Year: 1868

A correspondent of the Pail Nall
Gazette, writing from Mount Vesuvius,
April 4, gives the following unusually
clear and interesting account of one
of the explosive exhibitions of that
famous mountain: We had heard sew
eral explosions as we came up the
mountain, and had seen an occasional
shower Of sparks thrown up above the
little crater; and these gradually in
creased until we had taken our stand
as described. Then for more than two
hours the hill above us continued to
shoot forth an almost constant success
sion of explosions of brilliant burn
ing stones. | hardly like to use the
comparison, but | don't think | can
give Il better idea of it than by
saying that each explosion was like
vast girandole of rockets, only that
there was more speed about it, and
more variety owing to the different
sizes of the stones shot out, and that
there was more ntenselight at the first
outburst than in the case of rockets.
Flame there certainly was none-this
we observed carefully; though the
trails of the shooting stones, and the
Illuminated vapor, might almost ex-
cuse the word. The noise of the
discharges was not a bang; it was a
pervading sound, almost exactly re-
sembling the waves on 4 beach and
wind blowing through shrouds. 1t
varied in intensity, but was nearly
continuous and Of the character men
toned. The mountain trembled per-
ceptibly enough during the whole of
our stay.


1t is impossible Cor me to calculate
exactly but judged that there were
from 1000 to 1900 stones in each
great discharge, and there were often
as many as eight or ten discharges in
Il minute. The majority of the stones
were small-thc largest say as large as
two bricks end to end. The large
ones mostly fell back into the crater,
but the small ones being thrown high
and more acted on by the wind, fell in
immense numbers on the lceward slope
of the small crater and on the same
side Of the great cone beyond. To
my mind this was a spectacle hardly
less striking than the discharges them
selves; at any rate, it was quite new
to me. | have heard it said that the
cone becomes "red hot" under such
discharges. But this is not an accu-
rate description ofwhat L saw. cred"
is not the word, but "golden;" and
the cone was not covered even by these
copious showers! The sight was far
more beautiful than if it had been so.
The crowd of golden spots on the
dead black surface-the small ones
generally resting where they fell, while
the large ones rolled through them
down the slope, andth constant change
as shower after shower descended,
made variegated and beautiful spec
tacle such as was of itself alone worth
the ascent. 1t formed Wonderful
pedestal to the explosions which sur
mounted it, and which were naturally
the great attraction. | could not cal
culate the height to which some of the
small stones were thrown, but it was
very great. There was generally one
which went far higher than all the
rest, and pierced upward toward the
moon, who looked calmly down mock
ing such vain attempts to reach her.
The larger pieces were, with rare cx-
ccption, not thrown so high; indeed
many Of them onlyju appeared over
the rim of the cone, above which they
came floating leisurcly up to show their
brilliant forms and intense white light
for second. and then subside again
into the abyss.


A DAsHING young widow in Detroit