The Sun.
London, England, 1805-10-04 00:00:00

EXTRACT ..OE _A LETTER.

Yesterday, ,at ten o'clock at night, the eruption
of Vesuvius, of which the earthoake omm:A to be
the. forerunner, took place. :We:were going to visit
the Crater, when the cries of the people,,,and a •vo"
-Intne of flame, inforined us ,that.
'the volc,ano,had
•
opened. The lava precipitated itself, three,,, se,
'condp, from,. the last peak of the Mountain, and :took
a direction towards the valley situated between Torre
del Greco ,and Torre del l'Annuiata,' ove_towns on
the sea coast beyond Portici, and seven or eight miles
from Naples.
"'
,We set off .immediitely to see this wohderf4l
.
and .`tremendous phccnomenop; nearer. ,rent the
place of our departUre we, saw the whole. Course of
the lava, which -.extended already two
.miles from
the crater to the bouses,that join. the two towns.4=7-
The sight was the most magnificently
tfrightful that
could be seen. I contemplated the cascades of flame
pouring front the' top of the mountain,. and shud-
dered' at seeing an immense torrent of fire' ravage
the thick fields, overthrdw houses, atrd destroy,- in
a few minutes, the hopes and resources of a hundred
families.
" A lineOf fire marked. the profile of the moun-
tain ; a cloud of smoke, which seemed to send thrth,
from time to time, flashes of lightning; hung over 'the
scene,, and the moon appeared to be.pale. Nothing.
Can adequately describe the grandeurof the actine,
or give an adequate idea of the horror of it. As we
approached the spot, ravaged, by .thiS river of hell,
ruined inhabitants having quitted their honses—deso-
lated families trying to save their furniture or pro-
visions, last and, feeble resource—:m immense crowd
of curious persOns, retreating, step by step, from the
advancing lava, and testifying, by extntordi nary cries,
their wonder, fear„ and pity)—the frightful bellowing
of 66 mountain, the frequent explosionsburst from the bosom of the torrent,.,the crackling
of the trees devoured by the flames, the noise of
the walls falling; and the lugubridtis sound of a bell,
which the Religious of the Camaldales,
.isolated on
a little hill, and by two torrents of fire,
rang in' their distress. Such .are the details of; the
flftitlght Scefie;to which. , was Witness. .
The Moment we arrived, theldra*as crosSing-
the,great road below Torre der.pi'eco, TO. see it,
better, WC, got into a beautiful house op the rOad
side;. and frau) the tett:ice we. saw tiro tire at,.no mpre.,
than fifteen paces front us; in a in:
ed, and, to Minutes afterwards, there remained of
the house but three large walls:- I apppaiihed as
near as the heat and•flew of the current would per-
mit me. I attepspted, at different 'titneS;7fo burn
the 6iut of my handkerchief in it.; I, could only. de it
b, ty'ing it tothe eild 'of my cane. laVa ch)es
not run in liquid Waves : it resembles an itimilse,
quantity of coals on fire; which an invincible str,.!ngth
had heaped lip,atid puthed on with VioiollCe. When
it Met a wall, it colleded to thu beiele Of ,eienn
Or ten feet, burned it, ' and 'overthrew it at once. I
saw sorne:walls get rect-hot,, like iron, artuf. it
I may use the eipressioa, into 'the lava. In its
reatest speed, and on an frwizontai:ro34, 1 rco(onbci
that 'the torrent 'travelled at the rate of eighteen
inches a minute. Its smellyeseinbled that of iron
red hot." •
- • o