370 Sir William Hamilton’s Defcription 
oak and chefhiut, all timber trees of the largeft lize. The 
mountains neareft the valley rife gently, and are adorned with 
either modern caltles, towns, and villages, or the ruins of ancient 
ones. The next range of mountains, riling behind thefe, are 
covered with pines, larches, and fuch trees and fhrubs as 
ufually abound in a like fituation : and above them a third 
range of mountains and rocks, being the moft elevated part 
of the Apennine, rife much higher, and, being covered with 
eternal fnow, make a beautiful contrail with the rich valley 
above-mentioned ; and the fnow is at fo great a diflance, as not 
to give that uncomfortable chill to the air, which I have 
always found in the narrow vallies of the Alps and the Tyrol. 
Excufe me. Sir, if from the impreffion which this enchanting 
and little frequented country has left on my mind, I have been 
led to depart from the fubjeft of this letter, to which I will 
return dire&ly. 
On the 15th of Augult laft I went in a felucca to the ifland 
of Ifchia. I have nothing to add to my former obfervations on 
this ifland, already communicated to the Royal Society ; ex- 
cept that about lixty yards from the Iho re, at a place called St. 
Angelo, fituated between the towns of Ifchia and Furia, a 
column of boiling water bubbles upon the furface of the lea 
with great force, and communicates its heat to the water of 
the fea near it ; but as the wind was very high, and the furf 
coniiderable, I was not able then to examine this curious Ipot 
as I could have wiflied, but wiil return there on purpofe fome 
other time. The inhabitants of the neighbourhood told me, 
that it always boiled up in the fame manner, winter and fu tu- 
rner ; and that it was of great ufe to them in bending their 
; planks for Ihip-building ; and that the filhermen alfo frequently 
made ufe of this natural cauldron to boil their filh. Though I 
have 
