1807. | 
length of two hundred and sixty paces, 
the svil begins insensibly, on a slope of 
twenty-five degrees, to divide itseir, and 
in 2 sott argililaceous earth covered with 
turf, to present numerous fissures, often 
transversely to the course of the dissolved 
section. ‘Ihese fissures are wider aud 
nearer each other, the further they are 
from the summit of the mountain. 
We find here and there, casually, 
among these fissures in the vegetable 
earth and clay, isolated fragments of 
trunks and branches of trees converted 
into coal of a smooth, brilliant, trape- 
zoidal, and Jamellated break, and trans- 
verse to the direction of the woody 
fibres. These fragments are often cylin- 
drical, and bear only on their exterior 
surface the mould of vegetable a 
One of them was fourteen iches tong, 
and nine broad; but in general they are 
muchless. They are not atall pyriteous, 
no more than the rest of the mountain. 
Their presence in this place was knewn 
before the separation, and did not con- 
tribute to that event. 
found in large quantities, except on the 
summit of Ruthberg. The entireness of 
the ranges of turf included between the 
fissures, shew that there was no decom- 
position of the part near the summit of 
the mountain, but merely a sinking, 
which is manifest from the height of the 
scarp, or cut, of free-stone, at the foot of 
which these fissures are discoverable. 
Their number increases proportionably in 
descending, and they soon multrply and 
enlarge to such a degree, as to present 
nothing but blocks of arvillaceaus earth 
overturned in ev ery manner. 
and about thirty toises below the sum- 
mit, that one could discover green wood, 
which had all at once changed place with 
the bed of earth on which it vegetated. 
The further Falling of this wood is much 
dreaded ; but such fears do not appear, 
at least for the present, to be well found- 
ed, because the sinkmg is complete. The 
agitation which resulted from it has given 
the present soil a solid station. The 
wood itself stands on a plane, imeclined at 
most about twenty-five degrees, and this 
slope is too gentle for it to make much 
way, by the mere etlect of inclinatien. 
Some few trees may be separated, or, 
perhaps, rooted up, but they will not 
glide with all the ruin of a dissolution to 
the foot of the mountain, until the | layer 
of free-stone, or blend, which forms their 
basis, shall hare been destgoyed, and 
softened by the actiea of water, and this 
They are not: 
It is here, 
Account of the Fall of Ruffiberg,in Swtizeriand. — 51% 
decomposition seems to require a long 
series of years, 
A manuscript of 1352 relates, that a 
village, named Rothen, once stood on 
that part of Ruthberg where the late 
calamity happened. Tradition, con- 
firmed by several monuments, informs 
us that ths village was destroyed by a 
catastrophe very fae like the one now 
described, and it has been rebuilt by 
little and little, and chiefly within a cen- 
tury, on the ruins of the ancient village. 
We can conclude but little from the past 
in elucidation of the present, in events 
so little susceptible of calculation; but 
it appears to M, Saussure, in offering cons 
jectures on this subject, that it would re- 
quire much longer than a century to effect 
this softening of the layers. 
The fall Ai the ruins of the drifted part, 
is at present, much less to be dreaded 
than that of some parts of the mountain 
which have not been removed. All the 
vertical range of freestone which forms 
the eastern border of the dissolved part 
must fall; for the principles of destruc 
tion arein avery advanced state and pre- 
cisely similar to those which produced the 
last separation. 
A month after this catastrophe, and 
when much rain had fallen in the interval, 
the Ruffibere daily resounded with the 
explosions of rocks made with powder to 
form a way across the fallen part; yet 
there had been no remarkable changes 
effected among the ruins, Some stones 
suspended hereand there between blocks 
of softened clay took a more fixed situa- 
tion but they gave but litile way, and 
there had been no such motion in the 
wood as to apprehend its gliding further, 
The ruins in parts pare al iiel anil inferior 
to this wood become stoney or composed 
o great blocks of blend, with interlayers 
softened clay: it ae abines on the west 
ee by a scarp or cut of blend placed 
below the principal ridge. Thus were 
formed two stony torrents, which after 
having descended in a parallel direction 
one above the other towards the S. E, 
and destroyed the litéle villazes’ of Spitz= 
bull, Ober Rothen, and Under Ro- 
then, situated on the slope of the moun- 
tain, reunited at its foot, traversed the 
valley of Arth, whichis here half a league 
broad, ang, by extending themselves, co- 
voredt three fourths ef its length tg the 
distance of a league: they proceeded on 
one part to heap themselyes at the foot 
of Moar Rigi, and on the other to. fall 
inte the lake ‘of Lowertz. 
Ahere 
oe ee eee 
