calm, we slept very comfortably in our tent, which was pitched near the banks of a small stream, at a short distance from the church. The 25th of May was a delightful day, and having taken an early breakfast of biscuit, cheese, and milk, we set out towards the Sulphur Mountain, which is about three miles distant from Krisuvik. At the foot of the mountain was a small bank composed chiefly of white clay and some sulphur, from all parts of which steam issued. Ascending it, we got upon a ridge immediately above a deep hollow, from which a profusion of vapour arose, and heard a confused noise of boiling and splashing, joined to the roaring of steam escaping from narrow crevices in the rock. This hollow, together with the whole side of the mountain opposite, as far up as we could see, was covered with sulphur and clay, chiefly of a white or yellowish colour. Walking over this soft and steaming surface we found to be very hazardous; and I was frequently very uneasy when the vapour concealed my friends from me. The day, however, being dry and warm, the surface was not so slippery as to occasion much risk of our falling. The chance of the crust of sulphur breaking, or the clay sinking with us was great, and we were several times in danger of being much scalded. Mr. Bright ran at one time a great hazard, and suffered considerable pain from accidentally plunging one of his legs into the hot clay. From whatever spot the sulphur is removed, steam instantly escapes; and in many places the sulphur was so hot that we could scarcely handle it. From the smell

I perceived that the steam was mixed with a small quantity of sulphurated hydrogen gas. When the thermometer was sunk a few inches into the clay, it rose generally to within a few degrees of the boiling point. By stepping cautiously, and avoiding every little hole from which steam issued, we soon discovered how far we might venture. Our good fortune, however, ought not to tempt any person to examine this wonderful place, without being providedwith two boards, with which any one may cross every part of the banks in perfect safety. At the bottom of this hollow we found a cauldron of boiling mud, about fifteen feet in diameter, similar to that on the top of the mountain, which we had seen the evening before; but this boiled with much more vehemence. We went within a few yards of it, the wind happeningto be remarkably favourable for viewing every part of this singular scene. The mud was in constant agitation, and often thrown up to the height of six or eight feet. Near this spot was an irregular space filled with water boiling briskly. At the foot of the hill, in a hollow formed by a bank of clay and sulphur, steam rushed with great force and noise from among the loose fragments of rock.

Further up the mountain, we met with a spring of cold water, a circumstance little expected in a place like this. Ascending still higher, we came to a ridge composed entirely of sulphur and clay, joining two summits of the mountain.

Here we found a much greater quantity of sulphur than on any other part of the surface we had gone over. It formed a

smooth crust from a quarter of an inch to several inches in thickness. The crust was beautifully crystallized. Immediately beneath it we found a quantity of loose granular sulphur, which appeared to be collecting and crystallizing as it was sublimed along with the steam. Sometimes we met with clay of different colours, white, red, and blue, under the crust; but we could not examine this place to any depth, as the moment the crust was removed, steam came forth, and proved extremely annoying. We found several pieces of wood, which were probably the remains of planks that had been formerly used in collecting the sulphur, small crystals of which partially covered them. There appears to be a constant sublimation of this substance; and were artificial chambers constructed for the reception and condensation of the vapours, much of it might probably be collected. As it is, there is a large quantity on the surface, and by searching, there is little doubt that great stores may be found. The inconvenience proceeding from the steam issuing on every side, and from the heat, is certainly considerable; but by proper precautions, neither would be felt so much as to render the collection of the sulphur a matter of any great difficulty. The chief obstacle to working these mines is their distance from a port, whence the produce could be shipped. But there are so many horses in the country, whose original price is trifling, and whose maintenance during summer costs nothing, that the conveyance of sulphur to Reikiavik presents no difficulties,

which might not probably be surmounted.

