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drivers and horses being accustomed to the
road, may be safely trusted, though it is
not possible to travel the present road
in a char without feeling alarm; but as the
distance is not more than two leagues, the
dangerous parts may be passed on foot.
Should the baths succeed, it is intended to
make a new road along the bottom of the
valley. Dr. Hybord, the physician at Moutiers,
informed me, that in going to Brida
his horse took fright, and fell over the precipice,
but fortunately his coat was caught
by the point of a projecting piece of wood,
and he hung suspended till he, seized hold
of some bushes, and with much difficulty
climbed up to the road.
About one mile from Moutiers we passed
the ruins of the ancient residence of the
archbishops of the Tarentaise. The first
printing press, introduced into Savoy, is
said to have been established here.
It may be proper to notice, that there
are two rivers in Savoy which have the
name of Doron ; the one rises in the district
of Beaufort, and falls into the Arly,
a little before its junction with the Isere.
The other runs from the mountains west
o fth e upper Isere, and falls into that river
at Moutiers. The valley through which
this river runs may be called the valley of
the upper Doron, as I do not know that
it is yet designated by any appropriate
name. It is very imperfectly laid down in
all maps that I have seen, except the grand
map of Mr. Baymond, entitled Carte Mili-
taire des Alpes; a map unrivalled for accuracy.
After ascending about two miles, the
road turns to the south-west, and the
scenery of the valley of the upper Doron
opened on the view as we proceeded. It
is altogether different from that of the
upper Isere, and is far more rich and magnificent.
The bottom of the valley is extremely
narrow, there being scarcely any flat or
meadow land in its whole course. The
Doron rushes along it in a rapid descent of
about fifteen miles. The lowest slopes in
the valley are covered with vineyards;
above these corn-fields and pastures, mixed
with forest trees, villages and chalets rise
to a great height, and give a very chearful
appearance to the country; but the most
striking features are the sublime and snow-
clad mountains, by which the upper end
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