﻿560 Frof. Milne — Across Europe and Asia. 



At the settlement of Ooreekofskim, which is about 20 versts from 

 Irkutsk, an iron tie was torn from a church, and great damage was 

 done. The southern boundary of the earthquake passed through Urga 

 and Mongolia, and was perceptible at all places about the same time. 



Earthquakes continued during the months of. January, February, 

 and even March, few days passing without shocks being felt. 



In 1870 to 1871 strong shocks were also felt near Irkutsk. These 

 were preceded by sounds like those of a powerful wind. Crosses 

 fell from the churches, and the ice in the Angara, which was frozen 

 at the time, moved up and down. One observer assured me that 

 the upright planks, which formed the wall of the room in which 

 he slept, had danced vertically up and down. When at the other 

 extremity of Siberia, on my road towards Irkutsk, I had heard some- 

 thing about the violence of the earthquakes which I might per- 

 chance have the opportunity of experiencing. In consequence of 

 the severity of the shocks I had also heard that the houses were 

 only built one story high ; but this is not the case, for I found 

 that buildings soared almost as high in the Eastern capital as 

 they do in the Western. All the earthquakes, like those of which I 

 have spoken, have been accompanied by an underground noise. 

 During the daytime the trembling of the biiildings can be seen as 

 well as felt. The smaller shocks, and more especially such as occur 

 at night, are said to be indicated by the bellowing of cattle, the 

 neighing of horses, and the howling of dogs. The general direction 

 of the shocks is from N.E. to S.W. I was told that when only a 

 slight shock was felt in Irkutsk, it often hapj)ened that something 

 more severe was felt in the valley of the Tunka, about 80 miles to 

 the S.W. This latter district is looked upon as being the centre 

 from which the greater number of the Irkutsk earthquakes originate, 

 a circumstance which may be supposed to have a connexion with 

 the traces of volcanic action found in that district. Indications of 

 volcanic forces are to be found at other points in the vicinity of 

 Irkutsk, besides those in the valley of the Tunka ; thus round Lake 

 Baikal, in addition to old lavas, there are still hot springs and 

 mineral waters. A liquid asphalt, which sometimes rises to the 

 surface of the lake, is also referred to the same origin. On the 

 Verkne Angara, south of Nijni Udinsk, and near Selenginsk, on 

 the east side of the Baikal, there are also volcanic rocks ; but I 

 shall speak again of these presently. 



Some few earthquakes appear to have originated from the neigh- 

 bourhood of the Baikal, or even from the lake itself. These earth- 

 quake shocks occur at all times of the year, and are not confined to 

 particular seasons, as they appear to be in many localities. After a 

 great earthquake, as that of 1861, there is generally a period of 

 quiescence, as if the internal forces were exhausted, and were 

 therefore necessitated to await a fresh accumulation of energy. 



The first record of an earthquake is that of 1725. This seems 

 strange, insomuch as the town was built in 1686, and the place had 

 been inhabited since 1652. From this we may infer that, prior to 

 the date of the first shock, there must have been a quiescent period 



