(_For the Mirror_.)
To describe the awful grandeur and terrific phenomena of volcanic
eruptions in an adequate manner, is perhaps beyond the power of
language. The number of volcanoes now known is about four hundred;
nearly all of them are situated a small distance from the sea, and many
appear to have been burning from time immemorial.
A certain mixture of sulphur, steel-filings and water, buried a short
depth from the ground, will exhibit a kind of miniature volcano; and
hence some philosophers have concluded, that in the bowels of burning
mountains there are various sorts of bodies which probably ferment by
moisture, and being thus expanded, at last produce eruptions and
explosions. The mouth or chimney of a burning mountain is, in many
instances, upwards of a mile across! from which, in an eruption, are
emitted torrents of smoke and flame, rivers of lava, (consisting chiefly
of bitumen and melted metal,) and clouds of cinders, stones, &c. to an
immense distance. The wonderful quantity of these materials thrown out
from the orifice almost exceeds belief; the lava rushes like a fiery
torrent at a very rapid pace,--ravages the labours of agriculture,
overthrows houses, and in a few seconds utterly destroys the hopes of
hundreds of families--the toils of hundreds of years. Nothing impedes
its awful course; when interrupted by stone walls, or even rocks, it
collects in a few moments to the height of eight or ten feet; its
immense heat and violent pressure quickly batter down the obstacle,
which is literally made rotten by the fire, and the whole mass seems to
melt together into the lava, which again continues its progress until
exhausted by the distance of its destructive march.
An English traveller, who was at Naples during the eruption of Mount
Vesuvius, on the 10th of September, 1810, thus describes the scene:--
"Curious to witness the volcano as near as possible, I set out for
Portici, where I arrived at eight in the evening; from thence to the
summit of the mountain the road is long and difficult; having procured a
guide about the middle of the distance, we had to climb a mountain of
cinders, every step nearly knee-deep; this made it near midnight when we
reached the crater, which we approached as near as the heat would
permit. The fire of the mountain served us for a beacon, and we set
light to our sticks in the lava, which slowly ran through the hollows of
the crater. The surface of the inflamed matter nearly resembles metal in
a state of fusion, but as it flows it carries a kind of scum, which
gradually hardens into scoria and rolls like fire-balls to the bottom of
the mountain. We thought ourselves pretty secure in this spot, and had
no wish to retire; but shortly a most terrific explosion which launched
to an inconceivable height in the air, immense fragments of burning
rocks, &c. reminded us of our dangerous situation. We lost not a moment
in retreating, and driven on by fear almost with miraculous speed,
cleared in about five minutes, a space we had taken two hours to climb;
we had hardly gained this spot when a second explosion more terrible, if
possible, than the former was heard. The volcano in all its fury vomited
forth some thousands of cart-loads of stones and burning lava. As the
projection was nearly vertical, the greater part fell back again into
the mouth of the mountain and this was again vomited forth as before. On
the 11th and 12th, the fury somewhat abated, but on the 13th a fresh
eruption commenced, and burning matter flowed down all the sides of the
volcano;--all Vesuvius itself seemed on fire,--not a vestige of property
for miles could be discovered, and thousands of families were ruined."