20 FLOATING ISLAND 



change taking place in the weather, I visited the 

 place of the floating island, and found that it 

 had risen a little, being then in the shallowest 

 part covered by about twelve inches of water. 

 I then filled one of the phials with gas, which 

 I send herewith. There was a considerable 

 agitation in the lake, with a south wind ; heavy 

 showers came on, both that and the succeeding 

 evening. On the 10th the island appeared above 

 water nearly as large as I have ever seen it, but 

 very little in height above water; on the 16th 

 I was upon it and took a bottle of gas from the 

 skirt of the island under water. One observa- 

 tion I did not sufficiently pursue, that is, on 

 rincing the bottle an offensive odour seemed to 

 come from the gas liberated from the water in 

 shaking it. 



On the 20th September, the rains had raised 

 the water two feet since the island first made its 

 appearance ; yet the island also continued to 

 rise, so that it was still above water the greatest 

 part of its length; on the 22nd, it appeared 

 very small, and on the 23rd, although the lake 

 was lowered again about four inches, the island 

 was covered. The lake afterwards rose four 

 feet six inches above its lowest mark, and I had 

 some expectation of the re-appearance of the 

 island on the waters subsiding ; but it has not since 



