1030* Memoir on Indian Earthquakes. [No. 144. 



its waters were overturned, its harbours destroyed, and the existing 

 waste of land substituted for the pre-existing waters. It is thus 

 that barbarous nations preserve the memories of great physical events, 

 while they are incompetent to form any written record of their 

 occurrence; and in such traditions, although interwoven with cir- 

 cumstances sometimes impossible, sometimes absurd, there is usually 

 a substratum of actual truth. In the present case, "considering 

 the frequent occurrence of Earthquakes in Cutch, the volcanic ap- 

 pearance of the hills and lava which covers the face of the country, " 

 there can be but little doubt, that a great alteration of level took 

 place throughout the Runn, in consequence of some great convulsion, 

 the existence of which is indicated only by the legends above referred 

 to. 



Bhooj.—Ldt. 23° 15' N., long. 62° 59' E. At Bhooj, the capital 

 of Cutch, the destructive effects of the Earthquake of 1819, were very 

 great. They are thus described by Prof. Jameson, (History of India, 

 Cab. Library, Vol. III. p. 270.) " The first and greatest shock took 

 place on the 16th June 1819, a few minutes before 7 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 fearful sensation 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 towers and gateways were 

 demolished ; and the houses left standing were so shattered, as to be 

 uninhabitable. It was calculated that nearly 2,000 persons perished at 

 Bhooj alone." " In the British camp, which was pitched in a plain 

 between the fort and city of Bhooj, the general feeling was an unplea- 

 sant giddiness of the head and sickness of stomach, from the heaving 

 of the ground ; and during the time the shock lasted, some sat down 

 instinctively, and others threw themselves on the ground. Those who 

 were on horseback, were obliged to dismount; the earth shook so vio- 

 lently, that the horses could with difficulty keep their feet; and the 

 riders, when on the ground, were scarcely able to stand." 



Ahmedabad—Lzt. 23° 1' N., long. 72° 42' E. At this city, the 

 chief town of Gujerat, the shock was very severely felt. The following 

 description of its effects is given in the work above quoted : " This 

 city is justly celebrated for its beautiful buildings ©f stone and other 

 materials, and for the famous shaking minarets which were admired by 

 every stranger. Alas! the devastation caused by this commotion of 

 the earth is truly lamentable. The proud spires of the great mosque 

 erected by Sultan Ahmed, which have stood nearly 450 years, have 

 tumbled to the ground within 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 entrance into the 



