foundations , and some of them opened at their summits , which were split and rent in a wonderful manner , huge masses of them being thrown down into the adjacent valleys . Flames are related to have issued from these mountains .”— Sir Charles Lyell , Principles of Geology , page 495 .
At Lisbon “ a sound of thunder was heard underground , and immediately afterwards a violent shock threw down the greater part of that city . In the course of about six minutes sixty thousand persons perished . The sea first retired , and laid the bar dry ; it then rolled in , rising fifty feet or more above its ordinary level .” “ Among other extraordinary events related to have occurred at Lisbon during the catastrophe , was the subsidence of a new quay , built entirely of marble , at an immense expense . A great concourse of people had collected there for safety , as a spot where they might be beyond the reach of falling ruins ; but suddenly the quay sank down with all the people on it , and not one of the dead bodies ever floated to the surface .”— Ibid ., page 495 .
“ The shock ” of the earthquake “ was instantly followed by the fall of every church and convent , almost all the large public buildings , and more than one fourth of the houses . In about two hours after the shock , fires broke out in different quarters , and raged with such violence for the space of nearly three days , that the city was completely desolated . The earthquake happened on a holyday , when the churches and convents were full of people , very few of whom escaped .”— Encyclopedia Americana , art . “ Lisbon ,” note ( ed . 1831 ). “ The terror of the people was beyond description . Nobody wept ; it was beyond tears . They ran hither and thither , delirious with horror and astonishment , beating their faces and breasts , crying , ‘ Misericordia ! the world ’ s at an end !’ Mothers forgot their children , and ran about loaded with crucifixed images . Unfortunately , many ran to the churches for protection ; but in vain was the sacrament exposed ; in vain did the poor creatures embrace the altars ; images , priests , and people were buried in one common ruin .” It has been estimated that ninety thousand persons lost their lives on that fatal day .
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