48

SION.

Rhone, as well as on the other side of the river upon the beautifulhills in front of Sion, on which are seen a great number of summerresidences and picturesque spots. Opposite to the town appearsa curious hermitage, situated in the parish of Bremis, and con-sisting of a church, a cloister, and several cells, cut out of thesolid rock. This hermitage, erected in the sixteenth century,was originally a convent of Cordeliers; it is now inhabited by asingle hermit.

French and German are very generally spoken at Sion. Theheat there in summer is almost intolerable, Reaumer’s thcrmo-metor often rising to 24° in the shade. When exposed to thesun upon the rocks, it rises to 38°, or even so high as 48°. Manycretins are met with at this place.

The environs of Sion produce a great number of the plants ofwarm countries. On the southern slope of the hill of Tourbillon the inhabitants cultivate saffron, but the whole crop belongs tothe bishop.

The immediate neighbourhood of Sion belongs to the primitiverock formations, which is succeeded to the north, at a little dis-tance from the town, by the northern chain of the calcareousAlps . The hill of the castle of Valerie is composed of gneiss andbeds of quartz of considerable thickness ; that of Tourbillon is aprimitive calcareous rock of a blackish grey colour. The samekind of rock is met with at the southern foot of the mountainsthat range to the north of Sion ; it has the appearance of mica-ceous stone. Gypsum exists on both sides of the valley : onthe left bank, two leagues from Sion in the Eringerthal; and onthe right bank beyond Sion in the valley of Morges , and betweenSion and Sierre on the edges and summit of the hill of Platrieres.On this hill you meet with that magnificent granulated gypsum,intersected with red veins, which lies between beds of micaceous