Page:Great Neapolitan Earthquake of 1857.djvu/379

Rh sluice and in front of the building above it, and they had been slightly projected, by the eastern element of the emergent wave, at the moment when they were relieved from the detent of the cornice above, by the giving downwards, of the central part of the wall over the door lintel, which will be observed also down. The south end was very little fissured, and the evidence was clear of a wave-path, not varying above 15° or so from the plane of the side walls, or north and south.

The fissures were 2.25 inches wide at top, on the west side, and about 2 inches (in the same direction), on the east, which also indicates an eastern element of about 17° in the wave-path.

Referring back to Photog. No. 173, in the foreground certain piers are seen—groove piers for inserting stop gates, to pond the water for irrigation in the dry season. These stood in about 4 feet water, were of sound dressed limestone ashlar, and presented the long way of their horizontal section to the wave-path. Each pier was about 10 feet long by 4 wide, and about 12 feet high; not a stone was dislodged. The top courses were cramped together. From their peculiar narrow figure a very moderate divergence of the wave-path, from the north and south, would have probably sufficed to dislocate, if not to overthrow them.

Several other buildings of rather large size, situated about this portion of the city, chiefly ordinal, gave by fissure, when reduced, a wave-path varying between 157° 30' and 164° W. of north. It would be unprofitably tedious to give the details at length.

One of the most instructive buildings at Polla, was the