The connection of earthquakes with volcanoes has been already noticed;
and a remarkable occurrence of this nature happened in Java. Papandayang
was formerly one of the largest volcanoes in that island; but in the
month of August, 1772, the greatest part of it was, after a short but
severe combustion, swallowed up by a dreadful convulsion of the earth.
This event was preceded by an uncommonly luminous cloud, attended with
flashes of light, by which the mountain was completely enveloped, and
which so terrified the inhabitants dwelling at the foot and on its
declivities, that they betook themselves to flight. Before they could
all save themselves, however, the mountain began to give way, and the
greater part of it actually _fell in_ and disappeared in the earth. At
the same time, a tremendous noise was heard, resembling the discharge of
the heaviest cannon; while the immense quantities of volcanic substances
which were thrown out, and spread in every direction, extended the
effects of the explosion through the space of many miles.
It was estimated that an extent of ground, belonging to the mountain
itself, and to its immediate environs, fifteen miles in length, and six
in breadth, was by this commotion swallowed up in the bowels of the
earth. Six weeks after the catastrophe, persons who were sent to examine
the condition of the surrounding territory, reported, that it was
impossible to approach the mountain, on account of the heat of the
substances which covered its circumference, and which were piled on each
other to the hight of three feet. It has been reported, that forty
villages, partly swallowed up by the opening of the earth, and partly
covered by the substances ejected, were destroyed on this melancholy
occasion, with the loss of nearly three thousand lives. A proportionate
number of cattle was destroyed; and the greater part of the plantations
of cotton, indigo and coffee, in the adjacent districts, were buried
beneath the volcanic matter. The effects of this explosion were long
apparent on the remains of the volcanic mountain.
We here introduce a sketch of several curious and novel details of
volcanic phenomena in Java, on account of their intimate connection with
the subterraneous operations of nature in the production of earthquakes.
It may be considered as supplementary to the detailed account of
volcanoes given at the beginning of this work.
There are in Java thirty-eight large mountains, which, although they
differ from each other in external figure, agree in the general
attribute of volcanoes, by their having a broad base, which gradually
verges toward the summit, in the form of a cone. One of these is named
Tankuban-Prahu, on account of its resembling, at a distance, a boat
turned upside down: it forms a vast truncated cone. Its base extends to
a considerable distance, and it is not only one of the largest mountains
in the island, but a most interesting volcano. Although it has not for
many ages had any violent eruption, as is evident from the progress of
vegetation, and from the depth of black mold which covers its sides, its
interior has continued in a state of uninterrupted activity. Its crater
is large, and has, in general, the shape of a funnel, but with its sides
very irregular: the brim, or margin, which bounds it at the top, has
also different degrees of elevation, rising and descending along the
whole course of its circumference. This may be estimated at a mile and a
half; and the perpendicular depth on the south side, where it is very
steep, is at least two hundred and fifty feet: toward the west it rises
considerably higher. The bottom of the crater has a diameter of nine
hundred feet, but is not regular in its form, which depends on the
meeting of the sides below.
Near the center it contains an irregular oval lake, or collection of
water, the greatest diameter of which is nearly three hundred feet. The
water being white, it exhibits the appearance of a lake of milk, boiling
with a perpetual discharge of large bubbles, occasioned by the
development of fixed air. Toward its eastern extremity are the remaining
outlets of the subterraneous fires, consisting of several apertures,
from which an uninterrupted discharge of sulphurous vapors takes place.
These vapors rush out with an incredible force, with violent
subterraneous noises, resembling the boiling of an immense caldron in
the bowels of the mountain. When at the bottom, the force of the
impression made on the spectator by this grand and terrific scene, is
increased by the recollection of the dangers he had to encounter in the
descent; while the extent of the crater, and the remains of the former
explosions, afford an indescribable enjoyment, and fill his mind with
the most awful satisfaction.
The explosions of mud, called by the natives _bledeg_, are, as we have
already seen, a great curiosity. This volcanic phenomenon is in the
center of a limestone district, and is first discovered, on approaching
it from a distance, by a large volume of smoke, which rises and
disappears at intervals of a few seconds, and resembles the vapors
arising from a violent surf. A dull noise, like that of thunder, is at
the same time heard; and on a nearer approach, when the vision is no
longer impeded by the smoke, a large hemispherical mass is observed,
consisting of black earth, mixed with water, about sixteen feet in
diameter, rising up to the hight of twenty or thirty feet in a perfectly
regular manner, and, as it were, pushed up by a force beneath. This mass
suddenly explodes with a dull noise, and scatters, in every direction, a
volume of black mud. After an interval of a few seconds, the
hemispherical body of earth or mud again rises and explodes. In the same
manner this volcanic ebullition goes on without interruption, throwing
up a globular body of mud, and dispersing it with violence through the
neighboring plain. The spot where the ebullition occurs is nearly
circular, and perfectly level, and is entirely covered with the earthy
particles, impregnated with salt water, which are thrown up from below.
