in February 1818. 335 
crosses at the tops of the churches: many persons saw also at 
the period of the shock a flash of lightning, and other long streaks 
of flame, which descended into the sea. The inhabitants of the 
villages about Catania thought they saw the city surrounded with 
flames. Two very distinct shocks were felt very near together, the 
first only vertical, the second vertical and vortical: the latter was 
the most violent; it opened the doors and windows of the houses, 
and the ground seemed as if it was several times moved from its 
level; and it is certain that several walls opened vertically, and 
that the light of the moon entered the room through these open- 
ings, which, however, immediately closed, so as to leave but a 
scarcely visible trace of the rupture. 
It may be easily imagined that the populous city of Catania 
was in consternation. Scarcely had the shocks ceased when all 
the bells were set a-ringing ; from the ridiculous idea, as the au- 
thor confesses in a note, that this would prevent the return of 
the earthquake. If the city of Catania had the good fortune to 
escape severe injury, it was not so with other places. Mascalucia 
was half overthrown, and seven persons perished. Nicolosi, 
Trecastagne, Viagrande, suffered considerably. At Aci-Catena, 
the churches were cast down, and many other buildings injured; a 
convent of Monks was destroyed, and some of the Monks were 
buried in the ruins. At Zafarana, a village forty-eight miles di- 
stant, the roof of the church fell in and crushed thirty persons. 
At Catania itself, the following buildings received much injury ; 
the house of the Minorites, the cupola of the church, the con- 
vents of the Crociferi, the Agostiniani, the Franciscans, and of 
St. Agatha, the hospitals of St. Mark aiid of St. Martha, the Uni- 
versity, the Benedictine monastery, the Seminary, and many 
private houses. 
In the night of the following day, (21st of February,) another 
but slighter shock occurred; and two other very violent ones, 
and of considerable duration, on the 28th, which did great injury 
in the Valle di Noto. We shall not follow the author in his mi- 
nute account of all the damaged edifices, but merely observe, 
that in some places enormous masses of ancient lava were rent 
_ asunder, from which there issued, at the moment, a slight flame. 
A rise was observed in the waters about Aci-Catena, and in 
the salt waters near Paterno. In some places, a salt, clayey, and 
sulphureous water was observed to issue from the ancient lava ; 
and the water in some wells became turbid a few days before the 
earthquake, which is a prognostic mentioned by Pliny. At a place 
called Paraspolo, five or six minutes before the shock there sud- 
_ denly issued from the ground, with great noise, fourteen large jets 
of salt water, which rose to the height of six palms, embraced a 
space 
