256 EARTHQUAKES. , 



of the mountains, as well as in the plams of the north-west 

 provinces of Hindostan." 



On the I6th June, 1819, the western part of India was 

 visited by an earthquake, which spread desolation and panic 

 over a vast extent of countrj'. It was felt from Bombay to 

 beyond the tropic of Cancer ; but the centre of the shock 

 seems to have been in the province of Cutch, which suffered 

 severely. The first and greatest shock took place on the 

 16th June, a few minutes before seven P. M. The wretched 

 inhabitants of Bhooj were seen flying in all directions to es- 

 cape from their falling habitations. A heavy appalling 

 noise, the violent undulatory motion of the ground, the 

 crash of the buildings, and the dismay and terror which 

 appeared in every countenance, produced a sensation fear- 

 ful beyond description. The shock lasted from two to three 

 minutes, in which short period the city of Bhooj was almost 

 levelled to the ground. The walls, from the sandy nature 

 of the stone, were crumbled into dust ; nearly all the tow- 

 ers and gateways were demolished ; and the houses left 

 standing were so shattered as to be uninhabitable. It was 

 calculated that nearly 2000 persons perished at Bhooj alone. 



The devastation was general throughout Cutch. In other 

 quarters its effects appear to have been equally disastrous. 

 Thus, from Ahmedabad, the capital of Guzerat, we have 

 the following description : — " This city is justly celebrated 

 for its beautiful buildings of stone and other materials, and 

 for the famous shaking minarets, which were admired by 

 every stranger. Alas ! the devastation caused by this com- 

 motion of the earth is truly lamentable. The proud spires 

 of the great mosque erected by Sultan Ahmed, which have 

 stood nearly 4.50 years, have tumbled to the ground witliin 

 a few yards of the spot where they once reared their heads ! 

 Another mosque of elegant structure, which lies to the left 

 of the road leading to Shahee Bagh, has shared the same 

 fate. The magnificent towers which formed the grand en- 

 trance into the citadel have been much shaken and cracked 

 in several places. The fort and town of Jelelsheer are re- 

 duced to ruins. Many of the people killed were already out 

 of doors, which is usualty considered a situation of com- 

 parative safety. A marriage was about to be celebrated in 

 a rich man's family, and the castes had assembled from va- 

 rious distant quarters : the shock occurred when they were 



