The Brunswick news. [volume] (Brunswick, Ga.) 1901-1903, 1902-12-07
VIRTUES OF VOLCANOES.
rhey Furnish Mankind WIN Some Of 1t,

khey Furnish Mankind With Some of Its
Important Needs.
The crops of the country round Vesu-
vius were spoiled last spring by rain
charged with hydrochloric acid. But it
is the first time such thing has hap
pened Tor more than thirty years, and
this very acid in the small amounts
which the volcano usually gives off has
been largely responsible for the enor-
nous crops which this district usually
Yields.
The slopes of Mount Yesuvius pro-
luce, in fact, nearly treble the crops
which other neighboring parts of Italy
can be made to yield, and this is only
ono Of 2 hu~dred sch districts which
CO.. their fertility to the soil being
composed of crumble1 lava,
Even The dust which volcanoes eject
is often extremely valuable to the far
mers upon whose land it falls. In 1S12
violent eruption of La Souffriere, the
great st. Vincent volcano which has
recently given so much trouble COW
cred he whole Of Barbados with some
two inches of ashes. AT the time Bar
bados was suffering from a fearful
plague Of red ants. which rendered
some parts of the Island almost inhahi-
table. The dust Absolutely destroyed
these pests, and not only that, but dou-
pied the crop Of sugar cane the next
year. Tle fe-tilizing effects OF that
dust were visible Up to the year 1890
Not even the great rivers of the
world can compare in fertili2ing pow
ers with volcanic odtbursts. Tcmbora
at its last great eruption, emitted
enough dust to have covered the whole
of Germany two feet deep, and the
dust greatly improved the land it fell
upon.
But others besides farmers owe much
to the action OF volcanoes. Does it DC
cur to you that warfare and sport as
practiced during the past three or four
centuries would have been imnossibie
out for volcanoes? Gunpowder's most
important ingredient is sulphur. and
| sulphur is purely a volcanic product.
Another most indispensable product
of volcanic action is gypsum, better
known as plaster of paris Sculptors,
cast makers and surgeons alike would
be lost without this substance. Build
+ crs. too. make great use CT stones
which owe their hardness to having
been brought IN molten from the
depths OF the earth BIZ volcanoes. The
"tuff' Of which Naples is bIlt is an
old lava Of Vesuyius Bae< Is an
other volcanic stcae
All those beautiful veired or semi
transparent stones known as cnalcod-
cny. porphyry and Jasper have been
formed by heat and thrown rp into
our reach by volcanoes. Cay hes been
found turned into jasper simply by
the heat of lava stream which has
passed over it, Fels9ar and horn
/ biende are otker well-krown aud val
liable volcanic products.
The domestic use OF pumiee stone is
100 we'll kpown to need description.
Pumice is also employed in many ot
/ the arts and crafts. for instance, by
f painters to remove CID paine ifs,a ,iA..
Ter. Hundreds OF people gain a iyol-
( hood dw9lug pumico from the volcanic
district Of Middle italy Mention must.
l also be MADE Of rock crystai SO yaiaa-
bic for fine lenses This is a sort OF by
product Of The great volcano factories.
MIR. Rhodes would probably never
have been q millionaire but fer vol
tanoes The great bed Of niue clay at
kimberley, from which practically the
wh-.e Of the worlds supply Of dia-
monGs is now procured, is nothing but
( the core OF an ancient, WORKOUT
Volcano diamond is cnly a bit OF
carbon which hes been crystalized by
almost linimagipable heat and pres
sure The volcano has done easily
what all the art eff man can hardly
succeed in initiating. -Pearcon's Week.
".