EARTHQUAKE IN PERU. 193 



went up to heaven. The sea had retired. On clearing 

 the town, I looked back and saw that the vessels were 

 being carried irresistibly, seawards. In a few minutes 

 the sea stopped, and then arose a mighty wave fifty 

 feet high, and came in with a fearful rush, carrying 

 everything before it in terrible majesty. The whole 

 of the shipping came back, speeding towards inevitable 

 doom. In a few minutes all was completed every 

 vessel was either on shore or bottom upwards.' This, 

 then, was undoubtedly the great sea-wave, as com- 

 pared with the minor waves of disturbance which cha- 

 racterise all earthquakes near the shores of the ocean. 



One remarkable feature in this terrible earthquake 

 is tha enormous range of country affected by it. From 

 Quito southwards as far as Iquique or, in other words, 

 for a distance considerably exceeding a full third part 

 of the whole length of the South American Andes 

 the shock was felt with the most terrible distinctness. 

 We have yet to learn how much farther to the north 

 and south, and how far inland on the eastern slopes of 

 the Andes, the shock was experienced. But there 

 can be little doubt that the disturbed country was 

 equal to at least a fourth of Europe. 



The portion of the Andes thus disturbed seems to 

 be distinct from the part to which the great Chilian 

 earthquakes belong. The difference in character be- 

 tween the Peruvian and Chilian earthquakes is a 

 singular and interesting, phenomenon. The difference 

 corresponds to a feature long since pointed out by Sir 

 Charles Lyell the alternation, on a grand scale, of 



o 



