The Yazoo Democrat. [volume] (Yazoo City, Miss.) 1858-18??, 1859-01-08


we began the descent; the guides who were
anxious to do so acceded with tremendous
alacrity, Vesuvius having become G too hot
to hold us"
Our descent was fearfully ludicrous--with
the strong arm of guide assisting the
weaker ones, we began to slide down the
steep mountain at different place from
thatat which We ascended, and whore we
sunk at almost every step several feet
down deep into the ashes. Between sinking
down and rising up, and the accelerated
motion down such decl'vity, our m6tions
we're mot the most graceful. Slipping sJi,
ding, shutting, running, falling; ali com
blpakonsl that gravitaton and vii conld
produce, operated uronus lesuyilts builds
itself up by the lava and ashes elected from
the crater, consequently it is as steep as it is
possible for detached rocks to lay. These
lie outside Of crust Inside Of which may
be heard the hollow rumbiug aud roaring
Of the restless fires. We passed several
ancient mouths of the mouuain OUT ot
which, at varlcus eras, lava had been elected,
aud at length very glad, indeed we emerged
from the dark cloud enveloping the cone and
brcathed lresher and better air A gradual
descent now edus over various fields OF lava
OF ans elnt and more recent years, where We
had leisure to examine the strange appear
ances; the white sulphur ascending from it
the various forms it assumes in COOLING
the direction the streams of lava had taken
Descending we reached the observatory above
the Hermitage, on ridge 20S0 feet high.
We then came to the Hermitage where we
had ordered our carriages to wait for us.
We thought ourselves deserving of some
Irefreshment after our exertions. The wine
Lachryma Christe grown on the vineyards
of .Vesuvius, assisted to restore us, and We
reached Naples at six o'clock, glad ana
thankful that We had escaped, and firmly
resolved never to undertake to :" DO Yesu.
vius" in bad weather lest we should be
T" done for" But at the fue " Table d dhote''
of the hotel "de Russie,' discussing "pate
de foie gras," we found it not little pleas
ant to recur to the scenes Of the day, espe-
cially our discomfted, disconsolate appear.
ance on the summit Of Vesuvius, half
suffocated and scnseless. The height Of
Vesuyius above the sea is about 1000 feet.
1t has been in activity for 1900 years, but
previous to that time it appears to have been
dormant for 1000 years. Vines had grown
all over it, and on Monte Somma then near
the summit of the cone, was temple Of
Jupiter. Traces of the ancient eruptions
of lava yet exist. The lava IN running
down the mountain, proceeds at first very
rapidly as it is cooling, very slowly.
Persons can roast eggs on it, or encrust
pieces of coin in it and break them off.
Previous to an eruption the water in all the
wells and springs around Naples, diminishes.
Sometimes mouths open along the sides of
the mouutain--I5 have been discovered at
one time di>charging smoke and lava-the
noise being terrific and the ground heaving
around them for some distance. The smoke
arising from the mouths is highly electric
and discharges constantly vivid flashes Of
lightning. Sometimes the lava advan-
ciug near Tore del Greco, one of the towns
at the base of the mountain, rushes into the
sea in a stream of burning laxa from u to
40 feet in thickness. The sea was in a boil
ing state at the distance Of 1000 yards from
the shore. Sometim a stupendous column
of fire rises from the mountain $1,000 feet
high, Illuminating the whole country around,
at night, for miles distant The ashes Of
some Of the eruptions fell 100 miles of, a
snaca tbnv b,va travalad in two bonrs