56 
Proceedings of Boycd Society of Edinhurgh. 
8ESS. 
high plateau immediately beyond the Eemhidalsfos and the river 
which flows out of it, and traverses the whole length of the Simodal, 
is subject to violent inundations, which, at different times, have 
caused great loss to the inhabitants owning the lands along its 
course. Only three years ago one of these inundations occurred. 
It was about three o’clock in the morning when a great noise was 
heard, and the terror-stricken people rushed out of their beds to 
save themselves and their properties. Two fine bridges were at 
once swept away by the raging flood — one of which had been newly 
erected at a cost of 4000 kronors (£225). This bridge was just on 
the eve of being handed over to Government, but, as the formal 
ceremony had not taken place, the poor people had to reconstruct it 
at their own cost. The lands in the Simodal are divided into four 
sections, owned by twenty-four farmers, and tbe entire population 
amounts to about 100. Eighteen years ago another calamity of the 
same kind devastated the valley ; and it has been the custom of 
the inhabitants from time immemorial to appoint special days for 
offering up prayers to God to preserve them from such misfortunes. 
Now, however, they have come to realise that prayers are more 
effectual when conjoined with material action, and so an engineer 
has been employed to suggest, if possible, some practical means of 
preventing the recurrence of these destructive inundations.” 
My informant then explained that these floods were caused by the 
bursting of a temporary lake, which forms every year during the 
spring and summer, in a valley at the side of the glacier. When 
this happened, the sudden rush of water flooded the lake below the 
glacier, and speedily raised its level, some 4 to 6 feet, above its 
normal condition, and, consequently, to the same extent, flooded 
the river in the Simodal. On inquiring why this flood did not take 
place every year, I was informed that, in ordinary circumstances, 
when the temporary lake-basin became filled up, the water flowed 
over the top of the glacier, and by degrees excavated a channel for 
itself through the ice, by means of which the lake became emptied 
in three or four weeks. At other times, however, the water forced 
a passage beneath the glacier, and in this case escaped in a very 
much shorter time ; and the greatness of the flood depended upon 
the rapidity with which the lake became emptied. Among the 
measures proposed to rectify this state of matters was the construe- 
