The Indianapolis journal. [volume] (Indianapolis [Ind.]) 1867-1904, 1885-06-14
VESUYIUS ON THE RAMPAGE
Two Events Which Caused Change in
the Plans of Rev. ]. C. Fletcher.
Opening of the New Aqueduct at Naples and
the Splendid PyrOtechnic Exhibition
Given by the Old Fire Mountain.

OF my trip up the Nile, which began
to give in my last communication, but two
events have occurred here in this city and i'm
mediate neighborhooj which, doubt not, will
be OF interest TO your readers. Therefore, as
clergymen say, l will improve the OCCASION
and at another time will resume the thread Of
my narration regarding the antiquities of Egypt.
The two events that referred to as occurring
hero, concern two elements directly opposite.
Water and fire will be my theme to-day Not
water and fire IN the abstract but in the con-
crete. for, last week whole river of water, pour
ing through gigantic aqueduct, was let into
city from forty miles away in
the Apennines-the kingly hand of the mon
arch Of Italy inaugurating its flow into
the great reservoirs: and TO the beautiful Queen
Margherita it remained to turn the faucet that
let in the water which sent up the crystal spray
through fountains whose jets are lofter than
any other in the world. And, as if anticipatory
and sympathetic with the OCCASION and desiring
to render it brilliant, one week before the in
auguration of the water works, old Vesuvius
got mp splendid display by opening his side to-
wards Pompeii, and sending forth a glorious
stream of redhot lava, which, each night since,
has afforded thousands of thousands of specta-
Stators in this city and in the surrounding
country such a brilliant display of natures
Pyrotechnics as only Vesuvius to use the Ian
guage of John c. Wright can show, when he
rolls up his sleeves, spts on his hands, aud goes
at it might and main. AS there was no danger
to man or beast-as the lava bed only reached the
Wild bushes halfway down the mountain and as
there was no danger to the rich vineyards and
orchards on the slope-all enjoyed the brilliant
spectacle without any qualifications or draw
backs
Let me speak in the first place Of the second
event, namely, the eruption of Vesuvius. Let
US look lAtle at the history of the old fellow
| suppose that the form of no other mountain on
our globe has been so often depicted and is so
familiar in models, paintings and engravings.
Any one who looks at the reality at sketch
of this volcano, taking Naples as standpoint,
will perceive that Vesuvius shoots up from
plain and that in the eastern distance is the
range of the Apennines, and that this range
bends round from its southern direction and
runs almost due west, forming that picturesque
tongue Of mountainous land, on whose northern
shores Castelammare 1.-THE ancient Stabiae),
Vico Equense and Sorrento the last we'll known
Harriet Beecher Stoves story of Agnes of Sor-
rento." The southern shore of this tongue of
land forms part of the blue Saernian Bay"
sung by Longfellow in his Golden Legend"
and the gem of the whole coast, the romantic
town of Amalf (also described by Longfellow. il
his beautiful poem entitled ''Amalf"l, is stu
ated on the mountain side, overhang
ing the azure waters of the Mediterra-
mean. Now, the distant Apennines and the
northern shore of the before mentioned tongue of
land are calcareous mountains, and rank amongst
the Oldest formations. They formed the
boundaries of greater bay than the present one
known to the world ''the Bay of Naples The
sea once laved the bases of those distant
Apennines, where to-day begins the richest and
most fertile prairie in the world, known to the
ancients as the 'Campania Felix" From the
bosom of the Mediterranean, in prehistoric
times, Vesuyius shot up and poured forth such
quantities of lava pummice stone ashes and
other volanic debris that the ancient bay was
filled up to its present limit, ana all these sub
stances forming, as ] said III former letter.
the richest soil in the world. The surrounding
mountains are ancient limestone, but the Cam
pana, from the present sea coast to Capua, on
one hand, and from the edge of the Neapolitan
bay to the Apennines on the other. is composed
Of volcanic matter eighty feet Deep except where
volcanic Vesuvius thrusts himself up to the
height Of more than 4, 900 feet
Now, when this best known and at present the
easiest accessible volcano began its work, no
deponent hath ever said, and no deponent is GER
tain of coming within thousands of years of the
time when the sea cloven asunder by the
powers of ire. This much is certain, that
when the Greeks who had Anglo Saxon emf.
grating procliyities, came from tar-off Chacis
and settled at Cuma twenty miles in straight
line west of Vesuvusl, the fremountains,
Ischa and Solfatara, and the lake Avernus
were other active volcanoes; but Vesuvius was
only mountain covered with verdure. Cuma
was settled about 1850 b. c., j. e., while David
was the monarch of Israel Vesuvius continued
to be fertile eminence to the ancients--a beau
tiful object in the landscape, without any one
having suspicious that terrible fires were hidden
beneath, until, in the year 10 A. d., Herculaneum
and Pompeii were overwhelmed by what is now
known as the P,;nean eruption, because described
by Pliny the younger In his two famous letters
to the historian Tacitus
From that day to this the history of Vesuvius
has been that of living volcano, with greater or
less intensity of action. Since the year 70 A. D.,
there have been seventy eruptions of Vesuvius.
What are called paroxysmal eruptions have
only occurred at long intervals, as in
1900 years not more than fourteen of
them have taken place. There have been but
five paroxysmal eruptions in 254 years. the one
of 1851, when, by earthquakes, lava, ashes, hot
water and mud four cities and villages were
either wholly or in part destroyed, and IS 900
people persisted; the ashes were carried as far as
Constantinop!e, and what was remarkable, more
than 1000 feet of the mountain was blown
off. or fell into the crater. The next great par
oxysm Of NeSuvius after 1851 was that of 1850
when the lava burst forth from an opening in
the side of the mountain, 1000 feet below the
cone, and finally, no less than fifteen mouths
opened and sent forth the lava to within quar-
ter of mile of the sea. In 1894 was the next
terrible eruption which began in February, 1893
and lasted until midsummer of tho next year
and which for destruction by lava has never
been equaled torrent of this liquid material,
like fiery. molten iron, issued, as in 1851, from
fifteen different mouths, and uniting liz one
vast. brilliant burning river. flowed steadily to
fife sea- cutting in two the city of Tore del Greco
where ii was from twelve 20 forty fest thick,
1.l27 feet broad and it actually advanced into
the sea (which is very deep at the point IN ques-
toni no Jess than 362 feet-but causing the water
to boil for 300 feet beyond where the lava stopped
The first paroxysmal eruption in this century was
in October, 1872, when indianapolis had had
but years legal existence AT this time 800
feet of the mountain was blown off, aud great
damage was done in many ways. The last of