Page:Great Neapolitan Earthquake of 1857.djvu/290

238 So far from the truth is this, that Capaccio, up in the mountain to which the Pæstians are said to have migrated from the plain, has been repeatedly dislocated, and, apparently, the ruin of the whole town produced the founding of Capaccio Nuovo; the other and older being now nearly without inhabitants.

In fact, from whatever centre earthquake movement originates, along the mountain axis from Calabria northwards towards Melfi, &c., its spread is greatest and most rapid, in the lower and denser limestone of the higher central chain, and here, at the western seaboard plain, is almost limited by the line of outlying cretaceous collines; the blow transmitted from which through ten or fifteen miles of soft porous tufa and loose material, principally deep calcareous clays, is completely buffed and lost, before it reaches Pæstum and the shore.

The family and servants of the landowner at Pæstum, a great number of whom I found collected at the Casone, were unanimous that the shock of 16th December was simply "oscillatorio," and in direction "levante ovvero ponente," that they had felt but one shock, and had heard no noise. On causing some of them to point out separately for me, from the balcony by the hand, the direction in which they deemed the shock traversed, and comparing it with the azimuth compass, I found it was very nearly E. and W.

They said the dogs (of which they keep a great number of large formidable animals to take care of the buffaloes, &c.), had barked violently and universally, for a good while before they felt the shock. Most of the people were in bed. They could give no information as to the time beyond crude