we passed rapidly along : the sun was hot , but we were sheltered from its rays by a kind of canopy , while we enjoyed the beauty of the scene , sometimes on one side of the lake , where we saw mont saleve , the pleasant banks of montalegre , and at a distance , surmounting all , the beautiful mont blanc , and the assemblage of snowy mountains that in vain endeavour to emulate her ; sometimes coasting the opposite banks , we saw the mighty jura opposing its dark side to the ambition that would quit its native country , and an almost insurmountable barrier to the invader who should wish to enslave it .