New-York tribune., 1903-05-27
NATURES FURNACES.
4 Panorama of a Hundred poI-
canoes.

VOLCANIC STUDIES IN MAHr tANBs "A tBs ASfhoF Bfmg
- a hoe one Hundred Actual On9ecNs 49,
E;KpaHaIT9TXR IL + NG'gss g s. Etc octavo PIP. xviii.
60 Charles Scribners Sons
Though processing to be only an aila'e"i -
science DR.. Anderson has succeeded IN lrnpart-
ing great technical interest to what. IN oIher
hands might have been simply a plctuIe04U
presentation Of his subject In the choice u
features to portray, the selection Oh MS P04.-
Of view. his grouping and descriptions he ne
travs a remarkable familiarity with geology IN
general and vulcanology in particular MS
c,n,era has enabled him TO cover wide range
o4 territory He takes his readers TO four ols-
7inct scenes of activity In Italy and through
an extensive region IN Southern France stops
.-r,lv 4 moment in Rhenish Prussia, raInbtes oe-
lfherstelv around Iceland, visits several spo's
in the United kingdom. has peep AT 1he "a
naries. and then crosses the Atlantic 10 the west
Indies and the United States Some OF the VOL
canic rocks which he exhibits date back many
millions Of years. while at least one Of his Pho
-r-snbs that OF Peiee, represents incidents
which occurred less than twelve months ago.
Each Of his pictures has distinct significance
Nearly all OF them possess great scenic charln'
70 saw nothing Of historical or mythologlcal as
sociations- The collection is unique
Close inspection of volcanic processes Is GAN
rerous. II not impossible, when they betray
much violence Satisfactory study must be con-
fined mainly to periods of comparative or COM
rlete quiet DR.. Anderson furnishes ghr1PseS
Of the interior Of the crater Of NesuV1us "hen ~
mid eruption IS in progress but these exhibit
SO much vapor that the observer can see llolie'
The same may be said Of StronbolL An eA-
cen+jon 10 the rule is afforded by the geysers
o. Yellowstone Park Those manifestations oL
hidden forces are beautifully distinct, and re-
veal more than they hide What usually tens
the student tie most about volcanoes are the
form OF the earlier crater rims the stratihcaton
which appears in breaches. the minor CONES
formed within by later erupdons, creVlces on
The outer slopes and the shapes assumed DS
lava and other elected material Scrutiny OF
these and photography are pracIcaoie 'iiiS
under peaceful conditions
II the outset the difference between TWO
kinds OF vesuvian lava-the ashy. or cindery'
end the corded-is exhibited The former is pro-
duced Dr.. Anderson thinks, when the amount
IF vapor contained in the molten material Is
snaIl while the latter indicates larger proper
ton. The composition. the corded lava lhoush'
IS not quite the same as that Of the scorlaceous
variety and is closely allied TO the Stag o1 a
,roaeyn hast furnace for reducing iron ore. The
contour Of great masses Of volcanic rock ue
pends upon many circumstances. If the no"
the same as II it proceeded from crevice- An
outflow from an open crater will produce oll-
<eren+ results from lateral vertical Intrusion
underneath the surface Of pre-e2lstng loriia
rion. The product Of a single eruption may De
g. mountain, like some Of the Puys IN France
without crater. The presence OF the ia''eI
features shows that there have been at least TWO
outbreaks on one site. The hardness OF the
adjacent material is still another important
hat of
lava the surrounding stuff viii be worn away
nv rivers OF the weather, and leave fantasuc
..neclzs' rising from q plain, walls like the
Palisades of the Hudson. Few objects pictured
hv Dr. Anderson are more impressive tha1 these.
Specimens are found all over the world some
Of the -'buttes" in the Arizona desert have re-
suited from such action
These buttes by the way, like formations
along Snake River. illustrate the disposition OF
hasaltic lavas 10 crystallize into hexagonal COL
,,r7ns The most familiar instance. perhaps, is
afforded by the Giants Causeway on the north
shore Of Ireland. DR.. Anderson, however, has
photographed a number OF others notably in
the provinces Of Auvergne and Ardeche, France,
and in Rhenish Prussia TWO Of these in the
last mentioned region are unique Because OF
the horizontal splitting Of the pillars into thin
blocks the cave which they inclose was once
named the ''Kasekeller,' or cheese cellar. II
now goes by more poetic name, the elm
grotto." In the colossal mass Of the Mindeberg.
one can see two separate sets OF columns
neither Of them occupying exactly vertical
attitude. The tops Of the two systems converge
because It is suggested cooling took place from
above and not from the sides Of the hill
A not unusual effect Of a. operation OF that
kind IN q valley filed with lava, was the for
nation Of level crust the escape Of the molten
material below leaving tube or trough, and
the subsequent subsistence Of the surface. A
number Of chasms in Iceland have resulted from
that sequence Of incidents One Of the subjects
which Dr. Anderson reproduces is the so-called
Temple OF Scraps. on the mainland Of Italy,
not far from Naples. The region once sank far
enough for the ruins to become incrusted with
marine organisms and then was lifted out Of the
sea again. The interest which attaches to one Of
The Vesuvian craters. the Somma. is that 1t
was from that outlet is-1ed the ashen shower
which destroyed Pompei and is said to have
caused the elder Plinys death