The circumference may be estimated at about half a mile. In order to
conduct the salt water to the circumference, small passages, or gutters,
are made in the loose muddy earth, which lead it to the borders, where
it is collected in holes, or salt wells, dug in the ground, for the
purpose of evaporation. The mud recently thrown up, possesses a degree
of heat greater than that of the surrounding atmosphere, and emits a
strong, pungent and sulphurous smell. This volcanic phenomenon is
situated near the center of the large plain which interrupts the series
of the more considerable volcanoes, and owes its origin to the general
cause of the numerous volcanic eruptions which occur in the island of
Java.
The tremendous violence with which nature marks the operations of
volcanoes in these regions, will be best exemplified by the following
details of the extraordinary and wide-spreading phenomena which
accompanied the eruption of the Tomboro mountain, in the island of
Sumbawa, one of the Javanese cluster. This eruption, which happened in
April, 1815, was sensibly felt over the whole of the Molucca islands,
over Java, and over a considerable portion of Celebes, Sumatra and
Borneo, to a circumference of a thousand statute miles from its center,
by _tremulous motions_ and _loud explosions_; while, within the range of
its more immediate activity, embracing a space of three hundred miles
around it, it produced the most astonishing effects and excited the most
alarming apprehensions. On Java, at the distance of three hundred miles,
it seemed to be awfully present. The sky was overcast at noonday with a
cloud of ashes; the sun was enveloped in an atmosphere, the palpable
density of which it was unable to penetrate; showers of ashes covered
the houses, the streets and the fields, to the depth of several inches;
and, amid this darkness, explosions were heard at intervals, like the
report of artillery, or the noise of distant thunder. Every one
conceived, that the effects experienced might be caused by eruptions of
some of the numerous volcanoes on the island; but no one could have
conjectured, that the shower of ashes which darkened the air, and
covered the ground of the eastern district of Java, could have proceeded
from a mountain in Sumbawa, at the distance of several hundred miles.
The first explosions were heard at Java, on the evening of the fifth of
April, and continued until the following day, when the sun became
obscured, and appeared to be enveloped in a fog. The weather was sultry;
the atmosphere close; and the pressure of the latter, added to the
general stillness, seemed to forebode an earthquake. This lasted for
several days, the explosions continuing, but not with so much violence
as at first. On the evening of the tenth, the eruptions, however, were
more loud and more frequent; ashes fell in abundance; the sun was nearly
obscured; and in several parts of the island a _tremulous motion of the
earth_ was felt. On the following day, the explosions were so tremendous
as to shake the houses perceptibly in the more eastern districts.
In the island of Sumbawa itself, there was a great loss of lives, and
the surviving inhabitants were reduced to extreme misery. It appears
from the account of the rajah, who was a spectator of the eruption, that
on the evening of the tenth of April, three distinct columns of flame,
all apparently within the verge of the crater of the Tomboro mountain,
burst forth, and, after ascending separately to a very great hight,
united their tops in the air. The whole of the mountain now appeared
like a body of liquid fire, extending itself in every direction. Stones
and ashes were precipitated; and a whirlwind ensued, which blew down the
greater part of the houses in an adjoining village. It tore up by the
roots the largest trees, and carried them into the air, together with
men, horses, cattle, and whatever came within its influence. The sea
rose nearly twelve feet higher than usual, a phenomenon commonly
attendant on earthquakes, overwhelming the plantations of rice, and
sweeping away houses, with whatever came within its reach. It is
calculated that full twelve thousand individuals perished. The trees and
herbage of every description, along the whole of the north and west
sides of the peninsula, were completely destroyed, with the exception of
a high point of land near the spot where the village of Tomboro stood.
The extreme misery to which the inhabitants of the western part of the
island were reduced, was dreadful to behold. The roads were strewed with
dead bodies; the villages were almost entirely deserted, and the houses
fallen down. The peasants wandered in all directions in search of food;
and the famine became so severe, that one of the daughters of the rajah
died of hunger. To judge of the violence of the eruption, it will
suffice to state, that the cloud of ashes which had been carried with so
much celerity as to produce utter darkness, extended, in the direction
of the island of Celebes, two hundred and seventeen nautical miles from
the seat of the volcano; and, in a direct line toward Java, upward of
three hundred geographical miles.
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