272 The Naturalist in Nicaragua 
remote past, of the fearful volcanoes and earthquakes that 
terrified mankind at the time of the great cataclysm. 
In these remarks on the origin of some of the lakes of 
Nicaragua I except the largest ones, namely, the lake of 
Managua and the great lake of Nicaragua, which probably 
occupy areas of depression produced by the large amount 
of material abstracted from below and thrown out by ancient 
volcanoes. 
