we had three fhocks that exceeded any we had yet felt, in which the noifes were fo loud, and the agitations of the earth fo violent, that every body thought it was opening under their feet; and foon after account was brought, that fire was burst out of the ground, about half a league to the eastward of the aforefaid fmoke. This gave us new alarms, which were increafed almoft every hour, with accounts, that rivers of fire had iffued out of the volcanos, and that fome of them directed their courfe towards this city. On the 23d I went to fee it, and found, that the accounts we had heard were not exaggerated: the first fight of it was fo dreadful, that fome of our company durft not proceed; but I was determined to approach as near as poffible; and accordingly went forward, with a clergyman in that neighbourhood. When we were as near as we could go for the heat, we got upon an eminence, from whence we had a profpect of the whole: It is impoflible for the imagination to form fo horrible a fight as prefented itself to our views from thence. There were three large volcanos, at a confiderable diftance from each other (the mouth of one of them was at leaft fifty yards long) from all parts of which proceeded dreadful bellowings like thunder, and vaft quantities of red hot ftones and flakes of fire: and all round about was a large burning lake, out of which proceeded feveral rivers, the principal ones directing their courfes about N. W. the larger ftones fell generally near the place from whence they iflued, but the fmaller ones were thrown up to an incredible height, and by the wind were forced on one fide, which had already raifed three large hills. The clattering of the ftones in the air, the terrible thunderings from below the lake, rivers of liquid fire, and the earth continually fhaking under our feet, produced a fcene too dreadful to be described. When we had taken a view of this, we joined our company, and went to the N. W. fide to fee the rivers of fire, the three large ones were near a mile in breadth, and all directed their courfe towards the town of Bifcouto. As the country was almost even, the motion of the two last was very flow; but the first had run near two leagues from the volcano, and was got into a more de'clining ground, which made its motion fwifter. It is impoffible to exprefs the confternation and diftreffes of the inhabitants of this part of the island, particularly thofe of Biscouto: the first river was almost entering their town, which they had already abandoned; and the two others that came behind, threatened to overwhelm the adjacent country; for they run in a head of at leaft four yards high, and left no fign of either tree or houfe that flood in their way. This was the ftate of things on the 23d. But on the 24th, it pleafed the Almighty to abate the force of the fire, and foon after the rivers began. to have a flower motion: they moved along, however, for feveral days, and part of the first entered the town of Bifcouto, where it burnt about one third of the houses, and then directed its coure into a valley on ene fide, where it continued its motion four or five days, and then flopped. I fend you this to fatisfy you for the prefent; when the rivers, &c. are cooled, I fhall go again and examine them thoroughly, and then I shall give you a more regular account. We cannot conclude thefe accounts of earthquakes and erup tions, without taking notice of what the Rev. Mr. John Mitchell, of Queen's College, Cambridge, has lately publifhed concerning them. His conjectures are, that the immediate caufe of earthquakes is a fubterraneous explosion, and that the caufe of the fubterraneous explosion is a quantity of water fuddenly breaking in upon a fubterraneous fire, by which a vapour is inftantly produced, the quantity and elastic force of which are equal to all the phænomena of earthquakes: all his obfervations tend to confirm thefe conjectures, which feem perfectly to coincide with all the phænomena of earthquakes; and fuch phænomena are here faithfully and carefully collected, related, and compared. In fhort, it is the best tract upon the subject that has yet appeared. description of Ingleborough, a mountain in Yorkshire, signed PASTOR. With an indication of some other places remarkable for natural curiosities in the north of England. NGLEBOROUGH is fituated It is a mountain, fingularly eminent, whether you regard its height, or the immense base upon which it ftands. It is near twenty miles in circumference, and hath Clapham, a church town, to the fouth; Ingleton to the weft; Chapel in the Dale to the north; and Selfide, a fmall hamlet, to the east; from each of which places the rife, in fome parts, is even and gradual; in others, rugged and perpendicular. In this mountain rife confiderabie ftreams, which at length fall into the Irish fea. The land round the bottom is fine fruitful pa fture, interfperfed with many acres of limestone rocks. As you afcend the mountain, the land is more barren, and under the furface is peat-mofs, in many places two or three yards deep, which the country people cut up, and dry for burning, inftead of coal. As the mountain rifes, it becomes more rugged and perpendicular, and is at length