>***««*! 42 Descending the hills we reached a vast level plain containing the Lauger Lake, upon the brink of which are several hot springs,which we visited. The Icelandic boiling springs gush forth at the foot of the mountains in hundreds of places and in a hundred different ways. We saw some of gentle and even flow being used for washing, cooking, and bathing, whilst others were objects of curiosity and wonder ; one of the most remark- able consists of two fountains within a yard of each other—the larger one vomiting a column of boiling water ten feet high for the space of four minutes, when it entirely subsides, and then the smaller one operates for about three minutes, ejecting a column of about five feet. The alter- nation is perfectly regular in time and force. There are authentic accounts of its unfailing exactitude for the last hundred years. After bathing in one of these tepid springs, and cooking our dinner in a boiling one, we galloped for some miles over the wet marshy plain and through narrow tracks worn by the ponies into hollows sometimes two feet in depth. As we rode along it was necessary to be ever on the alert and to main- tain an incessant motion of the feet in order to avoid collision with the irregular surface and the projecting stones on either side of us. I was astonished to find, on dismounting, that these deep tracks were so narrow that I could not walk in them, yet the horses found no difficulty in trotting along. We saw many wild-looking sheep, which ran away at a great speed upon our approach. The ox, sheep and horse, which accompanied the first colonists to their new home, still form the staple wealth of their descendants, though in preserving their sheep they are much hampered by the bad climate, scantiness of winter food, and the attacks of the eagles, ravens and foxes, all of which carry off vast numbers, especially at the lambing season. The system of sheep-shearing in some parts is curious, for they are seized, thrown on their backs, their legs tied and the wool pulled off by main force. It seems to be a cruel method, but we are told that there is a period in the year when the young wool beginning to grow pushes the old out before it, so that the old coat is easily pulled off. If one wishes to study ornithology, let him go to Iceland, for it boasts of 82 species of indigenous ' rfTTffwyw r yyyyyy yy-yyry y rvyyyyyyyyyyyyyryyyyyyy ryrr^

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