Rensselaer Union, Volume 7, Number 37, Rensselaer, Jasper County, 3 June 1875 — The Highest Mountain in the World. [ARTICLE]

The Highest Mountain in the World.

For many years past Mount Everest, in that portion of the great Himalaya range which occupies the western part of the strange Kingdom of Nepaul, immediately north “of India, has been regarded as the highest mountain in the world. It is known to the Nepaulese as Gaurisankar, but the English named it Everest, in honor of a distinguished officer of the British Indian topographical survey. Its snow-capped summit is 29,002 feet, or nearly five miles and a half, above the level es the sea. Of course no one has ever ascended it to this height, but its altitude, like that of the other lofty peaks of the Himalaya, was ascertained by .triangulation; and until the present tjme it has not been supposed that any higher land existed on the earth. a If the news be true, however, which has lately come to us from the more distant East, there is a loftier peak than Mount Everest in the great island of Papua, or New Guinea. This vast region, extensive enough to form six States as large as New York, is as yet almost wholly unexplored, except along its coasts. Lying close to the equator, where the Indian Ocean and the Pacific meet, it is the home of the cassowary and the bird of paradise, a country grand in its scenery, rich in its vegetation, and abounding incurious and beautiful forms of animal life —the veritable wonderland of the globe. An attempt'to explore the unknown interior of the island was make from Torres Strait, which separates it from Australia, by Capt. J. A. Lawson, in the year 1872; and if we may believe his published narrative of the journey, which has just appeared in London, he advanced several hundred miles inland, and about midway between the north and south coasts discovered a mountain 32,783 feet high, which he named Mount Hercules.

The height of this mountain—over six miles —is not the only remarkable thing about it. Its apparent elevation is but little less than its actual elevation; for, instead of rising from a lofty table-land like the plateau of Central Asia, it stands in a comparatively low plain only about 2,000 feet above the ocean, and this 'gives a clear rise of more than 30,000 feet above the surrounding country. The traveler standing at its base could look up and see its snowy peak towering 30,000 feet skyward from where he stood. Under such circumstancesAhe altitude of a mountain is appreciated. Capt. Lawson tells us that he undertook the ascent, formidable as it appeared. He did not reach the top, but we believe the achievement which he relates is unparalleled in the records of mountaineering. Accompanied by one servant he set out from the foot at four o’clock in the morning. They passed through dense forests in the first 2,000 feet of perpendicular progress, found the limit of tree growth at 11,000 feet, and by nine o’clock had reached a point 14,000 feet above the sea level—almost as high as the famous Matterhorn. A thousand feet higher was the snow-line, and they began to sufler from the cold. As they pressed on drowsiness began to overcome them. “ Nothing was visible but show of the most dazzling whiteness. Every peak and crag was covered with it, and it hung over the edges of the cliffs in long, fleecy masses.” Their eyes were affected by the glare and they felt themselves growing more and more lethargic. “At length blood began to flow from our noses and ears,” says Capt. Lawson, “ and my head ached in a distracting manner. I saw that our only chance of preserving life was to retreat without delay ; for we were in a pitiful plight. Our lips and gums and the skin of our hands and laces were cracked and bleeding, and our eyes were bloodshot and swollen to an alarming extent. The thermometer had sunk to twenty-two degrees below the freezing point, and the air was so rarefied that we were gasping rather than breathing. Our staves fell from our grasp, and we could not pick them up again, so benumbed were our arms and hands. It was now one o’clock, and the greatest elevation we had attained was 25,314 feet.” They then turned back, descended to the limit of the snow in three hours, and arrived at their camp at the base of the mountain about half-past seven in the evening. Thus, in fifteen hours and a half, they had ascended an absolute height of 23,0QP feet, to an elevation which we believe is greater than any ever before attained by man upon the surface of the earth, although balloonists have occasionally gone higher. Tnese are wofiderful stories, and the reader may desire to know whether we altogether trust in, their authenticity and accuracy. The fresh, spirited and interesting narrative in which we have found them is published by one of the most respectable firms in London# and is, put forth as a genuine book of travels. The author’s account of the flora, the fauna and the inhabitants of New Guinea contains much that is marvelous, and that certainly has hitherto been unknown and unsuspected. Some of his statements, also, are difficult to reconcile with our previously-acquired knowledge concerning the island. Under these circumstances, his narrative is likely to be regarded much as we should view the testimony of a single, strange witness to a startling fact; we do not disbelieve it, but we should like to hear some corroborative evidence. This will probably be afforded by subsequent explorations.— If. Y. Sun.

—There are but three persons now living who possess life passes on the Hudson River Railroad. Otoe of these persons is John B. Jervis, of Rome, who was the first chief engineer of the road. His wife is another who possesses a life pass. The third person is Govemeur Kimball, of West Point. These passes are composed of solid silver, upon which are engraved the name of the possessor, date when given, occupation, etc. —The Constitution of New Hampshire contains a religious proscriptive clause. No person is eligible to the office of Governor, Senator or Representative unless he is of the Protestant religion. At various times attempts have been made to strike out the prescriptive feature, but they failed.