Year: 1879

The History and the Drama OF a Great


Volcano.


[From Recent Lectu 9 by Rev. Henry G. spaulding


Mr.. Spaulding opened his lecture by
throwing upon the screen an outline map
of the Bay Of Naples ana the surround
ing country, showing the location of the
volcano and tre different towns in the
vicinity. He pointed out the different
localities, and the slide was followed by
one which gave view of a point On the
Bay Of Naples where the Roman fleet
was anchored under the command of
Pliny the Elder N the Oath Of August, A.
u. 70, when the eruption of Vesuvlus oc-
CURED which buried the cities OF Pomeii
and Herculaneum out of sight for nearly
eighteen centuries. Mr. Spaulding, then
paraphrased the letters of Pliny the
Younger. written to Tacitus, giving an
account that has come down to u.s. Pljny
writes that on the day named, a little
after one o'clock in the afternoon, their
attentions was called to the appearance
of the volcano which they conld see dis
tinctly across the bay from the point
where they were. The sister OF Pliny
the Elder called their attention to the
phenomena, and in the generosity of his
heart the admiral started to cross the bay
in one OF his vessels to render what as.
sistance he could to the distressed in
habitants. The third slide showed the
bay of Naples, and gave the direction
in which Pliny sailed across the arc of
the half circle, formed by the shore, to
reach the side of the mountain. The
violence Of the phenomena diverted them
from Pompeii, and it was in the attempt
to land in the midst of the horrors of the
eruption that Pliny gave utterance to
that sentence that has become a proverb
and so often quoted: "Fortune favors the
brave" The night was passed at the
villa of a friend, until toward morning
when they were aroused to fee from the
shower of ashes: They fled, protecting
themselves with pillows from the
ashes, until they reached the shore,
when, from some unexplained reason,
Pliny commanded his servant to throw
his mantle upon the ground. Laying
himself down upon it he was almost in
stantly asphyxiatcd by the mephetic
gases, the carbonic gas,etc generated by
the Volcano, as is always the case with
volcanic eruptions, and died. In his
second letter Pliny, the Younger, tells of
the flight Of his mothers household from
the villa On the point and their subse.
quent return after the eruption had
passed. The shower of ashes stopped on
the third day. These letters are the only
account of the catastrophe that have
come down to us. Mr.. Spaulding then
showed slide which gave picture OF
the mountain from the bay. It is in two
crests or peaks, one called Monte Somma
and the other is Vesuvius proper. He
called attention to the sweep OF the
mountain sides and to the smoothness
and granedeur and beauty of the outline
1t illustrated the sculpture of nature
when the agencies of frost and snow
were absent, a1d to illustrate he threw
upon the screen picture Of the mount.
aims over Lake Lucerne, in Switzerland
where the outline against the sky is rag
ged and broken. Coming back to the
volcano, the lecturer referred to the struc.
ture of the two peaks which form the
mountain. Monte Somma is the old and
extinct crater, and Vesuvius is built part
ly IN and partly upon the old crater
Although Vesuvius looks calm and beau
tiful in the distance, it is as restless and
active as youth and as tickle as love
We can trace its history, to certain de.
gree, back of the historic time, from the
indications that are still apparent
Monte Somma is $3.50 feet high, but the
height Of the cone Of Vesuvius varies
At present it is from 400 to 500 feet
higher than the cone Of Monte Somma,
but within the present century it Las
been several hun 1red feet lower. The IN
dicatiens are thatat one time, e,pe rhaps three
or four thousand years ago, there was but
one peak, but it was blown off by some
great convulsion, and formed with other
lava deposits, the promontory upon
which Hompeli was built. In the pro-
cess of time the disintegratien of the lava
formed very rich and fertil soil, in
which the vine and the olive fourished
and made the Surroundings of the place
like garden for fertility and beauty.
1t was, said the lecturer, fine example
of


THE IRONY OF NATURE


That after the volcano had formed the
site upon which the town was erected,
and after it had stood for centuries. it
should be the agent which should destroy
it. A number of excellent views of the
volcano and its surroundingsiwere shown,
one giving view of the crater. 1t was
in this region that the gladiator Sparta
Gus and his band were besieged by the
Romans, and the reigns Of the Empe1 or
Claudius. They escaped by making rope
ladders of the vines that grew profusely
about the crater, and lowered themselves
down the outside.


The next slide gave picture of Yesu-
vius restored, or as it appeared centuries
ago, before the present formation. Judg-
ing from present indications at that re-
mote period it must have presented the
appearance of truncated cone, but sue
cessive eruptions have built up two cones
which now form the summit of the vol
canic mountain.


Mr.. Spaulding then outlined the theory
OF volcanic action which now obtains
among scientific men. It is not that
there is within the bowels of the earth a
mass of molten matter, but that the heat
caused by the grinding and crushing of
the earth's crust as it slowly cools fuses
the rocks and causes the lava, while the
same contraction causes an upward thrust
which brings the molten matter to the
surface of the earth. If it comes in con-
tact with any great degree of moisture, it
generates an explosive force which mani
tests itself in the volcanic explosions.
Otherwise it was what is known as a
''quiet eruption" or a mere overflow of
lava. The eruption that overwhelmed