fo fteep that it cannot be afcended without great difficulty, and in fome places not at all. In many parts there are fine quarries of flate, which the neighbouring inhabitants ufe to cover their houses; there are alfo many loofe ftones, but no lime-ftones; yet, near the I in the welt riding of the county bafe, no ftones but line tone are to of York; the wefterly and northerly part of it lies in the parish of Bentham; the easterly in the parish of Horton in Pibbledale; the foutherly in the parish of Clapham. It is likewife a part of four manors. The manor of Ingleton, to the welt, belonging toParker efq; the manor of Newby, to the co-heits of the late duke of Montagu; the manor of Clapham, to Jofies Morley, etq; and the manor of Auftwick, to James Shuttleworth, efq; be found. The 'loofe ftones near the fummit, the people call geret stone. The foot of the mountain abounds with fine fprings on every fide, and on the weft fide there is a very remarkable fpring near the fummit. The top is very level, but fo dry and barren that it affords little grafs, the rock being but barely covered with earth. It is faid to be about a mile in circumference, and feveral perfons now living fay, that they have feen races upon The apon it. Upon that part of the top, facing Lancaster and the Irish fea, there are ftill to be seen the dimenfions of an houfe, and the remains of what the country people call a beacon, viz. a place erected with ftones, three or four yards high, afcended with ftone ftairs; which ferved in old time, as old people tell us, to alarm the country, upon the approach of an enemy, a perfon being always kept there upon watch, in the time of war, who was to give notice in the night, by fire, to other watchmen placed upon other mountains, within view of which there are many, particularly Whernfide, Woefall, Camfell, Pennygent, and Pennlehill. There are likewife difcoverable a great many other mountains in Weftmoreland and Cumberland, befides the town of Lancaster, from which it is diftant about 20 miles. weft and north fides are most steep and rocky; there is one part to the fouth, where you may afcend on horfeback; but whether the work of nature, or of art, I cannot fay. A part of the faid mountain jutts out to the north-east near a mile, but fomewhat below the fummit; this part is called Parkfell; another part jutts out in the fame manner, near a mile towards the east, and is called Simon-fell; there is likewife another part towards the fouth, called Little-Ingleborough; the fummits of all which are much lower than the top of the mountain itself. Near the base, there are holes or chafms, called fwallows, fuppofed to be the remains of Noah's deluge; they are among the lime-ftone rocks, and are open to an incredible depth. The fprings towards the eat all come together, and fall into one of these swallows, or holes, called Allan Pott; and after paffing under the earth about a mile, they burst out again, and flow into the river Ribble, whofe head or fpring is but a little further up the valley. The depth of this fwallow or hole, could never be ascertained; it is about 20 poles in circumference, not perfectly circular, but rather oval. In wet foggy weather it fends out a fmoke, or mift, which may be feen at a confiderable diftance. Not far from this hole, nearly north, is another hole, which may be easily defcended. In fome places, the roof is four or five yards high, and its width is the fame; in fome places not above a yard; and was it not for the run of water, it is not to be known how far you might walk, by the help of a candle, or other light. There is likewife another hole or chafin, a little weft from the other two, which cannot be defcended without difficulty: you are no fooner entered than you have a fubterraneous paffage, fome nes wide and fpacious, fometime. fo narrow you are obliged to mak, fe of both hands, as well as feet, crawl a confiderable way; and as I was informed, fome perfons have gone feveral hundred yards, and might have gone much further, durft they have ventured. There are a great many more holes, or caverns, well worth the notice of a traveller; fome dry, fome having a continual run of water; fuch as BlackfideCove,Sir William's Cove, Atkinson's Chamber, &c. all whofe curiofities are more than I can defcribe. There is likewife, partly fouth eaft, a fmall rivulet, which falls into a place confiderably deep, called Long-kin; there is likewife another fwallow, or hole, called Johnfon's Jacketloeh, hole, a place resembling a funnel in fhape, but vaftly deep; a fione being thrown into it, makes a rumbling noife, and may be heard a confiderable time: there is alfo another, called Gaper-gill, into which a good many fprings fall in one ftream, and after a fubterraneous paffage of upwards of a mile, break out again, and wind through ftones are to be found near it, tho' it is computed to contain 400 of that country cart load of ftones or upwards. There is likewife another at the base north-east, in refemblance much the fame, but fcarce fo large, and I was informed of feveral others up and down the country. PASTOR. TR. Rauthmell, in his Anti Clapham, then, after a winding quitates Bremetonace, or the courfe of feveral