The New York herald., 1850-04-25

-sKEIoUs ACCIDENT TO oNE OF THEN THK nAsn-
NESS OF THE visrTKRs-AMERIcANs IN ITALY
MIMIC VOLCANO. ETC, ETC.
(Prom Naples letter Of February 2iI
The insuficrable dulness and gloom which have
reigned in this fair city for weeks past,
n'algve the Carnival and the usual halls and gale
ties, have at last been dispelled by the excite
caused by one Of the finest eruptious of Mount
Vesuvius ever known. For some twelve or four
teen days, the mountain has been in labor, giving
| manifest indications, by groans and wailings, Of
| bringing forth speedily something more than a
mouse. On the 9th, volumes Of smoke and yapor.
with occasional sheets of flame, were succeeded,
from time to time, by awful subserranean rum
| blings; and on the morning of the 7ih, the lava
made its appearance, running down the mountain,
the side of Tore Annunziata, in seven eight
distinct streams. On the evening of the latter day,
party of us ascended to the Hermitage, and
thence, on foot, with guides and torches, TO the
cone, from whence fine view was obtained of the
lava ut white heat, rs it was pumped out of the
crater and thence bent its way in the direction Of
| Pompeii and the Bosco Reale. This ascent was
| very fatiguing and dsagreeable, and of the
| party had narrow escape OF fracturlng limb by
| fall During the night of the 9Th, the roaring
and believing of the crater kept most people from
| enjoying their rest, and on the whole of the 9Th,
| volumes of smoke, lava, and vapor, together with
huge stones and serriG, were elected without in.
temission. On the evening Of this day special
train announced TO leave Naples at six O'Clock
| for Tore Annunziata, returning at eleven About
four hundred natives and foreigners availed them
Iugiesi, with guides and torches, and mules and
| donkeys, proceeded from the station at Tore An
nunziata to the Bosco Reale, which is about five
miles, through narrow lanes and country roads.
| There was cause for apprehension, however, as
| the government had taken care to send strong
bodies of troops, both horse and foot, for the pro-
lection Of life and property, and the preservation of
order. The sight that met our view on our arrival
| at the Bosco was grand in the extreme. The lava
| presented frontage of about at least mile and
| half. and was advancing slowly but steadily and
| surely, and devouring everything in its way, On
the road we had met parties of poor peasants carry
| ing beds, chairs potts. and pans, and other move
able furniture, which they had been able to save
| from the devourng liquid-the women and children
rending the air with their groans and cries, and
supplications to the good San Gennaro, the patron
| saint of these parts. These poor wretches were
thrown on the world homeless Penniess. BY the
time of our arrival, which was about nine O'Clock,
the lava had taken complete possession of the wood,
having devoured about half oft At times, row of
three or four hundred saplings caught fire smulta
neousy, producing vivid flame that lighted up the
country for miles around. Some splendid ful-grown
ilex oak and ash trees, offered in their ponderous
trunks, amomentary resistance; but II was to no pur-
pose, the larger ones generally exploding with loud
| report, and leap of twelve or fourteen feet in the
| air, to be consumed like tinder their descent.
| II was curious to observe, when, from sudden
| rush of lava, which always occurred after tenn
porary obstruction, how the larger trees gave out
tens Of thousands of little jets of steam from the
| knees and elbows of the smaller branches. II was
owing to the roots and trunks coming Immediately
and suddenly in contact with the lava, and before
| the whole tree had had preparatory roasting pre-.
viously to its final combustion In these cases the
tree generally exploded those, ON the contrary,
| that had had their initiatory grilling, generally
bowed their heads slowly and me mejestically, dying,
| like Cesar, in their dignity As this novel aud
brilliant spectacle quite absorbed our attention, the
majority of us lost the return train TO Naples and
| decided TO pass the night on the spot. There was
no moon, but the stars shone clearly, and the sky
| was cloudless; a cold hamontdla, however, on
one s'de, and the insupportabie heat o the advanc
ing furnace on the other, made it necessary for us
to keep revolving from time to time like bottleacks
before the lava to obyiatc being frozen one side
| and baked on the other. At about three O'Clock
IN the morning, the eruption was at its height. The
amount of lava was quintupled, and the masses Of
stones which shot up into the air descended with
| reverberstng crash. Ii was the discharge of these
| stones which caused a noise that rendered our
voices inaudibe. can only compare it TO the con.
