe a lasting monument in his recent book, and all lovers of the mountains and

their literature must experience a sense of profound sorrow that it should have received the saddest of all commentaries in such a sudden closing of the career of its gifted author.

Mr E. A. Crowley, besides minor expeditions, some of them solitary, crossed the Eigerjoch and Jungfraujoch without guides; also the Wetterlücke, Mönchjoch, Beichgrat, and Petersgrat more than once. He traversed the Mönch from Wengern Alp to the Bergli Hut, climbed the Eiger, the Jungfrau from the Roththal, the Tschingelhorn, and all but completed an ascent of Jungfrau by the difficult Schneehorn route (twenty-one hours out in bad weather).

Mr W. Douglas and Mr James Maclay had a good month at Zermatt and Saas Fee in July and August, though the bad weather which prevailed during the early summer interfered somewhat with plans. The following were their principal joint expeditions:-Unter Gabelhorn, Riffelhorn from Gorner Glacier, Rothhorn, Matterhorn, Dom, Rimpfischhorn ascent from Täsch Alp, Fee Joch and Allalinhorn, Ried Pass and Balfrinhorn. Mr Maclay also climbed the Wellenkuppe.

Mr J. W. Drummond enjoyed splendid weather in the Oberland in September. His ascents included the following:-Wetterhorn with descent to Rosenlaui, the Eiger, the Mönch and Jungfrau on same day, the Finsteraarhorn from the Concordia Hut to the Grimsel Hospice over the Oberaarjoch. Next day he went over the Strahlegg and up the great Schreckhorn, reaching Grindelwald at 11 P.M.

Mr W. Wickham King had nearly a month of unbroken weather in Switzerland in August and September, during which he accomplished the following interesting ascents:-Matterhorn, traversed from Zermatt to Breuil; Dom, and Täschhorn in one day; Suddlenspitze by E. arête, with descent over the Nadelhorn; Mittaghorn and Egginerhorn, traversed without guides; Riffelhorn, descent to Gorner Glacier, also without guides.

Professor A. B. W. Kennedy ascended Mont Collon, the Petite Dent de Veisivi, the Matterhorn (from Arolla, sleeping at the Schwarz See) and Mont Blanc de Seilon; and traversed the following high passes, namely:-Col de Chardonnet, Col de Sonadon, Cols de Giétroz and Seïlon, Cols de Bertol and d'Hérens, Cols de Valpelline and du Mont Brulé. Dr Kennedy likewise took part in numerous "boulder" ascents in the neighbourhood of Arolla Hotel,—a form of recreation for off-days which seems to be as popular at Zermatt and Arolla as it is at Corrie.

Mr H. T. Munro was at Zermatt for a week or two in August, but not being well he refrained from much climbing. He, however, ascended the Breithorn with Dr and Mrs Colin Campbell.

Mr W. W. Naismith joined Messrs Maclay and Douglas at Zermatt, and climbed the Rimpfischorn with them. Subsequently crossing to Arolla, he did the Aig. de la Za by W. face, Grand Dent de Veisivi and traverse of Petite Dent (alone), Aiguilles Rouges

traversed, Mont Collon first ascent by N.N.E. arête, Mont Blanc de Seilon, Ruinette by N.E. arête, descent to Giétroz Glacier (new) and Mauvoisin.

Mr C. W. Patchell did good work in Norway, as a list of his mountain expeditions will prove. Jostedalsbrae traversed thrice— I, from Nysaeter to Svaerdal Saeter over Kvitekol (new); 2, from Faaberg to Bodal over Lodalskaupe; 3, from Briksdal to Grov, in Jostedal (new descent). In the Horunger he ascended the Dyrhougstind from the Skagastölshytte (new), and the Store Skagastöltind, and in the Sondmore district the Blaatind (new) and Kolaastind.

Mr J. H. W. Rolland stayed for some weeks in the Engadine and Tyrol, and among other expeditions ascended the Piz Bernina, the Königspitze, and Cevedale. He afterwards represented the S.M.C. at a dinner of about two hundred members of the Italian Alpine Club held at Sondrio.

