GREAT ST. BERNARD HOSPICE
The towering snow-capped Alps form a giant barrier between many
countries in Europe. For thousands of years, the only way to get across
the mountains was by means of passes. Travelers faced many dangers,
especially in winter. Sudden blizzards might cause them to lose their
way. If they lay down to rest, they might freeze to death. Great masses
of snow sliding down the mountainside might bury them.
Almost a thousand years ago, Saint Bernard de Menthon built a shelter,
or hospice, at the highest point in one of the passes between
Switzerland and Italy. The shelter was large enough to care for three
hundred people. In time, the shelter became known as Great St. Bernard
Hospice and the pass as Great St. Bernard Pass. The monks who lived in
the hospice dedicated themselves to helping travelers. To aid them in
their life-saving work, the monks bred, raised, and trained the huge
dogs that have come to be known as St. Bernards.
The most famous of all these St. Bernards was named Barry. Barry lived
more than 150 years ago. He is credited with saving some forty lives.
When he died, his skin was stuffed and mounted. Barry can still be seen
in a museum in Bern, Switzerland.
But times have changed since Barry lived. Lost hikers and skiers are now
rescued by helicopter or by specially trained German Shepherd Dogs. St.
Bernards, though, have become a tradition at the Hospice. So the monks
still breed and raise some of these dogs. And to this day, the best dog
in each litter is named after Barry—in honor of the brave Barry of
long ago.
Thousands of people visit the gray stone Great St. Bernard Hospice each
year. Many, of course, want to see the world- famous dogs, now bred and
raised mainly as show dogs and pets. Even though the dogs are no longer
used for rescue work, people still remember the courage of the St.
Bernards and what they did so long ago.
Monks at the Great St. Bernard Hospice in the Swiss Alps still raise
St. Bernard dogs.
