Cambridge Philosophical Society. 341 



SchafFhausen seem to fix the limit to which it was felt towards the 

 east. The area shaken was therefore an oval, having its largest 

 dimension about 300 miles N. and S., and its shortest 250 miles E. 

 and W. 



At Geneva the shock appeared to be directed to E.N.E. At Thun 

 it appeared to come from Frutigen. At Kandersteg, at the north 

 foot of the Gemmi, the shock was N. and S. At Interlaken the 

 shocks were more severe ; and at Ormont, Canton Vaud, the oscil- 

 lation came from W. to E., preceded by a noise which lasted for an 

 instant only, and the roof of a house fell in. It seems that nearer 

 the centre of the oval the intensity of the shock was greater. At 

 the baths of Leuk a chimney was thrown down and the walls cracked ; 

 but on ascending the valley of the Rhone the evidence of disturbance 

 became rapidly more marked up to Visp, where only seven houses 

 remained habitable. At the little inn, the " Soleil," the flag pave- 

 ment was burst upwards as if by a blow from beneath : a continual 

 succession of shocks have occurred there at variable intervals up to 

 the present time. Passing on towards Brieg, the evidence of the 

 violence of the shock rapidly diminished. The valley of Zermatt 

 showed the chief disturbance ; the bridle road was continually fis- 

 sured, and in some places slipped down into the valley. At Stalden 

 there was much destruction, but at St. Nicholas the havoc was very 

 great indeed. Higher up the traces of the shock were less and less, 

 until at Tesch, Randa, and Zermatt, there was no mischief done. 

 The other branch of the valley by Saas did not suffer so much. 



Drawing lines through the diff'erent places in the direction in 

 which the wave proceeded, it will be found that they converge very 

 nearly to Visp, showing that to be nearly the centre of disturbance. 

 Mr. Croker of Caius College was walking between Stalden and 

 Visp when the great shock occurred, which appeared to him to be a 

 blow from beneath like the springing of a mine under him, and he 

 observed that the path sunk several inches from the solid rock ; a 

 lofty isolated rock on the opposite side of the valley vibrated, and 

 blocks of stone came tumbling down on all sides. The quivering 

 lasted about thirty seconds. He did not observe any sound prece- 

 ding the shock, though this was heard at 'N-'isp; but a crashing 

 sound accompanied the great shock, and a fainter sound continued 

 afterwards beyond the motion. He felt continued shocks from one 

 o'clock till four, when he proceeded towards Sion. At Zermatt the 

 same shock was felt very much less violently, and no sound preceded 

 it ; and after attaining its maximum, it ceased somewhat suddenly. 

 It was felt less strongly on the Riffelberg ; and on the 27th another, 

 felt at Zermatt as strongly as before, was not felt on the little Mont 

 Cervin. 



A sound seems in general to have preceded the earthquake at 

 places near the centre of disturbance : at Visp likened to the echo 

 of an avalanche, but at a distance there was only a sound simul- 

 taneous with the shock. The sound may have arisen from the grind- 

 ing of the walls of tlie fissure, or whatever violent action may have 

 occurred at tlic origin, and the sound-waves travelling more rapidly 

 than the earthquake-wave, 'lliis is opposed to Mr. Mallet's view. 