Below the ridge on the further side of this great bed of sulphur, we saw a great deal of vapour escaping with much noise. We crossed to the side of the mountain opposite, and found the surface sufficiently firm to admit of walking cautiously upon it. We had now to walk towards the principal spring, as it is called. This was a task of much apparent danger, as the side of the mountain, for the extent of about half a mile, is covered with loose clay, into which our feet sunk at every step. In many places there was a thin crust, below which the clay was wet, and extremely hot. Good fortune attended us; and we reached, without any serious inconvenience, the object we had in view. A dense column of steam, mixed with a little water, was forcing its way impetuously through a crevice in the rock, at the head of a narrow valley, or break in the mountain. The violence with which it rushes out is so great, that the noises thus occasioned, may often be heard at the distance of several miles, and during the night, while lying in our tent at Krisuvik, we more than once listened to them with mingled awe and astonishment. Behind the column of vapour was a dark coloured rock, which gave it its full effect.

It is quite beyond my power to offer such a description of this extraordinary place, as to convey adequate ideas of its wonders, or its terrors. The sensations of a person, even of firm nerves, standing on a support which feebly sustains him, over an abyss where, literally, fire and brimstone are in

dreadful and incessant action; having before his eyes tremendous proofs of what is going on beneath him; enveloped in thick vapours; his ears stunned with thundering noises; these can hardly be expressed in words, and can only be well conceived by those who have experienced them.

Earthquakes are said to occur frequently at Krisuvik, limited, however, to a small district in their extent and effects. It was remarked to us, also, that they happen generally after a continuance of wet weather; but whether these statements are accurate or not, we had no means of ascertaining.

ACCOUNT OF SNAEFELL JOKUL.

From the Same.

The weather having now become more favourable, the ascent of the Snæfell Jokul was accomplished by my friends on the 3rd of July; and I give the following narrative of the expedition in the 、words of Mr. Bright:

After a hesitation of an hour or two, on account of the doubtful appearance of the day, Mr. Holland and myself, with our interpreter, and one of our guides, who was very desirous of accompanying us, put ourselves under the direction of a stout Icelander, who undertook to be our leader in the ascent of the Jokul. He, however, honestly confessed, that he had never been higher up the mountain than the verge of the perpetual snow, as the sheep never wandered beyond that limit; but this was also the case with the other inhabitants of the district. Every one of us provided himself

with an Iceland walking staff, furnished with a long spike at the end; and, in case of need, we car-, ried some pairs of large coarse worsted stockings of the country manufacture. We likewise had our hammers and bags for specimens, a compass and thermometer, a bottle of brandy, with some rye bread and cheese.

"Thus equipped, we set forward on our march; and having passed two or three cottages, whose inhabitants gazed with wonder at our expedition, we directed our course in nearly a straight line towards the margin of the snow. The nearer we approached it, vegetation became more and more scanty, and at length almost entirely disappeared. After walking at a steady pace for two hours, in which time we had gone about six miles, we came to the first snow, and prepared ourselves for the more arduous part of our enterprize. The road being now alike new to all, we were as competent as our guides to the direction of our further course, The summits of all the surrounding mountains were covered with mist; but the Jokul was perfectly clear; and as the sun did not shine so bright as to dazzle our eyes with the reflection from the snow, we entertained good hopes of accomplishing our purpose. During the first hour the ascent was not very difficult, and the snow was sufficiently soft to yield to the pressure of our feet. After that time the acclivity was steeper, the snow became harder, and deep fissures appeared in it, which we were obliged to cross, or to avoid by going a considerable way round. These fissures presented a very beautiful spectacle :

they were at least thirty or forty feet in depth, and though not in general above two or three feet wide, they admitted light enough to display the brilliancy of their white and rugged sides. As we ascended, the inferior mountains gradually diminished to the sight, and we beheld a complete zone of clouds encircling us, while the Jokul still remained clear and distinct. From time to time the clouds, partially separating, form ed most picturesque arches, through which we descried the distant sea,and still farther off, the mountains on the opposite side of the Breieè-Fiord,stretching northwards towards the most remote extremity of the island.

