EARTHaUAKE AT COPIAPO. 



39 



we could possibly take any interest in such petty 

 shocks as would not demolish a town. An old man 

 in company, seeing that we had been misunder- 

 stood, explained, that it was a long time since 

 they had felt a shock of any consequence ; and 

 upon our pressing him closely to say what he con- 

 sidered long, replied, at least a month ! 



On our return, we were gratified by meeting 

 two agreeable and intelligent men, whom our host 

 had considerately invited to meet us ; they were 

 most willing to exchange local information for 

 news about the rest of the world, with which they 

 appeared to have extremely little intercourse. We 

 soon engaged them in conversation about the great 

 earthquake. It began, they said, between eight 

 and nine in the morning of the 3d of April, and 

 continued with gentle shocks during that day and 

 the next. At four in the afternoon of the 4th, 

 there came a violent shock, which produced a 

 waving or rolling motion in the ground, like that 

 of a ship at sea, which lasted for two minutes. 

 In every instance these shocks were preceded by 

 a loud rolling noise, compared by one person to 

 the echo of thunder amongst the hills ; and by 



