The northern tribune. [volume] (Bath, Me.) 1847-1855, 1848-04-06


footmen now took the lead, each going ahead
with his strap over his shoulder, into which
one of us put his arm, and so with "lusty sin
ews," being accustomed to the business, he
slowly dragged the faltering follower upward.
With this assistance even, we wese obliged to
sit down often the effort producing violent
palpitation, and in the case of one of our
company, severe but temporary sickness
At length, however, we reached the summit,
and having done justice to our "cold COLA
ton," and rested awhile, We proceeded to ex-
anime the wonders of both the Craters.
Passing over the edge of the summit. you
descend perhaps fifty feet, and find your
self on field of lava of all appearances and
shapes confused together. 1t is mostly in
aattish masses, broken, jammed, turned up
edgewise, crowded into heaps, yawning in
deep clefts, and altogether not unlike in ap-
pearance an accumulation of ice on river
burning freshet. The lava, as it boils up in
a fluid state, first cools in cakes upon the top;
and then by the urheaving and agitation, is
broken up and ground together in this man
ner. In walking over this mass which fills
the area Of the outer Crater, we soon came to
heat which rendered very necessary all the
protection which old shoes and boots could
afford our feet. Out of the assures, the hot
air and sulphurous acid gas came as from the
mouth of furnace; and on introducing the
end of cane. it was Immediately set ON fire.
The cone around the inner crater had been
formed entirely since the eruption of March
lS47; or within a period of less than four
months previous to our ascent. 1t was pile
of loose ashes mixed with lava broken fine,
into which the feet sunk ANGLE deep as We
climbed up, and the heat of which was in
tolerable. On reaching the top of this trun-
Gated cone, we looked directly down to the
depth of three or four hundred feet into a
bowl shaped cavity, in the centre Of which
and around the sides the smoke was oozing
out through the crumbled lava and ashes
There was no .Ro,oing lava visible in the inner
crater; but on descending into the outer crater
again, and attempting to pass around the base
of the inner cone, we had the satisfaction OF
seeing current of lava, some fifteen or
twenty feet in width apparently, which is
suing near the base flowed steadily down to-
ward the lower part of the great basin. Here
our guides dipped their cudgels into the stream
and brought out portions Of the red hot mass
into which they stuck coins with which we
furnished them, to keep as specimens. The
molten current was Of a thick consistency,
and flowed slowly, radiating powerful heat
and emitting sulphurous acid gas in great
abundance. An egg was here roasted and
passed round to be tasted by each person, that
we might omit no customary rite. And after
having attended to every thing in order, and
walked about among the smoking rubbish till
we we're satisfied, we addressed ourselves to
the descent. This is performed by locking
arms with your guide, and obeying the law OF
gravity on sort Of trot, plunging half leg
deep at every step, and getting on somewhat
as Millions hero does in chaos when, as the
verse runs, the fend-
DER hog or Steep through strait roaeh dense or rare
with head hands, wings or fee, p.asses ms s;s way
And sw inns or sinks or wades or cseeps or nies:
Returning to our horses we descended to-
the village of Portici, which stands directly
over Herculaneum. Here we entered ahouse
and passed through door as if we were going
down cellar, when we found ourselves in the
corridor Of the theatre. The discovery Of
Hercalaneum was made in digging well in
the rear of the house above mentioned. The
shaft was sunk directly into the theatre,
which was found to be in perfect state, but
filed with lava as hard as rock The eaeava-
ton was made by opening large aperture