Balaton

Balaton, Lake, or Platten See, the largest piece of water in Hungary, lies about 56 miles S.W. of Pesth, and has a length of 50 miles, a breadth of from 3 to 10 miles, and an area, including marshes, of 420 square miles. The water is slightly saline, and abounds in fish. It is fed by the river Szala. and many small streams, and chains into the Danube. In 1865 it became nearly dry, but has since filled, though a good deal of the swampy land has been reclaimed. It is liable to peculiar disturbances, apparently of subaqueous origin.