miles, this ftream joins the river Lon, or Lune; and, paling by the town of Lancaster, it falls into the Irish fea: there are likewife, both on the weft and north fides, a great many fprings, which all fall into fuch cavities, and burfting out again, towards the bafe of the faid mountain, fall likewife into the Irish fea, by the town of Lancafter; and what feemed very remarkable to me, there was not one rivulet running from the bafe of the mountain that had not a confiderable fubterraneous paffage. All the fprings arofe towards the fuminit, amongst the greet-stones, and funk or fell into fome hole, as foon as they defcended to the lime-stone rocks; where paffing under ground for fome way, they burft out again towards the bafe. There is likewife, to the weft and north, a great many fwallows or holes, fome vaftly deep and frightful, others more fhallow, all aftonishing, with a long range of the most beautiful rocks that ever adorned a profpect, rifing in a manner perpendicularly up to an immenfe height. In the valley above Horton, near the base of this mountain, I observed a large heap or pile of greetstones all thrown promifcuoufly together, without any appearance building or workmanship, which yet cannot be reasonably thought to be the work of nature; few of Roman Antiquities of Overborough (p. 61.) has, from Dr. Gale, given the following very fatisfactory and entertaining account of the derivation of this mountain's name, and the use of the beacon, the ruins of which are now vifible upon its flat fummit. "Bremetonaca is a compound of three British words; Bre, Maenig, Tan; Mons, Sazeus, Ignis: which is, to exprefs it in English, the rocky hill fire ftation; i. e. the ftation at Overborough had a fire upon a hill. And the word Ingleborough fignifies the fame thing in the Saxon tongue, which the word Bremetonacæ fignifies in the British. Hence we learn that the garrifon of Overborough erected a beacon on the rocky hill of Ingleborough ; and on that fide of the fummit which looks towards Overborough. Ia confirmation of this, the word Borough fignifies a fortified mount; i. e. Ingleborough, from its very name, denotes a fortification; and fo it was when it had Roman foldiers, as centinels detached from the garrison of Overborough." Ingleborough is about five miles from Overborough; but its prodigious height would have made it fit for a mons exploratorius, had the distance been almoft double. Thofe gentlemen, who have leifure and fenfe enough to defire an an acquaintance with the natural hiftory of their own country, would do well to fet out from Lancaster, and from thence proceed to Cartmel, Windermeer, Ulverftone, Furnefs-abbey, Pile of Foudrey, Millum-Caftle, Ravenglafs, Whiteha ven, Cockermouth, Boulnefs, and Carlifle; they would have frequent reafon to lament the incredible ignorance or careleffness of those who have undertaken to give an account of the curiofities of Great Britain. One of the curiofities they would meet with in this tour, is a cavern upon a common belonging to a little village called Leck, in the N. E. part of Lancashire. The cavern itfelf is called by the neighbourhood Eafe-gill-kirk. The entrance into it has the appearance of a pointed gothic arch, about 20 yards high, and proportionably wide. Within, it looks like a lofty fpacious dome, variegated with fretwork, of almost every colour. There are feveral paffages out of it, which lead under the hill; but one must have lights and clues to exmine them with fafety and pleasure. To the above places, A. B. in a letter from Cockermouth, dated Oct. 19, adds Keswick in Cumberland, and its environs, of which he thus speaks. which cannot be experienced but by an actual furvey. It would be unpardonable not to mention the black lead mine at the head of the valley of Borrodale, as being one of greatest curiofities in England, or perhaps in Europe, Neither ought the falt spring to be paft by, being very near the edge of the road, at the head of the lake. I have mentioned this part of the country chiefly on account of the profpects, with which every traveller, who has any tafte for the wild and romantic, cannot but be highly delighted; the vallies of Enerdale, Buttermeer, Lowefwater and Lorton, furnith us with fome others of the fame nature; but not perhaps quite fo beautiful or extenfive. But to the antiquarian I fhould point out feveral others as worthy of notice, fuch as Eleborough, near Maryport, where may be feen feveral pieces of Roman antiquities: and Wigton, near which place appear the veftigia of that famous Roman ftation, which has for many years gone by the name of Old Carlifle, where have been found a great number of very valuable antiquities, as votive altars, infcriptions, &c. When our traveller has vifited Carlifle, no doubt but he will have a defire to fee what remains of the. Picts wall, in this county. Many pieces of antiquity are to be feen at Netherby, Scaleby-caftle, Brampton, Lanercoft, and Irthington. Corby is remarkable for the pleafantnefs of its fituation; and, oppofite to it on the other fide of the Eden, Wetherall, where are fome rooms dug out of the folid rock, in a place very difficult of afcent, fuppofed to have been the habitation HA of |