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THE STIGGEVAND.
221
white, semi-opaque, London-milk colour, common to
such snow-water. This lake is called the Stiggevand,
which, I believe, may be translated the Stygian pool;
and a better name could scarcely be invented, for its
gloomy and desolate aspect would satisfy the imagination
of the most dyspeptic and bilious of poets.
The hollows, or basins, which occupy a higher level
than the lake, are filled with snow, and with ice formed
by the melting and re-freezing of the snow: thus filled
up, they form great plains, having a surface of virgin
snow without a footmark, or a scratch, or spot visible.
These apparent plains are, however, not quite level, but
slope towards the rocky precipice rising above the lake.
The icy sea, pressed forward by the mass above, flows
over these Avails in great bending sheets, that reach a
short Avay down and then break off and drop in masses
into the lake, their broken edges forming a blue cornice
fringed with icicles. If these Avails of the lake-shore
had sufficient slope to hold the icy cascade Avithout
breaking, glaciers Avould be formed; or if the supply of
breaking masses Avere sufficiently great to overpoAver
the thawing below, the basin of the lake would be filled
up and become continuous with the great ice and snow
fields above, and might extend onwards to the spot
where I Avas standing, or even overfloAv this and push
doAvn the A’alley up which I had come to the saeters
beloAV. That this Avas formerly the case is shown by
abundant evidences on every step of this day’s walk,
and the latter part of yesterday’s.
The soft though sharp outline of the A’irgin snow
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