\v Count ippolito’s Account of the 
the earth was continually (hakcn, at firfl every fire minutes, 
afterwards every quarter of an hour. 
A terrible groan from under ground preceded this con- 
vulfion, lafted as long as it did, and finally ended with an 
intenfe noife, like the thunder of a mine that takes effect. 
Thefe mighty thunderings accompanied not only the (hocks of 
that night and of the fucceeding day, but all the others which 
have taken place fince that time : moreover, groans have 
fometimes been heard without any (hakes of the earth, and 
prior to the twenty-eighth of March there were noifes 
and crackings which exactly refembled the burfting of fo 
many bombs. 
The air was covered with clouds, and the wefterly gales blew 
very frefh. Thefe were lfilled in one minute before the horrid 
cra(h ; but in one moment after they blew again, and then were 
ftill. There were, however, frequent and fudden changes of 
the atmofphere during the whole night, the heavens being 
alternately cloudy and ferene, and different winds blowing* 
though they all came from between fouth-weff. 
At the time of the earthquake, during the night, flames 
■were feen to iffue from the ground in the neighbourhood of 
this city towards the flea, where the explofion extended, fo 
that many countrymen ran away for fear ; thefe flames iflued 
exaflly from a place where fome days before an extraordinary 
heat had been perceived. 
After the great concuflion there appeared in the air, towards 
the eaft, a whitifh flame, in a flan ting airedlion ; it had the ap- 
pearance ofleleflric fire, and was feen for the fpace of two hours. 
In confequence of the terrible fhock, many countries and 
cities, efpecially thofe fituated in the neighbourhood and neck 
of our peninfula as you go from Tiriolo to the river Angitola, 
aqd which had fuffered nothing before, were overturned. Cu- 
ringa, Maida, Cortale, Girifalco, Borgia, St. Floro, Settin- 
giano, Marcelltnara, Tiriolo, and other countries of lefs im- 
portance, were almoft entirely deffroyed, but with the lofs of 
very few people. Many hundreds, however, perifhed in 
Maida, Cortale, and Borgia. 
The 
