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The Mirage-Sand Floods

"It was further remarkable, that the wall, both above and below a little window in the same gable-end, was so shattered, that the tight could be seen through the crevices in the wall, and upon a large stone on the outside of the wall; beneath this window was a mark, as if made by the stroke of a smith's sledge, and a splinter of the stone was broken off, of some pounds weight. I was further informed, that from the time of the great thunder-clap, both the thunder and lightning diminished gradually, so that in an hour's time all was still and quiet again."

We proceed to give an account of THE MIRAGE.-From Belzoni's Narrative.

It "This phenomenon is often described by travellers, who assert having been deceived by it, as at a distance it appears to them like water. This is certainly the fact, and I must confess that I have been deceived myself, even after I was aware of it. The perfect resemblance to water, and the strong desire for this element, made me conclude, in spite of all my caution not to be deceived, that it was really water I saw. generally appears like a still lake, so unmoved by the wind, that every thing above it is to be seen most distinctly reflected, which is the principal cause of the deception. If the wind agitate any of the plants that rise above the horizon of the mirage, the motion is seen perfectly at a great distance. If the traveller stands elevated much above the mirage, the water seems less united and less deep, for, as the eyes look down upon it, there is not thickness enough in the vapour of the surface of the ground to conceal the earth from the sight; but if the traveller be on a level with the horizon of the mirage, he cannot see through it, so that it appears to him clear water. By putting my head first to the ground, and then mounting a camel, the height of which from the ground might have been ten feet at the most, I found a great difference in the appearance of the mirage. On approaching it, it becomes thinner, and appears as if agitated by the wind, like a field of ripe corn. It gradually vanishes as the traveller approaches, and at last entirely disappears when he is on the spot."

We shall now introduce to the reader a curious account of SAND FLOODS; a name given to the flowing of sand so common in the deserts of Arabia. Mr. Bruce gives the following description of some that he saw in travelling through that long and dreary desert.-" At one o'clock (says he) we alighted among some acacia trees at Waadi el Halboub, having gone twenty-one miles. We were here at once surprised and terrified by a sight, surely one of the most magnificent in 3 U