with Remarks on the Nature, $c, of Peat. 259 



however, at a distance of a few perches, its course was inter- 

 rupted by several rather deep ditches, swamps, rising ground, 

 and other obstacles, against which it appears to have wasted 

 its strength the whole of Saturday night, and during Sunday 

 took a w r estern zig-zag direction, the whole day not moving 

 more than fifteen perches. The greater part of the night of 

 the 18th, and of the early part of Monday, the 19th, it appears 

 to have remained stationary, gradually swelling up in the 

 manner before described. Between twelve and one, however, 

 of that clay it again burst with a similar rushing noise, and 

 crept slowly onwards till Wednesday, the 21st; when it is cal- 

 culated it had moved from the commencement upwards of a 

 quarter of a mile. Here, being again interrupted in its course 

 by a ditch, a hedge, and several small stacks of corn and hay, it 

 moved but little till Friday, the 23d ; when, about three in the 

 afternoon, it rushed suddenly forward with the speed, as the 

 peasants expressed it, of a race horse: they found it impos- 

 sible to keep up with it. It was while pressing thus rapidly 

 onwards, that a hare, pursued by some boys and a dog, leaped 

 on the bog, and, jumping from tuft to tuft, succeeded in 

 reaching the centre of the morass, where it was seen strug- 

 gling for several minutes, but at last disappeared in the torrent 

 of black mud that flowed down upon it. The dog followed; 

 but, terrified at feeling the ground moving, as it were, from 

 right under his feet, and gradually giving way, leaped off 

 again, and ran away with his tail between his legs, evidently 

 much frightened. 



On Saturday, the 24th, it reached the road, which was 

 somewhat higher in this place than the surrounding country, 

 filled up a deep ditch, entered and surrounded a cottage for 

 ten feet, rose considerably, and fell down a cascade, as it were, 

 of mud on the road, with the noise of a powerful roaring 

 waterfall, the road being covered for nearly 300 yards, in the 

 highest place nearly 10 ft. ; it then swept forwards rapidly, 

 filled up the opposite ditch, flowed down the continuation of 

 the same longitudinal valley, which was here on a slope for 

 nearly half a mile; when it stopped, as if to rest and recruit its 

 strength, within a few perches of the river Maine. 



On Sunday, September 25th, it again moved forward, and 

 rushed into the river, which, at this spot, and for some 

 yards up the stream, is only 4 ft. deep, and drove back the 

 channel for several hours; then rose above the banks on the 

 opposite side, and moved up some rising pasture land, and 

 would have committed incalculable mischief, by, in addition 

 to its own ravages, laying the whole country for miles around 

 under water, had it not been that the stream, being thus 



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