A Visit to Iceland in the Summer of 1859. 261 



Strokhr Las no basin, and a shorter and narrower pipe than the 

 Geyser. It erupts naturally, at rare intervals ; but an eruption may 

 be excited at any time by throwing in a few spadefuls of turf. The 

 water usually stands about twelve feet below the top of the pipe, and 

 boils violently, with an uneasy churning motion. When six or eight 

 spadefuls of turf are thrown in the churning motion ceases, and the 

 water becomes still. In two minutes, or so, a sound is heard as of a 

 man breathing heavily, and this continues till the water begins to boil. 

 The boiling is slight at first, but shortly becomes violent. During this 

 time, the water is gradually rising in the pipe ; then it heaves upwards, 

 by successive throes, till it approaches or ovei-flows the lip. Now is the 

 time for the onlooker to withdraw ; for when things reach this state, the 

 eruption begins. There are neither subterraneous noises nor earth- 

 shocks, and the column of water has much less body than that of the 

 Great Geyser, though of greater height. The eruption is not a con- 

 tinuous stream of water, varying somewhat in "height, but a succession 

 of jets, such as might be produced by the intermittent action of a huge 

 syringe. In an ordinary eruption, the jets are thrown up as high as 

 fifty or sixty feet ; but a double supply of turf will cause them to rise 

 to the height of 150 feet, or more. Immediately after an eruption, the 

 water in the pipe is found to stand about fifteen or sixteen feet below 

 the Up. At this depth the pipe gets much narrower, and seems to 

 change its direction. There may be some truth, therefore, in the 

 opinion of Henderson, that the artificial eruption is due to the partial 

 confinement of the steam, and the consequent increase in the tem- 

 perature of the water. The turf thrown in is not wholly expelled 

 during the first eruption. When this ceases, a period of repose, five 

 to ten minutes long, ensues ; the heavy breathing sound before men- 

 tioned is again heard ; the boiling and paroxysmal heavings of the 

 water follow ; and in fifteen to twenty minutes, or more, after the 

 primary eruption, a second one occurs on a smaller scale. The jets 

 of the secondary eruption are not so grand as those of the primary 

 one ; but they are more beautiful, in consequence of the greater purity 

 of the water. The duration of the eruption varies ; but it is seldom 

 less than two minutes, or more than four. 



The non-crtipting springs are about fifty in number, but most of 

 them are small. The largest and finest of these is the one called Blesi, 

 from its fancied resemblance to the white marks often found on a 

 horse's head. It lies west of the Great Geyser, and a little higher up 

 the hill. It is an irregular oval pool of bluish water, of great depth, 

 and divided in the middle by a narrow silicious bridge, about fifteen 

 inches thick. It overflows, but does not boil, the temperature not 



