The evening times., 1898-09-20
HAVOC IN ANCIENT DAYS.
Eruptions of the Mountain That
Live Forever i'm Histor5.

th
Since 1S4l Vesuvius has been under con-
stant observation by scientists. who have
been abb, to predict erup,ions but unable
TO foretell the extent of the 5ruptions.
Vesuvius is eigh; miles from Naples.
whose bay il oveTlOoks. at the eastern
extremity of a chain extending to tn
Island of Ischia Ii is believed that the
whole Gulf Of Naples was once an i'm
mense crater. the northern end of Il
great rent in the earth's crust. Aetna
being the sou hern end and Stromboli
about the middle.
All its base NeSuvius is thirty miles in
circumference Its height varies after
its eruptions. but the average is about
1900 feet Is great crater is some
2.0o feet in diameter. and about 800 feet
deep Ii consists of TWO distinct parts.
The north side is lofty. semi-circular
cliff called Monte Somma. which has
prehistoric crater. 1t is separated from
the active volcano by deep valley sew
eral hundred feet wide.
The EesuviUs of the ancicntS was a
truncated cone, with d base OF eight or
nine miles and a height of 4.Vo0 feet Al
its summit was a depressed plain, three
miles i'm diameter On this plain Spar
tacus. the gladiator fought Claudius
Pulcher.
There is no record of an eruption of We
suvius prior TO A. ID. 70, although the
latter-day scientists have proved that 1t
must have been active before that time
AT the beginning of the Christian era
the sides of Nesuvius were covered with
fields and vines and its crater was over
| grown with wild grapes.
II is certain that the people living near
| IT at that time had not the slightest idea
that il was an active volcano, for the
writings of Pliny the Younger and Tacl-
tus show that il gave warning FOR thlr-
teen years before the great eruption.
| There were series of earthquakes ana
| tremendous seismic disturbances.
The great historic eruption took place
| i'm August. The steam was condensed
| and poured down i'm torrents of rain,
| making the lava dust a pasty substance
| that poured down the mountain side and
| buried Herculaneum, at the west base;
| Pompeii on the southeast side; Stabiae,
on the south side, and Castellamare.
| which was beyond Stabiae. These cities
were inundated and forgotten, so that
| centuries after. when the remains were
| dug up moderns could gain a perfect
insight into the manners and customs OF
the time of the great eruption.
For centuries Nesuvius was quiet. Peo-
pie who lived about it forgot that ii had
once buried cities and killed thousands
Again did vines cover the crater and Its
| sides were cultivated fields. There had
been six months of earthquakes. but these
| were not accepted as a warning.
| Vesuvius burst forth in mighty fury
| on December I6. 1851, suddenly and unex.
| pectedly. II continued until February
1922 There was tremendous flow OF
| lava mingled with water, resulting from
! the melting of the snow and mud. Tore
Annunziata. Tore del Greco Resina, anC
Portia were almost wholly destroyed, ant
il is estimated that 1900 people lost theil
| lives There Was another eruption in 1860
| but only ashes and steam which formed
| mud torrents, came forth.
| One OF the very grand eruptions oc
| CURED in 1779. Huge stones were pro
| jectcd several thousand feet into the ali
| in a cloud of white vspor, with larg,
| masses of molten rock. Huge streams
| of lava poured down the mountain side
| carrying death and destruction.
| Vesuyius was quiet for few years
| but in 1894 ii burst forth again. Torr
| del Greco was again destroyed by lava