a town in France, which was buried under a mountain in the year 1618. See our article Mountain, p. 430. Of this fatal circumstance, Bishop Burnet, in his Travels, p. 66, gives the following account. "Having mentioned (says the Bishop) some falls of mountains in these parts (viz. near the Alps), I cannot pass by the extraordinary fate of the town of Pleurs, about a league from Chavannes to the north.—The town was half the bigness of Chavannes, but much more nobly built; for, besides the great palace of the Francken, that cost some millions, there were many other palaces built by rich factors both of Milan and the other parts of Italy, who, liking the situation and air, as well as the freedom of the government, gave themselves all the indulgences that a vast wealth could furnish. By one of the palaces that was a little distant from the town, and was not overwhelmed with it, one may judge of the rest. It was an out-house of the family of the Francken, and yet it may compare with many palaces in Italy. The voluptuousness of this place became..." came very crying; and Madam de Sais told me that she heard her mother often relate some passages of a Protestant minister's sermons that preached in a little church there, who warned them often of the terrible judgments of God which were hanging over their heads, and which he believed would suddenly break out upon them.

"On the 25th of August 1628, an inhabitant came and told them to be gone, for he saw the mountains cleaving; but he was laughed at for his pains. He had a daughter whom he persuaded to leave all and go with him; but when she was safe out of town, she called to mind that she had not locked the door of a room in which she had found things of value, and so she went back to do that, and was buried with the rest; for at the hour of supper the hill fell down, and buried the town and all the inhabitants, to the number of 2200, so that not one person escaped. The fall of the mountains did so fill the channel of the river, that the first news those of Chavannes had of it was by the failing of their river; for three or four hours there came not a drop of water, but the river brought forth itself a new course, and returned to them.

"I could hear no particular character of the man who escaped (continues the Bishop); so I must leave the secret reason of so singular a preservation to the great discovery, at the last day, of those steps of Divine Providence that are now so unaccountable. Some of the family of the Francken got some miners to work underground, to find out the wealth that was buried in their house; for, besides their plate and furniture, there was a great deal of cash and many jewels in the house. The miners pretended they could find nothing; but they went to their country of Tirol and built fine houses, and a great wealth appeared, of which no other visible account could be given but this, that they had found some of that treasure."