In the progress of our ascent we were obliged frequently to allow ourselves a temporary respite, by sitting down for a few minutes on the snow. About three o'clock, we arrived at a chasm, which threatened to put a complete stop to our progress. It was at least forty feet in depth, and nearly six feet wide; and the opposite side presented a face like a wall, being elevated several feet above the level of the surface on which we stood; besides which, from the falling in of the snow in the interior of the chasm, all the part on which we were standing was undermined, so that we were afraid to approach too near the brink lest it should give way. Determined, however, not to renounce the hope of passing this barrier, we followed its course till we found a place that encouraged the attempt. The opposite bank was here not above four feet high and a mass of snow formed a bridge, a very insecure one indeed

across the chasm. Standing upon the brink, we cut with our poles three or four steps in the bank on the other side, and then, stepping as lightly as possible over the bridge, we passed one by one to the steps, which we ascended by the help of our poles. The snow on the opposite side became immediately so excessively steep, that it required our utmost efforts to prevent our sliding back to the edge of the precipice, in which case we should inevitably have been plunged into the chasm. This dangerous part of our ascent did not continue long; and we soon found ourselves on a tolerably level bank of snow, with a precipice on our right about sixty feet perpendicular, presenting an appearance as if the snow on the side of the mountain had slipped away, leaving behind it the part on which we stood. We were now on the summit of one of the three peaks of the mountain; that which is situated farthest to the east. We beheld immediately before us a fissure greatly more formidable in width and depth than any we had passed, and which, indeed, offered an insuperable obstacle to our further progress. The highest peak of the Jokul was still a hundred feet above us; and after looking at it some time with the mortification of disappointment, and making some fruitless attempts to reach, at least, a bare exposed rock which stood in the middle of the fissure, we were obliged to give up all hope of advancing further.

The peak of the Jokul we had now attained, is about 4,460 feet above the level of the sea. The extensive view which we might

have obtained from this elevated point, was almost entirely intercepted by the great masses of cloud, which hung upon the sides of the mountain and admitted only partial and indistinct views of the landscape beneath. It has been said by Egbert Olasson, and others, that from one part of the channel which lies between Iceland and Greenland, the mountain of Snæfell Jokul may be seen on one side, and a lofty mountain in Greenland on the other. It is difficult to ascertain how far this is an accurate statement. The distance between the two countries at this place cannot be less than eighty or ninety leagues.

The clouds now began rapidly to accumulate, and were visibly rolling up the side of the mountain; we were therefore anxious to quit our present situation as speedily as possible, that we might repass the chasm before we were involved in mist. Our first object, however, was to examine the state of the magnetic needle which Olasson in his travels asserts to be put into great agitation at the summit of this mountain, and no longer to retain its polarity. What may be the case a hundred feet higher, we cannot affirm; but at the point we reached, the needle was quite stationary, and as far as we could judge, perfectly true. We then noted an observation of the thermometer, which we were surprised to find scarcely so low as the freezing point; and after an application to the brandy bottle, began with great care to retrace the footsteps of our ascent. We found re-crossing the chasm a work of no small danger; for

whenever we stuck our poles into the snow bridge, they went directly through. The first person,

therefore who crossed struck his pole deep into the lower part of the wall, thus affording a point of support for the feet of those who followed; Mr. Holland, however, who was the second in passing over, had, notwithstanding, a narrow escape, for his foot actually broke through the bridge of snow and it was with difficulty he rescued himself from falling into the chasm beneath. We were scarcely all safe on the lower side of the chasm, when the mist surrounding us, made it extremely difficult to keep the track by which we had ascended the mountain. When we came opposite to a small bank which we had remarked in our ascent as being free from snow, we desired our guide to remain where he was, that we might not lose the path, while we went to examine that spot. We found the bank to be almost entirely composed of fragments of pumice and volcanic scoriæ. After our return to the former track we made the best of our way back to Olafsik which we reached at about a quarter past six, to the great surprise of every one; for we were scarcely expected till the following morning; such is the reverential awe inspired by the Jokul. None of our party seemed more gratified with the exploit than our guide, who having always been accustomed to look upon the Jokul as some invincible giant, greatly exulted in this victory over him; but we afterwards learned, that he found considerable difficulty in making his friends credit his narative of the ascent.'