At St. Michel, a neat village (comparatively speaking), the peasantry become more human; the _goître_ begins to disappear, and the countenance to assume a more intellectual expression. Again the sublime effect of the river Arque attracted our attention. It is a regular mountain torrent, flashing and raving over tremendous rocks, with a rapidity and fury difficult to describe. If it was thus mighty during the present parching season, what must it not be in winter! The imagination shudders at the idea of its desolating force. I could scarcely trace the affinity of this element with the tame, slow, glassy, silent waters to which I had been accustomed in my own country. It was like the sublime insanity of a superb human genius, when compared with the almost vegetable existence of a mere common plodding mortal.
The little narrow alpine bridges, occasionally thrown across this terrific stream, were highly romantic and beautiful. At this particular spot, dark forests of pine began to succeed to the more pleasing verdure of the tufted beech. They extended to the remotest pinnacles of the mountains, from whose brown sides, lower down, a number of sparkling springs were seen to gush dancing and flashing in the sun. Great quantities of barberry trees, and of the plant coltsfoot, were growing wild here.
Crossing a majestic mountain beyond Modena, we were shewn the Devil's Bridge (_note_ B.), three hundred feet above the river. We ourselves looked proudly down upon it, from our eagle height, where we enjoyed the benefit of a noble and easy road, made (as usual) by order of Bonaparte; for which all travellers ought to feel deeply indebted to him. Not that I attribute his works of this sort to benevolence rather than ambitious policy: but whatever the cause, we _voyageurs_ have great reason to bless the effect! The postillion seriously assured us, as we gazed upon the above-mentioned bridge, that it was originally built by the arch fiend, although he added, that "this had happened a great while ago." Mr. W. attempted to laugh him out of so ridiculous a belief; but he adhered to his point with immoveable gravity. I had always heard that the natives of mountainous countries were peculiarly liable to the impressions of superstition, and in this instance I had an opportunity of proving personally the truth of the remark. We regretted that time did not allow of our making a few more experimental researches into these matters: it might have been very interesting to have collected a set of legends from the mouths of the simple inhabitants; and I should have had considerable amusement in tracing their similarity to those of the Scotch Highlanders, the German, Swedish, and other fond believers in romance. The king of Sardinia was at that time building fortresses upon this mountain, and two thousand men were employed in the work.