1818.] Scientific Intelligence. 309 



total darkness, especially on the 28th of June, when it wasso thick, that it was scarcely 

 possible at noon day to distinguish a sheet of white paper, held up at the window, 

 from the blackness of the wall on either side ; but they flattered themselves in the 

 hope that the lava would soon all be ejected, and at all events that it would con- 

 tinue to flow in the direction it had originally taken. However, on the 3d of 

 August, they were alarmed by a quantity of smoke, which they observed arising 

 out of the river Hverfistiiot ; and as the heat, which was also found to be in the 

 water, daily increased, till at last the river was totally dried up, they concluded 

 that the same destruction was about to be poured down upon them which had 

 overwhelmed the parishes to the west. 



" Nor were their apprehensions without foundation ; forthe floods of lava having 

 entirely choked up the Skapta, and all the low channels to the west and north of 

 the volcano, it was forced to assume a new course, and running in a south-east 

 direction, between Mount Blaengur and Hverfistiiot, it was discharged at length 

 into that river, which occasioned vast volumes of steam and smoke to arise from 

 that quarter, attended with dreadful noises and lightnings. The burning flood now 

 ran down the empty channel, and 6lling it to the brink overflowed the low grounds 

 on both sides; and, by the evening of the 9th, it had not only reached the outlet 

 into the open and level country, but in the course of a few hours had spread itself 

 to the distance of nearly six miles across the plain, and stopped up the road between 

 Fliotshverfi and Sida. The volcano still continuing to send forth fresh supplies of 

 lava, the red-hot flood spread itself wider and wider, and in its progress destroyed 

 the farms of Eystradal and Thverardal, the houses, meadows, and neighbouring 

 grounds of which are so completely covered, that the spot where they lay is bo 

 longer visible. It also did considerable injury to the farms Selialand and Thvera, 

 and obliged their inhabitants, as well as the whole parish of Kalfafell, to flee for 

 their safety ; yet the above-mentioned were the only houses it burned. Though 

 this branch ceased to extend over the low country after the end of August, quanti- 

 ties of fresh lava continued still to be thrown up out of the volcano, and anew erup- 

 tion is said to have taken place so late as the month of February, 1784, during the 

 greater part of which year columns of smoke were observed to ascend from many 

 parts in the lava ; and it had not quite, cooled for nearly two years after the erup- 

 tions were over.* 



" With respect to the dimensions of the lava, its utmost length from the volcano, 

 along the channel of the Skapta down to Hnausar, in Medalland, is about 50 miles, 

 and its greatest breadth in the low country between 12 and 15 miles ; the Hverfis- 

 fliot branch may be about 40 miles in length, and seven at its utmost breadth. Its 

 height in the level country does not exceed 100 feet; but in some parts of the 

 Skapta channel it is not less than 600 feet high.t" 



Article X. 



SCIENTIFIC INTELLIGENCE, AND NOTICES OF SUBJECTS 

 CONNECTED WITH SCIENCE. 



I. Lectures. 



Mr. Cooper will commence his autumn course of lectures on 

 Practical Chemistry at his house, 89, Strand, on Tuesday, Oct. 

 1-3, at eight o'clock in the evening. 



Dr. Stephenson will commence a course of lectures on Natural 

 History, on Wednesday, Oct. 14. The plan of the course is 

 intended to embrace a general outline of the science of Natural 

 History. 



Mr. Mac Kenzie commences his next course of lectures on 



• When Mr. Paulson visited this tract in the year 1794, he found a column of 

 smoke still arising from certain parts of the lava; and some of the rents were filled 

 with hot water. 



+ Oliief Justice Stephcnsen's description of the Eruption of 1783, altered ac- 

 cording to Mr. Paulson's MS. 