Mr Godfrey A. Solly spent a month in the Alps, but as he had scarcely recovered from the effects of an accident in the spring he did not attempt any serious mountaineering, excepting the ascent of the Grand Paradis.

BUCHAILLE ETIVE MOR BY THE N.E. FACE.-On the morning of the 27th July last, Messrs Rose, Brown, and the writer started from Kingshouse Inn to climb the N.E. face of Buchaille Etive. Leaving the road a little beyond the station of the Glencoe coaches, we struck straight across the moor to the foot of the mountain. It was a disgusting morning. The rain was falling dismally, and the whole mountain was concealed in mist, which, occasionally lifting, gave us a momentary glimpse of great precipices towering above us. Our intention was to climb up the rocks to the left of the great gully, which runs down from the summit and faces the Glencoe road. The way at first, through deep heather and over great blocks. of stone, grew rapidly steeper, and soon landed us on the slabby face of the buttress, the work on which, while fairly hard for a considerable time, calls for no particular description. Then all at once there loomed up out of the mist before us an immense perpendicular bastion, whose appearance en face was utterly hopeless. An examination to the right revealed a long, narrow, and almost vertical cleft or chimney, up which we thought it just possible we might be able to force our way. As it was evidently only a place, however, to tackle as a last resource, we resolved to explore the rocks at the eastern side of the bastion, and after following a gradually ascending and rapidly narrowing ledge at its base, we after a time came upon a place which seemed to offer us a fair prospect. On trying it, we found that it went excellently, and for several hundred feet we scrambled upwards by a series of long, narrow, and very steep chimneys, which, however, offered excellent holds. We found this chimney work very pleasant,

as it protected us from the bitterly cold wind and rain, which speedily chilled us, and drove us to the use of the gloves whenever we appeared on the open face of the buttress.

Shortly after the cessation of our chimney sweeping operations, we suddenly found ourselves face to face with a second bastion, smaller and less steep than the last, but otherwise resembling it most closely. This one, however, we found no difficulty in passing, and then keeping well round to the right, we climbed straight upwards by the excellent rocks overhanging the very edge of the gully, and by-and-by became aware of the top by nearly stumbling over the cairn. The rain now poured harder than ever, and the mist limited our view to a radius of a few yards, nevertheless we contentedly sat ourselves down in puddles of water, and enjoyed lunch as only men can who have finished a successful climb. Then following the line of the summit until we came to a second cairn, we sank gradually to the left, and made our way down by Corrie Fionn. This corrie proved one of the roughest we had ever seen, and as it was quite unknown to us all, the descent of it proved a rather ticklish operation in the heavy mist. We had been wet to the skin for hours before we got back to the hotel, and our worthy host deserves no small credit for the satisfactory manner in which his wardrobe withstood the severe strain put upon it that night. W. TOUGH.

BEN NUIS PRECIPICE.-On 6th July 1895 the N.E. face of Ben Nuis, which is one of the steepest rock-walls in Arran, was scaled, apparently for the first time, by Messrs Green and Boyd. From the foot of the precipice two parallel gullies divide the rocks, which are for the most part composed of huge slabs, and look impracticable. The gully to the left is shallow, while the one to the right is well defined and enclosed by savage rock-walls. The climbers chose the latter, and found it easy as far as they went, the floor being steep grass. It terminates in a dark chimney, probably feasible, but as it would have taken the party to the top of the cliff a good way below and to the right of the summit of Ben Nuis, they preferred to traverse to their left out of the gully. They presently reached a small grassy platform below a fine cavernous-looking chimney about forty feet high, the ascent of which involved some very stiff back and foot work. From the top of this chimney they climbed obliquely up grass ledges and easy rocks, always keeping to the left, until they stepped off the face on to the very summit of the mountain.

CIR MHOR FACE-NEW ROUTE.—On 7th July 1895 Messrs Bell, Boyd, Green, and Graham Napier accomplished an ascent of the steep lower rocks of the N. face of Cir Mhor, starting from a point between "B" and “c” on the sketch (Vol. III., p. 212). After some ineffectual attempts]to ascend the "c" gully, and a crack to the left of