| custom produced by the broadsde of three.
| decker The ground, At times, trernbled under our
feet, and a wailing, sobbng, distressing sound
| seemed TO indicate that nature was undergoing
| horrible subterranean convulsion and thus gave
vent TO the % throes and ihrobs" of her agony. At
about o'clock. the destroyer advanced to farm
| house and oubuilding, which seemed from
their sodity, being built of rubbc. stone, and
joined with the well known Roman cement,
likely to offer stout resistance. And here the
lava seemed to be endowed with conscious
ness and instinct. No sooner did il feel the
momentary check than il commenced rising like
the water in the lock Of canal, and from being
al its arrival about twelve feet Deep speedily rose
TO about thirty; and attacking the bomb-shaped
solid stone roof OF the main building, and at the
same time running in at the windows and doors,
caused a rarefcation and condensation of air that
made the whole concern sauter with n terrific re-
port A rery serious accidsnf nearly occurred at
the time, from the inoaufions curiosity of "free-
Son" e,t,-em Of Che States. When no trace Of
| the farm Offices was any longer visible,
| being covered 10y smooth surface Of liquid fire,
the poor agrculturt, the proprietor, together with
his 9'osa, their children, and some half dozen
| louts, set up yell, and beat their breasts, and
tore their hair in the tIuc Neapolitan fashion In
stead Of saving much they could from destruc-
tion beyond the mere bedding. they did not at
/ tempt To remove single thing; thus all the doors
and fittings, managers, troughs also about acre
| oi cabhages, carrots, and celery, together with
various gates and farming utensils, were allowed
TO be destroyed. There was ample time to move
these things, but they preferred bowling and cali
ing San Gennaro either 10 do Il for them, or
stop the torrent of lava.
A still more interesting and affecting spectacle
presented about an hour after, by the destruc-
tion Of small church, embosonied IN this naples W
wood. The lava here, as at the farm had rather
tough job, from the extreme soidity ofthe ciihce
and with sort of instinct and conscious pride in iis
own irresistible power. IL dashed forward 10 the
attack, despite the moans and chants of parcel Of
Fanciscan iIiars connected with the church. and
Of the mute sorrow Of the poor cure. The orua-
menis Of the altar, together with the pictures,
statues, and fnery OF the virgin and the patron
saints, and the parish records, had all been re-
moved but the incessant cnireatics Of the citre
failed TO induce his parshioners TO put their Shout
ders Ia two fine doors. and liz them of their
hinges TO place Of security, which they could
easily have done. The bells also might have been
saved with little oxsuioD. No; the virgin or the
patron saint would either appear corporeally, that
Is visibly, and stop the sacrilegous destroyer,
the edifce would resist and 90 scathelcss. From
time TO time the bells were tolled mournfuy, and
cure, monks. and parishioners chanted the funeral
| drge Of the sacred edifcc where most had been
baptized, and which was associated with all the
prominent parts of their little secluded lives. The
| lava here insnuatcd itself into the crypt Of the
| building, thereby undermining u 80 that Il was
| literally "tempe rent in twain. the two neal rlv
equal portions Of which rocked aud tottcrcd TO
their bese, and then fell-belfy, bells. and ALL
into the burning gulf Several passages Of the
Inferno" Of Dante called TO recollection this
night, and the divine poet ably describes what here
palpably and tangibly represented hell, though
upon earth. For half hour an intense DARK
green fame played where once stood the
doomed cdifce. caused perhaps by the fusion of
the bcll-mctal below In other parts blue flames
OF various degrees Of intensity and depth Of colour.
played and fickercd about All night parties ar