crater, on the steepest side
of the mountain, and near the Tertiary sandstone which underlies this
portion of the mountain. A short distance outside the town we saw great
beds of the lava of 1832, piled up fantastically in all sorts of forms,
and excessively rugged and uneven. It is quite bare of vegetation, and
does not appear to have even commenced to be decomposed.

Bronte gave its name to Lord Nelson, who was created Duke of Bronte by
Ferdinand IV.:--an appropriate name for a great warrior ([Greek:
bronte], thunder). The Nelson estates are scattered around the town.

On leaving Bronte the road conducted us past several high hills of
sandstone and quartzite near Monte Rivoglia; then we passed near
Maletto, and, leaving the malarious lake Gurrita on our left, we soon
after arrived at Randazzo. Near Maletto the road reaches it highest
point--3,852 feet.

The town of Randazzo was founded by the Lombards in the 10th century;
during the Middle Ages it appears to have been a prosperous, populous,
place; at present it possesses more than 8,000 inhabitants. The Emperor
Frederick II. created his son Duke of Randazzo, and added to the name of
the town, _Etnea_. It contains several very interesting architectural
remains; a church of the 13th century, a mediaeval palace--the Palazzo
Finochiaro,--and a ducal palace now used as a prison. The houses are for
the most part built of lava, and some of the shops have massive lava
counters extending half across their open front, while the door occupies
the remainder, as at Pompeii. The view from Randazzo is very fine in
every direction; the crater of Etna appears near, and Monte
Spagnuolo--many hours distant--just outside the town. The town is 2,718
feet above the sea, just above the Valley of the Alcantara--of which it
commands a fine view, and also of the limestone hills on the other side.

We were obliged to pass the night in the town, in an inn scarcely
superior to that of Aderno, but distinctly better than the miserable
Albergo Collegio at Bronte. At least the people were civil, and did
their best. The one room of the inn had a bed in each corner, and a deal
table in the middle. Three of the beds were occupied by engineers who
were surveying in connection with a new line of railway; the fourth was
made over to the courier. I slept in a small kind of ante-room on a bed
chiefly composed of deal boards placed on tressels. Here again the
courier was invaluable, in fact it would be si