NOME VII. VOLCANIC 1NTR1TE. 481 



terminated in the territory of Aniello Tirone, 

 after having rim the length of 1490 feet; the 

 residue of the lava, pursuing its course, flowed 

 upon Torre, presenting a front from twelve to 

 fifteen hundred feet in breadth, and filling several 

 deep ravines. 



" On reaching the first houses of the town Destroys Torre 



del Greco. 



the stream divided, according to the different 

 slopes of the streets, and the degrees of oppo- 

 sition presented by the buildings. An idea may 

 easily be formed of the accidents consequent on 

 such a flood of fire ; accidents which bear rela- 

 tion to the site of the manufactories, the thick- 

 ness of their walls, and the manner in which they 

 were assailed by the lava. Had not the mass of 

 the stream suffered a diminution, from the differ- 

 ent divergencies noticed, not a single house 

 would have been left standing in Torre del 

 Greco. The lava, after a serpentine course 

 through the town, at length reached the sea*- 

 shore. The contact with the water diminished 

 the speed of its course : still the current flowed 

 into the sea in a body 1127 feet in breadth, and 

 advanced into it a distance of 362 feet. Its en- Entrance into 

 trance into the sea was not marked by any sin- 

 gular phenomenon ; it began to issue from the 

 volcano at ten at night, and reached the sea- 

 shore by four in the morning^ continuing a 

 VOL. ii. 2 i 



