_Lake of Geneva_ (Vol. vii. p. 406.).--The account given in the _Chronicle
of Marius_ of what is called "an earthquake or landslip in the valley of
the {510} Upper Rhone," is evidently that of a sudden _débâcle_ destructive
of life and property, but not such as to effect any permanent change in the
configuration of the country. That an antiquary like Montfaucon should have
fallen into the blunder of supposing that the Lacus Lemanus was then
formed, may well excite surprise. The breadth of the new-formed lake, as
given by Marius, is impossible, as the mountains in the valley are scarcely
anywhere more than a mile apart. The valley of the Upper Rhone is liable to
such _débâcles_, and one which would fill it might be called a lake,
although of short duration. Having witnessed the effects of the _débâcle_
of 1818 a few weeks after it happened, I can easily understand how such a
one as that described by Marius should have produced the effects attributed
to it, and yet have left no traces of its action after the lapse of
centuries.