The New York herald., 1877-02-12

skin Is OF ,ustrous ebony hue and his features
strong iui Of character His eyes have an opaque
shrewdncss expression which, in the African race
is the symptom OF sagacty AKIN TO the worldly wis
dom OF the Yankee. HIS chin Is immense but does
not jut forth and Its form wears the stamp OF
an iron development His physique Is such AS
would have shono well the auctioneers arena
In the days or bondage Old Richardson has well used
tho blessing OF freedom gaming an Independence His
head is crowned by a short growth OF grizzly hair
There is kindly expression pervadng the whole figure
which accords well with tho title OF "Unclc." When
he talks you behold enormous width OF mouth.
which reveals series OF tusks, the hke OF which arc
rarely man. They are as large as those Of u
bear and OF dazzling whtencss. There IS vacancy
however, the front OF the lne which the record OF
sturdy tusse with whilom overseer IN the good old
days Of slavery In looking at the heroic mould OF the
old negro one could imagine with what lorttude ho
may have waited for the dawn while he wrested with
the tyrant shapes OF night.
DESCRIPTION ~ THE vERNACCLAR
Our hrst question about the mystery was enough to
open the sluice OF his knowledge and mingled
stream OF exaggerated information and ejaculatory
wonder flowed ,hcreirom. HIS sons grouped around
him respectfully and we listened He addressed my
companion .Jedgo" and by the less definite title
| OF s'sah %
s.Yuas Use done seen dat smoke sinceI'se
by, gwine dis tiry, forty years. Use seen II for
| long long time an never would ha' thought nothn'
of II nohow, p'rhaps had not de Jedge hycrc called
my observation to IT, Den, has watched for II
sincc and has taken big notc Of how IL has done
looked. Il pears likc II comos very quietly at
nrst and dcn gits moa, and moa Tor bout week.
Sometimes II rolls up ike do smoke from steamboat;
but do last time seed u separated into five largo
rrungs o. snivkc arter 'bovc trees. Dcn sab,
Use oitea dvlo seen big hight dc night do
san. dirccuon."
This the gist of his contribution to informa-
tion which, response to further inquisition was
diversified repetition by emphatic expressions and
gcsticulatioua Idcntically the account except
IN the orns of narration, IL told by hundreds OF
gioes
Tux THEORIES.
Now for the theories which have been entertained by
intelligent studied tho features Of the
mystery. They are few. mcagre and crude. Most Of
the elderly Inhabitants Of Jefferson county merely
shake their heads It and not
Some skcptical minds ascribe the smoke pres.
encc OF hunting parties IN the forest But there
lew bold thus 10 outrage the tradtionary rcver
due TO the apparton. Others hint that II may
arise from the chimncys OF several "corn crackers''
living many miles from other settlers. But 1t Is as
serted that volume OF smoke produced by kitchen
fire could be ut all at grca. distance from
tho hill OF observation, much less probable Is It that it
would appear such huge and conspicuous column.
VOLCANO?
Then pure speculation steps In and avcrs that It
might bc volcano which has thus mystcriously
Haunted It's black banner Tor many generations with
out discovery. Tho superficial mind WILL perhaps.
suggest that there would of the carths
surface in the vicinity or volcano, especially u 1t
scm-extinct, for such a condition would imply
that It's prime Of activity had passcd and that there
must remain about It heaps OF debris cast up from
vucan's vast snithy The theorist however, can
strengthen his position by illustration. Tho low land
is closely allied to the Estuarcs stretch into
1t and connected with marshes which feel the ebb
and flow OF the tide There evidences tnat the
whole region the floor OF and that, too,
not much earlier than tho drift period.
VOLCANIC ANNALS.
Instances Of volcanoes appearing In midocoan,
creating islands which afterward disappeared, arc
numerous Where tho has acted upon the debris Of
the eruption usually evelled 10 the common bed,
In 1888 volcano spurted up through the sea of tho
coast of Iceland clouds OF pumicc and nshcs, which
covered tho water for the space OF $50 miles Tho
Island of Ny0c formed but Its christening by the
Danish government proved IDLE, Tor It disappeared in
less than twelve months, but left rect OF rocks
behind. Sabrina volcanic island formed IN 1871,
near tho Azores. its rising 800 feet above the
sea of the southeastern coast Of Sicily thero
was about 1929, 100 fathoms OF water. In
1881 island appeared and elected lava cnders and
rocks Its greatest altitude was 200 feet an its cir
cum inference three miles. 1t sank in q few months.
The theory OF u volcano is just probable IN
ton with Nat and marshy region as with the ocean.
The theorists hold that the bliows washing this
region in the pocene agc may have lcveed whatever
debris there ever had accumulated from Submarine
volcanic crcptions Thus they demolish the negative
rsume that there no evidences OF such action
Tho fragments, they say, sank and sank and became
deeply imbeddcd in the soft auvlum OF the loor
They point to tho belt OF nty debris, to which have
alluded as the possible fruits OF later eruptons which
have not wholly disappeared in tho slime OF the marsh
These rocks not strictly volcanic, but II their
CHARACTERISTICS are to be simply explained they
may be lid 70 have taken ingenious bath-to have
tumblcd into a subtcrrancan lako OF molten mattcr-to
be heavcd up rs suddenly as II thcy had disagreed
with the carths digestion. Several legends, which
shall refer 10 fully In another letter, are told
which lend color to tho volcanic theory.
Is IT OIL?
MANY persons OF influence and means have been at
trac,cd the mystery by tho hope that its solution
might involve tho discovery OF source Of great wealth.
They have indulgcd tho idea that rose from burn
ing spring OF petroleum. Florida has shown elsewhere
positive evidences Of the existence OF the OIL although
she is not known 10 possess any beds Of coal.
IL 1T a NATURAL cRUcBLEY
Another theory which has been advanced s that the
smoke is produced by the contact OF sulphur with
iron. There arc many mineral springs IN Florida.
The waters OF some strongly impregnatcd with
sulphur and that Of others with iron Supposing that
Two streams of water thus imprcgnated had made
mingled deposits nt point where they meet and that
the channels aitcrward changed, the chemical action
caused would produce gas whose fumes would bear
resemblance to smoke