Looking for a site

We decided to start the next day on our sightseeing tour. Mr von Bontstetten, who accompanied us, was very anxious to make everything easy for Mrs Storrow. When we were stopped by a fence he dashed off to find a suitable passage to get through. But Mrs Storrow, in her enthusiasm, could not wait and had usually climbed over the fence long before he came back.

I cannot remember how many places we visited and discarded straight away. One perfect day we drove out to Aeschi; on one side we had the view of the Bernese Alps, on the other cornfields. Mrs Storrow immediately took a great fancy to it. Certainly the place came up to many of the conditions and its beauty was unquestionable, but still I was not quite happy. It seemed to me to lie too far away from the real mountains; would the relatively low altitude provide winter sports?

The more enthusiastic Mrs Storrow got, the more doubtful I grew. This she must have felt, for she asked me: "Don't you like this heavenly place? It comes up to all my expectations, here you can find peace for the soul." True enough, but I remembered very well that at 17 or 18 I wanted adventure and mountain climbing and skiing. I told her this, adding that I suspected modern youth was no more concerned with peace of the soul than I had been.

Mrs Storrow agreed, but maintained that she would like to suggest this place to the World Conference at Foxlease, where the final decision would be taken. I begged Mrs Storrow not to ask me for advice at the Conference, because I would have to speak against her. I got to know Mrs Storrow's boundless generosity when she simply said: "If I ask you to give your advice, you jolly well say what you think!"

The day before leaving for the Conference, I met Mrs Storrow in town. She stopped me and said, "When and how are you going to England?" "Tomorrow by train and boat". "Oh no", said Mrs Storrow, "come along and fly with me." In 1930 the flight from Basel to London took seven to eight hours while today it takes two hours. I rushed home to get my belongings.